Weekly Japan Travel Information and Discussion Thread – March 22, 2024

32 comments

1. Hi! Me and my girlfriend are flying to Osaka from Vietnam tomorrow and have bought tickets for universal studios and from what I understand we need to print out the tickets. Is there anywhere we can do that in the Osaka area? Thanks!

2. Hello, anyone selling two Borderless team lab tickets for this weekend? 3/24 or 3/25? Thanks!

3. Hi Everyone,

   I am hoping to get some help and advice through the lens of a parent with a 10-month-old at the time of travel. It’s my 2nd time and my wife’s 1st time in Japan, but I am happy to revisit Tokyo, Kyoto, and Nara.
   We fly in and out of Tokyo, Sept 10-30.

   1. Are these cities solid for choices? I was thinking maybe checking out Hiroshima, but I’m open to some other popular towns or cities.
   2. General recommendations for hotels, restaurants, and attractions that are baby-friendly. We are looking to be somewhat budget-friendly.
   3. Is Asakusa a good area to stay in Tokyo?

   Tokyo
   Sept 10-13

   Osaka
   Sept 13-19
   Danjiri Matsuri Festival(Sept 14)
   Nara(Sept 17)
   Universal Studios
   Nintendo Land

   Kyoto
   Sept 19-23

   ???
   Sept 23-26
   Could I get some recommendations? I would like to fill this with a Ryoken, in or around Kanazawa, but I am open to any city or town.
   I am thinking of Kanazawa because of Abroad in Japan’s “How to Spend 14 Days in JAPAN 🇯🇵 Ultimate Travel Itinerary”. (https://youtu.be/DBVAAnq1dHo?si=WovAKKdJrBlgLDHJ&t=697)
   Maybe Hiroshima?
   Extend other cities?

   Tokyo
   Sept 26-30

   Thank you so much in advance.

4. 1. I want to stay in a nice traditional Ryokan in Kyoto as I’ll be there for one night but couldn’t find anything. Please suggest
   2. How to travel from Narita airport to Tokyo with luggage?
   3. Suggest good onsen to experience. I will travel to only 3 places in Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka.
   4. Should I book a tour to travel around Mt. Fuji? If yes please give me some recommendations.
   5. Is travel to Hakone worth it? Should I do it and skip mt Fuji?

5. is a welcome suica and nikko pass enough to go to these places? chuzenji lake, washinomiya(lucky star), oya temple, kawagoe, giga daiso at funabashi

6. I’m currently making an itinerary for me and my groups time in Fuji.
   I’ve come to a crossroad where our group of about 8 people is splitting into 2 groups for the day consisting of those who want to enjoy the scenic views of Mt. Fuji, 5 lakes, Fuji Motor Sports Museum, cafes, etc

   OR

   Summit fuji within 1.5 days( spend the night go home next day midday)

   I want to do both but unfortunately we just don’t have time to dedicate 2 full days to Mt. Fuji and wanted your opinions on which you’d rather do.

7. Blossoms in Tokyo are now delayed and show to be in full bloom after the 1st of April, will there be any blossoms the couple days before that or nothing until they’re fully bloomed?

8. When queueing at Sushi Dai and Sushi Daiwa, do all members of the party need to be there? I am looking to queue for my partner and I and I would like to let her sleep in. Anyone have any experience with this? If not possible we might skip it altogether.

9. TRANSPORTATION & Shopping HELP needed –

   One of my friends will be currently staying at Tokyo Bay Ariake Washington Hotel, at Ariake, Koto City.

   Now I wanted to know the best way for him to visit a shopping center or store where good denim jeans, women’s jackets/clothes, and maybe some watches (SEIKO, CASIO) would be available after 4 PM?

   He’ll only have time for like 2-3 hours to visit and shop so it would be better if it’s nearby. Is getting an Uber or Go Taxi the best option to visit somewhere? Also, where should be the best place to go for like 2-3 hours and return?

10. My partner and I are staying in Osaka next week. We are staying in one hotel for four nights, then travelling to Koyasan for one night, and then returning to Osaka for another two nights. Our first hotel is in Dotonbori, and our second is closer to Osaka Castle.

    If we wanted to avoid taking our full luggage to Koyasan, what would be our safest and most economical way to transfer our luggage to our second hotel or store our luggage in Osaka? We are a bit overwhelmed.

    Thank you!

11. We will be traveling to Osaka tomorrow, and I see that it’s raining (thanks to weather apps and live cams) do hotels provide or let you borrow umbrellas?

12. Do I need to reserve bus seats to get from Kawaguchiko to Hakone, or will I be able to just hop on and pay the fare like normal?

