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Gotokuji Temple Tour: Discover Manekineko Figurines
5.0
10 Ratings
Setagaya City
Discover Gotokuji’s lucky cats on a private tour. Explore historic temples, savor local cuisine, and stroll through charming shopping districts.
Discover Gotokuji’s lucky cats on a private tour. Explore historic temples, savor local cuisine, and stroll through charming shopping districts.
Duration:
3 hours, 30 minutes
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Shoin Shrine - Shoin Shrine: A shrine dedicated to Shoin Yoshida who was an educator and philosopher in the 19th century. There are stone lanterns and a stage for playing music to the gods. Feel the holy atmosphere.
- Shōin Shrine Avenue Shōei-kai Shopping Street Promotion Union - Shoin Shrine Street shopping district: A shopping district with…
- Shoin Shrine - Shoin Shrine: A shrine dedicated to Shoin Yoshida who was an educator and philosopher in the 19th century. There are stone lanterns and a stage for playing music to the gods. Feel the holy atmosphere.
- Shōin Shrine Avenue Shōei-kai Shopping Street Promotion Union - Shoin Shrine Street shopping district: A shopping district with long-established shops and some with interesting items - full of shops you want to drop-in and visit.
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Site of Setagaya Daikan’s Residence - Setagaya Daikanyashiki: A Japanese traditional mansion of a clan who ruled the area in the Edo era (1700~1900 AD).
You will feel as if you’ve gone back in time and are visiting a Japanese person’s home because the place has been kept as an upper-class residence! - Setagaya Local History Museum - Setagaya Local History Museum: Let’s learn Setagaya’s history at the museum located next to Setagaya Daikanyashiki. You can learn about literature and paintings from the Edo era, as well as the history of the 500 year old market.
- Gotokuji Temple - Gotokuji temple: Do you know about manekineko (beckoning cat) which is a cat figurine thought to bring good luck and success in business? Gotokuji is the Zen sect temple with a history of 600 years and is said to be the originator of manekineko. In the temple, you will find many manekineko which are dedicated by people whose dreams came true. You may be able to get some luck!
What's Included
- Private Tour
- Necessary expenses for the tour guide
- Tour Guide
- Private Tour
- Necessary expenses for the tour guide
- Tour Guide
What's Not Included
- Estimated Costs of the Tour: 380 JPY per Person
- Breakdown: Transportation: 380 JPY, Admission Fees: 0 JPY, Meal costs: 0 JPY per Person
- Optional Experience Costs: 0 JPY per Person
- Estimated Costs of the Tour: 380 JPY per Person
- Breakdown: Transportation: 380 JPY, Admission Fees: 0 JPY, Meal costs: 0 JPY per Person
- Optional Experience Costs: 0 JPY per Person
Additional Information
Setagaya is a quiet residential area just 3 minutes by tram from central Tokyo. Recently, it has become a popular tourist destination on social media for its photogenic spots.
Gotokuji is home to numerous Manekineko figurines, which are quite rare in Japan. We will guide you through Gotokuji Temple and other cultural sites tied to its history. Manekineko…
Setagaya is a quiet residential area just 3 minutes by tram from central Tokyo. Recently, it has become a popular tourist destination on social media for its photogenic spots.
Gotokuji is home to numerous Manekineko figurines, which are quite rare in Japan. We will guide you through Gotokuji Temple and other cultural sites tied to its history. Manekineko figurines are traditional symbols believed to bring happiness and luck. If you’re fortunate, you might even spot real cats at the temple! Besides the temple, you can also explore other historical sites and savor local cuisines. Enjoy the charming atmosphere as you stroll through the shopping district cherished by locals.
- All transportation costs, entrance fees, food and drink costs, etc. incurred at the visited spots, will be borne by the customer.
- Tour finishing spot is different from starting spot. Please let your tour guide know if you would like to change the finishing spot.
- Please understand that tour spots might be changed to alternative spots in case of temporary closure.
- Some of the spots we will visit on the day do not accept credit cards. Please remember to bring cash.
- Lunch is not included in this tour.
- If the weather is bad on the day, there is a possibility that the means of transportation, destinations, and routes may be changed.
Location
Sangenjaya Station
Denentochi Line Sangen-Jaya, in front of the central exit
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
5.0
(10 Ratings)
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1 star
532shaya
Jun 2, 2025
A well informed guide makes for a joyful tour - Being able to go on this tour and using local public transport was quite nice.
It gave it a more intimate feel, and being able to take some time to look at a few things on the way to our different locations gave me ease of mind.
Our tour guide was delightful, though I do wish I had recorded his name, as I would like to mention him personally.
Starting at Senganjaya station, he first helped us purchase our tram tickets, which were special prints due to an event at the time we were visiting, so we were able to have them as keepsakes.
I was able to ask many questions about the local area during transit to our first stop.
He first spoke about the 2 main religions in Japan, and let us know how to tell the difference between the Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples. He walked us through the rituals for entry and cleansing and was able to translate the information about the shrine. He explained the rivalry between Shoin Yoshida and Il Naosuke, and their amusingly close burial sites, which link the locations we were visiting.
While this was by no means a rural location, it was still pleasant to see a bit further away from the centre of Tokyo.
We were guided through to the Setagaya Local History Museum, where our guide explained further about the "black ships" that arrived, the political struggles between the shogunate and their followers, the end of the Edo Period, Japan's Isolation, and the beginning of the Meiji Restoration.
Our final stop was Gotokuji Temple. Our guide explained that the smoke from the incense in the bowl was a way to purify oneself, as well as to become aligned with their spirit and soul. There were quite a lot of people there to observe the number of maneki-neko placed around the temple. He also pointed out a few hidden ones, which were quite amusing.
I feel a lot more informed and appreciate the spiritual side of Japan more, thanks to our guide's knowledge.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Carrie_o
Mar 20, 2025
Really fun and... - Really fun and interesting tour outside of the typical Tokyo neighborhoods. We missed one of our stops due to the holiday (local museum) - that was a bummer and unfortunate that our guide wasn’t told prior to the trip so we walked there only for it to be closed.
Review provided by Viator
Venture32895887290
May 10, 2023
Gotokuji tour - My tour guide Shizuko is best. She is knowledgeable about all the shrines and is great at making conversations. The shrines were serene and beautiful. The manenekos were cute!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Darcy_c
Apr 15, 2023
Great Walking Tour! - We had an amazing time. My ten year old was riveted by our lovely guide - not an easy task. We sincerely enjoyed all parts of our tour.
Review provided by Viator
Matthew
Jan 17, 2020
A very educational tour around a local part of Tokyo with a fantastic guide! - I had a great time during my tour with my guide, Yumi. I spent the afternoon around Gotokuji, a residential area away from the bright lights and skyrise buildings of central Tokyo.
Here there are several historical sites well worth visiting, including shrines, pagodas and old markets. Yumi has an extensive knowledge of the area and the local people there, as she was able to introduce me to some of the shopkeepers, who were very friendly and happy to meet me.
Yumi's English is perfect, so I was able to ask her about all the questions I had about Japan, its culture and people, and she was more than happy to answer them.
After the tour had ended, Yumi was even kind enough to show me to another building, from the top of which I could view the whole of Tokyo!
All in all, a great afternoon, and one most tourists would miss!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Melannew
Jan 11, 2020
Very fun and Tour Guide Was Very Accomodating - The tour was really neat and informative. I told Astuko that I was only really interested in the Cat Temple and she said she would do her best to really make the most of my experience. I really appreciated that and I hope she gets to watch some of the Olympic Games when on duty during the summer. :)
Review provided by Tripadvisor
