Please review my itinerary! I'm open to your recommendations/suggestions/critiques.
Overview
- Day 1: Arrival
- Day 2-3: Nikko
- Day 4-6: Tokyo
- Day 7: Tsumago
- Day 9: Magome
- Day 10: Gero Onsen
- Day 10-13: Takayama
- Day 14-17 Kanazawa
- Day 18-24: Kyoto
- Day 25: Kinosaki Onsen
- Day 26-33: Osaka
- Day 34: Koyasan
- Day 35-37: Nara
- Day 38: Okayama
- Day 39-42: Hiroshima/Miyajima
- Day 43-60: Tokyo
About me:
I typically enjoy slow travel… really taking my time to absorb and appreciate what's in front of me. What I'm presenting as my tentative itinerary is pretty fast-paced from what I'm accustomed to. I generally favor places that are quieter, involve contemplation and are meditative and I realize that that might not always be the case especially in many parts of Japan (especially around autumn foliage viewing). Because I'm spending a lot of time in the cities I'm visiting (relatively speaking), I find that this will give me the flexibility to do what I want whenever I want depending on my mood or how I'm feeling. I think I have a pretty good mix of Nature strewn in with urban exploration but in case it appears like I'm missing something like a gorgeous vista, hiking trail or whatever have you, I'm all ears! I can comfortably walk 25-30 miles in a day no problem,, but obviously I'll need a holiday from my holiday so some days might be just doing laundry, browsing reddit, whatever.
The Plan:
October 29: Arrival to Tokyo. No plans except sleep.
October 30-31: 1.5 Days in Nikko. My priorities are visiting the temple complexes and walking the Senjougahara grassy plain. Depending on how crowded it will be (Wed/Thurs so maybe not as bad as the weekend during autumn foliage) I'd also like to hike around Lake Chuzenji if there are trails or ride one of the boats across. I'd also like to hike to Yumoto onsen and maybe see the waterfalls if there's time.
November 1-3: 2.5 Days in Tokyo. Will be staying in the Asakusa area to explore the East side of the city. On one of these evenings, I'd like to visit hoppy street, see sensoji temple, walk around Tokyo skytree/Sumida river, and hang at a batting cage. One day might be dedicated to hanging in Ginza–Perhaps get one of those head massages, visit Itoya to check out fountain pens and end at a jazz cafe or something like that. I'd love to make a reservation at the famous tempura place, Kondo, but a little hesitant as it's incredibly expensive for what it is. I'm not big on shopping and don't really care for luxury brands, but I think window shopping and people watching here would be neat…any other recommendations for this area? Half day in Shibamata (retro/showa era kind of neighborhood) and ending in Akihabara where I'll probably spend a few hours playing video games and just scoping out the Otaku scene for more people watching. Also plan to make a few ramen pilgrimages — Menya Itto and Tomita.. Toybox if there's time.
November 4: 1 Evening in Magome. Will be a long travel day today. Could decide whether Nagoya has anything worth seeing for a few hours before arriving in Tsumago where I'd explore the small town and then gaze at the starry skies.
November 5: 1 Evening in Tsumago. Hike to and explore the small town of Tsumago. I realize that there is little to do in both these towns, but I'll spend my free time writing in my journal, reading or soaking in onsen if there are any available with my accommodations.
November 6: 1 Evening in Gero Onsen – Relax. Will have to find a Ryokan that caters to solo travelers. Might also consider visiting the Gassho village today or the following morning before heading to Takayama. I believe there's a onsen pass which will allow me to hop from one onsen to the next from participating locations. Any recommendations on a ryokan? I think it'd e partial to onsen outdoors (rotenboro?) or any that are surrounded by nature..overlooking mountains or bodies of water.. that sort of thing.
November 7-10: 4 days in Takayama – It'll be fun to just walk around and explore, see what I find. It's a small enough town where I can easily hit up the tourist attractions. Still debating on whether Shirakawago is worth it. Will eat lots of Hida beef. Maybe there's some hiking around the village. Might also consider renting a bicycle or getting drunk by the river. Looks like a place where there could be local craftsmen — love seeing old methods and traditions still being practiced today. Any fun things I'm missing out on outside of the normal tourist attractions?
November 11-14: 4 days in Kanazawa – Probably going to eat seafood for every meal. Lots of sushi and kaisendons. Walk around garden. Check out samurai district. Kaitenzushi, fish markets, omakase meals. Have I already mentioned all of the sushi/seafood I'll be eating? I haven't tried nodoguru before which this area is known for. I wonder if there are other seafoods I definitely need to try?
November 15-21: 7 days in Kyoto – I get that temple fatigue is a thing yet, I've still planned out a ton of places to see here. If I ever start to feel like I'm getting burned out or bored, I can always rent a bicycle to spend a day without strict plans, go to Uji on a day trip, or scope out the night life in nearby Osaka. I absolutely love night walks so I think Kyoto will be perfect for this like saga torimoto in Arashiyama or Gion. I've prioritized the places I want to see/explore in the following list and I hope I've grouped them up appropriately.
