❖ Meet at Kintetsu Nara Station

09:30

Your English-speaking guide meets you at the Kintetsu Nara Station ticket gate. For guests at a Nara City hotel, a lobby pickup is arranged instead.

❖ Yoshikien Garden

09:40 - 10:00 (20 min)

Three gardens behind a low wall: a Japanese-style pond garden, a tea ceremony garden with its small arbor, and a tranquil moss garden that reads at its best after rain. A quiet start to the morning and a peaceful retreat from the bustle outside, minutes from the station, with the shape of Kofuku-ji's pagoda visible above the hedges.

❖ Nara Park

10:15 - 10:30 (15 min)

Stroll through Nara Park, famous for its free-roaming sika deer, considered sacred messengers of the gods in Shintoism and now protected as a national natural treasure. The park spreads at the foot of Mount Wakakusa, a wide green carpet that flows from Todai-ji's south gate down to the Kasuga forest.

The deer here are accustomed to visitors and approach without fear. Some have learned to bow for a treat, a small theatre that delights first-time guests and has been remarked upon for centuries.

You can feed the friendly deer with special crackers sold by park vendors (shika senbei), though remember to be gentle as they can get quite enthusiastic. Inside the park you can also buy various snacks and souvenirs, or stop at a traditional tea house.

❖ Todai-ji Temple

10:30 - 11:15 (45 min)

Todai-ji is one of Japan's most famous and historically significant temples. Founded in 752 by Emperor Shomu, its Great Buddha Hall (Daibutsuden) is the world's largest wooden building, set in a wide precinct of pine and stone. The approach runs under the Nandaimon gate and opens onto the broad courtyard with the hall ahead and a lotus pond reflecting the roof line.

Inside the hall sits a massive bronze statue of Buddha over 15 metres tall, containing 130 kilograms of pure gold. Behind the Daibutsu stands the celebrated Buddha's Nostril pillar, whose opening is said to match the circumference of the Great Buddha's nostril: a tradition holds that crawling through it grants enlightenment. Marvel at the intricate architecture, and explore the surrounding temple grounds, which are equally breathtaking.

❖ Kasuga Taisha Shrine

11:30 - 12:00 (30 min)

Walk through the park to Kasuga Taisha, an iconic Shinto shrine founded in 768 as the tutelary shrine of the Fujiwara clan and renowned for its thousands of bronze and stone lanterns. The serene forest path leading to the shrine is lined with ancient stone lanterns, creating a mystical atmosphere.

Inside, the shrine is adorned with numerous bronze lanterns donated by worshippers over the centuries, ceremonially lit twice a year during the Setsubun and Chugen Mantoro festivals (February and August). In April and May the adjoining Kasuga Taisha Shinen Manyo Botanical Garden opens its grounds, housing many varieties of wisteria flower.

❖ Kofuku-ji Temple

12:10 - 12:20 (10 min)

Head through the park to Kofuku-ji, the historic family temple of the Fujiwara clan that served as a powerful political and cultural centre through the Nara and Heian periods. Its silhouette is defined by the impressive five-storey pagoda (currently under renovation until 2031, wrapped in scaffolding), which stands beside a smaller three-storey pagoda and the National Treasure Museum, home to one of Japan's finest Buddhist sculpture collections including the celebrated Ashura statue, a National Treasure, and an extensive collection of Buddhist art worth seeing if Buddhist art interests you.

During the tour you will just pass by the temple complex; if you wish to enter, you can return later on your own or extend the tour length. Admission is 700 yen for the National Treasure Museum, 300 yen for the Tokondo complex, and 500 yen for the Chukondo complex.

❖ Lunch near Higashimuki Shopping Street

12:30 - 13:30 (60 min)

Your guide takes you to a suitable restaurant near Higashimuki Shopping Street. We can cater to dietary requirements, so please let us know in advance if you have any.

❖ Naramachi Old Town

13:30 - 14:25 (55 min)

Explore Naramachi, Nara's historic merchant district. Wander through narrow streets lined with traditional wooden machiya houses, many of which have been converted into charming shops, cafes, and small museums.

Among the places your guide may visit: the Naramachi Koshino-ie House, a preserved machiya offering a glimpse into Edo-period merchant family life; the Herbal Medicine Shop Kikuoka (Kikuoka Kanpo Yakkyoku), in business since 1184 under the twenty-fourth generation of the same family, where you can learn about ancient herbal remedies and buy medicine or herbal tea; Nakanishi Yosaburo, a traditional wagashi shop running for over 150 years, perfect for a sweet to accompany your green tea; and Nakatanido, where their high-speed mochi pounding displays are an entertaining sight.

Owing to Nara's many forests and pure clear water, the region is renowned for high-quality sake. Visit the Harushika Sake Imanishi Seibei Brewery to learn how sake is brewed and try a flight of five different types of local sake.

❖ Return to Kintetsu Nara Station

14:30

Your guide drops you off at Kintetsu Nara Station so you can return to Kyoto or Osaka, or at your Nara City hotel. If you wish to spend more time in Nara, you can choose to do so and say goodbye to your guide at the tour finish time.