Edit – I know it will be a grueling pace, but I did France > Southern Germany Germany > Austria > CR > Northern Germany > Amsterdam in 2 weeks and 10 Western US states in 3 weeks. We’re seasoned travelers. My MO is usually to go very broad on my first trip and then dig into the things I wanted to see more of when I come back
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It would not be quite a Grand Traverse but the current sketch is a 3 week trip hitting:
* Hokkaido (Asahikawa, Daisetsuzan, Sapporo, Hakodate)
* Tohoku (Ichinoseki, Mitsushima, Sendai)
* Tokyo and Hakone
* Kyoto, Osaka, Kobe
* Okinawa
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My questions:
1. Does Haneda, or the various luggage porter services, offer long term (\~1 week) luggage storage? Ideally we would have 2 sets of baggage, a northern one for Hokkaido and a Southern one for Tokyo, Kyoto, and Okinawa
2. Would it be worth it to spend more time on Hokkaido, specifically to go to Shiretoko? If we did that we’d have to nix Okinawa and probably shorten the Tokyo and Kyoto segments
3. Do Japanese rental agencies allow you to pick up a car somewhere and drop it off somewhere else? Could we pick up in Asahikawa and drop off in Sapporo or Hakodate?
4. For those who have done Hokkaido in the fall, how cold is it? When were were in Yellowstone in September last year it snowed several inches and got into the -10 Cs – it seems like Daisetsuzan has a somewhat similar climate? (I was thinking maybe starting the trip on Sep 10th or so, to get to Daisetsuzan before the roads close)
5. For people that have been to Sendai/ Tohoku region, do you think it is worthwhile? There’s something that appeals to me about the train trip from Hakodate to Tokyo (plus I want to see Geibikei Gorge and Mitsushima Bay), but doing so adds 3 days vs just flying back to Tokyo out of Asahikawa
6. Referencing question (3), is it true you can’t see much of the country from the Shinkansen? So maybe a lot of that time on the train through Tohoku would be pretty lame?
7. How is Nikko for the wilderness lover once you get past the major shrines? If we really wanted to get out and hike and enjoy nature, is spending several days in Nikko a good bet and just skipping Hokkaido altogether?
8. I would like to visit a traditional ryokan in some of the less touristy areas, but my partner has a tattoo, will that be a bigger problem outside of where the tourists usually hit?
4 comments
If you are wondering why you aren’t really getting answer, it’s because a lot of your question can be answered using Google.
1. Yes. It’s even on Haneda website, in English. [https://tokyo-haneda.com/en/service/facilities/baggage_checkroom.html](https://tokyo-haneda.com/en/service/facilities/baggage_checkroom.html)
2. Idk, never been there.
3. Yes, with a (large) fee.
4. Hokkaido is huge. Just google for the place and the average yearly temp.
5. Idk, never been there.
6. Are you referencing question (5)? Yes, Tohoku Shinkansen goes at 320kph with a lot of tunnel. I wouldn’t call it lame, you will probably see some scenery. But it’s not scenic ride if that is what you are asking.
7. Idk, never been there.
8. It can go either way, depend on the place.
1. Yes, there are storage option at Haneda.
2. Depends on your interests, timing of your visit (September is very different to November). Do note that we generally do not recommend visiting more than one region per week. For visiting Kansai, Kanto, Hokkaido, Okinawa and above-mentioned part of Tohoku – we would generally recommend 5-6 weeks.
3. Yes, though there are surchages, and Hokkaido is area separate from rest of mainland Japan. Do note that renting a car would only makes sense for Daisutsezan, Shiretoko and Okinawa (in the areas you have mentioned).
4. In general, Daisutsezan is unlikely to be much below freezing (during day) until late October, though snowfall generally may start much earlier. In rest of Hokkaido, it’s early/mid-November before temperatures dip into single digits above freezing (Celsius), although sleet and snow may occur earlier on occasion.
