Help me plan my Japan itinerary (23 Nov-7 Dec)!

• 

  altomic on 26/07/2015 - 13:51

  +2

  Q4: open a Citibank account and get their card.

  Narita Airport - go to Narita town. there are some nice Onsens (hot baths) there. Onsens are nice way to observe japanese culture. as long as you don't have tattoos (Tattoos are associated with being Yakuza and are shunned).

  Takayama is cool - home of the 11th century gian bornze buddha (daibutsu) also south of Tokyo is Kamakuru . nice old town - not as historic but it was the former capital of Japan.

  don't push/rush your trip around japan. I lived there for 4 years and don't think I saw enough. do what you can and enjoy it.

  Japan is not what you search for but what you discover - Aristotle.

  • 

    virhlpool on 03/03/2019 - 14:49

    I am traveling to Japan for the first time (for 10-11 days) in April and I plan to go to Tokyo, Kyoto and probably Osaka, with a couple of day-trips to places like Haneko, Nara, Nikko etc within that duration. I am confused if I should try to fit Kanazawa/ Takamaya and Ainokura/ Ogimachi in the itinerary though it will mean that I will have fewer days in Tokyo. And will we need a hired car if we want to drive to those places? What do you recommend to the first timer? We do have a 5-yr old kid with us.

    Current plan is to spend 6-8 days in Tokyo, 4-5 days in/ around Kyoto and probably a day in Osaka. With kid, our travel is often slow paced, hence taking more time in all places.

• 

  NancyCat on 26/07/2015 - 15:09

  +1

  Kyoto is really lovely, I think you'll need at least 2 days there. If possible, spend one night at a traditional inn (a ryokan) in the Gion area (the heritage area). The area is like a old movie set, very beautiful.
  My family and I also spent another day riding hire bikes in Kyoto. It's very easy (and safe), lots of side streets to explore, great fun. The place we hire our bikes from is http://www.kctp.net/en/ good bikes, friendly and gives you maps.

  Tokyo, in comparison, has less to see…2 days will do. (That's my opinon anyway, I guess depends what you like to see/do…shopping in a busy/crazy city? Or enjoy beautiful scenery in a relaxing way?)

  We didn't have any JR passes, but it's not that hard to buy tickets at stations (including shinkansen).

  Have a nice trip!

  • 

    megasaur on 26/07/2015 - 16:59

    I was thinking of going to at least one onsen and one ryokan in either Kyoto / Kanazawa / Takayama. The riding bikes sounds nice!

  • 

    sal78 on 07/08/2015 - 00:37

    +1

    temples are nice but kyoto itself is really ugly and the gion area is ok. if u have a rail pass, get out of the main towns. lots of cute historic old towns that are much nicer than kyoto gion district. do some research on japanese history which will make you understand and appreciate the places you visit even more.

    • 

      megasaur on 07/08/2015 - 23:26

      Any towns out of kyoto that you recommend in particular? Preferably not too far out (I think I've already got more planned than I should!)

• 

  MTWallet on 26/07/2015 - 16:07

  +1

  There are a few websites with good info about Rail Passes and Rail Travel.

  http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2357.html

  http://jprail.com/

  For route planning http://www.hyperdia.com/

• 

  sraymond on 26/07/2015 - 16:13

  +1

  Whirlpool has a giant thread covering every aspect of Japan travel.

  http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/forum-replies.cfm?t=2415230

  I did a week in Tokyo and a week in Kyoto. Definitely get the JR pass.

  • 

    megasaur on 26/07/2015 - 16:57

    Yup I posted in that thread. Thanks!

• 

  porleng on 26/07/2015 - 19:21

  +1

  You should also checkout this subreddit: http://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel

• 

  porsche804 on 26/07/2015 - 19:23

  prepare for cold -5 weather every day

  • 

    altomic on 26/07/2015 - 22:44

    -5 no. cold yes.

• 

  obses2ion on 27/07/2015 - 23:18

  How do you intend to get to/from Kanazawa/Osaka from Narita? A 14-day JR pass might be handy to cover those long distances if you're taking the shinkansen. I've found that the pass pretty much makes up its value if you're travelling to at least one other city, so for me its almost a given expense when visiting Japan.

  For the Osaka leg, maybe consider a Kansai thru pass. You can use the 3-day consecutive ticket to visit Kyoto and Nara. I'd say base yourself in Osaka and do day trips from there, instead of lugging your stuff to different cities for the night.

  Personally, your allocated time for Tokyo is perfect. The first time I visited I was there for a week, and the second time for a week and a half. You can kill time very easily by visiting a different neighbourhood each day, or even doing day trips out to other areas.

