Hi, me and my wife will be visiting Japan in from March 29 – April and was hoping for some advice/critique on our itinerary. We like nature/scenery, history (not museums), and are big foodies (suggestions for restaurants are welcome). I’ve included a few questions at the end. Thanks
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Tokyo
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Staying in Ginza area
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Planning on purchasing a 2 week JR Pass and activating it after Tokyo
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Day 1
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• Arrive at Haneda at 6:45pm, and take monorail to Hamamatsucho station then switch to JR Yamanote line to go to Yurakucho station. Check into hotel in Ginza and have dinner nearby then rest.
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Day 2
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• Meiji Jingu (Opens 540am), Shinjuku gyoen national garden(opens 9am), Harajuku (try crepes here), takeshita street
• Lunch
• yoyogi park(cherry blossoms), shibuya crossing, Hachiko memorial statue, Tokyo tower maybe
• Try Uobei Shibuya Dougenzaka (conveyor belt sushi). Maybe have this for dinner as well if good
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Day 3
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• Senso-ji temple (opens 630am), Asakusa Shrine (opens 9am), Hoppy street, orange street, Nakamise street (majority of stores open at 10am),
• Lunch at Asakusa Gyukatsu
• Ueno Park, Ameyoko, Akihabara Electric town (super potato gaming store, try magikarp taiyaki, maid café (heavens gate location, 770 yen per hour fee so stay for one hour and have a dessert or one food item)), Tokyo skytree at night
• Dinner
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Day 4
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• Meguro River (cherry blossom) Teamlab planets (opens 9am)(Will go teamlab borderless if open by then), Gundam statue, Rainbow Bridge view
• Tsukiji fish market for Lunch
• Imperial palace (must book on website to see interior of palace), pokemon café(must make reservation ahead of time), also has pokemon center in same building
• Dinner. Maybe fancy dinner in Ginza
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Day 5
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•Studio Ghibli museum (tickets unavailable to foreigners at the moment), Inokashira park(duck boat ride and cherry blossom viewing),
• Lunch
• See Shinjuku area, Tokyo government building observation deck if open (closed 5pm),Don quijote Shinjuku kabukicho, toho cinema Godzilla head, golden gai street, robot restaurant (if opened by then)
• Omoide Yakocho street and have dinner at Ichiran Ramen
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Hakone
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Get Hakone 2 day free pass (5000 Yen each and can be purchased from Odawara station). This covers all transportation in Hakone and offers discounts at sites. Activate 2 week JR Pass today
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Reservation made with Hakone Ginyu Ryokan (They stated they would get back to me in 6 weeks to confirm reservation. Is this normal?)
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Day 1
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• Take train from Shinkansen to Odawara station. Then Odawara station to Hakone Yumoto station. Aim to arrive in Hakone by 9am.
• Take bus from Hakone Yumoto station to Miyanoshita bus stop to get to Ryokan Hakone Ginyu to drop luggage then begin Hakone Loop
• Check into Ryokan, have dinner and onsen
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Day 2
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• Breakfast, checkout then Tenzan Onsen or Hakone Yuryo
• Head to Odawara station to go to Kyoto
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Kyoto
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Staying in Downtown Kawaramachi
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Day 1
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• Nijo castle(opens 845am), nishiki market (stores open 10am and watch Paolo Tokyo youtube video on what to eat)
• Lunch
• Yasaka shrine, Heian shrine, nanzen-ji temple, eikan-do temple, Kimono tea ceremony Maikoya(10am-6pm/Can be booked ahead of time online)
• Dinner
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Day 2
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• Day trip to Nara. Use JR nara line NOT Kintetsu line
• Kofuku-ji temple(opens 9am), Isuien garden, Todaiji Temple, nara park, Kasuga taisha,
• Try Yomogi Mochi at Nakatanidou
• Dinner in Kyoto
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Day 3
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• Fushimi inari taisha (aim to be at the shrine by 630am(open 24/7), Starbucks coffee – Kyoto Ninenzaka yasaka Chaya (name on gmaps), kiyomiza-dera,
• Lunch
• higashiyama jisho-ji, philosophers path walk, check out gion district(Ninnenzaka,Sannenzaka streets, and hanami – koji street in gion district. Yasaka Pagoda view)
• Dinner
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Day 4
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• Take train to Himeji from Kyoto station (57min)
• Half day trip to himeji to see Himeji castle(opens 9am – arrive before opening to ensure you get a ticket), koko-en garden
• Lunch
• Maybe see engyoji temple (last samurai was shot here) or come back to Kyoto and see things that were missed in previous days (if any) OR go to Osaka for lunch before heading to Kyoto
• Pontocho street in Kyoto, Dinner
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Day 5
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• Kinkaku-ji(opens 9am), ryoan-ji,
• Lunch
• arishyama bamboo forest, tenryu-ji and monkey park
• Sagano train ride(must be reserved ahead of time and latest train is at 407 – return at 435) and either train back or boat back
• Dinner
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Osaka
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Staying in Umeda near Osaka Station
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Day 1
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• Go Osaka early morning and drop off luggage at hotel
• Visit Osaka Castle(Opens 9am) and Nishinomaru Garden
• Lunch
• Shinsekai(Try Kushikatsu here at Kushikatsu Daruma), Shinsaibashi (Try Cheese tart by Pablo is here), Dotonbori (try okonomiyaki at Fukutaro restaurant, try takayoki, Don Quijote store
• Dinner at Fukutaro restaurant eating Okonomikyaki as mentioned above
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Day 2
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• Hiroshima/Miyajami day trip. Sakura Shinkansen train takes 1 h 32m from Shin-Osaka station and Hikari Shinkansen train takes 2h13m
• Take San-yo line to Miyajimaguchi station then take ferry to Miyajami island(all covered by JR pass)
• See Itsukushima Shrine, toyokune shrine, daisho-in temple, Omotesando street
• Try momiji Manju on Miyajami island
• Take San-yo line back to Hiroshima station
• Try Hiroshima style Okonomiyaki at Okonomimura
• Peace Park, Peace Museum(closes 6pm), and Atomic Bomb Dome. Shukkeien(Japanese garden) if time (closes 6pm)
• Back to Osaka
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Day 3
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• Universal Studios Japan. Planning on visiting Super Nintendo World and Harry Potter world along with Attack on Titan and Demon slayer rides. Need to buy express pass 7 along with 1 day studio pass well ahead of time.
