Rough itinerary – 7 weeks

10 comments

1. No front in any way but why not travel to Japan with a good budget instead of cutting everywhere and driving from one place to another? For me personally your itinerary looks pretty stressful!

   I can’t say anything about the places since I will be going to Japan for my first time too, I wish you a happy time there!

2. That’s an awful lot of moving around – you’ll waste a lot of time checking in and out of accommodation.

   There’s no need to stay in both Osaka and Kobe – it only takes about 30 minutes to get between the cities so you can visit them as day trips from each other.

   Are you sure that you want to go to Nagoya and Kobe? There isn’t as much to see there as there is in places like Osaka, Nara, Hiroshima and Kyoto where you’re not spending much time. Japan has lots of large and samey cities, and not all need to be visited.

3. Looking at your itinerary I can’t grasp what interests you in Japan, so for a better plan I’d start with that – understand exactly what do you want from this trip: an overview with a bit of everything? An anime/pop culture trip? A dip into the culture? A feel of everyday life?
   Cause 7 weeks is a very long trip. Especially when you’re on a budget.
   Then, you’re picking one of the most expensive times to visit. During sakura season and golden weak hotel prices skyrocket.
   The least important at that moment, but Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe are very close to each other (and cheap to travel between), it doesn’t worth the trouble of changing your accommodation. Pick Kyoto or Osaka as a base and make day trips.

4. I’d narrow it down to fewer places. You spend a lot of time traveling around and it’s not only costly in terms of time and money, but it can really drain your energy too.

   I traveled through Asia for 13 months and wanted to visit all the places, but after 2 weeks I figured that having extra energy allowed me to utilize the days a lot better. I am pretty tall so traveling is annoying, and I did party a lot. But, even the weeks I did not do that I enjoyed not rushing things too much.

   Honestly, I’d maybe split it up in a way where you can take those 2 weeks in Tokyo at the end and spread them more evenly. I lived in Tokyo for almost a year and still felt like I did not explore the entire city, but one thing I did regret was not going out of the city more. It’s a really cool place, but it’s expensive, and excluding drinking/dating culture people aren’t as open and approachable as other cities in Japan.

   I think you’re gonna have a really nice trip regardless, I just don’t want you to feel all exhausted and spend most the time resting when there’s a lot to see!

5. If you’re long on money and short on time, I definitely wouldn’t recommend visiting so many spread-out major cities back to back. That’s the kind of thing people do when they have a JR pass that makes getting from major city to major city easier and as cheap than going into the countryside.

   When you’re travelling without a rail pass, you can see stuff without constraints for time. There’s a LOT more to see in [Central Japan](https://shoryudo.go-centraljapan.jp/en/). Same around Kyoto/Osaka or Hiroshima. Travelling locally will give you a real sense of the region. It’s budget minded and fulfilling.

   Local train on the Tokyo-Nagoya-Kyoto route is… very boring and not scenic, IMO. I think it is a better deal to buy the Platt Kodama Ticket (less direct shinkansen) or fly to Kobe on a budget carrier. For scenic train rides, look into JR Joyful Trains. They are special trains that run scenic routes at good value. Steam train to Kusatsu? 😍

   Also, when you visit Nagoya, is that a typo for Nagano? Otherwise, take a look at your route between Tokyo and Kyoto on the map… it’s all over the place… maybe look at Nagano, it’s more convenient and nice 😄

6. If you want to spend less on transport, the Keisei main line have an express train that is slower and cheaper than the Skyliner. The big difference is that it’s a normal commuter train, so you do not have a reserved seat.

   For some of the longer distance, one way to save money is to take the bus or night bus. Tokyo-Nagoya can be done for 3500. I’ve done from Fukuyama to Tokyo (I think the bus started in Hiroshima) and would be much cheaper than the sunrise seto/izumo.

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   Mount Koya, it’s expensive is you stay at a temple with the meal included, but there is cheaper accommodation like hostel. Same is true for Hakone, I’ve seen a hotel that have a onsen. What make it more expensive is usually the kaiseki meal. There is also hotels and ryokans that have onsen bath that offer day use, so you can go just for the onsen even if you do not stay there. Could make sense to do it in Kawaguchiko too. In Tokyo there is some places that do have real onsen, but Tokyo is not especially known for it. Instead of going to had to access places, go to places near where you are already going, like Gero onsen that is between Nagoya and Toyama or Arima onsen in Kobe.

