Japan Trips & Travel Tips

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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/illi28 on 2024-05-14 17:19:01+00:00.

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Hi! Planning our trip to Japan at the end of the month. Looking for some suggestions of what to check out near or in Asakusa for 1 day! So far this is what we have on the itinerary for that day:

Tsukiji Market

Coffee Break: Glitch 8 min walk

ASAKUSA:

• Kaminarimon / Sensō-ji Temple
• Nakamise street

Try Kobe Beef near Temple

Lunch: Tonkatsu or curry, TBD

Hoppy Street (Hoppy Dori)

Tokyo Skytree 6:00 PM (reserved)

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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/MolluskMolecule on 2024-05-11 08:35:49+00:00.

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Okay so awhile back I had read about a shrine and really wanted to go. I could have sworn I bookmarked etc. anyway I didn’t unfortunately.

I am currently in Kyoto and I have googled everything I can remember about it.

It’s an old shrine I believe in the mountains. The toriis are made of stone. It’s in a pine forest. The person who posted about it had mentioned possibly a story about it being haunted? That part I’m unclear on. The shrine though looked eerie.

Anyway if anyone thinks they know what this shrine is called let me know!

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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/NotTara on 2024-05-10 17:29:42+00:00.

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Currently in Osaka with a friend who’s in recovery and for whom travel was much more of a trigger than either of us realized. He started drinking about 24 hours ago and it’s escalating (as I once prior saw it escalate to a detox hospitalization/and he is drinking what I think is quite a lot).

He insists he can handle this/manage himself for five more days until our flights back, I don’t see how this would be possible. He agreed to take a flight back to the US tomorrow but the only one I can find from Osaka has a three hour layover and he doesn’t think he will make it on the second flight. Alternative is to take 3 hour train to Tokyo (I could get him to Tokyo) and then get him on a direct flight there.

Advice? Support? I’m very worried for his safely while also trying to care for my mental health. I hoped to get him back to the US ASAP because of additional resources there/potential difficulty getting emergency detox treatment here - but now I am worried whether he will make it there.

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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/AutoModerator on 2024-04-25 00:00:42+00:00.

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Are you traveling to Japan this month? Want to hang out with other Redditors while you navigate the country? Then this is the thread for you!

Please post any and all meetup requests here. Be sure to include:

• Your basic itinerary
• Dates of travel and cities you're planning to visit
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We have a discord server you can use to coordinate meetups and other activities. You can join the official r/JapanTravel Discord here! There are also monthly meetup/planning channels so react accordingly, you can create threads for specific dates/locations if you so desire.

In the past, people have used LINE to coordinate and plan meetups.

NOTE: Please only post meetup requests for this month. If you are traveling in the future, please reserve all meetup requests for the thread that corresponds with the month of your first date of arrival in Japan. This thread is automatically posted 7 days before the start of the month.

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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/Staplersarefun on 2024-05-08 16:29:03+00:00.

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My family and I travelled from Toronto, Canada to Japan and Korea during April 10th to April 24th. We spent 5 days in Tokyo, 2 days in Osaka, 2 days in Kyoto, 3 days in Seoul and a final night in Tokyo before flying back to Toronto. My kids are 4/5F(her birthday was while we were there) and 3M. Wife and I are 38F and 37M respectively.

April 10th/11th:

-Our flight was in an Air Canada 787 that was absolutely packed. I would not recommend a flight this long in economy with kids. Save up for premium economy or business class for your own sanity.

-Taxi from Haneda to hotel was worth every cent. We checked into the Cerulean Tower Tokyu Hotel. Highly recommended and it was perfect for us. It is a 5 minute walk to Shibuya scramble and station.

-Went out for a quick walk before getting to bed. Shibuya scramble is wild at night. We had MOS burger for dinner and the tried acclaimed shrimp burger... it was okay. We definitely didn't look for any more MOS burger locations for the rest of the trip.

April 12th

-First day was tough with jetlag; I woke up at 4 AM, along with my 3 year old son.

-Tried family mart egg sandwich and tuna and mayo onigiri... the eggs sandwhiches live up to the hype (particularly Family Marts) and for me, it was the start of a daily addicition with the onigiri. Quick note for the jetlagged- Combinis do not restock sandwhiches and other food until 6AM.

-Went to Sensoji. It was absolutely stunning, especially with the Cherry blossoms in bloom. Kids loved the fish in the gardens, though not much else. We tried the viral fruit candy and it was definitely worth the hype. There were a lot of influencers and content creators clogging up the central alley in front of Sensoji.

-We then took the Tobu train to Tokyo Skytree, pretty cool and a nice place to catch your breath and enjoy some views. Kids were way too tired for the aquarium. There was a food court in the basement of the Sky Tree building with some absolutely killer udon and banana ice cream.

-train back to hotel to rest.

-went to Rappongi Hills and Mohri gardens for an evening stroll, we walked down Sakurazaka to see the cherry blossoms. On Sakurazaka, there was a pretty cool little park for the kids to play for a few minutes.

-had shake shack and taxi back to hotel.

April 13th

Trip to Mt Fuji

-Went from Shibuya to Shinjuku by local train.

-Tried to take the bus to Fuji, but it booked for three hours - and we would have lost some prime Fuji viewing time.

-We took the express train to Otsuki. Extremely busy and no reserved seats available. Absolutely sucked riding on the floor for a few hours. There was a wait to see the Chureito Pagoda that was nearly 2 hours in uncovered heat and dust. Met some cool people in line though. Kids had fun looking at the lizards running around.

-took the train back to Tokyo with the same issues; this time the train was even more packed and there wasn't even space on the floor between the cars to sit for much of it. Would plan this out better, but it was the middle of Cherry Blossom season, plus it was an exceptionally clear day, so we didn't have too many options.

April 14th

-Went to TeamLabs Borderless. The whole family absolutely loved it and it was a great way to start the morning. My only piece of advice would be to ensure you are wearing either shorts or pants that can roll up above your knees. My kids especially loved the water part and the large balls, where my son in particular loved tossing the balls around.

We then went over to Shinjuku to the rest of the day with my wife's family at Shinjuku Goeyn Park who happen to live in Tokyo. Some obervations about the park:

• Extremely busy
• very beautiful with Cherry Blossoms
• Nice day and was very warm
• no drinking in the park and we ended up with a few bottles of Kirin that we had to carry back to the hotel

April 15th

Trip to Tokyo Disneyland

-Moved hotels to Grand Nikko Mahaima hotel next to Tokyo Disneyland.

-Nice hotel with beautiful lobby and free shuttle bus to Maihama Station that connects to the entrance of Tokyo Disney.

-Tokyo Disney was pretty busy, most rides had a wait time of 10-30 minutes.

-Paid for DPA on the Beauty of the Beast ride that was incredible. Absolute Must see Attraction. My daughter is still talking about it and the "real magic" she saw.

-I wouldn't recommend Tokyo Disneyland to anyone under the age of 20. My kids didn't really care about the characters or rides, and my daughter in particular was very sad that she didn't get to meet Elsa or any of the newer Disney princesses. I would suggest skipping Tokyo Disneyland and heading to Tokyo Disney Sea instead if you have younger kids.

-Sent baggage from Hotel Lobbey to our hotel in Osaka via Sagawa. I later found out that they wrapped the luggage in plastic, which was a nice little surprise.

April 16th

Heading out to Osaka

-Took train from Maihama to Shin Tokyo.

-Shin Tokyo to Shin Osaka took around 2 1-2 hours via Shinkansen.

-Dont buy extra tickets for young kids, as there's plenty of seating typically on this route and it isn't really required.

-Ended up spending way too much at the E-cute in Shin Tokyo, which is something similar to a Mercato Centrale or St Lawrence market in Toronto.

-Checked in to Hotel Keihan. Pretty nice, but rooms are small and the check in process was automated. It was about a 10 minute walk from Namba Station.

-Went to Dotanburi and the Namba shopping area. Bought some stuff from Gu and Uniqlo - about 40% cheaper than Canada.

-Onitsuka store was very over priced and the Mizuno store was sold out of what I wanted.

-Wife bought some skin care items from a pharmacy.

-Kids absolutely hated how packed the area around Dotunburi was, but were fine after some McDonalds. Wife and I had some Takoyaki and various other street foods for dinner.

April 17th

Trip to Osaka Castle

-had Komeda coffee for breakfast. It was okay about 6.5/10. Good coffee continues to elude me in Japan.

-took taxi to Osaka Castle

-buy ticket in advance, the line up for general admission was 30 minutes in uncovered heat.

-Castle was fairly interesting, kids found it a bit boring and the souvenir shop was fairly priced. My son was not allowed to try on the Samurai helmet and sword, which I found fairly irritating. No explanation was provided as to why.

-took train to Nara park to feed deer

-some deer were extremely friendly, but a couple were very aggressive and bit my wife around her hip. A couple of the more "wild" ones became aggressive with my daughter and wife. I had to lure them away with an entire packet of crackers. Despite the aggression from a few of the deers, it was a great experience and I would recommend every one check out Nara park. The pagoda and temples were all under constructions at the time I was there.

-There was a little alley next to the train station and we ended up going to Gyukatsu Kyoto Katsugyu. Incredible food andreally great service. I saw this restaurant in Tokyo with absolutely gigantic lines, so it was a breath of fresh air to be able to just walk in somewhere with out booking in advance or waiting in line.

-rapid express train back to Osaka Namba followed by a junk food party with the kids (by this point in the trip, they had become obsessed with Family Mart).

-tried using laundry at the hotel. It was a combo washer and dryer. It took two hours and cost 600 yen; ultimately did not dry my clothes and I had to hang everything up in the room.

April 18th

Off to Kyoto

-took the rapid express train from Namba station to Kyoto station

-checked in Tennen Onsen Renka no Yu Onyado Nono Kyoto Shichijo. Kids absolutely loved the fact there were PJs and you had to take your shoes off.

-The whole family desperately needed a rest day and the onsen was welcome. Felt amazing after some time there and the kids also enjoyed it. There was unlimited ice cream in the cool down room, which was a huge hit.

-Went to Isetan for a cake to celebrate my daughter's birthday. The Isetan in Kyoto station was the only place where I felt I was being scammed in all of Japan. They were trying to charge me double the listed price for 4 pieces of cake. It might have been a mistake, but I had to type out the correct pricing on Google translate about 4 times before they agreed.

April 19th

-Went to Yasaka Pagoda and then to Kiyomizu Dera. Crowds weren't that bad and it was extremely beautiful. By this time in our trip, the cherry blossoms had more or less disappeared.

-We were quite bored of Japanese food by now and I found a Turkish doner stand in Nagakyo market. Kids has Wendys.

-There was also a Shoei design studio near this market and if you are interested in buying a motorcycle helmet, this store is a definite visit. Also went by the Grand Seiko boutique in my search for a limited edition SLGA007 Lake Suwa, but they didn't have it. Second choice was a SLGH005 White Birch, which they did have but weren't willing to give me a 5% discount that other retailers were willing to give me.

-back to hotel to enjoy more of the onsen. Kids became obssessed with the onsen and are still talking about it.

-went to Kyoto Tower Sando for dinner where we tried a few different places.

April 20th

Flight to Seoul

-Took the train from Kyoto Station to Shin Osaka, from Shin Osaka directly to Kansei International. Different rapid express limited ticket required and but we had to run from ...

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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/TacyTheQueen on 2024-05-08 08:06:16+00:00.

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Wanted to share what I did in Kyoto when renting a kimono as I think I managed to squeeze a lot in one day after researching various forums! Hope its useful for anyone planning the same.

9am: Rent kimono - this is key to get your pick of the kimonos and to have the whole day to explore. The whole process can take up to an hour. I paid extra for the hair styling and think it's worth it. My kimono Rental was 5mins from Yasaka shrine (booked on Klook).

10am-1:30pm: Yasaka Shrine, Sannenzaka (pedestrian street with cute shops and restaurants, grab some food/coffee etc), Kiyomizu temple (this is huge, and lots of walking, views are gorgeous and you get to try many temple activities), Seikan-ji Temple (the route to this through the forest looks amazing, temple itself is so so but has a great view).

1:30pm-4pm: Head to Fushimi Inari (grab a cab to get there quicker and get a bit of rest). I took one from the bottom of Seikan-Ji temple as it's on a road, saved me the walk back the same route as well. I climbed most of the steps just not the very mountain top as I was tired and already found a good viewing spot (so stopped around 20mins away). It was truly magical and actually it was not crowded at all at this time. I know all advice says to come in the morning but I have limited days in Kyoto so wanted to make the most of it. Those who can't walk a milion steps I'd say leave this part for the next day as it was tired but nothing worse than what I've done around Europe.

5pm - return kimono (I had enough time to take the train/bus but was tired so did a quick taxi back, either way it would have worked fine). Bonus point if you buy a hair accessory in Sannenzaka, just add it in to your already finished hairstyle and you get to prolong the magic!

Might be much for some but honestly I faired relatively well and even got a lot of steps in! If you think you'll struggle with the shoes (I was fine) bring your own as backup! I normally don't use taxis but my priority was to not tire myself out with the trains and walking to/from stations, and focus on the 'main event'. They always were only a minute wait and cost less than 5,000 total. Also even though it's busy I could easily take pictures in all the places and didn't have to wait long at all.

Overall a 10/10 experience for me and now I'm ready for a beer at an izakaya 😅

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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/Global-Ratio2442 on 2024-05-08 01:54:23.

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EDIT Made a typo, trip was from MARCH 31 - April 13 :)

I've combed through hundreds of trip reports and itineraries for trip inspiration, so hopefully my trip report could come in handy for a few people! Happy reading!

