Tour Details
- Duration
- 2 hours
- Product Type
- Tour
- Venues
- Tokyo National Museum
Photos & Highlights
- Learn about Japan's rich culture in Tokyo National Museum tour
- Led by an expert in Japanese art and history
Select a date
Tour Description
This two-hour tour of Tokyo's National Museum, led by a Japanese art expert or historian, provides a deep dive into Japanese culture and history. Located in the beautiful Ueno Park, the 1872 National Museum houses one of the largest and most impressive collections of objects, sculptures, and paintings related to Asian art and archeology, with a particular focus on Japan. From samurai swords to kimonos, this fine collection tells the story of the history of Japan through its art. Together, we'll explore and discuss a number of the national treasures, touching on some of the 110,000 individual items dating from the earliest years of civilization on the Japanese islands, all the way through to the Edo period and modern day.
While Tokyo National Museum is split into numerous collections, the majority of our focus on this tour will be on the Japanese Gallery. We will use the museum’s Meiji paintings, splendid screens, ancient scrolls, and intricately carved woodblocks to cover themes that range from the importance of visual arts in daily life to tea ceremonies and religious traditions.
Our course through the museums can take many forms, depending on the specific interests of the group: we let the itinerary be shaped by which eras and styles of Japanese art the group is most interested in, as well as the specialization and proclivity of our guide. We'll dig deeply into a number of art forms that are foreign to the west but hold great significance in Japan, in the process developing a context for deeper appreciation.
At the end we'll emerge from our time together with a better understanding of Japanese art and its relation to the larger sphere both of Japanese and Asian culture and history. For a look at Japanese aesthetics in a more contemporary context, try our Introduction to Tokyo tour.
For more information about Context tours, please visit our FAQs.
Is it okay to tip my guide in Japan?
Yes. Context clients generally tip anywhere from 10-25% of the purchase price of a personal service such as this, depending on the quality of the experience and their tipping habits.
Do exhibits change over time?
The exhibits change once a month, so each experience is different, as is the main theme of the visit. Due to the fragile nature of most Japanese art, the museum cannot leave them out for longer periods.
Do exhibits change over time?
The exhibits change once a month, so each experience is different, as is the main theme of the visit. Due to the fragile nature of most Japanese art, the museum cannot leave them out for longer periods.
Book with confidence — see Context's flexible cancellation policy here.
Where You'll Start
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133 Reviews
Reviews can only be left by Context customers after they have completed a tour. For more information about our reviews, please see our FAQ.
We met Rafael at the appropriate time, but there were only three members of our party out of six. It took several more minutes for all to arrive. Rafael was very patient and had no problem waiting for everyone. He gave us a history lesson on Japan with illustrations that were very easy to follow and absorb. It was the perfect preface to what we would be seeing in the Tokyo National Museum.
We were so happy to have had this knowledge as we went through the museum. The Museum was laid out in the exact format of his history lesson.
If we had gone through the Museum on our own, we would have missed so much. We actually all wished we had this tour at the front of our time in Japan as it explained so much!
Misty
Mar 23, 2025
Wonderful, enlightening tour
Janet
Mar 21, 2025
Aquiles was an awesome guide for the museum tour.
Kevin
Mar 19, 2025
