Me and my girlfriend (late 20s) are traveling to Japan soon between 20 November – 8 December. It’s my third time in Japan but the first time for my girlfriend. We will try to mix things up with some new stuff for me while also allowing her to see the major tourist sights. I’ve previously spent more time in Kansai and the Osaka area than Tokyo, so I would like to explore more of Kanto and Tokyo during this trip.
We made the math and 14 days JR Pass seemed worth it. We decided to get it from the official website even if it was ~10% more expensive than third party websites. The convenience of being able to reserve seats online beforehand for the rush hour trains seemed easily worth it so that we can sit next to each other on the long trains rides.
I hate rushing between sights in a city just to keep a schedule, so trying to not cram too much into each day. Some of our interests are museums, local culture, history, art, food, football (will def check out a bar when Japan play in the WC), photography, whiskey/sake/beer, manga and games.
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***Our plan so far is:***
**20 Nov – Tokyo**
* Arrive at Narita and take bus/train to hotel in Asakusa. Explore the area a bit and grab dinner before heading to bed.
**21 Nov – Tokyo**
* Explore Asakusa, Ueno and/or Akihabara. Maybe head to sky tree in the evening.
**22 Nov – Tokyo/Kusatsu onsen**
* Activation of JR pass. Head up to kusatsu onsen in the morning from Ueno and spend the day dipping into different onsens before sleeping at a Ryokan. We already reserved seats for the morning train.
**23 Nov – Kusatsu/Kanazawa**
* Bus+train to Kanazawa. This is a public holiday in Japan so unsure how it will affect traffic. We already made seat reservations for the train rides. Check in at hotel and explore old town or gardens.
**24 Nov – Kanazawa**
* Spend whole day at Kanazawa and explore old town, gardens, palace, museums, markets etc.
**25 Nov – Kanazawa/Shirakawa-Go/Takayama**
* Take bus from Kanazawa and explore Shirakawa-Go before taking another bus to Takayama. Check in at Takayama hotel and explore.
**26 Nov – Takayama**
* Full day in Takayama exploring shrines, old town etc.
**27 Nov – Takayama/Osaka**
* Going to Osaka instead of Kyoto first since hotels were cheaper and more available after the weekend. Check in at hotel that is a walking distance from dotonbori and explore the area. Maybe explore castle area instead.
**28 Nov – Osaka**
* Check out Osaka Castle or Aquarium, Namba, Dotonbori and maybe a quick visit to Tsutenkaku or Den Den town. Grab drinks around Dotonbori. Alternatively go to Himeji instead of Castle or Aquarium to utilize the JR pass.
**29 Nov – Osaka/Kyoto**
* Move over to Kyoto and explore downtown + some shrine/temple. Grab dinner/drinks someplace nice (any recommendations?).
**30 Nov – Kyoto**
* Full day in Kyoto for shrines, temple, Arashiyama.
**1 Dec – Kyoto**
* Another full day in Kyoto. Found some guides with recommend itineraries that we can follow. I’ve seen the major sights already, so gladly taking recommendations on what to focus on for a first time visitor.
**2 Dec – Kyoto/Tokyo**
* Wanted to squeeze in a tour to the Suntory Yamazaki distillery here or another Kansai day, but it got fully booked within the first minute of reservations opening up on the website 😢 maybe do a sake tour instead. Shinkansen to Tokyo and explore Ginza/Shimbashi.
**3 Dec – Tokyo**
* Day trip to Nikko or Kamakura
**4 Dec – Tokyo**
* Day trip to Nikko or Kamakura
**5 Dec – Tokyo**
* Last day of JR Pass. Maybe day trip to Yokohama unless we want to visit some specific museum. Otherwise explore Shibuya, Harajuku and Shinjuku
**6 Dec – Tokyo**
* Koenji, Nakano + Ikebukuro?
**7 Dec – Tokyo**
* Not sure
**8 Dec – Tokyo**
* Check out of Hotel and explore some parts of Tokyo before heading to the airport after dinner.
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Does the plan make sense or should we move some days around? All of the hotels booked so far are refundable, so if something seems unreasonable we can change our plans.
