Hello,

After about 3 months of planning, I've finally settled on an itinerary draft that I'm comfortable with. I've mainly relied on other reddit posts, as well as substack to put this together. Some of our food interests are very niche, so I've resorted to google searches when reddit/substack were not helpful. I've run this draft through friends and family for sanity checks, but unfortunately I don't have any acquaintances who have traveled to Japan so I'd really appreciate some input. Thank you in advance for taking the time to read through!

Note: Using itinerary format from r/jwazza19 for readability.

Key information:

• First time in Japan
• 4 travelers (2 x mid-20s, 2 x mid-50s). My parents will likely be opting out from some of the food-focused detours to preserve energy.
• Main interest = Food. My husband and I are both professionally trained chefs. Generally, when we travel 50% of our schedule is food-focused and 50% of our schedule aims to explore more touristy stops.
• Listing breakfast/lunch/dinner for places we definitely want to try, still missing some restaurants for a few of the days. Generally capping special meals at ¥8,000 per person but open to one extra special meal exceeding the cap.
• I've struggled the most with days 11/12, they feel all over the place but due to the hours/opening days of the experiences, I'm not able to re-arrange or allocate the time differently.

Questions I'd like answered:

• Do any of the days seem overly ambitious?
• Are there any key spots we are missing?
• Are there any key food experiences we are mising?
• Are there any restaurants we must absolutely go to? Still looking for spots to try: soba, tempura, sushi.
• For detours to Sanda/Nishio/Chiyokawa, how complicated will it be to find a taxi? These stops require minimum 30 minute walks from JR station without a car.
• I realize our Kanazawa stop will occur during Hyakumangoku Matsuri. I'm wondering if Omicho Market and local shops will open as normal, or if closures are expected due to the festival to determine if we should re-arrange this stop.
• Currently planning to purchase JR west all area pass for June 2-8, then separate tickets for remainder of travel. If another pass makes sense for the remainder of the trip please feel free to suggest it.

2–3 June – Hiroshima (1 night)

Day 1 (2 June – Arrival)

• Morning: Land → Check-in
• Lunch: Okonomiyaki (Tried to find a spot near Hiroshima station for lunch, but most spots seem to close on Tuesday so struggling to decide where)
• Afternoon: Miyajima (Omotesando Shopping Street, Itsukushima Shrine)
• Dinner: Mame-Tanuki
• Evening: Sunset at Floating Torii Gate → Hiroshima

3-6 June – Osaka (3 nights)

Day 2 (3 June – Hiroshima → Himeji → Osaka)

• Early Morning: Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum (7:30 am)
• Morning: Atomic bomb dome.
• Afternoon: → Himeji (Himeji Castle)
• Evening: → Osaka
• Dinner: Takashimaya

Day 3 (4 June – Osaka)

• Day: Universal Studios
• Dinner: Onigiri Ryu

Day 4 (5 June – Osaka→ Sanda →Osaka)

• Morning: → Sanda (Pâtissier Es Koyama, Rozilla, co. & m.)
• Afternoon: → Osaka (Namba Yasaka Jinja, Kuromon Market)
• Evening: Dotonbori
• Dinner: Kushiage Kenkushi

6-7 June – Kanazawa (1 night)

Day 5 (6 June – Osaka→ Kanazawa)

• Morning: → Kanazawa (Omicho market)
• Afternoon: Higashi Chaya District, (likely) Hyakumangoku Matsuri Parade
• Dinner: Iwashigumi

7-8 June – Ryokan (1 night)

Day 6 (7 June – Kanazawa→ Ryokan)

• Early Morning: Kenrokuen Garden (7 am)
• Morning: Nomura Residence, Nagamachi Samurai District, Myoryujii Tour
• Afternoon: → Ryokan (considering Kissho Yamanaka, Matsusaki, Tachibana Shikitei based on +3.50 tabelog ratings)

8-11 June – Kyoto (3 nights)

Day 7 (8 June – Ryokan→ Kyoto)

• Afternoon: → Kyoto (Nishiki Market)
• Evening: Kyoto Localized Free Night Walking Tour
• Dinner: Sumiya Sosai Toriya Hitomi

Day 8 (9 June – Kyoto)

• Early Morning: Kiyomizudera Temple
• Morning: Sanenzake and Ninenzaka
• Experience: Okashi Sodoh (dessert tasting)
• Afternoon: Kodai-ji Temple, Nijo Castle

Day 9 (10 June – Kyoto)

• Early Morning: Arashiyama Bamboo Grove
• Morning: Tenryu-ji Temple
• Lunch: Kintame
• Afternoon: Kinkaku-ji, Ryoan-ji
• Dinner: Sukemasa Takatsuji

11-13 June – Nagoya (2 nights)

**Using Nagoya as a base since it's central to the stops we are making on these days**

Day 10 (11 June – Kyoto→ Chiyokawa→ Kyoto → Nagoya)

• Breakfast: Hyotei
• Morning: Nazen-ji Temple
• Afternoon: → Chiyokawa (Natural Whetstone and Hone Museum) → Kyoto
• Evening: Fushimi Inari, Lopia Kyoto Yodobashi Store → Nagoya

Day 11 (12 June – Nagoya → Nishio → Gifu → Nagoya)

• Early Morning: → Nishio
• Morning: Tea farm + factory tour
• Lunch: Uotora
• Afternoon: → Gifu (Yamakawa Jozo Tamari Tour, Nagara River Department Store)
• Dinner: Kawaramachi Izumiya
• Evening: Ukai Shared-Ride Boat → Nagoya

13-19 June – Tokyo (6 nights)

Day 12 (13 June – Nagoya)

• Early Morning: → Gifu
• Morning: Shoho-ji Temple, Gifu Castle
• Afternoon: Daruma Masamune Sake Brewery Tour → Okazaki (Maruya Hatcho Miso Factory Tour)
• Evening: → Tokyo
• Dinner: Ekibenya Matsuri

Day 13 (14 June – Tokyo)

• Morning: Imperial Palace East Garden
• Afternoon: Tokyo National Museum
• Dinner: Yakiniku Jambo Hanare
• Evening: Kanda Myojin Shrine

Day 14 (15 June – Tokyo)

• Early Morning: Toyosu Market Tour
• Morning: Tsujiki Market
• Afternoon: Ginza (specially interested in visiting the antenna shops from other prefectures)
• Experience: Koffee Mameya Kakeru

Day 15 (16 June – Tokyo)

• Breakfast: Katsuo Shokudo
• Morning: Meiji Jingu, Tokyo Metropolitan Observatory
• Afternoon: Shinjuku Gyoen, Shibuya Scramble Crossing, Hakko Department
• Dinner: Butagumi

Day 16 (17 June – Tokyo)

• Day: Disney Sea

Day 17 (18 June – Tokyo)

• Morning: Asakusa Free Walking Tour
• Afternoon: Kappabashi
• Evening: Azabudai Hills Market, TeamLab Borderless

Day 18 (19 June – Departure)

• Morning: Departure