With a Japanese guide – Akihiro Wada
Hike the beautiful Hakone Geopark
Client Reviews
Amazing and unique experience with a spectacular guide Didn’t know anything about forest bathing before this experience. Aki was the perfect guide to get started with and the lakeside forest in Hakone was such a spectacular location—spiritual and historic with understated natural beauty. This was just the right level of immersion into nature without being too physically exerting. I felt so welcomed into a tradition that I was previously totally unfamiliar with. We did this tour on the last day of our trip to Japan and I felt like I returned with a newfound sense of connection to nature and time. We would absolutely use Coconuts Hike Japan again on our next trip—highly recommended. 
Five stars! Absolutely wonderful — 5 stars. Our autumn forest-bathing hike to the serene temple in Odawara was unforgettable. Aki, our guide, was incredibly knowledgeable about the local flora and temple history, and balanced informative stories with peaceful moments of silence. He was professional, very accommodating (even bringing snacks for everyone), and took stunning photos that truly highlighted the vibrant fall colors and the temple’s quiet beauty. I highly recommend this trip to anyone visiting Odawara in autumn — it felt restorative, well-organized, and beautifully documented. 
Forest Bathing - Saijo-Ji Temple - wonder guide Akihiro Just a wonderful time with our guide, Akihiro (https://coconutshikejapan.com/) who took us to a beautiful temple Saijo-ji (https://daiyuuzan.or.jp/) about 30 mins from Odawara station in Hakone. We went on a 2k walk up a gentle slope to the temple, and even though it was a holiday, the walk and temple were not crowded, only a few other people. And the leaves were in peak season with brilliant bursts of color. We felt like we were pilgrims walking up the path, isolated in a forest, and then reaching the temple with its beautiful colors and substantial buildings. Definitely worth the walk! Forest Bathing - this is a term for just inhaling the nature and trees along the trail to refresh the body and soul - it works! We appreciated the leaves and lack of crowds when we went to Kyoto two days later - where we decided not to go to some temples because of the crowdsAkihiro is an experienced guide, who grew up in Hakone often just miles from our hike and also has over 20 years guiding travelers into hikes and camping. He served us coffee and snacks at the top. We learned about the forest, the trail and the temple on our way up the mountain. His English skills are excellent and he was a good companion on the walk explaining nuances of the forest and the temple's history. Finally, he took pictures of us on our walk which reflected his skill as a photographer (later uploaded to us on Google Drive).Our hike culminated in a discrete tea house "Jinoma" at the foot of the trails, serving a vegetarian meal and tea and sweets. What a magical end to the temple visit! Definitely one of the highlights of our 2 week Japan visit. Beauty, leaves like fire against a green background, and a true sense of Buddhist tranquility. 
Perfect ending to Japan trip We did this tour on the last day of our Japan trip and it was a perfect ending! So nice to get away from the crowds and into nature. Akihiro was super knowledgeable of the area. He planned a great route and took amazing photos throughout. Highly recommend this tour! 
Amazing guide Aki was an excellent guide. My mum and I had a wonderful time and wanted to do another tour the next day because we enjoyed his company and knowledge so much. I am very excited to do another tour with Aki on my next visit to Japan and would highly recommend a tour with him. 
Amazing!!! We had an incredible day thanks to Akihiro. We enjoyed an amazing hike and he shared a wealth of knowledge about the historical road we were hiking and the history of Japan. The tea house we visited along the way was such a unique experience and an awesome stop. He went out of his way to make sure we had a great time. We highly recommend this tour to anyone visiting the area! 
A fun day trip to incorporate into your Japan adventures Aki was a great guide! We had a lovely hike in middle to late October. While we didn't get visibility the day of of our hike, Aki offered us a few options for routes and we still enjoyed the hike he selected for the day as it was very quiet and it was practically as if the trails were fully just for us that day. We enjoyed the soba lunch spot he took us too as well as the onsen for relaxing post hike. Many thanks to Aki - he was a wonderful guide full of deep knowledge around the surrounding plants and animals to the trail. There were many steps to this hike - just something to be aware of! 
Beautiful and serene.. a forest bath hike I visited in October and joined Akihiro for a “forest bath” hike near Odawara—it was everything I hoped for! The other participants canceled, so it became a private tour, which made the peaceful, scenic hike even better. Akihiro’s knowledge of the area and history was excellent, lunch at a local teahouse was delicious, and ending the day with a relaxing onsen soak was absolute bliss. A perfect escape from the city—highly recommend! 
Special day…perfection in svery way! A truly wonderful experience! Well planned day and the perfect combination of hiking and history. Our guide was informative, extremely thoughtful, kind (carried my mother’s bag for her) and very flexible in changing plans due to our group’s preferred slower pace. Stopped at a local teahouse which was special. Additionally the pre trip communication was very clear and flawless Highly recommend!
