At GeoEx we know from decades of experience that a trip leader can make all the difference on a trip, offering life-changing insights, authentic experiences, and personal connections that can make a journey truly life-changing. We are thrilled that veteran guide and teacher Amy Loewen will be leading some of GeoEx’s Journey Through Ancient Japan trips in 2027. I recently spoke with Amy about her background, philosophy, and defining experiences as a traveler and trip leader. Here is our conversation.

I’d like to begin by asking you to briefly describe your background.

From an early age, I always knew I wanted to live in another culture radically different from my own. After studying anthropology, psychology, and music at the University of Toronto, I found that opportunity through the Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) program. I was placed in Kanazawa – then still largely unknown outside Japan – where I spent two transformative years visiting dozens of junior high schools while studying taiko, judo, tea ceremony, and Japanese language.

That experience reshaped my life. Returning home, I worked in museum exhibit design and later project management, but over the next three decades, I found my way back to Japan again and again. I managed operations of group tours to Japan and then earned a Master’s degree in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages so I could blend my passion for education with working overseas.

I taught at a Japanese university for ten summers, and in 2011 I began working as a Japan culture specialist on expedition cruises. I still teach in community colleges in the San Francisco Bay Area, but leading small, creatively designed tours remains my favorite way to share my enduring love for Japan.

How did you get started in travel?

My first role in the travel industry was with High Country Passage, where I worked behind the scenes planning educational tours for museums, university alumni groups, and affinity organizations. When I had an opportunity to assist the tour leader on a couple of the trips I’d helped plan, I was hooked!

Soon after, I began receiving invitations from travel companies looking for lecturers who could talk about the deeper cultural aspects of Japan in a way that was both accessible and entertaining. I loved helping travelers understand why things are the way they are in Japan, and I think that’s what people really crave: to travel with someone who helps them notice and interpret the details that reveal a society’s deeper story. For example, why does everyone back into parking spaces in Japan? Why does McDonald’s in Japan sell moon-viewing burgers? How can a single melon in Japan sell for $20,000? And in what way is a Japanese 7-11 a microcosm of cultural values? I love sharing my answers to these questions with guests!

How did you get started as a tour expert/leader?

While lecturing aboard expedition ships, I recognized an opportunity: to bridge the gap between what a Japanese guide might share, and what international guests are often most curious about. I started creating lectures on contemporary Japanese life, and guests loved them.

I’d talk about kawaii, or “cute,” culture, Japanese mascots, collectivism, and the subtle social elements that show up in daily life and behavior and require a bit of help noticing and explaining.

This approach was a hit with guests, so I started getting more and more work on ships. A guest once told me, “I’d like to return to Japan with you and simply see it through your eyes.” That comment inspired me to begin leading small group tours, which, for me, is the perfect way to share my love for Japan in a deeply personal and meaningful way. 

Where have you led tours?

I’ve worked throughout Japan’s four main islands —Honshu, Hokkaido, Shikoku, and Kyushu — as well as more remote regions such as the Ogasawara and Ryukyu islands. Beyond Japan, I’ve worked with groups in South Korea, Palau, Micronesia, Taiwan, the Philippines, Mexico, Costa Rica, and Panama.

I have also designed and led my own group tour in Japan, with a special focus on Kanazawa, where I once lived.

With GeoEx, I am especially excited to be involved with the Shikoku itinerary, since this region offers so much depth and authenticity.

What do you love about this job?

Wow, so many things!! Working as a tour leader for GeoEx draws upon two central aspects of my personality: a deep curiosity and love of exploration, and a genuine desire to care for others and anticipate their needs. On tour, this means discovering what resonates most with each guest and helping facilitate experiences that bring them joy and insight.

I also take pride in preparing travelers to feel confident navigating Japanese everyday etiquette, decoding confusing norms (such as shoe removal and slipper changing!), and appreciating the vast array of rituals that signal respect.

I also love the way GeoEx tours are small, creative, and allow space for serendipity as well as reflection. I especially value the collaborative dynamic between the Japanese guide and myself as trip leader, as together we help guests peel back the layers of Japanese culture and uncover its deeper meanings.

What do you love about the regions where you’ll be leading GeoEx travelers?

Shikoku feels to me like a hidden treasure within Japan, filled with remote areas that most people never get to visit due to their extreme isolation. And with the overtourism that’s hit Japan in recent years, this is exactly what makes the trip so special – it offers a chance to see Japan more like it used to be, a wild place with rich traditions and generous local communities who love to meet outsiders and share their culture.

Beginning in Kyoto provides an important cultural foundation and is a great way to start, but once we arrive in Shikoku, I love how the pace of the journey shifts. We have time to immerse ourselves in a landscape and a way of life that feel worlds apart from urban Japan, and incredibly special. When I first read Lost Japan by Alex Kerr, I never imagined I would one day stay at Chiiori, the 300-year-old thatched-roof farmhouse he lovingly restored in the early ‘70s. Staying overnight in this exquisite home is one of the many highlights of the Ancient Japan tour!

From there, it’s off to a luxurious hot spring resort, deep in the valley. And all along the way, since this itinerary supports a series of family-run businesses, we begin to build human connections and deepen our appreciation for a slower pace and deeper dive into the culture. From beautifully prepared regional food to joyful encounters with monks, artists, farmers, and chefs, I love the way the small group size allows us to stay flexible and tread lightly in these amazing places.

Can you give one example of a really great experience you’ve had as a tour leader (with travelers and/or locals) that for you exemplifies the importance and potential of your role?

If it’s all right, I’d like to give two!

One experience that comes to mind happened on my last GeoEx tour. I noticed that several guests were curious about Japanese aesthetics and beauty culture, so I arranged a spontaneous visit to a local drugstore. What might seem like a simple errand became a fascinating cultural exploration.

I love analyzing product design, marketing, and problem-solving approaches in Japan, and we spent over an hour examining and discussing what was available. This experience revealed some powerful insights into Japanese values and sparked thoughtful conversations about our own cultural assumptions, while also yielding a few delightful souvenirs!

On another tour, a solo traveler who was an artist became captivated by Japan’s elaborately designed manhole covers—of which there are thousands, each unique to its region. Once I recognized her interest, our days took on a treasure-hunt quality, photographing manhole covers everywhere we stopped. By supporting her curiosity, I helped her to experience Japan in a way that felt deeply personal and creatively inspiring.

In both cases, my role as cultural interpreter was central. Through listening carefully and encouraging guests to lean into their curiosity, I can help transform a trip into something uniquely meaningful.

Is there anything else you’d like GeoEx travelers to know about you?

My goal as a tour leader, as well as tending to the needs of guests and helping them have a fabulous time, is to demystify the everyday aspects of life that can feel so disorienting at first. Japan has a remarkable way of holding up a mirror to our own assumptions, inviting us to see both differences and common humanity with greater clarity.

I find this chance to see one’s own culture through fresh eyes to be invigorating, and that’s one reason I return to Japan again and again. Each traveler finds something different that fires up their curiosity in Japan, whether in aesthetics, food, craftsmanship, spirituality, or daily ritual. It’s a privilege to help facilitate these discoveries, and I can’t wait to see what’s in store for my next group!

Travel into the heart of Japan with Amy Loewen on our Journey Through Ancient Japan trip. Contact an expert to start planning or give us a call at 888-570-7108.