Background and notes:

First trip to Japan with my boyfriend and our first international trip as a couple. Japan has been a top destination for both of us. I'm an avid planner who has lots of anxiety about things not going right, and I typically like to plan fully packed days while my boyfriends is more go with the flow and likes to take his time to relax and enjoy the sights. I tried my best to find a happy medium for the both of us and overall, we had an amazing trip! We both packed one smaller suitcase + one empty check-in & duffle bag and we came back with 5 suitcases (thank u donki for coming in clutch with the suitcases)

A lot of the things on our trip might seem like places that are touristy and overdone but we're tourists! and it's our first time here so we didn't mind waiting in line or going to really crowded places to experience things once. (Although some places were super overcrowded and it did get a liiiittle overwhelming sometimes).

Also we were kinda sad thinking we would miss the cherry blossoms because the prior predictions stated that they were going to be done and over by end of March, but luck was on our side and we were right at the height of cherry blossom season! I've never experienced something like this and seeing all the trees covered in them is something I'd never forget.

Day 1 (May 31)

• Travel day, landed in NRT around 2:30pm. The flight was uncomfortable and mediocre but once you get through customs and get into the bustling airport nothing matters, the trip was starting!
• Couldn't resist getting a gachapon and stopping by the Lawson's that was in the airport terminal for a little teaser for what's to come.
• We had originally planned to take the bus to the city but the bus would have taken about 2hr30min to get to our hotel compared to around 1hr20min by subway. After the long flight, we'd much rather get to the city as soon as possible. (Protip! Download Suica on your phone and load the card so that you don't have to wait in a long line to buy a subway ticket! We thought the Keisei Narita Skyaccess was a special line and we wouldn't be able to use our Suica cards and we ended up waiting in line but the kind worker told us we could just head on in)
• Checked in at the Hotel Celestine Tokyo Shiba, settled and rested up for a bit.
• Headed to Ginza for a dinner reservation at Ginza Chikamitsu which is known for specializing in a Yakiniku course meal. It was pretty pricey but definitely worth it. The meat quality and service was amazing. They even gave us a pack of mints at the end lol.
• Did some damage at Uniqlo & GU, with the Yen prices right now with the addition of tax free shopping I might have went a little crazy, bought around 15 pieces of clothing for less than 200 dollars which is still insane to me.

Day 2 (April 1)

• First full day, jet lag didn't hit us too hard and we woke up around 7AM to get ready and head to Tsukiji fish market.
• Tsukiji Market Takeaways:
  • 10000% get the tamago if you think you'd enjoy sweet egg. My bf and I tried to share everything on this trip so that we can eat as much as we can but this is the one thing I would not share LOL.
  • UniTora - We got lucky with the line, only had to wait about 20ish? minutes. Uni was good, but honestly get the bowls with a variety of different fish because just uni + rice can get a little boring.
  • Definitely head over as early as you can, it got super crowded around 10AM
  • I know most people say Tsukiji is overrated but my bf and I liked this market the most compared to Nishiki(Kyoto) and Kuromon(Osaka).
• Took the bus to head over to our reservation in Small Worlds. Highly recommend, you can spend a couple hours here just looking at all the exhibits and finding small and amusing things, it's great to see all the hard work and detail that goes into everything.
• Visited the Gundam in Odaiba afterwards, sad that the one in Yokohama closed right before our trip but this didn't disappoint! The size was still massive and there were cherry blossoms blooming nearby. Spent a few hours in DiverCity Tokyo Plaza mall afterwards and did some more damage shopping.
• Tsujihan for our next meal around 4pm, made the journey to the Akasaka Arks Hills Branch and no line! The restaurant was less than half full the entire time we were there. If Tsujihan is on your list this branch is your best bet for no line.

Day 3 (April 2) - Tokyo Disney Sea Day

• Woke up at 6am, took a taxi over to Disney Sea because from where we were staying it would have taken over an hour (with like 3 different subway transfers) to get there and we'd rather just pay for convenience.
• Got there around 8am, waited an hour in line as the park opened at 9am (they didn't open early this day). The morning crowds were insane! Never seen such lines at the Disneyland in California.
• Disney Sea Takeaways:
  • Use the Disney Resort App and make sure to take advantage of the free 40th Anniversary Pass. If you have the budget to buy the Premier passes, I'd suggest that too. If you do end up buying passes to almost all the rides then you might be done with the park pretty quickly, we didn't end up spending the entire day there. Left around 6PM - skipped out on the night show cause we were cold and tired.
  • The only line we waited in was for Aquatopia and 2000 Leagues Under the Sea.
  • Bring a jacket! It gets super cold at night, I'm thankful we didn't get sick from how cold we were towards the end of the trip.
  • Food + Snacks are super affordable, we got to try almost all the popcorn because they were like $2. But honestly, the food wasn't as good as everybody hyped it up to be.
    • Some of our favorites were the Gyoza Bun, Shrimp Bun, Matcha White Chocolate Popcorn, and the curry set from the restaurant at the Arabian Coast.
  • All the rides feel super short? Especially Journey to the Center of the Earth. If I waited in that 2+ hr line I would have felt scammed.
  • Overall, the park was super cute and enjoyable. Great first experience, not sure if I'd find the need to come again.
• Took a taxi to Asakusa to try out Nabezo cause we were craving hotpot after a cold night. Got turned away because they were full for the night and we didn't have reservations. I don't know how but we somehow braved a 1hr30min line for Gyukatsu Motomura that was right next door. Great dinner and we made friends in the line with a sweet older couple from Europe. Was the food as good as everybody hyped it up to be? Yes. Would I wait in a long line again? Maybe?

Day 4 (April 3)

• Woke up around 9AM was able to take our time to get ready to head out to Ginza. It was rainy this day but not enough to deter our plans.
• I really wanted to try out Ginza Godaime Hanayama Udon. I'm a sucker for flat noodles and I love udon so this was a priority for me. Didn't make it to first seating as a line had already formed when we got there and we had to wait around an hour but by the time we got in the line was insane behind us! Get there as early as you can to avoid the lines. Food was amazing and I loved the texture of the noodles and the tempura was great as well. Loved both the dipping sauces for the noodles too.
• After our meal we headed to Asakusa for more eating and exploring! Even with the rain Asakusa was crowded. Bf and I honestly really enjoyed Asakusa; the temples and shops were so fun for us to explore.
• Best bite at Asakusa were the little kinako dango skewers that they served with a small cup of (amazing) matcha. I still dream about this. We tried the Creme Brulee Sweet Potato and Imo Pipi and it was good, but not amazing.
• For dinner we headed to Manten Sushi Marunouchi for their famous affordable omakase. As a couple who enjoys omakase in the states, where the price is $$$$, we wanted to see how a cheaper Japanese omakase would fair in terms of taste and quality.
• Honestly, pretty good, but it wasn't anything mind blowing. If you're someone who hasn't had a lot of exposure to omakase I would say this is worth going to as you're definitely getting your money's worth and the quality is still really good. Also our sushi chefs spoke a good amount of english and were great! Super enjoyable and entertaining when handing our food.

Day 5 (April 4) - Kyoto Travel Day!

• This was the day I was most anxious about, I had little to no idea about how the Shinkansen worked and I knew Tokyo Station was going to be crazy. We got to the station around an hour before our departure time and at first it was really overwhelming as we had no idea where to go and where our train was. We had to ask a worker and they kindly guided us towards where we needed to be.
• Once we figured out where to go we were set, bought a few ekiben and snacks for the ride. Not sure if we just chose the wrong kinds but honestly the ekibens were mid..and cold, probably would have been better to eat onigiris or buy food elsewhere.
• After arriving, we checked into our Hotel, Hotel Intergate, located off the main street of Kyoto but still close enough to Nishiki Market and other hot spots.
• Speaking of Nishiki Market, that was our next destination. We were overall underwhelmed wit...

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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/pipted on 2024-05-07 23:23:05.

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Here's a report from our two week family trip a couple of weeks ago. My girls are aged 8 and 11, and are into cute stuff and animals.

Day 0 (10th April):

• Arrived at Narita terminal 1, 6:30pm. Glad we knew which train to catch and the timetable, as the direct line to Asakusa Station (Keisei Sky Access) only goes roughly every 35mins. Took 30 mins to queue for Pasmo Passports, and despite short queues elsewhere, we had to run for our 8:05pm train!
• Hotel: Mimaru Tokyo Asakusa Station, right next to the station exit. The Mimaru chain is great for kids. Great service, big rooms, lots of beds, a dining area and kitchenette. Asakusa is a lovely, fairly quiet place to be based, and has beautiful early morning walk options along the river and to Senso-ji if you're jetlagged.

Day 1:

• Senso-ji early before the crowds. Beautiful temples and gardens, with cherry blossoms a bonus; a great start to Japanese culture before Hello Kitty and Pokemon took over! Next we stumbled upon the huge 24 hour Don Quixote nearby. Great for necessities and souvenirs alike.
• Sunshine City mall was next as we didn't want too much walking after not much sleep. I didn't know there was a Sanrio cafe there - luckily we were able to walk straight in! The Pokemon centre and Sylvanian Families stores kept the kids happy for a long time.
• Back to the hotel for a rest / nap, then Nakamise Dori (stalls near Senso-ji) and Kura Sushi for dinner. We finished at an arcade which we returned to every night as it was the only thing that kept our kids awake and fighting off jetlag!

Day 2:

• Teamlabs Borderless booked for 10am. No queues and straight in at 9:50am. There were a few people in there already, but it only felt crowded an hour later. Truly beautiful, well loved by the whole family.
• Harajuku next for Takeshita street. It was raining, so we picked up two of the famous big clear umbrellas. Sadly these were too big for our suitcases and a hassle to carry around - I suggest you plan ahead and buy a small umbrella or poncho instead. (Tiny umbrellas are cute and cheap at Don Quijote.) Plenty of interesting sights and stores condensed into a small space on Takeshita street, but nothing that you can't see elsewhere in Tokyo, so can be skipped if you don't like crowds!
• Ometosando: my kids had heard good things about Kiddyland toy store, but they were too tired to even walk all the way to the top floor, so back to the hotel for an afternoon rest.
• Katsukitchi (Asakusa) for dinner - best katsu we've ever had, lovely service, really highly recommended. We went back three more times!

Day 3:

• Odaiba. Here's where the Navitime app failed: it didn't recognise the monorail to Odaiba. Google maps recognises it as just another train. It's just as easy to catch as a regular train too, but provides excellent views.
• Poo museum at DiverCity mall first. Hard to access because the mall opens an hour after the museum. We hadn't booked but were able to walk straight in. The poo museum is tiny and seems mostly set up for social media photos, but the kids had a lot of laughs.
• Sega Joyopolis: I'm glad we didn't pay for the full unlimited passes, as my kids didn't like most of the rides. Instead we paid for entry and just paid for a couple of rides.
• Takoyaki food court nearby – literally only sells takoyaki – even some of the drinks have octopus in them! Bit of a mistake as our kids don’t like octopus, haha.
• Ferry back to our hotel in Asakusa.
• Rickshaw tour of Asakusa in the evening – expensive but a highlight for the kids.

Day 4:

• Kappabashi Street to shop for knives and book a workshop for Ganso Shokuhin Sample-Ya (see day 10).
• Samurai Ninja Museum: not in the itinerary, just saw it walking past. The kids didn't want to dress up and didn't find the tour very interesting, but my husband and I learned a lot.
• Skytree mall: bigger than expected; spent most of the day between the shops and aquarium. Sumida Aquarium is small but beautiful.
• Skytree is worth a visit, but there's not much to do up there and it's very crowded. I've heard the upper floor is less crowded, but it was booked out when I booked online a few weeks before. On the day they were selling walk up tickets including the upper floor, but it wasn't possible to upgrade our ticket, unfortunately.

Day 5:

• Travel from Tokyo to Osaka. Booked with Smartex a few days before using my Mastercard, then linked to our IC cards. We couldn’t figure out how to pick up tickets at first, but it was easy: Scan IC cards at the Shinkansen gate and a ticket will print out with your booked details. We sent our luggage by takkyubin the day before, but needn't have bothered as there was ample room for luggage in the Green Car.
• Hotel: Mimaru Osaka Namba Station: a game-themed hotel (board games, card games etc) with games to borrow and many integrated into the hotel itself. Fabulous. Our Japanese room had a tatami floor, with two regular beds and three comfortable futons. My only complaint was that we had been spoiled in Asakusa being next to the station and in a quieter place; Namba station was an eight-minute walk through a bustling district (with an Akihabara feel to it; lots of gaming and anime and technology), which didn't suit our family quite as well when returning from a tiring day.
• Dotonbori: the big signs were cool, but it's not that impressive by day. Rode the weird Don Quijote ferris wheel - surprisingly high, my kids found it quite scary!
• Teamlabs Botanical Gardens: also highly recommended! The kids loved the freedom to race around and interact with the glowing artworks.

Day 6:

• Harvest Hill first, to visit the Sylvanian Families village. My girls adore these cute Japanese animal dolls, and visiting their life-sized houses was a dream come true. Harvest Hill also has animals, boats, flowers, small rides and beautiful scenery. We couldn't find the bus from the nearest train station, but taxis were easy, and the bus back to the station was easy to find as it was a remote area with just one bus stop! Just tag on and off with your IC card.
• Osaka Aquarium Kaiyukan. We had high expectations as it's ranked at number six in the world, and it blew even those expectations out of the water! Incredible.
• Tempozan Ferris Wheel: long queue for people wanting a glass floor; we didn’t, so we skipped the queue and walked straight on. Amazing views to Universal Studios!
• Picked up takeaway pizzas from [A] Pizza as the kids were tired.

Day 7:

• Universal Studios Japan. Arrived at 8:10am. I'd read that it opens at 8, but not today! We had early entry tickets, but all queues were let in at around 8:40. The benefit of the early entry ticket is that the queue is MUCH shorter. We also paid for the 7 ride express pass: expensive but worth it as we could do all the best rides in one day with almost no queues. Truly magical for our young fans of Harry Potter, Super Mario and Minions.

