My wife and I are aiming for three weeks in Japan in 2023 (season/dates to be decided). My wife has fibromyalgia and knows it’s going to be exhausting. We’ve done some travel since her diagnosis, but it’s all been domestic with pretty low expectations.
**What were your low physical exertion favourite things to see/do/experience in Japan?**
I’m talking shows, museums, anything you can sit and just enjoy passively for a while. We both love theatre, live music (classical through to pop – we’re keen).
She’s pretty tough and before fibro was a keen hiker (and we’re only in our late 20s), so we’re not counting out anything active; we just need to have options ready so we can pace her energy consumption and not over-fatigue her. Original plans included Kumano Kodo or the Nakasendo Trail but we’re rethinking that.
More importantly, **how hard would it be to just be spontaneous and plan the trip as we go?** We are wondering whether we can just get JR passes, see how her pain and fatigue are going and plan each day when she wakes up. We don’t have a really specific wishlist of stuff to do, and while we could make one, we’ve had a great time on some local trips just turning up, having a hotel room booked (or our tent) and exploring whatever we feel up to. We’ve really enjoyed that we get to discover places in more depth and try more local things. We’re both pretty curious and are keen photographers, so sometimes a walk around a small suburb or village with stops to admire things, take photos, and maybe chat to people is not a wasted day for us. My wife’s fibro is manageable some days – she might wake up and decide that she can walk all day – and other days she wakes up in crippling pain and doesn’t want to leave the house, so we don’t want to over-plan and disappoint ourselves.
I studied Japanese in high school and still speak enough for basic conversation; I’ll need to brush up before we go. She doesn’t speak or read any Japanese and between being dyslexic, hearing impaired, and usually exhausted, we’ve agreed that her best bet is to get familiar with translator apps and rent a PocketTalk or similar device. We’ve both travelled a bit in the past and will be packing light (apart from our cameras!)
23 comments
Going to a town with nice hot springs is really lovely. If it’s a high energy day you’ll have places to walk, and if it’s a low one you can do more onsen and relaxation.
Honestly I’d make a priority list for every city/region you want to visit, plan on staying in a place that is nice in its own right, and then check things off your list day by day.
Having a JR pass will make things very flexible – if you base yourself in Kyoto or Osaka, you can do plenty of spur-of-the-moment day trips to the surrounding areas – Himeji, Nara, Kobe etc.
Tokyo would be accessible with the JR passes (on the JR commuter lines), but actually having subway passes will enable you to get closer to things to do – we used our JR passes and resigned ourselves to a bit of a walk every time, but for your wife, likely subway passes and a planned budget for taxis. They are expensive, but I’d still go with them anyways, because of her medical needs.
My favourite part of my trip was Kinosaki Onsen, which is 2.5 north east of Kyoto by train – we did an overnight there. It is a teeny little town and fairly level with no hills, plus there’s the seven different onsens to soak in. We booked it literally the night before.
fibromanual
I have fibro and live in Japan and have done quite a bit of travelling here.
I haven’t got a huge amount of tips that are Japan specific and is likely what you both do anyways. We just have low expectations for what we can do in a day. We move slow, we plan regular breaks and enjoy the little things.
If we go to Disney we book a hotel near by and we go back so I can take a nap. Any very strenuous activities are loosely planned and can be cancelled. We get taxis when we need them. Bring any pain relief with you because the medication here is low strength and expensive (but do read up on what you can bring). You can get excellent heat packs and pain patches which I find helps for specific areas of pain.
I’ve also found over the years that it has fluctuated massively. Sometimes I can do so much more than other times. Last year we cycled the shimminami kaido which is something I never thought I could achieve! Good luck and enjoy Japan ☺️
When I went in 2017 I rented a cheap airbnb in Tokyo for the duration of my 2 week stay to act as a home base and got a JR pass. Didn’t plan anything else. I then did short trips elsewhere if I felt like it, or just opened google maps in the morning and found a random part of Tokyo I felt like exploring. Some days I ate out, some I went to a local grocery store and tried to make myself dinner.
Im very type B in this way though – I don’t care if things don’t go according to plan, or if something is closed, or I miss a big tourist site. I just sort of wander and soak in the country. I do quite literally wander a lot though – which is a lot of walking.
I was able to hop on the train and go to other cities, renting airbnbs as I went. I don’t know how active airbnb is these days though – I’ve heard they have gone down in availability due to legal restrictions and the pandemic.
