My friends and I will be in Tokyo for 3 days before heading to the Olympics. We really want to see Kyoto, but only have time for a day trip (I know, a day doesn't do it justice). We are looking for recommendation for a good tour company or private tour guides for the trip. Any advice is greatly appreciated!

You could do a Johnny Hillwalker tour

http://web.kyoto-inet.or.jp/people/h-s-love/

or maybe get a "free student guide" and wing it

http://www.jnto.go.jp/eng/arrange/es...uides_a-n.html

Not much time either way

Aloha!

I usually agree with ht but if I only had one day in Kyoto I don't think I would do J. Hillwalker - I did his tour and loved it but it is just about a whole day - from 10 to 3 - and I had a week in Kyoto. He gives you a lot of info but you don't do the more well-known sights.

I would check out the different sights using a guide book or japan-guide.com or other online resources and see what four or five appealed most to you.

Since Kyoto is so spread out it is a bit difficult to see a whole lot in one day.

If you plan well and get there very early, you could do quite a bit. The bus and subway maps are available online so you can figure out a good itinerary.

Enjoy!

Thanks for the suggestions. I don't think we can do Hillwalker since they don't seem to run on Saturdays or Sundays and these are the 2 dates we are considering. The japan-guide looks to be a very helpful website, so we may end up doing this on our own after all.

Thanks for posting the "free student guide" webpage!