How does my 10 day itinerary to Japan look? This has been one of the most overwhelming trips I have tried to plan and I know we are trying to jam a lot in ten days.

13 comments

1. The tokyo/kyoto thing is really tough to pack into a 10 day trip. I coordinated a trip similar to that with 15 people and learned my lesson. That you are also doing Osaka and Hakone might be tricky.

   If you are okay cutting a thing or two from your Tokyo itinerary I think you’ll be mostly okay. As others have said, limit yourself to maybe one or two major things per day, and just float from there.

   Understand that many attraction-like things in Kyoto close around 5-6pm.

   Do not use AI to make travel plans, especially in foreign countries.

   While you are in Japan and even now, google directions are very accurate. It will tell you which trains to get on etc if you are lost. Get a portable WIFI.

2. Heavy itinerary

3. Check out Golden Gai in Shinjuku (I think it’s next to the garden) as that is the real old school Tokyo. You won’t have to spend much time there. I would see if you can get to Kamakura as you’ll get more out of it than Hakone even a half day there and it’s about one hour by train. Ueno Park is okay but the Edo Museum is way better than the National Museums unless there is something specific you want to see. If you go to Tsukiji check out the Goldfish Exhibit in Ginza. I’ve been there twice and it is amazing. If you do spend time there I would see Kabuki as well.

   Although one caveat about Tsukiji is that you won’t be able to get in before 9 am if your a tourist and it’s pretty much shut down by then. I also remember your not allowed to photograph anything there, but they might make some sort exception if there is a designated area for tourists. Tbh I thought it had been closed down. The times I’ve been were at about 4-5 am but I have a relative who is a chef and knows the place.

   I would say things are more accessible around Minato-ku than Shinjuku but wouldn’t suggest spending too much time in Tokyo anyway for a ten day trip. It can be a bit much to navigate if you don’t know the city well.

   There is way much more to do in Kyoto and would skip Osaka for it. You should check out Gion, Kiyomisodera and Kinkakuji (Silver Pavillion) which I think is one of the best gardens in Japan IMHO. The Kyoto Imperial Palace wasn’t as interesting tbh and the areas around the former are more authentic and have many crafts to see.

   Do stop at Nara Todaji and you can do this in 2-3 hours. Be sure to check out the temple on the side of it and take you time there you won’t regret it.

   I would try to narrow things down as sometimes less is more in Japan. If you rush through things you won’t enjoy it as much. You should minimize the amount of time moving from place to place.

   That being said skip Mount Fuji as depending on the time of year and time of day you get there it won’t be visible anyway. It’s generally cloud cover most afternoons. Getting a decent photo of the place will take more time than you have and I had to spend a night on the mountain for it to be worth it and there was also a fire festival and was there a few days. You have to factor in weather and not expect to get iconic views.

   If you can get to a matsuri festival do that! It will be very memorable. If you can get to the one at Asakusa then it would be amazing otherwise the pace is fairly meh. I’ve been there in the winter when it was closed down and it was sort of boring, but they do have really cool crafts it’s where you buy a lot of festival merch. Much different atmosphere when things are happening but with no festival it’s just a bit kitschy (I have a thing for Japanese kitsch but you can find it at a lot of places) and focused on drinking if that’s your thing. Most people who are on a first time to Japan spend too much of it in the cities is the biggest complaint I hear. Would suggest you make alternatives if you can and keep it flexible. Getting caught by a typhoon sucks.

4. Did you get AI to write this? This is not allowed on the subreddit for good reason. It talks crap.

5. The photo of lime and jalapeños in your rice noodle dish makes me think you’re actually heading elsewhere?🧐

   In all seriousness,
   If there’s anything to gather it’s best to stay within a guideline but don’t get obsessed about sticking to exactly what’s on your list… you’ll enjoy your trip more, I promise… as others have observed, this schedule looks quite packed esp for someone unfamiliar with how to get from point A to B.

6. Lol *wear shorts to Teamlabs* – great research 🙂 someone told my wife the same thing

   This itinerary is gruelling, cut 25% of your itinerary per day or you’ll need a vacay from your vacay!

7. We spent 10 days in Japan and did a similar itinerary except we did Hiroshima and Miyajima as a day trip from Kyoto instead of Osaka. My advice is to pick two things per day that you really want to do and priories those. Have your list of extras that you can see if you feel up to it. We were out sight seeing 12 hours a day and that was cool with us. We’d just go to bed early and get up early.

