Hi everyone! I have been following the sub for a while and actually used some of the advice on other posts to build my own itinerary, now here I am sharing it with you cause I'd love your comments and any other important things I might be missing.
First some relevant context, I am traveling with my wife and my 8 year old son, this is my son's first big international trip (we live in Mexico), he's been to the US several times but we only stay for a few days, and normally the biggest activity we have is visit some park like Disney or Universal. Therefore, this will be the first time he will spend so much time away, on a trip that requires a lot of walking and a lot of energy every day, so I had to take this into account when building the plan.
Other important note is, since my kid is going, the only time we can go because of his school is during July, I know and have read a lot here that July and August is the worst time to visit Japan but what can you do ¯\_(ツ)_/¯, we've prepared ourselves with a list of important things to consider to avoid the worst moments of heat, plus will stay hydrated (lot's of Pocari and water) and we will spend time indoors when we feel too much heat.
All that being said, here's the plan:
Day 1 – Tokyo
On this day we'll be dead from traveling, so planning to rest as much as possible, we are also thinking about buying some Airism tshirts at Uniqlo as I've read they're good for the heat and humidity, but would love your thoughts.
- Arrive in Narita around 2PM after a 10 hour flight from LAX
- Go to the hotel (Staying near Tokyo Station)
- Eat some Ramen (would love recommendations in the area!) and go to sleep
Day 2 – Tokyo
Asakusa, Ueno Park and Akihabara
- Start the day in Nakamise-dori (I read most things open around 9 to 10 AM, so was not planning on arriving too early but would love to hear your recommendations).
- Sensō-ji
- Visit Donki in Asakusa for random stuff shopping
- Go to Ueno Park and just wander around
- Around 7PM go to Akihabara Electric Town
- Dinner (sushi recommendations are welcome!) and return to hotel
Day 3 – Tokyo
TeamLab Planets, Takeshita-dori, Yoyogi. The idea on this day is take it easy, just wander and visit cool and beautiful places, would love your recommendations of places in the areas we'll be at.
- Start the day at TeamLab Planets (we have tickets for 9.30AM)
- Go to Takeshita-dori and just wander (Please share recommendations for where to eat!)
- Yoyogi Park, Meiji Jingu, random wandering
- Return to Hotel, want to return early-ish because next day is Disney and we know we have to arrive early
Day 4 – Tokyo
- DisneySea (already have tickets)
Day 5 – Tokyo
Mainly Shibuya, this and Akihabara are what have me the most excited, I'm a big Nintendo and Anime fan so would love any neat recommendations for cool stuff!
- Start the day in Akasaka (the wife and I are big HP fans) we have a reservation at 10AM at the Harry Potter Cafe
- Shibuya (Scramble crossing, Nintendo Store, Pokemon Center, Mugiwara Store) any recommendations of cool places are welcome
- We have a reservation at Shibuya Sky at 8.30PM, spend some time there and go to sleep
Day 6 – Kyoto
We leave for Kyoto in the 9AM Shinkansen, already have tickets, since we're only spending 2 days in Kyoto I though dividing the visit in West/East would make sense, what are your thoughts?
- Arrive in Hotel around 11.30AM to 12PM (we'll be staying 4 blocks away from Nishiki Market)
- Rush to Arashiyama Monkey Park (I know it closes at 4PM and might be a stretch because of the hike, but my kid is sort of looking forward to this cause he loves animals, what do you guys think?)
- Depending on what happens with the Monkey adventure, I wanted to go to Kinkaku-ji but I know it closes at 5PM so might not have enough time if we do the Monkeys thing
- As this day is sort of open, wanted to hear your thoughts and recommendations on what cool things we could do on this day or even where to eat
Day 7 – Kyoto
Eastern Kyoto
- Start the day early (6AM) at Fushimi Inari, I want to go all the way up but will also depend on the kid's mood
- Wander around Gion, Sannenzaka, Ninzaka
- Nishiki Market (I've read many things close at 4PM so maybe would do this before Gion)
- We don't have anything planned for the next morning cause we're leaving for Osaka at noon, so we're open to staying out late so would love your recommendations on what to do late in Kyoto (kid friendly please!)
- Return to hotel
Day 8 – Osaka
We leave for Osaka in the 12PM Shinkansen, already have tickets, I know this was a stretch for a 13 minute ride but YOLO :V
- Arrive in Hotel around 12.30PM to 1PM (We're staying in Namba)
- I want to take my kid to Round One Stadium near Dotonbori, heard it's pretty cool
- Dotonbori
- I need to know where is the best Takoyaki man can get on this area
- Return to hotel
Day 9 – Osaka
Nara
- Todai-ji
- Nara Deer Park
- Mostly wander around, no big ideas here so would also love your comments on what else we could do to fill the day, however we want to return early-ish to the hotel cause next day we're going to USJ
Day 10 – Osaka
- USJ (already have tickets)
Day 11 – Day 16 – South Korea
Day 17 – Narita
We're returning to Japan one day before our return flight, I wanted to stay near the airport just for my own peace of mind so nothing planned here, any recommendations are welcome
- Arrive in Narita around 1PM
- Go to hotel and check-in around 2 to 3PM (We're staying at the International Garden Hotel Narita)
- Just exist, so any recommendations in the area are welcome. What good food can you get around here?
Day 18 – Return home
So that's it, I'm looking for great local places to eat, I know Tabelog can be a great guide but would love to hear from you, we're in for all types of food, not allergic to anything, also if there is a good Wagyu place for reasonable price we can visit in any of the areas in the plan I'd appreciate your recommendations. Thanks a lot if you read all the way through here!
by gerave32