Hi all. My wife and I will be visiting Japan again and, this time, we’ll be heading to the Kansai region. We’ll probably be late for the cherry blossoms by a week, but we’re hoping to catch them still in bloom by the time we get there.
There are two rail passes that we’ll use:
– The first is the 5-Day Kintetsu Rail Pass. I’ve heard that this already includes the base fare, so we just need to pay the limited express (LE) surcharge.
– The other one is the 5-Day Kansai Wide Area Pass, which includes Shinkansen trains (Osaka to Okayama) and a bunch of limited express (LE) trains.
– We’ll also get some extra metro passes for both Osaka and Kyoto.
Looking to see if this sort of itinerary is viable, and if there are suggestions regarding spots that we may have missed. We’re also planning to shop and join ichiban kuji raffles to get a bunch of anime figures, haha.
DAY 1: NAGOYA / OSAKA
– Land at Nagoya Chubu Airport -> train to Kintetsu-Nagoya Station
– Claim Kintetsu Pass Plus (5-Days); leave luggage at Kintetsu Nagoya Station and come back for it later
– Morning (approx. 3 hours): Nagoya Castle and other sights
– 1100 to 1310: Kintetsu LE Hinotori train to Osaka -> hotel + rest a bit
– 1500 to 2100: Osaka Castle: Gozabune Boat, Osaka Castle Museum, Japanese Garden, Kaiyodo Figure Museum
– 1800 to 2100: Osaka Castle Light-Up (Nishonomaru Garden)
DAY 2: KYOTO
– 0600: Shinkansen from Shin-Osaka to Kyoto Station -> get 2-day bus/subway pass -> Kyoto Imperial Palace
– Around 0900: Kimono/Yukata rental (near Yasaka Shrine) -> explore Yasaka Shrine, Maruyama Park, and Gion
– Around 1300 to 2000: Kiyomizudera -> Fushimi Inari -> Kyoto Imperial Palace -> Nijo Castle
– Around 2000: Train/bus to Nijo Castle -> Naked Flowers Sakura event
– Train back to Osaka
DAY 3: KYOTO
– Morning: Osaka to Kyoto again
– Before 1100: Return rented kimono
– Late morning to early afternoon: Lunch at Nishiki Market and shopping for anime figures at Lashinbang/Bookoff
– Around 1300: Bus to Toei Kyoto Studio Park
– Around 1600: Bus to Kirin Shako-mae -> walk north along Philosopher’s Path heading north to Ginkaku-ji Temple
– Around 1800: Ginkaku-ji Temple -> bus to Heian Shrine -> watch Heian Jingu Otoyo (cherry blossom festival concert)
– Train back to Osaka
DAY 4: IGA / ISE / NARA
– Morning: Osaka-Namba to Iga-Kambe -> Uenoshi -> Iga-Kambe = spend at least one hour in the city of ninjas
– Late morning: Iga-Kambe to Iseshi -> Ise Shrine
– Mid-afternoon: Iseshi to Yamato Saidaji -> bus/train to Nara -> Nara Deer Park and Todai-ji Temple
– Late evening: Kintetsu-Nara to Osaka
DAY 5: YOSHINO
– 0710 to 0820: Osaka-Abenobashi to Yoshino
– Approx. 5 hours: Explore Mount Yoshino
– 1430 to 1550: Yoshino to Osaka-Abenobashi
– Mid-afternoon to late evening: Shop for anime figures in Mugiwara Store/Bookoff; visit a cat cafe; go up to Abeno Harukas 300
DAY 6: KINOSAKI ONSEN
– Claim Kansai Wide Area Pass (5-Days) – I’m not entirely sure if I’d be able to exchange for a physical pass
– 1005 to 1251: Shin-Osaka to Kinosaki Onsen via Kuonotari LE
– We already booked a stay at a ryokan, but there’s no early check-in. We’ll just get our passes and head to the ropeway.
– 1500: Check-in at ryokan -> change into our yukata -> try out the onsens and have dinner in town -> overnight at ryokan
DAY 7: HIMEJI
– 1000: Ryokan check-out
– 1049 to 1351: Kinosakionsen to Tottori via Hamakaze LE -> 20-min. transfer time in Tottori Station -> Ride Super Hakuto to Himeji
– Afternoon: Himeji Castle
– Late afternoon: Reserve Shinkansen from Himeji to Shin-Osaka
– Evening: Shin-Osaka to Nagai Station -> Visit TeamLab Botanical Garden
DAY 8: OKAYAMA / KOBE
– 0711 to 0755: Shin-Osaka to Okayama via Shinkansen -> Bus to Okayama Castle and Korakuen Garden
– 1009 to 1111: Okayama to Shin-Kobe via Hello Kitty Shinkansen
– 1130 to evening: Ride Shinki Bus to Aeon Mall -> walk to Kobe Sanda Outlet -> shop and eat at a restaurant that serves authentic Kobe beef
– Evening: Kobe Aeon Mall to Shin-Osaka = Ride Shinki Bus along or return to Shin-Kobe and ride Shinkansen
DAY 9: OSAKA
– Morning to afternoon: Nippombashi Den Den Town
– Evening: Tombori River Cruise
DAY 10: OSAKA – UNIVERSAL STUDIOS
– Fully scheduled and all, including the Express Pass 7 just so we don’t need to wait in line for long.
DAY 11: NAGOYA
– Shinkansen from Shin-Osaka to Nagoya Station -> take train back to Chubu Airport -> Flight back to Manila
Day 7 in Tottori is the one that’s been giving me pause. The Limited Express train going there is already included in the Kansai Wide Area Pass. Unfortunately, the travel time is too long (2 hours), and we’ll only spend a few minutes there anyway. Not really sure if it’s worth going to this location or if it’s better to cut down on the time spent traveling.
Dropping Tottori from our itinerary would also allow us to travel back to Osaka (from Kinosakionsen) and explore the city a bit more during the afternoon. Our Day 8 plan could be Okayama-Himeji-Kobe instead.
by jasonrodriguez_DT