It's been a few weeks since I've decided to go to Japan (first time) and I've been refining my itinerary some and wanted some thoughts and help on whether all this is doable as well as if we could include anything. For context – we're both 30 years old, and are fit enough to walk around all day as needed. We're more than happy seeing the major sites and dealing with other tourists and obviously want to get in as many uniquely Japan experiences as possible. Time frame is Oct 16-Oct 30th.
I'm planning to use the below for the main highlights of our trips while trying to leave a lot of room built in to explore and take it easy. Aside from maybe a few days where we may need it, I don't want to confine myself to strict itinerary, so using this more of a framework. But it feels pretty standard when I compare to a lot of other itinerary checks here.
| Day | Location | Plans | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tokyo->Osaka | Arrive in Tokyo ~1:35pm after 14hr nonstop flight. Take the Shinkansen to Osaka. Easy evening, get dinner nearby hotel | |
| 2 | Osaka | Morning – Osaka castle, Afternoon – Kuromon Ichiba market, Evening – Dotonbori | |
| 3 | Osaka | Morning – Aquarium, Afternoon – Shinsekai/Flexible explore, Evening – Transfer to Kyoto | Transfer bags to Kyoto hotel early this day or maybe even previous, survive with a backpack |
| 4 | Kyoto | Morning – Fushimi Inari, Afternoon – teamLab Biovortex | Looking for more to do in the evening here. Any suggestions? |
| 5 | Kyoto | Morning – Kiyomizu-dera + Sannenzaka/Ninenzaka, Afternoon – Maruyama/wandering, Evening – Gion area for dinner | |
| 6 | Nara | Nara day trip from Kyoto. Deer park, Kasugatasiha Shrine, Todai-ji. Back to Kyoto in the evening for dinner | |
| 7 | Kyoto | Morning – Arashiyama Forest + Tenryu-ji, Saihoji Temple | Looking for things to do in the afternoon on this day. Any suggestions? |
| 8 | Kyoto -> Hakone | Leave as early as possible for Hakone, Hakone loop, relax at ryokan in the evening | |
| 9 | Hakone -> Tokyo | Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden, explore Kabukicho, Tokyo Metro Govt Building | |
| 10 | Tokyo | Morning/Afternoon – Sensoji Temple + surrounding area/Asakusa, Afternoon/Evening – Akihabara to explore | |
| 11 | Nikko | Nikko day trip. Toshogu, Kegon waterfall, Chuzen-hi Temple | |
| 12 | Tokyo | Morning/Afternoon – Harry Potter Studio Tour, Afternoon/Evening – Undecided | Still trying to identify activities for later on in this day |
| 13 | Tokyo | Morning – Meiji Jingu, Yoyogi Park, Afternoon – explore Harajuka/Takeshita Street, Evening – Shibuya Crossing+Shibuya Sky | |
| 14 | Tokyo | Free day | Unsure what we want to do here yet. Maybe a shopping day to take some stuff home. Maybe some kind of nice spa/massage thing. Any suggestions? |
| 15 | Tokyo | Get to Haneda airport nice and early for ~6:00pm flight. Relax and explore the airport |
Questions:
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Wondering if it would just make more sense to make Day 2/3 day trips to Osaka and instead base in Kyoto? Nothing in Osaka really requires early mornings, but it seems like late nights in Osaka are good and fun. I've seen that trains don't run very late so not sure if an evening in Dotonbori would need to be cut short just to make it back to Kyoto?
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Does any of this seem too unrealistic? I think it's on the lighter side if anything.
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Any must see places that would make sense along our route?
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Best place to stay in Osaka/Kyoto/Tokyo? So far my ideas are Namba/Shinsaibaishi for Osaka, Kawaramachi for Kyoto, and Shinjuku for Tokyo.
Thanks in advance!
by -nugz