Tokyo/Osaka Trip with 1 year old

Alexozza on 06/06/2024 - 19:04

I am planning to go on a 10 day trip with my wife and our son from Brisbane to Japan leaving late October and returning early November.
Looking to fly into Tokyo, spend a few days there, then bullet train to Kyoto for a few days, and then fly out of Osaka after a day or 2 there back to Brisbane. Seems the best deal with airlines for that time of year is about 1200 return per person (once you choose a seat, have adequate luggage etc), Just wondering if its worth running the gauntlet and waiting for a better deal or is that about as good as we can expect for that time of year?

Also, finding it tough tossing up between airlines. Virgin seems convenient in the sense that it flies to Haneda, and I've heard mixed things about Narita airport. But also seems like its a smaller plane than the other airlines use so not sure about the 9 hours in a plane with a 1 year old.
Anyone got any experience based recommendations for this trip?

Thanks, looking forward to the feedback

Travel Asia Japan Osaka Tokyo

Comments

  • Nugs on 06/06/2024 - 19:08
    +7

    "9 hours in a plane with a 1 year old"
    Yeah, nah
    .

    • Alexozza on 06/06/2024 - 19:09

      haha, I hear you!
      But Japan is calling

      • Aminn on 27/06/2024 - 15:37

        We are going to Japan in AUG with 4 months old and 6YO , we went to NZ 3 months ago when she was only one month, no problem:)

    • spackbace on 06/06/2024 - 19:18
      +7

      "9 hours in a plane with a someone else's 1 year old"
      Yeah, nah

      FTFY

      But why bother? Kid won't know anything of what's going on, and it just hinders you getting around and seeing things

      • donga100 on 06/06/2024 - 21:41
        +2

        My son did a few international trips as an infant and I don't think he really got any enjoyment out of it compared to just staying at home. Might be worth asking if the grandparents are interested in having him instead, I know mine would have jumped at the chance. Especially for Japan which involves a lot of trains, walking and crowds.

      • morse on 06/06/2024 - 22:04
        +2

        The parents can still enjoy the holiday. Kids can be tricky to travel with from 0-25 so may as well just travel when it feel right. My kid can’t remember anything/much from 1, but the experiences at that age still shaped him.

        • MrFrugalSpend on 07/06/2024 - 07:23
          +3

          "experiences that age still shaped him" - what, like the extreme ear pain 90% of kids experience flying at that age, trauma of not knowing what is going on, stress of the parents constantly trying to quieten the cries whilst everyone glares at them? …. character building.

          • rumblytangara on 07/06/2024 - 08:14

            @MrFrugalSpend:

            "experiences that age still shaped him" - what, like the extreme ear pain 90% of kids experience flying at that age, trauma of not knowing what is going on, stress of the parents constantly trying to quieten the cries whilst everyone glares at them? …. character building.

            I've seen the rare parent try to handle a baby with ear pain on a descending flight, and it's blown my mind how in this day and age they can remain so pig-ignorant as to how to avoid this. All you have to do is give them a feed as the flight lands, and it all goes away.

            My kid can’t remember anything/much from 1, but the experiences at that age still shaped him.

            But yeah, I am 100% sure that my kids were not shaped by any travelling experiences when they were under a year old. That was just a dumb claim to make.

            • morse on 07/06/2024 - 08:50
              +1

              @rumblytangara: My kid definitely learned and grew from travel we did at 1. He was a confident walker (and runner) by then and this really built it up. He ate different foods. And just joy being in different environments. I’m not saying it’s necessary. But I don’t think it’s a waste and I do think things that happen at 1 shape their early years character, for good or bad. I’m going to say travelling with a one year old is worthwhile if the parents will also enjoy it. Parents living their life with little ones is good for the whole family.

              • rumblytangara on 07/06/2024 - 09:33
                +3

                @morse: At a year old, pretty much any environment outside home is a totally wild and exciting experience, don't need to travel a different continent for that. My kid used to have his mind blown by the light rail system an hour away from home, so I'd take him there sometimes.

