I went twice in Japan 20 years ago (first time in Tokyo, second time in Nagasaki and few days in Kyoto-Nara), and I plan to come back in April 2025 this time with my family (my wife, and my kids who are 12, 10 and 3 years old)
Here is our itinerary.
I don’t’ have an exact hour-to-hour/day-to-day plan as I want to keep flexibility.
Day 1 :
- arrival at Tokyo-Haneda Airport
- get Pocket Wifi, Welcome Suica card, and cash!
- go to our Airbnb in Kagurazaka (I stay in this area during my first trip, and found it very nice and convenient as it is central and close to all important areas and transport lines)
Day 2 to Day 4 + half of Day 5 (so 3.5 days) – Visit Tokyo (not necessarily in this order):
- Early Sumo Training visit near Ryogoku, then visit Asakusa (Nakamise-dori, Senso-ji, Kappabashi street to buy kitchen tools)
- visit Shibuya + a Cat Café (it seems not all Cat Cafe accepts kids especially the younger ones, I still have to figure out which one to go)
- visit Shinjuku (+Kabuckicho ? not sure about this one with the kids)
- visit Meiji-jingu (possibly on Sunday, to be able to see a traditional Shinto Weddin). I don’t plan to visit the Harajuku shopping district, but can we still see cosplayers there ?
- visit Ghibli museum (if I manage to get tickets)
- visit Akihabara (preferably on night to see all the lights)
- visit an Observation Tower (not sure yet which one, and by day or by night?)
- maybe visit TeamLab Planet, if we have time ?
Day 5 afternoon:
- send our bagages to Kyoto with Yamato Transport
- take the Romance Car to Hakone
- dinner and night at our Ryokan in Hakone
Day 6 (Hakone):
- visit Hakone
- dinner and night at our Ryokan. We will spend one full day to visit Hakone, which I consider sufficient, but I wanted to stay 2 nights at the Ryokan to enjoy as much as possible the private onsens 😊
Day 7 (Kyoto):
- go to Kyoto with Shinkansen
- pick up our luggages and let them at our AirBnb near Shijo station
- spend the afternoon to go to Arashiyama and visit Iwata Mount and its monkeys. I don’t intend to go to the Sagano bamboo forest, but I am open to see other stuff in the area if we still have time
Day 8 (Kyoto):
- Visit Kiyomizu-dera (and Sannenzaka)
- Walk in Gion
- Other ? I am not sure what other places are interesting to see in the same area, and less popular/crowded
- Visit KYOTO SAMURAI NINJA MUSEUM ?
- At night, walk near Pontocho, Kamo river, Takase river (that’s not far from our AirBnb)
Day 9 (Osaka):
- Full day at Universal Studios Japan
Day 10 (Nara):
- Go and visit Nara
- Come back in the afternoon in Kyoto, what should I visit ? Teramachi and Shinkyogoku arcades street ? (but I think the shops there close early)
Day 11 (Okinawa):
- Take the train to Itami Airport and plane to Okinawa – Naha
- Once arrived at Naha (around 4pm), rent a car to go North of the Island to the hotel (not yet booked). I don’t know if we visit anything as it will be late and we will be tired by all the transports.
Day 12 (Okinawa)
- Visit the Aquarium Churaumi Aquarium in the morning
- Go back to Nara and walk in the city center
- Take the ferry to Zamami Island
- Dinner and night in a Minshuku on Zamami
Day 13 (Zamami island):
- Ama Beach with sea Kayak or snorkeling to see the turtles
- Chill on Furuzamami Beach
Day 14 (Back to Tokyo):
- Take the ferry back to Naha
- Take the plane back to Tokyo-Haneda (arrival in the afternoon)
- Go to our Hotel near Hamamatsuchō Station. I booked an hotel there because our flight the next day is quite early, and I want to be close to Haneda with the Tokyo Monorail line
Day 15 (departure and flight back home)
- Take the monorail to Tokyo Haneda Airport
- Take our plane back home :’(
I would love any feedback for our plan, especially if you see some activities/plan that are not suited for a family trip (I plan to take a stroller for the little one, I don’t’ know how convenient it is in Japan for transport, walking…)
by o0Zeb0o
