Hi there, Im planning to visit Osaka, Kyoto and Nara next March from 18-26 March, hoping to catch some cherry blossoms while I’m there and here’s a rough breakdown of what i’m going to do.
Day 1:
\- Arrival in Osaka, KIX Airport, 8.30am – get IC card (I dont have an Iphone)
\- Travel to hotel, leave luggage at hotel
\- Grab lunch
\- Visit Pokemon Centre
\- Find arcade to play mai mai
\- Visit Ramen Museum
\- Maybe visit Dontonbori
Day 2:
\- Osaka Castle
\- Free and easy after – do some shopping, eat food
\- Send luggage to hotel in Kyoto
Day 3:
\- Check out of hotel
\- Walk around
\- Travel to Nara
\- Stay in Nara
Day 4:
\- Explore Nara
\- Nara Deer Park
\- Travel to Kyoto
\- Check into Kyoto Hotel
Day 5 – 9 In Kyoto
\- Rental kimono
\- Nishiki Market
\- Fushimi Inari Taisha
\- More mai mai
\- Bamboo forest
\- Pokemon Centre
\- Travel to Kansai Airport (Home time)
Questions:
\- is there enough time for me to get from Kyoto to Kansai Airport, if I book my flight at 5pm? Worried about peak hour
\- should i book a JR line from Kyoto to Kansai Airport?
\- should I start my journey in Kyoto and then end in Osaka?
4 comments
Don’t skip on Dotonbori. It was my favorite area in Osaka.
You should try to get to the airport around 2 hours before your flight. It takes about 1.5 hours to get there from Kyoto via train so you would have to leave at around 1.30pm for a 5pm flight
The easiest way to get to Kansai Airport from Kyoto is the Haruka express. You can book a seat for peace of mind but the train usually isn’t very full so you wouldn’t have problem getting an unreserved seat
Personally I prefer doing Kyoto -> Osaka as I tend to do more shopping in Osaka so it makes more sense logistically. But the cities aren’t very far apart so in the grand scheme of things it wouldn’t make much of a difference. Since you may be a little early for cherry blossoms, you should choose the order based on which city you would like to catch the cherry blossoms in (that should be the 2nd city)
Hi!
Agree with u/Chileinsg, about taking the Haruka direct from Kyoto Station to KIX. Harukas are and airport express like the NEX in Tokyo, so have luggage storage on them and are mostly used by people going to the airport vs. people traveling around.
You’re also not really going to hit into peak commuting hours though, since if your flight is at 5, you want to be there at 3, which means leaving Kyoto at 1:30 pm.
Just throwing out there, there are two Pokemon Centers in Osaka. I am unsure if you are talking about the one in Shinsaibashi or the one in Osaka/Umeda. Both can be super crowded, both can have a good selection of merch. If you really like Pokemon, I would recommend going to both, since what is in stock can vary by store and day. My daughter loves Pokemon, so we went to both stores (and Kyoto) last visit.
i honestly dont think you need to spend a night in nara.