Hello, All! I can finally say that two friends (M30 and M35) and I (M30) will be taking our first trip to Japan this summer. Honestly a dream come true, and I can hardly wait to soak in all of the culture and cuisine! Our trip will be between July 30th- August 15th. We won’t arrive until July 31st during the afternoon.
We have only 5 locations for our trip. All tickets and lodgings are booked. Attractions and locations that require reservations will be booked late June/early July. All of our main luggage will be handled by shipping for the most part so we can travel as freely as possible. We will also have a two week JR pass. All of the price checks I did made it seem worth it for how much we’ll use them.
The more research I did, the more I realized how little time two weeks is to actually do as much as I have planned. I’m contemplating extended the trip an extra 3 days IF POSSIBLE so as to alleviate the nonstop pace I’m assuming we’ll have to be moving at. Also, if there are any recommendations for something other than what I have, please feel free to share!
Also! My itinerary is actually super detailed, even listing specific restaurants and cafes i hope for us to go to. I imagine weather, availability, or any number of issues can get in the way, especially with all of the dining options I have listed. I packed into each day what I felt was feasible after going over travel distances, average transportation times, and factoring in potential delays and how tired we might be. Feel free to drop nuggets of wisdom or recommendations! Thank you all in advance!
TOKYO: 7 Days (6 1/2 days)
[ ] Day 1- July 30th/31st: Arrival @ Narita and Shinjuku.
Flight Arrival time 1640 @ Narita Airport -> Explore airport -> Get our SUICA -> Narita Express to JR Shinjuku -> Snack @ Gourmet Curry Bon Gout -> Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building for our first view of Tokyo skyline -> Check into Nishi Shinjuku Mystays -> Disney Flagship Tokyo Store -> Dinner @ Tsuru Ton Tan -> Kabukicho -> Omoide Yokocho
[ ] Day 2- August 1st: Harajuku and Shibuya.
Breakfast in Hotel -> Meiji Shrine -> Yoyogi park -> Mipig Cafe -> Takeshita Street -> Lunch @ Gyukatsu Motomura Harajuku -> grab a famous Harajuku Crepe -> Omote Sando street -> A HAPPY Pancake Omotesando -> Miyashita Park -> Hachiko Memorial Statue -> Shibuya Crossing -> Shibuya 109 -> Magnet for the One Piece store and rooftop view of Shibuya Crossing -> Mega Don Quijote -> Shibuya Sky -> Shibuya center-gai
[ ] Day 3- August 2nd: Ikebukuro, Akihabara & Tokyo Tower.
Ikebukuro Seibu Rooftop food and garden -> Animate Ikebukuro -> Snack @ Hachi Kuma Cafe -> Sunshine City -> Yamanote Line to Akihabara -> Late lunch @ Kikanbo Ramen -> FF Eorzea Cafe -> Akihabara Gamers and Super Potato -> TAITO Station Akihabara -> Dinner @ Wagyu Burger -> Tokyo Tower
[ ] Day 4- August 3rd: Day Trip to Nagaoka Grand Hanabi Festival.
Morning @ Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden -> Appetizer @ Cafe Aaliya -> Lunch @ Attachment Italian Cuisine -> JR to Nagaoka for Hanabi Festival 🎆 🎇 🧨🥘🍵🍡🍣🍙🍛🍢🍜🍺😋🎊
[ ] Day 5- August 4th: Asakusa, Imperial Palace, & Odaiba.
Nakamise Street and Senso-ji Temple -> Lunch @ Kura-Sushi -> Train to Tokyo Station -> Explore Kokyo Gaien International Garden and East Garden -> Historical Kikyo-mon Gate -> Views of Imperial Palace > Tokyo Art Aquarium -> Walk to Shin Godzilla Statue -> Train to Odaiba -> Teamlab Planets -> Unicorn Gundam Statue and Statue of Liberty -> Rainbow Bridge Observation Deck
[ ] Day 6- August 5th: DisneySea.
Start the morning with Starbucks Reserve Roastery to prep for DisneySea
[ ] Day 7- August 6th (My birthday!) : Just enjoy Tokyo.
Capyneko Cafe -> Uobei Sushi -> Tokyo Skytree (And anything we might not have had the chance to do on prior days)
FUJIKAWAGUCHIKO: 1 Day
[ ] Day 8- August 7th: My birthday gift to myself with a stay at Kozantei Ubuya.
