Trip report: 45 days in Japan, from the end of March to mid of May

Sometime at the beginning of this year, I decided to travel to Japan from the 30th of March till the 13th of May. As I’m sitting currently at the airport waiting for my plane I wanted to share my experience as many people here do, which I found very helpful during my visit. This trip was about 70% vacation and about 30% working remotely. I didn’t plan a lot beforehand as this isn’t something I need for traveling. I just knew general things I wanted to see and went with the flow as I moved from city to city.

In Japan, I traveled either using JR Pass, by foot, or by metro during the last 2 days in Tokyo. During the trip I did \~25k steps per day which amounts to over 1000 km so there was a lot of walking. I know almost everyone recommends getting Suica for busses to get around cities but I like walking, visiting places this way, and I’m used to it.

I started off by going to Hiroshima. I must admit that I should’ve planned better at least for this part because after 20 hours I landed in Tokyo, which meant I had to travel additional 5 hours by train. It didn’t bother me too much but note to future self to be smarter about these things. Anyway here are the highlights from this region.

**Hiroshima, 30th March – 4th April**

* Itsukushima Island. I went there on the first ferry in the morning and spent the whole day. It was really nice to see the Great Tori during low and high tide, feed the dears, walk around and admire Sakura, go to an aquarium, and see the beautiful shrines and temples. I also climbed Mt. Misen. The route isn’t too bad and I highly recommend it if you’re at least somewhat in shape. There’s a single tree on top, which during the cherry blossom peak will be forever one of my best nature-related memories from Japan for sure.
* Okunoshima Island. It’s an island filled with bunnies that you can feed and if they don’t mind pet as well. There are also poison gas storage areas/museums from WW II, which is quite a heavy contrast to fluffy bunnies. You can stay on the island in a hotel or use a ferry to come back on the same day. I didn’t stay. Just circled the island in a couple of hours, fed the bunnies, and checked the ruins. I recommend it for animal lovers but if you’re not one I think it’s easy to skip this one.
* Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. Powerful, sad, and introspective place. It was touching to read the stories of people and in general, contemplate life. If you’re going to Hiroshima I think it is a must-see even just out of respect for the event and its impact.
* Hiroshima Castle. Nice museum with weapons, armors, and general things from the past. There’s also a nice observatory at the top. I wouldn’t call it anything superb but still worth seeing if you’re there.
* The town itself is quite pretty. If you’re into nightlife there’s a red lights district. I had a hotel over there, though I’m not into bar hopping or drinking in general. But I found all the lights and life in there quite interesting.

**Kobe, 4th April – 8th April**

* I mostly worked in Kobe and just walked around the city. I considered going to Arima Olsen, but it was too much hassle for my taste. The main reason I stayed in Kobe was to go for Kobe steak. This was like a bucket list thing – “to eat Kobe in Kobe”. I went to Royal Mouriya, and overall, I can recommend it. The meat food was well-prepared, the chef was funny, and the atmosphere was welcoming. Was it the best steak I’ve ever had? Probably not. But still, a mental thing to cross off the list.

**Osaka, 8th April – 13th April**

* Harukas 300 Observatory. If you like to admire skylines or cityscapes, and it’s not cloudy the view is astonishing. I think I took one of my favorite photos over there. Though it was quite crowded during the sunset so I had to get there about 1 hour before and camped my spot.
* Osaka Aquarium Kaiyukan. I very much enjoyed it. It’s about a 2-hour visit, and well worth it. The animals looked well-tended to so I didn’t have any moral issues visiting (unlike zoos, which I didn’t go to). And the variety of species is amazing.
Dōtonbori. The neon district of Osaka. I didn’t spend a lot of time there. Just walked around, took photos, and went on a boat ride. It was pretty at night and I wish I came back there to do more things but I didn’t find time to do it.
* Umeda Sky Building. Another observatory. Unlike Harukas this one has an open view without windows. Out of the two I still liked Harukas more but this one was so close to my hotel that I didn’t mind seeing it.
* Osaka Castle. Similar to Hiroshima Castle. If you like history, architecture, or art it’s worth paying a visit. I recommend getting tickets online as the lines were insane. I think tickets saved me about an hour of waiting and I was there pretty early. There are also other attractions like train or boat rides but I didn’t use those so can’t say much. They looked fun though.
* teamLab Botanical Garden. If there’s one thing I would recommend doing in Osaka it would be that. It is an amazing art installation. The moment I walked in, I felt like in a fairyland and the feeling stayed for a couple of hours even after leaving. The sounds and visuals were mesmerizing and beautiful. In one of the posts I saw someone was pretty much “meh” about it but I couldn’t disagree more. Obviously different strokes for different folks but I loved this one so much. It invoked a lot of child-like wonder in me.