   My advice is to to Tsujiki outer marker in the early morning for breakfast and then TeamLab in the late morning. Then you have the full day to do other things.

   Also do Fushimi Inari as early as possible to avoid crowds. We got there by 7:30 am and basically had the place to ourselves (this was in July, not sure when you are planning to go). We did Fushimi Inari, the golden temple and ashrayama (bamboo grove and monkey park) all before noon one day. Then we did a boat ride in ashrayama. I wouldn’t go back to Kyoto station for lunch that day. You should just stay in the ashrayama area for lunch or head over to the sake district in the afternoon from there.

8. Your first full Tokyo day is insane and impossible. Remember to account for transit, bathroom breaks, and enjoying yourself. My husband and I spent over 2 hours in the Mori art museum and roof etc. We spent half a day in Harajuku and the surrounding area alone. Teamlabs is a couple of hours and takes a minute to get to.

   In general we accomplished 2-4 things a day, or 1-2 neighborhoods. Make a priority list and cluster days together by proximity. We made a starred google map of things we wanted to do and went from there. Remember to be flexible because some days you might not feel like doing what you planned or jet leg might hit you hard and you’ll want a pit stop at the hotel for an hour to decompress.

   We had 14 days in Japan and did 6 nights in Tokyo (extremely easy to do, we could have spent even longer), 3 nights Osaka and 4 nights Kyoto. At the end we wished we kept it to Tokyo and Kyoto only to have more time in each.

   With 10 days I’d cut at least one location out of your trip plus shave your itinerary down significantly.

9. Your first full day in Tokyo is absolutely insane and should be a major red flag that you need the rethink your whole trip on a macro level (or, you know, stop using shitty AI to put an itinerary together for you).

10. I’m planning 10 cities in 14 days. Most would say, overpacked, but I only have 2-3 activities that are must do’s and the rest are so I’m not on the spot wondering what to do. If you have not been to Japan before, you will quickly realize that you can’t do everything.

    Anything I miss, will be done on the next trip. It will take longer to get places and you will likely spend more time than you think so don’t be determined to do everything. Sometimes you will just wander into something interesting so leave room for serendipity.

11. I’m not sure if there’s any place to have a “traditional Japanese breakfast” if it’s not served in your accommodation, but maybe someone can prove me wrong.

12. I figure 1 of 2 things are happening with posts like this.

    1) There’s something to be gained in Reddit terms for baiting negative comments as much as positive? I’m no Reddit pro so admit I’m not fully across it – but surely they don’t incentivise stupid bait posts do they?

    2) there’s so many “top 12 things to do in Tokyo/Kyoto” bullshit YouTube videos and listicles now that people just consume the list and think it’s all doable on their first trip to Japan

    Does this happen on all travel reddits? Admittedly I only follow this Japan one cause I love Japan

13. Tokyo seems busy. Lots of different subway tickets required and JR Pass on the main loop. Plus walking between stations and places. TeamLabs we had a 30 minute wait as well to get in. Plus the fish market was busy (and they are not as close together as you think). Lots of walking.

    Osaka day looks packed. I’m just back from 15 days trip and spent 2 nights in Osaka (with one day trip to Himeji). Unless you are getting taxis everywhere you need to factor in:

    Trip from Shin-Osaka to Osaka Station by train (covered by JR Pass). Then Osaka Loop train to the closest station to Osaka Castle. Then continue down the Osaka loop and a decent walk to Dotonbori. Then a walk back to the train station, then the loop back and subway to the Aquarium. Then back into town for Shinsaibashi. Decent amount of travel and walking time.

    Plus your Kyoto days. There are trains, but also more buses needed for getting to the main sites. Fushimi Inari is in the east, and Arashiyama is in the west. The Philosophers walk is more north east. Nishiki Market is in the middle. Gion is a lot of walking as well. So you might want to group these more geographically.

    We did do the Hakone trip in a day, but that was pushing it. The Hakone FreePass ticket is best for two days but you can fit it into a day. Train, bus, lake cruise, ropeway, cablecar, train loop. You can get the Shinkansen from Odawara to Tokyo in 30 minutes compared with the Romance car. Didn’t see Mount Fuji as it was covered by clouds.

    So only advice really is to pick two or three things for the day, as the travel and walking does take a fair bit of time. Though we did travel in July and that was very hot and humid, so if you have milder weather it should be easier.