Hey everyone !
My younger sibling and I ( both early 20s ) are planning our first trip to Japan and its in next week. I am hoping for some advice and recommendations and some alternates if any. My main concern is in the doability. Since we are both primarily vegetarian. We want it to be not too expensive.
I have some places that I want to visit which I’ll write and if possible please suggest what should I replace them with if I want to try them.
This is our draft itinerary
Day 1: Arrival
– Arrival at HND Airport around 11:00 pm.
– Get to hotel ( Edogawa city ) and check-in and get rest
Day 2: Tokyo
– 6:00 – 7:00 am – reach at Meiji Jingu Shirne
– 10: 00 – Harajuku
– Shibuya ( Sakura street , loft , mega don quijote etc )
– Animate Ikebukuro
– Shinjuki ( Kabukicho , Omoide Yokcho, Shinjuku gyoen park , Sekaido)
Day 3: Tokyo
– Kameido Tenjin Shrine
– Akhiabara
– Ueno Park
– Senso ji
– Tokyo Skytree
Day 4: Mt. Fuji day trip
– Leave for kawaguchiko via bus from shinjuku or Fuji Excursion train ( still cant decide ) as early as possible
– Roam around kawaguchiko streets , honcho street
– Ubuyagasaki spot
– 4:00 Chureito pagoda
– back to Tokyo
– Transfer our luggage to Kyoto accommodation
Day 5: Kyoto/ Nara
– Check out and take Shikansen to Kyoto then travel to Nara
– Nara Park
– Rokusonno Jinga
Day 6: Kyoto
– early morning : Fushima Inari ( my hotel is near nijo castle so have to figure how to get there as early as possible )
– Kiyomizu Dera
– Hokan Ji
– Ninenzaka
– kodai ji ( night time illumination )
Day 7: Osaka
USJ
Day 8: Osaka
– Get Osaka 1 day pass
– Osaka Castle
– Shinsekai
– Namba Yasaka Shrine
– Dotonbori
– Transport luggage to Narita Airport Hotel
Day 9: Tokyo
– Shikansen from kyoto to Tokyo as early as possible
– Team Labs Planet
– Shibuya sky ( 4:30 pm )
– Leave for Narita hotel
Day 10: Departure
– Flight @ 9 am
The following are the things that I wish I could be added or managed or replaced in the plan above.
TOKYO
– Gotku Ji ( 40 min from Meiji Jingu so could so on Day 2 between Meiji Jingu and Hara juku )
– Sakura Jingu ( 30 min walk from Gotku ji )
– Starbucks reserve Rosatory
– Meguro river
KYOTO
– Otagi Nenbutsu ji
– Kinkaku Ji
– Jikobun Canal Cruise
– Sagano Rail
NARA
– Hozan ji
– Tsubosaka Dera
* I know seems unreal
OSAKA
I was hoping if I could do USJ , Shinsekai and Dotonbori on day 8 hence leaving me space for some of above mentioned Kyoto attractions on day 9
* On day 9 Can I squeeze in Yokohama for giant Gundam?
P.S. We both walk a lot everyday so walking around wont be an issue .
Thank you for looking at this unreal itinerary, any feedback is appreciated
2 comments
To get to Fushimi Inari from around the Nijojo area, take the Tozai subway line from Nijojo Mae to Karasuma Oike. Then take the Karasuma line down to Kyoto station where you’ll switch to the JR Nara line and take that down to Fushimi Inari.
Just came back from 2 weeks in Japan and I won’t lie, finding vegetarian options isn’t easy on the fly. I am actually vegan but was eating dairy & eggs while there because there were so few options due to me not planning enough (and wanting hot meals). Super markets have a few vegetarian options like origiri and some fruit and things at supermarkets but it wasn’t as easy as I thought it would be. Look up places before you go, make sure to get reservations (we were told we couldn’t be accommodated several times as vegetarian restaurants bc we didn’t have reservations). Places also didn’t seem as able to customize meals in Japan, like removing meat (ie. the entire meal was already pre-cooked with the meat in it or they used fish broth in ramen & had no broth replacements, etc). If you’re staying in a smaller area be sure to bring snacks with you to hold you over just in case you can’t find much there. I loved my trip but I wish I would have booked reservations beforehand, and I should have utilized the kitchen in my hotel (had one for 4 days in Osaka) more than I did.