Day 8:

• Nara: Still tired from Universal Studios, and the temples are spread far apart, so we stuck to the deer feeding near the station. We'd read the warnings, but inevitably, my eight-year-old got spooked and ran. Before we could help her, she'd been bitten hard on the back. After one more (carefully controlled) attempt, we headed back to the hotel.
• Osaka castle: The kids wanted to relax and play arcade games, so I headed out alone. Beautiful castle and grounds, worth a visit even with kids (there's a playground in the southwestern corner of the park with a view of the castle). Long queue to catch the elevator, but no queue for those happy to walk up. Every floor has museum displays, so you can rest on every floor if you're tired!
• I'm not much into social media, but on the way out through the park I tried one of the 'viral' ten yen cheese breads - yuck, why was it sweet?! Some things look great online but that doesn’t match reality, haha.

Day 9:

• Kyoto day trip. We planned just two stops that were easily accessible by train.
• Fushimi Inari Taisha first, because my kids love foxes. Lots of fox shrines (and souvenirs!) The red torii gates were crowded as expected, so we took a side path to the right a short way up the hill. This took us through the forest, past more shrines, with almost no people! It took us 50 minutes to reach the peak.
• Gion, up the Ninenzaka path. It was crowded and the kids were tired, so we didn't stay long! We'll do Kyoto properly when the kids are older.

Day 10:

• Travel to Tokyo. A week earlier I had accidentally booked today's Shinkansen in the wrong direction, but luckily the refund process with Smartex is easy and cheap! We found a huge discount (30% off green car) called Hayatoku 3 Family, available for groups of 2 or more on weekends on the Nozomi train when booked at least 3 days in advance.
• Ganso Shokuhin Sample-Ya, Kappabashi street: Sample food making workshop. Very highly recommended! The staff at the counter don’t speak much English, but the teachers do. Our teacher Koyama was really lovely and the whole experience was delightful.
• Sheraton Grande Tokyo Bay: our hotel for Disney. It's the most convenient of all the unofficial Disney hotels, being across the road from the station, and had several restaurants, stores and an indoor pool. Half the rooms have views of the Disney fireworks - sadly not ours! But they can be seen from th...

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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/thedevilsivy on 2024-05-07 07:25:43.

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Got time off work all of a sudden that had to be taken during GW and my partner REALLY wanted to do Japan. I was game - I’ve been to Japan twice before, so it didn’t bother me that we’d have to be flexible and potentially miss/skip stuff.

How I booked/planned ⤵️

Exactly 3 weeks out, I booked flights to Haneda (used points, but they were about $900 from the East Coast). I booked all our lodging within the airline ticket 24 hour cancellation window. I wanted to be able to call off the trip and go somewhere else if I couldn’t lock down good lodging.

I booked 4 nights in Osaka at the Moxy in Shin Umeda using Marriott points. While the location wasn’t the most convenient of all time, it was a nice hotel and still in an okay area. I did request a room upgrade using my Platinum Elite benefits and they were not able to fulfill the request. May not have been a GW thing but I blame GW.

I wanted to do an overnight to Yakushima or Miyajima but both were too booked up. I switched gears and scored the very last room at the very last temple stay available in Koyasan. I paid $331 for what ended up being a gigantic room in a highly rated temple 5 minutes walk from Kongobuji (main attraction of Koyasan). Having looked up their non-Golden Week rates, I believe I paid a premium of ~$100 over the normal price. Really glad it worked out this way as Koyasan was very tranquil and uncrowded.

Surprisingly, the Art Islands were not totally booked out. I was able to book the exact hotel I wanted in Uno port for the exact dates I wanted. The price was about $40/night higher than normal. The only option left was a dorm room, which I expected to be a capsule, but it turned out their “dorm” rooms are all private rooms! The downside was a communal shower, but I never even used it because the stay came with free entry every day to the incredible seaside hot spring spa next door!

For the last night in Tokyo before flying out, I got a capsule at the exact hostel I wanted. I would have booked a private room if one was available, but for a stay totaling only 10 hours, the capsule was fine.

My partner reserved all our shinkansen tickets 1 week in advance using Smart Ex, and also reserved our seats on the train to Koyasan (not shinkansen, but reservation only). We actually ended up changing several of our reservations during the trip without any issues. For example, for the shinkansen ride from Okayama to Tokyo, we moved up our departure time twice the day of and booked an oversized luggage compartment at the last minute. I don’t believe any shinkansens we took allowed unreserved seats during GW so there was never any risk of having to stand.

I got scared off by posts about taking the shinkansen out of Tokyo on April 27, so I chose to fly to Osaka instead. Our transit ended up being nice and relaxed that way, plus I could take advantage of JAL domestic one-way flights being only 7.5k AA miles. I booked the flights 2 weeks in advance without any issues.

My partner booked ebike rentals and museum tickets for Naoshima and Teshima 3 weeks in advance. The only ticket we couldn’t get was Art House Project Kinza which is extremely difficult to get under ordinary circumstances anyway. It turned out our booking didn’t actually go through for Chichu Art Museum on Naoshima, and we didn’t realize it until the day of! It was obviously fully sold out during GW so I panicked but my partner kept refreshing the booking page throughout the day and several last-minute tickets popped up from cancellations.

In terms of meals, I didn’t bother with more than 1-2 restaurant reservations. We did fancy kaiseki meals, two different fancy wagyu experiences, and a high end sushi omakase in Japan less than a year ago. That doesn’t mean I winged it though. I planned every single meal in advance, and built our itinerary around restaurant opening times so we could always beat the queue. I also mapped out backup restaurants in case places were unexpectedly closed for GW, which did happen twice. Honestly not a bad idea to do so no matter when you travel, since Japanese businesses randomly close all the time.

Fully detailed itinerary below ⤵️

Day 1 (Saturday): Arrived HND. Left almost 3 hours between international arrival and domestic departure to Osaka. This ended up being way overkill but I didn’t know what kind of crowds to expect during GW.

Arrived at Itami late evening. Went out to see Massimiliano Pagliara’s DJ set at Compufunk Records until almost 3.

Day 2 (Sunday): Mostly a shopping day other than a quick stop at Namba Yasaka shrine. Hit the Tojiro knife store, Graf and Meetdish for fancy homewares, Indigena for all things vintage Snoopy, and Lara Vintage for vintage European womenswear where I scored some incredible pieces.

Got lunch at Oretachino-curry since the seafood izakaya I wanted to visit turned out to be closed for GW.

Got coffee at Glitch (the GOAT) and okonomiyaki & yakisoba for dinner at Ajinoya Honten.

I got a heavenly dry head spa treatment at I Refre Shinsaibashi while my partner window shopped in Denden town. Wanted Rikuro cheesecake afterward but it was mobbed and sold out so got consolation Mister Donut.

Day 3 (Monday): Successfully obtained Rikuro cheesecake in the shinkansen station on the way to Himeji!

Siphon coffee at the most charming shop in Himeji called Hamamoto Coffee (3.61 on Tabelog). No queue.

Visited Himeji Castle (busy but not uncomfortably so) & Kokoen Gardens (not busy) in the morning and Mt. Shosha/Engyoji (practically empty) in the afternoon. Got lunch at Ramen Koba in between. No queue.

Did more shopping after getting back to Osaka at Moyi Store (pottery), And Wander (gorpcore), Snowpeak (camping), and Mr. Kanso (tinned fish).

Horumonyaki for dinner at Yakiniku Susumu. No queue.

Day 4 (Tuesday): Woke up unnecessarily early to go to Kizu Market for breakfast at Maruyoshi Sushi. No queue.

Had really good tea and wagashi in even better pottery at Wad Omotenashi. No queue.

Hours of vintage clothing shopping at ACORN, Post Acorn, Kindal, NATS, and Village. If I came to Osaka again I’d definitely stay in Kitahorie or Minamisemba!

Got lunch at Udon Kyutaro (3.83 on Tabelog, no queue) and coffee at Aoma Coffee.

Walked through Kuromon Market then went tax-free shopping at Shinsaibashi Parco for random stuff like Miffy merch at Kiddyland, Hario coffee gear at Hands, and SK-II (IYKYK). Also did a ton of skincare shopping at Matsu Kiyo.

Dinner at Dotonbori Kani Doraku. Admittedly a tourist trap, but super tasty - glad I had a reservation as the wait was bananas. Got dessert at Cheese Tart Pablo. Short queue despite being in an incredibly crowded shopping street.

Day 5 (Wednesday): Traveled to Koyasan. Walked around and saw all the main shrines, had lunch at Hanabishi since the tofu shop I wanted to visit was closed for GW. Onsen at our temple stay before the shojin ryori dinner.

Did the obligatory and stunning night walk through Okunoin cemetery. We passed by the guided tour from Ekoin and were so glad we decided against it. It was way more magical being on our own in the misty dark night.

Day 6 (Thursday): Morning prayers and breakfast set meal at the temple, then looong travel to Uno for the Art Islands leg of the trip. Lunch at 551 Horai when changing trains in Osaka 🤤

Got kakigori at Omachido on reaching Uno, then took the ferry to Naoshima. Walked to the Lee Ufan and Benesse Art Museums and ate fresh locally farmed flounder at Yuunagi. No queues.

Closed out the night in the seaside rotenburo under the stars at Setouchi Onsen Tamanoyu.

Day 7 (Friday): Grabbed breakfast at the Marunaka grocery store, took the ferry to Teshima, and picked up our e-bike rentals from Setouchi Karen.

Hit Teshima Art Museum, Les Archives du Coeur, La Foret des Murmures, Needle Factory, and the Teshima Yokoo House. Got lunch at Shima along the way. No queue.

More kakigori at Omachido after getting the ferry back to Uno. Long queue! For dinner we had a very nice 14-course yakitori omakase at Sumi Habaki (Michelin Bib Gourmand). This was a reservation we had our hotel make for us a couple weeks in advance.

Hit the onsen again. It was a touch busy. More families with little kids than I’m used to seeing. GW problems.

Day 8 (Saturday): Grabbed breakfast at Marunaka again, took the ferry to Naoshima where there was an open-air marché going on right at the ferry terminal. Got a bunch of cute pottery and then took photos of the iconic red Kusama pumpkin.

Picked up e-bike rentals at Ougiya, booked it to Honmura lounge to get the best chance of a convenient entry time for Minamidera.

Saw Go’o Shrine, Kadoya, Gokaisho, Ishibashu, Chichu Art Museum, where we also had lunch at the cafe, Minamidera, Haisha, Tadao Ando Museum, Hiroshi Sugimoto Time Corridors, the yellow pumpkin, and Valley Gallery.

Ferried back to Uno, then headed to Tokyo, with a stop in Okayama where we got ramen at Fujiya. No queue.

Was so tired on reaching my hostel UNPLAN Kagurazaka that I just ate a Manneken waffle and passed out.

Day 9 (Sunday): Walked around Kagurazaka-dori and visited Tokyo Daijingu shrine.

Half the reason I stayed in Kagurazaka was so I could get breakfast at Pain des Philosophes (3.86 on Tabelog). Bread made with koshihikari koji and tangzhong 🔥 I only arrived 10 minutes before open and there was a substantial queue already.

Then immediately queued again at Tsujihan for their ...

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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/RidwaanT on 2024-05-04 22:20:18.

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Arrested for Car accident in Tokyo

I have a few friends travelling in Japan and I just got the call that they had a "minor" accident where a motorcyclist was hit off the bike but seemed to be fine enough to walk.

The police detained all of them for questioning but is holding the driver for 48 hours until they meet a prosecutor. I can't find any similar cases online so I'm coming here to ask, aside from contacting the consulate what can I do from outside his cell to help? They also said he wouldn't be allowed visitation.

Lastly what are the chances of being released after the 48 hours?

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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/FlowerSz6 on 2024-05-04 21:53:53.

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So far I have the following list:

• travel adapter
• power bank (im thinking of bringing 2 tbh)
• will either get sim or portable wifi
• jr pass is worth for my trip
• welcome suica
• luggage scale
• packing cubes
• some kind of keychain alarm that i can use in case something happens (i know its unlikely but better be safe)
• face masks
• coin purse
• maybe a money belt if i feel funky
• printed tickets of things i have pre booked

Any recommendations, something ive missed? (Once more i try to post something here, lets see if it goes through.)

Edit: you guys are so helpful, thank you so much i cant keep up with it haha.

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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/BizCard55 on 2024-05-04 07:03:41.

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skydeck is now officially closed to the public and no longer available. 52nd floor indoor one is still open.

it was "unavailable" for the longest time but checking the website it's officially closed. we'll see if their operational policy will allow it again but it also might be an insurance thing.

"[NOTICE] Closure of the Sky Deck

Due to a change in our operational policy, we regret to inform you that the Rooftop Sky Deck will no longer be open to the general public.

Thank you for your patronage over the years."

this is indeed sad news since it had one of the best views of Tokyo, unobstructed by glass. i haven't been to Shibuya Sky but i had the best time in 2020 with my 60-600m - no tripods or monopods allowed but you have the best unobstructed view of Tokyo Tower and various high-rises.

you could also just see Shibuya 109, the Tokyo Empire State Building (NTT Docomo Yoyogi), Odaiba, Tokyo Gov Metro Bldg, Mode Gakuen Cocoon Tower, and Mt Fuji.

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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/mirdyll on 2024-05-02 06:43:00.

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Thank you for all the posts here that helped to plan and execute this itinerary!

Background:

This was my (29M) second time traveling to Japan. I have a friend from high school currently living in Tokyo for a year who inspired another trip around cherry blossom season. My GF who was visiting family in China at this time was able to join me in Tokyo for a few days.

My first trip in January 2020 was with a larger group and consisted of a week in Tokyo and a week with JR pass going north to Aomori, Hakodate and Sapporo.

