Hey everyone,
I am planning a 20-day trip to Japan for a group of 6 friends in our mid-20s, all coming from Brazil. We are fairly budget-conscious, so our plan is to heavily rely on Konbini food for most meals and share rooms or AirBnBs, but we are totally down to spend on main experiences like theme parks, unique bars, and the Mt. Fuji climb. We are planning for 2027.
I actually visited Japan once in July 2023, but for everyone else in the group, it will be their first time. Since we live in Brazil, we are used to intense heat and vertical humidity, so summer weather itself doesn't really scare us. However, I’ve been reading a lot of warnings about August being the peak of typhoon season and transit disruptions. When I went in July, I didn't catch a single drop of rain, so I lack real experience on how volatile late August can get. One of our main goals is to climb Mt. Fuji, which obviously dictates our seasonal window, and we already know about the logistics and the need for early mountain hut reservations.
So here our early planning for each day, and any sugestions are welcome:
Day 1: Landing, check into our hotel/AirBnB around Shinjuku or Ueno, grab some pocket Wi-Fi, and do a casual walk around the area to fight jet lag.
Day 2: Go early to Shibuya and spend the day there as there are many stores we want to visit, as the Pokemon Center, JUMP Shop, 2 One Piece stores, beside the classics Mega Donki and Shibuya 109. At night, try to get a reservation (weeks before) to Shibuya Sky and dinner at Shibuya Yokocho.
Day 3: Morning Shinjuku Central, then head to Suga Shrine for the Your Name stairs, make a quick stop around Suidobashi to check out Chainsaw Man and Reze Arc real-life locations like Cafe L, and then spend the afternoon and evening exploring Akihabara.
Day 4: Visit Senso-ji in Asakusa in the morning, get a view of the Skytree by the Sumida River, head to Ueno Park, and then spend the afternoon at Ikebukuro’s Sunshine City for the Pokémon Center and other stores, and end the night at the Muscle Girl Bar or some other bar of the genre. (maybe too packed of a day?)
Day 5: Tokyo DisneySea (is it really worth the hype? I've seen plenty of diverging opinions)
Day 6: day trip to Kamakura to see the Great Buddha and Hasedera, then ride the Enoden train to Enoshima Island to explore the Sea Candle and caves. Also going to visit plenty of Bunny Girl anime spots around Kamakura/Enoshima. At night, we return to Tokyo and forward our main luggage straight to Kyoto via Takkyubin, packing only light backpacks for the next few days.
Day 7: Take a morning highway bus from Shinjuku to Kawaguchiko and spend the day at Fuji-Q Highland, staying at a guesthouse nearby.
Day 8: Here we split the group, between those who are going to clim and those who aren't. The climbers will take the bus to Fuji 5th Station, hike the Fujinomiya Trail (the shortest and a bit less crowded than Yoshida), and stay at a pre-booked mountain hut. The non-climbers will take a local bus to Hakone via Gotemba and spend the day there, visit lake Ashi and the shrine, and Hakone Ropeway.
Day 9: climbers wake up at 2:00 AM for the summit sunrise, descend to the 5th station, and take the transit connections to meet the non-climbers at Odawara Station, while the non-climbers spend their morning on the Onsen or Lake Ashi/Ropeway if they didn't manage to go on day 9 (I'm on the climbers group, not so sure what the others will want). Once reunited at Odawara in the late afternoon, we all catch the Shinkansen straight to Kyoto and check into our hostel.
Day 10: a recovery day where we sleep in late and just walk around Kyoto on the surroundings of where we are staying, maybe explore Gion, Sannenzaka, and try street food at Nishiki Market.
Day 11: hit Arashiyama Bamboo Grove and the Monkey Park in the early morning, and Kinkaku-ji and Nijo Castle in the afternoon, followed by dinner along Pontocho Alley. (another heavy packed day? Not really sure if we want to visit Kinkaku-ji)
Day 12: Fushimi Inari early in the morning to beat the crowds, followed by Kiyomizu-dera and Sannenzaka & Ninenzaka streets, ending the day with Pokemon Center Kyoto, explore the city area and dinner around Pontocho Alley
Day 13: check out of Kyoto, take a train to Nara, leave our bags in lockers, and spend the day with the deer at Nara Park and Todai-ji. After a local lunch (a restaurant I went in 2023 and want to go again) explore Sanjo-Dori Street for the stores, gashapons and animal cafés (I really liked this street when went there too), then head to Osaka to check into an AirBnB/hotel
Day 14: In he morning we do some shopping around Shinsaibashi and Den Den Town, stopping by the Mega Donki, and explore Shinsekai and Dotonbori in the afternoon/evening. Try to get a Pachinko experience too
Day 15: Universal Studios Japan
Day 16: Morning at Kaiyukan Aquarium Ferris Wheel, then head either to Osaka's Castle or Namba Yasaka Shrine before heading ending the day again in Dotonbori and surroundings (Other option would be in the afternoon go to Umeda and the Sky building, still debating that). At night, we forward our main luggage directly back to Tokyo and pack light backpacks again.
Day 17: we take the Thunderbird and Shinkansen combo to Kanazawa, spend the afternoon at Omicho Market, Kanazawa Castle, Kenroku-en Garden, and the Higashi Chaya and Nagamachi Samurai district, staying there for one night.
Day 18: we take the Shinkansen to Nagano to visit the Jigokudani Monkey Park in the morning/noon, then head down to Kami-Suwa station to catch the sunset over Lake Suwa at Tateishi Park for the Your Name view. Afterward, we take the Azusa express train straight back to Shinjuku. (Not sure if it is possible to do that in one day, maybe stay one day at the Jigokudani area, see the Kanaguya Ryokan Hotel (that possibly inspired the Spirited Away Bathhouse) and visit Zenko-ji shrine, passing by Suwa Lake in the next day while heading to Tokyp)
Days 19 and 20: left open in Tokyo for last-minute shopping and visits, a final group farewell dinner, and heading back to the airport.
Given this setup, I have a few specific more questions (besides what I put in the middle of the itinerary):
First, regarding the weather, how common are full trail closures on Mt. Fuji during the last two weeks of the month? If a typhoon hits and closes the trail, our backup plan is to send everyone straight to Hakone, but do typhoons usually shut down the Hakone Ropeway, boats, and local buses as well? I'm worried our backup plan might get ruined too. Also, for those with experience to this part, do you recomend July or August?
Second, is our Day 9 plan too painful for the climbers? Descending Fuji, traveling to Odawara, and riding the Shinkansen to Kyoto on the same evening sounds like a harsh. Should we alter the plan to book a hotel in Hakone for that night so the climbers can actually use an Onsen to recover, moving the Kyoto transit to Day 10 morning?
Third, is the Day 18 Nagano and Lake Suwa loop doable via public transit? Geographically, the monkeys are in the north and the lake is in the south.
Finally, for a group of first-timers, does this itinerary feel rewarding and well-balanced, or are we trying to pack way too much into a schedule? pecially for days 4, 11, 16
Anywas, what do you think about this itinerary? As mentioned above, any sugestions and/or questions are welcome
by JustAnotherGuy6942