Welcome to Japanify Tours, a Kyoto-based travel company specializing in intimate, small-group walking tours through Kyoto and Osaka. We're recognized in the top 1% of global experiences with the TripAdvisor Travelers' Choice "Best of the Best" Award for 2024, 2025, and 2026, and backed by over 2,400 five-star reviews.
We help international visitors experience the true essence of Kyoto and Osaka — beyond what guidebooks describe and tour buses reach.
We believe travel should be immersive, not exhausting. Our tours are designed for global travelers of all ages and mobility levels, with a relaxed pace, small groups (maximum 12 guests), and meaningful storytelling.
Instead of rushing you through crowded tourist traps, our English-speaking local guides provide historical context and a calm, welcoming environment — the way a friend would show you their hometown.
Small, hand-picked, locally based. The same people who built the tours run the tours.
Founder & Lead Guide
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Italian by birth, Japanese at heart. Aron founded Japanify Tours after years of guiding friends and family through Kyoto — and personally runs every tour whenever he's in town. Speaks Japanese, English, Italian, and German fluently.
Leads: All Kyoto & Osaka tours
Admin & Guide
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The first person you'll usually hear from. Teri handles bookings, traveler communications, and runs tours in Kyoto. Kyoto-based, bilingual, and unfailingly patient with first-time visitors.
Leads: Kyoto walking tours
Yokai Mascot
Meow
The most photographed member of the team. Silver doesn't lead tours — but he's the unofficial spirit of every late-night ghost walk we run.
Domain: Spiritual support
Interested in joining the team? Get in touch — we're always open to meeting locals who love Kyoto and Osaka.
Three experiences that explain Japanify best: iconic Kyoto, a full-day Kyoto combo, and our original after-dark folklore walk.
Our internationally recognized flagship: bamboo, temple gardens, river views, Monkey Park, and a relaxed local pace.
View TourKyoto's two biggest sightseeing areas in one guided day, planned so the route feels smooth instead of stressful.
View TourOur original night walk through haunted Arashiyama stories, yokai folklore, and the bamboo forest after dark.
View TourJapanify Tours was built to show you the Kyoto and Osaka that most travelers walk right past — the temples behind the bus tours, the lantern-lit alleys after dark, and the side streets where the cities still feel like themselves.
Our walking tours are led by local guides who know these places not from a script but from living here. Every tour is small, unhurried, and shaped by the people you meet along the way.
From the quiet temple grounds of Nanzenji to the haunted backstreets of Arashiyama, the neon underbelly of Osaka to the thousand torii gates of Fushimi Inari — we don't rush you through Japan. We help you understand it.
Whether it's your first visit to Japan or your fifth, Japanify is about connection, curiosity, and discovering Kyoto and Osaka as they're truly lived.
We'll get back to you as soon as possible — usually same day. Want it even faster? Most travelers find their answer in 10 seconds on our FAQ page.