Mount Koya Tours

Book a Private Mount Koya Tour with a Local Tour Guide

Mount Koya Art, Culture, & Historical Tours

One Day in Mount Koya. Feel the Sacredness and Holiness

Mount Koya
6 hours

Mt. Koya is a very important part of the World Heritage site “Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountains”. Mt. Koya is in Wakayama Prefecture and I used to work for Wakayama Prefectural Government as a general manager of Cultural Heritage Division and I was also in charge of the World Heritage Project. I know this sacred mountain very well.

FROM$256/ per group
Hiroyuki T.
4.96 / 5
(127 reviews)

【Okunoin, Garan & Kongobuji】 Private tour

Mount Koya
4 hours

We are a group composed of monks living in Koyasan. We spent long years as monks at temples in Koyasan. We studied Buddhist teachings directly from Buddhist priests of Koyasan and interpreted them to foreigners. Friendly young monks will be happy to explain daily living, training at Koyasan temples that a general public can not see, and important teachings of the esoteric Buddhism.

FROM$394/ per group
Koyasan resident guides N.
5.00 / 5
(9 reviews)

【Kongobuji & Garan】 Private tour with a Koyasan resident

Mount Koya
2 hours

We are a group composed of monks living in Koyasan. We spent long years as monks at temples in Koyasan. We studied Buddhist teachings directly from Buddhist priests of Koyasan and interpreted them to foreigners. Friendly young monks will be happy to explain daily living, training at Koyasan temples that a general public can not see, and important teachings of the esoteric Buddhism.

FROM$162/ per group
Koyasan resident guides N.
5.00 / 5
(9 reviews)

Okunoin&Ancient pilgrimage trails Lunch with panorama view

Mount Koya
3 hours

“Women Pilgrims Route” is said to be “the most beautiful trail” among the mountain paths around Koyasan. After attending a ritual in Okunoin, we are going to hike some of the “Women Pilgrims Route” that even forest experts recommend. At the end of the tour you will eat local specialties while watching the spectacular panorama of the mountains registered as World Heritage Sites.

FROM$355/ per group
Koyasan resident guides N.
5.00 / 5
(9 reviews)

Koyasan one- day exploring

Mount Koya
8 hours

we start from the west end of Koyasan mountainous Buddhism city, Daimon deva gate and finish at the east end of this highland,Okunoin through halfway points,Garan, temple facility complex and the general head temple Kongobuji. There are ancient stone monuments, neat row of age-old shops and Buddhist architecture. Guest would find out what they are with the beginning of Shingon Sect.

FROM$202/ per group
Tadashi N.

Meditation Experience

Mount Koya
1 hour

Private meditation hall surrounded by temple gardens.You can receive direct instruction from the monks. [Ajikan meditation] A 1200-year-old meditation method introduced to Koyasan by Kobo Daishi from the Tang dynasty. Explore your self in the pure air with a monk who guides people through daily meditation.The meditation hall will be specially reserved for you. Koyasan is a rare World Heritage Site that inherits not only Japan’s culture but also ancient India and the Tang Dynasty.

FROM$355/ per group
Koyasan resident guides N.
5.00 / 5
(9 reviews)

Koyasan three-hour intensive exploring

Mount Koya
3 hours

Shall we have a pleasure to enjoy eye-catching spots. In addition to Garan,Main spot, let's go to a temple inside, Kongousanmaiin,supporting temple of the head temple and also Sainanin temple.

FROM$67/ per person
Tadashi N.

【Private】Okunoin Cemetery Day Tour

Mount Koya
2 hours

Why don’t we visit “Kobo Daishi aka Kukai” together with the monk of Koyasan to Okunoin ? Monks who have license to guide in English take you an enjoyable tour to Okunoin cemetery. We will visit the following places: ◆ Gobyo is the place where Kobo Daishi aka Kukai still remains alive to this day. ◆Touching a tree of 850 years old ◆The biggest tombstone in Okunoin ◆Samurai graves such as Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi ◆ The monument of Matsuo Basho and so on....

FROM$162/ per group
Koyasan resident guides N.
5.00 / 5
(9 reviews)

Day Trips from Mount Koya

Reviews

N

Nena N.

