Nara Adventure: Explore Todaiji Temple & Kuroshio Market via Auspicious Osaka Bus Tour
3.8
10 Ratings
Osaka
Immerse yourself in Japanese history and culture on an Auspicious Osaka Bus Tour that takes you to Wakayama Castle, Kuroshio Market, Nara's sika deer, and Todaiji Temple.
Duration: 10 hours
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights
  • Wakayama Castle - Wakayama Castle is a historical castle located in Wakayama City, Wakayama Prefecture, Japan. Originally built in 1585 by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the castle was later expanded and fortified by Tokugawa Hidetada in the early 17th century.

The castle was an important stronghold during the Sengoku period and was a key location during the Siege of Osaka in 1614-1615. It was also the residence of various feudal lords over the years.

Unfortunately, much of the castle was destroyed during World War II, but it was reconstructed in 1958 to its current form. Today, Wakayama Castle is a popular tourist attraction and serves as a museum showcasing the history and culture of the Wakayama region. Visitors can enjoy panoramic views of the city from the castle’s observation deck and explore the castle grounds and museum exhibits.

What's Included
  • Professional English/Chinese-speaking guide
  • In-vehicle air conditioning
What's Not Included
  • Other personal consumption
  • Admission to Wakayama Castle (Adult: JPY 410 Child: JPY200)
  • Admission: The Great Buddha Hall, Hokke-do, Kaidan-do, Senju-do, Todai-ji Museum (JPY 600 /JPY 300)
Additional Information

Immerse yourself in Japanese history and culture at Wakayama Castle, a magnificent landmark with a rich past. Indulge in freshly caught seafood and the exciting tuna dismantling show at Kuroshio Market. Don’t miss the chance to interact with adorable sika deer in Nara and visit the grand Todaiji Temple, a solemn and impressive World Cultural Heritage site. Join this unforgettable journey into the heart of Japan!

  • Explore the historic Wakayama Castle, a symbol of Japanese history and culture.

  • Visit the Kuroshio Market, known as the ‘Tuna Country,’ and enjoy freshly caught seafood and a fascinating tuna dismantling show.

  • Embrace the adorable sika deer in Nara, taking selfies and feeding these friendly creatures.

  • Witness the grandeur of Todaiji Temple, Japan’s largest wooden building and a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site.

