Hello everyone.
In April I’m going on a solo trip to Japan for 15 days and I’m planning my trip and would like to know your opinion.
My interest is personally to see the most nature/park/temple related attractions, food (I am a vegetarian, but will be open to eating meat/seafood in japan), contemporary art and getting to know the underground music scene, so I am open to suggestions.
I plan to travel with only a backpack and try to take it easy. I have also decided that I will buy the 14 day JR pass, so I would appreciate recommendations that are near JR stations (but i have budget if i need to go far the JR line).
My plan is also to see if I can rent a bicycle (I usually use a bicycle in my daily life) especially to go around kyoto and tokyo, and hopefully go to a couple of live concerts of emerging japanese bands.
Here is my proposed schedule so far:
* Day 1 05/04 Wednesday: Arrive at Haneda at 14:00, make JR pass procedure, take monorail to Tokyo, check in at hostel, walk around the neighborhood and rest.
* Day 2 06/04 Thursday: (activate 14d JR pass) Morning in Shibuya and Meiji Jingu, after lunch go to Metropolitan Building and in the night Golden Gai.
* Day 3 07/04 Friday: Shinkansen to Osaka, check in in hostel and go to Aquarium, night in Dotombori
* Day 4 08/04 Saturday: Day trip to Hiroshima, free in the night.
* Day 5 09/04 Sunday: Morning in Osaka Castle, after lunch train to Kinosaki Onsen, check the 7 onsens and stay at ryokan.
* Day 6 10/04 Monday: Morning in Kinosaki then train to Kyoto and lunch and check in. After lunch go to Inari Taisha and Gion afterwards.
* Day 7 11/04 Tuesday: Morning Kinkaku-Ji, Arashiyma in the afternoon/evening.
* Day 8 12/04 Wesnesday: Day trip to Ise (to see the shrine). Free in the night.
* Day 9 13/04 Thursday: Free
* Day 10 14/04 Friday: Morning:Kiyomizu-Dera, lunch then go to Nara park (deers!)
* Day 11 15/04 Saturday: In the morning take train to Kanazawa, visit the market, castle and the park. Stay in Kanazawa.
* Day 12 16/04 Sunday: Free in the morning in Kanazawa. After lunch take shinkansen to Tokyo, check in and then go to Shomikitazawa (live house?)
* Day 13 17/04 Monday: Ueno, Asakusa and Science Museum in the Morning, Teamlab Planets in the evening. (live house in the night?)
* Day 14 18/04 Tuesday: Morning go to Ushiku to see the giant Buddha, Evening in Akihabara.
* Day 15 19/04 Wednesday: Free in the Morning (maybe shopping in akihabara). 14:00 go to the airport and leave :c
[https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1eAgUO9-gdomXUsufx\_I6sk28qighRCXFRke5cXjhFIM/edit?usp=sharing](https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1eAgUO9-gdomXUsufx_I6sk28qighRCXFRke5cXjhFIM/edit?usp=sharing)
And some specific questions:
\- Somebody has experience renting a bike?
\- Any recommendation for Kinosaki Onsen as a solo traveler?
\- What are some good sites/apps for search hostels?. I have some budget but i dont feel comfortable in staying in expensive hotels/hostals. I also hope to meet another travelers where I will be staying, but i’ve read that in general the hostels are not very sociable in Japan.
\- What would be a recommendation to see live music in Tokyo/Kyoto? I would love to go and listen to any genre, from traditional music, pop, rock or jazz.
Thank you very much in advance.
3 comments
Osaka Castle wasn’t what we thought it going to be. It’s a modern-ish museum with an elevator, artifacts/stories on each floor and a 360 view of Osaka from the top. If I had the option to do it again, I’d skip it and save the time and energy getting there. You might like the artifacts though. Just depends on what you’re looking for.
Instead of Osaka Castle, stop off at Himeiji Castle on the way to/back from Kinosaki. In April, the garden there would be all in bloom too.
– [Trip Report: Kinosaki Onsen and Himeiji Castle](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/comments/sna5au/kansai_side_trip_tattoo_friendly_kinosaki_onsen/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf)
– [Bicycle Rental Kyoto](https://www.kyotostation.com/bicycle-rental-in-kyoto/)
– [Best Live Music Venues Tokyo](https://www.timeout.com/tokyo/music/where-to-watch-live-music-in-tokyo)
– [Tokyo Gig Guide](https://www.tokyogigguide.com/en/)
You’ll find lots of lodging options at a range of price points on sites like Booking.com, including hostels or hotel rooms with shared baths.
For Kinosaki, the “problem” with many ryokan is that they do not allow solo travelers, or there is a big premium for it. I stayed at Akashiya because they had ok price for solo travelers and I liked my stay.
While I understand wanting to stay in cheaper places, the Kinosaki night try to allow the budget for the ryokan.
For hostels, there is dedicated hostel websites, but a lot of them are on international booking websites like [booking.com](https://booking.com) and sometimes on airbnb.
I discussed the topic with other people and it seems that is other parts of the world, hostel are “more social” because people are traveling to party, while in Japan they might go a bit more for sightseeing. From experience, it’s not the hostel that make the most difference, but the people. Usually hostel have a common area, smaller area might force people to get closer and possibly to start a discussion, but honestly, it’s more a question of people. I stayed in a hostel where I shared the whole dorm with a French girl and we talked a bit before going to bed, while I stayed in another place where I think there was only one quest and he stayed on his switch all the time and did not say a word. I’ve talked with people in many hostels and in other, did not talk to anybody, but I’m also not especially social,