Wow, I’ve just spent much of the last day reading through posts. This is an amazing community. Thanks to all who contribute!
After a good bit of research, I have a draft itinerary and would welcome feedback. We’re two adults and two kids, 5 and 10. Our kids are good travelers, but this will be their longest ever flights. I don’t want to push them too terribly hard, but still want to see some highlights. Of course, some things below are dependent on availability/tickets. Hubby and I have only been to Japan on short layovers, so are very excited for this two-week adventure.
My sons aren’t big gamers, but they do like Pokemon, Naruto, and the Ghibli movies we’ve watched. Also Ninjago and Avatar: The Last Air Bender! They are adventurous eaters and pretty good walkers. And 8-10 mile days is very doable, but likely not every day. We were recently in New York amidst large crowds and foul weather, taking 40+ minute subway rides, and they were troopers.
Our trip is planned for the last two weeks of March. We’re staying with friends in Tokyo and I’m not yet sure how much time they’ll get off of work; so I’m intentionally leaving Tokyo pretty flexible. We will try to get Ghibli Museum and Teamlab tickets in advance. If sakura are blooming, we’ll adjust to experience that. And if the weather is great, a day trip to Kamakura may be in order.
Does this seem like a good pace? We will definitely opt for taxis if it looks to make sense to conserve our energy.
Is Hakone typically nice in late March? It’s worth the stop? I feel like we have enough time to sleep in three cities and that Hakone would be great for little kids with the different forms of transportation and the Open Air Museum. Would you pick a different location instead? Right now, we’re at six nights Kyoto, two nights Hakone, and six nights Tokyo. I’m pretty locked into Kyoto, but the rest is flexible.
Day 1 – Fly from U.S. nonstop and land at Haneda at night, stay at HND airport hotel (flights were cheaper including connection to KIX the next day)
Day 2 – Fly to KIX, train to Kyoto, check into hotel near Kyoto Station
Day 3 – Fushimi-Inari + Ninja/Samuri class
Day 4 – 6-hour private tour, likely to include Kiyomizu-dera Temple and Gion; We’ll likely still be tired and it’ll be nice to hand over the reigns, and hopefully learn a good bit about Kyoto and its history.
Day 5 – Arashiyama or chill day! We’ll just see how we’re doing and take an easy day here if needed. Better to find our footing for the rest of the trip rather than soldiering on.
Day 6 – Osaka, including Sumo competition. We may also add a food tour or other activity for earlier in the day. I understand we’ll want to be at the Sumo competition by 2:30pm.
Day 7 – Nara
Day 8 – Kobo-san Market + Railway Museum + train to Hakone, check into Gora hotel
Day 9 – Hakone circular tour
Day 10 – Hakone Open Air Museum + train to Tokyo (stay in Akasaka)
Day 11 – Chill if needed, pick a neighborhood to explore
Day 12 – Odaiba
Day 13 – Kamakura if the weather is nice
Day 14 – Ghibli Museum + new Teamlab Borderless
Day 15 – Asakusa: Senso-ji Temple + Skytree
Day 16 – Flexible morning + 5pm Narita departure
Really can’t wait and feel so very fortunate that we’re taking our first Asia family vacation. TIA!
\[edited to fix spacing that got weird when I posted\]
2 comments
My view is Hakone isn’t worth it assuming you are a woman (sorry for being heteronormative). Half the point of Hakone is onsen ryokan, and you won’t be able to go into the same bath as husband + sons. Even if you were male or you got a private family bath, the kids (especially the older one) may not want to be naked in front of his parents. I’d take it easier, add the day to Osaka / Tokyo for instance, and do a day trip to Lake Kawaguchi on a sunny day for Mr Fuji viewing.
Hi! I’m Japanese here. Try these restos in Kyoto.
Yugen (matcha cafe) Lorimer Kyoto (breakfast) Awomb (sushi lunch) Men-ya Yukou (ramen)
If you are interested in a small cute village near Kyoto, “Ohara” is super nice.