About Japan Adventurer
our mission
who we are
The leading source for adventures in Japan since 2011
Coming to Japan is always an adventure, even for repeat visitors. There’s a new adventure every time, be it outdoor, cultural, or culinary. Japan Adventurer creates trips that aim to show you something new and unfamiliar, a side of Japan that you’ve never seen before. Start your adventure by browsing our tours.
The Tours
Japan Adventurer offers tours with a focus on adventure for people of all ages. You’re sure to find the right combination of outdoor, cultural, or culinary adventure with us.
The Team
Japan Adventurer is a collaboration of long-term foreign residents, and Japanese with an international background. Our team is distributed over western Japan.
The Vision
Japan Adventurer aims to introduce visitors to the many charms of Japan, build a strong, community-based inbound tourism industry, preserve and improve Japan’s tourist resources, and promote employment of local foreign nationals and Japanese.
Our story
Japan Adventurer got started in Shikoku in 2011 when Rod Walters founded a website called Shikoku Tours to promote the wonders of the island to visitors from overseas. We offered the first self-drive Shikoku Pilgrimage tour, and the first hands-on sake tour. Our customers were generous in their praise for these unique experiences, but we learned that Shikoku’s ditches are unfriendly to first-time Japan drivers, and sake brewers are focused primarily on crafting fine sake, and only secondly to welcoming visitors.
Since then, we honed our offerings to ensure that our tours were unique in their commitment to providing an authentic taste of Japan, combined with the most efficient, most enjoyable ways of getting around and relaxing. We learned constantly from our customers and from our partners here, seeking to ensure the best possible experience.
After a decade of satisfying customers with tours of Shikoku and Setouchi, Rod left the company to establish a new organisation, Japan Adventurer, offering the same high-quality trips over a wider area. We work with local government and DMOs to develop new tourism content, establishing Japan Adventurer as Japan’s leading tour provider.
Our Vision
Introduce foreign visitors to the many charms of Japan
Build a strong, community-based inbound tourism industry
Discover, preserve and improve Japan’s tourist resources
Promote employment of local foreign nationals and Japanese
Meet the Team
Rod Walters
Content Creation, Customer Service
Rod came to Japan from England in 1990. He’s lived in many parts of Japan including Ōsaka, Shiga, and Nagano, but Shikoku is his favourite place. He likes history, outdoor adventure, cycling, photography, good food, and sake.
Max Claeys
Technology, Digital Marketing
Originally from France, Max manages the Japan Adventurer website, digital marketing, and social media. He’s travelled widely in Japan and lives between Hong Kong and Japan. Max is qualified as a sailing instructor.
Makoto Miura
Destination Management Specialist
Makoto is from Kure, Hiroshima. After establishing Japan’s first full-scale travel review site at Recruit USA Co., Ltd., he set up a guide training and management organisation. He’s the great-grandson of Miura Senzaburō, who developed ginjō sake.
Nagi Nakayama
Enquiries, Customer service
Originally from Hiroshima, Nagi lives on a small island in the Seto Inland Sea. After graduating from a U.S. university, she built a career as a bilingual project manager in art, film and commercial production, and regional revitalization projects.