Regarding speaking Japanese, I wouldn’t stress about it. A few basic words to be polite is nice – hello, thanks, etc. etc. But most young people in Japan have English skills, in my experience at least. Even if not, just being polite and getting through it is part of the fun of travel imo. Things like the subway are super easy – all number/color coded, and google maps will get you anywhere you need to go. Beyond that, the google translate app lets you just point a camera at things like signs and menus to translate on the fly if need be. Its all pretty easy.
I think if you’re happy to just explore as you can, and take easy days when you need to, you’ll still enjoy it. One of my favorite memories is just spending the day in the Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden. I sat around and read a book on the lawn – had some local girls ask me for a photo, chatted with a single dad who had brought his toddler to the park. All memorable experiences and I effectively sat on the lawn all afternoon.
Hope that perspective helps.
I think that the most common thing is that when in Japan, people want to see a lot, so on top of walking from hotel to the train station, you also have to walk to the different attractions and the more you see, the more you walk.
For some quick recommendations, for museum it depend what type, history for sure Tokyo National Museum in Ueno Park and Edo-Tokyo Museum, art TeamLab exhibits are quite popular and Mori Museum (in Roppongi Hills Mori Tower) is nice as it also double as an observation tower.
For theater, well, you could check for Japanese traditional theater. It is usually possible to get ticket for one act of Kabuki at Kabukiza in Tokyo (don’t expect to understand much). I also saw Bunraku puppet theater at the National Bunraku Theater and they have audio guide in English (take it, even Japanese people took the Japanese audio guide). For music, I would personally try to look into Japanese bands you find interesting and follow their social media for upcoming show, that is for sure what I’ll do next time I go (I like several math rock and post rock bands from Japan).
If you want options for good days, even small hike, then take some options for day trips around the main location where you would be, like Mount Takao. Kumano Kodo usually involve several days of hike, so not sure I would do, Nakasendo between Tsumago and Magome is 8km. So if that is too much of you get there on a bad day, at least you could turn the hike into just checking the post town and taking it more relax.
Personally, I do not like totally spontaneous trips. I prefer to have at least a rough idea of the things I can see in each of the city I want to visit, so at least if I find nothing while I’m there, I have a list of some things that can be interesting. Still, I am quite flexible and can change my plan if I find something more interesting while I’m there. There is times I’ve done nothing of what I planned. Let’s say that I would look to have some ideas of places where you want to go.
I also do not like the idea of maybe not be able to find an affordable place to stay, so I always book my accommodation in advance, so at least I am sure I have a place to stay. But hey, that’s up to you I guess.
JR pass… for me the only reason to use it is to save money. So unless you have a rough idea of where you want to go, you have no idea if you will save money. In any case, I would not consider taking more than the 14 days pass as you will likely spend a couple of days in Tokyo at the start and end of the trip, so you can just make sure you leave Tokyo on the first day and back the latest on the 14th day.
And if she takes medicine, just make sure it’s all ok to bring in Japan.
I don’t have any problems, but I like to just relax on a trip. Best thing to do for low effort is not to travel in-country. Stay at one hotel, the whole time, and just linger around that one place. Japan is different enough, that you can just find stuff nearby, I go to libraries, to parks, markets, to the movies or book stores, just ordinary stuff.
I went in 2018 and 2019 and struggled finding places to sit down. Got told to move on a few times when sitting on the ground out of the way. Hoping it’s changed since the olympics. Some train stations have a heap of stairs too. Rickshaw tours are good to avoid walking. Local trains too. Kurobe gorge was a really scenic trip mostly all trains. I stayed in Shinjuku – made sure the room had awesome views in case I got stuck in bed from pain. Also a bath was great to soak in. Walking out the door and being in the middle of the action was much better than having to take the train or mini bus (Hilton) vs the hotel century southern tower hotel.
Big cities like Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto have so much to see that I don’t think you’d necessarily need a JR pass. Depending on your tastes, you could just use local trains to explore one city, maybe taking only one or two Shinkansen rides your whole trip.
On the other hand, if you plan everything in detail, you can cover a huge area without walking too much, if you pick attractions that are near the train stops. For that type of trip, a JR pass may be helpful to you, but you won’t know unless you plan.
