I’m solo traveling to Japan from April 1 to April 14, this is my first time going to Japan and I’ve been struggling a bit with what to do, what not to do, and what is possible on a single day. Any help would be appreciated 😀
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**Day 0 – Tokyo**
* I’m actually arriving on March 31 at Haneda Airport at about 15:00 japan time.
* Get JRPass, delay activation for day 1, and pick up the portable wifi.
* Go to accommodations and take it easy, it’s a 12-hour difference so Jet Lag will be strong.
* What would be good as a first meal in Japan?
**Day 1 – Hakone**
* Get the Hakone Free Pass and take a One Day trip to Hakone.
* When back in Tokyo go to Golden Gai.
**Day 2 – Kawasaki**
* Kanayama Jinja Shrine for the Penis Festival
* is this something that would take me most of the day? Info online seems to suggest it goes from 10 am to 5 pm, should I maybe go for the last 3 hours or something like that? Depending on this I might add more activities to this day
* Take a shinkansen to Kyoto.
* It will be late when in Kyoto so I’m just thinking about scouting around and getting some good food.
**Day 3 – Kyoto**
* Arashiyama Bamboo Forest
* Tenryū-ji Temple
* Arashiyama Monkey Park Iwatayama
* Taishogun Shopping Street – Ichijo Yokai Street
* Kinkaku-ji
* Kyoto Imperial Palace
* Looks like some cool stuff will be there for this upcoming spring
**Day 4 – Kyoto**
* Fushimi Inari Taisha
* Inari Shrine
* Nishiki Market
* Philosopher’s Path
* Kiyomizu-dera
**Day 5 – Nara**
* Nara will be a Day trip, exploring the park, temples, and museums around
* At the end of the day, I’ll move to Osaka, depending on the time I’ll consider going out to see the city at night and eating.
**Day 6 – Osaka**
* Universal Studios. I’m mostly interested in the Nintendo area, but I’ve never been to a park of this magnitude so I’m guessing this will be a whole-day activity.
**Day 7 – Osaka**
* Dotonbori Glico signs and the surrounding area
* I’m mostly interested in food, I already have some places planned to visit, but I’m open to recommendations!
* America-mura
* Tsutenkaku tower and surrounding area.
* I’d love to visit the Osaka Aquarium Kaiyukan, but not sure how much it would take, does it seems doable to have on this day?
**Day 8 – Himeji and Hiroshima**
* For Himeji I’m only planning to see Himeji Castle, after that I’m going straight to Hiroshima.
* For Hiroshima, I’m mostly interested in the Atomic Bomb Dome and the surrounding area, and museums.
* Okonomimura for okonomiyaki
* Again, any food recommendations here? 😀
**Day 9 – Beppu**
* Early trip to Beppu
* 7 Hells of Beppu
* Onsens and more onsens, this day and night will be all about relaxation
**Day 10 – Tokyo**
* Shinkansen my way back to Tokyo. It is quite the distance, would it worth it to take a Night Train and spend the day on Beppu instead?
**Day 11 -Tokyo**
* Now back to Tokyo proper, leaving it at the end because I’ll do a lot of shopping and didn’t want to be carrying the stuff all around Japan.
* Asakusa temple and Kappabashi shopping
* Ginza area exploring and shopping
**Day 12 – Tokyo**
* Akihabara exploring and shopping
* Ikebukuro exploring and shopping
**Day 13 – Tokyo**
* Shinjuku exploring and shopping
* Shibuya exploring and shopping
**Day 14 – Tokyo**
* Departure from Narita Airport is at about 4 pm, this day I’d probably only be able to have some breakfast in the morning and that’s it.
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Some additional points and questions
* Would it be realistic to go to Beppu on Day 8? even if I arrive late at night, it would be great to have a full day in that city for Day 9.
* Day 10 is kind of a mystery on how I’ll end up doing it, so depending on the time I arrive I could go start visiting some places in Tokyo right away.
* Are the pairings I did for days 11, 12, and 13 realistic to do in one day each? I’ll be on my own, I’m a fast walker and don’t get tired easily, I’m also very motivated so I know I’ll be able to keep going and moving.
I’m trying to close on this itinerary as soon as possible so I can close on the reservations I need to.
Thanks for the help!
3 comments
You should go to Dotonbori at night. Maybe the day you arrive from Nara. Are you using the Black cat luggage delivery? If so you could just go straight to Dotonbori.
>Shinkansen my way back to Tokyo. It is quite the distance, would it worth it to take a Night Train and spend the day on Beppu instead?
Night trains are pretty rare, expensive and difficult to book. I don’t think there’s any that passes through Beppu. I think your only real alternative is flying or the overnight buses.
https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2356.html
Edit: ferries might also be possible.
About the Kanayama Jinja penis festival, it’s not really a whole day thing. I went 4 years ago when it was all over the internet and it was pretty disappointing. Mostly people from the base and other tourists, not a lot of food or anything, not a lot going on, and not a lot of other things to do in the area. If you do go to it I would only plan for it to be a half day thing at most.