Hello all!
Looking to get a check on my itinerary.
A more detailed breakdown can be seen here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Vccvj6JVhNHsHRGXPpkKIxPAYaxPPP40KZr9i3LTY-U/edit?usp=sharing
Just a little background information:
We are a family of 5, with kids ages 11, 8, and 6, flying in from Toronto. We have reserved our accomodations, the only thing we are missing is the flight tickets. Looking to travel between July 22 to August 2 in 2024.
Things we like to do:
– Wife loves to shop (cosmetics, clothing, anything cute, etc.)
– Me and the kids are into anime
– Food and snacks!
Accomodations:
Laffitte Tokyo (Nakano City)
Daiwa Roynet Hotel (Kyoto)
Day 1 – Travel
Day 2 – Travel
* Getting into Tokyo
* Checking into Hotel and explore the area near the Hotel
Day 3 – DisneySea
* Will spend the whole day here (looking to be extra busy especially with the new expansion coming up)
*The following 3 days can be switch around depending on weather*
Day 4 – Yokohama & Shibuya
* Cup Noodle Museum
* Landmark Plaza (heard there is a studio Ghibli shop in there)
* Travel to Shibuya
* Shibuya Crossing
* Parco/109/Magnet/Don Quijote
* Yokosho (just for some pictures)
* Shibuya Sky
Day 5 – Asakusa & Shinjuku
* Asakusa Visitor Center (observatory)
* Kaminarimon
* Nakamise
* Shin-Nakamise
* Sensoji
* Travel to Harajuku
* Takeshita Street
* Travel to Shinjuku
* Takashimaya Time Square
* Lumine EST
* Hanazone Shrine
* Godzilla
* Kabukicho Tower
Day 6 – Fujiyoshida/Nanako
* Honcho street (Mt. Fuji pics)
* Arakurayama Sengen Park
* Travel back to Nanako
* Nanako Broadway
Day 7 – Tokyo to Kyoto
* Tsukiji Fish Market
* Teamlabs Planets
* Gundam Base
* Shinkanzen to Kyoto
* Check-in to Kyoto Hotel
Day 8 – Osaka
* Osaka Castle
* Kuromon Market
* Haruka 300
* Dotonbori
Day 9 – Shimogamo Shrine & Arashiyama
* Shimogamo Shrine
* Sagano Romantic Train (From Umahori to Arashiyama)
* Explore Arashiyama (Bamboo forrest, Saga Toriimoto Street)
* Explore Kyoto Station
Day 10 – Fushimi Inari Taisha & Uji
* Fushimi Inari hike to peak and back down
* Travel to Uji
* Omotesando Street
* Byodo-in Temple
Day 11 – Nara
* Nishiki Market
* Travel to Nara
* Nara Deer Park
Day 12 – Travel
Questions and Recommendations:
* 1) Any recommendations or suggestions for adding/removing things from the itinerary?
* 2) Recommendations for lunch and dinner spots that are good for family of 5 that would fit into the itinerary
* 3) Would it be too tight to travel from Kyoto back to Narita for a flight at 6pm?
* 4) Any websites that would be good to use to to compare the value of getting travel passes vs individual tickets?
* 5) Is planning this far in advance too early?
* 6) We would love to stay at a Ryokan with Kaiseki but can’t really seem to be able to fit into the plan, any recommendations on this for changing the itinerary around?
Thank you all in advance!
1 comment
Hi!
In answer of your questions:
I think some of your days will be very hard and full. Day 5, Day 6 and Day 7 will be hard. Do be aware that July is one of the worst months for actually seeing Mt. Fuji, so you might travel all the way there and have no Fuji views. Be prepared for that. With shopping, once you want to stop somewhere, it can take longer.
Nakano is great if you like older anime aka pre-2010. If you’re into current stuff you are going to want an Animate. It’s a chain, so while the largest ones are in Tokyo, you don’t need to go to one in Tokyo.
There are a LOT of Ghibli shops. I happen to like the one at Skytree a lot.
I would not risk traveling from Kyoto to Narita on your departure day unless you have a connecting flight through Itami, so that your airline is on the hook if there are delays. It’s not common but shinkansen get delayed. You’re also just looking at 3 hours at a minimum to get between Kyoto and Narita, on top of the time you need at the airport.
With the price increase for rail passes I can tell you already that they’re not worth it. The cost of single tickets would need to go up a lot for that to be the case, since your only really expensive train trip is Tokyo to Kyoto. You will also probably be using the subway a lot in Tokyo, since your nearest station is a subway station.
Nothing wrong with planning early, just be aware that a lot of hotel options haven’t started booking rooms yet, and while I hope you got a good rate, your place in Nakano is in an odder location. It’s likely to be super hot and humid when you are there, and I would want to make sure I was staying someplace with good AC! (I stayed at a Daiwa Roynet in Koriyama in July, and it was nicer than I expected and the AC worked great! I do think the room would have been tiny for 5 people. It was just me and my 12 year old daughter.)
You have 10 non travel days in Japan. I think it might be hard. Is there any way you could add another day?
Do remember you will be in Japan when the Japanese also have vacation so you will be competing with internal as well as external tourism. I tend to go late June to early July (aka as soon as school lets out) so that I am not competing with the domestic market.
Tokyo Disney is super popular. Since at least January it has been opening at 8:30 over 9:00. you have a good 1 hour plus trip to Sea.
It honestly might make sense to spend 1 night at a hotel that is closer to Sea if you can afford it. (Like the Hilton, Sheraton or Okura) because it can just be rough getting to the parks early.