Hi everyone!
My husband and I are planning our first trip to Japan in September of this year. We’ve been lurking the sub for the past few weeks in preparation for it, it’s full of great information! We finally have a tentative schedule, and we would really appreciate it if someone could take a quick look, let us know if a day seems too full/too empty. We don’t want to get caught in the minutiae, but our idea is to have a general idea of what to do each day. We grouped things that are close-ish, even though from what we’ve read it’s easy to move around.
For reference, we’re both males in our mid-30s, decently in shape although my husband has asthma.
(Things in italics are things we might go to if we feel like it/have time/aren’t tired of temples yet. Things in bold are the anchor things we’re more interested in doing).
Monday, Day 1 (**Tokyo**)
– Arrival to **Haneda airport**, midday. Pick up things (**Suica Card, JR Pass, Internet**)
– Move to **Tokyo**, maybe walk around at night and have something for diner. Rest from trip.
Tuesday, Day 2 (**Tokyo – Shibuya**)
– *Meiji Jingu, Yoyogi Park*
– **Harajuku, Shibuya, stores** (Nintendo Tokyo, Don Quijote, etc.)
Wednesday, Day 3 (**Tokyo – Akihabara**)
– *Shinobazu no Ike Pond*
– **Akihabara**, anime stores, arcades, videogames
Thursday, Day 4 (**Tokyo – Taito, Sumida**)
– *Senso-ji, Asakusa*
– **Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo Solamachi mall**, *Kirby Café, Tokyo Skytree*
Friday, Day 5 (**Tokyo – Shinjuku**)
– **Ghibli museum** (dependent on getting tickets this day), *Inokashira Park*
– *Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden*, **Shinjuku Ni-Chome (gay area, bars, shops)**
– Dinner in **Omoide Yokosho**
Saturday, Day 6 (**Tokyo – Free day**)
– Different options for this day… maybe a mix-and-match of things, or places we want to go back, or a resting day.
– *Nikko day trip*
– *Imperial Palace*
– *National Art Center, Tokyo Tower, Roppongi Hills*
– *Kabuki-za* (Kabuki theater)
– *Tsukiji Outer Market*
Sunday, Day 7 (**Tokyo -> Hakone**)
– Leave Tokyo in the morning, arrive at **Hakone**
– **Onsen**, *Amazake Chaya*, *Mt. Hakone*
– Spend night in **ryokan**
Monday, Day 8 (**Hakone -> Kyoto**)
– *Old Tōkaidō Road Ancient Cedar Avenue*
– *Amazake Chaya* (tea house)
– Leave in the afternoon to **Kyoto**
Tuesday, Day 9 (**Kyoto**)
– **Gion district**: *Maruyama Park*, *Nishiki Market*, *Samurai and Ninja museum*
– Dinner in **Pontocho** or *Shimomaruyacho*
Wednesday, Day 10 (**Kyoto**)
– **Arashiyama Bamboo Grove**, *Monkey Park*
– *Tenryu-ji*, **Kinkakuji**
– Repeat of *Nishiki Market*, *Pontocho* or *Shimomaruyacho* from yesterday.
Thursday, Day 11 (**Kyoto**)
– **Fushimi Inari Pathway**
– **Kiyomizu-dera**
– **Nineizaka, Sanneizaka**
Friday, Day 12 (**Kyoto -> Osaka**)
– **Temple market**
– *Philosopher’s Path*, **Ginkakuji (Jisho-ji)**
– Move to *Osaka* in the afternoon
– *Osaka castle* (from outside)
– Dinner in **Shinsekai**, see *Tsūtenkaku*, visit arcades
Saturday, Day 13 (**Osaka**)
– **Nara park**
– *Kofuku-ji*, *Todai-ji*
– **Nakatanidou** (mochi store), **Higashimuki Shopping Street**
– Walk around and have diner in **Dotonbori**
Sunday, Day 14 (**Osaka**)
– **Danjiri Matsuri**
– Maybe go at night again at *Dotonbori*
Monday, Day 15 (**Osaka -> Himeji -> Hiroshima**)
– Leave Osaka, stop in **Himeji Castle**
– Leave Himeji, continue to **Hiroshima**
– **Atomic Bomb Dome**, **Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum**
– Try a Hiroshima-style *okonomiyaki*
Tuesday, Day 16 (**Hiroshima -> Osaka**)
– **Itsukushima island**: *Itsukushima Jinja*, *Miyajima*, *Momijidani Park*
– Go back to *Osaka* in the afternoon
Wednesday, Day 17 (**Osaka**)
– **Universal Studios Japan**
Thursday, Day 18 (**Osaka -> Tokyo** Free day)
– Leave early to **Tokyo**
– Free day, depending how we feel we might do different things:
– Maybe stop in *Kamakura*: *Kotoku-in, Kamakura Hasedera, Komachi-dori Street, Enoshima island*
– *TeamLab Planets* (although I guess this cannot be on a free day, since we have to buy the ticket beforehand).
– Maybe stay at *capsule hotel*, just for the experience?
Friday, Day 19 (**Tokyo**)
– Last minute shopping
– Leave in the afternoon to **Haneda airport**
What does everyone think, is it too heavy, does it sound about right? We appreciate the comments, they’re much appreciated!
3 comments
Looks good to me. Not too rushed and covering a lot of great things to do and see.
Would consider Himeji as a day trip from Osaka or Kyoto as its ~30 mins away and replace it with a stop over at Okayama for the garden and castle. Might be overkill on castle’s but the garden is one of the top 3 in Japan. Could do Himeji on way back but I really liked Miyajima so would not want to rush that.
Move one of your Tokyo start days to the end? Two half days before departure are better than none but I really enjoy winding down in Tokyo before departure.
Seems very reasonable – I think days 3+4 could be combined though, as Akihabara, Ueno, and Asakusa are all decently close. While a whole day in Akihabara is certainly possible (if you’re a big enough nerd) – it’s mostly a shopping district and if you’re buying a heap of figures or whatever that’s probably better done at the end of the trip.
How’s the weather in September though? I keep reading mixed info about it. Some say it’s peak typhoon season that it rains very often. Others say it’s nice and sunny.