Hi everyone! I’ll be traveling with my mom from the US and our plan is to eventually end up in Fukuoka (from Tokyo) and take a ferry to Busan, then fly back home from Seoul.
Background and Interests: A bit of background is that this is my graduation trip, and my mom has always wanted to visit Japan so we want to make the most out of this trip but not rush it. We were in Tokyo for about 12 hours in January for a layover and visited Sensoji Temple, Nakamise Street, Meiji Shrine, Tsukiji Outer Fish Market, and Shibuya Scramble (and had the best strawberry soft serve we’d ever had!). My mom loved everything but especially the **strawberries**. She loves **fruits, snacks, and sweet treats** in general but unfortunately does not eat raw fish, which is why we decide not to do omakase and just do sushi places with non-raw options. We both love exploring different **markets** with many food vendors to try out, and I especially wanna try the **local cuisine/specialties** (such as Hiroshima-style Okonomiyaki, Shisaru in Enoshima, Motsunabe in Fukuoka, etc.). She also has an interest in **palaces, castles, and anything prince/princesses-related**. Personally, I absolutely loved Meiji Shrine and plan to revisit it during this trip. I also love **nature, greenery, scenic views, etc.**
I think this is less of an itinerary but more so a list of things within the same vicinity that we would like to visit. **The list looks long, but we’re not going to try to hit everything and also flexible with restaurants. Places with \*\*\*\* are the ones we absolutely wanna check out.** I’m personally mostly concerned about the logistics and timing of the travel from one city to another and don’t want to make it too exhausting. Any feedback regarding this would be greatly appreciated!
**Friday May 17th – TOKYO**
* Arrive at HND at 2PM
* Check in hotel and settle in/rest
* Dinner
**Saturday May 18th – TOKYO (Harajuku and Shinjuku)**
* Morning
* Picnic at Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden
* Harajuku: Takeshita Street (DAISO, Marion Crepes)
* Afternoon
* Shinjuku:
* Lunch at Kaiten Sushi Numazuko
* 3D Cat, Godzilla Head, Seria 100 Yen, and Kabukicho Tower
* Evening
* Omoide Yokocho\*\*\*\* for dinner
* Golden Gai\*\*\*\*
**Sunday May 19th – TOKYO**
* Morning
* Imperial Palace East Garden\*\*\*\*
* Taito City
* Kappabashi Shopping for knives/kitchen goods\*\*\*\*
* Ameyoko Shopping District + lunch
* Suzukien Asakusa
* Kurogi
* Afternoon
* Shiba Park and Zojo-ji Temple (or just one depending on how tired we are) and stay until sunset for view of the Tokyo Tower\*\*\*\*
* Evening
* Dinner at Kushikatsu Bon Ginza
**Monday May 20th – TOKYO**
* Morning
* Ginza: Itoya, UNIQLO\*\*\*\*, etc.
* Tokyo Station and the surrounding shopping areas
* Afternoon => Shibuya:
* Hachiko Memorial Statue and Shibuya Sky at sunset\*\*\*\*
* Shibuya Scramble at night\*\*\*\*
* MEGA Don Quijote
* Gyukatsu Kyoto Katsugyu Harajuku for dinner
**Tuesday May 21st – TOKYO**
* Morning
* Meiji Shrine\*\*\*\*
* Kagaruzaka – explore the 3 alleys\*\*\*\*
* Tokyo Skytree – lunch, check out shops, Ghibli store
* Afternoon
* Kiyosumi Gardens
* Evening
* Ginza Yakitori Take-chan for dinner; Ginza Kimuraya if time permits
* Akihabara at night if time permits
* Head back to hotel and forward luggage to Kyoto
