Hi Everyone,
Wanted your feedback/suggestions on my itinerary for 16 days Japan trip –
Travelling from New Delhi to Tokyo
Food preference – Pescatarian
Interests – 1. Art and Design (2) Animals (3) Culture (4) Anime/Manga
Japanese Language proficiency – Starter A1 from UAE Japanese Cultural Centre 2022
Recommendations needed – unique café/restaurants/items to buy and how to travel in Kyoto and Osaka (is there a common card etc for buses and trains there)
Train Pass suggestions for Tokyo
Hotel Style – Tokyo – Capsule Hotel and Kyoto and Osaka – Ryokan and Onsen
TOKYO
DAY 1 –
Walk Around
DAY 2 – CHIYODA CITY AND TAIDO CITY
1. 0900 Hours – Morning – Imperial Palace (Duration 2 hours)
2. 1130 Hours – Late Morning – The National Museum of Modern Art (Duration – 1.5 hours)
QUICK LUNCH – 7-11
3. 1400 Hours – Afternoon – Senso ji and Nakamise Dori (Duration 2 hours)
4. 1700 Hours – Evening (Sunset) – Tokyo Skytree (Duration 1 hour)
5. Evening Coffee – Akiba Fukuro -Owl Café ( 12pm to 6pm)
6. 1900 Hours – Late Evening/Night – Akiharabara
i) Super potato Akiharaba
ii) Mandarake Complex
iii) Any suggestions to visit any specific store are welcomed also best store to purchase figurines from
DINNER – Suggestions are welcomed
DAY 3 – GINZA
1. 1100 Hours – Morning – Chou City – Walk from the hotel to the high street with Uniqlo/Muji
2. 1200 Hours – Noon – Lunch – Tsukiji Outer Market – Tsukiji Kagura Sushi
3. 1400 Hours – Afternoon – teamLab borderless (Duration 2 Hours)
On the way if I can check out Fujifilm building
Approximately 1.5 hours from teamLab to Yokohama
4. 1730 Hours – Gundam Factory Yokohama (open till 8pm) (Duration 1 Hour)
5. 1830 Hours – Dinner at Yokohama Chinatown
DINNER – Suggestions are welcomed
DAY 4 – SHIBUYA
1. 1000 Hours – Morning – Meiji Jingu (Duration 2 Hours)
2. 1130 Hours – Late Morning – Yoyogi Park
3. 1230 Hours – Tokyo Plaza – Omotesando Harajuku
4. Coffee/Lunch break – Harajuku Mame-Shiba Café and Pompompurin Cafe
5. 1600 Hours – Gotokuji Temple ( 30 mins from Omote Sando Station – Duration 1.5 Hours)
6. 1900 Hours – Shibuya Scramble Square and Hachiko Statue
7. Shibuya sky – Where and how can I adjust this?
8. 2000 Hours – Dinner
DINNER – Suggestions are welcomed
DAY 5– SHINJUKU
1. 1000 Hours – Metro Government Building (Duration 2 hours)
2. 1200 Noon – Walk around Nishishinjuku + Godzilla Head
3. 1300 Hours – Lunch Suggestions are welcomed
4. 1500 Hours – Omoide Yokocho
5. 1700 Hours – Sake Market
Day 6 – ROPPONGI
1. 1000 Hours – Tokyo Tower
2. 1200 Hours – Tokyo View
Lunch- Suggestions are welcomed
3. 1400 Hours – Mori Art Museum (Duration 2 Hours; Timing 10 am to 10 pm)
4. 1630 Hours – The National Art Centre (Duration 2 Hours; Timing 10 am to 8pm /6pm some days)
5. 1900 Hours – Dinner Suggestions are welcomed
DAY 7 – MOUNT FUJI
Was thinking of opting for a day trip with Klook – https://s.klook.com/c/\_XoJkonmy9
DAY 8 – TOKYO DISNEYSEA
DAY 9 – KYOTO
Travel from Tokyo to Kyoto (2.5 Hours to 3 Hours by Shinkansen)
1. \~1300 – Lunch
2. 1500 Hours – Nijo Castle
3. 1700 Hours – Nishiki Market
4. 2000 Hours – Aeon Mall
Dinner –
DAY 10 – KYOTO
1. 0700 Hours -Fushimi Inari Taisha (Duration 2- 3 Hours)
Inari Station to Kiyomizu-Gojo Station. This will take approximately 15 minutes
2. 1030 Hours – Kiyomizu-Dera – 20 mins walk from Kiyomizu Gojo station
3. 1130 Hours – Sannenzaka – 3 mins walk from kiyomizu dera
4. 1230 Noon – Ninenzaka – 10 mins walk from Sannenzaka
5. 1430 Hours – Kodaiji Temple
6. 1530 Hours – Yasaka Pagoda (Hokanji Temple): Shirakawa:
7. 1630 Hours – Kenin ji
8. 1730 Hours – Gion Corner
9. 1830 Hours – Pontocho Alley
Lunch and Dinner – Suggestions are welcomed
DAY 11 – KYOTO
10. 0700 Hours – Arashiyama Bamboo Grove (From Arashiyama Station, it’s a 15-minute walk)
11. 0900 Hours – Tenryu Temple
12. 1100 Hours – Arashiyama Iwatayama Monkey Park (15-minute walk to it from bamboo grove – 20 mins mountain climb – Duration 2 Hours)
Lunch –
13. 1400 Hours – Kinkaku-ji, also known as the Golden Pavilion ( Duration 2 Hours)
Day 12 – NARA
Day trip – OR should I move to Nara and then travel from Nara to Osaka
