Hey all, we have a 14-day Japan trip coming up and am looking forward to doing something new/different outside of Tokyo. We have the following itinerary but not sure if it’s too packed or too much travel time in between? We (just 2 people) want to do this trip quite leisurely and NOT feel rushed. We do plan to train everywhere and will probably leave luggage in storage, and bring a bigger backpack around. We’ll for sure do our food research but wanted to make sure we have a skeleton plan so we can start booking accommodation. Please give us feedback and let us know if there’s interesting spots around these places we absolutely shouldn’t miss! Thanks.
DAY 1
* Arrive in Tokyo, stay for the night
DAY 2
* Tokyo to Kanazawa by train
* Kenrokuen Garden
* Explore old streets, teahouse districts
* Tea house in Kanazawa castle park
* Stay overnight in Kanazawa
Day 3
* Continue to explore around Kanazawa
* Kaga traditional crafts village
* Omicho market
* Stay another night in Kanazawa
Day 4
* Kanazawa to Shirakawago by bus
* Check out the Gassho-zukuri farmhouses, explore the whole area
* Stay overnight in Shirakawago to experience the area by night
Day 5
* Explore Shirakawago some more
* Train from Shirakawago to Takayama
* Stay overnight in Takayama
Day 6
* Explore Takayama
* historical sites e.g. Hida folk village
* eat ramen, hida beef bun
* sake brewery
* Train to Toyama
* Stay overnight in Toyama
Day 7
* Explore Toyama
* Ride the Kurobe Gorge Rail
* Do a bike ride along the coast
* Stay another night in Toyama
Day 8
* Explore Toyama some more
* Check out Gokayama (more farmhouses)
* Check out craftsman districts Yamachosuji and Kanayamachi
* Visit Risaburo Foundry (twin-type casting)
* Stay another night in Toyama
Day 9
* Toyama to Kashiwazaki by train
* Explore Kashiwazaki, but this is more of a pit stop as we don’t want to go too far north yet due to next day’s plan, open to other ideas for pit stop
* Stay overnight in Kashiwazaki
Day 10
* Visit Hoshitouge Terraced Rice Field
* Go back to Kashiwazaki to pick up bags/luggage
* Make our way to Niigata
* Stay overnight in Niigata
Day 11
* Explore Niigata, check out a sake brewery or do something cultural/related to rice
* Stay another night in Niigata
Day 12
* Niigata to Nikko by train
* Check out Kegon Falls and Nikko Toshogu
* Spend time at an onsen, slow down
* Stay overnight in Nikko
Day 13
* Head back to Tokyo, and do some last day shopping/city stuff
* We COULD use this extra day somewhere above if we wanted to, not too attached to spending a ton of time in Tokyo but just wanted to make sure we’re there the night before our travel day
Day 14
* Fly out of Tokyo
2 comments
Doing the Kurobe Gorge Railway will take up most of the day, you won’t have time for a bike ride along the coast too.
Gokayama and Shirakawa-go are both beautiful – but they’re also both very small and similar, it’s up to you but I’m not sure if I’m recommend visiting both in the same trip! The Hida Folk Village is also pretty similar as well haha.
I dont think there is a direct train from Shirakawago to Takayama. We have some similarities in our Dec itinerary, and from what I’ve researched, it’s approx 1 hour bus ride from shirakawago to Takayama.