  Q3: A JR pass will get you unlimited travel on Tokyo's JR Yamanote line - a circle loop that connects several major stations in Tokyo. Also handy if you're doing the above mentioned day trips out of Tokyo, so it'd be handy to have a 14-day pass to cover the majority of your stay. The first time I went, I had the 14-day pass and used it to cover Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto and Hiroshima - very useful not having to worry about purchasing separate tickets and worked out to be excellent value given the long distances. The second time around, I used this offer to cover my Tokyo-Osaka return trip, thinking it would be cheaper than forking out for a JR pass. I found that with the day trips I was doing out of Osaka and Tokyo (a few hours' trip to Chiba cost me almost $60!) and using the Yamanote line to visit the major spots, it quickly added up. If you intend on just staying in the cities, then the 7-day pass should suffice to cover the trips between Kanazawa/Osaka/Tokyo. Depends on what you intend to do, really :-) (too much to do in Japan!)

  • 

    megasaur on 28/07/2015 - 00:36

    Thanks for that! Upon further thoughts and advice, I'm now thinking of:
    1) Staying in Tokyo for a few days first, then
    2) Possibly take bus to Takayama, and then bus again to Kanazawa
    3) Activate 7 day JR pass in Kanazawa to get to Kyoto
    4) Base in Kyoto for the next few days (without having to rush back to Tokyo before the 7day pass expires as per original plans)
    - I've heard there's more to do in Kyoto than Osaka (which is similar to Tokyo), and that under a rushed schedule I should probably skip Osaka to have more time in Kyoto/Nara
    5) Since I now have more time in Kyoto, possibly go to Hiroshima for at least a day
    6) Go back to Tokyo for whatever days are left
    The reason for the 7 day pass and not 14 day is that I'm under the impression that the JR pass is most useful when doing those long travels between cities, and less so within the cities themselves. As in it's better to just get a Suica card(?) in Tokyo, rather than use a JR pass. (Correct me if I'm wrong though!)
    I do still need to do more research in finding out individual ticket costs vs JR pass though. Would the Kansai thru pass still be needed if I did have the JR pass?

    • 

      sal78 on 07/08/2015 - 00:41

      +1

      kyoto is mainly temples. choose a frw temples and can do it in 2 days. i like arashimaya. if u head sth first then obviously pick the temples most famous for koyo. autumn leaves peak around mid nov. japanese are obsessed with autumn leaves so dont be surprise by how busy it is with local japanese tourists. its truly my fav season and i personally think its so much more beautiful than sakura. you r there at the tight time so take advantage of it.

  • 

    virhlpool on 03/03/2019 - 14:50

    I am traveling to Japan for the first time (for 10-11 days) in April and I plan to go to Tokyo, Kyoto and probably Osaka, with a couple of day-trips to places like Haneko, Nara, Nikko etc within that duration. I am confused if I should try to fit Kanazawa/ Takamaya and Ainokura/ Ogimachi in the itinerary though it will mean that I will have fewer days in Tokyo. And will we need a hired car if we want to drive to those places? What do you recommend to the first timer? We do have a 5-yr old kid with us.

    Current plan is to spend 6-8 days in Tokyo, 4-5 days in/ around Kyoto and probably a day in Osaka. With kid, our travel is often slow paced, hence taking more time in all places.

• 

  anth0888 on 06/08/2015 - 15:32

  In regards to q 4 - banking card.

  On a general note, be aware that not all Japanese ATM's accept foreign cards. Only citibank, japan post and seven eleven atms (seven bank). You can find handy apps on the japanese websites of these companies online and download to your phone to locate your nearest 'foreigner freindly' atm - saves you being stuck with no cash.

  Also take out a chunk of cash before going there, so you have backup in case you need to pay for things and need a day to settle in and orientate yourself - its a pretty busy country and even the most consident traveller can feel overwhelmed lol.

  Happy travels.

  • 

    anth0888 on 06/08/2015 - 16:21

    Great Advice! Good thing is that most Atm's for foreigners are in English - thank god.

  • 

    megasaur on 06/08/2015 - 21:54

    I was under the impression that Citibank cards are free to withdraw from, as opposed to your usual bank card (ie. my ANZ VISA debit), which is why I thought it'd be good to open a Citibank account (which is free anyway). Do you know if this is true or not?

    • 

      Gina Rinehart on 06/08/2015 - 23:06

      +1

      Yes! The citibank visa debit is 100% free. I used it in Japan and was never charged any fees, and the exchange rates were almost identical to the xe rates. You'd be silly not to use it :)

• 

  sal78 on 07/08/2015 - 00:32

  i would probably go south and work my way back north. you will be able to catch the end of autumn leaves/koyo. i would probably go to miyajima, then stay a night in hirishima and dxplore hiroshima next day.

  to take advantage of the weather/season head as far south then work your way up north. the autumn foliage at miyajima is stunning. Arashimaya, tenkuji.. google thd best autumn foliage temples.

  then as u make your way up nth through takayama, you will see the snow topped mountains. possible the famous 3 colours of the mountain. bottom green, middle red and top white.