"Making a booking with KUMANO TRAVEL is a TWO part process via our online reservation system.

The FIRST part is to search and select the products or services you would like to reserve, fill in your details, and then send a reservation request to us. We will then process the request and e-mail you the results.

The SECOND part is to confirm the reservation by making payment with your credit card within 48 hours of reserving the "Processed Reservation" e-mail.

How to Book With KUMANO TRAVEL

To create a MyPage account there are a few steps.

1. Click on the “Sign In” button in the top right of the page.
2. Near the bottom of the page click on the “Create your account” link.
3. Fill in the forms and click the “Next” button.
4. Review your information, agree to the fundamentals of site usage and click the “Create MyPage Account” button.
5. An e-mail will be sent to you. Follow the link in the e-mail to confirm your MyPage account.
6. The subsequent “MyPage Account Active“ e-mail will include your Sign In ID. (Your e-mail address can also be used as the ID)
7. Then you can sign in to your MyPage account and begin to make reservations.

A reservation request is a list of the accommodations, tours & activities, and/or travel services that you would like to book that is sent to us via the KUMANO TRAVEL Reservation System.

It is the first of the TWO part booking process and not a real-time booking.

When we receive your request, we will contact the service provider to see if the reservation is possible.

If it is available, we will make a temporary reservation and forward the results to you via an e-mail titled "Processed Reservation Request".

It is then up to you to confirm the reservation within 48 hours by making payment with your credit card.

Please refer to Making Payment & Confirming Reservation below.

Processing a reservation request takes approximately three days to a week (up to a month during peak seasons) depending on the contents of the request.

When dealing with small local and family businesses arranging a reservation can take longer depending on circumstances.

We make every effort to process reservations requests as quickly as possible.

Thank you in advance for your understanding.

KUMANO TRAVEL does not make reservations in real time because we do not hold or stock rooms.

During our consultations with local businesses when we were doing the research to begin this reservation system, we found out that many of the accommodations in our community are small, family-owned establishments that do not use computers often.

One of our main goals is to support local residents and businesses, including accommodations and services, which normally would not have the capacity to be a part of an online reservation system. So, it was decided to make all reservations on a request basis.

This means that it may take a little longer to process a reservation, but it is one of the ways that we can help the broadest spectrum of our community develop in a sustainable way.

Thank you in advance for your understanding and cooperation.

It is better to make a reservation sooner rather than later as processing times vary.

The time limit to make a reservation request for each price plan is noted on the date column in the select section on each price plan page.

The minimum is 20 days before the start of the reservation date.

Depending on the product we can make reservations up to six months or more in advance.

A price plan is a set fee for a certain product.

With accommodations the same room can be subject to different price plans depending on the services included, for example the style of meals, time of year, etc.

All of the prices are based on a per person basis, including accommodations, unless otherwise specified.

Please understand that this is a conventional style of pricing in Japan as meals are often included in the accommodation fee.

No, prices featured on the KUMANO TRAVEL Community Reservation System are subject to availability.

You will receive two e-mails when registering your MyPage account.

During the reservation process you will receive a minimum of four e-mails - three to complete the reservation process, and one follow-up mail after your visit. MyChat correspondence sends a notification e-mail for each message received.

NOTE: It is important to please keep all e-mails exchanged with KUMANO TRAVEL for verification if needed.

About E-mail Correspondence.

It is important that we can exchange e-mails as these form the foundation of your reservation.

If you do not receive the initial e-mail when registering a MyPage account, please contact us, and add our e-mail address or domain to your safe list.

Our e-mails may be confused for Spam or Junk mail and filtered by your e-mail or virus software.

To make sure that you receive these important e-mails, please add our e-mail address or domain to your contacts, safe list, or whitelist.

Our e-mail addresses are: kumano-travel@tb-kumano.jp
Our domain is: @tb-kumano.jp

If you are not sure how to do this check with your e-mail or virus software provider.

There is also information online about e-mail safe lists and whitelists, which a quick internet search will produce.

No, we cannot make bookings via e-mail, phone or fax.

Please make reservation requests via our online reservation system.

Many of the optional tours/activities and smaller accommodations request the age of visitors so that they can cater services to make the guest's stay the best possible.

• Adult: 12 and over
• Child: 7 to 11
• Toddler: 3 to 6
• Infant: 0 to 2

※ These are the standard age brackets. Some accommodations and service providers have different age brackets.

Please include ages of children when making a request.

Feel free to contact us for more information.

Some can and some can't, please watch for vegetarian meal information in the explanation pages for the lodging and price plans.

