TOKYO
The Tokyo shortlist.
The 15 most popular samurai & ninja experiences in Tokyo right now. Here is what each one costs, how long it takes, and who actually runs it, so you can pick the one worth a day and book it.
Tokyo Samurai Ninja Museum guided tour with a real history lesson plus shuriken throwing and samurai dress-up, in English, for $27.
Most Popular“Nami our guide was fantastic and shared lots of information on samurai and ninjas and life in japan. throwing shiruken and dressing as a samurai was an added bonus.”
Real dojo training in Machida: iai sword cutting, gekken sparring, and traditional horseback-archery bow with Yoshioki Sumida (3 hrs)
“Everything was great about it. 10/10 I would recommend!”
Spend an evening at Tokyo’s Kanda Myojin Shrine with a samurai performance, dinner and drinks options, and photos with the cast afterward.
“The actors were excellent, brilliant setting and the story was well presented. The interactions with the cast was great at the end of the performance.”
Wear samurai armor and learn katana basics in Asakusa, then tour exhibits, pose for photos, and try ninja weapons in 2 hours.
“A very interesting experience from the history of the samurai and the ninja, to the katana practice”
Learn sword basics in a Tokyo dojo while wearing kimono and hakama, then join a safe chanbara fight and get photos for $63.
“This was such an amazing experience. I’m 61 years old and it was a blast. My whole family had a great time. The boys loved it.”
Train real kendo in Tokyo with a top English-speaking instructor, armor included, then test your strikes in a tournament-style game.
“We had a wonderful time with Keshi at the dojo! Our group came with a limited understanding of Kendo and its principles, but left with one of our best memories yet of Tokyo! In the days since our group can occassionally be found bRead more”
Suit up in full kendo armor in Tokyo and learn men, kote, do strikes with a pro instructor in a small group.
“Very good introduction to Kendo! Kenshi-San and his two colleagues are experienced instructors. We learned three basic striking techniques (men, kote, do) and some counter techniques, and fought a few playful games against each other and against the instructor. Too bad it only lasted two hours! The whole experience is very family friendly. Definitely recommend…”
Learn Bushido through kendo in Tokyo: bowing, sword basics, and armor sparring. Small group, gear and photos included.
“the experience class is totally fulfilled my expectation. i enjoy the class and i am very exciting. the instructor is very good and well explained the kendo to me. i am highly recommended to join this experience class.”
Wear ninja gear, hunt for treasures, and practice shuriken and blowgun skills at the Samurai Ninja Museum Asakusa in Tokyo.
“This was cute. My 5 year old enjoyed it. I think it was a bit overpriced. Guide was great though.”
Samurai sword class in central Tokyo with Dai and Kume, wooden practice moves, close demos, and a photo keepsake.
“The instructors are very helpful and the experience is very fun altogether”
Dress as a ninja in Asakusa and train with shuriken, a blowgun, and a replica sword in 90 minutes, with one drink.
Guided Odawara Ninja & Samurai tour: walk the castle grounds, see authentic samurai gear, then train like a shinobi with shuriken and darts.
“We thoroughly enjoyed the ninja experience! We have a six-year-old who is going through ninja phase right now, and it was the most magical thing he has ever done. The gentleman who trained us on different ninja skills was clearly experienced in martial arts, and knew what he was doing. He was very kind and…”
Harajuku samurai training in 1 hour: kimono dressing, reigi sahou etiquette, sword moves, Tachimawari practice, and a photo shoot.
“Amazing! 100 percent recommend for a fully immersive, fun samurai experience!”
A 90-minute samurai-themed neo-entertainment show in Shinjuku with a lunch box or 2 drinks, for about $102 per person.
“Overal not worth the money we paid for it. The show preformance itself is amazing but there are alot of 15min breaks in between the 5min scenes were basically nothing happens. I see now that there is a booking for half the money?? (without food) So it really felt like a ripoff”
Train in Edo-era **Tennen Rishin-ryu** at a real dojo in Hino, the Shinsengumi hometown, led by Masao Inoue. Handle a Japanese sword in a small group.
“I went today and had a wonderful time! I always wanted to learn to use the sword so I was really looking forward to it! It was fun, I learned a lot and got 2 amazing teachers! Thank you so much! Definitely going again ~”
Every corner of the region, and every way to see it.
