Hello Reddit, I have been looking around on this forum for quite a while to get some ideas or advice. Now I have finally finished my itinerary for our first trip in April and would greatly appreciate a final look at some of the things I hope to do with my partner. This will not be a traditional itinerary with day to day scheduled events, but rather, a block of things to potentially do near where we will be staying. We wanted to have more freedom by choosing a few things a day and doing others as time or our energy permits. We hoped to see the sakura trees but seeing how they bloomed a few weeks earlier than usual this may not be possible by the time we get there. It would be appreciated if anyone knew any areas near Osaka, Kyoto, and Tokyo that would bloom late. Other interests we have is anime, botanical gardens/parks, hikes, arcades, yummy foods, and fun nightlife activities.
***4/1/23:*** Arrive at HND around 9 p.m.
* Take shuttle to Hotel, pick up Japan Wireless WIFI package, and get some sleep
***4/2/23:***
* Take the shinkansen to Osaka
***4/2/23-4/8/23: Osaka/Kyoto/Nara***
* Check into the hotel in Osaka around 3:00 p.m.; This will be our base for the entire week
* Osaka Ideas:
* **Note:** We hope to get the “Osaka Amazing Pass” for two days while exploring some of the sights/attractions of Osaka
* Osaka Aquarium
* Tempozan Giant Ferris Wheel
* Shinsekai
* Nipponbashi Denden Town
* Dotonbori:
* Parco Shinsaibashi Mall
* Don Quijote
* Cheese Tart Pablo Shinsaibashi
* Osaka Castle
* Umeda Sky Building
* Takonotetsu
* Expo 70s Park (**We hope to see cherry blossoms here)**
* Nara Ideas:
* Todai-Ji Buddhist Temple
* Nara Park
* Kasuga-Taisha
* Nakatanidou
* Kyoto Ideas:
* Philosophers Path (**Hope to see cherry blossoms here)**
* Start the 30 min hike at Nanzen-Ji Temple
* End at the Ginkaku-Ji Temple
* Kyoto botanical Gardens
* Fushimi Inari Taisha
* Ramen Sen No Kaze
* If time for another day of exploring:
* Take the 25 minute Sagano Romantic Cherry Blossom Train
* Then go to Arashiyama
* See Gion district
* ***4/9/23: Mt Fuji***
* Take the 5 hour shinkansen to Mt. Fuji for a day trip
* Check in at the ryokan at 3:00 p.m.
* Mt. Fuji Panoramic Ropeway
* Ring the Tenjo Bell and make a wish
* Eat snacks at the Tanuki Jaya Shop
* Eat at Fudo Kawaguchiko Station
* Take a taxi for a 15 minute drive to Arakurayama Sengen Park
* Take the 1 hour bus back
* Sleep at ryokan
* Check out before 10:00 a.m.
* Take Train to Tokyo
* ***4/10/23-4/16/23: Tokyo***
* 4/10-4/13: Check into the hotel near Minato City at 3:00 p.m.
* Round 1
* Ginza Art Museum
* Shin-Okubo Station
* Tokyo Tower
* Meiji Jingu
* Shibuya Parco
* Shibuya sky or Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building at night for a nice view
* Team Labs Tokyo (On 4/11/23)
* Nakano Broadway/ Sun City Mall
* See some Stores/ Live Bands at Shimokitazawa
* Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden
* 4/13-4/15: Check into hotel near Taito City
* Senso-Ji
* Ueno Park (**Hope to see cherry blossoms)**
* Rikugien Gardens (**Hopefully cherry blossoms are here)**
* Akihabara
* See the new Animate Ikebukuro for anime/manga/ etc. (Is this any good?)
* Check out on the 15th at 10:00 a.m.
* Other Food Ideas:
* Omoide Yokocho or Ebisu Yokocho
* Ebisu Ramen Kamuro
* Pokémon Café
* 4/15-4/16:
* Look at any sights we missed or just wander and see what calls us.
* Leave for flight at 12: a.m.
* Questions I Have:
* In terms of travel, what types of passes would be best for traveling around places like Osaka, Kyoto and Tokyo?
* I was thinking of the “Osaka Amazing Pass” for 2 or 3 days to get free admission on attractions as well as cover the cost for travel.
* As for getting to Kyoto or Nara, there are so many passes to choose from but I am not entirely sure what would get us as close to the places we want to see.
