Hi! My husband and I (30s) are stoked to go to Japan this fall (Oct-Nov) for our honeymoon. We've both been to Tokyo twice as young children with our respective families, but we were very young & it's been so long that we can't remember much, so we're good with going to a few more "touristy" spots. We're aiming for a diverse itinerary that lets us see different parts of Japan (geographical + cultural), while also feeling like we can soak in the experience. An efficient itinerary, if you will. We are not huge shrine/castles people, so we aren't planning too many of those. Generally I'd want to have plans for the full day (which is what is shown here) and then be flexible on the day (ie if we love someplace, we will stay longer! If we are too tired, we will decide to skip.) I marked my "must-dos" in with a *. Open to feedback/suggestions! TIA!
Day 1: Arrival NRT + Ginza
- Skyliner from NRT to Ginza
- Explore Ginza
Day 2: Tokyo
- Teamlab Borderless
- Kappabashi Street*
- Sumo Show + Chankonabe (in Asakusa)*
- Tokyo Skytree + Pokemon Center
Day 3: Day trip to Kamakura/Enoshima (Purchase Freepass)
- Romancecar from Shinjuku Station to Enoshima
- Samuel Cocking Garden/Sea Candle
- Lunch (try shirasu)
- Enoden Electric Railway
- Hasadera Temple, Kotoku-in, Hokukuji Temple, Komachidori
Day 4: Tokyo
- Food Art Making Class (Airbnb Experience)*
- Headspa
- Dinner reservations at Kyubey*
Day 5: Day trip to Fujikawaguchiko
Day 6: Tokyo
- Teamlab Planets
- Tsukiji Outer Market
- Kirby Cafe
- Wagyu Tasting (Airbnb experience)*
Day 7: Tokyo
- Gyukatsu Motomura for lunch if we can quickly get seats
- Explore Shibuya/Shinjuku
- Ramen Tour (Airbnb experience)*
- Shibuya Sky
Day 8: Tokyo to Hakone
- Romancecar to Hakone
- Hakone Loop*
- Onsen/kaiseki dinner at ryokan*
Day 9: Hakone
- Breakfast at ryokan*
- Hakone Daimyo Goretsu
- Lunch reservations at Gyunabe Ukon Hakone (Kawadoko seating)*
- Onsen/kaiseki dinner at ryokan*
Day 10: Hakone to Osaka
- Breakfast at ryokan*
- Shinkansen to Osaka
- Kuromon Market
- Osaka Aquarium (at night to see the lights)
Day 11: Day trip to Kobe
- Takenaka Carpentry Tools Museum
- Nunobiki Ropeway & Herb Garden*
- Ikuta Jinga
- Kobe Beef Dinner Reservations at Tor Road Steak Aoyama*
- Umeda Sky + Heart Shaped Padlock
Day 12: Osaka
- Minoo Falls
- Cup Noodles Museum*
- Explore Dotonbori, Amerikamura
- Teamlab Botanical Gardens
Day 13: Hiroshima/Miyajima
- Peace Memorial, Atomic Bomb Dome, Shukkeien Garden
- Okonomiyakimura for lunch*
- Itsukushima Shrine, Daishoin Temple
- Onsen/kaiseki dinner at ryokan*
Day 14: Miyajima/Osaka
- Mount Misen Daisho-in trail
- Omotesando shotengai
- Senjokaku Pavilion & 5 story pagoda
- Train back to Osaka
Day 15: Osaka/Nara
- Nakatanidou Mochi Show*
- Nara Park*
- Todaiji Temple
- Isuien Gardens
Day 16: Uji
- Hands-on matcha activities*
- Byodo-in Temple*
- Tea shopping*
Day 17: Kyoto
- Nishiki Food Market
- Gion
Day 18: Kyoto
- Imperial Palace
- Philosopher's Path
- Kinkakuji
- GEAR Show*
Day 19: Kyoto
- Fushima Inari Taisha*
- Tokufuji Temple
- Kiyomizudera
- Kodaiji
- Pontocho Alley
Day 20: Kyoto
- Arashiyama Bamboo Grove & Monkey Park*
- Sagano Scenic Railway
- Tenryu-ji
Day 21: Fly Home
by clearvee
5 comments
I would swap days 2 and 4 if possible. Count on some jet lag so kicking off things with a more relaxed itinerary might be a good idea.
Mind day 12 might be a little bit too busy. Day 19 also looks busy and temple fatigue might kick in, I would relocate one of these in day 17 or do Fushimi Inari the Uji day since it’s quite close.
Nothing to add, but wondering about the Airbnb experience. Have you done an “experience” before?
You said that you’re not a huge fan of temples but your whole Kyoto itinerary is temples?
Kyoto is known for temples but there’s a lot more than that – there’s a few really cool distilleries (I like the Yamzaki distillery), hiking (Mt. Hiezan is a long but incredible hike), tatami making workshop, museums (manga museum, railway museum, the new Nintendo museum). You can take a trip out to Kuramadera, it’s less than an hour out and it’s beautiful there.
This is a good itinerary geographically. You have a bunch of temples and shrines for someone who doesn’t care for them! The way you have it laid out, your schedule looks pretty full with not a lot of room to spare. We did a similar honeymoon trip last year at this time. Its a personal preference, but you might consider staying in Fujikawaguchiko for a night. Do you like art or architecture at all? If so, the highlight of our trip was Naoshima and Teshima island.
Once in Kobe you might consider a mid day break at Arima Onsen just on the other side of the mountain, very easily reachable by Subway and local train in around 30 – 45 min if I recall. You might want to stroll and spend 2/3 hrs at an Onsen, we have been at Arima Kirari and it was pleasant. Note that you can leave easily luggage at train station and it’s very handy. In fact, we stopped over in Kobe on the way from Okayama to Kyoto on the Shinkansen, left the luggage at the lockers and spend 2/3 hrs in Kobe/Arima.