Location
2
Hilton Plaza West Shopping Mall - Exit 4B 〒530-0001 大阪府大阪市北区梅田2丁目2 ウエスト
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
3.8
(10 Ratings)
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Kelvin
Nov 8, 2023
A great day trip to both Wakayama and Nara - The tour covers both the the Wakayama and Nara in a dedicated tour coach, it was great to see the countryside from Osaka city. It's not possible to make it by catching public transport.
Review provided by Viator
James_t
Nov 3, 2023
Great trip - Great stops and fully complete tour with perfect amount of time at each stop. Guide was informative and thorough
Review provided by Viator
Georgia_m
May 11, 2023
Great tour guide and value for money - POEY was an amazing tour guide and so friendly! Great sense if humour. Great day out at a good pace. We had plenty of time at each of the 3 stops to totally enjoy our experience. Definitely value for money - thank you so much Poey abd SA tours we will be back !
Review provided by Viator
Edwina_c
Apr 29, 2023
A Perfect Tour - Our tour guide was very positive and knowledgeable. The stops were first class and all my favorite. The amount of time at each stop was just right.
Review provided by Viator
Harry2030101
Oct 8, 2019
Amazing View in Short Trip - Very Short line up in buying ticket. Organized Que for departing to the cable car. The journey itself took about 4,5 minutes until the top, with a very smooth journey. Breath taking view from the car below until above. When we reach the peak, more picturesque view 360 degrees of the mountain surrounding until the eyes could see. very beautiful. in the peak itself they sell some snack, ice cream and coffee. So you could enjoy the view on the table provided with a cup of coffee. Well I suppose there is nothing else to do just looking around in that peak nest..usually people will stay maximum 20 minutes and going down again with a quite same smooth journey.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Clintonz
Apr 1, 2024
Not worth the money. - Wasn’t super impressed with this tour, the price included nothing. No attraction fees, no lunch. Bring cash! Since most all the vendors we encountered only took cash. Also all the temple fees just took cash. The tour guide spoke very broken English and you could make out only every other word. Still did an okay job, better than if I had to speak Japanese. I wish he would have told us more information about what we were passing, history, little tidbits that you can only learn from a guide since that is what you are paying for. This trip was payment just to have a driver. You could have done ALL of this stuff yourself and had WAY more time at each attraction - since you don’t have hardly enough time at each thing you see.
Review provided by Viator
Elaine_m
Apr 17, 2023
Good day out, great guide Alan - Great day out, Alan was a fab guide, nice bloke and explained a lot. Really helpful. Just a shame the weather was so bad. Recommend this trip and Alan
Review provided by Viator
Sightsee818835
Aug 10, 2023
Great tour locations, bad tour guide experience - Overall, this tour has three great and distinct tour locations that are more unique compared to other tours that just involve multiple shrines in a row. At Wakayama castle, you can view the castle and get a panoramic view of the Wakayama city. After that Kuroshio Market is where we got lunch as well as witness the Tuna cutting show. There's even a theme park right next to the market but due to the lack of time you can only mainly take photos and walk around. And finally, Nara park which is where you can personally feed friendly and tame deers. Location wise it is fantastic. Unfortunately, I still have to give this tour an average review mainly due to the tour guide. My tour guide was a part timer who goes by the name Marco. To be honest, calling him a tour guide can be considered a bit of a stretch as the bus driver could probably have taken over his job. First, he was mainly conversing in Cantonese (there were a few tourists who only know English) and when he was speaking in English, he wasn't very fluent in it and often left out details. There was even a time where he mentioned the time to return to the bus in Cantonese but failed to do so in English!! Secondly, there was hardly any "guiding" that was done. All he does is take us to the entrance of each tour spot, and then he leaves you on your own. This isn't much of an issue for Kuroshio Market since the bus parking is near the market entrance but for Wakayama Castle and Nara park, you can easily forget the path from where we came from the bus parking lot. In the end, this made me question what part of the "Tour Guide" was he actually doing. This feels like an extended taxi service where they just ferry you to the location, tell you what time to return and that's it. No guided explanation on the history of the tour locations. You could probably find more information about the locations via google than him. S.A Tours please take note. Perhaps you may be short on staff and whatnot, but if you're going to hire part timers that is going to "guide" half heartedly, please WRITE THIS IN THE TOUR DESCRIPTION. This tour does not have a "tour guide". It's just a bus conductor that will let you know where you are and that's it. Overall I can sum up this tour as basically for anyone that just wants to explore this places by yourself but does not want to drive there yourself. But even then, you will still be limited by time at each location, so maybe you will still be better off visiting these places on your own. Or at least not in this tour.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Reshma
Nov 4, 2023
Do Not Waste Your Money - DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY THIS IS NOT A GUIDED TOUR JUST A MODE OF TRANSPORTATION. If this tour could have been given -100 I would have given it that. We booked an English speaking tour but were put on a tour aimed at Chinese speaking so when guide gave any information regarding history or directions- it would 20mins in Chinese and 2mins in English . The guides English wasn’t even basic so most of the time for directions we had rely on being close to one of the other tour member or them giving us instructions in English! Before even starting the tour I inquired as to the language and was reassured that it was bilingual and be won’t have an issue. The tour it self only gives an 1 hr at Nara and Tenoji temple and 2 hrs at market where u need at most 30mins! Have done many tour through TripAdvisor and I am highly disappointed that they offer this tour and refuse to refund us for the tour. To summarize plenty of other tour providers and websites offering this tour so to avoid disappointment use one of them.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Innabtr17
Sep 24, 2023
Do not do it! - Waste of time and money. Out of 10 hours day, 5.5-6 hours was spent on the bus. First stop, Wakayma, 25 min tops. Didn’t have time to go inside, but spend 2.5 hours riding there! 30-40 minutes ride to the market. We were given 2.40 minutes to be there, when all you need about 1.30 max! Then 1.5 hours to Nara. Arrived to Nara at 4:45, shops were closing at 5 pm. We were given only 45 minutes there! No time to go in or around the castle. Then an hour going back to Osaka. Despite the fact that we paid for English language tour, it was mostly in Chinese. Our guides were two college kids, who were extremely sweet but didn’t know anything about history of places we went to. A colossal waste of our time!
Review provided by Viator
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May 2024
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