I don't speak Japanese and did not utter anything besides: hai, sumimasen, konnichiwa, gomenasai, arigato gozaimasu, daijoubu desu and ohio gozaimasu. Around 75% of the itinerary was thoroughly planned in advance, with 25% room to improvise. I took a large suitcase, a carry-on, and a backpack. My friend helped me with the bag logistics.

I planned to include multiple running sessions and many anime pilgrimage spots. Some of these may not be as interesting to that many people, but I hope this trip report can help and inspire future travelers.

Day 1 Tokyo

• Landed at Haneda in the pm and figured out how to use PASMO on apple wallet. This was much more convenient than a physical card that I was topping up with cash last time around. Took the subway and got to our Hotel in Ikebukoro around 6pm. My GF was expected to land in the evening.
• Met my friend near the station with the plan of catching nearby cherry blossom. We first walked up to Shakuji River and then to Asukayama Park. It went dark quickly at this time, but the tree-line all along the river and in the park was at peak. My mind was already blown. The park had chill locals picnicking, but there wasn't a single tourist around.
• Walked back to Ikebukoro by the time my GF got there.

Day 2 Tokyo

• Planned to wake up early and go for a run before GF gets set for the day. I was so struck by the scenery from the night before that I decided to see it in daytime. Ended up doing a 10k up and back to the same river and park. It was even better.
• Headed out with the GF around 9am, grabbed coffee and breakfast on the way.
• Suga shrine. (subway) Iconic spot from Kimi no nawa. Someone took a picture of us reenacting Taki & Mitsuha at the top of the stairs.
• Meiji Jingu. (walked)
• Shibuya. (walked) We had shabu-shabu for lunch on a high floor of one of the tall buildings there with nice view of the crossing.
• Meguro. (subway) Unbelievable cherry blossoms. There was crowd concentrated near Naka-Meguro station, but surprisingly not that many people walking along the river.
• Ginza. (subway) We hit the 12 story UNIQLO before dinner at an elevated Teppanyaki. I preferred Wagyu, GF preferred Kobe. It should have been closed, but we were also able to see the Asahi-inari shrine depicted in Weathering with you.
• Tokyo Tower. (subway) Made a reservation in advance for the top deck tour at one of the latest spot (9pm ish). We got a cute photo of us as a free souvenir.

Day 3 Tokyo

• Picked up breakfast and coffee then sat in Minami-Ikebukuro park.
• Mejiro Garden. (walked) We didn't want to go far before lunch, so picked out this garden to walk to. It was nice and scenic.
• I took my large suitcase and dropped it at my friends house (few stops from Ikebukoro). Then did a short run back. Stopped at Don Quijote and bought a pair of throw away walking shoes for 2k yen. (This was one of the smartest decisions I have made) Also took this time to set up my 7 day JR pass, which would activate 2 days later and I got a separate ticket for a train next morning.
• GF picked out a ramen place for lunch near Kanda. (subway)
• Sumida Hokusai museum. (subway) My friend also joined us here. This was a sad miss for me last time, so I was super eager to go. It does not disappoint.
• Tokyo Dome. (subway) Saw Giants vs Carps. The atmosphere was electric all throughout and the giants came back from 3-4 with a 7-run 6th inning. Snacked on takoyaki and everyone got a free baseball shirt.
• Shinjuku / Kabukicho. (subway) We had tentative plans to get some drinks here but they both bailed citing fatigue. I ended up walking around solo and stopped by Hanazono Shrine and Golden Gai. Caught a street sumo performance before heading back to Ikebukoro.

Day 4 Shirakawa-Go & Takayama

• Caught the shinkansen around 8am heading to Toyama (which I reserved the day before) bringing my carry-on and backpack. GF flew back to China.
• Realized I will have to take the local train from Toyama to Takayama. This was one of the only transit points I didn't precisely plan ahead and the only time I got slightly nervous about making a connection on time, as I had a bus from Takayama to Shirakawa-go reserved at 1:20pm.
• The local train turned out to be amazing. Incredible scenery on both sides: mountains, valleys, rivers, cherry blossoms viewed from a handsome quaint little train car.
• Arrived in Takayama and had around 40minutes before my bus. Made the call here to fast walk to my hotel and drop my luggage. There was an old lady at reception and it was too early for check-in. As I tried to explain that I just want to leave my bags but she gave me the room keys and signaled that check-in is ok now. I made it back to the station for my bus with a few minutes to spare.
• Shirakawa-go. Had the bus reserved back to Takayama at 17:20 so had around 3 hours here which felt like just the right amount. First stop was a store where I knew I can pick up the Higurashi map. I ended up getting a Higurashi t-shirt as well. Got the matcha pudding from the famous pudding house then walked around all the Higurashi spots which pretty much covered the entire town.
• Back to Takayama for the evening. The town was buzzing as the spring festival was happening the next 2 days. Cherry blossoms in full bloom along the river.
• Contemplated eating out somewhere, but ultimately went back to the hotel. I asked the lady at the reception about food and she ended up making me ramen by herself. She was so nice!

Day 5 Takayama & Kyoto

• Woke up early and went for a run. Hit most of the Hyouka spots and went up to the castle ruins.
• The town was full of festival floats being prepared for the evening. Unfortunately, I knew I wont be able to stay for the night festival, but I caught the am performance of the singing showcase.
• Planned to go to Bagpipe (Western style tea house famous from Hyouka) at 9:30 for opening. I checked out the town museum nearby and got there at 9:28. It was already open and I was sat at the last available table. Had a beautifully served iced coffee and a slice of cheesecake. The interior is exactly like in the anime, and they have some sketchbooks available to read.
• Spent a couple more hours strolling around Takayama. Got some Hyouka merch, had a Hida beef skewer and was enjoying the festival vibes.
• Picked up my bags and with my JR pass now active, took the Hida ltd express to Nagoya and the Shinkansen to Kyoto.
• My friend from Tokyo was joining me here for the next few days. We had a hostel booked near Higashiyama for the night. I got there around 5pm, dropped my bags and headed back out.
• We wanted to see the Botanical garden which was supposed to be open until late, but it was unexpectedly closed that day. We ended up just walking along Kamogawa River towards the north of the city. This turned out to be amazing. It was an idillic spring Sunday evening, with again, lots of cherry blossoms and barely any tourists.
• My friend had dinner plans with his former teacher so we got back to Kawaramachi around 9. I walked back to the hostel touching Kiyamachi and Hanamikoji street.

Day 6 Kyoto, Uji & Osaka

• Woke up early again and went for a run through the Heian-jingu garden and the Imperial Palace garden. The hostel served a flawless buffet style breakfast.
• Arashiyama. (train) Saw some wild monkeys wondering next to Horinji Temple. There was an expected crowd at the bamboo forest around 10-11am, but it was still wonderful to see.
• Uji (train) Had lunch at a small curry shop. I picked up some Uji matcha and we hiked up to the Daikichiyama Observataion Deck. (Iconic from Hibike! Euphonium) Hunted a couple more Hibike spots on and around Ujibashi bridge.
• Kiyomizu-dera. (train back to kyoto) This was the most crowded spot on my entire trip with an abundance of people in kimonos in front of the cherry blossom trees.
• Walked back to the hostel through Ninenzaka and Maruyama Park.
• Picked up the luggage and took the train to Osaka. I have booked the Conrad Osaka for a night through Amex FHR, which was absolutely insane. Reception is on the 40th floor and the moment you step out the elevator you feel taken aback. Stunning views of the entire city. Had dinner at the fancy hotel restaurant and crashed.

Day 7 Osaka & Kyoto

• I decided to check out the hotel gym instead of a run this morning. It also had insane views, and I could do some cycling warm-up for next day. We had a big buffet breakfast at the hotel.
• National Bunraku Theater. (subway) Booked the 11am show in advance. Absolutely worth it even if you don't speak any Japanese. The standard of performance is extremely high. I got an english audio guide which was following the narrative and...

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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/MalteseMalteser on 2024-04-30 22:40:02.

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Hi all, first time posting in this sub but found some of the advice really helpful planning for our trip, so thought I'd post our trip report.

A bit about us: Two late 20's Brits, husband and wife team. Mixed levels of fitness - we lift weights in the gym 5 days a week, and my wife additionally plays rugby with training/games 2-3 times a week (I coach). We both work 9-5 deskjobs. Interests include food, videogames, anime and history.

The trip: 10th April: Flew business class with JAL from LHR to HND. Flying business class was a bucket list thing for us, and we'd saved up a lot of money during Covid even with a marriage and a house move. Overall it was a great experience, but I'm a light sleeper and couldn't sleep a wink on the plane. Watched season 1 of SpyxFamily which became the anime of the trip, as we'd watch Seasons 2 and 3 before getting to bed most nights.

11th April: Landed at 7:40am at HND and set up our Ubigi eSims. My advice would be to set it up before you fly, as connecting to the Wifi at HND was a bit troublesome. On the whole, though, Ubigi was great - decent connection throughout and only lost connection in some tunnels, or in a couple of spots in Akihabara.

Got Suica cards at Terminal 3 and dropped luggage off at our hotel (Hotel Gracery Shinjuku). Was cool being in the Godzilla hotel on the Godzilla floor - room was pretty big and you get some good views from the 30th floor. Loved the iconography on the walls of various kaiju's in the Godzilla franchise (King Ghidorah, Rodan etc.), the iconography on the lift doors, and there's a panorama in the hotel lobby, too.

Went for a walk around Shinjuku and Shinjuku Gyoen garden whilst we waited to check in and were lucky enough to see the various cherry/plum (I think?) blossoms in the park. We had planned the trip knowing we were missing the blossom season, so to see some in full bloom was great. We'd grabbed some onigiri from a 7-11 and had a picnic on a bench under the trees. Grabbed Shinkansen tickets for a couple of days time in the Green Car from Shinjuku station, which was hassle-free. Checked into hotel, then went to find some food. Booked online at Teppanyaki Hama which was literally down the street, and what an experience that was. Only 12 seats in total at the restaurant, and we were treated to the chef cooking right in front of us a variety of 9 courses from roe, to oyster, lobster, snail and the best grilled veg I've had. Cost about £216 from memory, but it set the tone of the trip really well.

12th April: woke up early and got to Meiji Jingu for about 7am. We enjoyed how quiet it was, with only a handful of tourists at this time. We then went to a Family Mart and came back to Meiji Jingu (with the intention to eat breakfast in the park) at 8:30am, but all the tourists had arrived by then and we could see no food/drink signs so we moved on to Yoyogi Park which was also lovely.

Next we did Harajuku and I visited the Asics store there. Was disappointed at how touristy the area seemed even at 10/11am. At this time, it started to rain and, with not much appealing to us, we moved on to Shibuya. Did Shibuya scramble a few times for the fun of it, then grabbed lunch at Ichiran. Decent ramen, better than the chain ramen we get in the UK (I'm looking at you, Wagamama's) but not the best of the trip. Explored Shibuya and saw the Pokemon Centre there with Mewtwo, and then the One Piece and Jump stores too. We went to Sushiro for dinner. Ate about 15 plates between us for roughly £26 with drinks. First ever conveyor belt sushi experience and had to wait about 30 mins for a seat. Was pretty cool. Rounded off the day wandering Golden Gai and Kabukicho near the hotel.

13th April: had planned to explore Nakano Broadway and Ikebukuro this day but...

I was ill all day and after being up and down during the night, spent all day in bed. My wife was fine, so I either overate, felt jetlagged, stressed from overplanning, ate something my wife didn't (likely sea urchin at Sushiro), or a bit of everything. My wife went to Gotokuji temple in the afternoon and explored some of the neighbourhoods to find an Airbnb which a Youtuber she follows, owns. My illness put me off of seafood for most of the trip, which is unfortunate as I love seafood, but the smell of it just put me off on this trip.

14th April: took the 6:33am Shinkansen to Kyoto. This was awesome, and watching the Japanese countryside go by with the mountains in the background was something I'll never forget - it's so much more picturesque than from UK trains. We were lucky to see Mt. Fuji from the train as well, as we knew she was usually shy, but that morning she looked majestic.

Popped by the hotel so they knew we were in the neighbourhood (Yoin Hotel Kyoto Gion). Hotel was a bit disappointing. Largest hotel room of the trip (save for the ryokan) but it was only 4/5 storeys high so had a lot of noise from the road below from loud tourists at 1am.

We explored Gion district. Visited Chion-in which was brilliant, saw different delegations of monks and even a bit of their ceremonies when we were there. Also did Yasaka Shrine, Yasaka Pagoda, and Kiyomizu-dera (too crowded by the time we did it), and grabbed some lunch at Smile Burger. Smile burger was great, a small burger joint which did simple burgers that tasted good for a great price. We then took a break at Ryozen Kannon temple. Ate dinner in our room with some of the ekiben boxes I didn't eat for brekfast as I still felt iffy.

15th April: originally planned to do Fushimi Inari this day but instead took a trip to Nara as I wasn't feeling a 5am wakeup after being unwell. Nara was lovely, but again loads of tourists by 8am. Fed the deer, and loved how the vendors all charged the same and how part of the money goes towards conservation. We went to Kofuku-ji and then grabbed breakfast at a conbini next to the famous TikTok mocchi making place, then sat at Sarusawa-ike watching the Terrapins to eat. It was so peaceful here, away from the hustle and bustle of the tourist parts. Then visited Todaiji Temple and explored Nara park. Then, we hopped on a train to visit the old Imperial Palace of Nara with the intention of seeing all Imperial Palaces in the cities on our trip. Admittedly not much at the site but it was cool seeing the old buildings and some of the conservation work being done. Then, on a whim, we went to Uji at 3:30pm and again, it was away from the hustle and bustle of tourists. I dislike green tea and matcha, but my wife likes it so thought it'd be good to try. We found a cafe overlooking the river and got there at last orders. Admittedly, I didn't like anything on the menu but that's just my taste and dislike of matcha. We left Uji and found a Wagyu steak yakiniku place in Kyoto called Douraku Kyotorokkakudoriten. Had a whole board of Wagyu fillet, tongue, cheek, rib etc. for about £89 and we got to cook it ourselves. This was a treat, and I've never tasted beef so good - it literally melted in our mouths. We left very satisfied after getting a side order of rice and bimbap, too.

