Hi everybody, Im really hoping to finally get to Japan in Autumn this year and wanted to get an itinerary check as Im not sure if Im packing in too much or too little some days, its hard to tell from looking up places online.
We were also wondering if getting the JR rail pass is worth it, we are planning on training as much as possible.
Also what months of the year are best for Autumn colours in Tokyo/Kyoto region?
Itinerary-
Land in Tokyo-
Day 01- Staying in Shinjuku
Flight in afternoon
Get dinner at Omoide-Yokochō – Food district
Settle in
Day 02-
Hanazono Shrine
Get some food in the area
Shinjuku Gyoen (National Garden)
Travel to Shibuya area
Shibuya Scramble Square – top deck for a view, then lower floors for restaurants
Go to – THE MATCHA TOKYO 表参道
Harajuku – Takeshita Dori street
Dinner at Shinjuku Golden Gai
Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building – Go to observation deck (Maybe)
Day 03-
Travel to Mt Fuji area
Go to Chureito Pagoda
Then rest of day at Snow Town Yeti
Day 04-
Tokyo Disneyland
Dinner at Akasaka Tsutsui (Akasaka, Western Cuisine)
Day 05- Osaka-
Train to Osaka
Shitennoji Temple
Osaka Castle
Tenma or Shinsaibashi District – Shopping and arcade district
Umeda Sky Building
Local takoyaki and Japanese crepes at night
Day 06 –
Nara Deer Shrine
Lunch at Mizuya Chaya
Ukimido
Maybe – Hiraso restaurant
Day 07-
Universal Studios Osaka
Osaka Aquarium
Yummy dinners in late afternoon
Day 08-
Minoo Park
Shinsekai
Tour of Kamigata Ukiyoe Museum
Go to Dotonbori at night
Day 09-
Check out and train to Kyoto
Kyoto –
Check in
Kyoto Imperial Palace
Eikan-do Temple (If there is time)
Kiyomizudera & Higashiyama District
Nijo Castle
Kinkakauji temple
Kinkakuji Fudogama Chasho – Restaurant for dinner
Day 10-
Tofukuji Temple
Fushimi Inari Taisha
Fushimi Sake Village
Daigoji
Toji Temple
Day 11-
Arashiyama Bamboo Forest
Kokedera
Katsura Imperial Villa
Suntory Yamazaki Distillery – If open
Finish day at – Nishiki Market
Day 12-
Interactive Samurai & Ninja Museum around Nishiki Market
Kembu theatre Samurai Sword performance
Izutsuya Sanjo – Wagyu Beef restaurant
Day 13- Travel to Hiroshima
Check in drop off bags
Peace park
Hiroshima Castle
Go have some food, a relaxing day
Day 14-
Miyajima
Explore this whole island town
Boat back to mainland and back to Hiroshima
Day 15- Train back to Tokyo
Wander around some Arcades
Go to the Anime area in Tokyo
Day 16-
Need an activity to find here
Day 17-
Check out
10 comments
Tokyo Government building is nice because it’s free, otherwise, I do not think it is the best observation deck in Tokyo. I prefer Roppongi Hills Mori Tower and am looking forward Shibuya Sky.
For the first day in Osaka considering you have to take the train, that seems to be a bit all around the city. For example instead of Umeda sky, you could replace it by Abeno Harukas that is closer to Shitenno-ji, and just make sure you put things that are physically close together on the same day.
If you are to say in both Kyoto and Osaka, I would do it as Osaka-Hiroshima-Kyoto, so at least you cut down on travel time to return to Tokyo.
I do not think Nishiki market is especially a end of day thing, in t hat area, pontocho would fit better for the end of day.
For JR Pass, technically, yes, you would save money using the 14 days pass. However, it would be even cheaper to buy the individual tickets to do Tokyo-Osaka and Kyoto-Tokyo + the JR West Kansai – Hiroshima Area Pass. If you count some use of the pass around Tokyo, then it might end up about the same price.
The pro point is that you would also be able to take the Nozomi and Mizuho, the down side is that it would not cover the part between Osaka and Kyoto (if you are to change the order as I said). If you do not change the order, then you would want to use the pass to move from Hiroshima to Shin-Osaka and buy your ticket from Shin-Osaka to Tokyo.
Doing it this way, you can also consider flying out of Osaka, even if the multi-city ticket is the equivalent of 14 000 yen more expensive (it’s how much it would cost you to do Osaka-Tokyo), this mean move all the Tokyo day first, that will also remove one change of hotel.
I travelled to Japan in November 2019 and the autumn leaves had already started turning in places like Arashiyama and Shinjuku Gyoen.
Yes, JR Pass makes sense for your itinerary.
Since you’re planning to get out of Tokyo and explore Kansai all the way upto Hiroshima, I suggest you don’t spend the first few days in Tokyo. On the day you land in Narita / Haneda, get your JR Pass from their airport desk and go to the farthest city in your itinerary – Hiroshima. Then do Kansai (Osaka and Kyoto), Mt Fuji, etc, as you get nearer to Tokyo. Don’t split Tokyo into half, keep it as the final leg of your journey.
For the 16th day you’re planning to spend in Tokyo, might I suggest adding that day to your Hiroshima days? An easy way to spend that day is make full use of your JR Pass and go all the way down to Kagoshima. Along the way, you can stop at Hakata and taste their famous tonkotsu broth ramen. In Kagoshima, you can get a glimpse of the island of Sakurajima active volcano from a ferris wheel in the shopping mall next to the shinkansen station or taste other local delicacies.
Have a great trip of Japan!
I think Osaka aquarium and usj + finding and eating dinner in one day would be very crammed. Considering the size of both usj and the aquarium + wait times for rides
Also booked a flight for October 10th. Good luck
October is a bit early for fall colors in Tokyo or Osaka area. November is better.
I love Tokyo with the autumn colours. October is great because the stifling heat and humidity is finished for the year.
I’m glad to see you’re going planning to go to the garden in shinjuku, that’s a great place to see autumn colors and foliage. Miyajima too. Like others have said, mid to late November is much better for that though. I went in mid November a few years ago and that was definitely the “prime” time for autumn colors. Also, if you’re looking for other additions to your itinerary, Kurobe Gorge is really great to see and visit too. It is a bit of a train ride to get there, as you’re basically going to the Sea of Japan side of the country, then going back inland. So it’s a 2 night experience. And that’s something that I think can be enjoyed any time of year, not just in the Fall. But it gets pretty cold there too
I could obviously be completely wrong about this but I wouldn’t buy a flight ticket yet. The estimation that Japan is gonna open up for tourism again in October was extremely vague and October/November is usually when the new variants hit. We have all seen what the japanese gov’t considers to be it’s “unfailable 100% proof solution” for such a situation, the last two years. I wanna go there just as much as everyone else here and meet my family again but I would advice you to keep your expectations in check.
how are people getting to Japan with it being closed for tourism? I want to go so badly and now that I can finally afford it I can’t get in!
Late Oct-early/mid Nov is absolutely deadly for autumn leaves 🍁 Beyond beautiful, really. All the best!