13. Am I reserving too late or too early for Sept last week/Oct first week onsen/ryokans?

    I was looking at popular ones in Hakone and Mt. Fuji and they seem to be not available to book or booked out. So I wasn’t sure if the reservations are limited since it is still early or if I missed the “early” booking window.

    Thanks

14. Anyone here ever done a Marathon in Japan? Thoughts or tips for someone considering visiting and attempting to complete more than one Marathon on vacation?

    Is there a specific race you loved or one you didn’t think was worth the time/money?

15. I’ll be staying in the Tohoku region for ~10 days. Is it worth it to buy 1 JR East Tohoku Area Pass valid for 5 days and 1 JR Tohoku-South Hokkaido Rail Pass valid for another 5 days (I’ll be going to Sapporo) OR should I just not buy and just purchase my train and bus tickets one by one?

    For an idea on where I will be going, [here is the my Reddit post](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/comments/1bjajyc/itinerary_check_11_days_in_japan_tokyo_to_tohoku/) wherein my whole itinerary is posted.

16. I already have everything booked to visit Japan in May should I be worried about Strep A infection?

    Kinda having second thoughts and thinking of cancelling

17. Man didn’t win the pokemon cafe lottery. Going to try to find a Fiverr to get a reservation for when we’re in Osaka cause the pokemon cafe reservation site stinks.

    Bummed though and had to share that.

18. Has anyone tried the free taxi from Booking? I booked a hotel in Shinjuku and they have a free taxi promo from the airport if your booking is at least ~300USD. It won’t be my first time in Japan but it will be my first time flying into Narita. As I understand, Narita is ~75km away by road and taking a taxi is >200USD. Is this reliable? Seems too good to be true considering the distance and Tokyo taxi rates.

    It says the taxi driver will monitor my flight and wait for 45 minutes after the flight lands. I arrive in the afternoon so I have no idea how long immigration would take. I was also planning to pick-up a SIM card at the airport, which would add time if there’s a queue.

19. Hello, I’m looking for day trip recommendations from Osaka without a car, in late May. I don’t mind 3 hour train trips as I’ve done it many times. I just dislike having to move hotels too much, and I’ll be flying in and out through Itami.

    I’ve been to Nara, Kyoto, Hyogo, and Wakayama before, so I’m looking into Mie, Okayama and Kagawa, but there hasn’t been anything in particular I could find that piques my interest.

    Some extra info: Food does not attract me to the extent that I will visit a place just to eat something; I’m looking for unique sightseeing spots. I can speak Japanese so it doesn’t matter if there’s no English. The best thing I could find so far is Shodoshima, but I’m a bit split on going at this time as it’s off-season for Kankakei.

20. Deciding on single-act vs full show tickets for Ginza Kabukiza. I see that single act is shorter and preferable for tourists with a packed schedule, but how long is the full show? Not seeing this info online. Thanks

21. I know children under 6 use the metro for free, do I still need a separate card for my child to enter the barricade?

22. I’m planning on going to Tokyo in July. I want to visit a Nintendo Store and Pokémon Store so I was planning on going to Shibuya Parco since I heard both can be found there. However, I’ve also heard a lot of YouTube videos suggest Sunshine City Pokémon Center as well (plus I heard there’s a huge gachapon selection on one floor).

    Questions:
    Is the Shibuya Parco Pokémon Center /Nintendo Store a good one stop shop or should I go out of my way to visit a ‘better’ Pokémon Center and Nintendo Store elsewhere?

    If I forgo the gachapon floor in Sunshine City, is there a gachapon place I could visit that’s close to Shibuya Parco? I’m looking for gachapon toys that are intricate miniature replicas of stuff (like a detailed mini gachapon machine or old fashioned Japanese pay phone or cute, weird original characters).

23. I’ve arriving in Kyoto on 28th. Is there a website that tracks each site for Sakura in real time?

24. Can someone please recommend a good ryokan stay in either the Miyajima area or Nagano area? I really struggle to find someting
    I am looking for something reasonably priced and it does not have to have the onsen

25. Quick help needed: Suggestions on how to print Ghibli Musuem tickets!

    I had booked the Ghibli museum tickets via the international site. I got a 2 page pdf with a QR on top of it. I somehow missed to take a printout of it before coming to Japan. Now I’m finding it difficult to take a printout.

    I’ve tried it in the Family Mart. The local people tried helping me a lot but I wasn’t able to take a printout. I don’t have the access to download their printsmash app since the app store doesn’t allow me to. Could anyone help me with these questions as I have to go to the Musuem tomorrow.

    1. How to take a printout from a Android and iPhone.
    2. If not printout, what other methods are available to me?
    3. Does the Ghibli Musuem allow with a soft copy, since it’s properly mentioned to take a printout of those 2 pages.

    Note: I did lot of research to book these tickets officially. Used 8 devices and stood in virtual queue for an hour to get these. Can’t believe I missed to take a printout. Thanks in advance!

