Hi everyone!
as the title suggests, at the end of December I will visit Japan with my girlfriend (30yo) and my parents (60yo). A bit of context: it is a trip I had long planned to celebrate my father’s 60th birthday; he has never traveled much outside of Europe, and when he said he would like to come with me in my next travel, I was over the moon! So after postponing for three years I finally started organizing the trip, and even if I’m not wildly enthusiastic about the period and above all about how much I paid for the plane tickets, now it’s done: we’re ready to go!
The “constraints” I have are the following (in this order of importance):
* my parents are good walkers, but not really hikers -> I would avoid hiking paths and location like Mount Koya, also considering the period
* they really want to visit the Peace Park in Hiroshima
* my girlfriend asked me to spend the last days in Tokyo
* I would like to see something new other than Kyoto and Tokyo and surroundings (which I am always happy to see again, just to be clear). My idea was to go to Shirakawa-go and Kanazawa, which I never visited before.
Given those, the itinerary I planned is the following:
**D1, Dec 27: NRT/Kyoto**
* 6pm: arrival at NRT
* 6 – 7:30pm: arrival procedures and exchange of JR Passes
* 7:30pm – 11:30pm: train to Kyoto (Narita Express, then Hikari)
* 11:30pm: arrival at Comfort Hotel Kyoto Toji (around station area – we would leave here most of the baggages for the next two days)
**D2, Dec 28: Kyoto/Himeji Castle/Hiroshima**
* 9am – 10am: train from Kyoto to Himeji Castle
* 10am – 12:30pm: visiting Himeji Castle
* 12:30pm – 1:30pm: lunch somewhere in the area
* 1:30pm – 3pm: train to Hiroshima
* 3pm – 4pm: checkin at Hiroshima Daiwa Roynet (around the station)
* 4pm – 6pm: visit at Peace Memorial
* 6pm on: dinner and go to sleep
**D3, Dec 29: Hiroshima/Miyajima/Kyoto**
* 9am – 10am: arriving to Miyajima
* 10am – 12:30pm: Mt. Misen
* 12:30pm – 1:30pm: lunch somewhere in the area
* 1:30pm – 3:30pm: visiting Itsukushima Shrine
* 3:30pm – 6:30pm: train to Hiroshima and back to Kyoto
* 6:30pm on: checkin at Comfort Hotel Kyoto Toji, dinner and go to sleep
**D4, Dec 30: Kyoto/Osaka/Kyoto**
* 9am – 1pm: Kinkakuji, Ryoanji, (Ninnaji if we have enough time)
* 1pm – 2pm: lunch
* 2pm – 4:30pm: Tenryuji, Arashiyama Bamboo forest
* 4:30pm – 6pm: train from Saga Arashiyama to Osaka Nippombashi
* 6pm – 10pm: walk around Dotonbori and dinner
* 10pm – 11pm: train back to Kyoto
**D5, Dec 31: Kyoto/Kanazawa**
(before checkout: I am considering whether to send baggages to Tokyo directly)
* 9am – 1pm: Philosopher path starting from Ginkakuji and temples along the way
* 1pm – 2pm: lunch
* 2pm – 4pm: stroll or bus from Sanjugansendo to Fushimi Inari Taisha
* 4pm – 7pm: Fushimi Inari Taisha
* 7pm – 9pm: train to Kanazawa
* 9:30pm: checkin at Kanazawa Hotel Vista
**D6, Jan 1: Kanazawa/Shirakawa-go/Tokyo**
* 8am – 11am: Kenrokuen and Kanazawa Castle Grounds
* 11am – 1pm: bus to Shirakawa-go
* 1pm – 4pm: lunch and exploring Shirakawa-go
* 4pm – 8:30pm: from Shirakawa-go to Tokyo (bus to Shin-Takaoka, then train – that’s what Hyperdia suggests)
* 9pm: checkin at Tobu Hotel Levant
* 9pm on: dinner around Tokyo Skytree and go to sleep
**D7, Jan 2: Tokyo**
* 9am – 1pm: Tsukiji outer market, then Ginza area and shopping
* 1pm – 2pm: lunch
* 2pm – 8pm: Akihabara area and shopping
* 8pm on: visit at SpaLaQua
**D8, Jan 3: Tokyo**
* 9am – 1pm: Shibuya, Meiji Jingu and Harajuku
* 1pm – 2pm: lunch
* 2pm – 8pm: Shinjuku
**D9, Jan 4: Tokyo**
* 9am – 1pm: Asakusa and Ueno areas
* 1pm – 2pm: lunch
* 2pm – 8pm: TeamLab Planets, then Odaiba monorail and walk around Odaiba Marine Park
**D10, Jan 5: Tokyo/NRT**
* everything that we missed in Tokyo
* 7pm: train to NRT
What do you think? Too much stuff? Are they going to hate me for all these trains? I want to make it unforgettable, but not for the pain…
I tried to have the most stressful part right at the beginning, so to be able to relax a bit more during the last few days in Tokyo, which is the reason why I kept them also more open and flexible. I don’t really like having Hiroshima right at the beginning, but both Himeji and the Peace Memorial are going to be closed on Dec 29-30…and finally, I am a bit worried about the very first day. Hyperdia tells me that it is possible to arrive from Narita to Kyoto leaving at 7.30pm, but Navitime tells me the opposite…any expert here?
Thanks in advance to all those who will give their opinion!
3 comments
Way too much stuff. Do half. Otherwise this is not gonna be not fun.
And no way would I attempt getting to Kyoto on that first day. Just go directly to himeji from tokyo on the next day.
My partner (m 53) and I (f 55) are on our last day of a two week trip. We visited Tokyo, Hakone, Kyoto, and Hiroshima. We’ve had a wonderful time but are exhausted and ready to head home. Looking over your itinerary, I think you’re being a bit ambitious. You will be walking A LOT. More down time will be appreciated by your sore feet! Here are a few more of my thoughts:
– definitely take advantage of the luggage forwarding service. You don’t want to be lugging your suitcase with you anywhere and it’s so nice to have them delivered right to you!
– on day 4, I highly recommend starting at Otegi Nenbutsuji temple (I loved this quirky little temple!) and walking down to Arishiyama. There are several lovely temples along the way and the walk itself is beautiful. Stop for lunch near Okochi Sanso village.
– add Suica to you Apple wallet if you have an iPhone. Load it up and use it to pay for just about everything. So handy!
-get a pocket WiFi at the airport. It’s cheap and keeps you connected everywhere.
– we didn’t think Hiroshima was stressful at all. It’s a beautiful city and easy to get around. Miyajima was great, too. Make a reservation for the ropeway and ride up the mountain. We didn’t hike to the summit but it wasn’t a priority for us.
– we left Tokyo for our final days and actually wish we had left Hakone for our final destination. It would be nice to sit in an onsen and relax after many days of go go go. Tokyo is a big, busy city. Fun but not relaxing!
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This is waaaaaaaaaayyyyy too packed. You could probably do this if you are solo travellers in your 20’s, but that’s about it.
Since Hiroshima is a must, you need to choose between Kanazawa/Shirakawa-go and Kyoto/Osaka. You can’t realistically visit both on such a short trip with Hiroshima required.
I am not sure how good you evaluate your parent’s mobility, because Kyoto is to be honest more hilly than Koya-san mountaintops. A walk from Himeji station to Himeji castle itself may already take 30 minute for a slow walker.