[Itinerary] Solo Travel Japan spring 2021 second time

14 comments

1. Ok, for context, I think I travel pretty fast. When I was in Japan last time, a worker at the hostel I stayed at commented something like, “I can’t believe how many places you’ve gone! It’s the most of anyone I’ve seen pass through here, remember it’s a vacation and you can relax, ” lol…

   And I think this plan is a really fast pace of travel. I can’t imagine doing both Yamadera and Matsushima in the same day when you are coming from Tokyo in the morning (especially if you like food, the area has so many different regional foods as well as a bunch of Hokkaido food restaurants!) Himeji-Onomichi-Hiroshina also sounds like a ton, as does Matsumoto and Kiso Valley. Nakano and Koenji in one day is great but that’s enough. Kawaguchiko, I took the 9:00 bus and returned to Tokyo at 22:00 feeling like I didn’t see everything I wanted. Etc.

   It’s a great list of activities! I think maybe you want to cut the plan down by 25% or so, even if you are ambitious. That said, if you really are good with moving SUPER fast and prioritizing breadth to sacrifice comprehensiveness/travel time, I think you’ll have a great time.

2. I don’t think the boarder will be re-opened in early 2021.

3. I agree with the other guy, this seems too rushed. I get that you want to pack your days full of stuff but you’d better off finding destinations you’d actually want to spend time at rather than a bunch of things that you don’t seem to be as interested in that you’ll fly through.

   Also depending on the conditions next year, the cherry blossoms may not be in full bloom at the end of March for your return to Tokyo. They weren’t until like second week of April last year from what I recall.

   Also..

   > the flue will disappear

   dude…

4. 🙂

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   Yamadera-Matsushima : This is a bit tight, because you only allocated 1h to move between both, but it take more 2h from Yamadera to Matsushimakaigan station. I would suggest to be earlier at Yamadera, if it’s a week days, train would be 7:07 at Sendai station and 8:20 at Yamadera. I would probably set my goal to take the rapid train at 12:17, so it would take 1h45 instead of 2h to Matsushima. You will really have to check time not to miss the train or boat.

   Hiraizumi : doable, would advise to rend a bike, if you focus on the 2 temples, if fit the first part of this model course – [http://hiraizumi.or.jp/en/course/touring/index.html](http://hiraizumi.or.jp/en/course/touring/index.html)

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   Train from Nagoya to Kanazawa will be a bit strange. As you plan to go to Takayama, I would stop there instead for the first night, or somewhere on the way, for example Gero onsen.

   Next days you can take morning to see Takayama, bus to Shirakawa-go, visit, take bus around 17 to go to Kanazawa. Kanazawa is a straight shinkansen ride to Tokyo, so no problem there for the return. By doing that, you save a full round trip from Takayama to Kanazawa, so that’s a solid 4 hours saved.

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   Nagasaki, Mount Inasa, I recommend doing it when it’s dark, it’s one of the 3 best night view of Japan.

   Miyajima (16-18) : Ropeway and Shrine both close at 5 and most shop will also close around that time.

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   Osaka-Kyoto is easy to travel, after that, it depend what bother you the most, taking the extra train to move between the two cities, or changing accommodation.

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   In general, it is really really packed. I understand your explanation, but with such a plan AND need to take several train to move between cities, I would say that you really need to write down train schedule to know at least what is the last train you can take to achieve your itinerary, because if you miss one, it can completely change your day or even compromise your arrival at your next accommodation.

5. Coronavirus and influenza viruses are not the same.

   The way some of your days are planned out by the hour, for a trip nine months from now that has a not insignificant chance of not occurring due to the “flu” situation in your country of residence and the policies of the Japanese Immigration Bureau, is a bit… over the top, no? Besides, Tokyo is easy to get around so there’s no need to time everything unless you have a reservation somewhere. You will be looking at your watch when you should just be traveling. This is your second time, and you speak some Japanese, so just plot your destinations on Google Maps or your app of choice and go for it.

