Hey guys so I have been trying to travel to Tokyo for Halloween for the last 3 years but due to covid I have had to reschedule. I am going to be trying for (hopefully if covid allows us) October 24th of 2022 for 10 days. We love to play video games, watch anime and we are both artist so anything art related is always a plus. If you have any suggestions for our trip please feel free to comment. This Itinerary is still being update so check back for updates based on comments.
**Day 0**
* Fly into Narita Airport around 3pm and then head to our hotel which atm is going to be in Akihabara
* After checking in we are just wanting to roam around Akihabara for the remainder of the day to experience Japan and do some small shopping. We want to keep this day light since we are going to suffer from jet lag.
**Day 1**
* Shop Around Akihabra for the day
**Day 2**
* We wanted to head over to Asukusa to see the Sensoji Temple in the morning.
* Next we wanted to head over to Odaibi to get picture with the giant unicorn gundam and do some shopping as well as see Joypolis.
* We wanted to end the day at the Tokyo Skytree before heading back to our hotel
**Day 3**
* We live in Orlando, Florida next to Disney World, so it only makes sense we check out Tokyo Disney Sea at some point during our trip.
**Day 4**
* Yokohama for cup of noodle museum and china town (full day trip)
**Day 5**
* Travel to Hakone (Activities TBD)
**Day 6**
* Sightseeing ( Mt Fuji) in Hakone (Activities TBD)
**Day 7**
* Travel back to Tokyo from either Hakone or Kyoto depending on which path we take A or B early in the morning.
* Follow this guide for Shinjuku, Harujuku, Shibuya ([https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3051\_west\_tokyo\_full.html](https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3051_west_tokyo_full.html))
* End our day in Shibuya for Halloween Event
**Day 8**
* Since we would be on the western side of Tokyo we would like to check out the Studio Ghibili Museum
* On the way back we would like to stop at Nakano Broadway for shopping
**Day 9 A**
* Ikebukuro for sunshine city and the worlds largest anime shop.
**Day 9 B ( We love tattoos and want to get one from Japan)**
* Head back to Harujuku to get tattoos
**Day 10**
* Pretty much an OPEN day to do last minute shopping and head to the airport
As you can see I have alternative things to do based on if we get a JR pass or not I know some say it’s worth it only if you plan to travel ex amount of days etc so this is still kinda up in the air. My wife and I want to visit the new Studio Ghibili Theme park, but I have heard that they are still adding to it and we are visiting again next year so maybe we might go next year with our friends. Please feel free to comment and let me know what can be edited and if I planned too much or not enough.
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\*UPDATE\*
I have removed the Kyoto portion of the trip since most agree we wouldn’t get the best value since we would only spend 1-2 days in Kyoto. We are going back next year with friends and intend to spend more time in Kyoto. I am conflicted with day 2 though I want to head to Sensoji temple early while there isn’t a huge crowd but also want to visit Odaibi and skytree (which I hear is very close to Sensoji). We also considered taking a boat across to come back. I wanted to know is it logical to take a boat from Odaibi to the Skytree to wrap up our day before heading back to the hotel? I probably should have mentioned that this would be a late honeymoon for us so any suggestions for places to visit for couples are great. I should probably mention we are also huge wrestling fans and we would love to check out a new japan pro wrestling show if there is one. I know the NJPW G1 Climax ends right around when we would be going, but we aren’t stuck on JUST NJPW.
12 comments
Day 1 : You should know that stores will open around 10 or 11 am in most shopping area of Japan. So if you want to start the day earlier than that, then maybe have some backup morning options, for example going to Kanda-myojin or Ueno park.
Days 2 : considering Senso-ji and Skytree are at walking distance, it is not optimal to do one in the morning and one at the end of the day.
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In general, the itinerary is a bit light and you might want to at least get some backup idea of things you can do in the area you will be visiting. I just prefer to have more options than to be there wondering what to do next.
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On the value of th JR Pass, we can say it have an objective and a subjective value.