※ Not all accommodations can meet all dietary requests, especially at busier times of the year.

Making a Vegetarian Meal Request

When you make a reservation request and would like vegetarian meals, please choose your non-edible ingredients from the options below.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Katsuo Dashi (fish broth) is used for many types of seasoning and is very difficult to remove from traditional Japanese cooking. If you can eat ubiquitous trace amounts of Dashi, then your options of places to eat will increase.

Vegetarian

• No Meat
• No Fish
• No Seafood (other than fish)
• No Dashi fish stock
• No Dairy
• No Eggs

※ There are many kinds of vegetarians and we want to make sure we make the proper meal request for you. Thank you for your cooperation and understanding.

Many service providers do not offer gluten free meals. For the ones that do there is a selection box with the options listed below. Miso and Soy Sauce contain trace elements of gluten but are very difficult to remove from Japanese cuisine. If you do not have Celiac disease or gluten intolerance, then choosing with Miso and Soy Sauce increases the amount of service providers who can cater to your needs.

※ Not all accommodations can meet all dietary requests, especially at busier times of the year.

Gluten free

• With Miso & Soy Sauce
• No Miso & Soy Sauce (Celiac or Intolerant)

Yes, some service providers can accept various other requests. Please use the Other requests selection box for these requests.

※ Not all accommodations can meet all dietary requests, especially at busier times of the year.

The most likely problem is with the settings of the web browser that you are using. The KUMANO TRAVEL Community Reservation System uses "cookies" to store items in the cart. A "cookie" is information stored on your computer by a website you visit.

If the web browser does not accept cookies for the website, then the contents of the cart are not remembered. Please check your web browser settings and enable cookies from this website to be stored.

In technical terms the type of cookie used by KUMANO TRAVEL is a "Session Cookie" which is erased when you close the web browser. The session cookie is stored in temporary memory and is not retained after the browser is closed. Session cookies do not collect information from your computer.

More information about cookies.

Across Japan there are dozens of different programs, point schemes, associations, stamp books, campaigns, etc. It is not possible for KUMANO TRAVEL to know the details of all of them.

It is therefore up to users to familiarize themselves with the details of these different programs.

When booking your reservation, please ask us specifically if a stamp, etc. is available for your program or campaign to confirm if they are valid or not. Thank you.

Supper is the main evening meal. In some parts of the world, they also call the main evening meal dinner.

So, in this context "Supper" and "Dinner" mean the same thing, the large meal eaten in the evening.

Supper is usually served from around 18:00 in Japan. So, if you have booked an accommodation with meals, it is important to arrive before this time.

In the past there was much confusion with the luggage shuttle service providers and accommodations, for example the name of guest that made the reservation for the accommodation and the name of guest that made the luggage shuttle service bookings were different. So, luggage could not be delivered. This caused great confusion, anxiety and stress for the local service providers and guests.

To eliminate the chance of mistakes and confusion onsite, and to make the guests experience to the area the best possible, the accommodations and luggage shuttle service providers decided that online bookings for luggage shuttle and accommodations needed to be done as a set.

We sincerely thank you for your understanding and cooperation regarding this.

No, you cannot book only daily luggage shuttle via the KUMANO TRAVEL Community Reservation System.

Please use a next day delivery service such as Yamato, or contact a luggage shuttle service provider directly.

NOTE: If you do this directly, please make sure to let the accommodations that will receive/send your bags know about this service in advance. If you do not there will be confusion onsite and your bags may not be delivered correctly.

Payment can be made via your MyPage account. Click the payment button and follow the directions.

All major credit cards are accepted including VISA, MasterCard, JCB, AMEX and Diners.

All payments are made to KUMANO TRAVEL via our online reservation system and not directly to the service provider.

Extras such as drinks ordered during meals, souvenirs, etc, purchased on the spot are to be paid directly to the service provider.

Please note that credit cards are not commonly accepted, so it is best to bring enough Yen in cash.

Payments for the KUMANO TRAVEL are processed by GMO Payment Gateway, Inc., a payment company with headquarters in Tokyo, Japan.

Head office
Humax Shibuya Bldg. 7F
1-14-6 Dogenzaka, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, 150-0043, Japan
TEL : +81-3-3464-2740 FAX : +81-3-3464-2387

https://www.gmo-pg.com/en/service/mulpay/credit-card/

Yes, the entire payment of your bill is required to confirm your reservation.

When you make a reservation request, we tentatively make a reservation on your behalf with the service provider.

