I’ll be in Japan for 11 days, with my family including an 18-month-old and two grandparents. This will be our first time in Japan (we are in our late 20s, grandparents are in 60s but quite spry). This trip will be during mid-March till the end for Cherry blossom season so I know the place will be busy in general. I saw that the cherry blossom estimate starts the day we leave, but I’m hoping with the more accurate estimations in February we’ll be able to see something. Since traveling with baby, I’m really only planning two major things/day to make it more manageable.
> Side note : We will be bringing a ton of Hampers Little Movers since I’ve heard mixed reviews on this subreddit about the availability of diapers in Japan. We will also be bringing Horizon prepackaged 8oz containers since baby needs to drink 16oz/day and I’m not sure of the availability of whole milk in Japan?
Packing situation: 2 check ins, 2 carry ons, folding travel stroller that can fit in international overhead bin (most likely will gatecheck), 2 backpacks. I personally plan to nest my check in and carry on to use later on in the trip for souvenirs. Grandparents I assume will have 2 check ins and no carry ons but that’s on them. I plan to use Yamato Express or other luggage forwarding solutions for the family while we’re there and when traveling in between cities have backpacks and a carry on for immediate use just in case of mishaps.
Internet situation : Ubigi for me ($17), Airalo for my wife ($6), PocketWifi for grandparents (Japan Wireless with 25% off code for $50) bc eSim will most likely be a bit of a pain to set up on their phones (I’m not even sure if their phones are eSim compatible).
Day 1
* Travel day, plain and simple. Fly out at 1145 and arrive the next day at around 1500.
* We have Global Entry for the entire family so should be fine leaving USA.
* We will be landing at Haneda around 1525 (13 hour flight). I will be using Ubigi 10gb ($17) and my wife wants to use Airalo for their initial 10gb ($6). I plan to activate eSims while in USA just before boarding in case of any issues.
* Plan to use visitjapan website to obtain QR codes for the family before we fly out, therefore customs should become a breeze. I understand however it can still be 25 minutes of 90 minutes.
Day 2
* I expect that the hardest part will most likely be finding the Welcome Suica or Pasmo Passport areas to obtain our cards.
* If difficult, can use Suica through Apple Wallet and load up through a Debit Card (I’ve tried all of our credit cards including Mastercard, etc to no avail, but ultimately it did allow me to load 20 bucks via debit card).
* We will either take the train to our Hotel or we will use a Taxi. Taxi will take 24 minutes while Train will take a theoretical 33 minutes. Main concern is that we’ll be in the middle of rush hour on the trains with a baby which is why most likely we will utilize the taxi.
* Plan to rest at hotel, most likely will just eat at a local restaurant near the hotel or a 7-11.
* Technically the hotel itself has a restaurant but they seem pointlessly expensive.
Day 3
* Most likely will wake up late and getting baby ready for the day. Most likely will be ready by 9am when rush hour is over.
* This therefore will be our Shibuya/Meguro days? Since I see that most places in Japan open at 0900h. Meguro has the Starbucks Reserve Roastery (for my wife) and the Chery Blossom Promenade.
* Hachiko statue, Nintendo Tokyo, Pokemon Shibuya, Mega Don Quijote, LOFT
* If possible I’d really like to see the Godzilla head at Shinjuku but I recognize baby will most likely be pooped out. Can’t fit teamLabs into any of this trip since I don’t think my child can handle the stimulation.
Day 4
* Wake up early ideally
* Head to Senso-ji temple in Asakusa and we can probably eat there in the street stalls!
* Touristy souvenir stuff I imagine will be bought here. Grandparents will most likely go nuts.
* Candied Strawberries? Herad mixed bag reviews about it.
* Ideally I’d like to get back to Ginza right after lunch in the afternoon so we can do a little “high end” shopping with favorable conversion discount into the evening. My wife really wants to see the 12 story Uniqlo. Most places in Ginza will close at 9pm it seems.
* Tsuikiji Market is close to Ginza (15 minute walk) apparently so I’d like to do that as well.
Day 5
* This will be our Mt Fuji day.
* Need to take the Chuo Fuji Express train. Purchased tickets off Klook already since the train apps this subreddit has recommended (ex-Smart, etc) just don’t agree with my credit cards :/
* We can take the 0930 train that way we avoid rush hour. We’ll arrive therefore at 1130.
* We can then head to our hotel (probably need to catch a taxi for this one bc Fujiko seems to have relatively poor train infrastructure) and head to the Chureito Pagoda for a photo and go back to relax at our hotel rooms. At the request of my wife we got a room with a private onsen for the baby so I’m expecting rest of day is relaxing at the hotel.
* I most likely will hail a cab and go around Lake Kawaguchiko on my own to get photo shots. I’m quite interested in seeing Honcho street but this largely depends on cloud coverage I guess. Fuji is like the only reason I’m packing my 400mm lens for the trip.