5. It’s worth visiting, although you really do not have time for that (unless you cut Hokkaido and Okinawa).
6. Depends on the shinkansen routes. In general: Tohoku shinkansen is not so bad for sightseeing. Joetsu and Hokuriku shinkansen (to Niigata and Kanazawa) are very much hidden in tunnels.
7, Okunikko area is generally a very good area for hiking.
8. See FAQ. As a general rule, we do recommend choosing ryokan with private onsen in this case.
Edited: Yeah, Hokuriku Shinkansen.
This is way too much for only 3 weeks. Of your bullet points, I would pick maybe 3 at most. Honestly you could easily split 3 weeks just between Kanto and Kansai and still have a very full trip.
As others have said, some of these questions can be answered very simply with a Google search, but also some of them don’t contain enough information for us to answer them for you even if we wanted to. For example, your questions about temperatures and foliage are hugely dependent on specific dates in fall and specific locations. Japan runs from north to south along a wide range of latitudes, elevations, and climates. “Fall” can range from hot and humid to snowy depending one when and where you’re talking about.
>Does Haneda, or the various luggage porter services, offer long term (~1 week) luggage storage? Ideally we would have 2 sets of baggage, a northern one for Hokkaido and a Southern one for Tokyo, Kyoto, and Okinawa
Yes, but I wouldn’t do Okinawa or Hokkaido on a first trip. There’s way too much to see on Honshu alone.
>Would it be worth it to spend more time on Hokkaido, specifically to go to Shiretoko? If we did that we’d have to nix Okinawa and probably shorten the Tokyo and Kyoto segments
Again, I would skip Hokkaido entirely unless you have very good, specific reasons for going. And if you did do Hokkaido, I would probably do something like 1 week Kanto, 1 week Kansai, 1 week Hokkaido and nothing else.
>Do Japanese rental agencies allow you to pick up a car somewhere and drop it off somewhere else? Could we pick up in Asahikawa and drop off in Sapporo or Hakodate?
Yes, for a (possibly high) price.
>For those who have done Hokkaido in the fall, how cold is it? When were were in Yellowstone in September last year it snowed several inches and got into the -10 Cs – it seems like Daisetsuzan has a somewhat similar climate?
The specific time makes a massive difference. Use Google to find an almanac.
>For people that have been to Sendai/ Tohoku region, do you think it is worthwhile? There’s something that appeals to me about the train trip from Hakodate to Tokyo (plus I want to see Geibikei Gorge and Mitsushima Bay), but doing so adds 3 days vs just flying back to Tokyo out of Asahikawa
I wouldn’t say that it’s not worthwhile, but the issue you’re going to have is that you’re rushing everything to fit as much in as possible. Seriously–pick like 3 regions at most.
>Referencing question (3), is it true you can’t see much of the country from the Shinkansen?
Yes. If you want to see the country, stop trying to do the entire thing in 3 weeks. Pick a few places and give yourself time to actually explore them. For first time visitors, I strongly recommend at least a week each in Kanto and Kansai. If you want to see the country by rail, look into some of the scenic express trains like the Hida Wide View on the Takayama line or the Inaho on the Uetsu line, as well as numerous local trains through the countryside. The Shinkansen are very lackluster when it comes to views.
>How is Nikko for the wilderness lover once you get past the major shrines? If we really wanted to get out and hike and enjoy nature, is spending several days in Nikko a good bet and just skipping Hokkaido altogether?
Nikko National Park is gorgeous, but you really do need a car if you’re planning to do it properly. And yes, I would definitely skip Hokkaido altogether on a first trip. Central Honshu has loads of nature if that’s what you’re looking for.
>I would like to visit a traditional ryokan in some of the less touristy areas, but my partner has a tattoo, will that be a bigger problem outside of where the tourists usually hit?
For a ryokan it should be fine. It’s the public baths and onsen (which are often attached to ryokan) where it can be a problem. And the definition of ryokan kind of implies that they are in touristy areas. Granted, there are may areas less traveled by foreign tourists, but ryokan exist to cater to pleasure travelers.
13 locations in 21 days, including transit. Gooooood luck!