# WOW U

> WOW U (wowu.travel) is a Japan-focused travel marketplace that connects international travelers with licensed local guides and Japanese hosts. The site lists guided activities, home visits, online planning sessions, and curated information about tourist spots and regional areas across Japan.

WOW U is operated by EXest, Inc. (Tokyo, Japan). All listings are in English, presented from the perspective of a foreign visitor planning a trip to Japan. Guides include nationally-licensed interpreter guides (通訳案内士), regional licensed guides, and other vetted tour professionals. Many listings are run in partnership with local tourism organizations and DMOs.

## Primary content

- [Activities](https://www.wowu.travel/activities): Guided tours and cultural experiences across Japan — walking tours, food tours, traditional craft workshops, nature activities, and night tours. Each listing includes price, duration, meeting point, language support, and verified guide profile.
- [Home Visits](https://www.wowu.travel/home_visits): Visits to Japanese family homes for meals, tea ceremony, cultural exchange, and other in-home experiences. Each listing describes the host, location, available languages, and what is included.
- [Online Planning](https://www.wowu.travel/online_plannings): Video calls with a local guide before the trip to plan a visit to Japan — a tailored itinerary, insider tips, and answers to travel questions.
- [Guides](https://www.wowu.travel/guides): Profiles of individual tour guides, including qualifications (licensed/regional/other), languages spoken, areas of expertise, and reviews from past travelers.
- [Guide Organizations](https://www.wowu.travel/guide-organizations): Regional interpreter guide organizations (地域通訳案内士団体) across Japan that partner with WOW U, with the number of member guides by prefecture.
- [Spots](https://www.wowu.travel/spots): Curated descriptions of tourist attractions, with address, official URL, photos, and contextual notes for international travelers.
- [Areas](https://www.wowu.travel/areas): Regional pages covering prefectures and notable destinations across Japan, including representative spots and activities.

## Static / supporting pages

- [About Home Visits](https://www.wowu.travel/lp/home_visit): What a home visit is, how a booking works, and frequently asked questions.
- [Contact](https://www.wowu.travel/contact): Who to contact for what — questions about an activity or home visit go to the Locals or host by chat; account and payment problems go to WOW U support; joining as a Locals or host; companies and organizations.
- [Terms of Service](https://www.wowu.travel/terms_of_service)
- [Specified Commercial Transaction Law disclosure](https://www.wowu.travel/specified_commercial_transaction_law)

## How bookings work

- Travelers browse listings, request a date, and confirm a booking with the guide or host.
- Payments are processed through Stripe in the listing's stated currency (typically JPY or USD).
- Cancellation policies are listed per item; refund rules depend on how close to the start date a booking is cancelled.
- Travel insurance (Tokio Marine Nichido) is bundled with eligible bookings — see the listing for details.

## Indexes for crawlers

- Sitemap: https://www.wowu.travel/sitemap.xml
- robots.txt: https://www.wowu.travel/robots.txt

## What is out of scope

- Member dashboards (`/admin`, `/guide`, `/host`, `/company`, `/organization`) are not public content and are excluded from crawling.
- User account pages (`/users`, `/user_settings`) are private.

## Contact

- Contact page: https://www.wowu.travel/contact
- Support: support@wowu.travel
- Operator: EXest, Inc. — https://www.exest.jp/