Good day, Team 🙂
Below is my draft itinerary, but I would like to find out if there is additional places that you can recommend or your “must-see-don’t-regret” places or restaurants 🤗
Plus if there are places that I am staying for too long for, please let me know 🙇♀️
**Thank youuu!**
I am looking at mid June-July 2024. This will be my second time travelling around that time. I know that I will miss cherry blossoms, etc, and also I am ready for the rain. However the plane ticket and time is perfect for my annual leave 👏
Unsure about whether Hydrangea will still bloom around mid-June to mid July.
**Tokyo June 21: will be based at Resol Ueno**
Arrive at Narita or Haneda airport (not sure yet). I will spend the rest of the day exploring the area around me
**Tokyo June 22 – 24:**
Full days to explore. I am planning for:
\- Asakusa district
\- Meiji Jingu
\- Shinjuku Gyoen
\- Maybe Ginza aquarium
\- Team Lab (still haven’t done Team Lab)
**Kamakura June 25: will be based at WeBase Kamakura**
\- Great Buddha (Daibutsu)
\- Hasedera Temple
\- Hokokuji Bamboo Garden. Overnight in Kamakura.
**Kamakura June 26:**
\- Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine
\- Komachi Street
\- Inamuragasaki Onsen
**Aomori June 27:**
\- Aomori Museum of Art, I want to see Yoshitomo Nara’s pieces 🤗
\- Nebuta Museum Wa Rasse.
**Aomori & Hirosaki June 28 – 29:**
\- Hirosaki Castle
\- Hirosaki Park
\- Fujita Memorial Garden.
\- Apple Factory?
**Iwate June 29 – July 1:**
Travel to Iwate in the afternoon and stay at Morioka
\- Chuson-ji Temple
\- Geibikei Gorge
\- Jodogahama beach
\- Ryusendo Cave
\- Bank of Iwate
**Matsushima July 1 – 2:**
Travel to Matsushima in the afternoon.
\- Zuiganji Temple
\- boat tour around the Matsushima Bay
\- Godaido Temple
\- Fukuura Island
\- Shiogama
**Sendai July 3 – 4:**
\- Aoba Castle ruins
\- Osaki Hachiman Shrine
\- Sendai Mediatheque
\- trying Zunda & gyutan
**Yamagata July 5 – 6:**
\- Yamadera Risshakuji Temple
\- Yamagata Castle
\- Zao Onsen
**Fukushima July 7 – 8:**
\- hiring car to go around
\- Fukushima City
\- Hanamiyama Park
\- Tsuruga Castle.
\- Bandai Plateau
\- Goshiki-numa Ponds
\- Inawashiro Lake
\- cafe hopping in Fukushima
**Back to Tokyo July 9 – 12:**
\- Nikko day trip
\- Setagaya
\- Kawagoe
\- Shimokitazawa
**Flying back July 13:**
Last minute shopping at the Loft 😭
2 comments
From pretty recent experience, you can finish your Sendai sights and more in a day, using the Sendai loople pass. It’s a sightseeing bus that travels around Sendai. You can go to the Jr east info centre at the station to ask where to buy the loople pass. I think they open at 8 and close 4.30pm?
For food in Sendai, personally when I went there, I quite liked Grill Minoru at lvl 3 of Sendai Station, pretty nice food all around. For Zunda I got it at I think Zunda Saryo which was the one near the station entrance( the main entrance with the glass mural), lvl 2 left side, but there’s Zunda all over the place. Gyutan there’s a pretty good restaurant called Tanya Zenjiro near the station but my personal favorite was the one at the Site of sendai castle, stop 6 on the loople route. Abit pricy, but worth it.
Shopping in Sendai there’s Clisroad shopping street for the street fashion type. There’s also drugstores there. Otherwise within and around Sendai Station there’s all the shopping mall types. Also please don’t make the same mistake as me and take the Subway to Aobadori station, it is about one or two traffic lights away from the main station. Coming out of the main entrance of Sendai Station you can even see the entrance of Aobadori
For matsushima, if your into fish, might I suggest dropping by Shiogama first for the fish market. They have some fresh raw fish there and you can even make your own kaisendon bowl. If not there’s also a grilling spot to grill the fish. Then from there you can head to Marine Gate Shiogama to take the basho cruise(the islands cruise) down to Matsushima, before going along to Zuigenji and the rest of the place.
Also in matsushima I recommend fukuurajima if your into like nature walks and stuff and Saigyo Modoshi no Matsu Park for the honestly amazing view at the top, it’s abit of a climb, but so worth it. Best viewed at sunset too
Is there any reason why you are skipping Akita? I’d recommend Kakunodate, Tazawako, and staying overnight at Nyuto onsen. You can take the Tazawako line from Morioka or if you’ll have a JR pass, the Akita shinkansen stops in Tazawako and Kakunodate. I’d recommend shortening your time in Sendai or Kamakura to add Akita in.