Hello!!
My friends and I are planning a trip to Japan. We would like to go sometime in September 2024, but if we can’t then it’ll be in April 2025. We are a group of 12 people; 3 females and 9 males. There are 3 couples and 6 singles in our group. We have all known each other since elementary school, and throughout high school until now.
A friend in this group and I planned this itinerary together. This itinerary is based off the information we collected from a Google Forms and Docs we shared with everyone for the purpose of suggesting ideas, places and activities we would like to do, and assessing our personal needs. The reason why we’re even planning this early is because we know there is so much to do in Japan that cannot be completed within 16 days. We’ll maybe change this itinerary at least 1 more time before the day of our trip arrives, but for the most part, this is what everyone has agreed upon as it caters to peoples needs!
Please give your most honest feedback and criticism to our itinerary so we can tweak it, not judge the people who made it! This will be our first time going to Japan, and we would like to enjoy and take advantage of it as much as possible. Your feedback can help us know what we should include, not include, or substitute for.
**FINAL NOTE:** Also, meal times are not included in this itinerary because we need to sort out times and look at what and where we can eat. Recommendations on food locations are very much welcome too! 🙂 We are not looking into bookings for places yet because it is too soon, and services and prices may change in the future. However, you are more than welcome to suggest and share which places you enjoyed most staying at. We’d love to look into these experiences and compare! 😀
**DAYS 1-6: TOKYO | DAYS 7-9: HAKONE | DAYS 10-12: KYOTO | DAYS 13-16: OSAKA**
**DAY 1: TOKYO**
* Arrival in Haneda Airport (HND) from Toronto Pearson Airport in Canada (YYZ).
* **Would like to stay in:** A Japanese hotel within Shinjuku or Shibuya. Recommendations are happily accepted!
* Shibuya Crossing.
* Tokyo Tower.
**DAY 2: TOKYO to YOKOHAMA (Day Trip)**
* Nissan Engine Museum.
* Kirin Brewery Factory.
* Yokohama Chinatown.
* Harbour Park View.
**DAY 3: TOKYO**
* Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden.
* Meiji Shrine.
* Explore Odaiba.
* Tokyo Skytree Sky Hop.
**DAY 4: TOKYO**
* Ninomaru Garden.
* Tokyo Imperial Palace.
* Akihabara and Akihabara UDX Parking Lot.
* Shibuya Sky Hikarie Observatory.
**DAY 5: TOKYO**
* Yasukuni Shrine.
* Senso-ji Temple.
* Tokyo National Museum.
* Go Karting (“Mario Kart” in real life).
**DAY 6: TOKYO**
* Disneyland and DisneySEA Tokyo.
* Golden Gai.
**DAY 7: HAKONE**
* **Would like to stay at: Hotel Indigo Hakone Gora, an IHG Hotel** because some of us have tattoos. If there are suggestions for a different place, please do recommend!
* Hakone Botanical Gardens of Wetlands.
* Hakone Ropeway; board at Souzan Station.
* Owukudani Plume.
* Hakone Ropeway; board at Owakudani Station and enjoy the views of Lake Ashi.
**DAY 8: HAKONE**
* Hakone Shrine.
* Onshi-Hakone Park.
* Hakone Mishima Sky Walk.
* Hakone Mishima’s Adventure Course + Ziplining.
**DAY 9: HAKONE to KYOTO**
* Travel to Kyoto in the morning.
* **Would like to stay:** At a traditional Japanese ryokan. Recommendations are happily accepted!
* Explore Gion – Geisha District.
**DAY 10: KYOTO**
* Fushimi Inari Shrine.
* Nishiki Market.
* Kyoto Gyoen National Garden.
* Kyoto Imperial Palace.
* **Optional: Try to complete the trail at Fushimi Inari Shrine at night since there are way less people, and we also get to see and pet kitties along the way!**
**DAY 11: KYOTO**
* Yasaka Shrine.
* Kiyomizu-dera Temple.
* Philoshopher’s Path; start at Nanzen-ji Temple and end at Ginkakuji Temple.
* Okazaki Shrine (“Rabbit Shrine”).
**DAY 12: KYOTO to OSAKA**
* **Would like to stay:** At a traditional Japanese ryokan or a hotel is okay. Recommendations are happily accepted!
* Tenryu-ji Temple.
* Arashiyama Bamboo Grove.
* Iwatayama Monkey Park; and feed the monkeys at the park!
* Ride the Sagano Scenic Train Trolley (or what people call the romantic train ride?)
* Travel to Osaka.
* Explore Dotonbori.
**DAY 13: OSAKA to NARA (Day Trip)**
* Kofuku-ji Temple.
* Isui-en Garden.
* Todai-ji Temple.
* Nara Park; and feed the deers at Nara park!
* Kagusha Taisha.
**DAY 14: OSAKA to AWAJI ISLAND (Day Trip)**
* Explore Shinobi-zato (“Naruto Park”) for half the day.
* Umeda Sky Building.
* Explore Dotonbori, again.
**DAY 15: OSAKA**
* Osaka Aquarium.
* Tempozan Giant Ferris Wheel.
* Shitenno-ji Temple.
* Shinsekai.
* Ebisu Tower Ferris Wheel.
* Tsutenkaku Tower.
**DAY 16: OSAKA**
* Namba Yasaka Shrine.
* Universal Studios Osaka and Super Nintendo Land.
* Return to Canada (YYZ) via Kansai International Airport (KIX).
**Thank you so much in advance! <3**
3 comments
I’m going to Japan next month, so I’ve spent a good amount of time lurking on this sub. I’m sure there are plenty of people who can give you better and more detailed opinions than I can, but I think your Day 6 is going to be nearly impossible.
My understanding is each Disney theme park deserves its own day, and at this time, there are no such thing as park hopper passes. You would have to purchase passes to each theme park individually.
The only other thought I have is that it’ll be tough for your entire group to eat at the same place at the same time/table. I imagine the restaurants in Japan are a lot smaller than the restaurants in Toronto.
It depends on your energy levels, but to me it seems like an ambitious itinerary at times. I found that 2-3 activities per day suited me best, and even then we averaged 20 000 steps per day and I was exhausted in the evenings lol.
I would recommend grouping your day by day activities based on the area that they are in – jumping back and forward between different parts of a city will eat into your time and make your trip less enjoyable.