                And new food experiences were the local Indian place.

                For us with really young kids, Japan (and other Asian countries) was for the parents. The kid probably got just as much value from those trips as a day out in our home city.

                My kid got to repeatedly ride the NYC subway at 4am before he was a year old, because he was jetlagged. I am sure that made no lasting impression on his development though. All that made for was tired parents.

              • p1 ama on 07/06/2024 - 10:21
                +1

                @morse:

                But I don’t think it’s a waste and I do think things that happen at 1 shape their early years character, for good or bad. I’m going to say travelling with a one year old is worthwhile if the parents will also enjoy it. Parents living their life with little ones is good for the whole family.

                This rings so true - I've never understood the argument of "the kid won't even remember anything".

                By that logic, what's the point of doing anything with the kid if they're just not going to remember it?

                Travelling with my son when he was 1 - 2 was some of the best experiences I've had in my life. He could still fly for free, generally was pretty easy to bring around (could easily just sleep in the stroller), and the most important thing is - even if he didn't remember it, I definitely did. It helped me build a better relationship with him outside of our regular routine, I got to see new places and do some sightseeing that I never had the chance to do, and it was nice to have someone to share that experience with.

                Now that he's older, we've gone back and revisited some of the places we went when he was a toddler, and that's also been a great experience too.

            • MrFrugalSpend on 07/06/2024 - 16:11

              @rumblytangara: not if they have a cold, which many do at that age. No amount of feeding is going to clear a tiny blocked sinuses / Eustachian tube.

          • morse on 07/06/2024 - 08:44

            @MrFrugalSpend: Not everyone has this experience, and if they do it’s not their only experience of the travel.

    • bargaino on 06/06/2024 - 19:41
      +1

      I once had to travel with a difficult baby. Everyone said Phenergan. Tested, didn't work.
      Doc gave me some benzos, worked a charm on the flight. Just a little ground up in her milk, not enough even to sleep.
      Travelling with a baby can be a great way to meet the locals. Especially in Asia with a blonde baby.

    • Karlotta - Margarita on 06/06/2024 - 20:36

      I've done 23 hours to South America with a 6-month-old. Sometimes you just don't have a choice. The key is to have everything prepared, nappies, food, formula etc. Baby Bjorn so our son could sleep on our chest was fantastic. To be honest we rarely have problems with babies on long-haul flights, parents are generally over-prepared. Short haul flights around oz and to Fiji seem to be the other end of the scale.

    • AustriaBargain on 06/06/2024 - 21:03
      +1

      Wish you could pay extra to be on a plane that guaranteed has no children on it.

      • Karlotta - Margarita on 06/06/2024 - 21:04
        +6

        You can, just hire your own private plane :)

      • p1 ama on 07/06/2024 - 10:23

        You make it sound like you weren't an annoying little shit at some point in your life (not having a go at you directly, we all were). Should have a bit of humility.

        • AustriaBargain on 07/06/2024 - 10:28
          +1

          Bruh, I'm still an annoying little shit.

    • Shoocat on 06/06/2024 - 22:43

      Depends entirely on the 1yo and their personality.

    • FocusRider on 07/06/2024 - 16:17

      My wife and I are heading to NYC in September with 2 under 2 not sure if this is a good idea or not haha

  • Porker on 06/06/2024 - 19:31
    +2

    I've been to Japan multiple times, but the (so far) only trip I've gone on with my kids was to Taiwan when my eldest was 1 year old too.

    My 1 year old slept the whole flight there and back as we had overnight flights - we got the bassinet seat so was able to plonk him in there and get a good rest.

    Depending on who you fly with, an overnight flight to Japan is/was great for us. Basically boarded the Air Japan flight at midnight at Melbourne and arrived in Tokyo at 9am.