   Unfortunately, the order for Takayama make no sense. I see you want to go to a festival, so I would rather stay longer in Tokyo first and do Nagoya, Takayama, Toyama, Ainokura, kanazawa. Otherwise, you spend extra money to move between these places.

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   For the length in each city :

   Nagoya : a bit long unless you have a solid plan an idea of places to go.

   Kanazawa : Not knowing when you will be in the bus/train make it hard to know, but I would say two full days would be good.

   Kobe : Depending on what you want to see, two days could be ok, but you do not really have to change accommodation, yes you can id you don’t mind, but it’s not far enough to be a must.

   Kobe-Hiroshima-Okayama : Hiroshima itself is usually worth 2 days, one for Hiroshima and one for Miyajima. Also, a popular stop on the way to Hiroshima in Himeji, but if you do not take the shinkansen, it might be harder to do both Himeji and Hiroshima on the first day, so it depend if on the Okayama day you want to see something in Okayama or no. Let’s say it would not be hard to add a day for this part.

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   Edit : I’ve read a bit of the other comments and I do not totally agree. I’ve done 3 weeks in Japan doing 1 city a day and changing accommodation almost daily and for my last two trips of 2 weeks each, I was also changing city almost daily and stayed in each accommodation for an average of 1.5 night each. I would say it really depend on each person’s style.

7. For your train travel before April 10th you can use the Seishun 18 Ticket which allows travel on any local / rapid train (any 5 days) for ~¥12,000. It’s very useful for day trips from Tokyo as it covers all trips within the day you use it. The only negative is that it’s only for JR (with exceptions) and you have to buy a fully separate ticket for express trains.

   The Hida train is nice, but I think it would be better to use the bus there, because it’s quicker, cheaper, and it gets you to Takaoka directly. Instead you can try the mountain route from Tokyo to Nagoya via Shiojiri. I’ve tried it a few times for work, but the scenery is pretty cool. Although, it takes a bit longer so it would be a good idea to plan stops for food beforehand.

   As some others have said, taking the overnight bus is much more reasonable than the Seto/ Izumo. Although I would look for routes from Okayama or Himeji, as they can be very cheep if you’re lucky to find the right one(¥2,500-5000).

   If you’re looking for somewhere cheap to stay, the hostels in Asakusa are very cheep (~¥1,000 a night I think) and you can also use Internet cafes for trips away from Tokyo (Kaikatsu is a good one. All you can drink, free manga, anime, breakfast, and showers).

   Edit: from Kyoto to Osaka, use the Hankyu line. It’s easier to access and cheaper.

   Edit 2: I see that you’re a student some net cafes have huge discounts (20%off maybe) so bring your I’d with you.

8. When you are near Kyoto/Osaka, check out Nara. It‘s worth a daytrip.

9. I travelled to 4 different city’s for a month in 2019. Fukuoka-Osaka-Kyoto-Tokyo. Just a few suggestions from me. You said you’re carrying a large rucksack in a post. I would suggest one that also has wheels and a handle so you can roll it as well as put it on your back on crowded trains this will make a huge difference. I used one of the High Sierra bags and it was awesome. Also if you’re going to be staying in guest/share houses which are super cheap. They will have washing machine you can use. You might be able to cut down on your luggage by bringing fewer clothes and washing them as needed. Showers will be fully stocked so no need to carry soap etc around.

   If you want to cut down on spending they will also have kitchens. You wanna try Japanese wagyu with out spending a ton? Buy a steak at the grocery and cook it at the guest house. Or use the kitchen to save cost on breakfast or maybe make some sandwiches for lunch. Some will have free breakfast usually toast with spreads and coffee. One last tip…… alcohol is cheaper in the grocery stores. This will add up quite a bit over not buying it in a konbini.

   I know I didn’t comment on your itinerary but I hope these help in your travels.

10. It looks like you’re getting excellent advice on this thread. For me, with this itinerary there’s too much jumping around, back and forth to some places. How about transferring flights once you land in Tokyo? Flying to Osaka, Nagoya, or even Kanazawa? If you transfer and then fly into Osaka you can kinda work your way up. Definitely look into a rail pass or regional rail pass, this will save you money. Setup bases in an area to make the rail pass work. Osaka/Kyoto, Kanazawa, and then Tokyo. A great bus pass to look into for the Takayama region is the 3star Bus route by Nohi Bus Company. Also definitely look into Joyful Trains. These routes aren’t plentiful in the JR west region, but there’s plenty of routes in Tohoku, Chubu, Hokkaido, and Kyushu. https://japanrailtimes.japanrailcafe.com.sg/web/article/rail-travel/joyful-trains