Hello!!! First time posting, but I’ve (F30) been creeping to figure out our trip! Looking for feedback. I know it’s not as big of a deal, but looking for ideas for something fun for Halloween if anything is going on or cool to check out!
My husband (M35) hasn’t been to Japan since he was 3 years old (his family is from Osaka but we won’t be seeing anyone, long story), and it’s been 13 years since my one and only trip there! Due to this, we are looking at classic sights while also taking our time to just explore. This is my itinerary so far and areas of interest I’ve used to build it. Let me know if I should switch around things! Also if there are other places I might’ve forgotten about, please mention! Last time I went it was with a tour with my school, so this is my first time planning something like this. We want a nice mix of cultural sightings, pop culture, and feeling less stress to hit EVERYTHING.
Saturday Oct 21:
Fly to Japan (Haneda)
———————-
Sunday Oct 22 Tokyo:
Arrive in Japan early evening
Check into hotel
Akihabara/chill depending on energy
——————-
Monday Oct 23 Tokyo:
Disney Sea (celebrating anniversary!)
———————-
Tuesday Oct 24 Tokyo:
Tsukiji Fish Market (early AM)
Harajuku
Shibuya
Shinjuku (*edit* added)
———————
Wednesday Oct 25 Kyoto:
Check out of hotel in Tokyo
Travel to/check in at Kyoto
Nishiki Market
Eikando Zenrinji Temple
Philosopher’s Path
———————-
Thursday Oct 26 Kyoto:
Arashiyama Early AM
Meet up with friend that lives in Kyoto
———————-
Friday Oct 27 Kyoto:
Fushimi Inari-taisha Shrine Early AM
Ghibli Park in Nagoya if possible
———————-
Saturday Oct 28 Kyoto:
Nara Day Trip
Nara Park
Todai-ji
Isuien Garden
Kasuga Taisha
Come back to Kyoto
————————
Sunday Oct 29 Osaka:
Check out of hotel in Kyoto
Travel to Osaka
Osaka Castle
Hozenji
Dontonbori
————————-
Monday Oct 30 Osaka:
Kuromon Market
Uofuku (for uni & oysters!)
—————————
Tuesday Oct 31 Osaka:
—————————
Wednesday Nov 1 Tokyo:
Check out of hotel in Osaka
Travel to Tokyo/check into hotel
Skytree
Pokémon Center
Asakusa
Sensoji Temple
————————-
Thursday Nov 2 Tokyo:
Fuji Five Lakes (Kawaguchiko)
Free time for things we might’ve missed/come back to
————————-
Friday Nov 3 Tokyo:
Check out of hotel
Either explore Tokyo a bit more or relax at airport.
Will probably send luggage to airport
Evening flight out of Haneda
Fly home
————————
Areas of interest:
Tokyo:
-teamLabs
-Disney Sea
-Akihabara
-Harajuku
-Shibuya Crossing
-Skytree
-Tsukiji Fish Market
-Aichi Expo Park Studio Ghibli Park
(Nagoya under 2 hours bullet train from Tokyo)
-Studio Ghibli Museum
-Bus to Mt. Fuji from Trip Advisor?
-Fuji Five Lakes (Lake Kawaguchiko)
Kyoto:
-Nara day trip
-Fushimi Inari-taisha Shrine
-Kiyomizu-dera Temple
-Arashiyama
-Eikando Zenrinji Temple
Kobe Day Trip?
-Kobe Tanryu
Osaka:
-Osaka Castle
-Dotonbori
-Shitennoji Temple
-Sumiyoshi Taisha Shrine
-Namba Yasaka Shrine
-Hozenji Temple
7 comments
Sorry in advance for poor formatting, I’m on the mobile app lol
Going to DisneySea the day after arriving might be a little rough as you might still be jet-lagged and tired. It’s truly an amazing park but it makes for a tiring day, so might be worth considering doing that a different day.
Also I highly recommend checking out Shinjuku as well, it’s pretty close to Harajuku.
Hope you have a great trip!
How early will you be in Tsukiji? Try to squeeze in a visit to Meiji Jingu shrine after Tsukiji and before heading to Harajuku. It’s a very nice serene walk from Harajuku Station’s West Entrance to the shrine.
For DisneySea, what an awesome way to spend your anniversary in! We visited there for the first time ever a couple of weeks ago on our trip and I can see why a lot of critics say it’s the best Disney Theme Park in the world. The amount of detail put into the theming and atmosphere of that park is mind blowing. The Mysterious Island section alone was so worth the admission. Just note if you’re taking the Keiyo Line there from Tokyo Station, the platform is a very long walk from the main Tokyo Station building. That was a big surprise for us when we went.
Akihabara – time this on a Sunday afternoon from 1 PM to 5 PM. The main street becomes pedestrian only and for me who hails from a car centric city, it was an amazing feeling just shopping from one side of the street to the other without having to worry about car traffic. It felt liberating.
As for anything missed or other places to add, maybe Himeji and a visit to the castle there. Asakusa you can combine with a Skytree visit.
Have a wonderful trip and enjoy your anniversary 🙂
Don’t forget about planning for food and restaurants since they are so good. Find some good sushi/kaiseki/unagi/tempura/ramen/etc near the places you plan to go
IMO,
1) Why don’t u fly to Osaka, get all u want done in Kyoto as well before going back to Tokyo and leaving from there ?
2) kyoto is so overrated. It’s super packed with tourists, scenic spots are meh and food isn’t remarkable. My fondest memories of Japan don’t include anything kyoto related at all.
3) For Osaka, I suggest a day trip to himeji castle and to skip Osaka castle.
4) nishiki, kuromon and Tsukiji markets are all tourists traps. Seafood is usually pricey and not all are extremely fresh or to die for. The only good experience I had was in Tsukiji market with a dinner reservation at a grilled tuna restaurant.
5) I drove to kawaguchiko from Shizuoka and I’m glad I did. If you do not have a car it’s quite inconvenient once you are there.
Looks good to me. Just some thoughts on other places (some nearby, others not so much). Nikko park was really beautiful for us and is doable in a day. Universal studios could be a fun Halloween idea. I thouhht Nara was lovely but could have been done in a day and then had Kobe as something to do for the evening (didnt feel both were worth a day each). Kinosake Onsen and Halone were both lovely places for having that Ryokan and onsen experience. Oh and reserve restaurants where you can. Every good rated food or coffee place on google or TripAdvisor had queues spanning from 1-3 hours
Nice itinerary. I’ll be going in September and most likely doing something similar