I’m traveling to Japan for the first time with my spouse and our 3-year-old in late August (after Obon). We will be coming from Melbourne after visiting my best friend and her new baby (thus the worst time of year to visit Japan – it’s the baby’s schedule, not mine!), so don’t have to worry much about jet lag. We are also from the Mid-Atlantic US, so somewhat accustomed to heat and humidity.
We are pretty clear on much of our itinerary, but are looking to spend 1-2 nights *not* in Tokyo/Osaka/Kyoto. We like nature, culture, and history. After making a list and ruling out some options (like Koyasan – our 3yo is loud!), we are down to Miyajima and Takayama.
Miyajima pros:
*we’re already going to Hiroshima
*have heard it’s chill at night
*beautiful mountain with cable car to save some walking
*deer
*the shrine and torii
Miyajima cons:
*hot (tho maybe the beach there would make this better)
*touristy, possibly crowded
Takayama pros:
*probably cooler due to elevation
*more varied stuff to do
*handcrafts shopping
*beautiful scenery
Takayama cons:
*more annoying to get to, though our kid is a great train traveler
Is there anything I’m missing here in terms of pros/cons? What would you do?
Is there anywhere we may not have considered?
3 comments
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Hi!
Takayama is still very hot during the day time. I went there at the end of June 2017 and while it was cooler once it got dark and early in the morning, in the day time it was hot.
If you’re already going to Hiroshima it makes a lot of sense to go to Miyajima. I’ve not gone to Japan with a 3 year old, but when my daughter was 6 and visited both Miyajima and Takayama, I think she preferred Miyajima. I think honestly, Takayama also has fewer things for young children. My daughter loved low tide at Miyajima, she loved going out onto the beach and looking at crabs and other animals left behind in smaller pools of water.
Takayama looks prettier, but I would say they are both equally touristy. If your goal is to try to get away from touristy areas, I would pick somewhere else, probably somewhere reachable by car, since that tends to cut down on tourism quite a bit.
I went to Miyako last december for Christmas. It wasn’t crowded and is very easy to explore the island. The airport has a bus stop outside and even if you take taxi, is kind of cheap due the crossing the island from side to side takes 30 min.
I loved it! I recommend 🙂 and it was winter… so no swim. But I explored by bycicle and it was very nice experience.
idk the other…
Have a lovely trip