   Kawaguchiko is an entire day trip, not 9-16. The bus takes almost two hours and the train takes an hour at best, so unless you wake up at 7 and get back to Tokyo at 18 and miss the sunset on Kawaguchiko which is around 18 during that time of year, you will not have 7 hours in Kawaguchiko.

   Getting to Onomichi at 10am AFTER already visiting Himeji Castle in the morning is unrealistic. Onomichi is not a shinkansen stop, so you’re going to transfer somewhere, and it will take more than an hour from Himeji Station. Take more time in Onomichi; the hillside neighborhood on the way from the station to the temple is unique.

6. I was in Kyoto this March and walked the Philosopher’s Path. I didn’t find it particularly interesting for the time it took.

   The Railway Museum is excellent, and if you enjoy this type of museum I can recommend the other JR train museum in Saitama outside Tokyo.

7. It’s not flu, and people who call it the flu embolden other idiots to act like it’s “just the flu” and continue to spread the virus instead of working to eradicate it. It’s not going to disappear by spring 2021 and saying let’s not talk about it won’t change it.

8. Nezu Museum has a nice garden to walk through in addition to a good sized collection.

   I don’t know how much time you planned for it, but you may have not planned enough.

9. What’s your budget looking like for this?

10. If you’re visiting Kagoshima I would recommend also visiting the Museum of the Meiji Restauration. It’s great!

11. You should go to the islands Naoshima and Teshima. Went there my first time in Japan, and I want to go back just to visit them again.

12. Also, not sure if you have thought about this, but I was contemplating on doing a road trip around the US but toward late 2020. Your trip takes place early 2021, so more time to let Covid die. And I know other countries are probably better than how the US is as of now, but think about the places you’re going to stay. Hostels are literally covid deathbeds, you have any idea how many people actually stay there by the day? And also how little to no cleaning they do on these places? You’re going to be spending 2 weeks in Japan, in a foreign country. Imagine you get the virus and continue to travel, therefore passing it to more and more people. But what would happen if you get it pretty bad and have to go to the emergency room or a hospital? Then how would that work out with your timeline?

    Not trying to ruin your trip but it was the same thoughts I had for mine, which suck. But it’s best to stay healthy and keep others around you healthy. Rushing things might also not give you the time to stay healthy and stay on top of your own cleaning things you touch, carrying disinfectant wipes. I mean who would want to do that while they travel? A bit annoying don’t you think? I went to a place near the city I live in for a single day 4th of July getaway and mind you, as I was waiting for a table at a restaurant, I saw how the busboy took off the plates from the table they were giving me, and not even clean the table ONCE. And then they just put the fork and knife and the menus on the table. How many people touched that table before me, I have no idea. But making sure that you do the due diligence to not get infected and stay healthy is an over the top action that will delay your trip and will take away from the experience because of stress and anxiety. I then had to ask them to bring disinfecting wipes and clorox so I could clean the table myself. While also asking for paper plates.

13. If you are going all the way to Kyushu, you should really check out Beppu and its onsens for a full day. It will likely relax and refresh you with a busy schedule like that.

    Also if you really want to maximize your efficiency when visiting many places in a short amount of time, and will have a JR Pass, consider sleeping on the [Sunrise Express](https://jprail.com/trains/sort-by-type/limited-express/sunrise-seto.html) overnight train when transiting from eastern Japan to western Japan and back. You can book it online before going to Japan now, as of June 1, 2020. You used to have to book space on it after arriving in Japan, which was really risky due to space on the train usually selling out a few days before departure.

    Finally, if you really want to go to Yamagata, I highly recommend going to Ginzan Onsen. The town, the short hiking trail to the old silver mine, and inside the silver mine are all very beautiful. It’s not far from Yamadera. Apparently the place has gotten much more popular with foreign tourists since I last went there 12 years ago (didn’t see a single other foreigner), so hopefully it hasn’t changed much or become too tourist-trappy.

14. Hi there!

    I’m been to Japan many times. Most of them are solo trips. I really enjoyed my time traveling alone.

    If you have any question, feel free to ask me.