I’ve been to Japan a few times before and now that tourism is back open I’m taking another trip and visiting a new region. Here’s a few notes about me and my itinerary:
* I speak and read poor Japanese, but enough to get around fairly rural Tohoku without much trouble, so I’m pretty sure I’ll be fine in Kyushu too even out of city centers.
* I LOVE theme parks. I travel around the world just to go to the best ones, so this itinerary includes a lot of them.
* I’m not renting a car. I know that there’s a lot of amazing places in Kyushu you need a car to get too, so I guess I’m not going to those.
* I’ve been to Tokyo and Osaka a lot (because theme parks) so I’ve been to most of the attractions around there I find interesting.
* I’ll have a JR Kyushu pass for the Kyushu part. Did the math for the rest of the trip and it doesn’t pay itself off. A 21 day one technically might save me money if I take expensive day trips for no reason, but it’d still be iffy.
* Generally when I travel I don’t make specific plans for specific days, except for timed tickets and such. I just go with the flow of the moment and if I miss something cool, no big deal.
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1/31: Land in Tokyo
* I’ll land mid-day, not planning on doing much either then going to the hotel and eating.
2/1-2/2: Tokyo Disney Resort
* I know I’ll be jet-lagged, but these are the only non-weekend dates I have. I’ll take being tired over weekend crowds easily. Super hyped to do the new Beauty and the Beast ride, looks amazing. And going to the best theme park in the world in Tokyo Disneysea is never a bad day either.
2/3-2/4: Tokyo
* No real plans, I’ll just do whatever I feel like on the day of. Maybe take a day trip to Kamakura, never been there and it looks nice.
2/5-2/7: Osaka
* I plan on mostly going to other places and using this as a base since I’ve done all the local stuff before. Himeji seems cool. I’d also like to go back to Nara. I don’t really like Kyoto all that much because it’s crowded as hell and I don’t know the history of the sites anyway so might as well just go to different temples and such where there aren’t hordes of domestic tourists. But I was thinking about going from Nara to Kyoto station because they’re doing Hunchback of Notre Dame right in a theater right next to the station. Seems like a blast to see that in Japanese.
2/8: Universal Japan
* Super Nintendo World baaaaaaaaaaaybe. Pretty much the thing I most want to do on the entire trip. Looks absolutely fantastic.
2/8: Overnight ferry to Kagoshima
* Ferries are fun, saves a nights hotel stay so actually cheaper then alternative options.
2/10-2/12: Kagoshima
* Now we get to the part of the trip I don’t have much in mind for. The volcanic island right next to the city seems cool. If you have advice for things to do in and around these cities in Kyushu I can do via public transit, I’d be glad to here it.
2/13-2/16: Fukuoka
* Dazaifu and Yoshinogari Historical Park look like fun places to visit. Otherwise just seems like a nice city to see the local sites.
2/17-2/18: Yufuin
* Relaxing Ryokan stay. Maybe I’ll go to Beppu if I feel like it, maybe just hang around the onsen town and take a ton of baths. I plan on taking the Yufuin no Mori train to get here which should be nice.
2/19-2/20: Kumamoto
* Everything I look up to do from here is a logistical mess. Mt. Aso seems cool in theory, but without a car it’ll be tough. I could take the A-Train to the seaside? But what do I do when I’m there?
2/21-2/22: Huis Ten Bosch
* Probably the most controversial part of this itinerary. The more I look into this place, the better it seems. I love Japan and I love the Netherlands which I’ve been to a lot (because themeparks). So a Japanese themepark about the Netherlands? It’s like it was made for me. Going to stay in that hotel that looks like Amsterdam central station, have a great view of fake Dom tower. Fantastic.
2/23-2/25: Nagasaki
* Honestly at this point in the trip I’ll probably be in hang around the city and not do much mode. Nagasaki seems like a fine place for that.
2/26-2/27: Fly to Tokyo then fly home
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So that’s the plan. If something here doesn’t make sense let me know. I’d also love to here what recommendations you have for Kyushu stuff, although again I won’t have a car.