Guided Tour of Nagoya by Car
Description
Join us for a comfortable private car tour for all ages of Nagoya and its nearby surroundings, guided by a fun and experienced local expert. Relax and enjoy the views and engaging conversation as we travel from one location to the next. This itinerary is a template and can be customized to suit your preferences. Tokugawa garden and Osu Kannon old shopping street can be substituted for the Toyota museum (1200 yen pp)or a bamboo forest, where you can walk and actually touch and lick the trees! It's perfect for the warmer (eg melting hot) and cold (frozen into a popsicle) times. This tour is especially recommended for Cruise ship passengers, as you get picked up at the boat terminal and returned there in time. There is no better way to see Nagoya than by car.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Nagoya Castle: Where History Meets Legendary Bling Welcome to Nagoya Castle, one of Japan’s most iconic and legendary strongholds, proudly standing tall in Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture, right in the heart of Honshu! Cool Castle Facts: Born in 1612 – Built by the legendary Tokugawa Ieyasu, the powerhouse behind the Tokugawa shogunate. Talk about a strong start! Golden Guardians – Spot the dazzling golden shachihoko on the rooftops! These mythical tiger-headed fish are said to protect the castle from fire—and they look awesome doing it. Style Goals – Traditional Japanese vibes with towering stone walls, bright white plaster, and an epic central keep (called a donjon). It's like stepping into a samurai movie set. Sky-high Splendor – The main tower stretches up to 48 meters (157 feet)—basically the height of a 15-story building!
t’s a beautiful Japanese landscape garden built on the grounds of the Owari Tokugawa family’s former residence. Highlights: Central pond and waterfall: A classic kaiyū-style (strolling) garden with a large pond representing the sea, with artificial hills symbolizing mountains. Seasonal flowers: Peonies in spring, irises in early summer, autumn foliage, and snowy scenery in winter.
Lunch time! If you're hungry (we can also skip this and eat something simple like a rice ball)we can go for some awesome ramen (noodles), or Nagoya's famous "hitsumabushi" unagi at renowned ungai shop "unagijo" or for the more adventurous, miso nikomi udon at Nagoya's famous Yamamoto ya.
Toganji is a Buddhist temple of the Soto sect founded in the 1500s by Oda Nobuyuki in memory of his father Nobuhide, yes rich and powerful people used to do those things. You can't miss the truly magnificent green bronze Buddha statue. It's 10 meters tall, and probably very heavy. There is also naked Benazaiten, a happy Buddha and the biggest wooden temple drum in Japan, maybe in the world....
Osu Shopping Street (大須商店街, Osu Shōtengai) in Nagoya is one of the city’s most lively shopping districts. It’s a covered arcade with a mix of traditional shops, modern stores, and street food stalls. Here’s what makes it special: ✨ Highlights Over 1,200 shops: From clothing (both fast fashion and vintage) to electronics, souvenirs, and quirky specialty stores. Food & Snacks: Karaage (fried chicken), taiyaki, crepes, takoyaki, bubble tea, and even international street food. Osu Kannon Temple: A famous Buddhist temple at the heart of the district, often hosting flea markets. Cosplay & Subculture: Known as Nagoya’s Harajuku, with anime/manga stores, maid cafés, and events like cosplay parades.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
I will pick you up at any location within Nagoya
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Wheelchair accessible
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Service animals allowed
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Specialized infant seats are available
- Transportation options are wheelchair accessible
- All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Reviews(38)
On our recent trip to Japan, my wife and I booked a Toyota museum tour in Nagoya through GoWithGuide. We took the Shinkansen from Tokyo early in the morning and were met at the station by not only our guide, Tomoko, but also her husband, Serge, who had just finished another tour. From the start, it felt less like a guided tour and more like spending the day with friends. Both Tomoko and Serge were welcoming, personable, and eager to share information about the area as we traveled. When we arrived at the museums, they handled the tickets and accompanied us throughout the visit. As a car enthusiast, I especially appreciated Serge's passion and knowledge. The first museum focused on the history of Toyota, the Toyoda family, and the company's remarkable journey from its beginnings to becoming the world's largest automobile manufacturer. Learning about their challenges, innovations, and forward-thinking approach was fascinating. The second museum featured an incredible collection of automobiles, and Serge and I could have talked about cars all day. Meanwhile, Tomoko and my wife enjoyed their own conversations, making the experience enjoyable for everyone. We truly can't say enough about how much we enjoyed this tour. Tomoko and Serge are knowledgeable, friendly, and genuinely wonderful people. If you're visiting Nagoya, we highly recommend booking a tour with them. It was one of the highlights of our trip to Japan.
