Home > Kyoto > Fushimi Inari and Sake Brewery Tour
USD $106.00
Fushimi Inari and Sake Brewery Tour
Kyoto, Japan
Visit two landmarks of Kyoto’s Inari district during this guided morning tour. Start by walking through one of the iconic sights of Kyoto, the stunning red 'torii' (gates) at Fushimi Inari Shrine. Then learn about sake production and sample several distinctive sakes at the Gekkeikan Okura Sake Museum, before continuing your tasting at a nearby specialty shop that carries more than 80 varieties of sake. Your 3.5-hour tour includes a knowledgeable guide, transportation by train, all sake tastings and entrance fees.
Meet your guide at the JR Kyoto station then hop on the commuter train for the 5-minute ride to Inari Station. Located in south Kyoto, Inari boasts the charm of a small town as well as stunning scenery.
From Inari station, walk with your guide for a few minutes to the renowned Fushimi Inari Shrine, which sits on the slopes of Mt Inari. The temple is famous for its long tunnels of thousands of brightly painted red torii (arches or gates) that frame the pathways through the forest. It is one of Kyoto's most famous sights and a popular location for movie and TV shoots.
Originally dedicated to the god of rice, the Fushimi Inari Shrine now serves as the place where people come to seek blessings for prosperity. Those who have found good fortune return and place a torii inscribed with their thanks.
Once you have explored the torii, take a 15-minute train ride to the Gekkeikan Sake brewery to learn about the popular Japanese beverage, which is also important for traditional Japanese festivals and ceremonies.
First, step into Gekkeikan Okura Sake Museum where you hear a brief history of sake, which has been made by the Gekkeikan company in this part of Kyoto since 1637. See tools used in the traditional brewing process, which involves a combination of water, malt, yeast and steamed rice that produces distinctive sakes.
After seeing the museum, sample three different kinds of sake. Then walk a short distance to a sake specialty shop that carries more than 80 kinds of sake. Take a seat at the bar as the shop owner leads a special sake tasting.
Enjoy a few minutes to check out a local shopping arcade before returning by train to Kyoto station where your tour ends. 宜しくお願い致します。
My tour guide was amazing. My brother was sick and could not go on the tour. So, I was the only person on this tour and it wasn't cancelled. My guide was fantastic and made the price of the tour worth it with her insights at Fushimi Inari Shrine and the Sake Brewery. The tasting was great and I bought sake to take home to America the seemlier nailed my tastes in sake perfectly!. Fushimi Inari Shrine was great to see-one of the best shrines in Japan. Definitely go on this tour!
Review by: Stacy S, January 2018
The guide was super friendly and knowledgable. It was a fun and informative tour.
Review by: Janice H, December 2017
So awesome our tour guide was great! She explained things so well and was so cool how she shared her culture, Yoko was the best!
Review by: puishih, November 2017
It was a good tour, the guide was knowledgeable and helpful. Enjoyable experience. The sake sampling was great.
Review by: Sara D, November 2017
The tour guide was wonderful - adjusting the tour as needed according to the needs and wants of the 6 people on the tour 2 couples plus my son and myself. Fushimi Inari is amazing - HOWEVER, if you really want to experience the full impact of the shrine, you should go in the early morning before the tourists get there it takes about 2-3 hours to walk the shrine in its entirety. It is crowded otherwise AND the tour can allow only an hour or so for walking. YET IF you want to know the history of the shrine, what the various things mean, the rituals, etc., definitely go on this tour._br/_ As for the Sake Brewery Tour, it was very interesting - you get to walk through the museum you do NOT get to see Sake being made, including explanations of the various pieces of equipment you also get to enjoy a taste of several of the Gekkeikan products. The final leg of the tour is to a market where one can buy various items at excellent prices where you have a tasting experience in one of the better Sake specialty shop.
Review by: PETRE E, July 2017
Great tour if you want to discover the history of
Review by: Gizmetti, March 2017
Our tour guide was awesome. We ended up being the only group that signed up for the tour so it ended up being a private tour. She took us to the Fushimi Inari shrine and gave us a lot of information about the location, its symbolism, history, etc. All very fascinating stuff. After the Fushimi Inari shrine we headed to the Gekkeikan brewery/museum. We toured the museum while our tour guide gave us a great history lesson. We were able to test all the exclusive flavors of Sake found only at the brewery and browse the shop afterwards to take a few bottles home which were very reasonably priced. After the Sake tour we ended up at a Sake bar, the location in which I have forgotten but we had a Sake Master ask our preferences and then pick out four flavors of Sake for us to taste. The Master of Sake knows his stuff because all of us enjoyed the flavors presented to us. It was a great intimate experience with a tour guide who lives locally. She was very knowledgeable and very friendly. I would most certainly recommend this tour if you're a fan of history and sake. My group had a lot of fun on this tour. I would definitely do it again.!
