Two Week Itinerary in Late November/Early December – West to East – Group of 4

12 comments

1. Looks good but I might suggest you stay in Kyoto rather than Osaka, it’s not the most exciting city and Kyoto is far lovelier. I would add a day in Hiroshima because you might want to soak up the jetlag there (not sure where you’re coming from). Hakone is great but quite touristy. Choose your ryokan carefully! Maybe add in some onsen time?

2. For Kyoto your plan sounds a bit unusual 1- There are 17 UNESCO world heritage sites in Kyoto including the picturesque Golden Pavillion, Silver Pavillion, Kiyomizu Temple, The Ryoanji Zen garden etc. your plan seems to skip all those spots. 2- Philosopher’s path is popular mostly during the cherry blossom and it is not so special during the Fall leaves. However, the Ninnaji Temple which is not far from one end of Philosopher’s path is a good Autumn spot and the other end will take you to Silver Palace. So the area OK, but the fall scenery by the path is so so. 3- Tofukuji Temple near the Inari Shrine is a popular fall leaves spot, don’t skip it. 4- You may also want to have some cultural experiences in Kyoto or rest of Japan. 5- You may want to stay at an onsen ryokan on Miyajima Island.

3. In my personal opinion, I would suggest giving Hiroshima an extra day if possible.

   My group of 4 spent 1.5 days there with the first half day at the memorials and museum then the full day at Miyajima. Besides Hondori, which thankfully was just steps away from our air bnb, we didnt get a chance to see anything else which was such a shame.

   We went in December and the city was still absolutely gorgeous with greenery and lovely weather. I know the city does get a lot of love from tourists but I still dont think its enough love for just how wonderful it is.

   If at ALL possible add another day or half day to Hiroshima and enjoy the city and area.

4. 1. Both itineraries look OK-ish. Nijigen no Mori + Kobe in late November is essentially Nijigen no Mori plus dinner in Kobe, unless you visit Kobe on weekend or public holiday (when it may make sense to go up Mt. Maya Ropeway). Note that with itinerary #2, if days 7 or 8 fall on weekend, a good ryokan in Kanazawa can send you back $500 per person per night.
   2. I would probably add a day for Himeji/Kobe in Kansai. Otherwise, it really depends on your activities as you can spend a month in either Kanto or Kansai and not run out of things to see and do.
   3. For #2, I would look into Hokuriku Area Pass. For #1, Kansai-Hiroshima Area Pass might make sense, especially if you add a day for Himeji. Nationwide passes would not make sense for those itineraries.
   4. Note that since there are no direct flights to Hiroshima (and there weren’t any from places other than China, Hong Kong or Taiwan even before pandemic), you will have to go through customs at Haneda or Narita. With regard to SIM data cards: if you have an e-SIM capable phone, use that options; otherwise Mobal (with delivery at home) or hotel delivery (if you choose that options) are probably most sensible options right now.

5. 1&3) I just wanted to pop in saying that I did something similar to your option 1 in 2019 and I loved it! I had a JR pass and everything went smoothly. I would definitely recommend adding another day onto Hiroshima if possible. From Hiroshima (4 days) I went to Osaka (4 days) then to Kyoto (2 days). After Kyoto I went straight to Tokyo for a week. The trip went fine train wise, even having it to get tickets for the bullet trains only is worth it IMO.

   5) I personally prefer Airbnb’s over hotels. I liked meeting the hosts etc

6. Omg! Can I please go with you? Pleeeasseeee! Pretty please with sugar on top? This sounds unbelievable! What an amazing trip. I hate being poor. Have an amazing time!!

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8. 1. Both options are ok if you ask me.
   2. Hiroshima/Miyajima is doable in a single day, but can be a bit more relax done in two days. For example if you have a full day for Miyajima, you can hike Mount Misen, see the torii both at high and low tide. Let’s say that both options are totally valid.
   3. You only want to calculate long distances to see if it’s worth getting the pass and all the long distances you would do require to take JR. From memory, option 1 should not need it, option 2 if anything you should look for the Hokuriku Arch Pass, so calculate the cost of doing Kyoto-Kanazawa-Nagano-Tokyo and compare. You find the price of each let by searching on Google maps or on websites like hyperdia.
   4. You will not pass custom in Hiroshima, but in whatever airport where you enter Japan. Getting out of the airport in Hiroshima should be super fast. Also you might not find sim cards as easily in a regional airport, so might be better to buy one before going. Realistically, you are in Hiroshima before 11pm, so just get one of the hotel close to the station, just check their check-in time.
   5. Airbnb can be more affordable for a group of 4, but they have to be in a good location to make sense to me. I had a colleague who went to Japan and chose cheaper Airbnb, but they were outside of the city, so add extra commute time to do anything. If well located, why not. Ryokan it depend on what you want, I’ve been to ryokan that were cheaper than business hotels and to some that were more of a splurge as they included a kaiseki meal. Realistically, you could decide to do all your trip in ryokan if you want. One other option you can have for Kyoto is renting a kyomachiya, that are the traditional Kyoto houses.

9. Option 1:
   Hakone is a one day thing. You could use that extra day in Osaka or Hiroshima. But seeing the way Japan has put restrictions, I’m almost definitely sure Hiroshima won’t serve as a port for international entry this year.

