Hello, I am planning a trip to Japan for the first time from 15 to 27 July . Going together with my mum + her friend’s family (total 5 pax). This trip is kind of a rushed decision as I only decided on May that I want to go on holiday during my birthday week.
This itinerary is just a guideline as I am relatively flexible with my schedule and may adjust it depending on what happens during the trip.
**Remarks**
1. Homebase will be in Osaka from 15-21 July and Tokyo from 21-27 July
2. The flight tickets & accommodation was booked before the planning, this is why it may look weird to have home-base in Osaka but start at Kyoto.
3. Did not have Gion as part of the planning initially but feel like would be a waste to not visit it at least once because of Gion Matsuri
4. Planning to just get a 7-day JR Pass mainly for the trip from Narita-Osaka-Tokyo
5. Jet lag won’t be an issue as it will only be a 1 hour time difference
6. Is this itinerary too touristy?
Below are the planned places to visit. Any feedback/suggestions would be appreciated.
# Day 1 (15 July) – Narita to Osaka
* Arrive to Narita in the morning (9am) and transit to Osaka (expecting to be there by mid-afternoon/evening)
* Check into airbnb
* Explore Dontonburi in the evening
# Day 2 (16 July) – Kyoto
Morning – Arishiyama
* Bamboo Forest
* Tenryuji Temple
* Monkey Park
* Kinkaju Temple (TBD, looks out of the way because of transport to get there)
Afternoon
* Kiyomizu-dera Temple
* Sannen-zaka
* Ninnen-zaka
Evening
* Gion Area for Yoiyama
# Day 3 (17 July) – Nara/Kyoto
Morning – Nara
* Nara deer park
* Todai-Ji
Afternoon – Kyoto
* Nishiki Market
* Fushimi Inari Shrine (late afternoon?)
# Day 4 (18 July) – Universal Studio Japan
# Day 5 (19 July) – Osaka
Morning
* Osaka Castle
Afternoon
* Umeda Sky Building (may shift to night 1 depending on arrival time and visit Osaka Aquarium)
Evening
* ShinSekai
# Day 6 (20 July) – Day trip to Kobe
Morning
* Kobe Ropeway/Herb Garden
Afternoon
* Kobe Haborland
# Day 7 (21 July) – Osaka to Tokyo
Morning
* Kumoron Market (Mainly to find food)
* Check-out of airbnb
Afternoon
* Transit to Tokyo
* Check-in airbnb
Evening
* Visit Shibuya (mainly for dinner + explore)
# Day 8 (22 July)- Daytrip to see Mt.Fuji
Haven’t decided to visit Hakone or Lake Kawaguchi.
Was planning on skipping Mt.Fuji but my mum really wanted it
# Day 9 (23 July) – Asakusa/Akihabara
Morning
* Senso-Ji Temple
* Nakamise-dori Street
Afternoon
* Explore/Shop around Akihabara
# Day 10 (24 July)- DisneySea
# Day 11 (25 July) – Tokyo
Morning
* Imperial Palace
Afternoon
* Ueno Park
# Day 12 (26 July)- Shinjuku
Mainly planned as a shopping day
# Day 13 (27 July)- Flight back to home
Will probably explore the area near our accommodation in the morning before heading to the airport in the afternoon for our flight home.
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*Thanks for reading my post and for any feedback/suggestions :)*
4 comments
Day 2 is very packed compared to the rest, you will miss the beauty of these places. I suggest to skip Nara on day 3 and split day 2. So day 2 – Arashiyama, day 3 – Kyoto.
Then on day 6, you can try to visit Himeji since they’re close.
Thanks for the tip, I’ll make sure to pack my running shoes for day 2!
Visibility of Mt Fuji is very low in July – it is less than 1 in 10 chance of any given day in July. Check the webcam / visibility forecast before going.
Day 11: Do you have ticket for imperial place? If not you can only see very little and no point of reserving half the day.