You’ve all been really helpful with my past trips, but this one is a bit tricky and I’d appreciate any advice you can share.
We’re planning our fourth trip to Japan and want to try something new. This time, it’s 22 days, all by train except for one domestic flight.
Our first three trips focused mostly on the Kansai and Chubu regions. From 2023 to 2025, we visited Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Nara, Kobe, Kanazawa, Takayama, and Kinosaki Onsen. Last year, we also explored Kyushu (Fukuoka, Yufuin, Beppu), which turned out to be a great choice. Looking back, we’ve visited Kyoto and Osaka several times already.
This time, we want to visit places we haven’t seen before. Our rough plan is to start in Tohoku (Sendai, Ginzan Onsen, Kakunodate, Morioka), head up to Hokkaido (Hakodate, Noboribetsu, Sapporo), then fly down to Chugoku (Hiroshima, Onomichi, Okayama), and finally take the shinkansen back to Tokyo. Each stop would be new for us.
- Is it realistic to travel from Tohoku to Hokkaido by train without a car? I’m a bit concerned that places like Ginzan Onsen might be harder to reach than they seem on the map.
- For those who have visited Chugoku in late November, how do Onomichi and Okayama compare to Hiroshima as stops? Are they worth including, or is Hiroshima enough by itself?
- Has anyone skipped Kansai after visiting it several times? I’m curious if you missed anything or wished you had planned differently.
by godtamer