Been lurking for awhile and finally posting for the first time. Tried to read through other trips and suggestions in other subs to come up with things to do.
​
Friend and I are 1st timers and after compiling a rough itinerary want to get a sanity check. My idea is to just have a rough daily outline of things to do in a somewhat sensible order based on where things are in relation to each other. If days are too packed let me know. I do like to have a handful of options of known places to go than trying to find somewhere in the moment. Going in Mid-October 2023. Accommodations are booked. Bolded items are things we’d really like to do.
​
If you have any suggestions on things to do or restaurants to check out, please let me know.
Thank you for looking!
|Day 1+ | Saturday/Sunday – Tokyo |
\- Travel from USA to Tokyo HND; land around 2pm; get Suica/Wifi at HND; head to hotel clean up
and grab food somewhere; bed early
|Day 2 | Monday – Tokyo|
\- Rest, explore and try to fight off jet lag
\- Get used to the new surroundings and trains
\- Find a local bakery or cafe for breakfast?
\- **Tsukiji Outer Market** \-**Imperial Palace East Gardens**
\-Imperial Palace Tour (90 mins)?
\-Kitanomarukoen?
\-Yasukuni Jinja?
\—Lunch in Shinjuku? —
\-**Tokyo Tower**
\-Zōjō-ji Temple?
\-Maybe find an onsen/sento to relax a bit?
\-Prep for travel to Kyoto
|Day 3 | Tuesday – Kyoto
\-Travel to Kyoto
\-Downtown Kyoto or T**oei Kyoto Studio Park + EVA Base** (in park) ????
\-**Kinkaku-ji** \- off by itself with Ryoan-ji
\-Ryoan-ji
\-**Fushimi-Inari** \- open 24/7 so can do at anytime; maybe do late at night after dinner or something
|Day 4 | Wednesday – Kyoto
\-**Kiyomizu-dera**
\-Sannenzaka/Ninenzaka
\-**Kodai-ji**
\-Ishibei Koji
\-**Yasaka Jinja/Maruyama Park**
\-**Chion-in**
**-Shogun-zuka**
\-Explore one or more of these – Gion/Pontocho/Kiyamachi-dori/Shinkyogoku/Nishiki MArket
|Day 5 | Thursday – Kyoto|
\-**The Imperial Palace**
\-Demachi Masugata Shopping Arcade
\-**Shimogamo Shrine**
\-Kamo River
\-**Ginkaku-ji**
\-Honen-in Temple
\-**The Philospher’s Path**
\-Eikan-dō (Zenrin-ji) Temple
\-Nanzen-ji Temple
\-Heian Jingu
\-Explore one of these at night/different than previous day – Gion/Pontocho/Kiyamachi-dori/Shinkyogoku/Nishiki MArket|
|Day 6 | Friday – Kyoto
\-**Arashiyama Bamboo Grove**
**-Okochi Sanso Garden**
**-Tenryu-ji**
\-Jojakko-ji
\-Gio-ji
\-Saga Toriimoto Preserved Street
\-Adashino Nenbutsu-ji
\-Daikaku-ji – kinda out of the way
\-**Arashiyama Monkey Park**
\-Explore one of these at night/different than previous day – Gion/Pontocho/Kiyamachi-dori/Shinkyogoku/Nishiki MArket|
|Day 7 | Saturday – Osaka
\-**Osaka Castle + Garden**
\-Osaka Tenmangu Shrine
\-**Tsūtenkaku** \- observation deck
\-Umeda Sky Building?
\-Nipponbashi Denden Town?
\-Go to **Dotonbori at Night** \- explore the lights
\-Craft Beer Works KAMIKAZE (dinner) |
|Day 8 | Sunday – Osaka|
\-Shinsaibashi?
\-Kuromon Ichiba Market?
\-Shitennoji Temple?
\-Asahi beer museum?
\-Nakanoshima Park Lawn Square and Rose Garden (want to work in some natural spaces)
\-**Solaniwa Onsen** (Osaka Bay Tower)? Morning or evening? Evening maybe. We are staying in the Tower so we get discounted access to the Onsen; thinking it might be good to relax after doing a lot of walking the previous few days
\-Stuff we didn’t get to previously
|Day 9 | Monday – Kinosaki Onsen
\-Travel in the morning (9am) and get to Kinosaki Onsen around Noon; explore Kinosaki Onsen (be at ryokan before 6pm for dinner) with a day pass to the onsens (maybe the ryokan will give us our passes early in the day?)
\-Go up the **gondola lift** at end of town to the **temple and top part of mountain**
|Day 10 | Tuesday – Kinosaki Onsen → Tokyo
\- Breakfast @ Kinosaki ryokan
\- Travel to Tokyo (5hrs ish)
\- Golden Gai for dinner/nightlife?
|Day 11 | Wednesday – Tokyo|
\-Harajuku Harajuku Street
Kamiike 神池 Shrine/Bridge?
Meiji Jingu Shrine
Yoyogi Park?
**Neko Neko Inn**
**Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building** **South Observatory**
\-Shibuya
**Shibuya Scramble**
Lunch in Shibuya?
**RADIO EVA Store**
\-Roppongi
Tokyo City View Observation Deck (Roppongi Hills)
Tokyo Tower (if we didn’t do this already)
Dinner in Roppongi?
Roppongi nightlife; bar, walk around?
|Day 12 | Thursday – Tokyo|
\-**Asakusa** \- Do this early morning (before 9am)
Kaminarimon
Nakamise-dori Street
Senso-ji Temple
Asakusa-jinja Shrine
\-**Ueno**
Tokyo National Museum?
Ueno Park
Tosho-gu Shrine
\- **Ameyoko Shopping District** \- Snacks from food stalls; souvenirs?
\-**Eorzea Cafe for late snacks/drinks?** Maybe do this mid afternoon for a break btwn anime shops? make reservation
\-**Akihabara**
Yodobashi Camera
**Anime stores** \- figures, manga, etc.
ASTOP / Lashinbang / AmiAmi / Rashinban / Mandarake Complex
\-**UNIQLO** for cool drip? Golden Gai for nightlife? Muscle Girls Muscle Girls bar?
|Day 13 | Friday – Tokyo|
\-Yokohama
Gundam Factory
Chinatown for lunch?
Harbor View Park Observatory
Cup Noodle museum
Azarenka Park?
\-Shinjuku area?
Hanazono Shrine
\-Golden Gai for nightlife?
|Day 14 | Saturday – Tokyo|
**Buy more souvenirs and stuff**
**Eva Store Ikebukuro**
UNIQLO
Don Quijote?
Other stores for souvenirs? Suggestions?
**Head to HND – flight home at 6p**
​
Edit – Formatting
​
1 comment
I see Yodobashi camera and I upvote. We’ve been to it about 3 times for more than 2 hours every time last year when we visited Tokyo. Also been to the one in Kyoto but it’s smaller.
Your 12th day intinerary for Ueno-Akihabara looks very similar to ours. I recommend starting with the museum very early, when it’s opening, because it takes at least 2-3 hours (its small gardens are also nice). Prepare to spend at least 5 hours in akihabara :)).