Review by: Melanie S, March 2017
Small group experience with Youko, a sake afficionado. She was lovely and elegant and really knows her subject. First stop at the Fushimi Inari for a brief tour and lots of explanations from our guide. She knows where to stop to get a great photo...Then a nice small sake museum followed by a tasting in a sake bar in the market. Quite a bit of walking but very nice tour. Recommended.
Review by: Suzy Juraja J, March 2017
The guide Yuoko was brilliant. English was perfect and she gave us so much information. Was very patient and kind with our questions. However, I feel the tour is quite expensive for half a day without meals. I booked a whole day tour in Tokyo, including meal, tour bus and cruise around Tokyo bay for less. I suggest people look for similar tours with other companies perhaps once in Japan to save some money.
Review by: Elizabeth G, December 2016
There's a reason this heads up every 'must see' list of Kyoto: it is actually beyond words. Or even pictures. Just go, and you'll understand. At one point, my husband and I looked at each other and agreed, Yup, there's no way to REALLY describe this to anyone back home ._br/_ So let's discuss the tour itself, instead:_br/_ Tomoko, who spoke clear English and paid all our train fares, was an informed and friendly guide, sharing insights lots of travelers miss like don't walk up the center of the wide path to the temple: it's traditionally reserved for the deity!. In addition to the usual facts-and-figures, she shared how locals view their shrines and temples, and the motivations for people who have erected the magnificent Torii she actual knows someone who built one here, for example. _br/_ After viewing the lower third of the Shrine mountain, we took at train to a sake brewery, 2 tasting rooms, and a sake shop to round out the day trip. _br/_ You'll love this adventure!
Review by: Mike d, November 2016
The tour of Fushimi Inari is an amazing sight and definitely the highlight of the Shinto temples we visited during our week in Kyoto. Our tour guide, Junko, was quite facile with English and offered many helpful insights regarding the Shinto temple visit and sake brewery tour. She was also very helpful guiding us along the complicated train system to arrive at each of our destinations. The final stop at the sake bar/shop was a great opportunity sample and learn about the different sakes. The selection of sakes for purchase at the shop was also outstanding. As an added bonus, our entire tour entourage consisted only of our group of three travelers, making the experience feel quite VIP.
Review by: Ashley R, July 2016
This tour was amazing!
Review by: Emily S, June 2016
We enjoyed this tour. It was helpful having the guide explaining things about Fushimi Inari that we wouldn't have known on our own. The sake portion of the tour was a bit rushed. We stopped in at the museum for about 5 minutes and did a quick tasting without getting to really look around.
Review by: dobrolioubov, June 2016
This was an amazing experience. A great mixture of seeing a must-see shrine, learning about culture and religion, gaining a perspective on sake brewing, and topping off with a sake tasting session that didn't lack in variety and left you feeling great._br/_ Yoko Akamizu was our guide and she was easily the nicest person that we've come across in Japan. She went above and beyond with teaching about the country and even helped us buy baseball tickets online._br/_ I only wish that we would've taken this tour at the start of our trip because we had so much more appreciation for everything we saw afterwards.
Review by: Stephanie P, May 2016
Though it rained pretty bad my trip was awesome! Our guide was very knowledgeable and polite in helping us and answering any of our questions.
Review by: alerica2016, May 2016
We really loved this tour and our tour guide. She provided lots of information and answered all our questions. We had plenty of time to explore the areas on the schedule for this tour. Highly recommend to do if visiting Kyoto!
Review by: Shannon R, April 2016
Dont miss out! On previous trips I have been to shrines and temples without a tour guide and I totally regretted it. So when planning my trip to Japan - I would this tour and jumped on it. You should too - you wont regret it! Our tour guide - Yoshie - was amazing. She spoke perfect English and had so much knowledge about not only the shrine and sake, but also Kyoto in general, Japan foods and culture in general. It was like spending the day with a friend. Dont miss out and request Yoshie if you can!
Review by: Kate S, November 2015
It was a good tour. The guide was really friendly and informative. Thoroughly enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone.
Review by: Amanda M, September 2015
My husband and I took this tour with Yoshie in August. This was a great day, and Yoshie was an excellent guide. At the Fushimi Inari shrine, she talked us thriugh many of the traditions and rituals,,as well as the shrine's history and cultural significance, which really elevated the experience for us as compared to other shrines we visited on our own in Kyoto. She also walked us through the sake-making and -tasting process and told us some great stories about the sake brewing district of Kyoto. She kept us on schedule without any stress or fuss, had a great sense of humor, and was obviously incredibly knowledgeable about the subjects of the tour. I would highly recommend this tour to others!
