Hi,
I’ll be traveling to Japan from the end of May until mid-June (21 days) together with my boyfriend. We’ve never been to Japan, and I want to make the most out of our trip without overwhelming or undoable planning. Our flights and hotels are booked, so we can’t make any changes in that regard, but perhaps someone can check if we have days with too much or too little planned. Suggestions for must-visit locations are welcome.
Sadly, I’m not the most physically active person, and I can walk a maximum of 10km on a good day. So, I hope to keep most days a bit below that to save my poor feet and back. We are not really night people, so after dinner, we will return to our hotel to recharge for the next day, and if we still feel up for it, we might go out but I didn’t put it in the planning.
Our planning in Osaka seems a bit empty on days 15 – 17 should we combine more in a day and add an extra day trip to the planning?
Note: The place names are from Google, and I hope they are correct.
**May 21st – June 11th**
**Tue 21st Day 1 (Tokyo for 7 days)**
* Arrive at Narita airport at 8:30 (Tokyo time).
* Complete airport procedures (Pasmo/Suica card, Wi-Fi setup, etc.).
* Travel to our hotel in Asakusa and drop off our suitcases (check-in at 15:00).
* Explore nearby attractions such as Nakamise-dori Street, Senso-ji, and Don Quijote.
* Have dinner near the hotel
**Wed 22nd Day 2 (Ueno park and Akihabara)**
* Visit Tokyo National Museum and Ueno Park.
* Explore Kanda Shrine.
* Head to Akihabara Electric Town for shopping (Hard Off, Hobby Off, Mandarake Complex, Super Potato, etc.).
* Return to the hotel for dinner
**Thu 23rd Day 3 (Shibuya)**
* Visit Meiji Jingu Shrine.
* Explore Shibuya, including Shibuya Crossing and Nintendo Tokyo.
* Enjoy dinner in Shibuya
**Fri 24th Day 4 (workshop and Shinjuku)**
* Attend a sample food workshop in Toshima City (30min – 1hour long)
* Explore Shinjuku area, including Golden Gai and Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden.
* Have dinner in Shinjuku.
**Sat 25th Day 5 (only if we can get Ghibli museum tickets)**
* Visit Ghibli museum (if we can get the tickets)
* Lunch at a Cat cafe (temari no ouchi)
* Visit some stores near the cat cafe (mode off, hard off etc…)
* Visit another hard-off on the way bay near Koenji station (dinner somewhere)
* Return to the hotel
**Sun 26th Day 6 (Ginza)**
* Explore Ginza for shopping and sightseeing.
* Visit DiverCity for entertainment.
* Stroll through Kokyo Gaien National Garden.
* Enjoy dinner in Ginza.
**Mon 27th** **Day 7 (Travel to Hakone)**
* Visit the post office if needed to drop off parcel to send home
* Travel to Hakone for a day trip.
* Explore Hakone attractions.
* Have dinner at the hotel in Hakone
**Tue 28th** **Day 8 (Travel to Kyoto)**
* Travel to Kyoto.
* Drop off suitcases at the hotel.
* Visit Kiyomizu-dera Temple. (dinner somewhere) Return to the hotel
**Wed 29th Day 9 (Fushimi inari)**
* Visit Fushimi Inari Shrine early in the morning.
* Explore Nishiki Market. Dinner near hotel
**Thu 30th** **Day 10 (Bamboo forest and Monkey park)**
* Visit Arashiyama Bamboo Forest early in the morning.
* Explore Arashiyama Monkey Park.
* Visit Hard Off Katsura Store on the way back with the bus Dinner near hotel
**Fri 31st** **Day 11 (shopping and Gion)**
* Visit Pokemon Center Kyoto (5 min walk from our hotel)
* Rent a kimono in Gion
* Visit Ichiho, Yasaka-jinja shrine, Maruyama park (is this all do-able while wearing a kimono and Zori sandals?)
* Bring back the kimono (Dinner somewhere)
* Return to the hotel
**Sat 1st Day 12 (Kyoto > Nara > Osaka)**
* Travel to Nara in the morning
* Visit Kofuku-ji, Todai-ji, Tamukeyama Hachimangu Shrine
* Walk through Nara park
* Visit Kasuga Taisha
* Have dinner in Nara
* Travel to Osaka and check into the apartment.
**Sun 2nd** **Day 13 (Osaka)**
* Explore Osaka Castle.
* Visit Kuromon Ichiba Market.
* Explore Dotonbori and Shinsaibashisuji.
* Have dinner somewhere near Dotonbori/Shinsaibashisuji
**Mon 3rd** **Day 14 (Osaka – Universal Studios)**
Spend the day at Universal Studios Japan.
**Tue 4th** **Day 15 (Osaka – Shinsekai market)**
* Visit Shinsekai Market.
* Explore Shitennoji Temple.
**Wed 5th** **Day 16 (Osaka – Den Den Town)**
* Explore Den Den Town.
* Visit Super Potato.
**Thu 6th** **Day 17 (Osaka – Minoh)**
* Visit the post office if needed to send a parcel home
* Travel to Minoh for the day.
**Fri 7th Day 18 (Osaka > Himeji > Hiroshima)**
* Travel to Himeji and visit Himeji Castle.
* Take the Mount Shosha Ropeway.
* Visit a Hard Off on the way back.
* Travel to Hiroshima and check into the hotel.
* Dinner near the hotel
**Sat 8th** **Day 19 (Miyajima)**
Visit Miyajima Island and explore its attractions.
**Sun 9th** **Day 20 (Hiroshima)**
* Visit the Atomic Bomb Dome.
* Explore Hiroshima Castle, Shukkeien Garden, and downtown Hiroshima.
* Have dinner in Hiroshima.
**Mon 10th** **Day 21 (Hiroshima to Osaka)**
* Return to Osaka.
* Explore the southern part of Osaka.
* Have dinner in the hotel (hotel is near Kansai airport)
**Tue 11th** **Day 22 (Departure from Osaka):**
Departure from Kansai Airport at 10:00 Japan time.
by ereinu