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Kanazawa
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Staying near Kenroku-en garden
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Day 1
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• Take early morning JR Thunderbird from Osaka to Kanazawa station. Arrive at 915am
• Drop off luggage at hotel then early lunch at Omicho Market
• Kenroku-en garden, Kanazawa castle, nagamachi samurai district (Nomura-ke samurai residence), Myouryu-ji, Higashi Chaya district
• Dinner
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Takayama – Spring Festival
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Buses must be reserved ahead of time on [japanbusonline.com](https://japanbusonline.com). Can be booked a month ahead of time(needs to be done)
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Day 1
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• Take Nohi Bus from east side of Kanazawa station(810am bus) to Shirakawago Bus Terminal. Can leave luggage in storage by tourist centre next to bus stop or use delivery service to get luggage delivered to Takayama hotel. Luggage delivery known as Takuhaibin
• Explore Shirakawago(Ogimachi castle observation deck, wada house, kanda house, shirakawago 3 houses) Try gohei mochi rice cake. Area also known for local hida beef which can be enjoyed with skewers
• Lunch
• Take Nohi Bus from Shirakawago bus terminal to Takayama
• Old town and Dinner
• Evening festival takes place 7pm-9pm
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Day 2
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• Festival float schedule is 930am-4pm. Karakuri performance at 10am and 2pm. During bad weather performances take place in floats storehouses
• Takayama Jinya, Hida fold village, Nakabashi bridge
• Dinner
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Final Day
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• Take JR Hida train to Nagoya then Shinkansen to Tokyo(arrive around 1pm). Store luggage somewhere?
• Go to Sunshine City in Ikebukuro
• Arrive at Haneda by 7pm for 10pm flight.
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Is [hyperdia.com](https://hyperdia.com) the best place to check train times? If not where else can I check
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Does JR pass cover Osaka loop line?
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Anywhere to watch Sumo Wrestling during my dates?
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Other than Ghibli Museum, pokemon café, and universal studios is there anything else I need to book well in advance?
1 comment
I guess it depend where the hiotel is, but you could take the Keikyu line direct from the airport to Higashi Ginza station. There is about 750m between Higashi Ginza and Yurakucho.
Senso-ji and Asakusa-jinja are “always open” in the sense that you cango at any time, but if you want to buy things like omikuji or omamori, yes they do have proper opening hours.
Tokyo Government Building Ovservation deck is ok (especially because it’s free), but I think there is better if you are ok to pay. The two best in my opinion are Shibuya Sky and Roppongi Hills Mori Tower.
You should check, but you can buy the Hakone Free pass online and use a digital version on your phone.
Yes it is normal the ryokan will confirm the booking later, the reason is likely that they only open the booking 3 months in advance, that is quite usual for ryokan.
You can get your luggage delivered to the ryokan from Hakone-Yumoto, would save the detour to the ryokan [https://www.odakyu.jp/english/support/baggage/](https://www.odakyu.jp/english/support/baggage/)
Book Takayama as soon as possible, it is apparently in really high demand during festival and everything can be booked.
**Is hyperdia.com the best place to check train times?**
Used to be, now they do not give train schedule. Google Maps work, but you cannot filter the Nozomi out.
**Does JR pass cover Osaka loop line?**
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*The Osaka Loop Line (大阪環状線, Ōsaka kanjō-sen) is a railway loop line in Japan operated by the West Japan Railway Company (****JR*** *West).*
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>[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osaka_Loop_Line](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osaka_Loop_Line)
Yes.
**Anywhere to watch Sumo Wrestling during my dates?**
There is some places where you can see the wrestlers practice, it might not be official match, but still. That is always an option.