We’re 2 male friends in our late 20s visiting Japan for the first time, and we want to check if this looks reasonable. We have this draft and would love to get some feedback on it.
We still haven’t filled in all the gaps. Namely some thing we want to do would be:
* Nature. Ideally with landscapes or things unique to japan and not a forest that looks like a forest in Europe but with different types of trees. We’re thinking about going to Hakone or Nikko, but heard good things about stuff near Hakuba (oh I wish it was Ski season…)
* Hiroshima?
* Something more traditional, like staying in a Ryokan perhaps, or a proper Onsen.
* Entertainment! Sumo wrestling, a show, I don’t know. Things that I can’t find elsewhere.
* Unique food – Tea houses, mochi stores, food markets. We want to eat everything, and ideally we want really local experiences and not a “westernized” experience.
* Museums? History, not art.
We feel like we may be seeing too many temples.
**We are traveling September 11-29.**
**Flying to/from Tokyo.**
Currently planned:
* September 11-16: Tokyo
* September 16-19: Kyoto
* September 19-23: Osaka + day trips
* September 23-27: ???
* September 27-29: Tokyo
**Day 1: Monday Sep 11, 2023**
* Landing at 8:45 AM
* Hotel Check-in @ Shinjuku ±12:00
* Walk through the city
* Lunch
* Meiji Jingu Temple
* Go to Shibuya Sky
* Spend evening in Shibuya (food, drinks)
**Day 2: Tuesday Sep 12, 2023**
* Harajuku Station
* Ura-Harajuku – inner streets
* Harajuku Crepe
* Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden
* Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building – view from the top (free)
* Night at Omoide Yokochō (piss alley), in Shinjuku
**Day 3: Wednesday Sep 13, 2023**
* Asakusa area
* Kappabashi Dougu Street
* Sensō-ji temple
* Akihabara
* Omakase restaurant
* Evening/Night in Roppongi
**Day 4: Thursday Sep 14, 2023**
* Morning at TSUKIJI FISH MARKET
* TeamLab Planets
* The Gundam Base Tokyo ??? (**we’re not sure about this one…**)
* Zōjō-ji Temple
* See Tokyo Tower
* Night – TODO
**Day 5: Friday Sep 15, 2023**
* Hakone day trip / Maybe a trip out of Tokyo
* **Really need some tips here…**
* **We want to see some nature. Typically people recommend Hakone or Nikko.**
**Day 6: Saturday Sep 16, 2023**
* **Leave to Kyoto**
* Check-in to our hotel
* Walk around old town in Gion and Higashiyama
* Maruyama Park
* Lunch in Nishiki Market
* SAMURAI & NINJA MUSEUM
* Dinner at Nishiki Market, Pontocho or Shimomaruyachō.
**Day 7: Sunday Sep 17, 2023**
* Arashiyama Bamboo Grove, Monkey Park
* Tenryu-ji
* Kinkakuji Temple
* Dinner at Nishiki Market, Pontocho or Shimomaruyachō.
**Day 8: Monday Sep 18, 2023**
* Fushimi Inari Taisha
* Kiyomizu-dera
* Nineizaka (Ninenzaka)
* Sanneizaka (Sannenzaka)
**Day 9: Tuesday Sep 19, 2023**
* Leave to Osaka. **Do we want to leave on the evening before, instead of sleeping another night in Kyoto?**
* Check-in hotel
* Osaka Castle (from outside)
* Sumiyoshi Taisha (shrine)
* Shitennoji – Temple
* Shinsekai – Street food
**Day 10: Wednesday September 20, 2023**
* Universal studios (1d)
* Dōtonbori – street food
**Day 11: Thursday September 21, 2023**
* Nara day trip
* Kuromon Market – food market
**Day 12: Friday September 22, 2023**
* Kōfuku-ji – Buddhist Temple
* Tōdai-ji – Iconic temple with giant buddha statue
* Nakatanidou (mochi store)
* Higashimuki Shopping Street
**Day 13: Saturday September 23, 2023**
?? Hiroshima perhaps?
**Day 14: Sunday September 24, 2023**
??
**Day 15: Monday September 25, 2023**
??
**Day 16: Tuesday September 26, 2023**
??
**Day 17: Wednesday September 27, 2023**
* **Go back to Toyko**
**Day 18: Thursday September 28, 2023**
* Do things we want to do that we feel we missed out on
**Day 19: Friday September 29, 2023**
* Early in the morning – Fly back home.
Some of the questions we have:
* **Should we sleep somewhere on a nature day trip? How does that work with luggage? For example if we go to Kyoto we can stop in Hakone for a night. Can we send our luggage to Kyoto and have just a day’s worth of stuff with us?**
* **History museums – any recommendations?**
* **Shows, culture, and entertainment that we miss out on? Both traditional and modern.**
* **Onsens – Where do we typically find these? We see on Google Maps that they are everywhere. Are tourists allowed in to all of them? Are the ones in the cities worth visiting or not so much?**
Thank you for all the help, we can’t wait to visit!
3 comments
So with the luggage forwarding, all you’ll need to do is let your hotel concierge know, which hotel and when – it’s totally fine to ship a day or two early to your Kyoto hotel, and take an overnight bag to somewhere like Hakone.
Onsens are geothermal hot springs, found in more mountainous areas (such as Nikko and Hakone) – the public baths found in the cities are Sento, which are filled with just heated tap water. Most Onsen Ryokans and Hotels can be booked as normal through the usual booking sites, although some only allow booking through their own websites. The only thing to be aware of is to check about use of the public baths if you have tattoos, as some can be very strict.
I’d say both Nikko and Hakone need at least an overnight stay, or two if you have the time to spare. The Hakone Loop is pretty much laid out, but if you’d like to see more forests and such, I’d lean towards Nikko, especially Oku-Nikko – you can take the bus all the way to Yudaki Falls, then walk down via Senjōgahara, back to Ryuzu Falls and Lake Chūzenji. Some other day trips from Tokyo that might be worth checking out is a day trip to Mount Takao, Mount Mitake and Okutama, or walking the Daibutsu Hiking Course in Kamakura which is through a forested area. Similarly, if you decide to head to Hiroshima for a night or two, the view from Mount Misen on Miyajima is worth the cable car trip.
I think you could tick off a few of the things you’re looking at (nature, more traditional experience, Hiroshima) by traveling to Hiroshima, sight seeing for the day, then staying over on Miyajima for two nights. There are a number of ryokans on Miyajima; on your day there I’d recommend the Mt Misen cable car and then hike to the summit (through old-growth forest) for a great view of the Seto Inland Sea. You can also rent bicycles on Miyajima to explore some of the even less developed areas.
A outdoor/nature focused itinerary would be something like this:
Day 13: Osaka -> Magome (stay for the night, forward luggage to Tsumago)
Day 14: Magome -> hike to Tsumago -> Overnight in Matsumoto
Day 15: Matsumoto -> Kamikochi -> Hirayu onsen or Takayama
You can store bags at the Kamikochi bus station, (at least last time I was there in 2017)… after hiking either stay in Kamikochi area for the night, continue to Takayama or stay in one of the nice onsen towns like Hirayu if you manage to find a room there (best option imo)
Day 16: Takayama
Day 17: Takayama -> (Shirakawago) -> Kanazawa -> Tokyo
(Or skip Shirakawago and go directly to Tokyo via Toyama and Shinkansen)