- Yoshiminedera & Kokodera Moss temple – I love that these are both somewhat off of the typical tourist trail. I may consider exploring these on a weekend as I'm assuming those are the most crowded days in Kyoto and would like nothing more than to avoid bumping shoulders with everyone.
- Arashiyama – Otagi>Adashino>Jojakko>Daikakuji>…Gioji/Daihikaku? Could easily spend an entire day here. Loads of temples listed here (I'm aware that I don't have Tenryuji listed), and I'll probably have to skip a few. I believe Otagi opens at 8am so i can get started somewhat early. May consider renting a bicycle if I decide to stay in the north part of the area–good idea? Other parts of Arashiyama that look interesting to me include Daihikaku Senkoji and the Okocho Sansho Villa. I'll also make sure to check out the bridge as well as the kimono forest at night. Daikakuji has its own bamboo forest so I'll probably skip that more famous one. Definitely skipping the monkey park. With so much to do here, I'm very likely to return.
- Komyo-in>tofukuji>sanjusangendo>fushimi inari – Fushimi Inari right before golden hour. I'd like to climb down from the top at nighttime so I can see it in different lighting. I'll probably be carrying an umbrella for self defense in case a feral pig attacks me.
- kurumadera>kifune>ginkakuji>enkoji – As it stands, I'll attempt to catch sunset at enkoji.. From what I'm reading, the onsen at kuruma has been closed as a result of Covid which is a real shame. If it happens to open back up by the time I'm there, I'll end the day in Kifune then on to Kuruma instead so i can soak in the onsen in the evening.
- kiyomizadera>kodaiji>kennin-ji>chion-in – will start at kiyomizadera at 6am
- eikando>Nanzenji>honen-in
- Ryoanji>ninnaji>kinkakuji>Daitokuji Temple
November 22: Evening in Kinosaki Onsen – Relax. Will have to find a Ryokan that caters to solo travelers.
November 23-29: 7 days in Osaka. I'll likely return to Kyoto on days where I feel like it. Could also return to check out some of the nighttime Temple illuminations–which ones are the best? I'll definitely be taking a day trip to Himeji for the castle + attempt that one hike to that lonely mountain side temple that was included in the film, The Last Samurai. A trip to Arima Onsen is also a possibility with also a strong change to take a long day trip to visit Okame Spring & Soni Highlands. Also going to eat a ton and maybe try to experience some night life.
November 30: Evening in Koyasan – I'll be hiking to Koyasan using the Choishi Michi Pilgrimage Trail. Will visit Okunoin for sure. Still deciding on whether I want to stay in one of the buddist temples. Anybody have insight into whether that's worth it?
December 1-3: 3 days in Nara – Yamanobe-no-michi Trail, Hike Mount Wakakusa. Typical Nara temples.
December 4-5: 2 days in Okayama – Korakuen. Kibi Plain bicycle ride (are there any fruit farms along this route? I'd love to pick up some strawberries and munch on them while riding)
December 6-9: 4 days in Hiroshima/Miyajima – The usual stuff? Purely coincidental that I'd be here on the day which will live in infamy.
December 10-27: Long travel day + 16.5 days in Tokyo – I could spend a lifetime here and still have not see or done everything. I'm just going to list out things I'll definitely do, things that I think might be interesting as well as things I'll definitely make the attempt to see/do provided there's time for it. I hate that the Kyoto portion of my trip seems like the kind of thing where I'm checking sites off of a list so for this portion I'll probably just give myself a ton of options which I can choose from depending on how my mood is when i wake up.
- Before returning to Tokyo, I may stop by Hanatorou in Arashiyama. I'll have to keep tabs on the dates. I believe I've read somewhere before that the lights are tested for the event the evening before the actual start date of the festival, so arriving then could also be a possibility.
- Day trip to Enoshima/Kamakura
- Day trip to Yokohama. Curious to try Japanese style Chinese food. Hanging out next to the water in the evening looks glorious.
- An evening in Kawaguchiko (I'll leave Tokyo on the morning of a day where the clouds may not obstruct the view)
- Visit parks for autumn viewing. I realize that peak foliage will have passed in Tokyo by the time i arrive, but I think trees whose leaves have mostly fallen are beautiful nonetheless.
- Teamlabs Borderless or Planets – still not sold on the idea of visiting either one simply because of the congestion and the IG crowds. I think there's a lightup in Enoshima anyway, yeah?
- Shibuya Sky
- Shimokitazawa/Koenji live scenes – really just want to chill and catch some live music
- See a cabaret show. Tantra or something like it.
- Odaiba for all of the VR stuff
- Visit Life grocery store. I like visiting grocery stores in other countries. Any others worth checking out?
^^I'll actually stop listing stuff to see/do in Tokyo as it's clear to me that the list will be incredibly long and tedious to read through. Still, I'm open to hearing things you really loved about the city or things you wish you could have done or skipped.
Thank you advance!
by Wanderingjes