**Kyoto, 13th April – 23th April**

* Nara. A lot of temples, a lot of deer, a lot of museums. I spent only one day in there. Retrospecting on it now, I would go for another one just to see more culture and to go on a hike.
* Tō-ji Temple. I went there at night and I think it was the right choice. It is beautifully lit with great reflections in a pond. There are also shrines with excellent and moody sculptures.
* Higashiyama. I loved this region so much. Beautiful architecture with the iconic three umbrellas shop, Yasaka pagoda, and Kiyomizudera Temple. However, if you want to take nice pictures with no one in the background you need to get there very early. During the day it gets very crowded. Which can also be nice for just feeling the city. I think this was the most crowded place during my entire trip.
* Fushimi Inari. I was there around 9 AM, and it was already getting quite crowded but only at the beginning. The deeper you go the fewer people there are and you can enjoy the path pretty much alone.
* Arashiyama. Highly, highly recommended. There’s so much to do, and I think you can spend a whole day there. I started with the bamboo forest. This one was a bit disappointing. I think I would prefer to see something more in the wild. But the rest was extremely cool. First thing I did there was visit the Sogenchi Pond Garden. I’m not much into flowers but it was a nice and calming place. After that, I went on a boat ride. I think going on one is a must just for the views. I couldn’t stop laughing when during the ride a second boat hooked to ours and started selling food. Very unexpected and very funny. There’s also a snow monkeys park. Loved every moment of being there. The monkeys are super cute, curious, and look healthy.
* Nijō Castle. A very different castle from the one in Hiroshima or Osaka. I wouldn’t say that it is a must but if you have some spare time I would see it. The “tweeting floors” are a fun experience.
* Kinkaku-ji. Not much to say about it except that it is iconic. If you’re in Kyoto I think you should go there but don’t expect to be mind-blown.
* Higashiyama Jisho-ji. Same as above. Though I liked this one a bit more. I found that the garden around was a bit nicer.
In Kyoto, I bought souvenirs for my friends and for myself. There are a lot of cool shops with handmade chopsticks and second-hand kimonos around the shopping areas. I can highly recommend the Harajuku Chicago shop for buying some clothing if that’s something you want.
* Miyako Odori. I think this was absolutely the best thing I did in Japan. It’s a Geisha theater that has spectacles only in April. As I don’t speak Japanese I didn’t understand a thing unfortunately but the visuals, dances, music, and the whole traditional aspect of it were out of this world for me. I bought a ticket for a tea ceremony. The ceremony in my opinion wasn’t worth it so you could probably skip it. It was more akin to a tea ceremony served by Netflix. Very rushed and without any depth. If you want to see a real tea ceremony you should probably look somewhere else. Having said that, I would buy the same ticket again just to support the theater financially.

**Niigata, 23th April – 1st of May**

* I don’t have much to say about this. I loved it very much but I went there to meet with a friend and to chill just walking around the city. The observatory is nice and it’s free. The piers have beautiful sunsets. If you’re there I highly recommend going to Benkei for sushi. But the lines are extremely long so get there early. I really wanted to see Hashitoge Rice Fields but getting there early is virtually impossible without your own transport.

**Tokyo, 1st May – 13th May**

* There’s so much to do in Tokyo. I probably will forget to list half of the things I did there. Though, after getting there I immediately got to Gifu the next day for making my own samurai knife with a swordsmith. And it was awesome! I think the second best thing I did in Japan. If you like this type of thing just do it.
* Hakone. I went there kind of in the worst moment but I had a Ryokan booked already so I didn’t want to skip it. The weather was so bad that they closed every attraction. In any case, I managed to go to Amazake Chaya. During the mentioned weather it was perfect, warm, and cozy. I also went on an adventure to see Hakone Jinja and my camera died. The rain killed it and I was afraid it won’t boot up but fortunately, after drying it off for 2 days it started working again. Also staying in a ryokan with a private, open bath was super nice during the rain.
* Fujikawaguchiko. Oh boy. There’s so much to do here. I’ve read some people say that they wish to go there for only half a day but I couldn’t disagree more. I spent 2 whole days there and I could easily do one more. Panoramic ropeway, pleasure boat, caves, old village, flower fields. And all of this with Mt. Fuji in the background. I had the pleasure to be there during the Shibazakura Festival, so if you’re there while it’s open just go. You won’t regret it whatsoever. The other thing that I can highly recommend is Saiko Iyashi no Sato Nemba. It’s a samurai village converted into an open-air museum. Just wonderful. And while you’re in Fujikawaguchiko don’t forget to eat in Toto Fudo. Their vegetable soup is sublime.
* Tsukiji cooking class. I love food and love to cook. Each trip I take I try to join a cooking class so this was a no-brainer for me. I wished that there was a bit more cooking part on our own but regardless it was fun and informative. Before we cooked we went on an outer market tour.
* Itamae sushi-style restaurant. If you love food and can afford it I think you should go to this type of restaurant. I went to Higashiazabu Saiko and the food was simply perfect. The staff and the chef were hospitable, funny, gave a lot of cool anecdotes, and seemed genuinely interested in making sure that the guests enjoy the food.
* Helicopter cruise. Honestly, I thought it would be something special, but it was just ok. Maybe I had my expectations too high but I wouldn’t go again. Not that it wasn’t fun but the fun/cost ratio was just too low in my opinion.
* Boat sunset cruise. This one is definitely much better than the helicopter. There was * Italian-style food. I’d say that some Italians might have a stroke due to carbonara but, in general, the food was tasty and the service was good. There was a pianist in the dining hall, during the off-boarding there was a singer with a mix of opera and some Japanese songs, and the views from the deck were really, really nice.
* teamLab Planets. I was afraid of this one. I saw a lot of posts with people complaining about the quality of the museum. Fortunately, the rumors were exaggerated. Yes, there was a little bit of small in-water sections but nothing too bad. Maybe if you’re sensitive to chloramine. To put it into perspective – public swimming pools have in my opinion much worse and more aggressive smell. It’s fine people. Anyway, I enjoyed the art facility. Not as much as gardens in Osaka but still fun and invoking a similar sense of wonder.
* Art Aquarium Museum. A small museum but I can recommend it. There are some cool exhibits and a lot of shadows and lights plays themed around koi fish.
* Shibuya Sky Observatory. Similar to other observatories in other cities. Well worth it if you like this type of view. I was surprised that there weren’t as many people as I expected. Maybe there is a lower limit of tickets than in other observatories. Still, if you want to get a clear shot of the sunset you should be there about an hour before the sunset. Though the rooftop was closed due to the weather so I don’t know what it looks like when it is open.