26. Greetings friends,

    I’m planning a trip about a year in advance (March 13-April 14ish). The plan was to go with a friend for about 4 weeks, have a home-base hotel in Shibuya and do occasional overnight or day trips here and there. However, plans have changed and my friend can only go the first two weeks (so a pair first two weeks, solo second two). Since we have to plan differently, I was hoping to get some inspiration and feedback on our first week or so rough plan.

    ***The rough plan:***

    (0) Leave Canada on a Thursday, arrive on a Friday in Tokyo, shinkansen to Kyoto to check-in at the hotel and wander (time allowing).

    (1) The first full day would be for three sites in Kyoto (Fushimi Inari, Eikandoo Temple, Adashino Nembutsu bamboo forest) – the third one may be a bit far, so we might switch it up.

    (2) The second day would be wandering in Kyoto (thinking of doing a kimono shoot), and making our way to Osaka/check-in at hotel, wander.

    (3) The third would be mostly Universal Studios – unlike Disney, we feel this would be more of a full-day trip for us. After, wander and back to hotel.

    (4) Next day travel to another city for an overnight trip. This is flexible depending on location, can be 1-2 nights. Originally thinking Okinawa but felt not worth it, Hokkaido sounds beautiful but would need winter gear and everything is far apart. I hear good things about Fukuoka, Kagoshima. Will be relying on public transit.

    (5) Head to Shibuya and remain in one hotel for the rest of the stay. Make day trips here and there.

    I’m always looking for feedback or advice on the sites we visit – I’ve been saving posts about “hidden” passageways, alternative sites, etc. So if anyone has anything to suggest for this, greatly appreciated.

    However, I have five questions in particular I was hoping to get some opinions on:

    ***Question 1:*** Has anyone went from Downtown Kyoto to Universal Studios in Osaka and back in one day? It seems with shinkansen it might take around 1.25 hours, so I’d expect maybe budget 2? If it’s reasonable to leave for when they open from Kyoto instead of a hotel in Osaka, that might make more sense. Maybe do one night in a ryokan.

    ***Question 2:*** We plan to ship our luggage from Kyoto/Osaka to Shibuya on either point (3) or (4). I understand we can ship it to a general spot or certain hotels and it takes about 2 days. Does this seem reasonable? We were thinking of doing an overnight trip somewhere else while our luggage gets shipped. I believe it can be sent in advance.

    ***Question 3:*** Where would you go for a one-to-two-night trip that’s not Tokyo/Osaka/Kyoto?

    ***Question 4:*** I see mixed messages on staying in one hotel for a long time. Once in Shibuya, likely plan was to stay in one hotel so I don’t have to keep shipping/travelling with luggage. What’s your opinion on this? Different hotel, swap towns, stay at home base?

    ***Question 5:*** What attractions, events, or POIs did you find better with a friend? Something you didn’t mind doing solo? Anything that requires two or more people you’d recommend? I understand some things with reservations require two or more. I didn’t track these at first because our original plan was a pair the full duration.

    I realize this is a long one, I apologize – these questions have been boiling for a while. We’re both big fans of anime/manga, love experiencing the food and culture, visiting shrines/temples, outdoors and hiking, karaoke and the overall music scene, and unique experiences (like kimono shoots and samurai experiences). We wouldn’t consider ourselves Instagrammers that need to hit the most popular photo spots.

    I greatly appreciate any and all feedback/opinions.

27. Got interviewed by narita airport police and they gave me a lost property report number. They mentioned I can put it in their website to check the progress. Anyone know what website they mean?

28. 12 night stay starting and ending in tokyo in May. . How would you divide up days between there, Osaka and Kyoto.

    Initial plan is 3 Tokyo (Ginza), 3 Kyoto, 3 Osaka, 3 Tokyo (shibuya or shinjuku)

    Main activities for the trip are 1-2 baseball games in Tokyo, sumo tournament (tokyo), eat lots of curry

    In osaka one day would be a day trip to Himeji/Kobe. See Dotonbori and try local cuisine.

    kyoto main focus visiting shrines and change of pace from big cities.

29. Exhausted and my shin splints are bad right now. Best way to relax this evening in Kyoto? Any suggestions

30. Guys, is Kamikochi – Karasawa Cirque still worth a visit for autumn leaves at the end of Oct?

31. When out all day with the family in say Tokyo or Kyoto, where is a good place to refill water bottles?

    Edit: Just found this. Could be handy… https://www.mymizu.co/home-en

32. Kinda stupid, but I can’t find the email address for Dormy Inn Tokyo Hatchobori Hot Spring.

    tokyohatchobori@dormy-hotels.com

    doesn’t seem to work. Is the best way through instagram or something on dormy-inn’s website?