It is difficult to hold unpaid reservations, so by paying within 48 hours of receiving the "Processed Reservation Request", your reservation will be confirmed.

※ If you think there may be issues with making the payment deadline, please let us know during the reservation request process in the Requests/Comments box.

A credit card security code is a three- or four-digit value printed on the card or signature strip.

MasterCard, VISA, Diner's Club, Discover, and JCB credit cards have a three-digit card security code. It is the final group of numbers printed on the back signature panel of the card. Some cards feature the code in a separate panel to the right of the signature strip.

American Express cards have a four-digit code printed on the front side of the card above the number.

Depending on the content, there may be a small service charge on some reservations based on a mutual contract with the service provider.

Local companies and family businesses do not usually set their prices to include the common booking commissions required by tour companies.

We believe that to support our community we need to create a system that allows these important businesses to be included.

Therefore, to keep the reservation system service functional, to support the local community to become sustainable; and to continue to offer useful services to visitors, we ask for your cooperation and understanding when paying this minimal fee.

Yes, all taxes are included in the price if not specified. Sometimes the local hot spring tax of 150 yen is required to be paid directly to the facility.

The onsen tax is charged by municipal governments throughout Japan to all hot spring accommodations.

Depending on the way accommodations do their accounting for this tax, some request to be paid 150 yen directly.

Booking with KUMANO TRAVEL is a two part process.

First you make a reservation request.

Once we process your request you will receive an e-mail directing you how to make payment.

Your reservation is confirmed when you make payment.

How to Book

Yes, please print out your voucher or save a digital copy (from your MyPage) and bring it with you on your trip.

You may be asked to show them to the accommodation or service provider if needed.

NOTE: This cancellation policy is based on the laws and regulations of the Japan Tourism Agency in accordance with the Travel Agency Law.

Yes, you can cancel your reservation via your MyPage account by pressing the “Cancel” button. Cancellation requests must be made by the following method and not via your MyChat or e-mail.

DYNAMIC PACKAGES

Click on the "Cancel All" button near the top of the page.

OTHER RESERVATIONS

Click on the "Cancel All" button to near the top of the page to cancel all price plans in a reservation request.

Click on the "Cancel Plan" button within each plan’s box to cancel a single plan and not the entire booking.

Yes, it is possible to change some aspects of your bookings, but others you will need to cancel and make a new request.

• Change date or accommodation:
  → Cancel current request and make a new request.
• Change number of guests/pieces of luggage, etc:
  → Send message via the MyChat function in your MyPage account.
• Dietary requests:
  → Must be confirmed during the reservation process and cannot be changed after confirmation.

: It is best to include luggage shuttle services at the same time as making accommodation requests.

If you need to make changes to your reservation it is best to do it well in advance.

For some service providers instead of changing your reservation you may be required to cancel and re-book.

Please contact us by quoting your reservation number and information to re-book if needed.

You can cancel or change each individual reservation from your MyPage account.

It takes GMO Payment Gateway, Inc. 6~10 working days to process an international transaction refund.

Once the credit card company has been contacted, subsequent processing times depend on the respective company.

This processing on the users’ side can take a week to a month.

Please contact your credit card company directly for more information on refund times.

This has to do with the way changes are made and the processing time needed by the credit card company.

For example: A reservation for three people for one night at a rate of 10,000 per person has a total cost of 30,000 yen, is changed to two people, one person is cancelled. The cost is now 20,000. (In this example no cancellation fees are needed.)

This new amount of 20,000 overwrites the original charge, cancelling the 30,000. This overwriting and cancelling procedure is not instantaneous as it takes time for the information to pass through the credit card processing company to the international credit card company. Each credit card company has its own procedures so this may take over one week to complete.

So, depending on the credit card company's processing times, you may see two charges on your account for a short time, one for the original 30,000 (which is in the cancellation process by the credit card company) and one for the new charge 20,000 (the official charge to your account).

NOTE: The same process happens if you cancel your reservation and cancellation fees are required. The original charge and new charge (minus the deducted cancellation fees) may appear for a short time on your credit card bill because of the same process as outlined above.

Please contact your credit card company directly for more information.

Thank you for your understanding and we apologize for any inconvenience that this may cause.

As written in the terms and conditions, our office hours are weekdays 9:00 to 17:00 (Japan Standard Time), closed weekends and national holidays.

All requests received outside of working hours will be processed the following workday. Cancellation fees are determined when the cancellation is processed.

Therefore, depending on when the cancellation request was made, the actual cancellation confirmation may be delayed one or more days.

