Inside Travel Group reports ‘biggest ever quarter’ for small group Japan tours

Inside Travel Group has reported its biggest-ever sales period for small group tours in Japan.

The specialist operator said this kind of itinerary in the country was up 54% in the first quarter of 2025 compared to the same period last year.

Inside Travel Group offers tailor-made self-guided tours and local guide-led small group tours to Japan.

Its brand, Inside Japan, has “revamped” its long-running tours for this year to include exclusive cultural experiences, such as visits to the rural northern Tohoku region with stays in Unesco temple towns and traditional hot spring villages and a bike tour of Osaka with local guides to see less-visited districts.

Inside Japan has also launched “off-peak” seasonal pricing with up to 15% discounts for tours outside the spring and autumn seasons. For the A Northern Soul tour, this offer could save travellers up to £920 per person when choosing a summer departure date.

Small group tours manager Richard Farmer said: “The popularity of Japan has been incredible over the last three years alone and everyone wants to go.

“Group tours have a certain image – big groups of people, flag-waving tour guides, tourist bubble coach trips, inflexibility and no free time – but this is very much not the case with Inside Japan’s tours.

“Unlike generalist tour companies, our tours are small with a maximum of 14 people which, together with our specialist knowledge, enables us to do so much more such as travel largely by local train, stay at a combination of traditional ryokan accommodation as well as hotels, a huge range of intimate cultural experiences and a whole lot of inclusions”.

Farmer added: “Our Insider tour leaders are essential to the success of the tours, helping visitors navigate issues of overtourism both geographically and culturally, getting people ‘beneath the surface’ and making the most out of their time in Japan.”