For your trip, the objective value is how much it cost and how much you save by using it vs individual tickets. The round trip Tokyo-Kyoto is just under the cost of the pass, so you need a bit more to justify the cost, for example one way to the airport. Still, you are pretty close to the cost of the pass. For me, you are not in a situation where the pass is a must, not getting it would even allow you to use the Nozomi shinkansen that is faster. On the same idea of objective value, if you go to Hakone and do the loop, then the [Hakone free pass](https://www.odakyu.jp/english/passes/hakone/) is usually a good value and from Narita, you can use either the [Narita Express round trip ticket](https://www.jreast.co.jp/multi/pass/nex.html) for 4070 yen (the skyliner also have [discount tickets](http://www.keisei.co.jp/keisei/tetudou/skyliner/us/tickets/index.php))
On the subjective value of the pass, do you think it is worth spending 30 000 yen for two days in Kyoto and one in Osaka ? If you already think about going back to Japan in the future, then why not spend this trip around Tokyo and leave the Kansai region for next time. Otherwise, I can easily see your next trip being similar, stopping in Tokyo to see what you missed, going again to Kansai to see what you missed (like Nara just to name it). For me, it can make sense to focus this trip around Tokyo and the next one around Kansai and maybe get a cheaper rail pass, like the [Ise-Kumano-Wakayama Tourist Pass](http://touristpass.jp/en/ise_kumano/?utm_source=global.jr-central.co.jp%252Fen%252F&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=own) and use it to go to Nagoya for the Ghibli amusement park and why not a day in Ise or somewhere else covered by the pass. That pass is the price of round trip Kyoto-Nagoya, so any extra is free.
Honestly, I’d make day 1 or 2 Akihabara and sensoji. Those two can take up a day together and are close. I was jetlagged to hell on day 1 and got up at 4 am. Just went to sensoji while no one was there and the sun came up. It was a great experience. Hung around till breakfast places opened and went to royal coffee shop. By the time I was done, I finished asakusa and went shopping in Akihabara for the rest of the day. It was a good way to spend the day. I say move odaiba
Definitely plan your universal studio japan during october. They have halloween horror night which included in your entrance ticket.
They will gonna have few attractions revamped into halloween horror night attraction and you can go in there as early as 2pm I think. at night they will gonna have scare zone.
I had sadako appeared next to me in one of the attractions, very fun
Theme parks? Ugh
Day 2
I’d suggesting going to Odaiba first. Take a train to Shimbashi and get on the Yurikamome. You can probably go to the Gundam first and then walk over to joyopolis. Afterwards take a ferry from Odaiba to Asaskusa check out Sensoji and end your day at sky tree.
Since your hotel is in Akiba you could probably just spread your shopping days over the length of your stay and do shopping in the evenings when you get back in the area. While you can certainly spend an entire day in Akiba , it can be somewhat repetitive since many stores carry much of the same merchandise. It can be part of the fun if you are looking for the lowest price for a given item. You can get through most of the major stores/buildings in half a day depending on how quickly you go through them. If you start going into every building and going through every floor you can definitely exceed a day.
Also you might not need a JR Rail Pass if you are just going to back and forth between Osaka and Tokyo. Also keep in mind that the rail pass does not include the fastest Shinkansen service, but the difference between would only amount to 30 mins. Also you can probably save time buying tickets directly from a Kiosk vs having to goto a ticket office to make your rail pass reservations.
Considering you said you are planning going again the following year, and considering you only have 10 days, I would suggest you trim back on destinations. You could probably delay Hakone till your next trip and take more time in Osaka or Kyoto.
If you are both artists you need to make a stop at itoya in ginza https://goo.gl/maps/gQAtRUvwP8wKvHYG6
commenting to follow the updates!!
Agree with other posters, you could easily do Sensoji, Asakusa, Sky tree, and back to Akihabara (maybe in that order) in a day. There really isn’t much to Akihabara, unless you really can spend hours looking at the PCs and cameras etc, or are really into maid cafes.
When in Odaiba, don’t miss [Gundam Base](https://whereintokyo.com/venues/25403.html). It’s as much a museum as it is a retail store.
As for day 2 – can I suggest an alternate viewing platform? I think the metropolitan government office (the twin towers) offers an excellent view as well, and it a bit more central to the city. And last time I checked, admission is free. I think it’s more appealing to be looking *at* the city, as opposed to looking down onto the city from the Skytree. But this is entirely personal of course.
Between Kyoto and Hakone, I would go for Kyoto if this is your first visit to Japan. Bamboo forest, the one near Arashiyama I assume, is nice, but so is Arashiyama itself. Kyoto has a LOT of things you can visit, and 1.5 days seems a bit short, especially in comparison to Tokyo.
Generally speaking (and this is personal again) Tokyo to me is the least “Japanese Japan” of all the cities, closely followed by Osaka. The amount of tourism there made the cities exceedingly westernised, making them less of a genuinely Japanese experience. Take from this what you will. I wouldn’t recommend against Tokyo or Osaka, but I would recommend checking out some side trips to small towns. I can recommend a few if you’re up for it.
I would recommend reaching out to make reservations regarding tattoos.
Bro you should check out and pay respects at the 47 ronin temple. It’s so surreal being there.
Akihabara is overpriced for most things.