16th April: Tackled Fushimi Inari this day as I was getting my groove back. Got to the foot of Fushimi Inari at 7:30am and it was already packed with wannabe influencers - I could tell this was going to be fun...my wife and I like hillwalking and occasionally walk Bennau Brycheniog or the Lake District, so we can hike at a good pace. We passed many people getting irate over the number of people getting in their shots (what did you expect?) and even one woman walking in a dress and stilettos with her partner carrying a tripod!! Madness. The crowds did thin considerably once we hit the part where the path splits in two, and we got all the way to the top in 55 mins. We bought a tori gate from one of the stalls neat the top after waiting around for 25 mins for it to open, and we had our names and date painted on it in kanji. Certainly take some time to see the various shrines in the small paths off the main track, as they're so picturesque and peaceful. Shoutout to Pocari Sweat, which kept me fuelled this entire time whilst recovering from the lurgies.

We walked down the mountain pass at the back, past a small bamboo grove, and here I jumped with glee as I heard a school bell go which had exactly the same tone and tune as the one from the 'Izekai Quartet' anime. From here, we did Tofuku-ji as it was on the way back into town along the path. What was really nice was seeing the backstreets of Japanese society, so tranquil and well-kept (like it was straight out of an anime). We then grabbed some lunch at a Korean hotpot place in Kyoto station, and did Kyoto tower on a whim. I suffer from vertigo and 'call of the void' (where I want to jump off of high places just to know what the sensation is like) and they were pretty bad at the top of Kyoto Tower as I felt like the tower was shaking in the wind. Still, the views were great and I'm glad I did it. They had a stand/vending machines of 'Sound Euphonium!' merch, which is an anime I love as a former brass band player, so got some photos next to Kumiko and Reina. We then went on an hours detour just so my wife could find another Pokelid and ended up in a park watching the Shinkansen go by. We grabbed dinner in an udon place called Udon Shiogama round the corner from the hotel which did curry udon. My goodness it tasted so good! The rich, spicy sauce went so well with the juicy udon I can sti...

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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/starter_fail on 2024-04-29 15:18:22.

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Osaka->Miyajima Island->Hiroshima->Kyoto->Kanazawa->Tokyo

Thank you Redditors for all the tips & insights during my trip planning. Here's a report to give back!

Biggest surprise & highlight: When we booked this trip, we did not expect to see cherry blossoms but because of the cold snap, we saw them everywhere but Tokyo! What a thrill. They are a truly special sight.

Preface: Seven ladies, late 50’s-mid 70’s trip. All varying degrees of physical fitness. Booked guided tours to have group activities, then separated to do our own thing. Some meals were together, sometimes we were on our own. We did a surprising amount of conbini & grocery store meals. Moderate hotels. I’m the group planner and somewhat OCD but know there needs to be flexibility for unforeseen events. By the end of the trip we all strayed from the itinerary except for booked activities.

Pre trip: Booked flights directly with United. Flew open jaw into Osaka, then out of Haneda. Booked Hotels direct & thru Hotels.com, any special tours, sightseeing train to Nara, Osaka Mint Cherry viewing tickets (free), Nishikawa reservations, baseball tickets, purchased JR Kansai Hiroshima pass & Haruka voucher on Klook, downloaded Suica on iPhones (my Visa card worked!), downloaded Ubigi (10G was used up literally when I was at Haneda flying home).

Transportation: Regional JR Pass Kansai Hiroshima was a good deal for us. Osaka->Himeji->Miyajimaguchi->Hiroshima->Kyoto. We picked up both JR Pass & Haruka trip at the JR Office at KIX. While we were there, we reserved seats for our trip to Himeji, Miyajimaguchi & Hiroshima. For Kyoto & Kanazawa, we went to the station early and reserved seats that morning and it was no problem. The shinkansen was so comfortable! There’s an overhead shelf for bags but if you needed, there’s probably enough room for small bags to keep in front of you. Loads of leg room.

Having a SUICA on your phone was a game changer. Tap in/out at all stations. It was nice knowing what the balance was as you’re going along. Buses were convenient and would often take you closer to where you need to go. Everywhere but Tokyo, you would enter thru the back, tap in, then tap out & exit at the front by the driver. In Tokyo, you would tap in & enter at the front & exit at the back (no tap out). In Kanazawa, they do not take IC cards (210¥) on city bus. Only JR buses, Kanazawa loop bus and Machi bus (different color buses than city bus) I know, that confused us too.

Uber app worked everywhere. Taxis also respond to Uber so there’s no need to download GO Taxi if you already have Uber.

Shopping: The Yen was at its all-time low so shopping was pretty fun. My favorite places to shop were at Uji for tea, Chion Ji market for handicrafts (some vendors took credit cards), grocery stores for food souvenirs (esp anything yuzu) and conbinis for mini bottles of Kewpie mayo for little stocking stuffer gifts. If you are looking for a kimono or art for your walls, buy them in Kyoto. Kyoto has many 2nd hand kimono shops and they are a bargain there. I bought a beautiful Haori for ¥550 (roughly $4 USD!) and there’s a shop called Wargo where they sell kimonos for ¥1 per gram. I bought a kimono as a gift there for ¥547! They also had some beautiful obis there that you can use for wall hangings (¥990). For inexpensive general items, look at Hands, Daiso or Seria (fun household things). In general, things are at least ¥50 more expensive in Tokyo.

Miscellaneous tips– hotels all provided loungewear, so I didn’t pack PJs. Hotel provided most toiletries including toothbrushes, hair brush & razors, tho not body lotion (just buy at the drug store). Unless you have little feet or big feet, the slippers provided won’t fit. I’m a big Japanese tea drinker and all the hotel green tea sucked (shocking?). Drank a lot of iced tea from the conbinis. Food from conbini was great but find a grocery store near your hotel to buy fruit & pre-made food for cheap meals. Luggage transfers worked like a charm. Super easy and not expensive.

Having 7 people on the trip was a challenge at times so booking private tours here and there solved a lot of issues. Along with all the great info they provide, it was nice having a guide to maximize our day and keep us from walking in circles, as we tend to do.

Having few garbage cans in the country is no joke. Carry your garbage back to your hotel with you. When we did see random garbage cans, we gasped. I saw 3 public garbage cans (not with the conbini) the whole time I was in Japan, 2 of them in Peace Park in Hiroshima.

Also carry a little towel with you when you wash your hands at a public toilet. You can get cheap ones at Daiso or any discount store. I also carried soap strips as many toilets didn’t have soap dispensers either.

Bring well broken in shoes. I had On Running for every day walking, Blundstones for hiking & rainy days. They’re also good for some temple walks on uneven ground. I also brought Clarix flats for short walks to dinner shoes. I could have done without the Clarix shoes.

Steps – Highest was about 31K in Osaka and it got progressively lower (averaging about 20K) as we became more comfortable with taking public transportation by the time we got to Tokyo.

I forgot to bring a sun hat. We had some hot sunny days and would have liked one. Buy sunscreen while you’re there. I’m in love with Bioré UV Aqua Rich. Goes on smoothly with no white cast.

Be aware of lunch times. A lot of restaurants close between 2-5.

Learn a little bit of Japanese. The Japanese people are so kind and gracious, even a smile and a bow will get you far. Google translate is your friend.

Collect goshuin at temples & shrines. They are beautiful and a nice memory of your trip and it makes temple hopping a little more fun. Eki stamps are fun to collect as well. Most of the train stamps we got we outside a JR office.

Hotels:

Osaka: Hotel Monterrey Grasmere (2 nights) – great location on top of Namba station, although we got lost underground trying to find it the 1st time. Did not buy breakfast. Comfy, traditional rooms. No onsen. Used luggage service to send large luggage to Kyoto (hotel aided) & brought smaller bags the next few nights.

Miyajima Island – Miyajima Villa (1 night) – our favorite hotel during our trip. Located very close to the pier, we took the half board plan. Loads of selection for breakfast & dinner with Japanese & Western dishes, including Hiroshima oysters. Relaxed vibes. Onsen was the best. I slept in my single loft room for 8.5 hours and it was glorious. Happy hour was nice. Learned the highball is a popular drink in Japan.

Hiroshima – Hotel Intergate Hiroshima (2 nights) – good, comfortable rooms & location, about a 15 minute bus ride or walk to the station. Onsen & happy hour available. Breakfast was great, loads of selection. They had a beef stew that we’re still talking about. I love the sliding door between the bedroom and the hallway to the bathrooms. If you're one to get up to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night, having a door shielding the bedroom from the light was awesome.

Kyoto – Mimaru Suites Kyoto Shijo (6 nights) – Loved this place. It was great to spread out. Booked 2 rooms with 2 BR each. Had in suite laundry, dining area and kitchenette. Staff was especially friendly and helpful, happy hour was great (craft beer, sake & sodas) plus staff did calligraphy lessons. Good location near the Karasuma line & buses. No onsen but nice bathtub and bought bath salts. Lots of conbini breakfasts + a good local gyudon place nearby. Used luggage service to send large luggage to Tokyo (hotel aided) & brought smaller bags the next few nights.

Kanazawa – Onyado Nono Kanazawa Hot Spring (3 nights) – Great hotel, hard beds and lumpy pillows. Tatami floors, no shoes past the front lobby (there were show lockers). Close to Omicho Market and a 15 min walk to the Castle. Caters to an Asian crowd. Breakfast was probably the best here. Sashimi, ikura, crab, tempura oh my. Plus the coffee machine also made matcha lattes. Most organized with busy breakfast lines. Onsen was nice, had sauna & different pools, including a cold pool. Crowded at times. Would be perfect except for the pillows & bed.

Tokyo – Asakusa View Annex Rokku (4 nights) – Very nice hotel, comfortable bed. Didn’t buy breakfast (friend had BF there one day and said it was expensive & not good). Great location, near Hoppy Place, a 24 hour Donki & a Family Mart that had really good pork baos (along with Famichicki and egg sandos) and a coffee shop for BF. Close to bus lines & a 7 min walk to the Ginza line. No onsen but found a place with private sauna & bath nearby. Also room has a nice bathtub with really hot water. Hotel caters to an Asian crowd (and boy they were louder than we were. Lol). Happy hour on 10th floor from 3-10 with wagashi & snacks, juice, soda, coffee & tea (no booze). Nice views of the Skytree. There is a luggage room with luggage locks where you can keep luggage if you come in before check in or have a late afternoon flight.

Highlights & low lights. Things that were planned, unplanned and things I didn’t do.

I think I scheduled my trip pretty well, there were only a few things I didn’t do because we spent more time at another place. Flexibility is key.

Osaka – 1.5 days

• Hello Kity Haruka from KIX – a great intro to Japan

• Underground navigation was a chall...

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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/I_Am_Kylo_Ren_AMA on 2024-04-29 16:22:38.

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I recently got back from a 3 week trip in Japan and the Shimanami Kaido cycle route was easily my favourite part. I'm writing up a brief overview for anyone who's also interested in including it as part of their trip. If you're not familiar with the route, it's ranked as one of the top 7 best cycle routes in the world with many beautiful views and purpose built cycle paths.

We were leaving Hiroshima on a Monday morning and due to arrive in Tokyo that evening, and looking at train times saw that if we left Hiroshima at 6am we could get to Onomichi (where the route typically starts) by 7:30am and as long as we finished the route in Imabari (where it ends) by around 6pm, we could get on a bus at 6:20pm which would bring us back to Fukuyama in time for the last bullet train to Tokyo.

The whole route is ~70km, which is achievable in a day for most cyclists, but neither me nor my gf are cyclists and we wanted to just enjoy the route rather than treat it as a challenge so when we got to the bike hire place we opted for the e-bikes, which were 6000jpy each for the day (inc helmet).

I read different things about how early you need to arrive at the bike hire place to secure a bike (with some saying 4am to guarantee something) as they have 60 bikes available each day for those without reservations (which we didn't have). It opens at 7am and when we got there at 7:30am, there were only 2 other customers there and loads of bikes to choose from. This was a Monday and a non-holiday so it may vary. Reserving in advance would definitely be my suggestion to avoid disappointment though.

After getting the bikes, you hop on a ferry that takes 5 minutes to get to the first island where the trail begins. As an estimate, I would say 30% of the trail is on bike only paths, 50% on shared pavements (bike + pedestrians) and 20% on the road. The road parts generally had minimal traffic though.

The entire route is easy to follow with blue marks and arrows showing the way.

The e-bikes were great and meant we could stop numerous time to enjoy views, take pictures and get food. My favourite rest stop was just before you start the climb to the Ikuchi Bridge (to the third island) - we'd been cycling past orange trees for a while and stumbled across a blink-and-you'll-miss-it orange farm serving up fresh orange juice. It's a small farm, and the owner gives you a basket of freshly picked oranges to choose from, a knife to cut them and a hand press to crush them into juice. They then set up some chairs for you overlooking the next bridge. The address is 竹長区, Innoshimatakumacho, Onomichi (I believe usually it's only open on weekends though).

I would strongly recommend getting some padded shorts for the ride, as after a few hours we were taking regular breaks just for some relief from the saddle.

The Kirosan Observatory Park is at the peak of the last island and gives you the best views of the entire trail. This is off the main route so you'll need to be aware of it or you'll cycle straight past. It's a 3.5km steep climb and I started at the bottom with 30% charge remaining and my bike died 500m from the top. My gfs bike was fine, but I'm much heavier which drained the battery faster. Something to be aware of for heavier riders as I then had to finish the last ~20km with no charge.

We ended up getting to Imbari station at 6pm (the return place is on the right of the station if you're looking at the front of it), return took a minute and then we were on the last bus.