Review by: Jessica M, August 2015
Very good tour, highly knowledgeable guide. For non-Japanese speakers, having an English guide in a place like Fushimi Inari is a must.
Review by: William F, July 2015
Very enjoyable tour. Our tour guide was great and gave us some interesting information. The Fushimi Inari is very scenic with an interesting history. Loved the sake tasting and museum tour. A great half-day tour.
Review by: Robert K, June 2015
Our guide Tomoko and her assistant Rita were excellent. First the basics. The meeting place was easy to find, the train transportation went smoothly, and they were both helpful with taking pictures. The mix of history, culture and sake tasting was just what we were looking for. Fushimi Inari Shrine is beautiful and Tomoko helped direct us to several spots off the beaten path that were less busy and allowed us to see the true magic of the site. But even more important Tomoko is an International Kikisaki-shi sake sommelier! Her knowledge of sake, food pairings and what makes good vs. great sake is wonderful. She provided us with materials on sake types and parings that I have kept to help guide my purchases back home. The tasting done in a regular liquor store, not a tourist trap included both aged sake and unpasteurized sake neither of which are really available outside of Japan. We bought two bottles of sake but there was no pressure to do so. Thank you to the tour company, Tomoko, and Rita for a wonderful Kyoto experience.
Review by: Gemma V, June 2015
This tour was amazing!
Review by: farhana.poppleton, June 2015
Our guide was very knowledgable and took really good care of us.
Review by: Hana, June 2015
Our guide was very knowledgable and took really good care of us.
Review by: June D, May 2015
A must do tour! We were lucky enough to be the only two on this tour, with a guide who spoke excellent English. Fushimi Inari is a fascinating place, and our guide explained all the customs and traditions as we wandered through. Afterwards to the Sake Brewery museum and store with plenty of tastings was a nice way to finish off the tour - then back to Kyoto station again by train.
Review by: Laura Rose I, November 2014
Was really good, learned a lot, and got to indulge in some awesome sake, now I know a good sake to a bad ones! Would recommend.
Review by: Juliet E A, September 2014
This was awesome! We had a great time!
Review by: NAMEETA C, April 2014
Good.
Review by: Derek C, April 2014
Another good day out despite the pouring rain. It was very informative
Review by: Nicholas J, April 2014
It was cold and wet but we had a great time. Well worth the trip. Best temple in town.
Review by: Katrina L, January 2014
My husband and I really enjoyed this tour. It was personalised - just my husband and me - and our guide Yoko was wonderful. Yoko speaks impecable English and she really knew her subject matter. Fushimi Inari Shrine is very different to other Shrines we have seen and is worth seeing, and the brewery museum was really interesting. We sampled and old and new style sake at the museum (my vote is for the old style), and tried 6 different sakes at specialst sake shop. A really great way to spend half a day!
Review by: Linda K, December 2013
Miata our tour guide was great. We learned a lot.
Review by: Reni B, August 2013
Outstanding! Our tour guide, Mieko, made it a first class experience. She went out of her way to cater to our interests and spent extra time with us, allowing us to enjoy the sights at our own pace, take all the time we needed for photographs, and relax with a wonderful sake tasting. A highlight!
Review by: bree, July 2013
Had a fantastic time even though we were the only ones on the tour. Yoko was great and we learned quite a bit-would really suggest this tour it was definitely a good time!
Review by: Jonathan M, March 2013
My guide was amazing, friendly, and a lot of fun to hang out with. I was the only person on the tour, so we became fast friends,
Review by: Margaret S, February 2013
I was the only one on it but it was interesting none the less
Review by: Chrystle W, February 2013
I was a little concerned with booking a tour online with a website I hadn't used before. But the guide was amazing, the tour was everything it said it was and I LOVED IT. My guide even taught me some Japanese words. Don't worry and just book it - you'll have a fabulous day.
Review by: Sam, October 2012
GREAT TOUR! We were the only ones on it so we had a private tour. All the tour leaders are Japanese women who have a lot of knowledge about the traditional culture. I was really impressed by the temple, it has hundreds of red temple gates making a kind of tunnel...I was kind of over temples but this was a highlight. Sake tasting was really fun and the brewery was cool and included a museum type thing.
Review by: akira u, October 2012
Paid over $100/pp for my group of four only to find a guide who could barely speak English and had never gone on this tour before. We had to stop twice to ask for directions to the brewery museum. I acted like translator for my group who could not speak Japanese. I feel I could I planned the same experience for my group and the guide did not add anything to the experience.
Review by: Tam, July 2012
This trip was simply great. Our tour guide "Tammy" was informative about Japanese culture and customs and just fun to be with her. We enjoyed the brewery tour as well and seeing areas of Kyoto that we wouldn't have found on our own.
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