Day 6
* This will be our trip to Kyoto
* We need to get from Kawaguchiko to Mishima station to catch a Shinkansen to Kyoto.
* I believe I will need to buy a bus ticket one month in advance off Sekitori. No clue how picky they are with credit cards but hopefully it works out. It would be favorable to get the bus at 0920 – 1050 and then board the shinkansen at 1146 – 1337 to Kyoto. **I’m not sure if this is enough buffer period between the two in case of emergencies.** I wanted to plan it this way since it’s a more appropriate time for grandparents to eat their lunch on the train.
* Take a short train from Kyoto station to our Hotel. Drop off luggage. Rest an hour.
* Head to Gion and Ninenzaka. This will be ideal since most likely we can explore close to closing and therefore crowds ideally won’t be as bad. Go to My Only Fragrance for custom perfume, Instagram ads are very effective on me. Alternatively IF THIS IS TOO MUCH WE CAN HEAD TO NISHIKI MARKET INSTEAD FOR THE AFTERNOON SINCE IT’S LESS THAN 15 MINUTES AWAY FROM THE HOTEL
Day 7
* I will wake up early to take a shot of the Hokanji Pagoda before crowds come. Should be a 30-40 minute walk from the hotel.
* I feel this day perhaps we can do the morning in Arashiyama and the afternoon as a quick trip to Nara to see the deer.
* I was interested in Adashino Nenbutsuji near Arashiyama but it actually seems relatively kinda far? I’m not sure if that’s how it actually plays out in reality vs just looks bad on google maps.
* I’ve read that some people recommend Arashiyama Bamboo forest + Kinkakuji but **idk if that’s too much for a morning?** I feel it’s more manageable to perhaps just do Arashiyama and Monkey park? I don’t have a good grasp on how long these activities realistically take.
* After Arashiyama come back for lunch and then head to Nara for the afternoon to see the deer? Can eat in Nara before heading back? Hopefully if there’s still daylight out we can go see Todaiji. I imagine with the baby the deer park will most likely be cut short.
Day 8
* Go to Fushimi Inara before crowds come. **I understand this means to get there around 7-8am?**
* Take the hike up because apparently the views are to die for, or maybe they meant you’d die on the way up. I’ve heard the climb up is brutal and the hike down is easy peasy. Most likely I can carry the baby for extra exercise because I’m built like that.
* There’s a stand at Fushimi Inara at the bottom street area that sells fried chicken and pork buns which apparently are really good I read from another itinerary report?
* Head back for the afternoon in Ninenzaka
* If possible I’d like to check out Maruyama Park for cherry blossom watching. Only if possible. I’m sure other places we’ll be going to will also have cherry blossoms so not a big deal.
Day 9
* Head out to Osaka today
* Already purchased Osaka Amazing Pass through Klook
* It’s like a 14 minute train ride to Osaka on the Shinkansen lol so apparently no rush. Idk if this is a good time to do something quick in Kyoto in the morning before heading out?
* The Osaka hotel we picked is apparently family friendly but is located in the northern part of Osaka near the Umeda Sky building with some interesting restaurant/food courts for brunch that I’ve seen on instagram.
* I think this day is realistically the only day we’d be able to slip Osaka castle in just to nab a picture in the garden park.
* Dinner can be in a nearby shopping center close to the hotel. I saw there’s an eel store here that’s famous for its huge eel bowl but apparently it’s very mid?
Day 10
* Maybe this can be our Osaka Aquarium day for the morning. My kid is at that part of their life where they’re **REALLY** into fish.
* Then head to Namba Yasaka shrine for arguably the coolest shrine in all of Japan.
* Dotonbori in the late afternoon to evening (I don’t think baby can handle late late evening Dotonbori)
Day 11
* This can be our Nintendo World day because most likely we’re not staying all day and can headback to the hotel to relax before we fly out. I’ve also heard that Tuesday is the day of the week where they see the lowest amount of visitors comparatively speaking?
* Bought tickets through Klook, **allegedly it gives me a 1300 Timed Entry** but I’m not sure how accurate that is. I’ve seen past threads were people stated they got late timed entries, but I confirmed with the customer service that the “1300 Nintendo World Universal Studio Japan Pass” meant I could enter at 1300 but they also could’ve been talking smoke out their butt.
* I see that opening for this day is 0800h, **I understand that to get a favorable Timed Entry (if Klook gives us a bad one) is that we need to get there within the first two hours from opening?**
* **I also understand Harry Potter Wizarding World no longer requires timed entry?**
Day 12
* Fly out from Osaka at 7am therefore need to get to the airport by like 0430
* We need to rent a taxi for this since it’s a 16 minute car ride vs a 48 minute train ride.
Thank you in advance for your time and for all your help!
Any input is welcome.
I’ve been in training for the last 11 years so I normally don’t get a lot of time off from work; this is really the first big vacation I can take with my family and I just want it to be a pleasant outing without really missing out on any things.
by KumaKurita