Making Golf in Japan Possible.
I'm based in Japan and work with a small number of golfers each season, building each trip around your budget, your pace, and what you want to experience.
Japan has 2,000+ golf courses. I'll find the one that's right for you.
Matched to your budget and the trip you're picturing — not a generic list pulled off a search engine, and not something you'll find on TikTok or Instagram.
I personally weave golf into a full sightseeing plan built just for you — the courses, the hotels, and a private way to move between them. Course sites here are mostly Japanese-only, and the trains that connect everything weren't built with a golf bag in mind. That local knowledge is exactly what goes into every trip I build.
- 01 Thousands of courses, and almost no way for a first-time visitor to compare them
- 02 Course sites and booking systems built for Japanese members, not overseas guests
- 03 Moving between cities and courses by train gets complicated fast with clubs in tow
- 04 Generic travel agencies don't know golf — and golf apps don't know Japan
A real trip I planned: 4 days in Shikoku
Not a hypothetical example — a trip I planned and guided personally. Ocean-view rounds, a course tied to a Japan Golf Tour event, and local restaurants most visitors never find on their own.
Arrival in Takamatsu
Clubs shipped ahead from the airport, udon in the birthplace of it, and a driving-range session before the first round.
Ocean-view golf and a garden of koi
A round overlooking the Seto Inland Sea, then a detour to a historic Japanese garden on the way to a hotel with its own hot spring.
27 holes at a tour venue
A course that hosts the CASIO WORLD OPEN, followed by dinner at a tuna specialist in a fishing town most visitors never see.
Kashiwajima's impossibly clear water
An island where boats appear to float, with a resident dolphin pod, before a last dinner at a local katsuo (bonito) tataki favorite.
This is one example. Your own trip is built entirely around your budget, your pace, and what you want to see.
What's included in your plan
Every plan starts with a course shortlist matched to you, then builds outward from there.
A course shortlist, matched to you
Chosen from Japan's enormous range of courses based on your budget, preferred region, and the atmosphere you want — Fuji views, ocean views, local character, sightseeing nearby, or easy city access.
A trip built around the golf
Sightseeing and stay experiences chosen to complement your rounds, so the days between courses are worth having too.
Door-to-door private transport
A private driver plan that skips Japan's complex train transfers, with practical handling of golf bags between courses, hotels, and airports. Most visitors don't realize you can ship clubs ahead from the nearest convenience store straight to your next course — I help set that up too.
Hotel shortlist and booking support
Golf-friendly hotels in the right locations, with guidance to help you complete the booking yourself.
Full trip logistics support
Help thinking through the practical side of traveling in Japan, beyond just the golf.
Support if something goes sideways
A local point of contact if plans shift or something needs sorting out mid-trip.
The attention of an individual specialist
Not a call center or a big agency's package — a close, flexible working relationship with someone doing this personally.
Simple, transparent planning fees
A flat fee for the course shortlist, itinerary design, and booking support — you'll always know exactly what you're paying for, with no commissions folded into hotel or course pricing.
- — Golf course shortlist matched to your budget and taste
- — Full itinerary: hotels, private transport, sightseeing
- — Guidance and support to complete your own bookings
- — A local point of contact before and during your trip
Why work with a local specialist
I'm Hanano Taniguchi, born and raised in Japan. I spent two years living in the U.S., studying at the University of Georgia, and the friendships I made there have stayed with me ever since.
Those friends, and their families, still turn to me when they're planning a trip to Japan — not for a tour package, just for someone who actually knows how things work here. That ongoing trust is the root of Taniguchi Tee Times.
I work directly with a limited number of golfers each season — no call center, no templated package. You're working with one person who knows the courses, knows the country, and stays close to your trip from planning through to the trip itself.
Being a small, individual operation means I can lean into the things a big agency wouldn't bother with — a last-minute change, an odd request, a detail only you care about. Wherever I can help, I will.
How it works
Free consultation
Tell me your budget, preferred region, and the kind of trip you're picturing — golf style, atmosphere, who's coming. No cost, no obligation.
Course shortlist & itinerary design
I shortlist courses that fit your budget and taste, then design the hotels, private transport, and sightseeing around them.
Review and refine
We go back and forth until the plan feels right — swap courses, adjust the pace, ask questions.
Book with support
I can walk you through each booking myself, or take care of much of the process directly on your behalf — whichever makes this easier for you. Final reservations and payments are still completed directly with each provider, and I stay close before and during your trip.
Ready to find the right course, the right stay, and a plan that just works?
Tell me your budget and the kind of trip you're picturing, and I'll shortlist the courses and design the plan around it. You make the final bookings — I stay close through the whole process.