Hi all,
My SO and I are planning our first trip abroad to Japan for mid-April to early-May in 2024 (16 day vacation + 2 travel days). We want to sample what Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, and Hokkaido have to offer without overwhelming ourselves with a booked itinerary. We plan on planning another focused trip in the future for areas that want to see more of or feel like we missed out on.
Here’s what we have planned so far:
Day 1: Depart from USA
Day 2: Arrival in Tokyo, mostly rest and relax
Day 3: Tsukiji (morning), TeamLabs Planet (afternoon), Ginza (evening)
Day 4: Meiji Shrine (morning), Shibuya (afternoon and evening)
Day 5: Edo Tokyo Museum (morning), Akihabara (afternoon and evening)
Day 6: Travel to Magome, hike to Tsumago, travel to Kyoto
Day 7: Arashiyama (morning), Otagi Nenbutsi-Ji Temple (afternoon), Tea Ceremony (evening)
Day 8: Kyoto Botanical Gardens (morning), Kyoto Imperial Palace (afternoon), Nishiki Market (evening)
Day 9: Fushimi Inari Shrine (morning), Samurai and Ninja Museum (afternoon), Kichi Kichi Omurice (evening)
Day 10: Travel to Osaka (morning), Osaka Castle (afternoon), Sumiyoshi Temple (evening)
Day 11: Mainly just wandering (morning/afternoon), Osaka Aquarium (evening)
Day 12: Travel to Nara Park (morning, afternoon), Travel to Tokyo (evening)
Day 13: Fly to Sapporo (morning), Shiroi Kobito Park and maybe Hokkaido University (afternoon), Mount Moiwa (evening)
Day 14: Historical Village (morning), Zoo (afternoon), Susukino (evening)
Day 15: Free
Day 16: Free (morning, afternoon), return to Tokyo (evening)
Day 17: Tokyo Tower (morning), Aoshima (afternoon), prepare to leave (evening)
Day 18: Return to USA
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A few notes:
\-Day 15 currently has no itinerary. We’ll likely use it to extend out stay in one of the cities if you highly recommend anything!
\-Aoshima is up in the air. We might use the time to visit a Shiba/Cat/Pig cafe
\-SO is pescatarian but I eat everything and anything
\-Neither of us drink alcohol
\-A fine dining experience might be nice
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Thank you in advance!
3 comments
FYI Edo Tokyo museum is closed until 2025.
For Kyoto you don’t have a lot of temples on your list, and that’s basically what Kyoto is famous for. I’d personally add some more temples (there’s a couple ones that are along the Philosopher’s path, which is a nice walk especially in spring with the sakura blossoms), and there’s also the famous golden one, which is a bit out of the way from most other things.
You could also do Fushimi Inari at night, which is a vibe, since it is open 24/7 so you can do things that do have opening hours in its stead.
Osaka castle is just a big chuck of concrete with some museum pieces on the inside btw. It’s nice to visit but the outside is the best part.
I have been to the aquarium in Osaka and enjoyed it, but have since read that the place isn’t very good for animal welfare. The whale sharks they have and are famous for die quickly in captivity and keep getting replaced because of that. If I had known about it I would not have gone there.
Honestly if you want to visit a castle I’d suggest going to Himeji for a half-day trip from Osaka. That castle is easily the best one I’ve visited (Kyoto, Osaka, Matsumoto, Hiroshima and Okoyama). I’d go as far as to say that the ones in Osaka and Kyoto would be at the bottom of the list for me. They’re still cool buildings to look at though and I visited all of these so no point stopping others from doing the same, it’s just that if you choose to visit only 1 or 2 I’d for sure advice going to Himeji because it IS worth it.
For Sumiyoshi temple, make sure it’s opened in the evening because most temples close around 16:30 – 17:00~ish, and it’s quite a ways away from the heart of Osaka.
First of all, no matter what changes you make, do not deviate from walking the Nakasendo between Magome and Tsumago-juku, it’s incredible! Just bring a lot of water, and be sure to stop at the tea house about midway for some tea and ume.
Only other thing is that you may want to consider giving Moiwa-San a little more time. I personally at least can find those sorts of activities to be a little tiring, but perfect to mix with an afternoon of exploring town after a little rest for your legs. Also you will need to consider the hours of operation for the ropeway if you intend to use that.