Testimonials

Mrs. Tsunoda

This was our first trip to Japan and this tour gave us everything we could have asked for. We went to the cities we wanted, with a tour guide who was knowledgeable, fun, and organized.

Ms. Thompson

Comprehensive. Lots of variety from ancient to modern sites. Well paced with time explore or relax. Guides were excellent.

Ms. Vesper

The tour was very well coordinated. We saw so much! And although there was a LOT of walking, it felt really good to be out and in the countries' environment, as opposed to simply driving by the sites. I especially liked our guide in Korea, Melvin. He was informative without being overwhelming. The hotels and food were high quality, too!

Mr. Scheller

Wonderful tour guide!

Ms. Thomson

Our tour guide was fantastic and very helpful. A true Gem. She went way far and beyond what one might expect from a tour guide. She was also exceptionally knowledgeable abut the area and the history. I am very grateful to her.

Ms. Seligman

Thanks to all of you for a wonderful vacation (even though Mother Nature didn’t cooperate, and we missed most of the cherry blossoms!) The tour was so well planned and organized, with a blend of nature, culture, food, and exploration, that we hardly missed the Sakura. I’ve come to understand that Hokkaido is beautiful at every time of year. In my 20 years as owner of a small tour company, I learned a lot. First: The guide makes or breaks the tour. I hired and worked with dozens and dozens of guides, many of them very talented, but not one of them could hold a candle to Miharu Katsume, who is one of the finest professionals (in any field) that I have ever met. Her attention to detail was remarkable; she never forgot any little item that might please or help a guest, once she found out about it. I’m sure your staff was responsible for accommodating my ridiculous food allergies everywhere we went, but Miharu went above and beyond, by making sure I was eating properly when my back went out. She refused to take ‘no’ for an answer! The fact that it was Golden Week would have been daunting for some guides, but not Miharu. She managed to find an emergency room, took me there, translated, helped me understand how to take my meds, and brought me home. Unbeknownst to me, she arranged for your Tokyo office to overnight a wheelchair, as I wasn’t walking steadily. As it turned out, the meds did their job and I didn’t need the wheelchair…..which was a stroke of luck, since my traveling companion, Madelon Thomson, fell and cracked her kneecap, requiring the use of the wheelchair for the rest of the trip! Madelon needed a lot of attention, and I observed the way Miharu cared for her with respect, kindness, and sometimes firmness. She wanted to make sure that everyone on our tour was able to take part in every activity. She didn’t want us to miss out on anything. As she said herself, “The word ‘no’ is not part of my vocabulary.” I can’t begin to express my respect for her. (If I were still in the tour business, I’d be begging you to clone her!) She brought honor to your company and your country, and joy to her guests. Next, logistics: This tour went off without a hitch, from my perspective as a guest (sorry to hammer away at this, but a great guide fixes logistical glitches without the guests knowing about it. There’s no substitute for experience.) The hotels were comfortable and clean, with very hospitable staffs. The Hilton was the highlight; ringed with patches of snow, it was still winter there, but the interior was warm and gorgeous and the dinner was beautiful, one of the most memorable among many fine meals that we had. The bus driver was outstanding. Through many long hours on the road, he was always smiling and helpful. In closing, I send my appreciation to all of you for everything you did behind the scenes to make this tour such a success. I’m a big fan.

Mrs. Strickland

We had a phenomenal experience with AJT's Japan Spring Highlights tour. The tour guides and bus drivers were exceptionally professional, friendly, and dedicated. The AJT team did a great job handling challenges that could have derailed other tours when a participant sustained a bad injury from a fall and disruptions due to increased security for the G7. This is a very trustworthy, diligent, and caring team. This three-week tour offered an incredible variety of sites (rural vs. urban), museums, meals, and hotels and never felt repetitive. The tour struck a right balance between guided experiences and opportunities to freely explore towns and cities. We really want to go back and spend more time in Japan as we felt that we just scratched the surface of what this amazing country has to offer. We would strongly recommend AJT and this tour to others.

Mr. Colson

Exceptionally well-organized and well-executed, with some interesting activities (like the drumming demonstration and "class"). Accommodations and meals were good-to- excellent. Rest stops were well-planned and generally excellent and/or interesting. The tour leader (Miharu?) was incredibly organized, energetic, and and hard working, and did everything imaginable to attend to ALL of the needs of ALL of the group.

Mr. Minn

Packed itinerary which was great and allowed to really experience the real Japan it's culture, food, people and wonde4lrful scenery and nature. Tour guides were fantastic, both Kim and Miharu were extremely knowledgeable and went wellbeyond expectations. Miharu particularly had to act as a carer after one passenger had an accident and had to go to hospital. Kim did a fantastic job on the day we visited Hiroshima, where she had to lead 32 of us on public transport

Ms. Weir

Wonderful tour. Exceeded all my expectations. Was fortunate enough to see the cherry blossoms blooming everywhere in Hokkaido. Our tour guide in Hokkaido was Miharu and she was lovely. She was very efficient, gave us lots of information and quite a few laughs. Our second tour guide for the last part of the tour was Kim Kito and she was also great. She was very informative and told us quite a number of entertaining stories. When Hiroshima was to be closed due to the G7 Meeting she bought us all breakfast supplies so we could eat on the bullet train to Hiroshima and then managed to get all of us to the Peace Park by public transport before the cut off time. Excellent service and she kept her good humour throughout.