Dear Gerald, thank you so much for your great review. It was a fantastic day for us as well, I was so glad I could make it back in time to join the tour with you both. I knew from mailing with Katherine that it would be awesome to meet you both and the reality proved to be just that...an awesome day. I really want to thank you both for your generosity, kindness and humor! We're both hoping to meet you again the future as friends, then we will treat you for lunch, as there are so many hidden culinary delights in Nagoya which I really want you to try. Until next time! Serge
What a day! Tomoko picked us up from our hotel and then took us on a day's adventure of her home city. Her knowledge was in depth, she had water and snacks on the go and made us feel very comfortable. We were given a tour of the palace and gardens and she even took me to get my glasses fixed which broke whilst in Japan. My husband especially loved the Toyota Museum tour. Tomoko was an absolute gem and this day was worth every dollar.
Dear Debbie, thank you so much for your kind review. Tomoko enjoyed it a lot as well. I wrote her a mail as to inform how her day went with you and she replied with lots heart and thumbs up emojis. (You should see the emoji she sent me after I wrote that I forgot to throw out the trash..). Thank you again for choosing us as your guide. I wish you both all the love, health and happiness and I hope our paths will cross again. Serge
Great day with Serge our travel guide. He knows the city well and shared lots of information. Engaging conversations and laughter throughout the day! Highly recommend this tour with Serge.
Thank you so much for the fantastic review! "Engaging conversations and laughter throughout the day"—that is exactly how a perfect day exploring the city should be. It was an absolute pleasure guiding you, sharing those stories, and sharing plenty of laughs along the way. You made my "job" feel like a walk in the park with friends. I’m thrilled you highly recommend the tour, and I’d welcome the chance to show you around again anytime. Until next time, keep laughing and safe travels on your next adventures! Love and hugs, Serge
Great day! This experience is great thanks to our guide, Serge. 😊 We are French and speak very little English and yet he knew by his good humor, his joie de vivre transmit us a lot of his knowledge during the visits. He puts you at ease very quickly and is also a fast photographer. 🤗 There should be "Serge" all over the world to make visits as attractive! 🤗
Veuillez m'excuser pour ma réponse tardive, j'ai été plus occupé que l'inspecteur Clouseau... Merci infiniment à tous les deux pour cette excellente journée, nous avons pu communiquer sans avoir besoin de beaucoup de mots. Quand on est sur la même longueur d'onde émotionnelle avec quelqu'un, la langue n'est qu'un luxe inutile. Je vous souhaite à tous les deux le meilleur dans la vie et j'espère que nous nous reverrons. Avec tout mon amour, Serge
We went on a one day guided tour of Nagoya with Serge and had the most wonderful time. He is a delightful and entertaining guide; it’s was like having a knowledgeable family member as a guide. Not only did he do a great job driving us around, he took us to several sites that were off the beaten path that turned out to be amazing. We also had a great lunch. We really weren’t even looking forward to the tour since we were tired just having flown into Japan but are really glad we did. Serge has a lot of energy and he passes that on to you. We were planning on driving ourselves in a different location later in our trip and he pointed out what to watch for when driving and gave us great ideas on where to go as we continued our travels. Book a tour with Serge; you will be very happy you did!
