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Tour guide in Kyoto Mike H.
I'm Mike H., your private tour guide in Kyoto
Guide #25080
Hello, my friends from around the world. I'm a tour guide, a storyteller, and a nonfiction writer. Kyoto offers almost endless attractions: World Heritage sites, food, natural beauty, history, arts and crafts—and, of course, many famous and busy sightseeing spots. Visiting these places can be great fun. But perhaps you would also like to discover another side of Kyoto—a quieter, more serene Kyoto, away from the crowds. If so, I may be the right guide for you. My specialties include samurai culture, Zen Buddhism, Shinto, Japanese aesthetics, and karesansui dry landscape gardens. Rather than simply taking you from one famous site to another, I share the stories and ideas behind what you see. I want to help you not only see Kyoto, but understand it. Our destinations change with the seasons and conditions of the day. Sometimes famous landmarks may be included, but the purpose remains the same: to discover Kyoto beyond the usual sightseeing route. My book, Yamato Ratio: The Hidden Language of Beauty, will soon be published. It received the Notable Book Seal from Pacific Book Review in the U.S. and the Indie Books We Love badge from LoveReading in the U.K.
Delivers tours starting at
Kyoto
Nara
Kobe
Tours by Mike H.
Customize your tour
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Traveller reviews
- Helen A.United Kingdom1 week ago
Mike is very knowledgeable and helped us around via public transport with great respect and showed us a quiet local shrine his explanation of everything was insightful and he was a true gentleman
Replied from the guide, Mike H.
September 2026Thank you so much for your kind words. It was a real pleasure spending the day with you and showing you not only the well-known sights, but also a quieter side of Kyoto. I’m very happy to hear that you enjoyed the little local shrine and the stories I shared. Thank you again for choosing me as your guide, and I hope you take home many wonderful memories of Kyoto. Safe...
- Ellen V.Belgium4 weeks ago
Mike is such a wonderful and helpfull guide! He tailored our trip as we wanted to see Himeji castle. Everything was organized by him in great detail. His knowledge and stories are just fantastic. He also made sure to make the trip very interactive for our 2 teenager sons. We really appreciated the manuscripts of his book he wrote he gave to us as this was very...
Replied from the guide, Mike H.
August 2026Hi Ellen, Thank you so much for your wonderful review. I truly enjoyed our day together in Himeji, and it was a pleasure sharing the history and stories of Japan with your family. I was especially happy that your sons joined in so actively and that you enjoyed reading the manuscript of my book. Sharing it with you made the day even more memorable for me. I also wish we...
- Howard P.United StatesJuly 2026
It's hard to describe how profound and lovely this tour with Mike was. Without going into the details of why this trip was important to our family, he customized the tour to our specific interests in a way that matched this beautiful line from his profile "Yet just a few steps away from the crowded tourist spots, there are often quiet hidden temples, peaceful gardens, and...
Replied from the guide, Mike H.
July 2026Dear Howard, Thank you so much for your beautiful review and for sharing such kind words about our time in Kyoto. Your message meant a great deal to me. I was especially moved that you picked up on that line from my profile about the “quiet hidden temples, peaceful gardens, and small streets where the spirit of old Kyoto still lives softly,”and that you felt that...
- Neal K.United StatesJune 2026
Our family has now taken 8 different tourbylocals in different cities. Some good, some great but this tour with Mike had something else…meaning. He knew how to move through the city unlike anyone I had ever seen navigate public transport. We had a big itinerary for a full day, he moved as if he sensed the perfect pace based on all EIGHT people’s energy level and when...
Replied from the guide, Mike H.
June 2026Hi Neal, Thank you so much for such a beautiful and deeply touching message. Reading your words has truly made my week, and to be honest, it is the greatest reward I could ever ask for as a tour guide. Guiding a wonderful family was an absolute pleasure. You all had such amazing energy, and your enthusiasm made it so easy for me to lead the way. Thank you again for...