This cancellation policy is based on the laws and regulations of the Japan Tourism Agency in accordance with the Travel Agency Law.

For more information, please visit our terms and conditions page.

MyPage is a personalized account for guests which holds all their reservation information. You can make payment, change, and cancel your reservation here.

Your login ID is the ID assigned during registration or your registered email address.

Your password is a random set of characters that you create when registering a MyPage account. You can change your password anytime.

In your MyPage account click on the "Cancel" button to the right of the product you would like to cancel. This will send us a cancellation request.

Cancellations do not take place in real time.

If they are received outside our office hours they will be processed the following business day.

NOTE: Cancellation fees may apply.

You can change:

• Check-in time

You cannot change:

• Type of accommodation, tour & activity, travel service or price plan
• Dates of service
• The number of nights in your stay
• The number of rooms
• The number of guests
• Main Guest information and accompanying guest information at the time of making the reservation request.

※ If you would like to make changes please contact us via MyChat with desired changes. Depending on the situation and request, you may be required to cancel your reservation and then re-book with your updated needs.

In your MyPage under the MyPage account click the “Edit” button next to your name. Scroll down and click on the “Change Password” button.

Yes, you can update your information such as your address in the “Edit Account” page of your MyPage account.

Input the information and then click the save button at the bottom of the page.

The "Voucher" is a confirmation of the details of your reservation or reservation contract.

The "Reservation Outline" is a condensed version of your reservations.

Both are PDF files. The reservation outline was designed for visitors with many reservations to have a compact version to refer to.

Please download, print, (or save a digital copy) and bring them with you on your trip. You may be asked to show them to the accommodation or service provider if needed.

These files are PDF (Portable Document Format) and should be able to be opened by a PDF reader which can be downloaded online.

The version of Adobe Reader that is on your computer my not have the Japanese Language font pack installed. Please download this font pack and try again.

If this doesn't work, please contact us.

We ask that you please DO NOT:

1. Contact service providers directly outside of MyChat.
2. Make additional bookings or cancellations directly with service providers.
3. Make payment outside of the KUMANO TRAVEL community reservation system.
4. Ask for, or supply, personal information to service providers.

We ask that you please DO:

1. Contact KUMANO TRAVEL staff for information about bookings, such as additional reservations, etc.
2. Make cancellation requests via your MyPage with the cancellation button.
3. Use Japanese or English language only.

MyChat is a messenger function to communicate with KUMANO TRAVEL staff and service providers that have opted into the service.

Please always communicate through KUMANO TRAVEL’s MyChat function with reservation staff and service providers using this service.

It is possible to have a MyChat with KUMANO TRAVEL staff for every reservation request.

Service providers have an option to use or not to use the MyChat function, so it varies.

If the service providers opt to use the messenger with guests, you can find the chat box beneath the price plan that you have added to your MyPage account.

You can send a message from your MyPage account from two places:

1. On the main MyPage within each reservation number booking.
2. From the MyChat page which can be accessed via the top or sidebar menus.

Service Providers

For service providers that have opted to use this function you can see the MyChat section after each price plan that is in your account.

Click on the MyChat section to open the messenger box.

Type your message in the text input box and click on the send button.

KUMANO TRAVEL Staff

For the KUMANO TRAVEL staff the section is at the bottom of each reservation number just above the Total Price box.

Click on the MyChat section to open the messenger box.

Type your message in the text input box and click on the send button.

MyChat Page

On the MyChat page there is a list of messages from both service providers and KUMANO TRAVEL staff.

Click on the message to open the messenger box, select a category, input text, and click on the send button.

You can send a MyChat message to KUMANO TRAVEL staff any time after you have made a reservation request.

You can send a MyChat message to available service providers once the reservation has been paid for and confirmed.

When a new MyChat message has been sent to you a “New MyChat Message Notification” e-mail is forwarded to your registered account address.

Please login to your MyPage account to read and reply to these MyChat messages.

In your MyPage account there are other places that notify you of a new message:

1. On the MyChat section bar, an icon appears.
2. On the MyChat page, new messages are designated in the list.

All guests who make a booking through KUMANO TRAVEL can submit a rating and review for the products and services that they experienced.

Once your trip is over, we will send a follow-up e-mail with a link to our guest feedback forms.

Please fill these in based on your experiences.

You can then review your feedback before sending it to us.

Ratings are based on a scale of 5 to 1.

• 5: Very satisfied
• 4: Satisfied
• 3: Average
• 2: Dissatisfied
• 1: Very dissatisfied

Please follow these guidelines to write a concise and descriptive review that will be helpful to future visitors.