    Yes, kids can be difficult to travel with but I think 1 year is ideal in that they're still small enough to be carried around and go everywhere you go, plus still sleep a lot. We also managed to jump all the queues, we were always ushered to the front by the staff, and have priority boarding on the plans.

  • pao2x on 06/06/2024 - 20:01

    "9 hours in a plane with a 1 year old"

    Phenergan

  • sonicentropy on 06/06/2024 - 20:08
    +2

    Took our daughter at 11 months we took a pram big mistake japan loves stairs and escalators and often without lifts. So we bought a sling and she rode on my chest, she loved the trains and kyoto zoo. Nappies are better there. She slept for the flight over and back in a target dog bed. She has been back 5 more times.

    • morse on 07/06/2024 - 08:54

      We took a babyzen yoyo to Japan and found it easy enough to sling over the shoulder if we encountered stairs. I definitely wouldn’t have coped without it but I guess it depends how heavy the baby/toddler is.

  • rumblytangara on 06/06/2024 - 21:59

    Done loads of fairly long flights with infant/baby… it's the the huge drama that some people here seem to think it is.

    The impact is going to be once you get to the destination- kid will be napping twice a day, so your schedule will have to revolve around this. Japan is easy with kids, but a 1 year old kid will remember absolutely zero about Japan though.

  • p1 ama on 06/06/2024 - 22:14

    Seems the best deal with airlines for that time of year is about 1200 return per person (once you choose a seat, have adequate luggage etc), Just wondering if its worth running the gauntlet and waiting for a better deal or is that about as good as we can expect for that time of year?

    Nobody will know - prices go up and down, sales happen or don't happen. $1,200 return per person is generally expensive-ish. You can easily search OzBargain deals to Japan to get a feel for the kinds of prices you would expect.

    Also, finding it tough tossing up between airlines. Virgin seems convenient in the sense that it flies to Haneda, and I've heard mixed things about Narita airport. But also seems like its a smaller plane than the other airlines use so not sure about the 9 hours in a plane with a 1 year old.

    Haneda is closer, but Narita is perfectly fine. It's a really comfortable train ride into central Tokyo via the Tokyo Express or Keisei Skyliner. If you're going to Tokyo Station, or other stations on the Yamanote loop, then take the JR Narita Express. If you're heading more into the north of Tokyo, the Skyliner is your best choice. All really convenient interchanges.

    Yes, Narita is around 50 mins from central Tokyo, and Haneda is around 30 mins. However, I used to travel to Tokyo a fair bit, and I actually preferred Narita, because both the Skyliner and Narita Express are proper "airport" trains that have lots of luggage space, are always spacious and quiet, and 50 mins is a good amount of time to open my laptop and do a bit of work. Super relaxing trip.

    The trip from Haneda is chaotic - you either take the Keikyu line or the Monorail, both of which are super busy, and are not "airport" trains where you have lots of space. Every time I've been to Haneda, I've never been able to sit. I'd rather sit for 50 mins than stand for 30 mins, but that's just me.

    On the planes, yes, I agree that Virgin's 737 is really small for a flight of that distance and won't be as comfortable as a widebody. Ultimately, it's for 9 hours - I'm sure you'll be totally fine whichever way you go. I would prefer JAL in economy, they have the most legroom and spacious seats.

  • MrFrugalSpend on 07/06/2024 - 07:26

    Too soon, go when the child can experience and enjoy:

    • Kidzania at either Tokyo or Osaka
    • DisneySea
    • Universal Studios incl Super Mario World
    • Nagoya Aquarium and Legoland at Nagoya (part way across the train journey)

    … plus an age when will remember the trip, and less likely to experience discomfort and cry the whole plane flight.
    I don't even know how you will navigate the busy trains with strollers and things, plus luggage etc it's not something you see and lots of stairs etc. You'd probably need expensive transfers in a mini van with pay extra for a car seat.

    We did it when ours was a 5 year old, but maybe 3 year old or so?

  • rumblytangara on 07/06/2024 - 08:17
    +1

    We did it when ours was a 5 year old, but maybe 3 year old or so?

