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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/Strict_Search584 on 2024-10-31 18:30:03+00:00.
This community helped us a lot in planning our trip, so I thought it would be my turn to give back and share a recap of our recent trip to Japan. My wife and I visited from October 13-27 as first time travelers to Japan and the bottom line is we absolutely loved it. We have already decided we will go back in the future. Before getting into the details, a few high-level takeaways:
- Two weeks is the perfect time to get a taste of the country as a first time visitor. We were able to complete the vast majority of our itinerary without feeling rushed or burnt out. While distances between attractions/cities may be large, the world-class public transit + google maps for directions makes it a breeze.
- October was a lot hotter than we anticipated. We both brought a decent amount of sweaters, hoodies and barely touched them. They did take up a lot of extra room in our luggage that we would have preferred to fill with souvenirs (we still got a ton, but you can never have too many!). Laundry was easy to access, so I would pack lighter on the clothing front in the future. That said, good shoes are a must. We averaged 20,000 steps a day. Most hotels have a fabric freshener spray in the room which helped keep odors away.
- As a Canadian, we were blown away at how far the $CAD went in terms of food, accommodation, etc. Most of our meals were between 1,000-3,000 yen for lunch and 2,000-5,000 yen for dinner and we ate much better food than what we would find at home, let alone at a comparable cost.
- Having an ESIM and data made travel foolproof. The level of detail provided by google maps is quite remarkable and we never got lost or overwhelmed using local transit.
- The only part of our itinerary that fell short of our expectations was Kyoto. If we could re-do our trip, we would have spent a few more days in Tokyo and a few less in Kyoto. The city is beautiful and rich in history, but the sheer amount of tourists made it hard to enjoy. In the central areas especially, it felt at times like 50% of the people on the street were non-Japanese. As tourists ourselves, we can't fault these people, but it took away from the atmosphere. Our favourite parts of Kyoto were off the beaten path things we found by accident (hole in the wall izakaya, tea ceremony far from downtown). That said, Kyoto suburbs were the only place we were turned away from a restaurant (more than once) for being foreigners.
October 13-16 - Tokyo
- Stayed at Hotel Ryumeikan and highly recommend it. Breakfast was bomb (more Japanese options than Western, which is what we wanted). Excellent location close to Tokyo Station and in a much less crowded area compared to Shibuya, etc. Probably our favourite neighbourhood in Tokyo (Nihonbashi).
- We flew YOW-YYG-NRT and found it went by pretty quick. For any east coast Canadians/Americans, even if a direct 14 hour flight is available in your city or nearby, we found it nice to split up the journey with a stop in the west (for Canadians, Vancouver or Calgary if coming from Ontario) to stretch our legs, get some food, etc.
- We visited the Imperial Palace East Gardens, Senso-Ji, and Kappabashi for some awesome (tax-free) Japanese chef knives. Next day, we went to Teamlabs Borderless (got tickets well in advance). Really cool experience, a solid 8/10. We also went up Tokyo tower for panoramic city views. I only have good things to say about all these activities.
- Restaurant recommendation: Nihonbashi Kaisen Donburi Tsujihan.
October 16-18 - Hiroshima
- Stayed at Hotel Intergate Hiroshima. Nothing mind-blowing but a convenient and comfortable hotel. I would recommend.
- Took the Shinkansen from Tokyo to Hiroshima. Very smooth/easy 4 hour journey, not at all complicated to purchase tickets from the self serve machine. Our suitcases were under the 160 cm total dimension threshhold so we simply put them in the overhead area. Quite honestly, we felt the value of luggage forwarding is overblown unless you have really large luggage. It was pretty simple to keep our suitcases with us most of the time.
- Explored the city (Atomic bomb dome and museum) and did a day trip to Miyajima. Highly recommend hiking to the top of Mt. Misen and taking the cable car back down. The trail was very well marked and super scenic.
October 18-23 - Kyoto
- Took the shinkansen to Kyoto, stopping along the way in Himeji. Definitely worth making the time to visit the castle, it is stunning and you can explore all the floors within it.
- Stayed at the Cross Hotel, which was awesome (albeit a bit pricy). Very modern with an incredible breakfast, but definitely more of an international/western feel than Japanese.
- Did all the touristy things (kinkaku-ji, fushimi inari, etc.), which while beautiful, felt way too crammed with tourists (even in the shoulder season). Our favourite part of Kyoto was actually Arashiyama Monkey Park. This is not a zoo - the monkeys are free to roam as they please and it was so cool to see them go about their day, with panoramic views of Kyoto. Highly recommend.
- Getting a seat a restaurant without a reservation in Kyoto was at time near impossible. My advice is to plan ahead as there are too many tourists fighting for the same seats. Our favourite restaurants were Yakiyasai Isoya - awesome place with fresh farm-to-table dishes, and Ajikyu - the most wholesome family-run sushi spot and izakaya. The grandmother is hilarious and still working in her late 80s!
October 23-25 - Fujikawaguchiko
- This is the only part of the trip we forwarded our luggage and were glad to do so, as we didn't want to lug our suitcases to the mountains for only two days. Took the direct bus from Mishima, super easy to figure out.
- We got lucky and our only full day in Fujikawaguchiko we had clear skies and could see the mountain well. The only thing that surprised us was that there was no iconic snow cap, however I read that this year has broken all records for the latest Fuji has gone without snow...
- We stayed at the Mizno Hotel and it was pretty awesome. Each room has a unobstructed view of the mountain (weather permitting), as well as some onsen/spa facilities on site. They also provide electric bikes for free to explore the town.
- Try the Hoto noodle soup while you are in the area!
October 25-27 - Tokyo
- Ended our trip doing the western half of central Tokyo in the Shinjuku/Shibuya area (stayed at the JR Blossom Shinjuku. Excellent location to explore and get the Narita Express back to the airport).
- Truth be told, Shibuya was our least favourite part of Tokyo. Too crowded, a bit 'trashy', not many redeeming qualities other than shopping.
- Our favourite parts of the area were the Shinjuku Gyoen National Park (Tokyo's answer to Central Park) which was incredible, especially the greenhouse - don't miss it! and the Tokyo City Metropolitan Government Building. Not only can you go up to the observatory as much as you would like for free, but they have a light show in the evening that is AWESOME. Apparently the largest projection on a building in the world. They had music to go with it and it lasted around 30 min, can't recommend enough. They even have a courtyard with some seating and fake grass (a new installation I believe) which can be layed down on for the best views.
- We did our shopping at Loft, Don Quijote and various shops (Uniqlo, etc.). We found Loft to have the best selection of souvenirs. Don Quijote, at least the mega location, was actually quite expensive (some kit kat packs were selling for 600-1,000 yen when you can find them in street markets for closer to 200 yen).
- Ended our last night with Shibuya Sky. Mind-blowing views of the city, don't miss this one.
- Restaurant recommendation - Uogashi Nihon-Ichi. Amazing standing sushi bar with take-out chirashi bowls. Super affordable for the quality of fish.
I hope future travelers get inspired and find this useful! We can't wait to go back!