Reviews must be:

• family friendly
• written in standard English with standard text
• relevant
• on topic
• honest
• fair

Reviews must not be:

• written in ALL CAPS
• offensive
• racist
• violent
• inflammatory
• threatening or insulting
• abusive
• harassing

Reviews must not include:

• profanities
• plagiarism such as quotes from websites, books, magazines, etc.
• commercial content such as advertising, spam, marketing material, etc.
• prices or rates
• false statements
• HTML or website links
• personal information such as names, e-mail address, phone numbers, etc.
• reference to other services or products other than the ones you experienced

※ Please proofread your review.

The overall rating is an average of all ratings submitted for the specific accommodation, tour/activity, or travel service.

You have 6 months to submit your rating and review.

It is best to fill out the guest feedback forms as soon as possible while the experiences are still fresh.

No, the service provider will not be able to contact you.

KUMANO TRAVEL may contact you to confirm details of the review.

Yes, it is possible for the service provider to respond, but because of the language barrier not every review will be subject to a response.

No, you cannot edit your review. Please proofread your review carefully before submitting your feedback.

Yes, please contact us with the tour reservation number and details about the review you would like to delete.

Ratings and reviews are posted on each Dynamic Package, accommodation, tour/activity, and travel service page.

If there are no ratings available, this section of the page will not appear.

Yes, no, and maybe.

Ratings and reviews are meant to offer an original perspective, but that doesn't mean that it is the same as yours.

Their purpose is to give you an opportunity to read about other guests' experiences to help you make the right choice for your trip.

Please go over the information about the service provider on our website to see if it fits your needs and wants and then use the rating and reviews as a reference resource.

Your questionnaire will be read by the staff at the Tanabe City Kumano Tourism Bureau and related organizations.

The results will be used for general data analysis to help improve the region and our initiatives.

Some numbers and statistics will be shared with other related organizations and local media upon request.

Comments may also be used on our website in certain instances.

No. We respect your right to privacy and do not share personal information.

For more information, please visit our security & privacy page.

Yes, your feedback is very important for the community to learn about visitors’ experiences and needs.

Knowing what was enjoyed, what can be improved on, etc, is valuable information for the development and preservation of the region.

There is a diversity of accommodations in the region including hotels, traditional Ryokan, family Minshuku guesthouses, rental houses, and temples.

Meals are an important part of a stay and are usually served between 18:00 and 19:00 to all the guests, which forces the kitchen to abide by a strict schedule. The best arrival time is by at least 17:00.

When you arrive late this disrupts the timing of the preparation and serving of the meal and is a very rude gesture to the staff of the accommodation.

In some circumstances you may be denied your meal without refund if you do not arrive on time.

Please respect this custom to make your stay a positive experience for both you and your hosts.

Yes, you will need to present a copy of your passport to have it photocopied.

If you live in Japan, you will need to show your Residence Card.

The busiest seasons are during Japanese National Holidays.

The three major holiday seasons are New Years, Golden Week, and Obon. During these times accommodations are often fully booked and prices increase.

Often the day before holidays are also busy.

As of April 1, 2005, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare requires all foreign guests who are not Japanese residents, to present their passports to hotel employees to make a photocopy.

Japanese hotels are required to maintain a file containing photocopies of all foreign passports.

This is to ensure that the Japanese Government has access to an accurate list of foreign visitors.

Thank you very much for your understanding, and we appreciate your cooperation.

KUMANO TRAVEL is the official travel company of the Tanabe City/Kumano Region.

It is a local, community-based initiative created to supply visitors with quality information, services, and products so they can fully experience travelling in the area.

About KUMANO TRAVEL

KUMANO TRAVEL was developed to meet the needs of independent travelers and small groups to the region.

Our goals are to support locals & visitors and contribute to sustainable tourism development.

There are many good reasons to make reservations with KUMANO TRAVEL, such as quality personal service, intimate knowledge, locally owned & operated, responsible & sustainable, freedom to discover, and secure booking. Approximately 98% of all profits stay within our community, a rare example of a truly local, grass-roots business model!

But above all, booking with KUMANO TRAVEL directly helps the local community.

More Reasons to Book with KUMANO TRAVEL

KUMANO TRAVEL offers a variety of services and products for visitors to the region including accommodation, tour & activity, and travel service booking.

Our office hours are weekdays 9:00 to 17:00 (Japan Standard Time), closed weekends and national holidays.

NOTE: All requests received outside of working hours will be processed the following workday.