erica, yay, you figured it out!

on Windows, if the Post button didn't work then I would press <CTRL><ALT><DEL> and click Cancel to (probably) fix it

When we have used free guides before in Japan, we brought small gifts from our home (in our case Hawaii) to share with the guide. We have also done this when there was a nominal guide fee. We always asked for a nice place to go to lunch and treated the guide.

Like burta, I also bring a small gift from home for a free guide.

I have been to ryokan, not too recently, in Kinosaki, Yufuin and Gujo Hachiman. The main issue, I thought, was that I was a single person, not so much being a foreigner....

Thanks, all, for a fascinating discussion of cultural expectations and norms. I really appreciate it. I’ve learned a lot from this thread!

Me as well. We visited Japan once and were impressed by how well we were treated. Yet it's good to hear others experiences too and their opinions.

We had a stop in Hakodate in 2014 and were lucky enough to be given a tour by a rep from the Hakodate Goodwill Assn. for a remarkably low price. We did over her lunch and other expenses.

A gift is a good idea. As she and her hubby are baseball fans like me I sent them some Chicago Cubs souvenirs when we returned.

To this day we keep in touch too.

What a lovely idea! I also had a tour by the Goodwill Assn, in Kyoto. Of course bought the guide's lunch but would have been much better If I had had a gift to pass on. What are other ideas for gifts to take along, if one does not know the tastes of the guide in advance of arrival?

Good question.

A friend of ours in Malaysia works for Hyatt and she has twice gotten us great deals with friend and family rates in Oahu so I sent something Hawaiian like Kona coffee last year and this year will sent a Hawaiian airlines tote.

I suppose a gift that will remind them of the city or region of the client would be in order.

We took gifts from our home for the Goodwill Guides we had. We also paid for their lunch and entrance fees. I've only been to Japan once in 2019 and experienced nothing but kindness from the locals.

The free guide that we used in Nara from the YMCA was fantastic. What a wonderful person, very knowledgeable and generous. She spent about 6 hours with us and really was a perfect companion and teacher. We ended our day at the tourist office where the staff wrote our names in Kanji and helped us fold paper Nara deer. It is open for all and very comfortable. I did donate to the YMCA for their programming needs and it was appreciated but certainly not expected.

Welcome back, Rob. Thanks for reporting on this. Glad you enjoyed it.