Trip Report: Traveling Tokyo and Kyoto with a toddler!

Here is a general overview of how our trip went. It was Me, my wife, and 1.5 year old daughter.

This subreddit was very helpful in determining what to do on our family trip and provided some great advice overall. However, I received some negative feedback about bringing a toddler to Japan and was advised multiple times to leave my child at home or not bother going at all because it won’t be fun. I thought I’d share my experience for those interested. Some people had asked me to do a trip report, and I apologize for the delay, but here it is now!

**Traveling with a toddler in Japan:** Overall, this was pretty smooth and not too difficult, but it depends on the child. Japan, especially Tokyo, was super baby-friendly, and we saw kids everywhere – eating at restaurants, on trains, walking outside, in baby carriers, strollers, etc. There were many Japanese mothers who took their babies on trains as well. So, you won’t feel out of place at all bringing your baby on the trains. One thing I will say is that some roads/sidewalks are not very smooth for a baby stroller. Since we brought a small umbrella stroller, it wasn’t all that useful in some areas. We ended up using the baby carrier 80% of the time and stroller the other times. The stroller got most of its use in Tokyo Disneyland.

**Getting around Tokyo/Japan:** We didn’t have the greatest experience right off the bat. When we got off the plane, my wife and I got lost in Narita Airport because we couldn’t find the check-out process (Covid QR code, Immigration, customs). We asked two information booths, and neither one of them knew. Their English wasn’t the best, but that was fine. We ended up going back to our original gate to find out that all we had to do was go up the stairs, and from there, we were directed. Signs would have been nice, but oh well! After this, getting around was easy, and Google Maps was amazing at listing what trains to take, etc. I highly recommend it.

**Spending time in Tokyo with a toddler:** Let’s be honest, some days weren’t the greatest, and my daughter would be really fussy. It took her a few days to get over the jet lag, so some days she was wide awake at 3:00 AM, which sucked. Some days we didn’t leave the Airbnb until 1:00 PM. Other days we were able to leave earlier. We kept our itinerary very short and expectations low. For sushi we mainly ate at conveyor belt restaurants which are very baby friendly, and overall family friendly. The sushi isn’t the best in Tokyo obviously, but very easy to get a quick bite. Our favorite thing to get in Japan was ramen and I know there is probably better ramen out there but Ichiran was our favorite spot to go to. Some locations have tables which is very easy with kids.

**Tokyo Disneyland:** The worst experience we had was probably taking her to Tokyo Disneyland. Disneyland itself was fine, but the weather was so cold. It was probably 28-30 degrees while we were there, but the wind chill was just brutal. Even with all our layers, we were pretty miserable. We are from California, so that would explain it. Otherwise, we were able to go on some rides, but I would definitely recommend waiting until your kids are older and don’t go when its freezing cold.

**Getting to Kyoto:** Our initial ride on the Shinkansen into Kyoto was tough again. Our daughter was very fussy and tired. Once we were able to get her to sleep, the ride was awesome. I had to stand in between two trains to try to get her to calm down and sleep. The trains are super quiet, so I felt horrible when she started crying. I did not want to disturb others.

**Kyoto with a toddler:** I found Kyoto to not be nearly as baby-friendly as Tokyo. While the roads are very stroller-friendly, most restaurants we found weren’t, and it takes a lot longer to get to the things you want to do. We also weren’t able to do much on our itinerary because our daughter was starting to get really sick of the carrier as well.

**Will we return?** Absouletly. Our plan is to wait a couple years till our dauughter is older and would love to just spend a few weeks in Tokyo. There is so much to see and do there you can easily spend a whole month and not get bored.

**So, would I recommend going to Japan with a toddler or baby?** Like I said before, it depends on the child. Going with a baby (6 months) will probably be very easy as they won’t mind being in a carrier all day. A toddler, on the other hand, who wants to constantly run and walk around is going to be a different story. You’ll have to assess how your toddler does when you go on trips and go from there, but I definitely recommend going with a baby.

**Recommendations** **with a baby/toddler:** I highly recommend renting an AirBnb over a hotel because of the useful amenities they provide, such as a kitchen, microwave, washer/dryer, etc. Just be sure to do your homework and choose an Airbnb with good reviews. We found an awesome child-friendly one in Shinagawa that had a whole loft and play area for our little one. The other one in Kyoto was also very baby-friendly, and both hosts were very accommodating.

If you have any specific questions about the trip or how to travel to Japan with a baby or toddler, feel free to ask!