Vision & Mission
The heart of travel lies in the connections one makes along the way.
This is our guiding star at WaWo Japan Travel, a small but diverse team of Japanese and international staff passionate about journeys that place connection before consumption. Years of working alongside local governments, regional guides, artisans, and the people who call each region home have given us something rare: the ability to tailor-make every journey to suit the individual tastes of each traveler.
Even after our customers arrive, they are welcomed not as tourists, but as guests in our home. Travel doesn’t get more authentic than that.
Meet The Team
Founder
Kenichi TAKAGI
高木健一
National Government Licensed Guide Interpreter (English)
National Licenced Domestic Travel Service Supervisor
Osaka, Japan
Graduated from Kyoto University, Faculty of Letters, and completed graduate studies at East Anglia University in England.
After joining Hakuhodo Inc. as a new graduate, Kenichi worked for several companies in the advertising and marketing fields, before joining True Japan Tour Co. He has been involved in the development of inbound contents, sales menus, long-term tour planning, and human resource development in various regions of Japan. After working for a tourism-related web production and marketing company, he was involved in inbound media management and web marketing in the tourism industry, and then established WaWo Japan Travel Co., Ltd.
Co-founder
Yoko IWASAKI
岩崎陽子
National Government Licensed Guide Interpreter (English)
National Licenced Domestic Travel Service Supervisor
Kanagawa, Japan
Graduated from Tokyo University of the Arts, School of Music
After graduating from university, Yoko worked in sales at an advertising agency, record company, and restaurant business, before joining True Japan Tour Co. in April 2017, where she was responsible for tour operations and sales. From 2019, she was involved in content creation and guide training projects throughout Japan. She is in charge of arranging and escorting monitor tours and FAM tours alongside local operators. She worked as a dispatch advisor and instructor for numerous web-based tour sales projects, before she participated in the establishment of WaWo Japan Travel Co., Ltd.
Senior Travel Consultant
Saori FUTSUKAICHI
二日市早織
National Licenced Domestic Travel Service Supervisor
Aichi, Japan
Graduated from International Christian University (Tokyo)
She spent her childhood in New York, U.S., and moved to Japan for college. After graduating from college, she worked in sales and trading at a trading company in Japan, then moved back to New York and worked as a producer for a Japanese TV program, introducing local topics and stories to the Japanese community living in the U.S.. She moved back to Japan, and to fulfill her passion towards introducing local stories to the world, she joined a marketing company that focused on promoting local Japanese traditional crafts both domestic and internationally. After working in the public relations field, she joined WaWo Japan Travel, where she makes use of her experiences and is in charge of regional consulting and travel arrangements for travellers to enjoy Japan to its fullest.
Travel Consultant
Fangfang ZHU
朱芳芳
Nanjing, China
Graduated from Nanjing University of Finance and Economics
After graduating from university, Fangfang gained experience in media roles such as websites, radio stations, and newspapers in Beijing, Shanghai, and Nanjing. After visiting Japan over 30 times and publishing numerous travel articles, she came to Japan in 2019 to study Japanese and experience all that the country has to offer. For a number of years, she worked with a DMO in Hakuba, Nagano, focusing on inbound tourism promotion and services, multilingual tourism information, and Chinese market development for local tourist sites. She joined WaWo Japan Travel in 2024, where she supports regional tourism promotion across Japan and aims to provide effective promotional strategies and engaging plans for inbound visitors.
Travel Consultant
Joseph BAYLISS
ジョセフ・ベイリス
Florida, United States of America
Graduated from Florida State University, Department of Modern Languages and Linguistics
In university, Joseph studied publishing, editing, and Japanese, while working as an editorial intern at a nationally circulated literary journal, Southeast Review. After graduating, he worked at a private school in Florida, providing instruction in all subjects while assisting with literacy outreach initiatives. He came to Japan on the JET program and worked as an assistant language teacher at elementary and middle schools in Fukuoka prefecture. While not in class, he engaged in lesson and event planning, speech contest judging, study material creation, translation, and interpretation. Additionally, he served as head translator/interpreter at Fukuoka’s AJET branch. Upon finishing his JET contract, he was hired by WaWo Japan Travel, where he is involved with writing, translation, and trip planning, among other tasks.
Travel Consultant
Zhuolin QIU
チュ ズオリン
Sichuan, China
Graduated from the Graduate School of Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University, Tourism and Hospitality Division
Moving to Japan as a student in 2018, Jolene started pursuing a degree in Environmental Development as an undergraduate, and later specializing in Tourism and Hospitality for her master’s studies. During her stay in Beppu, she worked as a travel concierge at a tourist information center for foreigners, directly engaging with inbound tourism. Gaining valuable hands-on experience interacting with international tourists from diverse backgrounds, she addressed their individual needs and preferences while they traveled in Japan. Additionally, Jolene leveraged her multilingual abilities to assist foreign visitors and took charge of social media promotions, helping to highlight local destinations. Applying these experiences and skills at WaWo Japan Travel, she hopes to contribute to the growth of sustainable tourism while sharing the unique beauty of Japan’s regions with the world.
Travel Consultant
Yuki TAMURA
田村友基
National Licenced Domestic Travel Service Supervisor
Chiba, Japan
University of Ediburgh- MA in Economics
Spent his formative years from age 10 through university living in Singapore, the UK, and Taiwan. After graduating from university, he joined Fast Retailing Co.,Ltd. as a new graduate and gained experience in store management. He then became an English tutor, and while teaching English, he also shared English study tips on YouTube and was actively involved in content creation and social media management.
Later, while working as a sales representative for a golf manufacturer, he became acutely aware of the growing number of foreign tourists to Japan and their increasing demand across the country. Motivated by a desire to use his language skills and international background to directly convey the appeal of Japan to foreign visitors, he joined WaWo Japan Travel.
He is currently involved in planning and coordinating inbound tours as well as consulting on regional projects.