We both had backpacks with food/water and I don't think this was necessary. There's plenty of places and vending machines along the route to get what you need when you need it. We took 10 hours, but with many stops, you could do this <5 hours on a e-bike quite easily but it wouldn't be as enjoyable. You could do the route in a day on a regular bike with a reasonable fitness level but again you'd be losing a lot of the enjoyment from stopping at various spots.

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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/Trandromeda on 2024-04-28 20:30:22.

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Recently got back from an incredible 19 days in Japan. I’m really feeling the post-Japan blues now, but writing about the trip and sharing what I learned feels like a nice way to honour the memories I made.

I (35M) travelled to Japan with my partner (41M) from Canada. We were there from March 26 to April 13 - these dates were “chosen” for us because we were attending a wedding in Tokyo. We got to wear hakamas, walk in the procession at Meiji Jingu, and observe a Shinto wedding ceremony first-hand.

We did the Golden Route + Kanazawa, however, many travelers have already written about this route so I’ll try to offer new stories to interested readers instead.

About us and high-level trip summary:

• Our entire itinerary consisted of: Tokyo (+ trip to Kawaguchiko), Hakone, Osaka (+ trips to Himeji and Nara), Kyoto (+ trip to Hiroshima), Kanazawa (+ trip to Shirakawa-go), and then Tokyo again for the final night in Kichijoji.
• Stayed at a total of 7 hotels and made good use of the luggage delivery service. Usually took 1 day, but sometimes 2, so plan ahead.
• We got the JR West All Area Pass, which let us go to Hiroshima, Himeji, and Kanazawa from Osaka/Kyoto (plus a few other small trips). Not only was this worth it for us in terms of monetary value, but the built-in flexibility came in clutch i.e taking the train at our leisure and feeling much less stress over seat reservations or waiting in line. I used this website to help me determine which pass to get:
• As mentioned earlier, we attended our close friends’ wedding in Tokyo, which took place at Meiji Jingu and Meiji Kinenkan. It was a truly special and once-in-a-lifetime event. Being photographed by the sightseers at Meiji Jingu was also an interesting experience!
• We went out on weekend nights and checked out the popular places in Shinjuku Nichome (i.e the gay village). While they were fun, you need to dig deeper to find the places that make Nichome stand out from other gaybourhoods around the world.
• Did not make a lot of food reservations because we read how easy it was to find good food around every corner. We found this to be largely true and ate well on our trip (including many konbini meals and bento boxes on the train), but we look forward to diving deeper into the culinary world on trip #2.
• One of my favourite phrases was: Nani ga oishii desu ka? It means ‘What is tasty here?’ and is like asking the restaurant for their recommendation. I never got a bad result with this question.
• The ryokan, onsen, and kaiseki from our 1 night stay in Hakone were all amazing. It was probably our favourite room and meal on the trip. We would certainly return to Hakone and stay 2 nights next time.
• Saw a geisha performance in Kanazawa that was geared towards visitors and it was so fun and fascinating. My partner got to play taiko drums with a geisha!
• The big tourist must-sees were nice, but I’ll fondly remember all the times we just wandered the streets, witnessing small slices of other people’s lives.
• Kichijoji ended up being our favourite area of Tokyo.
• I planned this trip meticulously, but many items still ended up falling through or needed to be re-arranged due to various reasons (fatigue, sickness, timing mistakes). I think you will need to make peace with this and be prepared to be flexible with your plans, outside of pre-booked reservations.

Detailed report:

Before the flight

There were a few things we did before the trip began to help us out:

• Picked up a Wise card, allowing us to withdraw cash without paying extra fees. The fees can really add up.
• Reserved a pocket wifi router for pick-up at Narita.
• Made reservations for popular activities, namely the Ghibli Museum and USJ Express Pass.
• Adjusted our bodies to the new timezone a few days before our flight using an app called Timeshifter.
• Installed the Japan Travel by NAVITIME app, which I preferred over Google Maps when it came to anything involving the shinkansen.
• Watched Perfect Days, a meditative film that follows a toilet cleaner in Tokyo. It got us even more excited for Japan, plus the washrooms featured in this film are real and inspired us to look out for them in real life!

Landing in Japan

• After passing through customs, we picked up the pocket wifi router we had reserved. There are multiple drop-off locations, so you can pick up at one location and drop off at another. We chose the plan that gave us unlimited data for 3 weeks and it was worth it.
• I wanted to get our IC cards, but the line at the JR ticket office was so long that we just opted to buy individual tickets to take the Keisei Access Express. If you are going to be staying near any major metro stations (Ueno, Tokyo, Shinjuku, a few others), you can go there for your tickets because the lines seem to be shorter and you’ll ideally be rested by then.
  • I got my IC card at Ueno Station. On the ground floor, at the JR travel centre, you can line up for the Suica. However, I really wanted the cute Pasmo Passport instead. It took some asking around, but we eventually found the ticket office in the metro station, which is underground and had no line at all. We showed our passports and picked up our Pasmo cards without issue. It’s cash only.
• I also purchased an eSIM from Airalo. It was my first time doing so and I found the process fairly straightforward. I only got 3 gigabytes of data, which was for situations where I might find myself separated from my partner (who held onto the pocket wifi). Ended the trip with over 1gb remaining.
• On our first night, we wandered and found some restaurants in the alleyways behind our train station; we ate delicious ramen for around ¥800. It’s true what they say about your first night being a write-off, however, so don’t expect to do much else.

A note about the trains and ticketing system

I loved taking the shinkansen, they were so comfortable and predictable. The ticketing system, however... that’s a different story entirely. I think everyone just has to go through it like a rite of passage. I also couldn’t get SmartEx to work, which would’ve saved us a lot of hassle.

Regarding the JR West pass, I learned that you can’t make online seat reservations with it after you pick up the physical pass. You must use a specific machine or visit a ticket desk. To use the machines, find the ones with the green head boards and then select the option that mentions using a ‘discount ticket’ or something like that. Insert your pass and choose the destination and train you want to take. You’ll then get your pass back along with the printed tickets. Fortunately, there’s usually an attendant there to help you out.

I will miss having bento on the train while watching the scenery pass by (and listening to Fujii Kaze, haha).

March 26 - 28: A gentle introduction to Japan.

Places: Asakusa, Akihabara, Ueno, Ginza, and Chiyoda

Hotel: Route-Inn Grand Tokyo Asakusabashi

We chose this area because it was budget-friendly and gave us easy access to all the places we planned on visiting. A lot of people recommend staying in Asakusa, but we found Asakusabashi to be even quieter and cheaper.

Highlights:

• Itoya Ginza is a stationary lover’s paradise. Each of the ten floors is immacuately curated, filled with beautiful things to look at and use. If that wasn’t enough, a nature-inspired soundtrack plays the entire time to really put you in the mood. I picked up a Shupatto bag and liked it so much (great design and durability) that I went back and bought a few more as gifts.
• I found a place called the Okuno Building and it felt like a hidden gem for anyone who’s into art and architecture. Try to time your visit with when Room 306 is open:
• Stepping outside of Tokyo Station, you feel small and the grandeur of Tokyo really hits you. Across the station in the building with the Beams store, there’s an observation deck that offers a gorgeous nighttime view of the area. There’s also a food hall with a great energy and vibe.
• About 10-15 minutes walk north of Akihabara station is an artisanal market tucked away beneath the train tracks. It was quiet and cute with a lot of interesting shops. Many handmade giftable items to be found:
• I had a reservation for the Final Fantasy Eorzea Cafe in Akihabara - it was something I had wanted to do for a long time, though it felt underwhelming in the end. The food and drinks were photogenic, but forgettable. There are a number of cafes like these around and I imagine the gimmick is similar in each (at least, the ones run by Pasela Resorts). Still, no regrets!

Notes:

• Most of the hotels we stayed at did not allow use of stairs except in emergencies. This was usually fine, but during one busy morning rush we waited a ludicrously long time to get down from the 4th floor! We became acquainted with a charming Japanese woman as a result of waiting for the elevator, so there was a silver lining.

March 29 - April 3: Unforgettable memories made over a weekend.

Places: Shinjuku, Shibuya, teamLab, Kawaguchiko, and the wedding

Hotel: Yuen Shinjuku

Atmospheric hotel. Situated on a quiet street in Shinjuku while remaining within walking distance to all the fun places. Onsen on the top floor with amazing city views. ...

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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/LENJANK on 2024-04-28 07:55:08.

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Hi, my friend and I (both 22M) are visiting Tokyo for 8 days (05/12 - 05/21). We're looking for a check on our itinerary and recommendations for things we can do for three unplanned days. We like good food so food recommendations in the area are appreciated. Thanks in advance!

• Day 0:
  • Arrive at HND at 7:40 PM
  • Super Hotel Ueno Okachimachi
  • Check into hotel by midnight
• Day 1:
  • Yoyogi Park
  • Meiji Jingu Shrine
  • Harajuku
  • Lunch
  • Shibuya Sky (2:00-2:20)
  • Shibuya Crossing
  • Shopping
• Day 2:
  • Gotokuji Temple
  • Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden
  • Lunch
  • Golden Gai
  • Shopping
  • Ikebukuro (Pokemon Center)
  • Kabukicho
• Day 3:
  • Flexible, might meet up with friends
• Day 4:
  • Explore Ginza
  • Lunch
  • Shopping
  • Art Aquarium Ginza
• Day 5:
  • Akihabara (+ Electric Town)
  • Maid Cafe Lunch
  • Kaminarimon + Sensoji
  • Sanja Matsuri
  • Ueno Park
  • Tokyo National Museum (Nakamise Shopping)
  • Tokyo Skytree
• Day 6:
  • Flexible
• Day 7:
  • Disney Sea
• Day 8:
  • Flexible

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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/anonymousqueso on 2024-04-28 05:34:36.

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Hello! I’m planning to visit Hokkaido for the first time this summer and would really appreciate your advice! I’ve created a rough itinerary but considering I will be depending on public transportation for everything, I would like to know how feasible it’d be to cover the areas I’m interested in visiting. If you think there are some places that are or aren’t worth visiting, please let me know as well!

Also, I’m a foreign resident so I’m wondering if there’s any JR pass that’s still actively available? I feel like the passes are now only available to tourists?

Here’s my itinerary:

Day 1: Sapporo - Nijo Market for sushi and Historical Village

Day 2: Sapporo - (??????) Museum?

Day 3: Shiraoi - Leave Sapporo and take a 1hr train to Otaru. Visit Otaru Canal and observation deck. Leave Otaru and head straight to Shiraoi and stay overnight

Day 4: Shiraoi - Go to the Upopoy Museum

Day 5: Shiraoi - Visit Jigokudani (Hell Valley)

Day 6: Asahikawa- Leave Shiraoi and take 3hr train to Asahikawa. Visit Ueno farm (The Gnomes Garden)

Day 7: Asahikawa- Visit Asahidake Ropeway and go on a mini hike

Day 8: Last day in Asahikawa, last minute sightseeing. Take 1hr 40min train back to Sapporo.

Day 9: Flight back home

Thank you for your help!

edited moved Shiraoi and Otaru! Will add an extra day somewhere or maybe make it a 9 day trip now!

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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/watchstraap on 2024-04-27 16:16:08.

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Hey all. Wanted to share our recent trip as I found the trip reports here so useful while we’re were on our first to Japan. Especially with trying to gauge how much you can possible fit which I believe we were able to fit a lot (too much actually).

Context here, we are airline employees so everything was planned on the fly with nothing booked in advance (not even hotels). The plan was basically put together from other trip reports here and tips from friends.

Day 1: Canada/Shinjuku

Flew from Canada to NRT. Landed at around 4:30pm. Passed customs and was able to get on the Narita Express for the 6:30pm train. Checked in to our hotel around in Shinjuku at 8pm and explored the immediate area and had a late dinner at the 7/11. Early night.

8k steps

Day 2: Shinjuku/Shibuya/Harajuku

Woke up earlyish and got going at around 7:30am. Breakfast at 7/11. Visited Meiji Jingu and explored Tomigaya. Walked over to Koffee Mameya at 10:30am in Harajuku but the line was quite long so we continued to explore the area. Got a tip from friends to go to get souffle pancakes at mcasadeco & cafe. Got there 15mins before open and were second in line. Great ricotta pancakes here we thought. Continued to explore Harajuku and visit some shops and got coffee.

Spent the afternoon exploring Shibuya and did the regular touristy things like the crossing. Travelled back to Shinjuku and poked around the area bit. Went to Standing Sushi and headed back to the room for a break.

Went to dinner at Ramen Tatsunoya Shinjuku and waited for around 30 mins but was well worth it! After dinner we went to the Tokyo metropolitan building for a free view up high (Shibuya Sky was booked up for the day).

28k steps

Day 3: Ginza/TeamLab Planet/Gundam

7/11 breakfast and headed to Koffee Mameya 15 mins before open and were second in line. Wow, well worth a second shot at going.

Metro to Ginza to explore and see the Tsukiji Fish Market. Had a couple things and hung out for a bit and took the bus to our TeamLab reservation at 1pm (was able to buy tickets the day before). Spent about an hour on there then took the train to the Gundam in Diver City. Spent some time in the mall there looking at the shops.

Headed to Senso-Ji in the late afternoon then a quick trip back to the Shinjuku to go to the Gyoen National Gardens for the last of the cherry blossoms. Ate Soba noodles at Tokyo Aburagumi Sohonten Nishi-Shinjuku after a 15 minute wait. Another great dinner! Ended this long day here.

24k steps

Day 4: Lake Kawaguchiko

Took the bus from Shinjuku around 9am on this cloudy day. Decided to still commit to going to the 5 lakes region even with the cloudy weather. Didn’t get a peak at Fuji at all but had a good day in Fujikawaguchiko regardless. Had Hoto noodles at Haotou and were fans! Took the 6:30pm bus back but hit traffic and got back to Shinjuku around 9:30pm so we called it a night.