I am a big fan of being spontaneous, but I highly advise you to try this approach instead: Plan at least 50-80% of your days, but just allow yourself fallbacks. Tokyo alone is just so big that if you don’t have a rough idea of what you want to see, you may miss a lot that was within easy reach. It is not a failure to spend half a day in a book store!
Speaking of planning, Japanese people plan WAY in advance, so if you want to see something like Sumo wrestling or the Ghibli museum, you need to start getting those reservations one year ahead of time. Yeah, not kidding.
A great way to be spontaneous and also get some walking in is to just take the train in one direction, and get off the train at stops that look interesting.
We tried this when we were in Kyoto (taking the train away from the city, into the countryside), and wound up seeing a small town that specialized in Soba, a town that had ties to the tale of Genji, and a super cool museum with wood carvings of gods from the 600s.
Also, think hard about if you care more about seeing nature or city attractions.
Since her condition varies, I would avoid any temples or attractions that involve walking up lots of steps. However,
Here are a few specific ideas for you that involve some walking, but not too much:
[Kamakura Temple](https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3100.html) – check out the deer.
[Inari Gates](https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3915.html) – The great thing about this trip? You DO NOT have to go all the way to the top!
EDIT: I meant [Todaiji Temple](https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4100.html), not Kamakura Temple!
Good luck with your trip!
>how hard would it be to just be spontaneous and plan the trip as we go?
No harder than it would be anywhere else. I’ve spent over a year (maybe two?) in Japan as an international tourist plus time spent living there and have never made an itinerary or even anything more than a vague list of a few things I might be interested in doing. I think the only thing I’ve ever planned ahead for was the Ghibli museum because it requires tickets be bought in advance. Mostly I pretty much decide what to do on the day or at the most the day before. Sometimes I head into the city for food and shopping, sometimes I take a train 100 miles away and explore somewhere I’ve never been before, sometimes I sit out on the balcony all day and do nothing at all. Don’t let the fact that a lot of people make really detailed (and dense) plans for their Japan trips make you think that that kind of thing is at all necessary if that isn’t your preferred way to travel. Most places tourists end up in Japan are well connected and convenient enough that you can actually just do what you want, when you feel like doing it.
I have CFS and went to Tokyo in the past (before I was ill). I enjoyed train trips and bus trips for being able to look out the windows. I found the train stations themselves could mean a lot of walking around though. Sitting in cafes could be a nice way to spend a rest-stop and enjoy some nice food and drinks.
The hot springs towns seem like they would be good for being compact to explore and having a lot of nice experiences, especially if you can get a room with a private onsen! There are the meal services to try as well where the Japanese style meals are served in your room and you sit on the tatami mat floor.
I’ll be really interested to hear how you end up getting on – I’d dearly love to go back but at the moment I’m far too ill.
I’ve done many trips with no real planning, just get up in the morning and decide what to do. It’s possible. But if you’re not used to traveling in Japan and know no Japanese, it’s going to be harder, at least if you want to hit the countryside.
But going around avoiding excertion much will be tough. Even just the stairs at temples and shrines, the stairs and distances in subway and train stations, etc.pp.
But yea, there should still be plenty to see and do. Better to first think what you’d like to see and do and then think about feasibility.
I’d probably focus on just two cities and figure out how you can manage sightseeing there best.
Note that while you can be fairly spontaneous outside peak travel periods, this actually means you will have to avoid major festivals or events, because finding yourself with no accommodation within an hour’s ride on shinkansen might not be fun either.
Major theatre events and live music at the venues larger at the clubs are often sold out either well in advance (or in case of some theatres have only limited number of same day tickets), so this often requires some careful planning.
You should also note that despite having a very robust transport system, sightseeing Japan means generally a lot of walking.
You have mentioned Kumano Kodo and Nakasendo. While with Nakasendo (Kiso Valley) and postal towns, your worst case scenario outside peak travel times is having to get a cab back to the nearest station; with regard to Kumano Kodo – I’d probably plan your visiting around going around by bus to Kumano Hongu Taisha and Nachi Falls rather than doing any actual hiking.
Do’s and don’ts for your spontaneity:
Plan everything, and plan it by area. There is so much to do and see in Japan that lack of planning can definitely hurt you. Don’t forget to Plan meals as well as some area will only be open at certain times. You have plenty of time to start planning.
Overplan what you want in an area. You can drop things from your Plan easily, or drop whole areas you wanted to visit. This way you still get to see and do important things as your schedule changes. Expect some things to take much longer than expected, and others to be very short on your time.
