JJapan Trips

Golden route review

  • May 19, 2026

We did the classic golden route as a couple travelling with our toddler:
Tokyo (with a day trip to Lake Kawaguchiko) → Hakone → Kyoto → Osaka.
Here’s my honest review and what stood out to us:
📍 TOKYO (5 nights)
The observatory at the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building is so underrated. It’s free and the views are fantastic.

Tokyo Tower honestly reminded me of a mobile tower 😅 and felt underwhelming.

Asakusa and Sensō-ji Temple were not particularly awe-inspiring for me personally, but still something you shouldn’t skip while in Tokyo.

Harajuku was great — lovely cafés, restaurants, and shopping.

teamLab Planets was genuinely fun and immersive.

The depachikas (department store food basements) in Ginza are AMAZING. I loved wandering through all the food aisles. There’s usually nowhere to sit and eat though — better to take your food to the terrace.

Akihabara was nice, but I think it would’ve been more enjoyable if we were anime enthusiasts or travelling without a toddler and could spend time in the arcades.

Shibuya was surprisingly underwhelming for me. Shibuya Sky felt overhyped — maybe it’s better after sunset (we went around 5 pm). Even the Shibuya Crossing just felt… normal?

We rented a car and drove to the Shibazakura Festival, and THIS was one of the highlights of the trip. Absolutely incredible Fuji views. Online reviews warned about huge crowds, but we didn’t experience that at all. Ironically, Sensō-ji and Fushimi Inari were far more crowded. Lake Kawaguchiko and Yamanaka were beautiful too. Renting a car here was 100% worth it.

📍 HAKONE
Hakone was the perfect break from the crowds. We stayed one night and had stunning Mount Fuji views directly from our room. The hot springs and lake were picturesque, and honestly one of our favourite memories was simply sitting by the lake and relaxing.

📍 KYOTO
Renting a car in Kyoto was another excellent decision. We had so much more energy to explore, and parking was surprisingly easy everywhere.

Yasaka Shrine and the Shirakawa Canal were absolutely magical at night.

We took the hiking route through the bamboo forest up to the top of Fushimi Inari, then walked back down through the main torii gate path. Since we did it this way, it never felt crowded and the views were beautiful.

Kinkaku-ji was stunning, but I actually loved Ginkaku-ji even more. The moss garden gave it such an otherworldly atmosphere. We also walked the Philosopher’s Path — it was a bit “meh” for us, though I can imagine it being beautiful during cherry blossom season.

Shisendō was peaceful and is an underrated must-visit.

Giō-ji felt underwhelming to me, but I absolutely loved Adashino Nenbutsu-ji.

Ninenzaka in the evening is something special. Absolute must-visit atmosphere.

📍 OSAKA
I LOVED Osaka. The people felt noticeably friendlier and the food was incredible. We only spent one day there and I genuinely regret not staying longer. We visited Dotonbori — yes, crowded, but the vibe was fantastic.

Overall thoughts:
• Renting a car in Fuji/Kyoto made the trip dramatically easier with a toddler.
• The most crowded places for us were actually Sensō-ji and Fushimi Inari.
• Kyoto at night was probably the most magical part of the trip.
• Osaka deserves more time than most itineraries give it
• Tokyo was the most tiring as it involves a lot of walking inside the stations itself

by Intrepid-Gur-9926

8 comments

  1. Shibuya crossing – yeah – I don’t get how this is such a must-see. I was in Shibuya in 2004 and walked past – it was neat – added to the busy atmosphere – but literally glanced and kept walking.

  2. How many days did you spend in Osaka? I’m going in July and planning to allocate Tokyo (3 days) –> Kyoto (2 1/2 days) –> Osaka (2 days) –> Toyko (2 days). Decided to split up Tokyo so we can finish shopping at the end of the trip instead of dragging everything around.

    Do you think spending an extra-day would be worth it for Osaka?

  3. Agreed that Shibuya was not worth the hassle. We enjoyed Fushimi Inari for a little but after the first 5 minutes it lost its luster. There were SO many influencers that the gates were hard to even walk through. So many people stopping for photos or even having a member of the group block the path for that one iconic shot. Kinda sucks that it’s spreading.

  4. Great write up! Totally agree on Ginkaku-ji being underrated, most people rush to Kinkaku-ji and skip it. And Osaka always gets shortchanged on itineraries, one day is never enough 😄

    The Shibazakura tip is genuinely useful for people planning around Fuji, most guides don’t mention it nearly enough

  5. Thanks for the great review. I’m particularly surprised by the suggestion to rent a car in Kyoto. We are traveling there with two small kids (5 and 3), and all the info we got is that driving in Kyoto city is difficult and highly inconvenient.

  7. Kinda funny but we did the same! I thought that was a separate shrine though?

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