Hi everyone!
I’ve been planning my dream trip to Japan and I’ve finally booked everything following yesterday’s announcement. I’m a solo female traveler, this is my first time going and I wanted to start off by spending a lot of time in Tokyo and enjoying it at my own pace with a detour to get a ryokan experience in Hakone and see the Kansai region. I hope to explore more of Japan in future trips!
**About my interests:** I like J-fashion, Sanrio, JRPGS and Anime. Besides general tourist sightseeing I want to spend my time shopping and finding cool experiences related to my interests.
**Nov 5-8:** Land in Tokyo, stay in Asakusa and explore the area and familiarize myself with areas like Shinjuku, Shibuya, and Akihabara.
**Nov 8-9:** Stay in a Ryokan in Hakone. I need a little help planning my itinerary here. I plan to arrive in Hakone in the morning and explore the area before heading to my Ryokan at 3-4PM, what’s the most ideal route to take for 4-5 hours of sightseeing around the area? Would love some restaurant recommendations as well!
**Nov 9-13:** Head to Kyoto. Places I’m planning to visit:
– Arashiyama Bamboo Forest – Okochi Sanso Garden – Sagano romantic train – river cruise
– Walk around scenic streets such as Nene-no-michi, Hanamikoji, Sannenzaka
– Tofuku-ji
– Fushimi Inari
– Kiyomizu-dera
– Kinkaku-ji
– Philosopher’s path
– Nishiki Market
– Pontocho Alley
– Take the Eizan Kurama train to Kibune (still tentative, not sure if this is worth it?)
– I also want to try some experiences such as [tea ceremony](https://mai-ko.com/) and a [Kimono photoshoot](https://www.studio-esperanto.com/)
– half-day trip to Nara (Nara park + Todai-ji)
– Exploring Osaka in the evening (Dotonbori and Shinsekai)
I am thinking of spending the night of 13-14 in Osaka before heading back to Tokyo.
Nov 13/14-20: All in Tokyo. Places im planning to visit:
– Akihabara
– Harajuku
– Shibuya
– Ikebukuro (Otome road and [butler cafe](http://www.butlers-cafe.jp/))
– Kabukicho
– Nakameguro
– Shimokitazawa
– Nakano Broadway
– Ginza
– Aoyama
– Kichijoji
– Koenji
– Yokohama
– Sanrio Puroland (I’m skipping Disney because I want to go with my family in the future)
– Is Odaiba worth a visit? I’ve seen news that some things there closed down following the pandemic. I’m thinking of going to Teamlab Planets since Borderless already closed.
I love cute things (hence the Sanrio) as well as finding aesthetic cafes (such as [this](https://petitmura.com/) and [this](http://rilakkumasabo.jp/)) if anyone has recommendations for those I would love to know! Plus female-centric Anime/video game places and experiences similar to Otome road.
Questions I have:
1) Is this a suitable time to experience the autumn foliage? I see the forecast for the places I’m staying in is Mid-November to Early December. I just want to know so I don’t waste my time visiting spots that are famous for the foliage viewing (like Tofuku-ji) if the view isn’t that nice yet. If there are nearby places that I could visit with earlier foliage I would love to know!
2) Is it feasible to do something like sightseeing in Kyoto in the day then heading to Osaka to spend the evening and have dinner before heading back to my hotel in Kyoto? I know there’s a 15-min train that runs between the two cities which is where I got the idea from.
3) I love Japanese curry. What’s the best curry you ever had in Tokyo?
I appreciate all the help, sorry my post is long and all over the place!