Interview on Live w/ Katie Adler

Another exciting event that happened in February was that I was asked to be on Live w/ Katie Adler, a voice over artist in Tokyo, Japan, that works for NHK and many other clients.  I was really excited about talking with Katie about how I ended up in Japan, going from North Carolina, then Miami then to Tokyo and how I was able to turn some of my passions, photography, meeting new people and Japan, into what is basically my dream job:  guiding visitors around Japan to help them really experience and always remember Japan.

If you want to listen to the interview, you can click the link below to stream it or right click the link and choose “save link as” to download and listen at your convenience.  The entire interview about Japan and how I started giving private tours of Japan is about an hour long:

Evan Pike Live w/ Katie Adler

And just because it doesn’t feel right to write a post about Japan without showing a photo from Japan, here is a photo from Roppongi Hills Tower in Tokyo.

2013 Cherry Blossom Forecast

Every February brings (at least) 2 great things related to traveling to Japan:  The Sapporo Snow Festival in Hokkaido and the first sakura (or cherry blossom) forecast for Japan.  If you plan on visiting Japan during cherry blossom season, head over to the Japanese National Tourism Organization (JNTO) site for some great information.

Like the with the weather, predicting when the cherry blossom trees will be in full bloom is not 100% accurate, but usually it is within a few days.  Once the cherry blossoms are out, typically they can about a week or so, depending on the type of cherry blossom tree, size, location and weather during bloom.  After the sakura start to bloom, one strong windy and rainy day can shorten the length the cherry trees are in “full bloom.”  In any case, check out this graphic from the JNTO website or if you can read Japanse, you can go to tenki.jp directly where the JNTO gets their forecast.

JNTO’s Cherry Blossom Forecast:

Have vacation in March?  Let’s go to Japan!

There is still some space for a private custom tour of Japan with Japan Photo Guide!  Wanna take a last minute trip or hire me to come along on your already planned trip?  Contact me today!

Can’t make it to Japan to see the cherry blossoms?  For information about the cherry blossom forecast in Washington DC, here is a great place to get some information about the cherry blossom trees there.

Japan Photo Guide and PhotoSafari.ru Photography Tour of Japan

I am excited to announce I will be working with Dmitry from PhotoSafari.ru for an upcoming guided photography tour of Japan in the Autumn of 2013!  Dmitry leads photography tours for Russians all over the world and I am honored that he asked me to accompany him to Japan as his Japan specialist.  If you can speak Russian, you are welcome to join us!  We will be traveling all over Japan, including Tokyo, Hokkaido, Kyoto, Kamikochi and more!  If not, while I am accepting requests for private custom tours to Japan in the Spring and Summer of 2013, my fall dates are mostly booked.  Please contact me to see if I am available for the dates you want to travel to Japan with Japan Photo Guide! 

Special Deals on 2012 Summer Tours of Japan

Going to Japan in the summer of 2012?  Me too!  I will be traveling to Japan this summer in July to visit friends before they leave Japan and also to see family in Tokyo.  If you were to hire me for a custom tour of Japan, normally you would be charged my travel fees to fly to Japan, but I have racked up quite a bit of air miles, and since I am going to Japan anyway, this is a great chance to get a significant discount on custom tour of Japan.  Since  I will be in Japan anyway for personal reasons, I thought I would make myself available for some custom photography tours of Tokyo or Kyoto (or possibly other places) and also I will be available for portrait sessions in Tokyo or Kyoto. Tentative dates are the last two weeks of July of 2012, but I have a little flexibility on either side if contacted early enough.  Here are a few of the services I can provide this summer for you during your travels to Japan.

• Photography Tours of Japan —  Helping to navigate to around Tokyo, Kyoto or possibly other areas of Japan with photography in mind. 2 day minimum of guidance around Japan.
• Tokyo Food Tour  –  Some of the best (and worst) experiences of my life have been eating around Tokyo.  Everything from hole in the wall, to restaurants with Iron Chefs, I’ve done my fair share of eating around Tokyo.   With so many food choices in Tokyo, to say it is overwhelming is an understatement!  I will help create the ultimate foodie tour with you around Tokyo and of course helping to navigate Tokyo.  Whether you are in search of sweet, spicy, sushi, fried, vegetarian, upscale or food-carts, I can make it happen!  Minium of 6 hours.
• Tokyo or Kyoto Portrait Session —  Don’t really need a guide but want to get some photos to document your wonderful trip in Japan?  I will be available for portrait or family portrait sessions in Tokyo or Kyoto.
• Need help with something else while in Japan?  Chances are I can help you make the most of your trip to Japan!

Since I am going for some vacation as well, I am accepting a very limited number of bookings for Japan this summer, so contact me ASAP to get your Japan experience started!

13 Day Photo Tour of Japan | Few of My Favorite Photos of Japan

You have probably already seen some photos from my most recent photo tour of Japan when I guided a lovely couple from Turkey from Tokyo to Hiroshima and back, but here are a few more of my favorites from the trip.  Actually to be more specific, our photography tour of Japan took us from Tokyo to Hakone to Kyoto to Nara to Hiroshima to Miyajima to Koyasan and then back to Tokyo!  Really was an amazing trip and even I got to see some new places in Japan.  I’m already looking forward to the next guided tour of Japan in the Summer or Fall, but space/time is limited, so go ahead and contact me if you are interested in traveling to Japan with a professional photographer!

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