Hi everyone, my partner and I are planning a 12-13 day trip in may 2023 – hopefully everything will be open then. We’re first time travellers and desperately need your suggestions to help improve our itinerary!
Some context about us: We enjoy shopping and photography (especially cityscapes and views of the city) We’re not very serious foodies and we’re happy to eat where it’s convenient, but any food recommendations are welcome and greatly appreciated too 🙂
Day 0 (KYOTO): Land in osaka. Travel to kyoto. Check in kyoto hotel.
Day 1 (KYOTO): Arashiyama bamboo. J cycle. Early dinner at nishiki market.
Day 2 (KYOTO/OSAKA): Fushimi inari. Catch a show at gear theatre. Travel to Osaka. Check in osaka hotel. Free and easy at Dotonburi.
Day 3 (OSAKA) : Kuromon market. Kaiyukan aquarium.
Day 4 (OSAKA): Osaka castle. Shopping at HEP FIVE mall.
Day 5 (OSAKA): Umeda sky building. Osaka museum of housing and living.
Day 6 (OSAKA): Cup noodle museum. Mino’o park.
Day 7 (OSAKA): Free and easy. Travel to tokyo via izumo sunrise train at night.
Day 8 (TOKYO): Check in tokyo hotel. Free and easy at Shinjuku. Dinner at robot restaurant.
Day 9 (TOKYO) : Lake Kawaguchi. Night at Izakaya restaurant
Day 10 (TOKYO): Shopping at Harajuku. Visit Tokyu plaza.
Day 11 (TOKYO): Shopping at Shibuya, visit Shibuya crossing and Shibuya sky.
Day 12 (TOKYO): Sumo tournament morning practice, Sensoji temple and ice cream at suzukien asakusa. Tokyo sky tree at night. Depart Tokyo.
10 comments
Probably can include the Higashiyama district for Kyoto after Fushimi.
Day 4 i think you could do a day trip to the majestic Himeji Castle instead of Osaka Castle, HEP mall u can do it on Day 5 with Umeda.
Day 10 & 11 i think doable in a single day, can add in Meiji Shrine (if you interested) early in the day before walking over Harajuku too.
Too much time in Osaka. Most people forget that Yokohama is the second largest city in Japan, not Osaka, and the view of the city and cityscape are much better in Yokohama. You can see the city from a giant Ferris Wheel.
Harajuku and Shibuya are right next to each other; you can go shopping in both places on the same day and still have time to explore other areas that night.
For the two days you have in Kyoto, you are really not planning much and there is much more to see in Kyoto.
You won’t be able to check in the Tokyo hotel in the morning after getting off the train, you will have to wait for check-in to start, usually in the afternoon. Robot Restaurant is close and it was more a place to see the show and not for food (despite it’s name, it’s not really a restaurant). It might eventually re-open, but for now forget it.
The robot restaurant is closed.
I would spend more time in Kyoto and less in Osaka. It takes a few days for the beauty of Kyoto to sink in but once it does it’s magical.
Also second seeing Himeji castle instead of Osaka castle.
Harajuku & Shibuya you can do on the same day. If you like cityscapes, go to the high rise area by Sumida river the next day and/or walk along the Rainbow Bridge for some amazing Tokyo Bay views. Take the Yurikamome line (get on the first or last carriage and try to get a spot by the window), maybe visit Odaiba.
If you have time, Yokohama has a nice skyline as well.
>Day 7 (OSAKA): Free and easy. Travel to tokyo via izumo sunrise train at night.
>Day 8 (TOKYO): Check in tokyo hotel. Free and easy at Shinjuku. Dinner at robot restaurant.
>Day 9 (TOKYO) : Lake Kawaguchi
Maybe instead of going straight to Tokyo overnight, take a different train and Stop at Odawara, then go up to lake Kawaguchi from there. There’s actually a few things to do in Odawara, if you have the time. Robot restaurant is closed.
Honestly: I would reverse the number of days in Kyoto and Osaka. By default, you’d plan at least 2½-3 days in Kyoto, a day in Osaka, a day in Nara (with perhaps afternoon in Osaka) and a day for Himeji/Kobe.
Half of your plans in Kansai do not make much sense – the following plan would have been a lot better:
Day 1: Kuromon Market, Kaiyukan, Tempozan Ferris Wheel (nice view of Osaka Bay), Osaka Museum of Housing and Living, evening spent in Umeda (shopping, Umeda Sky Building – panorama is much better at night, a dinner/drink in one of the arcades).
Day 2: Mino’o Park, Cup Noodle Museum and since you like cityscapes an afternoon/evening in Kobe (Ikuta Jinja, Chinatown) + Mt. Maya or Mt. Rokko gives you one of the top three night views of Japan.
Day 3: Himeji castle in the morning, Nishiki Market and Gear Theatre in the afternoon.
Day 4: Fushimi Inari, Byodo-in and tea shops in Uji, Todai-ji area and Nara Park
Day 5: J Cycle: Arashiyama, temples of northern Kyoto (Ninna-ji, Ryoan-ji, Kinkaku-ji, Kitano Tenmangu)
Day 6: Mt. Hiei in the morning for spectacular views of Kyoto, Southern Higashiyama in the afternoon, Gion
Day 7: Free day for whatever you want to do in Kansai.
While Sunset Seto/Izumo is somewhat unique experience, I’d probably stick to shinkansen.
Tokyo: Robot Restaurant is closed, possibly permanently. Days 10 and 11 are realistically to be combined. Note that you have not included any typical spots for cityscape (Mori Building, Bunkyo Civic Centre) or for places that you’d typically associate with urban photography (Yanaka Ginza, Ameya Yokocho, Koishikawa Korakuen and its contrast with Tokyo Dome and the eastern’s side skyscape).
Day 12: Unless your plane is leaving after midnight, you will not have enough time to catch Skytree after the dark.
Being a first time traveler to Japan, i can say that 12 days alone is definitely not enough for just Kanto region itself. There are so many things in Tokyo alone for a first timer, not to mention there’s Yokohama, Kamakura and even Hakone area.
The beginning of May, there’s Golden Week, u might wanna consider avoiding that week.
This is a personal opinion, but going all the way to arashiyama just to see the bamboo Grove seems a little of a waste. I highly recommend exploring the nearby temples, as well as cruising down the Hozugawa River if you have the budget for it.
Personally I don’t think Shibuya is all that can’t-miss for shopping. IMO, unique spots in Tokyo to shop:
– if you like vintage, Shimokitazawa is awesome. Over 200 vintage stores squeezed into the neighborhood full of really cool clothes, toys, and trickets. For sure my favorite thing I did in Tokyo.
– if you like anime or video games at all, Akihabara is fun. Tons of shopping and arcades. I don’t know that much about anime/games but went to Akihabara with a friend and had a really good time! I think it’s a really uniquely Japanese experience and it’s pretty fun to shop around there.
– Ameyoko in Ueno is fun for shopping! Lots of cute little spots, fun thrift stores and shops in the neighborhood.
– Asakusa/Asakusabashi near the temple has good food and cute little alleyways with shops. I think it’s fun to poke around a little there.
I dunno, I think stringently planning a trip takes some of the fun away. Next year, I plan to go to Japan, with just some money, some clothes, a basic understanding of the language, and see where I end up.