Hi everyone,
I'm planning a 13-day trip to Japan (first time in Japan!) with my wife and wanted to get some feedback on our itinerary.
Here's the outline of where I'll be spending each day:
18-sep: Kyoto
• Arrival at Kansai International Airport (KIX) morning.
• Transfer to hotel in Kyoto.
• Explore Gion and Yasaka Shrine.
19-sep: Kyoto
• Visit Fushimi Inari Taisha.
• Visit Kiyomizu-dera.
• Explore Gion
20-sep: Kyoto
• Visit Kinkaku-ji.
• Explore Ryoan-ji.
• Explore Arashiyama Bamboo Forest and Tenryu-ji.
21-sep: Day trip to Nara/Osaka
• Travel to Nara.
• Visit Nara Park
• Explore Shin-sekai, DenDen Town, and Namba in Osaka.
• Dinner in Dotonbori.
• Return to Kyoto.
22-sep: Day trip to Himeji/Kobe
• Travel to Himeji.
• Visit Himeji Castle.
• Explore Koko-en Garden and have lunch in Himeji.
• Stop in Kobe on the way back.
• Visit Herb Garden, Port Tower, and Harbor District.
• Kobe beef dinner.
• Return to Kyoto.
23-sep: Hiroshima
• Travel to Hiroshima.
• Lunch in Hiroshima.
• Visit Peace Memorial Park and Atomic Bomb Museum.
• Dinner in Hiroshima.
24-sep: Miyajima
• Travel by ferry to Miyajima.
• Visit Itsukushima Shrine.
• Explore the island.
• Travel to Kanazawa.
• Dinner in Kanazawa.
25-sep: Kanazawa
• Visit Kenroku-en.
• Visit Omicho Market.
• Explore Higashi Chaya District.
• Dinner in Kanazawa.
26-sep: Takayama
• Travel to Takayama.
• Explore the town.
• Dinner in Takayama.
27-sep: Tokyo
• Travel to Tokyo from Takayama.
28-sep: Tokyo
29-sep: Tokyo
30-sep: Tokyo
01-oct: Tokyo
02-oct: Departure
• Flight back home from Haneda International Airport (HND) at 5am.
Does this itinerary seem manageable? Are there any changes or additions you would recommend? I might need to revisit what we will be doing at each stop, but I wanted to have a clear idea if the itinerary makes sense.
One of my concerns is the travel from Hiroshima to Kanazawa, it seems too much… Any recommendation? In case we add a stop before getting to Kanazawa.
Do you think it would be wise to remove one day from Tokyo and include it somewhere else?
Also, I have checked with the JR Pass Calculator if it is worth it for us, and according to the website, it comes pretty close to be worth it with the 7 days. Am I missing something? I got a total cost of 61,500 yen without any pass. With the JR West All Area Pass comes to 45,000 yen compared to the 50,000 yen of the JR Pass.
Thanks in advance for your help!
by goxka