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Japan seemed too intimidating to do on our own and we would have spent so much more time (and frustration) figuring out where to stay, transportation, what activities to do, etc. Our group leaders were experienced, fun, and knowledgeable, the assigned tour director was fun and full of interesting knowledge about Japan's past & present, the variety of activities for all was great, and easy transportation everywhere helped us make the most of our time there.
Wonderfully planned trip with guided tours that made exploring easy with our family.
Our middle school students really enjoyed their experience in Japan! The activities were student centered and allowed the kids to immerse themselves in Japanese culture.
My son had a great time, the teacher who led the tour was very attentive.
This was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience! I highly recommend this company for middle school travel!
Excellent experiences and well planned. Teachers and tour guides all get an A+
Japan itself was absolutely beautiful, and my daughter and I will definitely return someday, but we will never travel through EF Tours again. Going through EF allowed us to see many famous sites and cities, but we spent the entire trip power-walking from one place to the next. We rarely had enough time to truly enjoy any location. Using the restroom or shopping for souvenirs often felt stressful because there simply wasn't enough time. On multiple occasions, we were "scolded" for arriving 3–5 minutes late to the meeting point after waiting in restroom or checkout lines. I understand that tour schedules are tight, but there needs to be a little more grace and flexibility, especially considering that restroom lines can be much longer for female travelers. It also became obvious that profit seemed to take priority over the overall experience. The hotels were acceptable, but nothing special. Our final hotel, which was supposed to serve as our base for Tokyo, was over an hour away from the areas we were visiting each day. That meant spending hours commuting instead of exploring the city. Our group of 16 travelers was also combined with another group of about 20 people, creating a tour of well over 30 travelers. That made transportation, sightseeing, and keeping everyone together much more difficult, and it made an already crowded destination feel even more rushed. Another frustration was the lack of itinerary transparency. We didn't receive our full itinerary until we landed in Japan, and even then, the times listed weren't the times we actually followed. Nearly every stop was shortened by 10–15 minutes, leaving even less time than expected to explore, eat, shop, or simply take in the experience. If you're looking for a fast-paced trip where you'll see a lot of famous places but spend very little time at each one, EF Tours may be a good fit. Just be prepared for constant power-walking, limited bathroom breaks, minimal shopping time, and a schedule that changes frequently. That said, as a first-time international traveler, I do appreciate that EF handled the logistics, transportation, hotels, and provided a knowledgeable tour director who also served as a translator. Those services helped reduce the stress of traveling abroad for the first time. However, I do think there is room for improvement when it comes to communication, patience, and understanding with travelers. Now that I've experienced international travel, I would absolutely choose a private travel agent or plan the trip myself instead. For the price of an EF tour, I expected a much more enjoyable and less rushed experience. Japan exceeded every expectation I had, but unfortunately, EF Tours did not.
Great opportunity to learn more about a country while participating in fun classes and absorbing as much as possible. We really enjoyed it!
Fantastic experience, would highly recommend!
Enjoyed the trip and the experience
Overall the trip was great not long enough. We were far away from things spent a lot of time in the bus and walking . We felt rushed to see things and only got to see half of what was at each location. The first hotel was nice and food was great. The second hotel was a dump. Too far from things spent more time in the bus than at sight. The tour guide was great but walked fast and did t give us enough time at things there was time we had to choose between eating or sight seeing.
Awesome tour - would go again in a heartbeat. Great balance between history/culture and hands-on learning experiences for the students. Japan felt very safe. Our tour director was excellent as usual with EF. The food was good but if you didn’t like something there were always opportunities to go to a convenience store to pick snacks - so no one went hungry on this tour. I loved that this itinerary had so many of the iconic places to visit in Japan and we did so much in such a short time. If you are on the fence about this tour - just go ahead and do it - you won’t regret it. My only complaint was how far our second hotel was outside of Tokyo so it took a long time to go in and out of the city for that portion of the tour but sometimes after a long day a restful bus ride isn’t so bad.
Kids had a great time but I'd say it needs some tweaking for the middle school population. Needs more of a variety of education/culture and a better balance of middle school fun activities
Japan is very safe and unique. Kids had a blast and learned a lot. Worked with great vendors and tour directors who were knowledgeable and fun.
Excellent trip!
The students loved the tour guide and all she had to offer. Overall a wonderful trip!
The chaperones did a great job of providing a daily update as to what the kids did. They also provided a ton of photos which I loved seeing and living vicariously through. I also loved the shout outs at the end of the day. That is a great way to reward and encourage exemplary behavior.
Great experience with a wonderful variety of well organized activities
Absolutely stellar!
Both of my kids attended the Middle School: Explore Japan trip. They enjoyed meeting new friends on the trip from other schools, and our incredible tour guide, Syafiq, who made the trip so much fun! Other highlights include planned excursions like the Nara Deer Park, meals together and figuring out meals on their own, visiting Shrines and Temples, the Bullet Train (Shinkansen), the Pokemon Center, Tokyo Tower, and exploring Kyoto and the Kansai region. The only thing they wanted was more time on the trip; they did not want to come home, and neither did I. We had the best time, and EF made it possible for us to fulfill our dream of seeing Japan!
