Two sessions use the word kendo. Only one puts you in bogu armour with a shinai in your hands.
The short answer
Only the Kendo Samurai Experience Tour by Park for us puts you in full bogu armour with a bamboo shinai and ends with a sparring bout, in a dojo with a 7th-dan teacher near JR Hanazono station. The better known Kendo and Samurai Experience in Shugakuin is held in training wear with training swords, without armour or sparring, and takes children from 7. Both sessions last two hours.
Pick a day, or the first and last day of your stay in Kyoto. We check the booking calendar of every session and show which ones still have places.
Type: Real kendo in armour
Type: Sword basics
Kendo is fencing with a bamboo sword in protective armour, and in Kyoto the word turns up in more session titles than the sport itself does. One bookable session lets you train it as kendoka do, in bogu with a shinai and a sparring bout at the end. The better-known session with kendo in its name is a sword class in training wear.
Both sessions take two hours. They differ in armour, in the sword you hold and in one more point: only one of them ends with an opponent in front of you.
| Photo | Experience | Armour | Sword work | Sparring | Teacher | Where in Kyoto | Min. age | Group | Reviews ↕ | Price ↕ | Book |
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Kendo and Samurai Experience Kendo Experience (Studio NIN) | None, training wear only | Training swords | No | Not stated | Old house in Shugakuin, north Kyoto | 7 | Not stated | ★ 4.8 (1,276) | $102per person | Book now |
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Kendo Samurai Experience Tour Park for us | Full bogu: mask, gloves, chest and waist guard | Bamboo shinai | Yes, a bout at the end | 7th dan, English limited at times (reviews) | Dojo, meet at JR Hanazono north exit | Not stated | Often private | ★ 4.8 (37) | $114per person | Book now |
Per-person prices are loaded from GetYourGuide and include taxes and booking fees. Paid extras such as the kunai at the forging class are not part of the price shown.
Each session with the same facts, so age limits, location and what you actually do can be read across. Tap a session to see its programme, venue and house rules.
Kendo as the sport is practised: full bogu armour, a bamboo shinai and a sparring bout to finish.
The only experience compared here where you train kendo in full bogu armour with a bamboo shinai. It takes place in a dojo with a 7th-dan teacher and ends with a sparring bout. Sessions often run privately.
You meet at the north exit of JR Hanazono station, a little outside the centre. Reviewers say the teacher's English is limited at times.
North exit of JR Hanazono station.
Details as the studio lists them on its booking page; points it leaves open are marked as not stated in our tables.
Sword basics with training swords in an old house in Shugakuin. Despite the title, there is no kendo armour and no sparring.
You change into training wear and learn strikes, blocks and footwork with training swords, with time for photos and video at the end. The session takes place in an old house with a large gate in Shugakuin, in the Sakyo ward in the north of Kyoto.
The title says kendo, but the session does not include kendo armour (bogu) or sparring, and the product page lists no cutting. Children can join from 7.
An old house with a large gate in Shugakuin (Sakyo ward), about 15 minutes on foot from Shugakuin station.
Details as the studio lists them on its booking page; points it leaves open are marked as not stated in our tables.
Kendo is practised in bogu, a set of protective armour made up of a mask with a metal grille (men), padded gloves (kote), a chest guard (do) and a waist guard (tare). The sword is the shinai, four bamboo staves bound together. Points are scored with clean strikes to the head, wrists or torso, or a thrust to the throat. Putting on bogu and moving in it is part of the experience, and it is heavy and warm.
A session without bogu cannot include sparring, because the armour is what makes full strikes safe. That one detail tells you which kind of session you are looking at.
The Kendo Samurai Experience Tour by Park for us is the session where you wear full bogu and train with a shinai. It runs in a dojo with a teacher who holds 7th dan, finishes with a sparring bout and often takes place as a private session. You meet at the north exit of JR Hanazono station on the JR Sagano line, northwest of the city centre.
Reviewers note that the teacher's English is limited at times. Park for us excludes pregnant women and people with existing health conditions, and asks for the size and gender of every participant so the armour fits. The product page states no minimum age, so ask through the booking page before you book for a child.
The “Kendo and Samurai Experience with Uniform and Equipment” by Kendo Experience is the most reviewed session in this field. You change into training wear and practise strikes, blocks and footwork with training swords in an old house with a large gate in Shugakuin, about 15 minutes on foot from Shugakuin station. Photos and video close the session. There is no bogu, no sparring, and the product page lists no cutting. Children can join from 7.
One guest wrote that they never wore the masks shown in the photos. In kendo the mask is part of the bogu, which this session does not include. If the mask and armour are what you are after, the Park for us session is the one that has them.
The Kyoto Taikai is a budo tournament held at the Butokuden hall in Okazaki, next to Heian Shrine, and kendo is part of it. It traditionally runs from 2 to 5 May, and spectators can watch. The dates for 2027 had not been announced when this page was written. Golden Week falls in the same days, so book a session for that week early.
In July and August Kyoto is hot and humid, and bogu traps the heat. Drink before you start, bring water, and plan the kendo session for the morning if you can choose a time slot.
The first four cards are from the bogu session by Park for us. Its one-star review, from April 2025, found the teacher's English weak and the training shorter than announced; the product page now lists two hours, and a guest with little Japanese wrote that the demonstrations were enough to follow. The other cards are from the Shugakuin sword class. Its one-star review mentions masks seen in photos that the group never wore, which belong to the bogu that session does not use, and the two-star review is about the state of the house and garden.
“My sons and I had a great time. The instructor was clear, friendly, very patient and broke down the steps in a logical way. The training was challenging and really enjoyable. It’s quite a workout. … The highlight was the kendo match at the end …”
“As it turned out we were the only two in attendance with the instructor making three in total. Our gain, we had private tuition! The dojo was good, the instructor was excellent, he put everything across clearly and with humour and patience.”
“It was a fantastic first class in kendo! It was serious training, but Hayashi-sensei made it very enjoyable! Even though my Japanese isn’t good, his demonstrations very clear enough for me to follow along.”
“Unfortunately the activity was too expensive and not well prepared. The trainer barely spoke English and could tell us nothing about the history of kendo or about the training. Instead of the announced 2.5 hours, the training only lasted about 1.5. …”
“kahai was our instructor, he was very professional and informative. The true passion of the history shines through. This is not an experience to mess about, this is a serious activity with lots of respect taught.”
“Instructor is rough around the edges, not good with kids. We never got to wear the masks pictured in all the photos. Instructor plays a YouTube video mid session …”
“The house is run-down and dirty. The garden is ugly and poorly kept.”
Reviews written by guests after their session, from GetYourGuide.
Yes. The Kendo Samurai Experience Tour by Park for us puts you in full bogu armour with a bamboo shinai, in a dojo with a 7th-dan teacher, and ends with a sparring bout. It meets at the north exit of JR Hanazono station.
No. That session is held in training wear with training swords. It covers strikes, blocks and footwork, followed by photos and video, without bogu and without sparring.
Neither session asks for previous experience. The Park for us session excludes pregnant women and people with existing health conditions, and bogu is heavy, so a basic level of fitness helps.
The Kyoto Taikai at the Butokuden in Okazaki traditionally takes place from 2 to 5 May. Dates for 2027 had not been published when this page was written, so check them before you plan around the tournament.
No. Kendo uses the bamboo shinai, and Kendo Experience lists no cutting for its Shugakuin session. The session with one cut at a target is the sword and zen session by Waraku.
Armour, sword, minimum age and area for each one.
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