Hi all! Next week I will be traveling to Japan for my first time together with a friend. I have constructed a 12 day itinerary with the help of [japan.guide.com](https://japan.guide.com) and some itineraries from this sub. We will be buying a 7 day JR-pass (considering 14 days so we can use it from start to finish), as we’re planning to go from Kyoto, to Hiroshima, to Tokyo. My friend and I are both 22 years old, both into sushi and willing to try all different kinds of Japanese cuisine, enjoy doing short hikes in nature and love walking around busy cities, but also quiet cultural experiences such as temples. We are not really into manga or anime, but are both fans of Pokemon.
So, underneath our itinerary for almost 2 weeks can be seen. I have tried to make it detailed but also not too much to keep the length of this post somewhat short. For every place we plan on visiting I have set out a few of the main attractions we’d like to see, but this is not all we want to do on that day. Tokyo is still quite general as of now since I have to do a little bit more research on what exactly we can do in each place, but also because we simply want to be wandering around for some periods. Underneath the itinerary I also have some questions that are not really clear to me currently. If you have any suggestions, recommendations or remarks please let me know, they will be very much appreciated!
**Day 0 – 02/01 (Depart)**
* Fly from Amsterdam to Kansai Airport at 19:50
* Have a stopover in Seoul, explore Incheon airport for a bit
**Day 1 – 03/01 (Arrival)**
* Arrive at Kansai Airport at around 19:10
* Pick up JR pass and search for a pocket wifi provider
* Take the Haruka line to Kyoto and check in at our hotel
**Day 2 – 04/01 (Kyoto)**
* Visit Gion and Higashiyama:
* Kiyomizudera
* Ginkaku-Ji
* Heian Shrine
* Nanzen-Ji
**Day 3 – 05/01 (Kyoto)**
* Visit Arashiyama:
* Tenryuji Temple
* Bamboo Forest
* Monkey Park
* Visit Kinkaku-Ji afterwards
**Day 4 – 06/01 (Kyoto)**
* Central and Southern Kyoto:
* Fushimi Inari Shrine
* Nijo Castle
* Nishiki Market
**Day 5 – 07/01 (Nara)**
* (Activate 7-day JR pass)
* Make a day trip from Kyoto to Nara
* Nara Park
* Todaiji Temple
* Kofuku-Ji
**Day 6 – 08/01 (Miyajima)**
* Take the Shinkansen from Kyoto to Hiroshima
* Drop off our luggage early at our hotel (if possible)
* Take the JR ferry to Miyajima
* Spend the day on the island
* Itsukushima Shrine
* ‘Climbing’ Mount Misen
* Daisho-In Temple
* Go back to our hotel in Hiroshima and check in
**Day 7 – 09/01 (Hiroshima / Himeji)**
* Check out of our hotel and once again leave our luggage there
* Visit Hiroshima
* Centre of Hiroshima
* Hiroshima Castle
* Hiroshima Peace Park and possibly the museum
* Pick up luggage and take the Shinkansen towards Tokyo, possibly make a quick stop in Himeji to visit the castle
* Check in at our hotel in Tokyo
**Day 8 – 10/01 (Tokyo)**
* Shibuya and Shinjuku
**Day 9 – 11/01 (Tokyo)**
* Ginza and surrounding areas
**Day 10 – 12/01 (Mount Fuji)**
* Take the Fuji excursion train from Shinjuku to Kawaguchiko
* Spend the day in and around Kawaguchiko, traverse by buss or bike, depending on the weather
* Mt. Fuji Panoramic Ropeway
* Lake Kawaguchiko
* Chureito Pagoda
* Take the last Fuji excursion train back to Tokyo
**Day 11 – 13/01 (Tokyo)**
* (Final day JR pass)
* Asakusa and Akihabara
**Day 12 – 14/01 (Tokyo)**
* No real plans for this day yet, for now keeping it open to do anything that we couldn’t do in the previous days or things that we might spontanously run into. Otherwise possibly a visit to Nikko. Suggestions are also welcome
**Day 13 – 15/01 (Depart)**
* Take the Nartia Express to the airport
* Fly back from Narita Airport to Amsterdam at 12:30
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**Some questions:**
* For reasons I will not get into too much detail of, we won’t be able to make reservations beforehand for our JR-pass and pocket wifi. I’ve seen that purchasing a JR-pass can be done without problems at the airports, but I can’t really find any information on renting a pocket wifi without reservation. Does anybody know where this can be done in Kansai Airport?
* We plan on visiting Kawaguchiko using the Fuji excursion train. Up until Otsuki station is included in the JR-pass, but from there on you need to have a seperate ticket. Should we purchase this beforehand, or buy it from the conductor? How exactly does this work?
* What would be a good option if we can’t find a hotel that has a luggage storage (for when we need it such as in Hiroshima)? I’ve read somethihng about safes at stations but how trustworthy are those? Should we also buy locks that we can attach to a pole or something if we hand over our luggage at a hotel?
Thank you very much for any help!
2 comments
JR pass, get 7 days. You should check to buy it online from the official JR website. If you are in a situation you are not able to use a credit card, then yes it is possible to buy in Japan, but only at some specific stations.
For Fuji excursion, you should be able to book the ticket to/from Kawaguchiko at the ticket office and they should be able to charge you for the part that is not covered and you would have a seat reservation. While you can technically ride it with a reservation, you will have to give priority to people who book seat (so you might as well book it to avoid any problem).
Yes there is coin lockers in train stations, they are relatively safe, doubt people would often break in. If you leave luggage at a hotel, they would usually put in in a room you do not have access to. If you go for hostel, a lock might not be a bad idea.
Did almost the same trip recently. One note about the JR pass – I’m pretty sure there are no trains you can take from Kyoto to Hiroshima (the only ones that continue without stopping at Shin-Osaka are Nozomi trains), so you’ll have to transfer at Shin-Osaka. A minor inconvenience so I wouldn’t let it discourage you from getting the JR pass, but good to keep in mind.
Coin lockers are abundant across train stations and tourist attractions, but they can get full. We used them a few times, didn’t have any trouble. Storing your luggage at a hotel should be fine too if the hotel is reputable.