   Option 2:
   Seems more feasible imo.

   However in both options, you could do a lot more in Kyoto. Maybe take a day off of Tokyo

10. Is this your first trip to Japan? If so I’d skip Kanazawa completely and just spend the extra days in Kyoto. Kanazawa is nice but you have so much to do in and around Kyoto.

    I always recommend going to Uji on a day trip to see Byodo-in plus the tea shops in front of the temple. It can be done on the same day you go to Inari (which really doesn’t need a whole day IMO)

    Nagano is a bit out of the way for an onsen trip, is there something in particular that makes you want to go there in particular other than monkeys? If you’re just looking for an onsen ryokan Hakone works well and is an easy transfer on the Tokaido Shinkansen on the way to Tokyo

11. I stayed in 7 different airbnb apartments across Japan as a solo traveler in 2016. Only one of them would have been large enough for 4 people. Ryokan for 4 will be quite expensive vs. hotel; or just get 2 airbnbs.

    Connecting in Haneda to a Hiroshima flight looks fine, but you may be rushed to see Hiroshima and Miyajima in one day. Unless you have specific sites in Osaka perhaps going to Kyoto direct will be better. You could stop to see Himeji castle on the way if that is of interest. Like others here I’d recommend more days in Kyoto, and a day trip to Nara is just as easy as from Osaka.

    Flying into Hiroshima and train back means a 7-day JR pass will make sense.

12. >Planning a rough draft of our 2 week trip to Japan in late November early December 2022/2023

    Just to start – not that it matters much – but is this a “you’re either going in 2022 or 2023” type thing or are you saying you may be going in late November into December OR early December into January 2023? Or was it just a typo full stop?

    Just scrolling through quickly and I’m wanting to understand how you’ve decided the accommodation you’re staying in without knowing where specifically knowing where you’re going to be – for example you’ve put “Toyko – Airbnb” but you’ve not really said where in Tokyo and you might find that where you want to be is cheaper/easier to go for a hotel vs. an Airbnb. You’ve put a Ryokan in option 2 for Kanazawa, but is this because you specifically know you want to stay in a Ryokan there or are you just looking to make sure you get into a Ryokan at some point and that seems best fit? Just would be good to know to be able to make recommendations accordingly.

    ​

    1. They both look feasible IMO but is this your first time visiting japan? Without really knowing much about you, it’s hard to say which is a better option for you, I can only say what’s fun *for me* (which may not translate to you. If it’s your first time in Japan, I’d personally suggest option 1 as the “better” option IMO” but even that may have you missing out due to jetlag (as I have no idea where you’re flying in from). I think Miyajima could easily be a full day trip in and of itself (and if you’re tired, that’s going to make it even more of a challenge).
    2. Again, without knowing you and your group’s interests, it’s really hard to say. For example – I personally spent more time in Kyoto than Osaka and am a big advocate of staying in one or the other depending on what experience you’re looking for as I am a person that would rather have 1 base camp and be moving my stuff around as little as possible. Others enjoy moving around more so that they have less time to go to get home when they need to. And without knowing your hobbies and interests it’s hard to say which places you may end up wanting to spend more time in as you could easily add or remove time from any of those places accordingly. For me, I only stayed 2 nights in Hiroshima and it didn’t feel long enough for how much I could’ve explored around the areas and the day trips I could’ve taken – as an example – but may be fine for you.
    3. We worked out that the JR pass was definitely worth i for us the last 2 times I went (admittedly a good few years back now) based solely on the longer distance trips we were doing (like Tokyo –> Kyoto type length) and there was an added bonus of also being able to use it for our day trips. It made life easier/more worthwhile (outside of actually picking it up which was a big of a pain at the time), but pricing may have changed so I can’t really comment other than to suggest you look at [Hyperdia](https://www.hyperdia.com/) to get a rough idea of how much the longer distances would cost individually (remember to include return trips as needed) and see what it works out to compared to the current price of the JR pass.
    4. Just to check – you are flying straight into hiroshima and not doing any type of transfer from Tokyo or or Osaka, correct? Can’t really comment on the reality of getting out of the airport in that amount of time as I’ve never been to Hiroshima airport, but RE the checking in concern, contact the hotel. There may be no issue checking in late if you let them know of this in advance. Would suggest looking at check-in times on the hotel’s website and reaching out to them directly if there’s any concern as you would regardless of where you’re travelling.
    5. Your biggest challenge may be finding an Airbnb (that’s reasonably priced) that can fit 4 adults and all your baggage. People grossly underestimate how much room suitcases can take up in tiny living spaces. Definitely something that needs to be taken into consideration (even having a spot like under beds, etc. to store bags is useful). The advantage of a hotel is that everybody can get a room at the same hotel and know that they have their own space (although even hotel rooms can be quite small so – again — please consider how much baggage each room may have and plan accordingly). From my last experience, hotels actually ended up working out cheaper (or the same price) for an Airbnb of the same size. We found we never really used the small kitchen spaces in the Airbnbs on our first trip anyways and the accommodations were really just a place to lay our heads at the end of the day, so the benefits of the hotel (with things like early/late check-in/out, baggage storage for after check-out) allowed us a bit more flexibility for usually around the same price anyways.