Some friends and I (4 People total) are going on a 15 day trip to Japan early next June. Here is the itinerary that we came up with. Looking for some feedback
The way the trip is set up is very inspired by Abroad in Japan’s 14 day Itinerary video [https://youtu.be/DBVAAnq1dHo?si=jq\_21PR2pzclB6TC](https://youtu.be/DBVAAnq1dHo?si=jq_21PR2pzclB6TC)
Day 1: Tokyo May 29th
\- arrive in Haneda at roughly 2:20PM
\- stay in Asakusa
\- Quick stop by Sensoji Temple
\- Ameyoko Market
\- Ueno Park
Day 2: Tokyo May 30th
\- Begin Day outside Sensoji Temple at Nakamise Street
\- Revisit the Temple if need be
\- Tokyo Sky Tree
\- Make our way to Akihabara when ready
\- Spend time going to different stores and playing games at the arcades around (eat Lunch Here)
\- Either walk or ride to Tokyo Station for the view of the over 100 year old station
\- Either grab dinner in Shimbashi or go back toward Asakusa
Day 3: Tokyo May 31st
Head to Kamakura for first half of day
\- First go see the Kamakura Daibutsu this is the Second largest Buddha statue in all of Japan (Located near Hase Station)
\- After making time to visit Hokokuji Temple and the bamboo forest there (This is located near the Jomyoji bus stop or a 30-40 minute walk from Kamakura Station)
\- Lastly make our way back to Komachi-dori for some local food (This street is located near Kamakura station)
Spend 2nd half of day in Yokohama
\- Arrive at Sakuragicho Station
\- Walk down the Kishamichi Promenade this will lead us onto Minato Mirai
\- Once we enter Mirato Mirai we have the option of going to visit the Red Brick Warehouses for some shopping or going to the Cup Noodle Museum
\- After either one of those options we can visit the other or move on to something like Cosmo World the amusement park or continue on.
\- There is the Gubdam museum here also which has the giant moving gundam
\- Once we have seen everything in the Minato Mirai area make our way to the Yokohama Chinatown
\- This is where we can wrap up our time in Yokohama eating amazing Chinese food before entering Ishikawacho Station to head back to Tokyo
Day 4: Tokyo June 1st (Flex Day)
\- Day can be spent revisiting Yokohama and Kamakura if needed or a new District
Day 5: Kanazawa June 2nd
\- Once we arrive in Kanazawa we need to go check into our accommodation
\- After checking in we should make our way to Omicho Market for some food this is one the historicfresh food markets in Kanazawa. (Make sure to get some kind of seafood especially unagi if possible)
\- After grabbing some food we can begin to make our way to Kanazawa Castle
\- The first stop on the way will be at Oyama Shrine
\- Gyokuseninmaru Gardens on the edge of the castle grounds for any pictures
This should lead up to Kanazawa Castle where we can walk through if we want
\- After leaving the Castle there is the Kenrokuen Landscape Garden to visit
\- Next to this garden there is the Seisonkaku Samurai Villa
\- The next few options are a some museums there is the D.T. Suzuki Museum and the 21st CenturyMuseum of Contemporary Art
\- Another option would be to visit the Nagamachi Samurai District
\- Finally we can begin to head back to our hotel to grab some dinner or a snack such as the localMatcha or some sushi since the area is known for their seafood
Day 6: Shirakawago/ Takayama June 3rd
\- Once we leave Kanazawa we will first make a stop in Shirakawago to take in the sights and also makesure to try the Custard Pudding
\- Then we will head the Takayama
(First we will check into our hotel to drop off our bags)
\- Take a stroll down any of the old style street to try the Hida Wagyu Beef
\- Take time to enjoy the views of the Miyagawa River
Day 7: Takayama June 4th
\- After getting up and getting breakfast we can then go visit Takayama Jinya
\- Go visit the Takyama Showa-kan Museum (This is a museum that has been completely designed to show off Japan throughout different eras of time)
\- Leave Takayama by noon and head to Kyoto
Check in to accommodation. (Stay in Higashiyama)
\- Go walk the philosopher’s path.
