WaRaiDo Guide Networks Co., Ltd.

ホーム
日本
Kyoto-shi, Kyoto
WaRaiDo Guide Networks Co., Ltd.

Quality guide service and travel consultation Further coordination to customize your stay in Japan is also covered by our service.

We are the only agent of government licensed English-speaking guides to make your Japan visit memorable and unforgettable. You can charter our professional and friendly guide especially for your group or you can socialize with other tourists from all over the world by joining our Walking Tour as well.

25/06/2025

Gion Night Tour
9 guests

We were lucky enough to come across many maiko(apprentice geisha) walking on the street .
They approached us and passed in front of us.
Maiko(apprentice geisha) live traditional lifestyle, no smartphone, pc . no long vacation, no boyfriends.. they have many restrictions and instead they are devoted to traditional performing arts in the specific world as an entertainer.
Many of them come to Kyoto from another place in the country to be maiko after graduating from junior high schools at the age of only 15 years old but already strongly determined to be a maiko
they are the people worthy of respect.
through everyday training as an entertainer, they can naturary develop elegant behaviors, sophisticated manners and beautiful Kyoto language, all of which would be difficult to acquire if they had chosen normal life as an ordinary girl.

thank you so much for joining the tour today!

23/06/2025

Gion Night Tour
9 guests (inc. 2 children)

To celebrate the 1,200th anniversary of the founding of Kyoto as the ancient capital, the Okini Foundation launched a special dance festival in 1994 called Miyako no Nigiwai. Selected geiko(geisha) and maiko(apprentice geiko) from all five geiko districts in Kyoto come together to showcase their exquisite performances. This is the only occasion when you can see them all on the same stage.

The event is not only a treat for the audience, but also a great opportunity for the geiko and maiko themselves. They can observe and learn from performers trained in different schools of dance—a kind of artistic cross-pollination that sparks inspiration.

Thank you all for joining the tour.

20/06/2025

Gion Night Tour
2 guests

Today we could spot many maiko(apprentice geisha) and geiko(geisha) on the street.
Maiko’s hair ornaments change every month
This month they wear colorful ornaments in the shspe of hydrangeas or willow leaves , which are both seasonal floweres or plants
As for hydrangeas ornaments , pink and blue or sometimes white lovely tiny petals are put together, making one gorgeous flower. Willow leaves’ ornaments are fresh green and long weeping , making a refreshing Impression .
Both designs look so elegant, enhancing maikos’ charm . Particularly now it's rainy season so we tend to get depressed due to the bad weather. Just looking at maikos’ beautiful hair ornaments, however, raise us up effectively.

Thank you very much for joining the tour today!

18/06/2025

Gion Night Tour
10 guests(inc.1 child)

One guest asked me, as a guide, how parents typically react when their daughter tells them she wants to become a maiko(apprentice geiko or geisha.) Most parents are initially shocked by their daughter’s desire to pursue such a traditional and unfamiliar path. They often have no idea about what the world of geiko entails.

However, over time, they come to see their daughters grow in their manners and refined behavior. Eventually, they become very supportive and deeply proud.

With Japan’s declining birthrate, most maiko today come from outside Kyoto. For a 15-year-old girl, it’s a major decision to leave home and step into such a strict, traditional society. But through their single-minded effort each day, these girls bloom, becoming stunningly beautiful flowers both inside and out.

Thank you all for joining the tour.

16/06/2025

Gion Night Tour
4 guests

People think geisha has mysterious atmosphere and that it must be so difficult to become a geisha.
Or they may think that there are some kinds of screening tests to become a geisha. So would you think in modern days it’ll be difficult for young girls to be a geisha?
In Kyoto actually geisha(they are called ’geiko’) or maiko(apprentice geiko)are often originally from another districts. They come to Kyoto at the age of 15 to take an interview test with the boardinghouse mother, who then will check whether they have strong determination to be a maiko. If they pass the test , they will be a junior apprentice in the house and start one-year probation period.
It must be hard for young girls to be accustomed to her new life with no privacy, living together with senior maiko around the clock and following lots of traditional rules.
Only after they get through the hard training period of nearly one year, they can finally make a debut as a maiko, a professional entertainer.

Thank you very much for joining the tour today!

13/06/2025

Gion Night Tour
7 guests (incl. 3 children)

Today we had 7 lovely guests from the US and Brazil. We were so happy tonight to encounter many maiko(apprentice geisha) and geiko (geisha)walking on the street!
Some people may be curious about whether there's any conditions to be a maiko or not?
In fact basically any girl who want to necome a maiko if she wants to.
A would-be maiko girl normally hand in her resume and pictures to the boardinghouse , where later she is supposed to take an interview test accompanied by her parents. At the test, the owner of the boardinghouse judge whether or not she's suitable to be a maiko. She should be strongly determined to be a professional entertainer. She should be patient as well. Also hopefully she should be less than 165 centimeters high because usually maiko wear 10centimeter-high heeled clogs so they should not to be too tall. Maiko’s image is ’a little girl’. All these criteria is cleared , then she'll be in the first process of training and start to live in the house together with senior maikos.
It must be a big commitment for an only 15-year-old girl to make this decision, we imagine.
Geiko culture today has long been passed down from generation to generation , supported by those youngsters’ continuous efforts.

