Lovely lady. Excellent advice. Obviously knowledgable. Very efficient. A totally positive experience.

Efficient, courteous and did what was expected. Easy to book and address any specific requirements.

As good as they’ve been as we’ve previously travelled with them.

Keith the representative we chatted with was very knowledgeable and friendly. Japan was a destination on our bucket list and he took us through the most appropriate trip for us. We are so excited to see and experience everything on the extensive itinerary . The free 2 night stay in Singapore on the return journey was an incerdible bonus.

I sent an email enquiry early yesterday morning. By 6pm we had our trip to Japan confirmed. We dealt with a wonderful professional consultant, Alexia Christou who sourced the trip and the flight upgrades within a few hours. She was so pleasant to deal with, the process could not have been easier.

Very helpful, friendly and informative. Was able to accommodate all my requests and helped me to decide what was best to meet my needs. The process was simple and stress free.

Initially the pricing was somewhat confusing as I never received a written priced quote. However after a bit of too and froing everything was resolved. A very inclusive tour, which was just what we wanted for our first visit to the country. One gripe is the rather expensive upgrades and some of the extensions. We will see after we take the tour whether the extra expense was worth it.

Very good. Helpful and informative.

Really informative and helpful.

Very good. Friendly staff. Informative, respectful and caring. No hesitation in recommending Wendy Wu. We have just booked our FIFTH tour with them. This time to Japan in 2026

Cheryl was so helpful answering all our questions, finding best flights etc.
It mad booking so easy

Brilliant itinerary, good guide and well organised. Good hotels and attractions visited.

Tour was very well organised and the guide was very experienced and knowledgeable. A good mix of the main tourist sites in the big cities and some smaller cities and towns that were less crowded. Sometimes long days starting early but I didn't mind that because it ensured we got to see more places. Some things could be improved - the quality of the hotels varied, although all were OK and no specific issues with any. The food was generally good but the Japanese food could have been more varied and showcased more of the amazing food available in Japan - many days had very similar bento box style meals.

Visited many amazing places. The local guide was excellent. Food and Hotels very good. Would. have ped a smaller group size but I suppose that would increase the price.

The itinerary is very good. Just what we wanted. The pace is quick at the start but more free time at the end. Perhaps doing the tour in reverse would help with jet lag. Good guide and coach throughout. BUT low score due to some very poor hotel choices and poor food selection. Given the premium price you might expect premium food and hotels. But not so. This is not about local vs western food. It is about the quality and value for money. Japan is cheaper than the UK so at a loss to understand penny pinching We have complained and await a response. I would give Wendy Wu a miss as the other well travelled companions told us of great experiences with other companies

Wendy Wu Japan Undercover - October 2024


This was my 5th holiday booked with Wendy Wu over the past 14 years and found some aspects of the Japanese holiday disappointing.

The size of the Japan Undercover tour group was 27 travellers in total which was far too large for a very busy tourist place like Japan. Plus with some within the group finding it difficult to visit some of the planned places of interest listed in the Wendy Wu Japan itinerary, because a large proportion of the group were limited in physical ability or stamina in so many ways.

This had several repercussions when visiting sites of interest listed in the itinerary like the spectacular Kiyomizu Temple, which was cancelled at the last minute and the group was given the option of going shopping with the Tour Guide or going on their own to find places of interest for the next few hours until rejoining the group again. As a keen amateur photographer of over 55 years I was absolutely furious as this was meant to be one of my highlights to capture behind the lens. I did not pay all this money to be offered a shopping trip as some means to compensate! I was not alone in feeling this disappointment . I do not think on this occasion that the Tour Guide made the right decision.

The slow moving group of 27, generally had less time in visiting sites of interest listed in the itinerary and on one occasion with limited time when visiting the snow monkeys, a large proportion of the group walked to the entrance gates at an average walking pace and paid for their own admission fee’s instead of waiting for the Tour Guide bringing the slower members of the group to the entrance gates. This give me and others valuable time to take photos.

Visiting Mount Fuji was also very disappointing with only 30 minutes visiting time allocated from getting out of the coach and returning back to our seats. It was a cloudy day ( not in anyone’s control) and waiting for a break in the clouds to see the peak was near impossible with the time allocated, with only a very few of the group managing to see the summit. Again a major disappointment for me. I shared the same view with others on the Tour that Kiki had not planned our departure time adequately . We were told that morning that the evening meal at the hotel was booked early, “at 6 o’clock” which left little time to return to the hotel from Mount Fuji .The hotel evening meal was rushed with plates taken away before some had even finished their food. We had to leave the table before the next Wendy Wu Tour group was arriving at 7 o’clock. Why on earth was a meal at the hotel at such an early sitting even considered versus the opportunity to see Mount Fuji. The food and service weren’t even worth rushing back for. This was not acceptable and I was not alone with feeling so let down by Kiki’s poor planning.

Sometimes the itinerary felt like a tick box exercise without having adequate time given to enjoy the sites of interest. It was apparent that too much time was allocated for midday food (lunches) and shopping within tourist traps. As stated before why come all this way to Japan at such an expense to be offered such a poor rate itinerary on some days.

On a positive note it was wonderful having a Wendy Wu representative meeting me at Osaka airport with a friendly face and being very helpful by looking after me and my travel cases for an hour until the hotel coach came to collect me.
Also the professional friendly coach drivers with their clean and comfortable coaches was really welcomed .
Our Tour Guide Kiki was also very friendly, helpful and hard working with such a large group in a very busy environment. In my opinion it was unfair of Wendy Wu Tours to expect such a large group of diverse ability to be managed fairly and equally by Kiki. It was evident that although Kiki did her best to manage the dynamic of our group, she did on occasions struggle with the challenges presented to her, by this inequity of the group composition.

However, I would like to balance my feedback and share that Kiki’s spoken English on the odd occasion was a little confusing, but her knowledge of the sites we visited and information provided to us was very good.
At this point I would like to point out that Wendy Wu Tours had promised that for groups larger than 10 people , the group would automatically be provide with both an international guide ( Kiki) and a local guide. We were not provided with a local guide for this Tour and an explanation was not given. This was not acceptable and once again this Tour was not cheap.

For our last night, the river and dining cruise was well received by my group with everyone had a wonderful time.

In summary, overall the contents of the itinerary was good but had we been given more time at the dedicated sites would have made the trip more memorable.

The hotels chosen, with their locations were generally of a high standard.

The lunches provided were not of a good standard, however on most evenings the hotel meals provided were good.

I believe for me this is now the right time to say goodbye to Wendy Wu Tours and to find an alternative travel company that better suits my needs and expectations .

It is sad that this last tour has not lived up to my expectations as the last four tours were great when I visited China, Vietnam & Cambodia, Myanmar and India . These were memorable for all the right reasons.

With sincere feedback I close with these comments… I truly believe that if Wendy Wu plan to maintain their status in this highly competitive worldwide travel industry ,that you need to seriously consider the size and make up of the dynamic , ability and age of the groups . Putting profit before quality is not in my opinion the way forward,

Thank you for taking the time and trouble to read my feedback.