\- Check out Kiyomizu Temple (could be moved to next day depending on time)
\- Nintendo Musuem ( If its opened by this day would go here)
\- Dinner in the Gion District maybe go to Kiyamachi street
Day 8: Kyoto June 5th
\- Arashiyama Scenic Mountain District
\- Sagano Bamboo Grove
\- Tenryuji temple
\- Kinkakuji
\- Yasaka Pagoda
\- Pontocho Alley
Day 9: Kyoto/ Nara June 6th
\- Get up as early as possible. We’re talking at 4:30am or something.
\- Arrive at Fushimi Inari around 5.30\~6.00am.
\- Visit the shrine.
\- Take the train to Nara at 9, be there at 10.
\- Visit some of the many great sights in Nara.
\- Nara Park
\- Todaiji Temple
\- Kasiga Taisha
\- At the end of the afternoon, take the Kintetsu train to Osaka.
\- Get dinner in Dontobori
Check into accommodation (Dontobori Area)
Day 10: Osaka June 7th
\- Osaka Castle
\- Umeda Tower
\- AmericaMura/DenDenTown
\- Namba Yasaka Shrine ( Lunch here)
\- Shinsekai
\- Arcades/Round 1 Maybe?
\- Back to Dontobori/Minami Area for Dinner
Day 11: Osaka June 8th
\- Universal Studios Japan
Day 12: Hakone June 9th
\- Consider picking up a quick breakfast in Osaka. It will be difficult to obtain meals in Hakone while not in the Ryokan.
\- Take Hakone Tozan Line from Osaka to Hakone (3 hours)
Check into Ryokan
\- After dropping our bags off we will make our way to the Hakone Open Air Museum and spend about two hours experiencing the sights it has to offer
\- Next we will take the cable car and the Hakone Rope way up to Owakudani here we can try thefamous black eggs and black ice cream and hopefully get a view of Mt. Fuji if visible.
\- After we are finished we can take the ropeway down to the Togendai-ko taking the HakoneSightseeing Cruise back across Lake Ashi to Motohakone-ko
\- Once in Motohakone we can visit the Torii Gate in the water and Hakone-jinja Shrine
\- Lastly we can walk the old Takaido Highway to Amazake Chaya before heading back to our Ryokan for Kaiseki dinner
Day 13: Tokyo June 10th
\- Wake and eat breakfast at ryokan before checking out
\- Take train to Shibuya
\- Make our way down to Shibuya Crossing to see the Scramble and see the Hachiko Statue
Then make our way to Tokyo Parco to go visit the Nintendo Store and Pokemon Center
If there is anything else we want to see in Shibuya this would be the time to stop in
\- After we are good in Shibuya we can head to Harajuku and Takeshita Street
\- The Meji shrine and Yoyogi Park are also in the area so those can be the next stop
\- Lastly we can see the views from the Tokyo Metropolitan Building before heading back to Shinjuku or we can go back down to Shibuya Sky for a sunset view
\- Head to Shinjuku and check into accommodation this will be time to experience some more Tokyo nightlife (Omoide Yokochō/Golden Gai/Kabukicho Tower)
(Would it easier to go to Shinjuku first to check in hotel then go to shibuya?)
Day 14: Tokyo June 11th
\- Wake Up early to grab breakfast and make our way to the new TeamLabs Borderless
\- Possible Flex Day 2 this could be used to visit Odaiba, Roppongi, or Ikebukuro. If we aren’t interested in going to these for a bit we can revisit any of our previous stops in Tokyo.
Day 15: Tokyo June 12th Departure Day
\- Grab breakfast this morning before last minute shopping and heading to the airport
\- Leave Haneda Airport at 6:25 PM
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Let us know how are itinerary is and some ideas on things we could do on our flex days.
Thanks!
by FlyinPandaBearz