18k steps

Day 5: Kyoto

Relaxed a bit in the morning and booked the Shinkansen to Kyoto at around noon. Checked in to hotel near the Gion district and explored the area and walked over to Kiyomizu-dera. Finished the night with some ramen after visiting the market.

22k steps

Day 6: Kyoto

Got to the Bamboo forest around 9:30am and it was packed, wasn’t amazing but still worth the trip as we went to the Monkey park afterwards. Took the train all the way to Fushimi-Inari and went up about half way. Feeling tired today so we called it there and got some more ramen for dinner.

25k steps

Day 7: Kyoto/Nara

Started the day a bit late and got coffee at 2050 Coffee (delicious) and headed down to Nara arriving at around 11:30am. Visited the temples and hung out for the rest of the afternoon. Was able to make a dinner reservation the night before at Itoh Dining. 10,000 Yen for a course meal with some Wagyu. Understood we paid a premium here but the dining experience was great!

17k steps

Day 8: Osaka

Had French toast at Smart Coffee and then took the Shinkansen to Osaka. Held our bags at the hotel and went and explored the Dotombori market and then got some great Okonomiyaki. Went back to the markets for some more shopping. Was on the hunt for some vintage Seikos but couldn’t find much. Had some ramen and called it a night there.

26k steps

Day 9: The Big One (Hiroshima/Miyajima)

This was a last minute decision as we figured we’d rather spend the money for round trip Shinkansen tickets to Hiroshima instead of spending the day in Osaka.

Shinkansen at 9am from Osaka to Hiroshima. Visited the castle and the dome then waited for about 30 minutes for Okonomiyaki near the park. After lunch we toured around the gardens and spent about 1.5 hours in the muesem (this alone was worth the trip). Was around 3:30pm and decided we could make the trip to Miyajima. Was especially tempting because the cost of going via train/ferry was surprisingly low (akin to a more expensive metro ticket). We were able to make it to the island at around 5. Miyajima Brewery has a nice Hefe and oyster stout! Took the ferry/train back and caught a late Shinkansen back to Osaka. Called it a night there!

17k steps

Day 10: Back to Tokyo

Took the Shinkansen back to Tokyo and went to Glitch for espresso and visited the imperial palace. Made our way to Nakano Broadway for more watch hunting. Had ramen again at the same place in Shinjuku.

18k steps

Day 11: Tokyo/NRT

Had breakfast then headed to Akihabara to have a look around as we had time before our 6pm flight. Took the bus back to NRT soon after. Fin!

Overall I think we did well especially with packing our days with things that didn’t require anything to be booked in advance. One big change would be spending a night on Miyajima instead of Osaka but overall we are very happy.

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/wardXn on 2024-04-26 15:39:20.

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• This is a continuation post from Part 1 here (Day 0~9, Shikoku~Hiroshima) and Part 2 here (Day 10~18, Hiroshima~Shimane~Tottori/Misasa Onsen~Kinosaki Onsen)
• Refer to link for a map covering Day 19~23 here and Day 24 here.
• This post covers between Kobe (Day 19) to Osaka with multiple day trips out (Day 24).
• This trip occurred during Mid-November to Mid-December (autumn season).

Day 19 – Kobe, Maiko Promenade, Akashi-Kaikyo Exhibition Centre/Bridge (Hyogo)

Made an early rainy start from Kinosaki Onsen towards Kobe via the limited express Hamakaze. As it was a very early departure (~0712), the owner kindly prepared my breakfast in a bento setbox which I was appreciative of, so that I can have my breakfast on the train. The ride down to Kobe took ~2.5 hours which was pretty long, though by starting the day much earlier, I maximize the amount of productive time I have for the remainder of the day. After dropping my luggage at the hotel, I made my way backwards to Maiko to visit the Akashi-Kaikyo Exhibition Centre which details the construction process in making the longest suspension bridge in the world [until recently]. Engineering folks would be interested in the details of maintaining such a bridge. Just beside the exhibition centre, the Maiko Promenade provides access a small section of the suspension bridge lower deck– it is really windy (and noisy with traffic rumbling above you) there!

The main item for the day was to join the Bridge World exhibit tour, which consist of a safety briefing, a site walk along the suspension bridge maintenance deck and taking a lift up to the bridge pylon i.e. the tallest point of the bridge. The entire tour costed 5k yen and took about 2 hours. Although the tour is entirely in Japanese (it is chaired by their own engineers), there is an English audio guide provided for you to explain certain aspects. My own opinion is that while the audio guide covers the main aspects, the extra tidbits/trivia mentioned by the engineers are not included (so its an added bonus if you have some Japanese listening comprehension). Also, you will need to be able to climb up some stairs so if you are unable to, you’ll have to give this a hard pass. The exhibit tour runs between April to end-November so you’re out of luck if you come during winter [I asked one of the staff why there was no session planned between December and March, and his response was that it was “too cold” to conduct said tour].

After the tour, I took a highway bus back to Sannomiya/Kobe. Incidentally, it was dinner time and a friend suggested that I try out Kobe beef since I’m already there. Although most steak establishments there require a prior booking ahead of time, I managed to find one named Mouriya that accepted walk-ins. In a word, it was delicious– a pain to the wallet at 12k yen no doubt, but its worth trying out at least once for the experience.

After dinner, I walked around the area on the way back to the hotel. To the hotel in question for the night, the La Suite KOBE which had a direct view of Kobe Harbor. One thing I have noticed while planning this entire trip is that there are very few 5 star hotels in Japan, and when I saw this and the offer price, I just decided to go with it just for the experience. After staying here for a night, I now understand what it takes to be considered as one, from getting a personal room tour by the hotel staff to extravagant room sizes to bottled ‘designer’ mineral water to jacuzzis. I must disclaim however, by saying that 3-stars hotels in Japan are typically very good for the value proposition. A great place to crash the night, if you have the money to splurge.

Day 20 – Kobe Maritime Museum, Himeji Castle/Koko-en (Hyogo), Minoh Falls (Osaka)

Breakfast at this hotel is done differently from other hotels – instead of a buffet spread, the hotel staff wheels a table directly to your room and you get to eat it in solitary peace – that certainly was a first for me. Before checking out, I made a stop at the nearby Kobe Harbour to visit the [maritime museum](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOmqEb6bYO2zohNCAbWMIJy50PsQjYk37i_CNTrjiWUHIeGk7SmqLbnjHGi...

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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/Lonely-Possession909 on 2024-04-24 22:46:56.

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Short Version:

Me and my partner always rate our stays abroad. I think our final ratings say it all.

Japan

1. 8.5. (Food&Drink)
2. 9. (Views/Surroundings)
3. 9.5. (People)
4. 8.75. (Attractions)
5. 8.75. (Wow factor)
6. 9. (my enjoyment)
7. 9. (partners enjoyment)

total: 62.5/70

Our previous high scorer was Italy, with a 60/70. So Japan leads our league table of 22 nations.

Long Version:

First of all, Japan is amazing. My 22nd and by far my favourite country. Also, first time out of Europe (with the possible exemption of Turkey) so this may help less experienced/UK travellers particularly.

Day 1: Flew from Heathrow with Etihad, with a 2 hour stopover in Abu Dhabi. Flights were about £900pp once we selected seats together. Etihad planes and food were nice by my inexperienced standards (only flown ryanair before) but the staff were strangely passive aggressive at all times.

Anyway, after 20+ hours of travel and finally landing in Osaka my partner had been physically sick (who knows why) and my eyes got super sore and irritated from the aircon which wasn’t great.

We landed in Osaka around midday and collected our JR passes (Hiroshima wide pass, seemed best value for money, planned to activate later in the trip), added money to our suica cards (travel cards you can just use on iphone dead easily on the wallet) and took the train to our hotel.

After essentially collapsing at the hotel we woke up at night and walked 15 minutes to see Osaka castle all lit up. It was pretty awesome even in the dark and rain. Also got some eye drops from a chemist which was great. Don’t speak any Japanese but google translate made it easy enough.

Day 2: This time we went to Osaka castle in the day. At this point we were pretty amazed by everything, even a signpost in Japanese or a small bridge, so Osaka castle in daylight, full of in bloom cherry trees was amazing.

That evening we visited Dontobori, which is really how I imagined modern Japan. Drank several beers (Sapporo, Asahi, Suntory, Yebisu, Kirin, in order of my favourite lagers) and ate the octopus balls they have. Wasn’t for me but I like trying different things. Class evening.

Day 3: Universal studios. Mainly went for my partner, albeit I was interested in mario world. Have to say, it wasn’t great. Crazy busy, with more gift shops than rides (several closed that day). Mario lands aesthetic was great but it was small and lacking substance. Toadstool cafe had good food tho.

Day 4: We left Osaka heading to Hiroshima via Himeji. We sent our luggage ahead of us through our hotel which was great, made exploring so much easier and wasn’t too expensive (2ish thousand yen?). Arrived via bullet train at Himeji around ten. Himeji castle is f****g fantastic. And it wasn’t even busy. Insanely beautiful, fully in bloom blossom trees, I loved walking through the castle and gardens, even the tickets and brochures were awesome. 10/10 experience. We then went to Engyoji Temple on the bus from the castle. Here’s a tip. Board the bus in the middle, pay using Suica as you exit at the FRONT. Took the ropeway up to the temples and took a 15 min small hike to the temple complex. First temples in Japan and I was mesmerised. Seeing the temples used in the Last Samurai was awesome. Arrived in Hiroshima late and chilled.

Day 5: Immediate day trip to Miyajima. Got there really early using the JR Ferry (our 5 day JR pass now activated). Loved the deers everywhere and the shopping arcade is great. Hiked up the Daisho-In trail. The temples and little stops are great. Took an hour. Only blip was persuading my partner to keep going having seen the multiple signs warning about snakes. Busy at the top near the observatory but our route was so quiet. Took the rope way back down. 10/10 day trip.

Day 6: Visited Shukkei en Garden in the morning. Was great. So peaceful and we ate lunch at the cafe. Was giggled at for my terrible control of chopsticks but that’s fair enough. Then visited peace memorial museums and parks. Park was cool but museum was far, far too overcrowded and people (other tourists) were too loud. Didn’t really match the tone for me.

Day 7: Left Hiroshima via bullet train for Kyoto. JR pass only covered to Shin-Osaka from there I used SmartEX to stay on the same train straight to Kyoto station. Stayed near Nijo castle. Went straight out to Nishiki Market and explored the downtown. Could’ve been bad timing but it was so busy and hot (for us used to rain and cold) that we didn’t really enjoy it. Had a great meal at a place where we cooked our own stuff on an open flame that evening tho.

Day 8: Day trip for Nara to use our JR Pass as it was the last day it’d work. Went to Fushimi Inari at 7am en route. Even at this time it was busy and the constant photo taking I found jarring. Higher up was much better once the crowds thinned as was the differing descent route. Continued to Nara after on the same train line. Nara was amazing. Loved the temples (Kofuku-Ji, Todai-Ji, Kasuga Taisha). Feeding the deers was fantastic. Loads of great places to eat.

Day 9: Visited Arashiyama bamboo forest. It wasn’t that busy, but it simply isn’t a forest. It’s like the quarter of a football (soccer) pitch at best. Walked over to the monkey park and fed them which was good fun. Of note, Arashiyama really doesn’t open up till past 10am. If you’re there early you’ll be hungry. We did visit the Miffy bakery. Long queue but tasted good. Visited Golden Pavillion, cool temple, short to go around tho. Then the Kyoto imperial palace (cool and free) and finally Nijo castle as it was right next to our hotel. I did a short run around Nijo castle as the sun set. Loads of other runners. Great stuff.

Day 10: For this day I copied the temple walking route listed here: What To Do In Kyoto - A 3 Day Kyoto Itinerary - Nerd Nomads . Really enjoyed albeit feet were knackered and blisters were forming which would make me mildly uncomfortable for the remainder of the trip. 30k step counts everyday take their toll. Finished with a traditional tea ceremony at ‘Maikoya’. We both loved this. Getting in traditional dress was amazing even if the poses we were encouraged to do made it appear to my family as if we were having wedding photos.

Day 11: left Kyoto on the bullet train for Tokyo. Saw mount Fuji as we went past. When we arrived we took a chill before going around Shinjuku then visiting the golden Gai. Had some great but relatively expensive drinks.

Day 12: Woke up with loads of insect bites which sucked. I normally spray myself but forgot having been so drunk with my new Golden Gai friends. Don’t make this mistake! Visited the national museum which was really cool and Ueno zoo. Pandas were great but some of the enclosures (size, standard) made me a little uncomfortable in comparison to the space given in UK wildlife parks/zoos. Not sure i’d go again for that reason. Passed through Akhibara later and it was sound.

Day 13: Had a lay in then visited Shibuya. Yep. This place sure is busy. Shibuya sky was cool. We were both kinda exhausted with busy big cities at this point tho as had little interest in shopping. Both realised at this point our preference for temple/older style Japan rather than the big city centres. That’s just a personal preference i’m sure there’s many who are the opposite. In the evening went to TeamLabs Planet. Now this really was fun. Water exhibits soothed my blisters and insect bites too lol.

Day 14: With a day spare we took the train to Kamakura. Saw the big buddha, explored other shrines and stops. An awesome day trip. A welcome change of tone. Also, a fairly large bird of prey swept down and stole a man’s sandwich causing him to fall in the sand at the beach. This was excellent theatre.

Day 15: unfortunately it was home time. Back on the bullet train to Osaka from Tokyo. Sad faces. We will be back Japan.

As a side note; with Etihad we had access to the Etihad ‘Visit Abu Dhabi Experience’ getting 2 free nights stay at the Traders Hotel. Pretty insane deal to get it for free as a stopover en route home. Abu Dhabi isn’t really my type of place but I know that now. Also, Etihad staff really stepped up their hostility and awkwardness here. Not sure id fly with them again personally.

