Flights: £600

Hotels: £500-£600

Food, transport and shopping: £500-£600

Interests: architecture, photography, food, cute shops/cafe

First time in Japan and it's something I dreamed about since I began studying the language at a young age. I finally managed to go after years of waiting for the right time! I realised that the "right" time wouldn't come so I booked the tickets 2 months in advance and off I went! Link to my plan that I made 2 months ago.

Hotel reviews

• Forest Hongo by unito ❤️ – Very friendly staff and cleaner who I exchanged conversations with. Free laundry, ironing and microwave on 1 floor. A bit far from station but I enjoyed the walks. Quick and easy check in and check out.
• APA Hotel Midosuji Honmachiekimae Higashi ❤️ – High level of service from staff, very big and comfy bed, convenient location, family mart and 7-eleven 1 min away, fav hotel, express check out (enter your card in the box).
• Hotel Excellence Kyoto Ekimae 😞 – Very meh compared to other hotels, non-existent staff, room was right next to the noisy main road. Luckily it was only for 1 night.
• First Cabin Capsule Hotel (Kansai Airport) £40/night – Separated by gender, very clean and spacious rooms. Very convenient as it's located in the airport with lots of amenities. Hard to sleep if you're a light-sleeper like me but good to experience capsule hotels at least once.

Tokyo 🌆 (4 days)

As I was very sleep deprived and jet-lagged after a 16 hr flight, I didn't enjoy Tokyo as much as I thought I would. I'm not neurodivergent but even I was very overstimulated from all the constant sounds from shops/adverts and colours from the buildings. The stations were a bit stressful to get around with all the crowds but google maps was SO useful by stating which section of the train to get on and which exits were the best. I did really enjoy Harajuku and Shibuya because of the cute shops. Akihabara was a let down but maybe more because I'm not the right audience for all the "toy" shops. Another fascinating thing was that nobody jaywalks, unless it's night time in a quiet street.

Teamlabs Borderless ❤️ exceeded my expectations and I liked how calm and chic the Azubadai Hills area was in general! Definitely go early because the noisy tourists and kids running around can affect how immersed you feel. Loved the Shinjuku area as the streets were more spacious and there were lots of nice shops to go to. Asakusa area was fun to visit with the Sensoji Shrine and stalls. I highly recommend the Kura Sushi chain if you want to try conveyor belt sushi.

Did not expect to see a man peeing in Omoide Yokocho at around 5pm in broad day light but now I know how it got it's nickname as Piss Alley.. apart from that, the streets were very small with lots of nice lanterns and tiny bars which were nice to look at at night but as it was full, we couldn't go into any.

Osaka 🍡 (5 days)

Loved my time here as a foodie and lover of street lights. The massive billboards with the food displays was lovely to see all lit up at night. Places I recommend are Okaru for okonomiyaki, any food stalls with a queue for takoyaki, Kushikatsu Daruma for skewers. I also visited the Pokemon centre, Ghibli store and Nintendo stores, fulfilling my childhood dreams. There are so many cute gacha machines around which made my inner child so so happy.

Dotonbori and Shinsekai ❤️ at night was really gorgeous with the lit up billboards. I really felt the city come to life at night. We also saw Hozenji Temple which was very relaxing amongst the busy streets. Osaka Castle and Namba Yasaka Shrine were also worth visiting! I also visited Cat Cafe Mikazuki and the owner was very sweet, explaining everything in her best English until she realised 日本語でおk

Kyoto ⛩️ (2 days)

I regret not staying here for longer. Walking around the quiet streets of hilly Arashiyama is something I'll never forget. There's a really nice 7-eleven I found with space to sit down and eat. I wish more konbini's had this too. As it rained on the first day, I didn't get up to much except Nishiki Market where they had lots of food and souvenir shops! I managed to squeeze a lot in the next day. The Kyoto City Bus made sightseeing so easy.

Got up early to see the Golden Temple which was an architectural masterpiece. I loved taking photos. Despite lots of school trip crowds and some rude chinese tourists, there were areas that were very zen and peaceful. After that I saw the Ryoanji Rock Garden, which was very calming. After being so overstimulated in Tokyo, I needed this break so much.

Arashiyama Monkey Park Iwatayama 20 min up-hill hike was hard but worth it when I saw the cute baby monkeys. Lots of families seemed to enjoy this place and it just brightened my day. There were rules we had to follow and people were quite sensible and respectful when going near them or feeding them.

The highlight was Togetsukyo Bridge ❤️ which was so serene and beautiful. I loved walking down the main road with all the cute souvenir shops and food stalls. I had a lovely dango here too and admired all the people walking in their beautiful kimonos. For the first time in this trip, I didn't feel annoyed by all the tourists because I could see how excited they were, sharing this experience in Japan, just like me.

After that I managed to pop by Gion in the afternoon to see the Hokan-ji Temple which was nice but a bit underwhelming as the streets were very small and crammed with people trying to get the same photos.

Thoughts and tips:

-Using an e-sim from Airalo was very quick to install and saved a lot of hassle. I also used a digital Suica on my iphone to pay for transport which was very quick and easy. At the end of my journey, my suica refused to accept money which was annoying but I managed to buy tickets at the machines. I used Monzo for all payments at the konbini but cash was required for shrines and restaurants/bars so always have cash in hand- at least £50-80. I didn't have any fees when getting cash from 7-eleven ATMs.

-Don Quihote had some cool stuff but it was so overwhelming with hundreds of people in there. I liked Loft and other shopping centres around the cities more. I luckily went to Japan with only 1/4-1/2 of my luggage full so all my souvenirs fit! There are elevators in stations so didn't have a problem with carrying luggage around.

-Coin lockers were SO useful and there are plenty around stations. There are no bins in Japan so I would try and eat things at the konbini and throw it away there or take it back to my hotel. Most locals were very quiet on public transport as there are signs everywhere to not be a nuisance to others. Women carriages were very useful during busy times.

-Being able to speak Japanese made things so much easier as people relaxed around me and were very friendly. I didn't feel as anxious being alone in a country on the other side of the world. The level of English isn't great so knowing basic phrases is a must would make your experience a lot more enjoyable.

-The quality of service in Japan is high. Shop attendants will greet you every time, the bus driver announces every time the bus is about to move so you don't fall, the hotels give free amenities.

-I appreciated how well-dressed everyone was, especially in Shinjuku and Harajuku area where they really showed their individuality through their fashion. People in general were dressed better than in London, even the middle-aged men were rocking suits. Not a single hoodie and tracksuit in sight (unless it was styled up).

-I loved how useful and cheap the Yamato takkyubin service was. My hotel didn't have it but they directed me to the nearest Family-Mart 2 min away and they sent it to my hotel in Osaka. I was nervous leaving my luggage but when I saw it the next day, I was so relieved! Will definitely use this again especially as it was only £11.

-As the yen was weak against the pound, I ended up buying a lot of stuff and was surprised at how cheap konbini food was for the quality. I got the katsu sando at least once every day for a bit. It was so good!! Lawson's karaage-kun was also delicious!! I also got a bit obsessed with the Wonda Cafe au lait. As a solo traveller, the konbini was a life-saver for eating out. Most of the time I met my friends for dinner but a lot of places have seats for solo diners on the bar area.

This trip was everything I wanted for a holiday and I'm already planning my next trip. Next time, I'll definitely spend longer than 10 days and spend more time in nature or less touristy areas. Some places: Kamakura to see the trams by the beach, Nikko and Wakayama for waterfalls, see Mount Fuji, private onsen somewhere.