Thank you so much for joining the tour today!

11/06/2025

Gion Night Tour
17 guests (incl. 1 child)

Fortunately it stopped raining in the evening and 17 lovely guests showed up. for the tour. Thank you so much! We enciuntered maiko(apprentice geisha) and geiko (geisha)many times , which fascinated us completely.
We drop by Yasaka jinja shinto shrine ,where we can see in front the main street of Kyoto called ’shijo street’ .
Actually geiko culture started here in Kyoto in the early 17th century. In those days the street was the approach to the shinto shrine.So many people visited it and after that they got exhausted and needed teahouses to relax themselves. Gradually more teahouses started on both sides of the street. they began to serve sake and food . Waitresses working there began to entertain the guests by dancing ,singing and playing musical instruments.
Those dancing waitresses were the origin of today’s maiko it is believed. ’Mai’ actually means dancing while ’ko’ means a girl. maiko literally means ’a dancing girl’.
They have such a long history of 400years. Considering it, it is amazing for them to keep the old tradition and customs to this day.

Thank you very much for joining the tour today!

09/06/2025

Gion Night Tour
16 guests

A shocking data released by the government showed that Japan’s birth rate has dropped to a record law of 1.15—the lowest since the statistics began in 1899.
Before WW II, when most families had many children, most geiko(geisha) and maiko(apprentice geiko) were Kyoto locals. Boarding houses had no trouble recruiting girls to train as maiko. However, that’s no longer the case.
Today, some boarding houses even have their own website, making them more approachable to teenage girls who are curious about the culture.
Once a girl enters the world of maiko, her housemother lovingly guides her in her journey to becoming professional geiko. It’s not an easy path for both the girl and the housemother, but together, they form a tight-knit bond and help preserve the precious tradition.

Thank you all for joining the tour.

06/06/2025

Gion Night Tour
13 guests

Today we came across maiko(apprentice geisha) and geiko(geisha) many times . They were wearing beautiful kimonos and walking on the street so elegantly !
Maiko’s hair ornanents change every month. This month June, their hair ornaments are hydrangeas or green willow leaves, which are long ,weeping, and lovely items , enhancing the charm of maiko.
They symbolize the month of June partly because they bloom in rainy season starting in mid-June and lasts for a month. Such seasonal items effectively remind party guests of the arrival of early summer.
On the other hand geiko are already adults and self -employed. Their hair ornaments are very simple basically although this month they change some of them other than a regular comb. They wear a green jade on the hair which looks so cool and elegant while in winter season, they wear a pink coral leaf ,which has warm impression ,matching well with cold season. In this way the guests always can feel close to seasonal changes.
Thank you so much for joining the tour today!

04/06/2025

Gion Night Tour
15 guests (incl. 2 children)

Today our guests were lucky enough to see maiko(apprentice geisha) and geiko(geisha) many times. Both of them were wearing different colors of kimono.
One of the differences between geiko(geisha) and maiko(apprentice geiko) is their hairstyles.
Maiko’s hairstyle is their own hair, not wigs. A special hairdresser arranges their hairstyles only once a week so that they can do shampoo only once a week even in mid-summer.
On the other hand, geiko’s hairstyles are wigs. They wear wigs and white makeup as well during geiko parties in the evening . Other than that, during the daytime , they can enjoy their own hairstyles, wearing western clothes if they want to and strolling somewhere as ordinary women do.
Probably this is one of the best parts of becoming geiko after several years of training as maiko whose lifestyles are totally restricted as for their attire, hairstyles , holidays, smartphones and so on.

Thank you so much for joining the tour today!

02/06/2025

Gion Night Tour
14 guests

Compared to maiko(apprentice geiko or geisha), geiko, who completed their training enjoy much more freedom. They don’t have to sleep on wooden pillows, since they wear wigs instead of styling their natural hair.They are also allowed to use mobile phones.

Although they are expected to reach higher levels of skills in traditional dancing and shamisen performance, geiko have exciting privileges of designing their own kimono. They can incorporate their favorite motifs that reflect their personality, in addition to seasonal themes.

But even after becoming geiko, they don’t leave the house right away. They continue to live with maiko for another year or so, borrowing kimono from the housemother just as they did during their apprenticeship.

After this transitional period, they finally become independent. That’s when they move out, begin earning their own income from performances, and gain the freedom to design their own kimono.

Thank you all for joining the tour today.

30/05/2025

Gion Night Tour
21 guests

The Japanese proverb ” shoshin wasuru bekarazu” reminds us never to forget the sprit of beginners. But that’s easier said than done.

We came across a maiko(apprentice geiko or geisha) dressed in stunningly gorgeous block formal kimono accompanied by her mentor, a full-fledged geiko. She had just celebrated her debut as a maiko, only after passing a rigorous dance exam in front of nearly ten examiners—including her housemother and dance instructor.

Still, she might be scared to death. She now has to pay close attention to every detail of manners and etiquette, perform traditional dances in front of guests, and walk gracefully in her high-heeled clogs.

On her journey toward becoming a full-fledged geiko, she will never forget the nervous days filled with butterflies in her stomach. And she’ll remember that old proverb: never forget the beginner’s spirit

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下京区四条通西洞院東入郭巨山町 11
Kyoto-shi, Kyoto
600-8493

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