Hi guys,
Traveling to Japan for the first time in my life arriving on March 23rd and leaving on April 13th. We are a 33 y.o. couple, we will have a JR pass and have all nights booked of course. We would like to try some typical dishes for sure without being able to spend too much though (Sushi, ramen, tonkatsu, gyoza, konbini food), I’m a \`\`mild\`\` fan of mainstream anime/Shōnen and Ghibli movies. Interested in taking long walks and visiting temples without going into temple-overload, and taking some nice pictures, hopefully with some Sakura viewing. A bit worried about crowds being too much, but nothing we can do about that during Sakura season so getting mentally prepared. Our itinerary looks like this:
Day 0 (March 23rd, Thursday) – Tokyo – Landing at Narita around 4 PM, after 30 hours travel from my country. I expect to be heavily jet lagged and tired, 12 hour timezone difference, so I don’t plan on anything on this day. Just arriving in our hotel in Asakusa, picking up something from a nearby konbini and sleep as needed. Night in Asakusa.
Day 1 (March 24th, Friday) – Tokyo – Asakusa (Senso-ji, Nakamise and Kaminarimon) and Sumida Park in the morning for cherry blossom viewing. Ueno park/Ameyoko for lunch and early afternoon, then going into Akihabara for afternoon shopping (Radio Kaikan, Super Potato, Bookoff? maybe a Game Center) + dinner. Night in Asakusa.
Day 2 (March 25th, Saturday) – Tokyo – Chidorigafuchi and Imperial palace gardens in the morning. Ginza for lunch and early afternoon, mainly for Ginza Itoya / Uniqlo (until around 5 PM), then going to Teamlab Planets where we have tickets for entry 6.30 – 7.00 PM. Back to Tokyo Tower for some night photos and then Ginza/Shinbashi for dinner. Night in Asakusa.
Day 3 (March 26th, Sunday) – Tokyo – Shinjuku Gyoen in the morning, for some more cherry blossoms, Meiji Shrine/Harajuku, then going to Shibuya for some lunch and Shibuya Parco for Pokemon Center/Mega Donki (we might move Shibuya to our April leg in Tokyo If this day is too full). Afternoon/sunset we would go to Nakameguro to see the illuminations (If they occur this year) or just to be by the riverside. Night in Asakusa.
Day 4 (March 27th, Monday) – Hiroshima/Miyajima – Shinkansen to Hiroshima arriving by lunchtime. Okonomimura for lunch, Hiroshima Peace Park. Ferry to Miyajima in the afternoon for check-in at hotel (probably will grab some dinner at a konbini previous to crossing as we know dinner options are scarce in Miyajima). Depending on the time of arrival, we might take a walk around Itsukushima shrine and that’s it. Night in Miyajima.
Day 5 (March 28th, Tuesday) – Miyajima – Full day for Miyajima, trying to take it easy and visit Itsukushima shrine, Daisho-in and, only If time allows, take the funicular up to Mount Misen. Night in Miyajima.
Day 6 (March 29th, Wednesday) – Himeji/Osaka – Ferry back to Hiroshima and Shinkansen to Himeji, spending 3-4 hours in there visiting Himeji castle grounds (not sure we´ll go inside) and Koko-en. Train to Osaka in the afternoon. Staying around Osaka Namba, so planning on having dinner in the area and visiting Dotonbori. Night in Namba (Osaka).
Day 7 (March 30th, Thursday) – Osaka – Full day for Osaka, planning on visiting Osaka castle (from the outside) and Yasaka Namba shrine in the morning, Shin Sekai for lunch, maybe afternoon in Den Den Town and back for dinner/evening in Dotonbori/Namba area. Night in Namba (Osaka).
Day 8 (March 31st, Friday) – Koyasan – Traveling to Koyasan for arrival around lunch time, check-in at our accommodation and visiting a few temples (Kongobuji, Danjo Garan complex). Okunoin cemetery tour at 7 PM. Night in Koyasan.
Day 9 (April 1st, Saturday) – Kyoto – As this is a Saturday where we’d be arriving in Kyoto during full bloom, we know crowds will be extremely heavy, so we plan on taking it easy. Well have lunch around Kyoto station, leave our luggage in the hotel and go to Arashiyama to visit Gio-ji (maybe), Otagi Nenbutsuji and Adashino Nenbutsuji temples. Dinner reservation for 7.30 PM at a sushi place we got a recommendation for (near Nijo castle). Night in Kyoto.
Day 10 (April 2nd, Sunday) – Kyoto – Early morning – 7 AM?- for Fushimi Inari to beat (some of) the crowds, spending 2/3 hours hiking a bit and taking pictures. Train to Nara for lunch and full afternoon (Todaiji, Nara Park, Kasuga-taisha, maybe Sahogawa riverbed for sunset). Train back to Kyoto at night for late dinner probably at Konbini or Kyoto station. Night in Kyoto.
Day 11 (April 3rd, Monday) – Kyoto – Early morning for Sannenzaka and Ninnenzaka to beat some of the crowds for nice pictures, Kiyomizudera. Walk through Southern Higashiyama, Nene-no-michi/Ishibei-koji lane up to Maruyama Park and Heian Shrine. Afternoon in Gion. Night in Kyoto.
