Hi, I’m going to Japan with my group of friends in June, but we are unsure if our itinerary is feasible and comprehensive. We would really appreciate some feedback 🙂
## Tokyo, Kanto (3 days)
### Setagawa (day of arrival at Tokyo)
Take a early morning flight to NRT, lunch at Shimo-Kitazawa, dinner at Sangenjaya,
stay at a Tokyo Hotel
1. Shimo-Kitazawa
2. Toyo Department Store
3. Mikan Shimokita
4. Shiro-Hige’s Cream Puff Factory
5. Gotokuji Temple
6. Sangenjaya Sankaku Chitai
###Shibuya and Chuo (1day)
1. Meiji Jingu
2. Yoyogi Park
3. Takeshita Street
4. Kiddy Land
5. Omotesando Hills
6. Spain-zaka Slope
7. (Tokyu) Hands
8. Center Gai fashion district
9. Shibuya Scramble Crossing
10. Ginza Six
11. Chuo-dori
### Shinjuku and Nakano (1day)
1. Shinjuku Gyoen
2. Shinjuku Golden Gai – See Isetan, Keio, Takashimaya and Kinokuniya stores
3. Kagurazaka-dori
4. Nakano Broadway
## Kansai (3 days)
### Central Kyoto (arrival at Kyoto)
NRT to KIX by midday flight, take bus/train to Kyoto, stay at Kyoto hotel
1. Sannenzaka
2. Kiyomizu-dera
3. Jishu-Jinja Shrine
4. Kodaiji Temple, Japan
5. Yasaka Shrine
6. Shirakawa Lane
7. Pontocho
### Northern Kyoto (full-day)
1. Giō-ji Temple
2. Arashiyama Bamboo Forest
3. Arashiyama Monkey Park Iwatayama
4. Kinkaku-ji
5. Nijō Castle
### Eastern Kyoto (full-day)
1. Fushimi Inari Taisha
2. Tōfuku-ji Temple
3. Kenninji Temple
4. Heian Shrine
5. Okazaki Shrine
6. Nanzen-ji Temple
7. Beginning Philosopher’s path
8. Higashiyama Jisho-ji
### Nara (full-day)
Take JR line, stay at the same Kyoto hotel
1. Isuien Garden and Neiraku Museum,
2. Tōdai-ji, 406-1 Zoshicho
3. Todai-ji Nigatsudo (February Hall)
4. Todai-ji Shoro (Bell Tower)
5. Kasuga Taisha Shrine
6. Yakushi-ji
### Osaka (full-day)
Check out of Kyoto Hotel, Take JR line to Osaka, stay at Osaka Hotel. Lunch at
Dotonbori, Dinner at Shinsekai.
1. Dotonbori
2. Namba Yasaka Jinja
3. Osaka Museum of History (optional)
4. Osaka Castle
5. Shinsekai Market
Return day
Take a midday flight from KIX to NRT, then afternoon flight back home from
NRT
4 comments
These are really iconic places, but i think is too packed for each day and you will exhaust yourself and realistically not be able to enjoy all the spots or even cover all of them from your list. I would be a little more down to earth and prioritize the places you want the most.
Day 1: You’re going to exhaust yourself trying to go to Shimokitazawa, Gotokuji, and Sangenjaya just after getting of an airplane (unless you’re coming from, say, South Korea). Expect to not arrive in any of those places until, say, 5 hours after your flight lands. The three neighborhoods look close together on a map, but you’ll spend an hour getting from any one to any of the others. (We live in the neighborhood and once in a while visit Sangenjaya. We stopped going to Shimokitazawa some 10 years ago, when the commercialization and gentrification began. We can walk to Gotokuji in 15 minutes but don’t even bring overseas visitors there because it’s not worth the 15 minute trip.)
Day 2 looks too busy: I’d suggest trying to put half the places you’ll try to visit on your first day, so you’ll be able to actually see things.
I’d suggest instead going directly to your hotel on the first day and going around that area.
Ok I hope you haven’t booked your flight.
DO NOT FLY FROM NRT TO KIX to go to Kyoto
The time it takes you to get from Tokyo to NRT would be enough to get to Kyoto via shinkansen. KIX is also far from Osaka. It would take you way too long to do this for no benefit.
Take the train
Mikan Shimokita is a couple of overcrowded throw-away restaurants. And it is exactly everything that people now hate about the place.