Unless you want to climb Fuji there is very little she won’t be able to do, even places like Mt Inari have easy paths to the top with tons of places to stop, sit, and contemplate life. Even Fuji will allow you to drive to the 5th station so experiencing that is not hard as long as you don’t need the summit.
Japan is a major walking country. Maybe plan to rent a car to go around. The transport/commute system is awesome but still requires a lot of walking.
Maybe find a place with real great views, staff and accommodation that staying in wouldn’t be such a loss. Theater, shopping, and sightseeing can be scheduled properly so that you don’t bunch it up together in a short amount of time.
Edit: also being spontaneous for me is sitting in a park and eating whatever i got from 7-11 after having just spent the past hour in an elevator queue to go up the Metropolitan tower. Or finding a nice resto just near my bnb, only to realize it’s a chinese resto. After we’ve eaten and paid. Twice in two consecutive visits. One in Tokyo, and one in Osaka. Haha. Or randomly going to Shimokitazawa (a very cute little town almost in the outskirts of Tokyo) in a blizzard just because a long lost Japanese friend suggested it suddenly after learning I was in Japan and was not disappointed at all. Or shopping in 3 different Don Quijotes at 2 in the morning. Just coz there’s less people and I could spend so much time deciding on which souvenirs to get for ppl back home without looking so weird because you be staring at socks for hours just to decide.
I have mild cerebral palsy which causes me pain and fatigue. I have been to Japan twice and absolutely loved it.
You sound like a great partner who is very supportive, so this is a huge win.
My first trip (2014), I went with my ex, who didn’t understand my need to rest. Others have mentioned the lack of public seating. I tried my best to keep up, but I was exhausted.
We did Tokyo-Kyoto-Nara-Osaka-Hiroshima-Tokyo in three weeks. I found if I needed to sit down we would pop into a cafe, or I would even take a bit longer in the bathroom. It was an enjoyable trip, but could’ve been better because of the company.
My latest trip was 2018 with my husband. We stayed in Tokyo for three weeks, staying in the same hotel in Shinjuku (a love hotel, actually). We utilised taxis a lot (more expensive but it helped), and had a number of rest days. It was a fantastic experience! We had a plan, but tried to only put two or three things in each day. We also went to some concerts which were amazing, and I was able to snag seating at each.
Wishing you all the best with your trip!
Kumano Kodo is not possible. My partner and I are late-twenties, and reasonably fit but some of the trails are basically vertical or just ALL ROCKS. Less like hiking and more straight up rock climbing.
I think if you’re OK with spending a little, then you can always hop into a kissaten/cafe or starbucks or something to rest because most of Japan there’s a lot of walking. If you don’t want to over-schedule, maybe pick one or two “highlights” of the day (which are in the same transit/walking area) and then explore from there? This is particularly important for peak period travel since its so crowded.
If you like music, art and photography I really recommend Kanazawa. It’s about 2-3hrs out of Tokyo via shinkansen. They have an amazing park which is top 3 in all of Japan (Kenroukuen), a music dedicated to gramaphones and vinyls (which you can listen for free) and lots of coffee shops. The dessert cafe next to the museum of handmade crafts in particular, is headed by a really famous pastry chef.
As a foodie I love bookmarking all the cafes/restaurants that I’m interested in in the neighbourhood/city I will be visiting. My google maps will be dotted with pins. Not that I will go to all of them, but if I end up somewhere, I’d know the lay of the land.
As a pain physician, I am mindful of the concept of pacing… the need to be aware of limits and to know how to find rest, and how to know what amount of exercise will feel good, and what amount will be too much.
If you put 2 and 2 together, hopefully you can see ways to both plan ahead and be spontaneous. Are there any must do’s? Reserved times possible anywhere? What distance between must-visit spots? I also would suggest being somewhat picky about sleep arrangements. Is it worth staying at a comfier place, than risk poor rest which may affect the entire next day?
I worked out for me if a JR pass would be worth it, and no. It wasn’t – there’s a website you can enter how much travelling you’re going to do and see if a JR pass will pay for itself, you have to do a surprising amount of travel.