* I would have done the 7 day JR pass, but I will be in Osaka/Kyoto for 8 days so I doubt I will be able to get my money’s worth in shinkansen rides unless I go to Hiroshima and maybe Kobe but that’s if I have spare time after doing most of my original itinerary.
* When taking the Shinkansen, would it be best to just forward my luggage to Osaka and then back to Tokyo or just try bringing it on the train and reserving a back seat?
* Is anyone aware of any nice festivals that are worth making a trip to in Osaka/Kyoto/Tokyo?
* Finally, does my itinerary seem feasible or am I doing too much or even too little? This is my first time traveling to Japan and I wanna make sure that I stay aware of the time it takes to travel.
Any other ideas for fun things to do or constructive criticism of what I have so far is welcome. Thank you all again for taking the time to read this and for giving any advice. 🙂
8 comments
Peak of cherry blossoms was yesterday or so. Not much will remain by next week.
The Osaka amazing pass is only good if you do enough attractions to save money. To Nara and Kyoto, most pass are not worth it, many need further trips to make any saving. JR pass even 7 days would barely save money if you could use it.
Taking your luggage on the Shinkansen in not that hard, forwarding is also an option.
Yes, Animate in general can be a good stop for anime/manga shopping and this will be their biggest store. It really depends on what you are looking for. A lot of merch is just available for a certain time, so you find a lot of items for current and popular series, right now Spy Family, and Uma Musume are everywhere. If you are looking for less current stuff, you might have more chance at second hand stores like Lashinbang that is often found near animates, or just go hunt in the dozens of stores in Akihabara.
I’m currently in Kyoto (just came from Tokyo) and cherry blossoms are in full swing. I don’t think you’ll miss your photo op. We really LOVED Shibuya Sky in Tokyo for the view. We purchased a 14 day JR pass and so far we have been able to use only that (9 days so far). In Kyoto we are using DiDi for Taxis.
There is a Cherry Blossom festival going on at Meguro River Cherry Blossom Promenade. They have beautiful views with the river reflecting the lights. And there are numerous shops where you can buy Sukra inspired souvenirs, drinks, food etc. was definitely worth the visit for us.
Sakura bloomed within the same week as it usually does. No idea where you saw sakura blooming mid-April for Kanto/Kansai, but it was wrong.
5 hour shinkansen from Kyoto to Mt Fuji? Where did you see that, and what stations are you using to get that result?
Re JR Pass, yes you wouldn’t get your moneys worth. Just get the day pass for Osaka. Do the rest with a Suica/Pasmo/Icoca etc.
You said it yourself, this isn’t an itinerary. The places you want to go are all feasible, how you plan your days will be the biggest variable.
Check the jmc sakura forecast to find out where things will be in line with your travels.
I would not switch hotels in Tokyo. Your two location are only 25-30 mins away from each other on the subway and it would be more convenient to stay in one and use it as a base for everything. Why pack again and waste those hours relocating?
The big Don Quiote in Osaka is fun. We loved it best at night, exploring it like the founder originally conceived it.
If you are traveling with carry size luggage only I would take it with you on the train. If you have large suite cases, consider the luggage forwarding system. Have a great time!!
Hyogo is forcasted to be at its peak a few days later than Osaka. For Himeji, for example, peak is forcasted around 30th-31st depending on the forcast you’re looking it. You could consider a day trip to Himeji, for example, the Castle with the blossoms is absolutely incredible. Should still make for decent viewing on the 3rd.
Tokyo is almost always earlier than Osaka and Kyoto for sakura. Tokyo is nearly always first though I have occasionally seen a few places in Kyushu like Fukuoka and Kagoshima earlier, Osaka and Kyoto are always later.
Pretty consistently the last week in March has been peak sakura for Tokyo the last decade or so, occasionally it goes into the first few days of April.
You can look for later blooming varieties, they’re not the same but are still quite pretty. You should also be pretty close to peak for Mt. Yoshino outside of Osaka.
[https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4150.html](https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4150.html)
Unless you have a reservation for the Pokemon Cafe is unlikely to be an option. They only rarely take walk ups, it’s insanely popular. Pokemon Sweets is takeout only and in Ikebukuro in the same Sunshine 60 shopping mall one of the Pokemon Stores is in.