Hi! After researching ideas from other itineraries/trip reports, Japan Guide, and some YouTubers, I wanted to get some feedback on my itinerary.
I’m mainly focused on food, nature, major sightseeing locations, & fall illuminations if possible. Not into the nightlife or drinking so I excluded places like Golden Gai or Omoide Yokocho. Also not focused much on shopping outside of souvenirs which made it difficult for me to find activities in certain areas like Ginza with giant department stores.
Thanks for any feedback in advance!
**Questions:**
1. Can I make my itinerary more efficient? For Tokyo, I tried to group activities by area. But some places like teamLab Planets in Odaiba felt awkward because it’s far away for a single thing. For the last 3 days of the itinerary, I feel like I can fit more, but I’m not sure with what.
2. Is there a better way I can organize my time in Kyoto? The major “must see” things are all across town from each other. I feel like I could maybe split Fushimi Inari into another day and then remove a day from Tokyo at the end. But wasn’t sure if I could fill the rest of that day in Kyoto if I did that.
3. Are there any other highly recommended places that I missed? Or places that I have listed that are overrated?
4. Currently still working on restaurants ideas. Probably will also reference Tabelog while I’m there. Are there any mom & pop or hole in the wall food recommendations? I’d like to steer away from chains like Coco Ichibanya or Ichiran.
5. What’s the best way to get from from Shinjuku to Konansou? And then from Konansou to Kyoto? Going there looks like a straight shot from the JR Shinjuku Station via the Chuo line to Fujikyuko line. But when going to Kyoto, I’ve read some people on this subreddit suggest doubling back to Tokyo (Shin-Yokohama Station?) to get on the Shinkansen. But that would make the leg ~5 hours according to Google. Is that really the best way?
6. What’s your opinion on Osaka vs Himeji Castle? I’ve read that people prefer the latter since the former has been reconstructed so many times. But I’m not sure if I can fit Himeji into this itinerary.
**Day 1 (Shinjuku):**
* Land at HND, get money, pocket WiFi, & 7 day JR Pass to activate on the way to Kyoto. Ride limo bus to Shinjuku
* Tokyo Metropolitan Govt Building, Shinjuku Gyoen/Shinjuku Central Park, Hanazono Shrine, Godzilla, Kabukicho Tower
* Food ideas – Fuunji, Ramen Manrai, Isetan depachika, Tsujihan
**Day 2 (Shibuya/Harajuku):**
* Hachiko, Shibuya Parco (Nintendo Tokyo & Pokemon Center), Meiji Shrine, Miyashita Park (Kitkat Factory w/ reservation opening at 11am), Starbucks Reserve, maybe Omotesando
* Food ideas: Katsumidori Seibu, Torikatsu, Micasadeco, crepes
**Day 3 (Odaiba/Toyosu):**
* Hie Shrine, Tsukiji Outer Market (and/or Toyosu?), Miraikan, teamLab Planets, Pokemon Center DX (and Pokemon Cafe if I can get a reservation)
**Day 4 (Asakusa):**
* Kaminarimon, Senso-ji, Nakamise-dori, Ueno Park, Tokyo National Museum
* Food ideas: Monja Teppan Daikichi, Suzukien (matcha gelato), Benitsuru (souffle pancakes), Yadoroku (onigiri), Yukari (karaage), Momotaro (dango)
**Day 5:**
* Tokyo DisneySea
**Day 6:**
* Travel to Konansou, Autumn Leaves Festival
**Day 7 (Kyoto):**
* Travel to Kyoto, Nishiki Market, To-ji template or Kodai-ji temple for fall illumination (not many illuminations in early Nov it seems)
**Day 8 (Kyoto):**
* Kiyomizu-dera, Higashiyama, Sanneizaka/Nineizaka/Ichinenzaka, Starbucks, Yasaka Shrine, Tofuku-ji, Pug Cafe Living Room
* Food ideas: Maccha House
**Day 9 (Kyoto):**
* Fushimi Inari, Kinkaku-ji, Arashiyama Bamboo, Tenryu-ji, Togetsukyo bridge, Monkey Park, Sagano Scenic Train
* Food ideas: Kichi Kichi Omurice
**Day 10 (Nara):**
* Kasuga Taisha, Todai-ji & Nandaimon, Kofuku-ji, Nara Park
* Food ideas: Nakatanidou, Pontocho
**Day 11 (Osaka):**
* Osaka Castle, Osaka Aquarium, Shinsaibashi Parco
* Food ideas: Dotonbori/Kuromon Market, Sushi Sazara, Takoyaki Shioya, Uncle Rikuro Cheesecake
**Day 12 (Osaka):**
* Sumiyoshi Taisha & Sorihashi Bridge, Namba Yasaka Jinja, Tennoji Zoo, teamLab Botanical Garden
* Food ideas: Shinsekai
**Day 13 (Shinjuku):**
* Travel back to Shinjuku, Kagurazaka, souvenir shopping (Loft, Hands, Shibuya Fukuras, Shibuya Stream)
* Food ideas: Tokyo Ramen Street
**Day 14:**
* Imperial Palace East Gardens (seems like you can’t get any closer than this?), Ameyoko street, Rikugien Gardens, souvenir shopping (Don Quijote, Akomeya, Nakano Broadway)
**Day 15:**
* Leave HND at 11pm
3 comments
Osaka Castle is a nice-looking museum in the shape of the castle that used to be there. Some reconstructions put in the effort to be somewhat authentic, but that’s not what Osaka is going for. If you want to go and see a *castle*, go to Himeji. But Osaka Castle looks nice on the outside, is a nice museum, and has a good lookout over the city, if that’s more your thing.
