Hey all,
My wife and I are heading to Japan in mid-December and wanting to see how our itinerary looks and maybe get some suggestions. We are big nature lovers and are always keen for a day trip to a forest or park. My wife is currently pregnant, so onsens are sadly a no-go really. I’m a photographer so I do like to pad my days out exploring and snapping.
I have some concerns about moving around near NYE period but I’ll try and book in advance for all major trains.
Footnotes:
Kanazawa at the moment is a place holder, it seems to be the best option for December as we considered Toyama but the gorge is closed, we are still considering staying in Nagoya and doing a day trip to Magome to do the walk. We are open to any suggestion for a couple of day stop between Kyoto and Tokyo. We want to see something special, but Shirawaga-go seems to be one of the few options available in December. I would love to see some mountains or a forest but I’m not sure if it’s possible to do because of a) the weather or b) the travel time. Would love a base spot that has stuff nearby but also could take an hour trip and see something spectacular. Kanazawa seems to tick that box loosely atm. Is Shirawaga-go as impressive as it looks?
Anyway – would love your feedback
Day 1 – Tokyo – Arrive in Tokyo in the evening, head to our hotel in Shinjuku put our stuff away and head for some late night dinner and wandering around.
Day 2 – Tokyo – first full day, spending the morning walking between Shinjuku and Shibuya, hanging about at Yoyogi park and just taking it pretty breezy. Hoping to get to TeamLabs in the afternoon.
Day 3 – Tokyo – Akihabara, looking to find a film camera on the cheap. Can anyone suggest a decent place (or in Osaka/Kyoto for that matter)? – really want to do Shibuya at night, see the crossing.
Day 4 – Tokyo – Kawaguchiko, would love to do the lake and the pagoda and any other spots that are recommended. This day will obviously move around depending on the weather. Wanting a clear day.
Day 5 – Tokyo – I’m really, really hoping either the Ghibli Museum or the theme park are open – I would really like to do them.
Day 6 – Tokyo to Osaka – getting the train, staying in Dontonbori. Gonna check out the castle and then get some food and some drinks and take lots of photos.
Day 7 – Osaka – Undecided, maybe Universal Studios or the aquarium. Or going the other way and using the day on Nara. I have seen much outside of eating and taking photos at night that interests me about Osaka.
Day 8 – Osaka to Koyasan
Heading to Koyasan doing Koyasan stuff and staying the night in a temple
Day 9 – Koyasan > Kyoto
Doing a few more Koyasan things then getting to the train to Kyoto via Osaka. Will probably spend out first afternoon in Kyoto walking through Gion.
Day 10 – Kyoto
Bamboo forest and all of the surrounding temples and nature
Day 11 – Kyoto
This is Christmas Day, We are planning to head to Nara here, I’m assuming we won’t spend to Osaka day doing it, so accounting for it here. Still looking to see if there’s any cool things to do for Xmas.
Day 12 – Kyoto
Fushimi Inari, the aqueduct, and other temples. Hoping to visit some tea houses.
Day 13 – Kyoto
We are struggling to find anything for this day. This is where my wife and I need some help.
Day 14 – Possibly Kanazawa
Arrive from Kyoto and check into our hotel and do the art gallery and the temples. Staying here overnight
Day 15 – Kanazawa
Head to Shirawaga-go via bus and explore for a few hours, before getting the bus back to Kanazawa, maybe fitting in a sight and then getting dinner and packing in for the night
Day 16 – Kanazawa > Tokyo
Getting the train to Tokyo, check into our hotel and hopefully checking our Senso-Ji and the Sky Tree. Maybe a Micro Pig cafe.
Day 17 – Tokyo – (New Years Eve)
Now, we’d really love to do a day trip to Nikko here but I’m not sure how viable public transport is on NYE. If we can do that and get back to the city without losing my hair, then I’d love to return and partake in some sort of NYE celebration.
Day 18 – Tokyo – New Year’s Day.
I’m assuming most stuff will be closed so we’ll probably just chill in the parks or if it’s smarter to do the Nikko day here (?) then maybe we’ll do that. If the Metropolitan building is open, then that would be great to get a view.
Day 19 – Tokyo
We have a late evening flight – honestly, would love to just explore one last time, maybe do some shopping at the major shops and buy some alcohol to take home. Happy to see what’s open but won’t be disappointed if stuff is closed. Just a tasty ramen before I go home.
And that’s it!
2 comments
Out of curiosity, why wouldn’t you go to an onsen when pregnant?
And you mean Kanazawa?
Lots of places will be closed during New Year’s Day and temples busy. I would stay in tokyo.
You could also add takayama on the way to shirakawago if you have an extra day and then go back to Tokyo from there by bus.
If i were there for New Year’s Day then i would go lucky bag shopping. Probably get an apple and lulu lemon lucky bag.