    We did it when the kid was aged around 1, 2, 3, 5, 6 and onwards. Shorter flights though, not from Oz. The first couple trips were just for the parents and it was still enjoyable. The kids had absolutely no problems with the flights and found them really interesting, it was just harder for us as parents. The later trip was just one parent with the kid as well. One kid was fine, wouldn't do it with two toddlers though.

    Getting around urban Japan with a stroller is piss easy. The trains are not busy, because you're on holiday and you simply avoid peak hours. Our kid loved the trains so we did a lot of extra train trips.

    Japan is the easiest country for taking kids that I know of.

    • dtc on 07/06/2024 - 09:03
      +1

      Japan is the easiest country for taking kids that I know of.

      Singapore is easier but its not really a country so ….

      The main issue with Japan is the train stations - they all have stairs and while almost all have lifts they can sometimes be hard to find. At least with a one year old you can carry them, although it can affect sleeping etc. Some shops in places like Akihabara are also hard to get around, very narrow aisles; but you just have one person shop while the other sits in a nearby cafe or something. All doable.

  • dtc on 07/06/2024 - 09:13

    For OP: this is going to go against all principles of marriage and some people will find it bizarre/appalling but…when my kids were little, my wife took a trip by herself (well, with some friends but not with me) for 3 weeks. Then the next year I did the same thing (I went on an Intrepid tour but that was because I went to India and didnt want to solo travel there). Not saying it was better than travelling together but it was better than travelling with a 1 year old. We also did a joint trip to Italy with the kid at 22 months (just sneaking under the 2 year buy their own ticket limit) and the flight over was pretty terrible. We did do ok in Italy itself, albeit my child decided he wouldnt sleep during the day when we were out so we had to finish every day by about 3pm and just head back to the hotel. He is older now and has no memories of Italy whatsoever (in fact my kids have very vague memories of any of the trips they did before about age 7 or 8 - did those trips influence them? Maybe, who can tell)

    Anyway, in terms of Japan itself, Tokyo is fine if busy. There are some areas of peace, little parks, Meiji shrine, some larger parks/gardens (Shinjuku gyoen, Ueno etc) if you need a break. Kyoto is a bit hilly in parts (although its pretty flat mostly) and some of the areas eg around Kiyomizudera are old cobblestone streets that are a little difficult with a pram, many temples have gravel paths or are on hills. So you might find that its ok getting to the site but in the site you will need to carry the kid.

    for flights - https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/849905

  • ryefig on 07/06/2024 - 09:23
    +1

    I would steer clear of Virgin when traveling to Japan where possible.

    It is a relatively long flight and while the price might seem good, the trade-off will be your comfort. This is because the type of plane that Virgin fly - You will be on their single aisle 737 for this route.
    This is a very small plane for such a long trip. Usually these are suitable for domestic or Trans-Tasman hops only.
    Ideally for a flight this long you would want an aircraft with more space where you can get up and stretch in the galleys etc. Also consider these planes have smaller overhead bins meaning you might have trouble finding space for your carry-on gears, and the galley area is very small meaning there is very limited room to get up and stretch if you feel you need to. The bathrooms are allegedly smaller which may be problematic when it comes time to change nappies.

    This might be fine if you are a budget traveller and don't mind a 9/10 hour flight being slightly uncomfortable, but with a 1-year-old, you may want to pay a little extra for an airline that flys a widebody aircraft.

    • dtc on 07/06/2024 - 10:10

      with more space where you can get up and stretch in the galleys etc

      Then when the plane hits unexpected turbulence, you can put up with all the trolls who say its your own fault you were injured because you didnt spend all 9 hours of the flight in your seat with the seatbelt on…(but I agree with you. 737 for that long is just claustrophobic)

  • AnyFurtherDiscount on 07/06/2024 - 15:35

    Will your son plan to scream his lung out for the entire flight? - Asking for a mate

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