End comments:

All in all, probably cost us about 2.5-3£k each. It ain’t cheap but it’s definitely worth it and is much cheaper than the UK once you’re there. Amazing country. Loved the people. Loved the culture of things, silence on public transport, always helpful, always respectful. Watch out for insect bites and blisters, they suck. The cherry blossoms really do add to things. Chopsticks are easily learnt. You can go with zero knowledge of Japanese. Translate, basic phrases and a smile go a long way. Public transport despite appearing overwhelming is actually easy. For UK folks, you can’t jaywalk here. Even if there’s no cars, no one does. Carry a bag for your rubbish too. Oh and public toilets and toilets in general are amazing.

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/Suitable-Television9 on 2024-04-25 12:46:17.

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Me (32M) and wife (31F) traveled to Kansai Japan for the first time from 9/4 - 19/4. Here is our trip report and my personal travel tips.

PRELUDE

• Touched down Kansai Airport at 9.30pm.
• Took the Airport Limousine Bus to Kyoto Station.
• Reached hotel at 11.30pm.

Day 1 (KYOTO)

• Reach Fushimi Inari by 8.30am. It was already pretty crowded.
• Wife wasn't too interested after a while so we descended Mt. Inari and went to Tofukuji.
• From Tofukuji, we took the Keihan Line to Chushojima Station, where there's a river canal nearby that was full of cherry blossoms. Much less foreign tourist here too, mostly locals.
• Next, we visited Uji. Had cold matcha soba for lunch and went to Tsuen Tea Shop, which is the oldest tea house not only in Japan, but the whole world.
• Had more green tea desserts at Nakamura Tokichi and went to Byodo-in (the temple featured behind the 10 yen coin)
• Matcha stuff here were all just next level.
• Chill by Uji River and visited Ujikami Shrine.
• Took a walk to Tamakitei (famous bread shop in Uji) , but found out it wasn't open when we got there.
• By late evening, we took the train back to Kyoto downtown to Gion. Explored Pontocho Alley, Kiyamachi Street, and Hanamikoji. Had conveyor belt sushi for dinner.
• Visited Kyoto's Pokemon Centre.
• Kodai-ji for night sakura illumination.

Step count: 39,192 steps

Day 2 (KYOTO)

• Reach Sannenzaka and Ninnenzaka by 7am. Very few people around this early, and took a lot of crowd-less pictures of the traditional streets.
• Visited Kiyomizudera, the crowd started to build up considerably when we're done with this place.
• Had Arabica coffee at Ninnenzaka.
• Walked to Yasaka Shrine and visited Maruyama Park.
• Visited Chion-in Temple and head west towards Shirakawa River. Dropped by Tatsumi Bridge, Tatsumi Shrine and Shirakawa Lane. From there, followed the river towards Heian Shrine.
• Continue walking towards Keage Incline, took pictures of more cherry blossoms there.
• Headed towards north and visited Nanzenji Temple, Philosopher's Path, Honen-in and finish at Ginkaku-ji.
• Fu-ka, a good omurice place is just 5 minutes walk from Ginkaku-ji.
• Took a short hike at Yoshida Hill, there's a hidden dessert shop there (Mo-an), true hidden gem.
• Descent Yoshida Hill and visited Yoshida Shrine. Walked to Konkai Komyo-ji, a temple full of gravestones with a nice pagoda, it was quite a sight.
• Visited rabbit shrine Okazaki jinja. Bought some rabbit charms.
• Took a bus to Nishiki Market and did some souvenirs shopping.
• Had really good udon at Udon Tengu for dinner.
• Took the bus back to Gion and visited Yasaka Shrine again.
• Walked to Ninnenzaka and Sannenzaka. It was 9pm but the whole streets were just completely empty. Took a really nice picture of the streets with the pagoda.

Step count: 45,300 steps

Day 3 (KYOTO)

• Reached Arashiyama Bamboo Forest by 8.30am. Super crowded already.
• Passed Togetsukyo Bridge and walked along Katsura River. Hiked up and visited Daihikaku Senkoji Temple (awesome view of Arashiyama from up here!)
• Got back to Togetsukyo Bridge and headed to Denden-gu (a shrine with homage to Hertz and Thomas Edison)
• Walked back to Arashiyama Bamboo Forest. Did I mentioned that it was super crowded earlier? Now it's EXTREMELY crowded.
• Explored North Arashiyama area and Saga Toriimoto Preserved Street. Had unagi lunch at Ayu-no-Yado (best unagi we had in our lives)
• Visited both Otagi Nenbutsu-ji and Adashino Nenbutsu-ji.
• Walked to Daikaku-ji Temple. From there, took a bus to Kitano-Tenmangu Shrine. Visited Hirano Shrine.
• Had McDonald's for dinner. Tried the shrimp burger which wasn't available in our home country.
• Explored Kamishichiken (oldest geisha district in Kyoto)

Step count: 35,308 steps

Day 4 (KYOTO)

• Woke up at 5am on my own. Solo hiked the entire Fushimi Inari. It was a completely different vibe from Day 1. There were virtually nobody around, it was as if I had the whole shrine to myself. Words can't describe just how calm and peaceful this whole experience was.
• Walked back home and wife was up and ready. Took the train to Demachiyanagi Station, and from there hopped on to Bus 17, heading towards Ohara.
• Reached Ohara at 10.30am. Visited Sanzen-in (700 yen, the most expensive temple we've visited in our entire trip. But it was still worth it)
• Had really good curry udon and the specialty Sanzen-in udon for lunch at Ippukujaya Teahouse.
• Visited Jakko-in Temple.
• Walked around and explored Ohara Town. Really good countryside vibes.
• Took the bus back to Demachiyanagi Station. Visited Kamo Mitarashi Chaya and had the best mitarashi dango.
• Super good Omurice for dinner at Omura House.
• Headed back to downtown Kyoto and just explored around.

Step count: 39,403 steps

Day 5 (KYOTO >> OSAKA)

• Woke up at 5am on my own. Visited Kiyomizudera and solo hiked to Higashiyama Mount Peak Park.
• Walked back home and wife was up and ready. Checked out of our hotel and stored our luggage there.
• Took a train to Kurama Station and hiked Mt Kurama. Visited Kuramadera and reached Kibune. Visited Kifune Shrine.
• Took the train back to Kyoto Station. Had really good Ochazuke at Dashi-Chazuke En.
• Went back to the hotel, got our luggage and head towards Osaka via Keihan Line.
• Checked in at Osaka Airbnb. Had Ichiran Ramen for dinner.
• Explored Umeda area and had a good night view of the whole city at Umeda Sky Building.

Step count: 44,068 steps

Day 6 (OSAKA)

• Woke up 5.30am on my own and had a long morning walk around the city. Explored West Umeda area.
• Came back home at 9am and wife was up and ready. First stop of the day was Tenjinbashi Shopping Street & Osaka Tenmangu.
• Walked to the Osaka Mint Museum to see late blooming cherry blossoms. From there, continue on foot towards Osaka Castle and explored the park area.
• Randomly encountered a restaurant with full of Japanese salarymen standing while eating their meals in a rush. Decided to join in and despite the whole situation being super chaotic, the food was great and it was a very memorable moment, definitely a highlight of the trip!
• Had cakes and dessert at Gokan Cake House (Near Kitahama Station)
• Took a train and explored Dotonbori and Shinsaibashi.
• Walked south and explored Den Den Town. Visited the famous Namba Yasaka Shrine.
• Had the best Onigiri in our lives for dinner at Onigiri Gorichan.

Step count: 43,676 steps

Day 7 (NARA)

• Woke up 5am on my own and had a long morning walk around the city. Explored Kyobashi, Osaka Business Park and Osaka Castle.
• Came back home at 9.30am and wife was up and ready. Took the Kintetsu Line to Hasedera Station. Explored Hasedera Temple and Hase Town.
• Had the ABSOLUTE BEST udon meal here in Hase at 与喜饂飩 (food were all prepared on the spot upon order, so we had to wait a while to eat. And it was so worth the wait!)
• Took the train to Yamato-Yagi Station and explored Imaicho, a very well preserved traditional merchant town. And the best thing, there were no tourists at all!
• Walked around Kashihara Town. Visited Fujiwara Palace Ruins.
• Took the train back to Osaka and had Tsukemen for dinner at Tenjinbashi.
• Visited Dotonbori again, this time during night.

Step count: 37,667 steps

Day 8 (NARA)

• Woke up at 5am on my own and walked around town. Visited the virtually empty Dotonbori.
• Came back home at 9am and wife was up and ready. Took the Kintetsu Line to Ikoma Station.
• Switched to the cable car and rode up to Ikomasanjo Amusement Park.
• Visited Hozanji (one of the best temples we've visited in the entire trip)
• Explored Ikoma Town. After that, took the train bound for Nara Deer Park.
• Dropped by Yamato-Saidaji Station on the way and visited the street where former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was assassinated. Flower beds were made around the site to honor him.
• Continued to Nara Park and did the usual stuff here - See the deers, visit Todaiji, Kasuga Taisha.
• Took the train back to Osaka. Had very good Okonomiyaki at Hirokazuya Higashidori for dinner.

Step count: 37,186 steps

Day 9 (NARA - SOLO WALKING)

• Today was the day my wife and I had our own me-time. I chose to explore Nara, while she decided to chill and shop around Osaka.
• Woke up at 4.30am. Caught the first train and headed towards Tenri, Nara. Visited the Tenri Church.
• Completed the entire south part of Yamanobe no michi, starting at Tenri & ending at Sakurai Town. Explored some shrines along the route - Isonokami Shrine, Yatogi Shrine, Hibara Shrine, Omiwa Shrine.
• As I was entering Yatogi Shrine, a farmer old man approached me in his motorcycle and personally gave me a tour in the shrine. I used Papago to translate his words and communicate with him. He even taught me how to pay respects in the shrine - ringing the bell, clapping your hands together and take a bow. Such a really awesome & unique experience.
• Had Miwa Somen for lunch, a regional food only found in Nara.
• My wife reportedly had the best pancakes of her life at Marufuku Coffee, near Dotonbori.
• Continued walking south, passed by Kashihara and explored Asuka Village, once the capital of Ancient Japan.
• Visited Asukadera, the first temple in Japan.
• Lots of tumulus around the area, the most famous one being the Ishibutai Tumulus.
• Continue walking and arrive at Takatori Town. Wanted to take a hike to visit Takatori Castle Ruins and Tsubosakadera, but sun ...

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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/Useful_Beautiful2891 on 2024-04-24 05:39:02.

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Hi! I am looking for feedback on our day Tokyo Itinerary. Our trip is in the first week of October. After this we continue on to Kyoto and Osaka but we don't have that planned out in detail yet.

We are in our mid-twenties, neither of us really drink and are mostly looking forward to eating our way through Japan! There is a bit of shopping we'd like to do but we are pretty picky but we don't feel the need to go into every store.

For food, we have a few places flagged that we would like to try but happy to abandon those plans if we find something better when exploring or depending on hunger! Breakfast will likely always be 7/11, Lawson, or Family Mart.

We would prefer when things aren't super crowded but we also are pretty patient and experienced travellers so we understand this is all part of the game :)

Obviously, we tried to make this as flexible as possible so we may do things slightly out of order especially if we get hungry or whatever!

Any advice or tips is helpful. We have an extra day right now we may use for a Nara or Hiroshima day trip from Osaka but we could also add it to Tokyo as well (any thoughts would be appreciated!)

Day 1

• Arrive at HND around 6:30pm
• Customs, etc
• Train to hotel in Ginza and sleep

Day 2

• Transit to Asakusa (as early as we can!)
• Explore Senso-ji and surrounding streets
• Lunch in Asakusa
• Potentially Asakusa Gyukatsu
• Look for some souvenirs at Kappabashi Street
• Dessert/Treat around Nakamise-dori Street if we feel like it
• Transit back to Ginza, stop at Character Street if we aren't too tired, if we are go straight back to hotel for a rest
• Grab dinner in Ginza, explore a few stores if we have the energy

Day 2

• Transit to Shibuya
• Do one of the early Shibuya Sky timeslots
• Walk through Shibuya Scramble
• Explore a few stores as they begin to open
• Lunch somewhere in Shibuya
• If we want to do a bit more shopping, do that now!
• Walk to Daikanyama
• Explore the neighborhood, visit T-Site and maybe a coffee shop/dessert place
• Grab dinner around here if we aren't too tired or head back to rest then go for a later dinner in Ginza

Day 3

• Transit to Meji Jingu and visit the shrine
• Grab lunch in Harajuku
• Potentially Roast Beef Ohno Harajuku
• Explore Takeshita Street
• If we feel like shopping more, go to Omotesando Hills & the surrounding area but we can also skip
• Head up to Shinjuku
• Explore Shinjuku
• Visit Kabukicho
• Eat Dinner
• Walk through Golden Gai & Omoide Yokocho
• Not interested in drinking or eating here so just a walk through
• Transit back to Ginza

Day 4

• Day trip to either Kawaguchiko if weather seems clear or Kamakura if the weather is not clear

Day 5

• Walk to Tsukiji Outer Market early in the morning
• Visit anywhere we didn't get to above or if there is anything extra we want to do
• If we get through everything, either visit Shimokitazawa or Akihabara potentially!
• Book an Omakase experience for this night

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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/xxDeG on 2024-04-22 17:33:23.

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This is probably a dumb question but I'd just like to make sure. We can do the Hakone Loop counter clockwise for a day trip right?

As in:

take Shenjuku romance car to Odawara Station then to Chokokunomori Station

• hakone open air museum

-to gora station > cable car up to Hakone Ropeway Owakudani Station

-vibe at mt fugi sightseeing

• cable car down to Togendai station
• take pirate ship to Motohakone Port

-Hakone Shrine, Soga Shrine, Amulet booth, Oratory, Inari Shrine

• dinner

-Bus/train back to tokyo