Would love your thoughts on this itinerary. I’m mostly concerned with the travel to and from Hakone. Want to maximize the trip, but I don’t want to go crazy!
Note: We already spent 10 days in Tokyo on a previous trip, so we don’t need to see all the usual tourist attractions in the city.
Day 1
-Land at Haneda and take Keikyu line to Shinagawa station. Check into hotel in Shinagawa by 4:30PM.
-Clean up and go do some souvenir shopping in Shibuya or Shinjuku.
-Grab dinner at Afuri and then drinks in Golden Gai.
Day 2
-Meiji Jingu shrine walk early in the morning
-Shiatsu massage and scalp assessment experience
-Lunch in omotesando then explore unique shops, then relax for a bit
-Meet at friends house in Shibuya for dinner and drinks
-Visit house music/electronic scene in Shinjuku or Shibuya after dinner
Day 3
-Take Shinkansen from Shinagawa station early to Odawara station, then Romancecar to Hakone Yumato station, then Hakonetozan line to Gora station. Check into hotel in Gora.
-Gyoza for lunch in Gora
-Visit hot springs in the afternoon
-Dinner at hotel or local place (looking for Sushi)
Day 4
-Breakfast early at hotel then take Hakonetozan to Open Air Museum
-Hakonetozan line to Gora station, then take the cable car from Gora station to Sounzan station. -Take ropeway from Sounzan station to Ōwakudani station. Tour the souvenir shop.
-Continue ropeway to Togendai station. Grab lunch in the area.
-Take boat across the lake. Visit shrine. Grab drinks and sweets.
-Take local bus to Kowakidani, then Hakonetozan line to Gora station.
-Relax at hotel hot springs. Get dinner at hotel or in Gora.
Day 5
-Breakfast at hotel early
-Take Gora station Hakonetozan line to Hakone yumato station, then the Hakonetozan line to odawara station, then the Shinkansen to shin Ōsaka station
-Check into hotel and clean up.
-Grab drinks out and explore Osaka. Dinner at Teppanyaki place. Then explore nightlife.
Day 6
-Breakfast at hotel
-Guided Kyoto/Nara tour with transportation from Namba station (12 hours). Visiting Golden Pavilion Temple, Arashiyama, Fushimi Inari Taisha, Nara Park, Tōdai-ji Temple
Day 7
-Free day to explore Osaka. Namba Shrine, Osaka Castle, Dontobori, Umeda Sky Building.
Day 8
-Shinkansen from Shin Osaka to Shinagawa station. Check into hotel around noon.
-Grab quick lunch and rest for a bit.
-Dinner in Ginza, then night out in Shinjuku.
Day 9
-Breakfast at hotel then last minute souvenir shopping.
-Keikyu line to Haneda airport
3 comments
Day 6 is going to be hectic for you. I guess a guided tour makes sense if it saves you heaps of time getting with d Kyoto (otherwise exploring East and West Kyoto is unrealistic even for a full day).
I think you could consider using your free day in Osaka to recharge somewhat. Your current itinerary for that free day sees you traverse the entire metropolitan area which will be time consuming and tiring in itself.
I would suggest wrapping up Osaka Castle early in the morning (it opens at 9am), then staying around Namba, Amerika Mura, Shinsaibashi-suji and Dontonburi. Kuromon Market isn’t prohibitively far either – and allows you to set a moderate pace when covering a lot of individual areas.
There’s no need to take the Romance Car to Hakone-Yumoto from Odawara: regular trains will get you there nearly as quickly, and you won’t have to reserve a seat or rush to catch a particular train. The trains take 15 minutes to go from Odawara to Hakone-Yumoto and leave every 20 minutes.
took romance car from shinjuku station to hakone-yumoto last week and it was extremely simple, comfortable, and short enough (less than 90 minutes). it was a fraction of the price of the shinkansen. also, no need to transfer until you catch the hakonetozan. just something to consider