Day 12 (April 4th, Tuesday) – Kyoto – Early morning for Arashiyama (Bamboo grove and Monkey park for sure, optionally Okochi-Sanso villa If worth it?). Lunch near riverside and then going to Narutaki station for Sakura photographs, going afterwards to Kinkakuji. Night in Kyoto.
Day 13 (April 5th, Wednesday) – Kyoto/Nagoya – Morning for Philosophers path, including visit to Ginkakuji and Honen-in, Nanzen-ji and Keage Incline. Then having lunch and taking the train to Nagoya, depending on the arrival time might walk a little bit around Nagoya (Tsuruma park If with sakura?). Night in Nagoya.
Day 14 (April 6th, Thursday) – Nakasendo – In the morning going from Nagoya to Magome, to do the Magome-Tsumago section and onto Nagiso. Around 3 PM back to Nagoya and another train to Takayama to spend the night. Night in Takayama.
Day 15 (April 7th, Friday) – Takayama – Full day for Takayama (Takayama Jinja, Old town, Daioji temple). Night in Takayama.
Day 16 (April 8th, Saturday) – Shirakawa-go/Kanazawa – Bus to Shirakawa-go in the morning, spending 3-4 hours there, then onto Kanazawa around 1 PM for lunch (Omicho market maybe?) and check-in at hotel. Afternoon for Kanazawa. It might already be too late for Sakura. Night in Kanazawa.
Day 17 (April 9th, Sunday) – Kanazawa – Full day for Kanazawa (Higashi-chaya district, Kanazawa castle grounds and Kenrokuen). Asian Riverbed for sakura viewing only If in bloom or just afterwards. Night in Kanazawa.
Day 18 (April 10th, Monday) – Tokyo – Arrival around noon from Kanazawa via Shinkansen. Having lunch and going to Ghibli museum for 2 PM entrance tickets we have. No fixed plans afterwards, we might spend some more time in Kichijoji near the museum, going back to Shinjuku for hotel check-in and dinner would be either around Golden Gai/Omoide Yokocho or Shin-Okubo. Stay in Shinjuku.
Day 19 (April 11th, Tuesday) – Tokyo – Kamakura day trip from Tokyo probably, we might either add Enoshima for the afternoon/sunset or go back to Tokyo and spend some more time around Shibuya/Shinjuku. Dinner around Golden Gai/Omoide Yokocho or Shin-Okubo, but could be somewhere else. Stay in Shinjuku.
Day 20 (April 12th, Wednesday) – Tokyo – This is a free day we would leave for last day to take it easy and some more shopping, maybe re-visiting some places we liked or alternatively choosing among other temples to visit (Gotokuji, Nezu shrine, Mabashi Inari?) or other neighborhoods (Yanaka Ginza? Shimokitazawa?) for a different Tokyo vibe. Afternoon will probably be back in Shibuya If we did not have enough time for Megadonki / Daiso / Pokemon Center beforehand. Dinner around Golden Gai/Omoide Yokocho or Shin-Okubo but could be somewhere else. Stay in Shinjuku.
Day 21 (April 13th, Thursday) – Leaving Tokyo – Nothing planned for this day as we will be taking the Narita Express for our flight departing Narita 5.20 PM (planning to arrive 3 hours in advance). Might take a walk around Shinjuku or Shibuya, or some last minute purchases.
\——————
Mostly my look for help here is related to the following:
\- How packed is our itinerary? Do you think any particular day seems to be too much in paper or impossible to enjoy because of cramming too much?
\- Any suggestions on itinerary/sightseeing spots change in any of the cities/places we are intending to visit?
\- Any particular recommendations for Day 20? As you see we have it quite open.
\——————
Thanks so much for taking a look at this and for anything you can say about our itinerary!
2 comments
Day 1, and possibly Day 2,needs to be cut down on the number of activities, due to jet lag, and significant travel time traveling to Japan. I think sticking to 2-3 attractions activities a day is best. You have to factor in travel time, to and from each activity, plus a lot of walking. You might want to do Hiroshima in one day and go to the Island the next day.
Daisho’s are a chain and are in every city in Japan. Any particular reason you want to go to this specific one?
If your going to Osaka Castle, I recommend going inside.
Also, I think going to a observation tower, to see all of Tokyo and Mount Fugii, is a must. Skytree is good at night. Tokyo Metropolitan Tower is free. TeamLabs in Ginza and/or Ginza Art Aquarium are both cool.
Look into doing your nakasendo hike in the opposite direction. When I did it last month taking the 7am Shinano to Nagiso and going Nagiso-Tsumago-Magome-Nakatsugawa allowed more flexibility with the bus and train schedules. I was able to take a rapid train back to Nagoya that got me there sooner than waiting for the next Shinano.
You will need cash for the bus between Magome and nakatsugawa station and the bus between Tsumago and Nagiso station (I didn’t take that one, just walked) The buses in that area don’t take IC cards