5 / 5
Oct 6, 2024

Lima Walking Tour

Amazing service and very knowledgeable guide. Would highly recommend and will definitely use again. thank you

S

Suzie R.

5 / 5
Oct 6, 2024

Great Guide. Great Day!

Keiji was a very consistent communicator before the touring day and met me at my train exactly like he said he would. He had my name on the sign. He knows all the spots and the train/tram system and how to beat the lines at the Peace Museum. He was patient, informative and very pleasant to be with. We toured a garden (Shukkeien Garden) by the museum, took trams, fantastic local sushi spot for lunch, A-Bomb, Peace Museum and then to Miyajima Island on the ferry. Fantastic day and a very nice man. He has a good vocabulary in English. Things to note so as not to be surprised ~ It is custom to pay for the guides meals and treats and entrance fee/bus far etc. You will also pay about $5000 yen for his train ticket home again. So plan on spending extra money. The Ropeway on the island has the last up car around 3:15 or so (even though the hours say 4PM) so plan on leaving enough time for that. Keiji is a retired middle school teacher, a father and a husband. A very nice and positive person and he knows his way around. The Peace Museum and the A-Bomb site is very *hard* - so also going to the island where there are deer roaming and lots of food treats and a beautiful shrine is a good balance. The ferry ride is also lovely. And if you stay on the island til the evening you will see that gate all illuminated. ***** = five star review!

Keiji M.

Dear Suzie, Thank you for your wonderful review. I also appreciate your enjoying the trip in Hiroshima. I will use today's experience in my next guide. Tomorrow's Naoshima is very famous as an island of nature, architecture and art, with the Chichu Art Museum and the Art House Project and so on. There is also a public bath called "I Love Yu", which is decorated with art inside and outside, so please enjoy it if you have the opportunity to go there. Thank you very much for today. Best Keiji

D

David P.

5 / 5
Oct 6, 2024

Truly our own way...

An excellent guide! We greatly appreciated Koji's flexibility to accommodate our particular interest in having help with practical matters such as getting metro tickets and JR bullet train reservations. He showed us how to use the metro while taking us to the most important temple in Tokyo. We greatly enjoyed his historical knowledge; especially when pointing out the significance of the small Shinto shrines we passed on our walk. He also took us through the fish market which would have been difficult without him.

Koji K.

David I'm blessed that I could share wonderful time offering an introduction tour on the first day of your long stay in Japan! If you need any information, I'm truly happy to help so please feel free to contact me anytime. Best, Koji

L

Lee S.

5 / 5
Oct 6, 2024

Tour in style and comfort

Yoshi: Our family had an incredible tour with Yoshi! Cruising around in his convertible Range Rover with the roof down was such a cool way to see the sights—it made the whole experience even more special. Yoshi was super flexible, adjusting the tour to include all the places we wanted to see, and he even went out of his way to take us to Osaka. One of the highlights was a sushi spot he took us to that was filled with locals, something we would’ve never found on our own. Yoshi was so sweet and made sure everyone in the group felt safe, especially my dad, who walks slowly. He was really patient and thoughtful the whole time. He also took some fantastic photos of us throughout the day, capturing great memories. Yoshi made the whole experience feel effortless, and we couldn’t recommend him enough!

Yoshiroh N.

Thank you very much for your kind words! I am glad you had a good time and good memories! I hope you also enjoyed your dinner at Gion. It was my pleasure to help you all on your trip!

The best tours and activities

With a real local of your choice

The option to personalize your tour

Just contact your favorite local

Only private tours!

So no group tours with strangers

Private Tours in Mount Koya

Travel like a real local. With our lineup of varied tours we want to help you customize and realize your ideal tour in Mount Koya. Our guides can arrange for you to visit areas specific to your interests, so there will be no filler in the itinerary! Browse all the tours we offer in Mount Koya, and find the perfect one for you. The tours come in a variety of categories and lengths, so chances are you will be able to find the tour for you. Looking for something you couldn’t find in our lineup? Go ahead and send a message to one of the guides, they will create your tour for you! Teaming up with a local guide and getting their help in planning the itinerary is the smart way to travel, so let them sort everything out for you.