Our family of 4 --2 boys aged 14 and 12--went on our tour of the Philosophers Path in the pouring rain so were nervous it was going to be a disaster but it was actually great. The rain kept the crowds away and Preston, our guide, was wonderful. He knew of temples not usually open to the public and took us to them instead of sticking to the normal itinerary which we liked. We all finished the tour feeling like we had learned something and were grateful to have done it as visiting the temples without an expert with you makes it almost impossible to know what exactly it all means. We loved Preston. First, as an American originally he spoke perfect English so we could understand him clearly. Second, he was very knowledgeable and passionate about the subject matter, which we could all sense and loved but he kept his explanations clear and reasonably short so was able to read his audience and understand to not go too deep into one subject. Third, since he had lived in Japan for many years and was married to Japanese woman he was able to articulate some of the cultural differences between the two countries/mindsights which we found fascinating and loved hearing about. All of us were very happy to have been on the tour with him and enjoyed our time, despite the rain.

This tour was a wonderful way to be introduced to the magic of Kyoto. Tai was a fantastic guide who brought the temples to life with his knowledge of architecture and Buddhism. He helped us find a great place for lunch and was generally a warm and friendly guide.

Marcin was an absolutely phenomenal guide! His passion for Kyoto and Japanese more broadly religious/spiritual traditions really shone through and he was exceptionally informative. I would have loved to have Marvin show us more of Kyoto!

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