Hello JapanTravel,
now that borders are opening up again, we are planning to go on our 3 times postponed trip to Tohoku in mid to late April 2023. This would be my 5th trip, my parents’ 3rd trip, so we are trying to go to the less touristy spots as we covered them before. I really would like to see Hachinohe (with its Saturday morning market) and the area around Aomori. \
I have tried once on this sub but couldn’t get any answers, so maybe a second time with more focus works:
– Can we see sakura in Tohoku (Sendai, Zao/Yamadera, Aomori) in late April?
– How full is that area during Golden Week?
– Is the morning market on Saturdays in Hachinohe still going strong or can you skip it now?
– How can you fit Yamadera into the trip: Before or after staying at Zao Onsen?
– Is it possible to get out of Narita Airport within 1h of landing? We might need to grab the last possible train to Sendai if we land at 6:35pm. I have seen that the last train would be 7:14pm via train to Ueno, are there any other options?
Plan is about 16 days from 15th of April until 2nd of May and included should be 3 nights at Zao Onsen, 5 nights in Sendai, 3 nights in Aomori: \
Arrive in Tokyo on 15th, stay the night if flight arrives past 7 or 8pm \
Tokyo -> Sendai on last train or early on 16th \
16-18: Sendai, activate JR Pass \
19: Matsushima day trip \
20: Morioka day trip \
21: Sendai -> Aomori, check into Hotel \
22: Hachinohe day trip: Saturday market with first train from Aomori\
23: Hakodate day trip \
24: Aomori -> Zao onsen, JR Pass ends \
24-27: Zao Onsen, Okama Crater \
27: Zao -> Tokyo \
27-02: Tokyo \
1 comment
It is possible to get out of Narita in under one hour provided you don’t have any checked bags.
As far as Tohoku goes, by far the best part of the region is along the Sea of Japan side.