Arakura Fuji Sengen -> Mt. Fuji Panoramic Ropeway -> Tenjozan Park (Tenjo Bell and Mount Kachikachi Swing) -> Takeda Shingen Warring States Plaza Picturesque Lookout -> Tenjosan Komitake Shrine -> Ensoleille Excursion Ship Pleasure Boat Kawaguchiko -> Kozantei Ubuya
OSAKA: 3 Days
[ ] Day 9- August 8th: Arrival in Osaka and Dotonbori.
Osaka Amazing Pass -> View of Osaka from Umeda Sky Building -> Hep Five Mall and Ferris Wheel -> Osaka Aquarium Kaiyukan -> Tempozan Giant Ferris Wheel -> Check into AirBnB in Dotonbori -> Eat Eat Eat -> Dinner @ Ichiran Ramen -> Famous Naruto Taiyaki
[ ] Day 10- August 9th: Castle, Shrines, Temples, & Gardens.
Early morning Osaka Castle -> Osaka-jo Gozabune Pier boat ride -> Sumiyoshi Taisha Shrine -> Rail back to Shitennoji Temple -> Tennoji Park -> Harukas 300 for amazing sunset panoramic views -> Nagai Park for the TeamLab Botanical Garden -> Night time @ Shinsekai -> Dinner @ Kushikatsu Daruma
[ ] Day 11- August 10th: Universal Studios Japan.
Morning walk to Namba Yasaka Jinga -> Early arrival to Universal Studios Japan for Super Mario World -> Head to Shinsaibashi Shopping district and Dotonbori -> Tonbori River Cruise
NARA & KYOTO: 3 DAYS
[ ] Day 12- August 11th: Nara and Kyoto.
EARLY trip to Nara -> Nara Park -> Kasuga-Taisha -> Todaiji Temple -> Kintetsu-Kyoto line to Kyoto -> Explore Gion -> Hanamikoji Street -> Yasaka Shrine -> Yasaka Pagoda -> Ninenzaka and Sannenzaka -> Kiyomizu-Dera -> Check in @ The Gate Hotel Kyoto Takasegawa -> Dinner down Pontocho alley -> Kamo River walk.
[ ] Day 13- August 12th: Arashiyama & Kinkaku-Ji.
Morning start @ Bamboo Forest -> Tenryu-ji Temple -> Kimono Forest -> Togetsu-Kyo Bridge -> Katsura River -> Zao Daigongen Shrine -> Climb to Daihikaku Senkōji Temple -> Arashiyama Monkey Park Iwatayama -> Kinkaku-Ji Temple -> Dinner @ Ramen Sen-No-Kaze Kyoto
[ ] Day 14- August 13th: Fushi Imanari, Nishiki & Nanzen-ji.
Early Morning Fushi Imanari Taisha climb -> Appetizers @ Nishiki Market -> Lunch @ Kichi Kichi Omurice -> Zenrin-ji Temple -> Nanzen-ji -> Suirokaku Water Aqueduct -> old rail line on Keage Incline
[ ] Day 15- August 14th: Back to Tokyo.
Morning in Kyoto. Visit Higashi Hongan-Ji -> Explore Kyoto Station -> Return to Tokyo -> Check into Yuen Shinjuku. Nightlife in Tokyo to explore.
[ ] Day 16- August 15th: Final Day
Etch the travels we’ve had into our souls with our last day experiencing Tokyo. I’m sad just typing this. Departing flight leaving Haneda @ 6:15PM.
2 comments
Hi! August 12-15 is Obon, and everything is crowded. Reserve anything within those days as early as you can.
You’ve got a very, very busy itinerary there. I’m going to have to be a bit of a downer here because it sounds like you’re expectations of Japan is way high.
Probably the biggest change I would do is to remove all your food destinations, perhaps leave one or two that you really, really want to go to and are able to make reservations for. Because you don’t just drop in to a well known restaurant; you’ll almost always find a line or they’ll flat out reject you if they are booked out. I find it much more fulfilling taking a chance with Japan’s back alleys, there is good food literally everywhere… I recently discovered an “alleyway” full of restaurants built under the train bridges in Shimbashi, and another awesome tonkotsu restaurant in some random office building in the same area (I probably couldn’t find it again even if I tried).
Day 1: I would temper your expectations. You’re arriving relatively late in the day, depending on luck immigrating could be several minutes or more than 2 hours, the NEX takes 1.5 hours to get you to Shinjuku, and Shinjuku station is a massive beast that almost everyone will get lost in (it’s a kilometre long and has lots of tunnels and exits).
Day 9: How are you getting from Kawaguchiko to Osaka? That’s quite an awkward route that will probably take you half a day.
Day 12: That day is insane.
Finally, Obon is happening during your trip. You might be able to see some cool celebrations, but you’ll also encounter much busier attractions and transport. https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2286.html