Hey guys,
A few weeks ago, I asked for assistance with reviewing my itinerary here, and you were all very helpful and I think I have managed to finalise it properly now.
May I ask for feedback on the below itinerary? I am mainly interested in things I might have overlooked and anything else I should consider adding or removing?
As sources, I have mostly used japan-guide.com, various blog posts, and my first trip to Japan in April this year.
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Context: I am taking my parents to Japan for their first time (and quite likely their last). I have been there once before – in April this year, for about 3 weeks, doing all the major things – but this trip I want to be purely dedicated to them.
Both of my parents are in excellent physical condition, so long walking and mountain hikes are of zero issue. My mother is the person who is more interested in the modern parts of cities, visiting interesting cafes, shopping for fashion, while my father (similarly to me) is more into history. He particularly wants to go up observation decks and to visit historic harbours (and museums). Both of them are very curious about the different culture, people, lifestyles they are going to interact with while there.
This is a resubmission of an earlier post I made, which I think was just too long-winded to give a good overview. I have also included some extra questions I have in some of the bullet points below (I will restate them in a comment under this post).
Thank you again very much for the help!
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Day 1 – Kyoto – Saturday, 6 December [Tokyo-Kyoto shinkansen, Central Kyoto exploration]
- 11:00 Arrival at Haneda Airport
- Shinkansen to Kyoto
- Check in at the hotel and explore central Kyoto
- Nishiki Market and Pontocho for dinner
Day 2 – Kyoto – Sunday, 7 December [Arashiyama, Western Kyoto exploration]
- 09:00 Head towards Arashiyama (30-45 min from the hotel)
- Bamboo forest
- Okochi Sanso villa
- Iwatayama monkey park
- Western Kyoto (various options to choose from)
- Various Buddhist temples (Tenryū-ji, Daikaku-ji, Jōjakkō-ji, Adashino Nenbutsu-ji)
- Shigetsu restaurant for shojin ryori
- Saga-Toriimoto Preserved Street
- Early dinner in the area of Arashiyama/Western Kyoto
Day 3 – Kyoto – Monday, 8 December [Fushimi Inari, tea ceremony]
- 06:15 Head towards Fushimi Inari, aiming to be there for the sunrise
- Higashiyama, Gion, and Maruyama Park
- 14:30 Tea ceremony (booked, private with maiko/geiko surprise), question: would it be a sufficient glimpse into the world of maikos/geikos or are we missing out by not doing it for dinner?
- Free time in the evening
Day 4 – Kyoto – Kobe – Osaka – Tuesday, 9 December [Kobe and Osaka]
- 09:00 Kobe
- Ikuta Shrine (I remember the legend about Empress Jingu)
- Nunobiki Herb Gardens
- Kitano area
- Sake tasting in Nada district
- Modern Kobe (Motomachi and Sannomiya)
- 16:30 Head towards Osaka (optional)
- Dotonbori
- Umeda Sky
- Okonomiyaki
Day 5 – Nara – Wednesday, 10 December [Ryokan experience, only option that made sense to me for the travel route]
- I have a solid itinerary from my last visit – the deer park, Nakatanidou, Kasuga Taisha, Kofuku-Ji and Todai-Ji
- 15:00 Check in at the ryokan and relax there until the next day, it is apparently in a UNESCO forest
Day 6 – Tokyo – Thursday, 11 December [Shibuya and Shinjuku]
- 13:21 Shinkansen to Tokyo, arrival at the hotel at around 16:00
- Shibuya
- Shibuya Sky at 18:00
- Myashita Park – question: is it nice at night in winter?
- Center Gai
- Koen Dori
- Spain Slope
- Hachiko
- I booked SIP at SG Club for some fancy cocktails
- Shinjuku, Golden Gai – not sure how long we will spend there, but my parents are into that kind of stuff
- Memory Lane for dinner (optional)
Day 7 – Tokyo – Friday, 12 December [Imperial Palace, Meiji Jingu, Skytree]
- 09:30 Tour of the Imperial Palace (booked)
- Meiji Jingu
- 15:30 Tokyo Skytree
- Senso-ji at night
- Dinner in Asakusa or Odaiba – question: should we even go to Odaiba at night in December?
Day 8 – Tokyo – Kamakura – Yokohama – Saturday, 13 December (optional, or we stay an extra day in Tokyo)
- 09:30 Kamakura
- Daibutsu
- Tsurugaoka Hachimangū
- Hasedera temple – question: online it says that there are views over Kamakura from there, are they nice at that time of year?
- (Optional) Hiking trails – apparently most are 30-90 minutes long
- 14:30 (or whenever we get to it) Yokohama
- Minato Mirai 21
- Nippon Maru and Yokohama Port Museum (if my father is interested)
- Cup Noodles Museum
- Yokohama Chinatown
Day 9 – Tokyo – Sunday, 14 December
Last day in Japan for my parents – no schedule, likely shopping around Ginza, visiting Tsukiji, and eventually the 47 Ronin festival. Question: Is the festival in Tokyo also good? From what I could find, it is more 'represented' in other parts of the country.
by 1ockstock