DAY 13 – OSAKA
1. 1300 Hours– Reach by Lunch
2. 1400 Hours – Dotonbori (Lunch)
Eat at Ichiran Ramen for Seafood Ramen and try Okomoniyaki (Seafood option)
Walk around and check out – America Mura Street ( 7 mins walk from Dotonbori)
DAY 14 – OSAKA
Universal Studios
DAY 15 – OSAKA
1. 0900 Hours – Osaka Castle and Nishinomaru Garden
2. 1230 Hours – Namba Yasaka Jinja
Lunch
3. 1500 Hours – Tsutenkaku ( 30 mins walk from Namba Yasaka Jinja)
4. 1800 Hours – Umeda Sky Building (30-40 mins from Tsutenkaku)
DAY 15 – OSAKA
1. Morning – Jajan Yokocho Alley
2. Late Morning – Kuromon Ichiba Market
3. Afternoon / Evening – Tempozan Giant Ferris Wheel
4. Evening/Night –
DAY 16 – RETURN HOME
7 comments
Please look up treatment of animals at various cafes before attending
Some of your days are _very_ detailed. I suggest deciding on two major things per day, and spend the rest of the time strolling around and doing spontanious things. If the schedule is too detailed with times, like Day 10, there is a risk that the day will feel like a chore.
From day 2 this is extremely packed. For example to stores you named in Akihabara should close at 20:00, so you have less than an hour for Akihabara. If you want to buy figures, there is a lot of stores all around, but you need to allocate more time to go to many stores to find if the prices are good and if they have what you want.
teamLab Borderless have not re-opened yet. Again you have a lot here, you could remove Yokohama and dedicate a full day.
Day 6, Considering that you already have 3 other observation deck and want to add two more on that day… that seems a bit much. I would reconsider and maybe do only 2 total, maybe 3. For me the choice would be Shibuya Sky and Roppongi Hills only.
In general, I feel you have a lot and it might be difficult to follow this itinerary without burning out. I would try to be flexible and make priority, try to enjoy what you are doing and do not rush.
For pass, some people tend to overthink it. For Tokyo one of the “best” is the Tokyo Metro 72h ticket, but you need to take the train/subway like 3 times a day for it to save money. So you have to make sure that you can even go to the places you want to go with it, as it won’t go to Yokohama or Odaiba for example, and other routes can be really inconvenient compared to use JR.
What can be the easiest is to just pay everything with an IC card. Right now you could use Pasmo Passport or Welcome Suica that are available at the airport, they expire after 28 days and you cannot get a refund on the balance (so do not overcharge and spend all the money before you leave, for example in a store). Or you can get one of these two cards or Icoca on an iPhone and recharge with a non-visa credit card. All these cards work in Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka and Nara.
Staying in capsule hotels for a week in Tokyo wouldn’t be much fun: they’re really intended to be last resort type accommodation. I’d suggest staying in a hostel or cheap business hotel if you’re on a tight budget
There are some interesting Tofu Kaiseki places in Kyoto that might be nice to try.
We went to Mamehachi Honten and as a non-vegetarian with vegetarian friends, it was an interesting and different experience.
lmao do NOT stay in a capsule hotel for that long
Going to be honest, your days are too packed! All of the days involve walking around a lot. Taking the train/subway involves walking up/down the stairs. Even if you can manage it physically, it stops being fun after a point. At least try to make some of thei things optional so you can skip them without stressing yourself about your plan wanting to cover everything. Don’t try to cover everything. e.g. your day 10 could easily be 2 days.
About food, try out okonomiyaki. We loved Sometarō in Tokyo and they accommodated no pork/beef very well for us even with the language barrier. Make sure you go there when they open or they usually have a long wait. In Kyoto, we liked Gyoza ChaoChao. It’s just a local chain, nothing fancy but had good vegetarian options.