Very long post incoming! Tried not to embellish too much and stick to the main points of our trip.
My partner (28M) and I (28F) were originally planning on going to Japan in 2020, but due to Covid-19 that trip was postponed to June-July of 2025. Since we were first timers, we decided to do the typical big 3 cities and sprinkle in some day trips or one-night stays. We didn't pack our days full of activities, as so to be able to experience everything to the fullest.
Even though it was supposed to be rainy season, we only experienced 3 days of rain.
Looking back I am very happy with our itinerary. Two things I would have done differently:
– doing Osaka as a day trip (for 1 or 2 days) from Kyoto. We loved Kyoto and were not as big of fans of Osaka..
– Secondly, BIG MISTAKE: we brought duffel backpacks. Good for stuffing full, but A NIGHTMARE to carry from station to station in 30-35 degree heat, especially when you're changing hotels often. Definitely doing a rolling one next time!
Day 1 (Sunday): Arrival at Narita
We landed in (and left from) Narita because it was cheaper than Haneda. We flew with Thai Airways which was perfect. We bought a physical Welcome Suica card at the station and each put 10.000 yen on it. First issue when we arrived: my luggage got lost (because of some delays in our layover in Bangkok). The staff in Narita was AMAZING: they wrote down all of our information. Everything was VERY organized and under control, I honestly never experienced something like it. In the end, my luggage was delivered to our hotel on Tuesday, two days after our arrival.
We stayed in an AirBnb by Cask Village in Itabashi for 7 nights. It was wonderful: beautiful and spacious room, close to two metro stations, about a 30min ride to any major attractions or districts, kitchen and washer included!
Day 2 (Monday): Senso-ji temple, Asakusa, Sumida Aquarium and Tokyo Skytree
First thing in de morning was Senso-ji temple. Was kind of blown away by the amount of people. We roamed around Asakusa and then went to Tokyo Skytree. My partner wanted to wait until just before sunset to enter Tokyo Skytree, and because the aquarium was in the same building we decided to got. Honestly, SUCH a beautiful experience! It wasn't on our itinerary but I'd recommend it to anyone! Afterwards we went to Tokyo Skytree and saw mount Fuji!
Day 3 (Tuesday): Meji Shrine, Inner Garden and Harajuku
Second day of 30 degree heat! Meji shrine felt so much more serene and calm than Sensoji, and we even witnessed a wedding! Afterwards we went to Harajuku and randomly booked a massage (at Arona Spa), because I'm prone to serious headaches and you know, why not! It was amazing being in this very calm space in the middle of such a big city. After that we explored Harajuku and Shibuya, tried out a Purikura photomachine. The small side streets of Shibuya are SO cozy to roam through!! It's like you're in a completely different city. One of my favorite memories of the trip. In the evening we tried out Kura (conveyor belt sushi). The food was okay, but it was cool to experience.
Day 4 (Wednesday): Tokyo DisneySea
Fourth day was completely dedicated to Tokyo DisneySea. Arrived there at around 8h45 (about 15 minutes before the park opens) and we were in line for about 45 minutes before we entered the park. Luckily we brought an umbrella to protect ourselves from the blazing sun.
Tokyo DisneySea is beautiful! It didn't feel 100% like Disney to me, but we're not huge disney fanatics anyway, so we just enjoyed the beauty of the park. Lines were brutal, so we bought Premier Access about 4 times. It's not cheap, but so worth it. We probably saved around 4h by not having to stand in line. We paid around 7500 yen each (on top of entrance ticket) for PA.
Must do's: try all the churro flavors, they're so good + definitely try the gyoza! Soaring is a beautiful ride and Rapunzel is beautifully made – whether you're a big fan or not. The Toy Story ride was so much fun!
Day 5 (Thursday): Tsukiji market & exploring Ginza
Tsukiji market was very busy, but it was cool to see all the fish vendors. After lunch we went to explore Ginza and Ginza six. If you're into books (any kind): the Tsutuya Books store inside Ginza Six is heaven. We went up to the top floor of the mall and you get a nice view of Tokyo from there. Tried to go to the Imperial Palace but was closed already. This is where we learnt that gardens and such close quite early in Japan (around 16h mostly).
Day 6 (Friday): Ghibli Museum & Akihabara
By some stroke of luck we managed to get tickets for the Ghibli museum. If you're a Ghibli fan, obviously try to get tickets – it's amazing!!! The merch store was slightly disappointing though. Afterwards we explored the neighborhood and there's so many cute little cafes and stores!!
Afternoon was Akihabara and I love anime/figures/gaming so I loved it there! We stayed until the evening and it was very cool to see Akihabara by nighttime. Bought a couple of figures in Traders bc I honestly didn't know where the best deals were. I'm pretty sure I got an OK deal on both figures (they weren't anything major). Went to a Don Quijote for about 10 minutes and I never want to go inside one again. In my experience: everything you can get at a Don Quijote, you can get at any other pharmacy/souvenir shop/sweet shop.
Day 7 (Saturday): Shinjuku, more Shibuya and teamLab Planets
Started with Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden. Very peaceful! Next up was Shibuya crossing (didn't do it last time) and some second hand shops.
In the afternoon we take the train to Odaiba for our evening teamlab planets visit. This was my partner's idea and I thought it would be a tourist trap, but it felt so magical! The barefoot part was my favorite. I would definitely recommend it.