Odaiba has plenty of other things you can see while you’re there – lots of crazy architecture and interesting museums
Oct/Nov is autumn in Japan.
I highly recommend to go to Nikko for Autumn season.U can go there from Tokyo as Day trip if u mix yr plan in Day 13 and Day 14.But plz check Nikko Momiji Stage on website before u go as it is earlier than Tokyo.
For Kyoto, u should search Sky Bus tour from Kyoto Station and boat ride in Arashiyama.
Some comments:
Day 1: The JR pass system is going to change rigorously around the time you will visit Japan. I don’t know the details about it, but check well if the JR pass is still worth it for you around that time. I believe the price is going up a LOT, so it will no longer be worth it for people just wanting to travel from Tokyo to Kyoto and back (which is how most visitors use it).
Other than that Your day 1 plan seems fine depending on the time you are able to start sightseeing. If you start early afternoon you should be able to visit these places. It’s good that you stay in a single neigborhood for your first day because people tend to be tired from a long flight on day 1.
Day 2: On first impression this looks doable, but since you are bound to time schedules possible waiting times here are there this could be tricky to execute. If you start early at Meiji that is probably the best way to go. So in this order: Train to harajuku – visit meiji shrine – train to shibuya – go to miyashita park for sightseeing and Kitkat store at 11.00 – then on to hachiko – walk down the main shopping streets towards Parco and visit the mentioned stores – take the train down to Meguro station and visit the Starbucks roastery. You will need some lunch somewhere in between. Omotesando could be an early evening visit but since it’s mainly a posh shopping area and you already have 3 neighborhoods on your trip this day, I would advise to skip it.
Day 3: This itinerary is doable. You will be visiting 3 different neighborhoods in a day though. It’s up to you if that is a problem for you. Hie shrine is in the Akasaka area which is not that heavy on destinations. There is Akasaka palace and it would also be logical to combine this with the imperial palace, which is nearby. But the Ginza line connects Akasaka to Tsukiji so this is not a bad plan. Around Tsukiji there are also other places that may be interesting to combine. Such as Hamarikyu gardens and Shiodome site. I would probably not visit Toyosu market as it doesn’t have all the charm and chaos that the old Tsukiji market had.
Day 4: Good plan. Take your time to see Ueno park. A personal favorite destination of mine. There is a temple called Toshogu here that is not very famous but I thought was really nice.
Day 5: No comment.
Day 6: No comment. I have to experience visiting this festival or this town.
Day 7: Toji temple is relatively nearby Kyoto station, so try to visit that upon arrival if possible. Nishiki Market is very downtown while Kodai-ji is in the the more historical east side. Grouping activities by area is just as important (perhaps even more) in Kyoto than it is in Tokyo. Kyoto is not a big as Tokyo, but many sites are spreadout across the edges of the city and the city relies largely on buses for transportation. Travelling between areas takes up a lot of time (on crowded buses) so you want to avoid that by grouping destinations by area. I would probably move Kodaiji to the next day because you will be spending most time in the east side. That leaves you more time to explore the downtown around Kawaramachi at night on day 1. You could also consider Nijo castle on this day.
Day 8: Looks fine.
Day 9: Fushimi inari + Kinkakuji + Arashiyama on one day is really pushing it. Kinkakuji + Arashiyama makes sense, but Fushimi is completely on the other side of the city. Also these three places are all overcrowded with tourists. You may want to remove Fushimi from the list and have some more time in Arashiyama for example.
Day 10: Looks fine. It’s unclear if you will be doing daytrips from Kyoto to Nara and Osaka or whether you will day in separate hotels. For now im assuming daytrips. You could consider to do Fushimi Inari on the way to Nara in the early morning. That way you can also beat the crowds at Fushimi Inari.
Day 11-12: No comments. I haven’t visited most of the places you will be visiting on day 12 so it’s hard to estimate. I did like Shinsekai however, it’s a good place to a nighttime visit.
Day 13-14: As for the last two days. Imperial Palace makes sense to visit. Combined with the Tokyo Station area it makes for a nice day trip. I visited these two areas in one day last march and there was plenty to see and do. You can not get into the palace, but walking the eastern gardens does give you a feeling of the old Tokyo more than anywhere else in the city. The moat of the shortlived Edo castles remains and also one of the original watchtowers can be seen from the outside. Not too far from here there is Yasukuni Shrine which is also worth a visit for historical reasons.
I think on day 13 you could swap Shinjuku with something else since you have already been there. Perhaps consider Yanaka, which is a more historical area of Tokyo with more old buildings remaining and has a more laidback atmosphere. If you are a foodie you could also visit Shin-Okubo, a multicultural area with lots of restaurants from different asian countries like korea, india and several south-east asian countries as well.
It think I already answered your questions 1 and 2 in the comments above, but as for question 3: In Kyoto there are so many lovely places to visit, that skipping one or two ‘must visit’ places, doesn’t really hurt your experience. I personally really enjoyed the north-eastern part of Kyoto with Ginkakuji and the Philosophers wark. I liked it more than Kinkakuji which is more touristy overal. I haven’t been to Arashiyama but from what I’ve seen on Youtube it looks like the kind of place that has long lost it’s authenticity due to mass tourism. Kyoto is going to be a lot of fun without these places. If I were you, with the experience of hindsight I would probably select from Fushimi, Kyomizu, Kinkakuji and Arashiyama two places that you would like to see the most and replace the others with just walking around the city. East of the Kamo river is full of hidden gems but you have to slow down your pace a bit to appreciated it.