Hi! I’m planning a 12-day trip to Japan as part of a larger Asia trip and putting together an itinerary is honestly pretty overwhelming. I’ve been reading lots of itineraries on this sub so figured I might as well post mine too 🙂
I’m interested in temples/shrines, gardens, museums, but mainly there to soak up the vibes of each city and experience the unique culture of Japan. Not particularly into Disney and anime. I’m going to be travelling on a budget so I’m mainly trying to find cheap/free attractions.
**Day 1: Travel day**
* Arrive at NRT around mid-afternoon
* Figure out public transport, SIM card, etc
* Travel to hostel and chill
**Day 2: Tokyo**
* Explore Asakusa (Nakamise-dori, Senso-ji)
* Ueno Park + Tokyo National Museum
* Explore Akihabara
**Day 3: Tokyo**
* Imperial Palace
* Walk through Ginza to Tsukiji Market
* TeamLab Borderless + Odaiba OR Nakameguro/Simokitawaza?
**Day 4: Tokyo**
* Shibuya (Shibuya Crossing, Harajuku, Takeshita-dori, Meiji Jingu)
* Shinjuku (Shinjuku Gyoen Gardens, Tokyo Metropolitan Govt Building, Golden Gai)
**Day 5: Tokyo**
* Day trip to Nikko/Kamakura/Hakone?
* Night bus to Kyoto
**Day 6: Kyoto**
* Arashiyama Bamboo Forest
* Monkey Park
* Daikaku-ji
* Probably need a nap after that night bus…
**Day 7: Kyoto**
* Fushimi Inari Shrine
* Kyoto Station (shopping and walkway view)
* Kyoto National Museum
* Kiyomizu-dera
**Day 8: Kyoto**
* Imperial Palace & Gyoen Garden
* Nishiki Market
* Pontocho
* Kennin-ji
* Ishibei-koji Lane
* Marayuma Park
**Day 9: Kyoto**
* Kurama-Kibune hike (half day)
* Botanical gardens / Kinkaku-ji / Anything I’ve missed / Rest?
**Day 10: Nara day trip**
* Train Kyoto-Nara in AM
* Explore Nara: focus on Nara Park, including Shrines and Botanical Gardens
* Train Nara-Osaka in PM
**Day 11: Osaka**
* Osaka Castle
* Explore Shinsekai, Namba, Shinsaibashisuji, Amerikamura
* (TeamLab Botanical Gardens?)
* Dotonbori in the evening
**Day 12: Osaka:**
* Umeda (Station City, Sky Building)
* Tenjimbashisuji
* (Museum of Housing and Living?)
* Kaiyukan Aquarium
* Take the 17:30 Limousine Bus from Tempozan to KIX
* Fly out of KIX
**Questions:**
* I’m worried my Tokyo days (esp day 4) are too packed, what do you think?
* Which TeamLab should I go to, Borderless (Tokyo) or Botanical Gardens (Osaka)? Or both? Borderless should be open by the time I travel 🙂
* Any recommendations for quirky cafes are very welcome! Preferably something not anime/video game themed but maybe an animal cafe, robot cafe, or some other themed cafe?
* If I’m going to splurge on a few activities or restaurants, what would you recommend? (By “splurge” I mean between like 30-80 dollars, I can’t really spend much more than that)
* Should I take one day away from Kyoto and add it to Tokyo instead?
* Recommendations for affordable vegetarian-friendly food places are very welcome!
10 comments
You’re itenerary is very ambitious for 12 days. My partner and I did a lot of what you are planning but we had 3 weeks and didn’t even get to do all of it.
There will be a significant amount of walking with what you are planning and it will be in 30-40 degree heat so I would take that in to consideration. I don’t know where you are traveling from to Japan but if it’s a significant distance expect to be jet lagged which will make big day trips in high heat hard going.
I would limit sights to one to two things a day. You want to enjoy them after all. It’s also a big place and it is easy to get turned around and make mistakes with directions so that could add a lot of stress if you’re trying to do a lot in one day. If you plan properly and things are close by you could hit up 3/4 places.
Something you could cut from Tokyo is akihabara. It’s pretty much all games/anime/manga shops and cosplay cafes so if you aren’t into that I wouldn’t bother.
Day 2 is a lot. You might be tired to explore Akibahara. I spent three hours there and barely did anything.
Day 4 as well. I would dedicate one day to each of those.
Same for the dotonbori day, the aquarium, and team labs. I found that we were able to do a few things a day. Maybe an activity and something around food and even then pairing Osaka Castle and Dotonbori on the same day felt like too much at the end of the day
Overall you got too much. And it’s way too packed to even enjoy those things.
If you only visit one bar in Golden Gai, make it Bar Champion. I wandered into there on my first solo visit to Japan in 2018 and made friends I still keep in touch with. It’s a karaoke bar where everyone sings along with the singer
If you’re not into anime, there’s no point in going to Akihabara. It’s like 99% anime figurines, maid cafes, and arcades. I’d cut that out and just take your time in Ueno and Asakusa.
For veggie places, you have CoCo Ichibanya and Mos Burger for chains.
I don’t know what your idea of affordable is, but T’s TanTan Ramen is a MUST for veggies, Asakusa has Fujifuku and Vegaic Monkey Magic. Nezunoya is on the other side of Ueno park. It’s out of the way but if you happen to be in the area, it’s affordable and good. Shibuya has Izakaya Masaka.
If you have to splurge on food, I’d recommend buddhist cuisine in Kyoto!
https://www.insidekyoto.com/best-shojin-ryori-japanese-buddhist-vegetarian-cuisine
I live in Kobe which is about 30 minutes by train from Osaka. It’s great for a one day trip. I highly recommend it. There’s a Chinatown, Harborland, Nunobiki waterfall which are all free. Just a little different from the big cities. I always think people should try to get out of the big cities when traveling. Here’s a youtube channel that has some walkthrough videos in Kobe. Should check it out. Hope you enjoy
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VuaHwc5Miio
I completely agree with what blanetrane is saying. My family and I are actually in the middle of a 2 week trip to Osaka and Tokyo right now. A week in and everyone is still waking up early in the morning (4-5 am). Combine that with the hot and humid days and we find ourselves going back to the hotel in the afternoon to rest a bit before heading out again in the evening. The train system is really good, it you’ll still be doing a lot of walking in between.
This is very similar to a 12 day trip that I did back in 2019, I would say highly doable and I even did a day trip to Hiroshima and Miajima from Kyoto.
– Skip the Tokyo National Museum.
– Skip Arashiyama
– Get a cycle tour in Osaka and/or Kyoto, it will get you up to speed on both cities and might help you plan what you’re still missing out
– Osaka castle has a lot of Japanese only explanations, so either you’re with an app scanning QR codes, or with a tour guide, this is quite common in other museums too.
In Osaka, if you wan’t to visit the castle get the ticket that also gets to their history museum, even though it’s quite small, you can have a great view to the castle for a low fee.
– If you are traveling alone, do you really want selfies inside Teamlab? It’s a very instagram focused experience, people go with their partners usually.
If you go to Hakone for a day trip, I recommend The Hakone Open-Air Museum, Hakone Kowakien Yunessun, and Lake Ashi.
For Nikko, I’d recommend Kegon Falls, Lake Chuzenji, and Nikko Toshogu. I went early on a Monday and avoided a lot of crowds.
Both are definitely doable for a day trip if you are traveling light and plan well 👍🏼
Don’t have any input, as I am overwhelmed planning my 14-day itinerary, but good god, I was also planning to add Hiroshima and Kanazawa over what you have… now I have legit FOMO!
Please post your final itinerary!