Kamakura Welcome Guide Association

Kamakura Welcome Guide Association (KWGA) is a group of volunteer tour guides for international tourists and is officially recognized by Kamakura City Tourist Association. All the tour guides are deeply attached to Kamakura, and welcome all international tourists by showing warm-hearted hospitality.KWGA had suspended all the guided tours from April 2020 in the COVID-19 pandemic situation, but reopened the reservation-based guided tour from January 10, 2023. The Friday-scheduled guided tour will continue to be unavailable.

We guide international tourists and foreigners residing in Japan around Kamakura in a number of foreign languages. We will do our best to meet tourists’ requests for getting exposed to and/or experiencing Japanese traditional culture. Please feel free to contact us.

Your Donation Is Welcome

Dear Visitors,
Your guides are all volunteers. They cheerily give their time and share their knowledge and experience with you. But we have training, administration, and website costs. Without those costs, there is no guide service. So please contribute what you can to help us help others. Every donation matters.
Give your donation to our guide service by choosing from among the following methods.
-Give your donation directly to the guide who will give you a receipt.
-Bank transfer: Contact info@kamakurawelcome.guide to get relevant information.
-Online donation: Click “Donation” below for access to the online donation site.

Your donation is received as Japanese yen. Thank you.

KWGA Photo Gallery

Kamakura Welcome Guide Association was established in 2008 and the tour guide members have been guiding international tourists and foreigners residing in Japan around Kamakura and Enoshima areas since then.

What's NEW

2025/01/29: Our weekly Friday tours without reservation will resume in March!
We will restart the Friday non-reservation free guided tours (Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine＆Great Buddha) from Friday, March 7, 2025！ No reservation is required.
We are excited to restart our free guided tours without reservations on Fridays, beginning March 7, 2025! No reservation is required.
Destinations & Schedule:
・Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine (Starting time: 10:30 AM at JR Kamakura Station East Exit | Tour duration: 50 minutes)
・Great Buddha (Starting time: 1:30 PM at JR Kamakura Station East Exit | Tour duration: 50 minutes)

Languages: English and more

For the latest updates on schedules and available languages, please visit our KWGA Facebook page.

In the event of inclement weather, we will post a cancellation notice on the KWGA Facebook page on the morning of the event.

Tourist Attractions in Kamakura

KAMAKURA, the Ancient City of Samurai
The great samurai leader, Minamoto Yoritomo established the samurai government for the first time in Japan's history and placed his headquarters in Kamakura. ・・・ READ MORE

Recommended Tourist Sites

Tsurugaoka Hachimangu
In Kamakura this is the major shinto shrine and is a very popular tourist destination. This shrine was founded in 1180 by then shogun Minamoto Yoritomo, who transferred the shrine from Yui-Wakamiya to the present site.・・・ READ MORE

Kotokuin (Great Buddha)
This is a seated statue of Amida Nyorai (designated as a national treasure), one of the biggest Buddha statues in Japan. It is said that the bronze casting started in 1252 and took more than ten years to complete.・・・ READ MORE

If you want to get more information about Kamakura, click Kamakura City Tourist Association.

Kamakura Photo Gallery

Guided Tour

Kamakura Welcome Guide Association offers two types of free guided tour:
Reservation-Based Tour and Non-Reservation-Based Friday-Scheduled Tour

Reservation-Based Guided Tour

Reservation-Based Guided Tour is ・・・

You need to send us an application with specific requests on the tour. For tour route selection, we offer a Model Tour Course and a Free Tour Course.
・Detailed tour route information
・Application procedures and Terms of service
・Making an application

Friday-Scheduled Guided Tour (Offered from March to June and from October to mid-December)

Friday-Scheduled Guided Tour is ・・・
You just come to the specified meeting point on Fridays. No application is necessary.
・Detailed information
・Our Facebook page provides dates and languages available on Fridays.

Application for Free Guided Tour

How to Apply

・Click Making An Application button and follow the directions on the screen.
・Friday-scheduled tours require no application. Detailed tour information
・Please apply between 3 months and 2 weeks prior to your desired tour date. If your tour party is more than 15 people, please apply earlier than 3 weeks before the tour date.
・Please note that our guides are available throughout the year, except from Dec.25th to Jan.7th. For your information Kamakura tends to get crowded on weekends and holidays. Please plan your tour schedule with this in mind.
・Application procedures and Terms of guide service
・For route selection, we offer Model Tour Course and Free Tour Course. Detailed tour route information
・Since we are a nonprofit organization, any applications either directly or indirectly from tourist agencies will not be accepted.

Making An Application

F A Q s

We answer questions in our FAQ pages.FAQ pages
If you find no answers for your specific questions, you can contact us: info@kamakurawelcome.guide

Q. How much is the guide fee ?: A. No guide fee is required. However, you must pay for your transportation expenses and admission to shrines and temples. You must also pay for the same expenses for your tour guide(s).
Q. What is the procedure following my application ?: A. First, we will inform you that we have received your application.
Second, we will recruit a tour guide appropriate for your requests. Third, an assigned tour guide will contact you at the email address you specified in your application. If no tour guide contacts you by seven days before your tour date, then your application cannot be met.
Q. What are the working hours ?: A. Our working hours are from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The whole tour should take no more than 5 hours excluding lunch break.

・・・・・ READ MORE

Location of Kamakura Welcome Guide Association

Onarimachi 1-12, Kamakura, Kanagawa 248-0012
Kamakura City Tourist Association/Kamakura Welcome Guide Association

The nearest station is JR Kamakura Station West Exit

The office is located on the 4th fl. of the Enoden Building.

TEL 0467-23-3050 (in Japan)

TEL 81-467-23-3050 (from overseas)

e-Mail info@kamakurawelcome.guide

Office Hours: 8:30 to 17:15 (Closed at Year End and New Year)

LINK

VISIT KAMAKURA
VISIT KAMAKURA is the official visitor guide for Kamakura sightseeing. It is run by Kamakura City Tourist Association. Information is available in English, French, Spanish, Mandarin Chinese and Korean.
Learn more

Access to Other Volunteer Guide Groups in Japan

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