Hi friends, looking to get an itinerary check for this coming week – it is going to be my first time in Japan, and looking to prioritize having an open schedule w/ flexibility while being productive. The main focuses were to see some cherry blossoms around Kyoto/Osaka region + explore the main tourist sites. I left the evenings relatively free to explore Osaka more at night. Is there any recommendations to catch around Kyoto in terms of nightlife?
In Tokyo I tried to plan most days to get geographically efficient, the first three days seem more aggressively packed to me and I’m worried it will be too much of a rush. I wanted to get a second perspective on whether there are any days that seem too aggressive timetable-wise or infeasible logistically. Overall though I think I am pretty happy with the scheduling, I hope that this can also give others some ideas for what to do as well!
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**Thursday 3/30: SFO —> Osaka**
Arrive 11AM
Osaka Castle
Checkin Airbnb
Teamlab Botanical Garden @ 5:30 pm
Dotonbori/Izakaya/Ramen/Kuromon Market in Osaka
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**Friday 4/1: Kyoto Exploration Day**
Kiyomizu Temple @ 8:00am
Keage Incline @ 11:00 AM
Nishiki Market for lunch
Gion District + Lunch
Maruyama Park for dinner
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**Saturday 4/2: Nara Chill Day**
Todaiji @ 11:00 AM
Walk/Bike through Nara Park
Nakatanidou Mochi Shop + Lunch nearby
Head back to Osaka for evening drinks @ 5:00 PM
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**Sunday 3/31: Kyoto**
Arashiyama Bamboo Forest + Tenryu-ji Garden @ 10AM
Fushimi Inari @ 3:00 PM
Travel back to Osaka @ 6:00 PM
Dotonbori Dotonbori/Izakaya/Ramen/Kuromon Market in Osaka @ night-time
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**Monday 4/3: Shibuya/arrival day**
Sleep in day + check out of hotel
Train bento for lunch!
Travel to Tokyo
Arrive Tokyo @ 2PM
Check into Airbnb @ 3:00PM
Shibuya exploration @ 3:30 PM
Meguro River @ 6:00 PM
Izakaya Reservation @ 9:00 PM
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**Tuesday 4/4: Tsukiji + Planets + Omakase**
Tsukiji Fish Market for early lunch @ 11:00 AM
Teamlab Planets @ 2:00 – 4:00pm
Odiba/Head to Pokemon Cafe
Pokemon Cafe @ 6:00 – 7:30 pm
Yakitori Street
Shinjuku Bar Hopping
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**Wednesday 4/5: Harajuku + Free Afternoon**
Harryhedge Hog cafe
Harajuku – walk through takeshita street
Yoyogi Park
Onsen check-in @ 5:00 PM
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**Thursday 4/6: Ginza + Neighborhood**
Ginza shopping district- see map refs
Ginza Omakase @ 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM
Akihabara + Kapabashi Street for shopping
Yakiniku dinner
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**Friday 4/7**
Shimokitazawa
Ikebukuro + Pokemon Center
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**Saturday 4/8: Shibuya + Omakase**
Omakase @ Shibuya area from 12 2:30PM
Shibuya Sky @ 3:30 – 6:30 PM
Shibuya Exploration @ night time
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**Sunday 4/9: Checkout of Airbnb**
Lunch
Head to airport at 2PM?
3 comments
If you’re feeling up to a lot of walking, yoshinoyama is fantastic cherry blossom viewing.
4/2 I would actually do Fushimi Inari after Nara, it’s the same train line and it’s open until night. Personally love the vibe there with the lights.
3/31 Arashiyama-Kinkakuji might take a while. Kinkakuji is quite far so better to free up the afternoon until train time. Can do Kyoto tower? Or Kyoto Station which has some cool areas like the skyway tunnel and rooftop. I think either can be good options for sunset before the train. Arashiyama is also a nice place to slow down a bit, find the bamboo area with less people then walk along the river before heading to Kinkakuji.
Tokyo plans are okay if you’re just going to mostly look and not shop but I feel like the arrival day is quite tight. Maybe skip Shibuya this day but I do u uderstand why you’d want to see it on the first day
4/3 Check in at 3pm (usual airbnb checkin is 4pm though so double check), Nakameguro coffee or maybe shop around daikanyama, Izakaya (which I assume is at nakameguro area too? You can still shibuya after dinner if you’re not getting wasted or just want to be part of Shibuya meltdown lol. Check last train sched ofc!
Your first 3 days have the wrong dates, and also I’d change stuff around on your first Friday in Kyoto. I just finished my leg of Kyoto and I highly recommend doing Kiyomizu while it’s dark, like sunset or later. It’s gorgeous with how they’ve lit it up and the view of the city is much better when it’s dark. Maruyama for dinner is probably fine but I’d try to do a Kaiseki course since you are in the area (although that’s pretty expensive and requires a reservation)