Top 4 Sightseeing Bus Tours in Japan

1.Open Top Panoramic Sightseeing Bus with Audio Guide

★★★★★★★★★★3.8 · 254 reviews · 1h 10m · from $11Our pick

Choose a 70-minute City or Bay Course from Tokyo Station. You will ride past Tokyo Tower, Ginza, the Imperial Palace area, Rainbow Bridge, and Odaiba while GPS audio commentary plays in several languages. It is a practical first look at Tokyo for $11, though weather and traffic affect the ride.

“The tour was well organised once we found the meeting place. The audio guide was very good. My only criticism is that the guide spoke loudly over a loudspeaker in Japanese while trying to listen to the audio guide making it difficult to hear at times. I don't understand why the live Japanese commentary was necessary.”

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2.Departing from Takayama [Regular sightseeing bus] World Heritage Sites Shirakawago and Gokayama Ainokura

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 137 reviews · from $64

Travel from Takayama to two UNESCO-listed Gassho villages by air-conditioned Nohi Bus. A bus guide, including guides such as Yamashia and Ikuichinami, explains local history, food, dialect, and routes before you explore Ainokura and Shirakawago on foot.

“Nohi bus driver and guide were awesome. Very scenic and fun trip in the snow. No need to book with Viator or any other tour company. Just go to Nohi bus centre and buy a tour for 8000 yen. We paid A$91 each and I guess it’s just to pay extra to Prebook a date.”

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3.60min Panoramic Open Top Bus Tour with Audio Guide

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 40 reviews · 1 hour · from $14

Take a 60-minute panoramic bus ride from Tokyo Station with a Japanese-speaking guide and GPS audio in eight languages. You will pass Tokyo Tower, Rainbow Bridge, Odaiba, Toyosu, Tsukiji, Kabuki-za, and Ginza from an open-top double-decker bus. Bring your smartphone and earphones for the audio guide.

“We enjoyed the one hour tour it’s very comportable”

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4.Open Top Sightseeing Bus with Audio Guide

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 5 reviews · from $11

Ride an open-top sightseeing bus from Tokyo Station for about 70 minutes. Choose a Bay Course with Rainbow Bridge and Odaiba views or a City Course covering the Imperial Palace, Roppongi, Tokyo Tower, and Ginza. GPS audio is offered in seven languages, with Japanese-speaking staff at the meeting point.

“This is not a hop on hope of its a 60 min city tour, with no option to get off the bus at any point as it does not stop at any of the attractions. The recorded commentary was off sink with the sites. The repetead music between the recorded commentary was annoying. The city tour sites that we pass by gave us a good overview of the city.”

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