I was going to just go for a suica card instead (might be my familiarity with Oyster card speaking) but then 2020… yeah…
I think the best way to proceed would be to plan a couple of core activities (or areas) per day, then be completely spontaneous around that – with the understanding that if your wife’s fibro flares up, a rest day is 100% in order. That way you can wander the neighbourhood, allow for unexpected serendipity, and pause at a cafe or restaurant whenever the mood comes upon you. Japanese restaurants and cafes (kissaten) are a delight! (And do try the teishoku or “set meal” that many restaurants offer, especially at lunchtime; it’s a good way to try a range of dishes, and it’s usually reasonably economical too.)
I know Kyoto best, so there are temples (for example) where you can pace yourself, sit from time to time and just relax. Philosopher’s Walk is nice and flat, with some of its temples also on fairly flat ground, and a smattering of cafes nearby where you can pause and get refreshment. In fact, one of my happiest experiences there was stumbling across a tiny eatery presided over by an older “mom-and-pop” couple and seeing my husband’s face when he tasted okonomiyaki for the first time 🙂 The Imperial Palace Park is perfectly flat, too, as is the Gion district.
There are places in Kyoto that require some uphill walking, though, and you may want to avoid those *unless* you know you can take transport to the top and maybe walk down. If you want to walk in Arashiyama (western Kyoto), you can for example take a bus or taxi to Otagi Nenbutsu-ji, then walk downhill all the way: through the charming little “sata toriimoto” (traditional village) below it, then through Adashino Nenbutsu-ji, perhaps stopping at the lovely Gio-ji (moss temple), then walking through the Arashiyama Bamboo Grove before finding yourself on the main street of Arashiyama. There are cafes and similar that you can pause at on the way down, and you can finish up in Tenryu-ji at the end if you wish.
If you’re travelling from North America, you will have the benefit of “friendly” jet lag, in which case you will be wide awake at 5 or 6 AM for your first couple of days at least. This works to your advantage! The popular spots can get very crowded from at least mid-morning on; so if you go out first thing in the morning, the atmosphere is more spacious and relaxing. The crowds appear just as you’re in the mood to have a break.
I appreciate you’d prefer to learn a bit of Japanese, and it will certainly delight any people you meet if you try to make an earnest effort to speak a few words. But unless you really stray off the beaten path, you don’t typically need to know a lot. My husband knew none, and I only have a little, and we did just fine.
Lastly, I’m copy-pasting the following from a post I found on another site, as it provides links to sites that provide some information on accessibility, altitude and so forth. The second one is a Kyoto-city page from the [Japan Accessible Tourism Center](https://www.japan-accessible.com/index.htm),
>*Wheelchair accessible services and places are called “barrier free” in Japan, if you search around for that with places you might be interested in, you should be able to get some info on where you can go. Having a quick search, this is what I found:*
[http://kyoto-universal.jp/en/universals/index.php](http://kyoto-universal.jp/en/universals/index.php)
[http://www.japan-accessible.com/city/kyoto.htm](http://www.japan-accessible.com/city/kyoto.htm)
[https://www.gotokyo.org/en/administration/barrier_free/index.html](https://www.gotokyo.org/en/administration/barrier_free/index.html)
Definitely spend a day watching sumo. I think there is a tournament every two months. One of the highlights of my trip and you get to stay seated.
Not a lot else to add, but I wouldn’t bother renting a device to translate. Just grab a sim card for Japan (can order it before going) and use your smartphone (assuming it’s not locked and has the right frequencies).
Can translate speech on the fly, translate signs etc. Plus it gives you maps and directions.
Yes you can be spontaneous and it’ll be much better if you research the hell out of the place (put pins on everything that interests both of you in Google Maps with notes such as relevant links, opening times, etc) and the available train passes where you are (Tokyo has that bang-for-money 72hr Metro Pass, Osaka has that subway day pass, etc).
Weather is really variable depending on the season, and can sap anyone of energy (I’m looking at you, hot-and-damp-as-Satan’s-crotch Tokyo summers).
For low-energy stuff, my usual go-to’s are parks (Ueno is incredible, especially with the museum inside), specialized museums, and small towns. Oarai in Ibaraki is a favorite; relatively hard to get to, but they have an incredible aquarium, quite bike friendly, and have a laid-back, really nice seaside vibe. Just stay near a konbini. Hikone is another small town that I like; chill suburbia on a lakeshore with an original castle. Traditional Japanese theater (Osaka has the bunraku theater) can be quite a slog to go through, but totally enjoyable despite the language barrier.
Book an onset holiday at least for a few days … can just hang around the hotel eating and bathing and sleeping it’s very chill, then maybe explore the local town