21 Days in Tokyo/Hakone/Osaka/Kyoto/Hiroshima – Itinerary check first-timer

Hey everyone,

In october, I will be going to Japan for the first time, as well as solo traveling for the first time. I will be staying for 21 days, will be traveling with a backpack and likely a medium-sized suitcase, and I am planning to get the Japan Rail Pass as well as a Welcome Suica, and the Hakone Freepass for Hakone.

I have planned out most of the things I want to see, but there are some leftover days and I feel like some days of my planning are too packed while others might not be packed enough, so I would love if you could give me some advice and/or recommendations!

**Day 1, Tue 10 Oct, Tokyo:**

Arrive in Narita at 13:00, go to hostel in Shinjuku, walk around Golden Gai/Omoide Yokocho for food, then sleep on time to counter jetlag

**Day 2, Wed 11 Oct, Tokyo:**

Walk around Shinjuku (3D cat, Godzilla), Shinjuku Gyoen, Hanazono Shrine, Kabukicho and Kabukicho tower in the evening

**Day 3, Thu 12 Oct, Tokyo:**

Meiji shrine, Yoyogi park, explore Harajuku, potentially Mameshiba/Hedgehog cafe, explore Shibuya, Shibuya crossing, Shibuya Parco, Shibuya sky in the evening (book in advance?)

**Day 4, Fri 13 Oct, Tokyo:**

Teamlab Planets, Tsukiji market, Hamarikyu gardens, Tokyo tower and Zojo-ji, Tokyo Imperial Palace (*maybe the next day instead?*)

**Day 5, Sat 14 Oct, Tokyo:**

Senso-ji, Nakamise dori, Tokyo Sky Tree and shops near it, go to Akihabara and visit the Steins;Gate 15th anniversary exposition in Radio Kaikan, capsule hotel in Akihabara (booked this already)

**Day 6, Sun 15 Oct, Tokyo:**

Explore Akihabara and all its glory, shopping in all the anime shops, Steins;Gate pilgrimage to the spots from the series, potentially visit Maid Cafe (*if I find someone to go with, alone is a bit awkward probably*)

**Day 7, Mon 16 Oct, Hakone:**

Travel to Hakone (send luggage ahead probably), do Hakone loop (Shrine and torii, walk to Hakone checkpoint, cruise to Togendai, ropeway to Owakudani, Gora park, then end the day with Kaiseki dinner in ryokan and relaxing in onsen

**Day 8, Tue 17 Oct, Hakone:**

Breakfast in ryokan, relax in onsen until check-out, Choanji temple, Hakone Open Air Museum, pick up luggage at ryokan and travel to Osaka (*doable or do I need an inbetween stop?*)

**Day 9, Wed 18 Oct, Osaka:**

Travel to Osaka (if not there yet), explore the streets of Shinsaibashi-Suji, Dotonbori, Hozenji Yokocho, Denden town, Namba Yasaka shrine, potentially visit Shitennoji temple

**Day 10, Thu 19 Oct, Osaka:**

Visit Cup Noodle Museum, visit Kaiyukan Aquarium

**Day 11, Fri 20 Oct, Kyoto:**

Travel from Osaka to Kyoto, drop off luggage at hostel, bus to Kinkakuji, Ryoan-ji temple, bus to Heian shrine, Nanzen-ji, walk Philosopher’s path until Ginkaku-ji

**Day 12, Sat 21 Oct, Kyoto/Nara:**

Fushimi inari, then Nara daytrip: Nakatanidou, Kofuku-ji, Isuien garden, Todai-ji, deer park, Kasuga taisha

**Day 13, Sun 22 Oct, Kyoto:**

Go to Jidai Matsuri, then travel to Kurama for Kurama fire festival in the evening

**Day 14, Mon 23 Oct, Kyoto:**

Kiyomizu-dera, walk through Ninenzaka and Sannenzaka, Hokan-ji pagoda, Kodai-ji (illumination after 17:00), Yasaka shrine, explore Gion, Hanamikoji street, Pontocho, Nishiki market?

**Day 15, Tue 24 Oct, Kyoto:**

Go to Arashiyama, Arashiyama bamboo forest, Monkey park, maybe Sagano romantic train (not sure if worth it), Togetsukyou bridge, Tenryuji temple, walk around Arashiyama area, Cube mall at Kyoto station when back

**Day 16, Wed 25 Oct, Himeji/Hiroshima:**

Travel from Kyoto to Himeji, visit Himeji castle, travel from Himeji to Hiroshima, visit peace park and peace museum

**Day 17, Thu 26 Oct, Hiroshima (Miyajima):**

Ferry to Miyajima, Itsukushima shrine, floating torii, five-storied pagoda, ropeway to Mt Misen, Misen observatory, walk down mountain, Daisho-in temple, get food in Miyajima Omotesando shopping street

**Day 18-20, Fri 27 – Sun 29 Oct, ???:**

These days are leftover. I will have to travel all the way from Hiroshima to Tokyo still, so that is most of one day gone already. The other days I could spend in Tokyo (maybe Pokemon Cafe) or daytrips from Tokyo (e.g. Nikko, Mt Takao), but I could also add them somewhere else in the itinerary, e.g. in Kyoto to plan a daytrip to Uji and do a tea ceremony. Suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

**Day 21, Mon 30 Oct, Tokyo:**

Final day, maybe just walk around a bit for the last time before heading to Narita for my flight at 17:00

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Thank you for reading this far if you did, and I hope you can potentially help me with some advice or suggestions. Besides how I could fill in the final days, I still had some other questions you could maybe help with:

\- There are a lot of shrines/temples/castles I wanted to go visit. It is generally free to go visit them to see them from outside, but some temples charge for entry or for entry into the “treasure room”. Are there any places in particular that would or would not be worth entering? I was thinking of at least going into Kiyomizu-dera, Todai-ji, Himeji castle and Itsukushima shrine, but any others that are worthwhile?

\- I am trying to book accomodations in advance to ensure good locations, but some days are difficult, particularly the Hakone to Osaka day. If it rains, I will probably swap the two Hakone days but then I likely won’t have time to travel to Osaka on that day, so not sure if I can book accomodation in Osaka already. Would you then recommend not booking anything in Osaka yet or at least book the nights I will definitely be there?

\- I know there are several things I should book in advance, such as Shibuya Sky, Teamlab planets and the Pokemon cafe. However, are there other things I should book in advance? Also, I’ve heard the roof of Shibuya Sky can be closed when it rains, does anyone know what happens to your reservation then?

\- I haven’t really thought about where to get food, except for instance konbinis and chain restaurants (e.g. Coco ichibanya, Yoshinoya, Matsuya, Sukiya). Any suggestions for restaurants I can’t miss? Or should I just stroll around until I find something good?

Thank you in advance, I really appreciate any feedback since I really want to make the best out of this trip.