Thank you so much for your wonderful review! It was truly a pleasure spending the day with you in Nagoya. I'm especially happy to hear that the tour exceeded your expectations, particularly after such a long flight to Japan. Exploring both the famous sights and some hidden gems is one of my favorite parts of guiding, so I'm delighted that you enjoyed the off-the-beaten-path locations and our lunch together. Thank you as well for your kind words about my energy and driving. I always hope guests leave not only with great memories but also with useful tips for the rest of their travels in Japan, so it's wonderful to know that the driving advice and recommendations were helpful. It was a pleasure meeting you, and I hope the rest of your journey through Japan was filled with many more memorable experiences. You're always welcome back to Nagoya, and I would be delighted to guide you again in the future. Thank you again for choosing my tour and for taking the time to leave such a thoughtful review! — Serge
We were in Nagoya for the F1 race and wanted to see some of the city as well. This tour with Serge was a perfect choice for our family as he took us to visit the beautiful Nagoya Castle, a quiet temple with Giant Buddha, a popular market area for lunch, and a relaxed traditional tea house. Throughout the tour Serge shared lots of information/stories and was always entertaining, humorous and just all around fun to spend time with. In addition he took lots of pictures for our family which he sent to us promptly afterwards. We not only had a Wonderful day out but truly felt like we made a new friend as well! Highly highly recommend spending a day with Serge in Nagoya.
Thank you for your sweet review, I had a great day, but a bad day after...(Max didn't do so well). It was a truly fun day and I don't often meet people with 3 sons and dads with the same hairstyle as mine.. I hope you enjoyed your time in suzuka as well... It would be great if we could meet next year again during the F1 over a beer (or 2) Cheers, Serge
We had a fabulous tour of Nagoya with Tomoko. She answered all of our questions with kindness, enthusiasm and intelligence. We toured the castle, temple and OSU Market. We had lunch at a traditional Japanese Restaurant. The whole day was perfect. An added bonus was being picked up and dropped off at the cruise terminal. You will love this tour- we highly recommend it!
Thank you so much for your kind review, Tomoko always gives her 100% during her tours and your acknowledgement inspired her and gave her a feeling of strong satisfaction. She had nothing to say but good things about you, your kindness, generosity and humor. I really hope to meet you again in the future with the four of us. Hugs, Serge and Tomoko
Sergie picked us up right on time, smiles and laughs all day. His casual, knowledge of the city was very informative and interesting. Nothing was a bother and he quickly picked our likes and dislikes making sure we had a special day. His family values dropped neatly into ours which gave us insights beyond the tourism thing. Highly recommend Sergie. Craig and Jenny New Zealand
Dear Craig and Jenny thank you for your kindness, I really had a awesome time with you....and yes I love to give people more insight into life in Japan besides the usual "this castle was built in 1602, at 4:30 pm by a man with 11 toes..." I'm so happy you appreciated that. It inspired me to continue my style of guiding...Love and kisses
Serge has a a vest knowledge of Japan with a unique point of view of a westerner who has been in Japan for over 30 years. Serge stepped up and made the trip mobility friendly as adjusted the plan to accommodate my wife who is handicapped.
Thank you kindly for your heartfelt review....my excuses for the late reply, I've been busier than a monkey in a banana tree with tours. You showed me the meaning of love and dedication to your partner and life, you're there for each other during these tough times, and you keep your sense of humor and adventure on the top of your list. Thank you for letting me part of this time in your life. Love and kisses, Serge
Mum and I had a wonderful day with Serge. We had an interest in ceramics and their creators, and thanks to Serge’s deep research and connections, a beautifully curated 6-7 hours was curated. We went deep into Seto countryside, met with potters in their studios, stepped into heritage kilns and got a real sense of the craftsmen. Serge also arranged for a colleague to meet us at the stunning museum at Ceramic Park Mino. There was professionalism mixed with (a lot of) laughter and flexibility all the way. Thank you Serge!
The loveliest of days! You were both charming, witty, generous and blessed with beautiful aura's. From the beginning until the end I enjoyed every minute being with you. A great thing is that I also learned some new things along the way as well. I now look at my 100 yen cups and plates in a new way...how do I fit them all in a garbage bag?