**Wednesday May 22nd – NIKKO\*\*\*\***
* Shinkyo Bridge
* Temples
* Rinnō-ji temple => Toshogu Shrine => Futarasan Shrine
* Kanmangafuchi Abyss
* Lunch
* Kegon Waterfall and Ryuzu Falls
* Dinner then head back to hotel at Nikko
**Thursday May 23rd – Kanagawa/Enoshima Island**
* Kanagawa:
* Arrive at Kotoku-in Temple around 10:30 AM (around 4-hr transit)
* Zeniarai Benten Shrine
* Lunch: Wasai Yakura
* Enoshima
* Enoshima Shrine
* Chigogafuchi Plateau and Iwaya caves
* Dinner: Enoshimatei
* Sunset at Sea Candle
* Head to Kyoto (around 3.5-hr transit)
**Friday May 24th – KYOTO**
* Morning: Higashiyama Jisho-ji => Philosopher’s Path => Heian Shrine
* Lunch: Omen Ginkaku-ji
* Afternoon: Nanzen-ji Temple => Suirokaku (Waterway Bridge)
* Evening: Hanamikoji Street to see the geisha\*\*\*\*
* Dinner: Gion Uokeya U
**Saturday May 25th – OSAKA**
* Morning:
* Osaka Castle\*\*\*\*
* Kuromon Ichiba Market (jiggly cheesecake at Rikuko’s)
* Lunch: Fukutaro Main Store for Osaka-style Okonomiyaki\*\*\*\*
* Afternoon: Shinsaibashi-Suji Shopping Street
* Dinner: Kadoya Shokudo
* Evening: Dotonbori\*\*\*\*
**Sunday May 26th – KYOTO**
* Morning:
* Ninenzaka and Sannenzaka\*\*\*\*
* Hokan-ji Temple
* Kiyomizu-dera Temple\*\*\*\*
* Lunch: Nishiki Market
* Dinner: Kichi Kichi Omurice
* Yasaka Shrine at night
**Monday May 27th – KOBE AND HIMEJI\*\*\*\***
* Morning: Arrive at Himeji Castle around 8:30AM
* Kobe for lunch or early dinner
* Back to Kyoto
* Ichiran-ramen somewhere if we don’t do dinner in Kobe
**Tuesday May 28th** – **NARA AND UJI\*\*\*\***
* Nara: Nara Park, Todaiji Temple and Kofuku-ji Temple, Nakatanidou
* Uji: Byodo-in Temple\*\*\*\*
* Dinner: Takoume Kitaten in Osaka if time permits
* Back to hotel in Kyoto
**Wednesday May 29th – SCENIC TRAIN & AMANOHASHIDATE**
* Head to Nishimaizuru Station (about 3-hr transit)
* Take the Tango Aka-Matsu (only operates on Tuesday and Wednesday)\*\*\*\* at 10:12AM to Amanohashidate
* Arrive at Amanohashidate around 11AM
* Amanohashidate View Land\*\*\*\* and lunch
* Explore around the area
* Take train back to Kyoto
**Thursday May 30th – KYOTO**
* Arashiyama: Arashiyama Bamboo Forest, Tenryu-ji, Shigetsu for lunch, Arashiyama Monkey Park
* Kinkaku-ji\*\*\*\*
* Dinner: Gontaro or anywhere nearby/on the way back to hotel
* Back to hotel and forward luggage to Hiroshima
**Friday May 31st – KYOTO => KINOSAKI**
* Fushimi Inari Taisha early morning
* Head to Kinosaki (\~2-3 hours)
**Saturday June 1st – KINOSAKI => HIROSHIMA**
* Head to Hiroshima after lunch (\~3hr transit, arrive at Hiroshima around 6PM)
* Dinner: Denkousekka (Hiroshima-style Okonomiyaki)
* Retrieve luggage and check in hotel in Hiroshima
**Sunday June 2nd – HIROSHIMA AND MIYAJIMA ISLAND**
* Hiroshima: Atomic Bomb Dome
* Miyajima Island: try out local cuisine, Daishoin Temple, Ropeway to Mt. Misen if time permits, Itsukushima Shrine at sunset
* Back to Hiroshima
**Monday June 3rd – HIROSHIMA => FUKUOKA**
* Arrive at Fukouka around 11AM then lunch
* Dazaifu Tenmangu (try umegaimochi)
* Get snow globes from one of the Starbucks (not sure these snow globes are just in Fukuoka but I didn’t see any in Tokyo during my layover)
* Yatai for dinner or dinner somewhere else
**Tuesday June 4th – FUKUOKA => BUSAN**
* Nanzoin if time permits
* Motsunabe somewhere\*\*\*\*
* Ferry to Busan at 3PM (Queen Beetle)
by Independent-Rise-307