I’m going to Japan for the fourth time this November for work. I have two periods of work obligations: one from Nov 13-14 and another on Nov 27-28. I fly back on the 29th. My boss is great and she says to just work remotely in Japan from the 15th-26th. She outright said that there will be very little work to do in November (typically slow for our company) so just, “relax, explore Japan, and reset before Q1 2024.” Naturally, the hotel bookings in other cities will be covered by me.
I’ve been to Japan multiple times before since I was in a long distance relationship with a girl who was transferred to Tokyo for a 2-year assignment. We spent a lot of time in Tokyo, saw most of the usual spots in Kyoto & Arashiyama, and spent time in Osaka. We even went to out of the way places like Hida-Takayama. Now, I’m having trouble filling out the 10 days I’ll have since I’ve seen most places from the usual itineraries.
Here’s what I have so far. I’m trying to keep each location loose so I can still work here and there. I’m also trying to get the places I went with my ex out of the way at the start so I have new places to look forward to. I imagine revisiting those places will stir up memories since I’ll be solo traveling this time.
**Nov 14, Tue – Nagoya -> Kyoto**
**2:30 PM:** End of work in Nagoya
**4:00 PM:** Shinkansen to Kyoto, hotel check-in
**Nov 15, Wed – Kyoto**
**9:00 AM:** Kinkaku-ji
**12:00 PM:** Lunch
**2:00 PM:** Tenjuan rock garden
**6:00 PM:** Kiyomizudera fall illumination
**Nov 16, Thu – Amanohashidate** (Maybe a day trip is a bit much due to travel time?)
**9:00 AM:** Limited Express to Amanohashidate
**12:00 PM:** Lunch
**1:00 PM:** Chairlift up to viewing point / bike sand bar
**4:00 PM:** Limited Express to Kyoto
**Nov 17, Fri – Kyoto/Nara -> Hiroshima**
**9:00 AM:** Rapid train to Nara
**12:00 PM:** Lunch
**4:00 PM:** Shinkansen to Hiroshima, hotel check-in
**Nov 18, Sat – Hiroshima**
**9:00 AM:** Atomic Bomb Dome & Peace Memorial Park/Museum
**12:00 PM:** Lunch
**1:30 PM:** Hiroshima Museum of Contemporary Art
**4:00 PM:** Sha-raku traditional archery (seems cool to try but not sure if this is worth it)
**Nov 19, Sun – Miyajima**
**8:00 AM:** Head to Miyajima (JR Sanyo line or non-JR ferry)
**9:30 AM:** Itsukushima torii gate
**11:00 AM:** Mt. Misen Daisho-in trail up, Ropeway down
**1:30 PM:** Lunch, Momijidani Park
**Nov 20, Mon – Hiroshima**
**8:00 AM:** Rest day after hiking the previous day. Take photos in Hiroshima/Miyajima.
**Nov 21 – Nov 26**
No idea what to do for these days. Maybe Yokohama/Kamakura/Enoshima? For some reason, those places seem more like for couples to me, so it might be isolating going there alone.
I’ll need to make my way up to Tokyo on Nov 27-28 for work, so I’m considering heading up to Tokyo on the 21st and going to either Taiwan or the Philippines for a few days and coming back on the 26th. I have enough points to cover the round trip to either country + hotels, so they’re legitimate options I’m considering.
6 comments
I spent a night around Amanohashidate and liked it a lot. Not much open in the evening so stock up on snacks or something in advance for the night if you’re doing it on the cheap. I think a day trip is possible, and since there isn’t much else there except riding across on a bike (I walked, which of course took much longer), you might be able to knock it out and hop back on the Hashidate-Go back to Kyoto.
November might be a nice time to check out the Shimanami Kaido! Definitely the highlight of our (3rd) trip. Plus hanging out in Takamatsu or elsewhere in Shikoku is fun
>For some reason, those places seem more like for couples to me, so it might be isolating going there alone.
I have Asperger’s, so maybe that’s just me, but I never felt weird or out of place or something as a single in these places.
Why dont you go to the Yamanashi Area? Kawaguchiko, fujiyoshida, yamanakako, etc.
To come back to tokyo you can go to kawaguchiko station and get in a bus and is around 2 hours away.
There’s actually quite a few things you can do in the Amanohashidate area, since you have spare time you might as well spend a night or two in the area?
I’m actually doing a similar work from remote through that area around november also and my schedule is basically 2 nights in kyoto -> 2 nights in Maizuru -> 1 night in Miyazu (town near amanohashidate) -> 1 night in kinosaki onsen -> then I keep heading west from there. You could technically take a similar route, then drop down towards Hiroshima after that. This route would also route you perfectly through Himeji, so you could probably make a stop there too.
So for reference, Maizuru is a little over an hour from Amanohashidate, so you could technically base everything you want to do in both areas from the same lodging if you wanted to. Inecho is also a pretty good place to check out in the Amanohashidate area (short bus ride from amanohashidate).
Just so you know, if you’re coming here on a tourist visa it’s against the law to do work whether it’s remote or not. It complicates taxes because any work done on Japanese soil is considered taxable for Japan. Just a warning! 🙂 have a fun trip