Hi everyone, I would really appreciate your help with some travel planning.
I am planning to make the most of my 21 Day Pass by starting in Sapporo and slowly making my way down to the southern islands of Japan.
As I have already visited Tokyo, Osaka, and Kyoto in the past, I have decided to exclude them from my itinerary for now.
However, I am currently considering whether it would make sense to include Nagoya in the middle of my trip, or if there are other cities further down that would be worth visiting.
|Day|City|Activities and Sights|
:–|:–|:–|
|Monday, May 1|Sapporo|Fly into New Chitose – Sapporo Airport|
|2|Sapporo|Sapporo Beer Museum, Odori Park, Maruyama Park, Hokkaido Shrine, Shiroi Koibito Park|
|3|Sapporo| Activate JR Pass|
|4|Hakodate|Goryokaku Tower, Mount Hakodate|
|5|Hakodate||
|6|Aomori|Nebuta Museum Wa-Rasse, Hirosaki Castle, Osorezan Bodai-ji Temple|
|7|Aomori||
|8|Aomori||
|9|Sendai|Sendai City Museum, Matsushima Bay, Zuihoden Mausoleum|
|10|Sendai||
|11|Sendai||
|12|Kanazawa|Kenroku-en Garden, 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa Castle|
|13|Kanazawa||
|14|Kanazawa||
|15|Hiroshima|Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park and Museum|
|16|Hiroshima|Miyajima Island, Itsukushima Shrine, Hiroshima Castle|
|17|Hiroshima||
|18|Fukuoka|Fukuoka Castle Ruins, Ohori Park, Hakata Machiya Folk Museum|
|19|Fukuoka|Food scene, night markets|
|20|Fukuoka||
|21|Tokyo|Return to Tokyo|
I have plenty of time to move around and potentially change my cities, but I would like to avoid Tokyo-Osaka-Kyoto-Nara on this trip since I will be returning to them later. Any advice or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!
3 comments
Golden week being April 29 to May 5 you could get lower accommodation costs and crowds if you delayed your arrival date.
Matsumoto Castle on the way to Kanazawa or as a day trip. Takayama or Shirakawago Village as a day trip from Kanazawa or a night in Takayama with a stop over at Shirakawago on the way to a night (s) in Takayama. Toyama is only 20 minutes from Kanazawa and gives you access to Glass Museum and scenic Kurobe Gorge Railway.
Okayama Garden as a day trip from Hiroshima or on the way there. One of the top 3 gardens in Japan, you already doing one of the other 2 in Kanazawa, and a completely different style.
Many Japanese also visit Hokkaido during Golden Week (at the beginning of May). It may be crowded & a little expensive, but I think you will enjoy the time there being limited sightseeing spots, stores, markets, etc.
I recommend Kobe. Kobe is located in the west of Osaka, on the way from Kanazawa to Hiroshima. It is a gastronomic port town between the mountains and the sea. The night view is spectacular and Kobe beef is also great. The nearby Awaji Island is also a great place to enjoy sushi. Awaji Island has recently put a lot of effort into tourism, and some parts of the island have a futuristic feel. A tour to see the whirlpools is also interesting.
Have a nice and safe trip!
Im kinda doing the same right now (North to South) and my itinerary is similar to yours. Since I had a lot of time and generally dont like flying if I can help it, I took the shinkasen and limited express to Sapporo. I guess it helped that my flight landed early so I had the day to take the train and look out through the scenery.
After trying out the green JR Pass experience, I would definitely want future passes to green. 😀 I did 7 days green and now on 21 days ordinary.