Honestly the biggest issue we have is deciding on where to stay during the 6 night Tokyo period. During previous trips (last one 5 years ago) I’ve stayed at Airbnbs around Shinjuku and really liked the area. But that was before Airbnb got regulated and it was way cheaper than hotels. We don’t usually go out to clubs a lot, but we do enjoy going to bars. Not sure if it’s worth staying in the Shinjuku/Ikebukuro area if we might only go out to a club one night and mostly hang at bars/Izakayas.
Right now I have a few different hotels booked that we’re trying to decide between (or just get a Airbnb in another area): **Ikebukuro** (Hotel Wing International Select Ikebukuro), **Akebonobashi** which is 20-30 min walk from Shinjuku if train stops running (Pearl Hotel Shinjuku Akebonobashi), **Shimbashi** area next to a bunch of subway stations (Hotel Wing International Shimbashi Onarimon), **Akihabara** (KEIKYU EX INN Akihabara) and **Asakusabashi** (ICI HOTEL Asakusabashi). I saw a pretty nice Airbnb in Kameido but that area looked a bit too residential. Any recommendations on which area to stay in that has some nice and chill bars/Izakayas close by?
2 comments
I recommend staying in Shinbashi.
You can have a drink at an izakaya and walk back to your hotel. Shinbashi is one of the areas with the most bars and izakayas in Japan. But, the area around the hotel is an office district, so it is quiet and away from the area with many restaurants. And Zojoji Temple, Shiba Park, and Hamarikyu Gardens are nearby, and the hotel is also close to Shiodome station for easy access to the Odaiba area. It would be nice to just take a walk around the hotel when you have no plans, or you can go somewhere on a sudden impulse.
If you want to go club, you can get on at Onarimon station and go right to Roppongi or Azabu.
For where to stay in Tokyo, I love staying in Akasaka. Near 3 metro stations, lots of great restaurants and bars, and a nightlife vibe without the overwhelming nature of Shinjuku. Lots of hotels in this area too at a range of price points. I really think it’s a hidden gem of a neighborhood to stay in Tokyo.
– [Hie Shrine](https://maps.google.com?g_st=ic)
– [Thousand Toriis at Hie (great photos at night)](https://maps.google.com?g_st=ic)
– [Toyokawa Inari Betsuin (great at night too)](https://maps.google.com?g_st=ic)
– [State Guesthouse Akasaka](https://maps.app.goo.gl/6yTMMP3woyRDdgqZ6?g_st=ic)
– [Dobrogi Hungarian Bar and Grill](https://maps.app.goo.gl/tFYWLHnqPt6dwccMA?g_st=ic)
– [Streamer Coffee](https://maps.app.goo.gl/shbPNf8hYANMQgRj7?g_st=ic)
– [Champagne and Gyoza Bar](https://maps.app.goo.gl/EW7xecSMPaUHXowQ6?g_st=ic)
– [Tebasaki Original](https://maps.app.goo.gl/5agSBtXtZucfvjpS8?g_st=ic)
And soooo many more restaurants in the area too. Just put Akasaka into the area search on Booking or other sites and you’ll find a huge range of hotel options in this area. If I were to ever live in central Tokyo I’d probably look at this neighborhood seriously for convenience, price, restaurants, and amenities like kids parks.
For a nice bar in Kyoto, our friends loved these spots. Unfortunately we didn’t get to check them out as they were closed due to Covid restrictions (we were living in Japan at the time) but my friend is a cocktail fanatic so I definitely trust her recommendations.
– [Bee’s Knees](https://maps.app.goo.gl/7xNF2h8gHcbTSP7x7?g_st=ic)
– [L’escamatour](https://maps.app.goo.gl/WWLyQoFDrPTLHCrZ9?g_st=ic)
Your dates in Kyoto should overlap with some autumn leaves illuminations too. It’s fun to go to these before/after dinner and let’s you squeeze in one more garden/shrine as they normally close at 5 but stay open late for the illuminations.
– [6 Kyoto Temples with Autumn Light-ups](https://www.timeout.com/tokyo/news/temples-and-shrines-in-kyoto-are-holding-evening-illuminations-this-autumn-101321)