Hey everyone. I would like some advice on my itinerary. I’m worried I’ve packed some days too full, especially in Kyoto. I’ll be traveling with my partner, and the trip is a college graduation gift from my dad. I also want to hear if anything I’m doing on the trip is overhyped, or if there are any glaring omissions.
Some context is that first, I love theme parks. You’ll notice a lot of days devoted to Disney, that’s because Disney theme parks are my favorite places to visit. While I love Japanese culture, I don’t think it would be my dream trip if Disney wasn’t there, to put it in perspective.
Second, my girlfriend has a similar love but to Studio Ghibli. This is why we are going out of our way to stay near Ghibli Park. Also we’ll be going in September if that matters.
Itinerary
First day: Arrive in Tokyo and do nothing planned. We’ll be staying in Akasaka as I’ve heard it’s got good access to trains. Maybe check out the Imperial grounds if staying close by and depending on when we land. I do want to walk over there at some point.
Second Day: Go to Meiji Jingu, then spend the day in Shibuya
Third Day: Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden and then explore Shinjuku
Fourth Day: Check out Tsukiji Market. I’m going to try and get lunch reservations at Kirby Cafe (Kirby is my favorite gaming franchise). Then we’ll be going to Teamlab Borderless unless it’s overhyped, and walking around that area to check out Tokyo Tower from the ground.
Fifth Day: We’ll be going to the Akihabara area, then Senso-ji, and spending the rest of the day in Asakusa.
Sixth Day: We’ll be making the journey to a remote Ryokan Onsen hotel near Ghibli Park.
Seventh Day: Ghibli Park
Eighth Day: Leave for Kyoto in the morning. Staying in the Higashiyama area and checking out Fushimi Inari Taisha and Kiyomizu-dera this day.
Ninth day: Check out Kinkaku-ji, Higashiyama Jisho-ji, and Nijo Castle.
Tenth Day: Head to Osaka and stay in the Namba area. Check out Osaka Aquarium and Osaka Castle.
Eleventh Day: Universal Japan
Twelfth Day to end of trip: We will be heading back to Tokyo to go to Disney for a few days. I’m thinking either 2.5 (counting this Twelfth travel day as the .5) or 3.5 days in total.
And that’s it! Very curious to hear what you all think. Thank you so much for reading, this subreddit has been immensely helpful in my research.
by BjornoPizza