Japan June16 Itinerary - Asking for Feedback Please :)

• 

  lupiter on 04/05/2016 - 15:05

  +1

  That sounds very very busy! Are those all things you want to do in that one day, or are they alternatives?

  If you want Super Mario Games… hm…. there's a retro arcade in Decks Odaiba (A shopping mall in Tokyo) you can see a bit in this blog post. If they're more into modern stuff you'll find a modern arcade in pretty much any shopping mall see the same blog, different post. If you want Nintendo toys and stuff you want a Village Vanguard shop. It's a chain and you'll find one in half the shopping malls.

  • 

    cynvero on 04/05/2016 - 15:49

    The temples are alternatives, they are quite close from each other and different people have recommended different ones. So, not sure which one are to be picked up if doing all is not possible.
    Thanks for the Nintendo info. I will have a look!

• 

  nayfon on 04/05/2016 - 15:25

  +1

  To see Mt Fuji, the best place would be from Hakone, but I'd recommend spending overnight there as quite often you won't see Fuji due to the cloud cover. I've been to Japan 4 times (about 12 weeks in total) and only got a clear view of Fuji once and that was on the bullet train from Tokyo to Kyoto.

  Also, not sure what you mean "not interested in traditional food". It is a foreign country so you will be missing out on heaps. That said there are plenty of western fast food restaurants (Maccas, KFC, Mosburger - although it is Japanese, they sell decent burgers).

  • 

    cynvero on 04/05/2016 - 15:55

    Yes, I read about spending a night in Hakone but we are low on days, and with 2 kids I think it's easier to stay in 2 places only. Also, I've seen the posts about being lucky to see Mt Fuji with a clear sky… Fingers crossed!
    I meant we are not going to do "food" tours or something like this. I like trying different things, but my husband and son are fussy eaters and, for example, they don't like seafood :( Quite disappointing, I know…
    Thanks for your comments!

    • 

      RockyRaccoon on 04/05/2016 - 17:08

      +2

      For Fussy eaters look at this

      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Okonomiyaki

      And Kyoto has some of the best. Its great Japanese food and very enjoyable. You can get many different types, Simple and also elaborate. They often cook it in front of you if you sit at the "bar" rather than a table

      • 

        cynvero on 05/05/2016 - 09:14

        Looks yum! We would need to give it a go :P

• 

  altomic on 04/05/2016 - 20:18

  +1

  day 8 sounds good.

  I lived in Japan for 4 years (Tokyo 18 months) - jump on a HATO (pigeon) bus -it's a jump on/off tourist bus. it's worth checking out and an easy ride around some cool places in the city.

  you are cramming a lot in to your visit.

  especially with 2 young kids.

  as for food and fussy eaters - convenience stores. AM/PM have (at least when I was there) great prepared meals - tomato pasta. they have microwaves instore you can use. hold up the meal and say "ching-sa-ru, kudasai" - ching being the sound of the microwave finishing- of course!. or "mi-a-co-wa-ave-a-ru"

  • 

    cynvero on 05/05/2016 - 09:20

    You mean, the bus to go while in Odaiba or where? Good idea to do with the kids.
    Is it possible to go around Odaiba and Legoland and Science Museum in only one day? Or it is impossible? I don't have complete idea of the dimensions of the cities…

    • 

      ckcc44 on 07/05/2016 - 16:03

      +1

      It is definitely doable, but with two kids may be a bit hard to do
      Also are your kid into Sonic? They have a SEGA theme park (called Joypolis) in Odaiba:
      http://tokyo-joypolis.com/language/english/

      • 

        cynvero on 07/05/2016 - 22:25

        I see… in that case, which one should be done: Legoland or Science Museum? They will be almost 2 and 5.
        Thanks for the info about Joypolis, but no, they don't know Sega yet. They only play Super Mario Bros (and it's all Mario, Peach, Luigi, Bowser, etc nowadays!)

      • 

        ckcc44 on 09/05/2016 - 11:37

        +1

        I will think Legoland will be better, just because Australia do not have one

      • 

        cynvero on 15/05/2016 - 23:19

        @ckcc44: Thanks! Is the Science Museum similar to Questacom?

      • 

        ckcc44 on 17/05/2016 - 11:45

        Sorry never been to Questacom myself so can't comment on this one.

• 

  cynvero on 16/05/2016 - 22:22

  Another question: I was told that we need to buy the JR Pass at least 3 weeks in advance. Is it true? We are still deciding whether it will be or not convenient to have the pass, so not buying it yet…

• 

  cynvero on 17/05/2016 - 09:26

  Sorry, but I'm so confused about distances, transport, times :S
  As we are planning to stay the first 5 days in Kyoto/Osaka area, is it possible/easy/convenient to stay all the 5 days in Kyoto and travel to Osaka mainly at night, and the day we'll go to Universal? Or it would be better to divide the stay between the 2 places? Thanks!

  • 

    ckcc44 on 17/05/2016 - 11:44

    +1

    Depend on the area you stay in Kyoto, from central Kyoto (the JR Kyoto station) to north Osaka (the JR Osaka station in Umeda) is only around 30-40 minutes.

    Universal is only around another 10 min ride from the JR Osaka station (JR have a special train line for that) and Namba is around 15-20 min train ride from JR Osaka station (depend if you take the metro or JR train).

    Also for the Umeda sky building, it is not really close to any train station, so you will need to put in at least extra 15 min walking distance between the closest station.
    This site may help you a bit for your planning for Osaka:
    http://www.osaka-info.jp/osp/en/facility/facility.php?id=1

    • 

      cynvero on 18/05/2016 - 09:49

      Thanks! Very helpful indeed :)