Day 8 (Sunday): Gotokuji, Shimokitazawa and train to Hakone
One of my favorite days in Tokyo. Gotokuji was one of my favorite temples: not too busy, very cute and cute backstory/history as well. We went in the early morning so maybe that's why the crowds were okay. We went to Shimokitazawa afterwards. Very trendy-feeling neighborhood while cozy at the same time. Amazing if you like thrifting! Wish we could've spent more time there, but had to catch a train to Hakone.
We stayed in Hakone Kowakien Mikawaya Ryokan – our splurge of the trip. Had to book a room with private onsen, since I have quite a lot of tattoos on my arm. The staff was happy to provide a fabric sleeve if I wished to enter the public onsen. Gorgeous hotel, with a mini museum inside, spacious rooms, and a busstop close by.
Day 9 (Monday): Hakone Ropeway
Did the standard ropeway and boat over the lake. It was very beautiful. Too cloudy to spot mount Fuji unfortunately. We hiked some more in Hakone and in the evening took the train to Kyoto, where we stayed in Crush On hotel. Only good things to say: close to everything – we could do most of our trips by foot. spacious room with tatami mats and paper sliding doors, and most of all: a really big bathroom!
Day 10 (Tuesday): Kiyomizu dera & Kodai-ji
Can't speak enough on how much we loved Kyoto. Very different vibe from Tokyo. Aside from Gion that was very very busy, we could roam the streets and it was so calm and peaceful. Temple was gorgeous, even though it was packed. We ate lunch in Izuju Sushi and can't recommend them enough! We explored some more and went to Kodai-ji and it started pouring right as we entered (first rain of this trap we've had during the day). The grounds were almost deserted due to the rain and the rain made it even more special. Drank a green tea with a sweet in the tea house of the temple – never felt so peacful in my life – really recommend it.
Day 11 (Wednesday): Nishiki market, Teramachi Street & Fushimi Inari-Taisha shrine
Ate breakfast in Kanno Coffee, really cute little coffee bar. Went to Nishiki to go knife hunting, and roamed around Teramachi and hit up some thrift shops. I was blown away by the sheer volume of thrift stores! Really enjoyed it. Went to a Pokemon Center as well.
An hour before sunset (at around 18h30 PM) we went to Fushimi Inari Taisha shrine, to try and avoid the crowds. None of the crowds you see on social media! We were able to snap lots of pictures with almost nobody in the background 🙂 Saw the sunset over Kyoto at the first viewpont. We didn't go all the way up because it was getting quite dark. It's quite a special feeling to explore the shrine at nighttime.
Day 12 (Thursday): Nishiki market part 2 and Imperial Palace
Went back for one of the knives my partner saw the day before. Bought beautiful woodblock prints in a cute little shop in Teramachi and drank coffee/matcha in a bar with an inner garden.
Afterwards went to the Imperial Palace – so cool! The gardens are stunning.
In the evening we go to Pontocho to explore all the restaurants but went out a little too late (at around 9PM), so a lot of restaurants weren't letting in any new customers for food.
Day 13 (Friday): hike from Kurama to Kibune
One of our favorite parts of the trip! The hike uphill is a bit challenging, but very much worth it! The rest of the hike was very doable. When arriving at Kibune we saw that it was possible to eat on platforms on top of the river/little waterfalls, but unfortunately these had to be booked in advance, and could only be booked by hotel staff. Luckily, we found a little coffee bar that also offered spots on these platforms!
At night we took the train to Osaka. Arrived at a station in an (apparently) very poor neighborhood. We saw people smoking, puking on the street and being generally very loud. This might have cast a bit of a shadow over our first and general impression of Osaka.
Day 14 (Saturday): Dotonbori
Got tattooed (booked in advance) at Good Times Ink. Still one of my favorite activities. Afterwards we explored Dotonbori. Felt more crowded than Tokyo and we weren't the biggest fans honestly.
Day 15 (Sunday): Osaka Castle
Osaka Castle is beautiful from the outside, but very modern inside. It's also not very big. The crowds were crazy. The history was very interesting, but too many people to be enjoyable.
Afternoon: half-day trip to Nara. This was a spur of the moment idea, since it wasn't on our itinerary, but we loved it! Definitely recommend it as a day trip out of Osaka. Lots of the deer snacks were sold out already because it was after midday.
Day 16 (Monday): travel to Nagiso and hike to Magome
Also one of our favorite days of our trip! The trip from Osaka was horrible (mostly our own fault): lots of trains, wrong trains were booked, schedules were misread,…
Had some drinks in the cutest little (and only) coffee/breakfast bar and took the bus to the starting point of the hike. It was absolutely beautiful, and not crowded with tourists at all. If you don't mind going out of your way, definitely visit Kiso Valley!!!
Day 17 – 18 – 19: travel from Nagiso to Kamakura and 3 nights in Kamakura
We decided to unwind the last couple of days from our trip and hadn't really planned anything specific in Kamakura. We explored, ate food, did some shopping, got a custom ring engraved at Glanta to commemorate our trip, and sat by the beach (with my tattoos covered up). It was peaceful and wonderful.
We visited the Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine – beautiful (we saw lots of animals: butterflies, birds,…), Enoshima, Kotoku-in.
Day 20: travel back home to Belgium.
Had breakfast in GP Coffee Roasters, took the train to Narita and had some wonderful sushi at the airport. After that it was a flight with layover in Bangkok and back to Brussels.
by lapjex