15D/14N itinerary advice

[Snakepit]

Hi guys , will be heading to japan in may 08-may 22 with my GF

tentatively this will be my itinerary , but would like to see if its feasible

Day 1 ( THU ) - Tokyo
arrive at narita at 1:55pm
check in @ shibuya area
explore shibuya area for the rest of the evening

Day 2 ( FRI ) - Kyoto
Early shinkansen to kyoto
Check in before lunch
Fushimi Inari shrine ,Tofukuji , Nijo castle , Kinkakuji ,Ryoanji ,Ninnaji
Pontocho

Day 3 ( SAT ) - Kyoto
Ginkakuji temple ,Philosopher's Path ,Nanzenji ,Heian Shrine ,Kodaiji
Kiyomizudera
Walkthrough Ninenzaka/Sannenzaka
Gion

Day 4 ( SUN ) - Kyoto -> Arashiyama

Day trip to Arashiyama

Not sure if a full day here or a half day here would be good

Day 5 ( MON ) - Kyoto -> Hiroshima/Miyajima

A-Dome , Peace park , Itsukushima

Might skip A-dome + peace park and do a full day in miyajima instead since i have been to nagasaki peace park/museum

Day 6 ( TUE ) - Kyoto -> Osaka

Osaka Aquarium ,Osaka Castle ,Namba

Day 7 ( WED ) - Kyoto -> Nara
Nara Park ,Todaiji Temple ,Kasuga Taisha ,Kofukuji Temple

Day 8 ( THU ) - Kyoto - > Tokyo
early shinkansen back to tokyo
check in @ shibuya again

not sure what to do here after check in @ shibuya , will probly check in before lunch or around lunch time

Day 9 ( FRI ) Tokyo - Sanja Matsuri day 1
Tsukuji Fish Market ,Imperial Palace ,Tokyo Dome
Asakusa
Shinjuku

Day 10 ( SAT ) Tokyo - Sanja Matsuri day 2
Ueno Park
Asakusa
Tokyo Tower
Roppongi

Day 11 ( SUN ) Tokyo - Sanja Matsuri day 3
Day trip to nikko
Asakusa in the evening for end of matsuri

Day 12 ( MON ) Tokyo
Morning : kamakura
Afternoon : Enoshima
Evening : Yokohama

Day 13 ( TUE ) Tokyo -> Hakone
Hikari 512 to odawara , get hakone free pass
Check in ryokan ( yoshiike )
explore surrounding/ryokan

Day 14 ( WED ) Hakone -> Tokyo
Hakokne round trip
Owakudani
Shinkansen Hikari to Shinagawa + Osaki to Kokusaitenjijo
Odaiba in evening

Day 15 ( THU ) Tokyo
Last min shopping
depart at 7:15 pm


Day 2 and 3 in kyoto seems very packed , not sure if i will take away 1 day trip in kyoto to space everything out more even

As i will be attending sanja matsuri for 3 days , most of the event will be in the afternoon so i am trying to based the 3 days with Asakusa in the afternoon ( 12pm - 3/4pm) , might leave earlier to other place if time is tight

would take away hakone to spend more time in tokyo if needed but would like to try ryokan/onsen experience

 

[haato89]

day 2 is very packed. can be tiring sia nijo castle aint that small

you might want to push some stuff to day 4

 

[cpuer]

I like your day 12. very "soon" . But be mindful of the many walking involved. If you are not used to lots of walking, this will be really very tiring. Yokohama would look very pretty at night in Minato Mirai area.

 

[samtcy]

Hi guys , will be heading to japan in may 08-may 22 with my GF

tentatively this will be my itinerary , but would like to see if its feasible

Day 1 ( THU ) - Tokyo
arrive at narita at 1:55pm
check in @ shibuya area
explore shibuya area for the rest of the evening

Day 2 ( FRI ) - Kyoto
Early shinkansen to kyoto
Check in before lunch
Fushimi Inari shrine ,Tofukuji , Nijo castle , Kinkakuji ,Ryoanji ,Ninnaji
Pontocho
Definitely way too packed.

Day 3 ( SAT ) - Kyoto
Ginkakuji temple ,Philosopher's Path ,Nanzenji ,Heian Shrine ,Kodaiji
Kiyomizudera
Walkthrough Ninenzaka/Sannenzaka
Gion
Pretty packed, but might be do-able if you start off your day really early. Going to walk alot on this day though.


Day 4 ( SUN ) - Kyoto -> Arashiyama
Day trip to Arashiyama
Not sure if a full day here or a half day here would be good
It depends on how much of Arashiyama you plan to visit. Usually half a day should be enough though.

Day 5 ( MON ) - Kyoto -> Hiroshima/Miyajima
A-Dome , Peace park , Itsukushima
Might skip A-dome + peace park and do a full day in miyajima instead since i have been to nagasaki peace park/museum


Day 6 ( TUE ) - Kyoto -> Osaka
Osaka Aquarium ,Osaka Castle ,Namba

Day 7 ( WED ) - Kyoto -> Nara
Nara Park ,Todaiji Temple ,Kasuga Taisha ,Kofukuji Temple

Day 8 ( THU ) - Kyoto - > Tokyo
early shinkansen back to tokyo
check in @ shibuya again

not sure what to do here after check in @ shibuya , will probly check in before lunch or around lunch time

Day 9 ( FRI ) Tokyo - Sanja Matsuri day 1
Tsukuji Fish Market ,Imperial Palace ,Tokyo Dome
Asakusa
Shinjuku
Kinda packed.

Day 10 ( SAT ) Tokyo - Sanja Matsuri day 2
Ueno Park
Asakusa
Tokyo Tower
Roppongi

Day 11 ( SUN ) Tokyo - Sanja Matsuri day 3
Day trip to nikko
Asakusa in the evening for end of matsuri

Day 12 ( MON ) Tokyo
Morning : kamakura
Afternoon : Enoshima
Evening : Yokohama

Day 13 ( TUE ) Tokyo -> Hakone
Hikari 512 to odawara , get hakone free pass
Check in ryokan ( yoshiike )
explore surrounding/ryokan

Day 14 ( WED ) Hakone -> Tokyo
Hakokne round trip
Owakudani
Shinkansen Hikari to Shinagawa + Osaki to Kokusaitenjijo
Odaiba in evening

Day 15 ( THU ) Tokyo
Last min shopping
depart at 7:15 pm


Day 2 and 3 in kyoto seems very packed , not sure if i will take away 1 day trip in kyoto to space everything out more even

As i will be attending sanja matsuri for 3 days , most of the event will be in the afternoon so i am trying to based the 3 days with Asakusa in the afternoon ( 12pm - 3/4pm) , might leave earlier to other place if time is tight

would take away hakone to spend more time in tokyo if needed but would like to try ryokan/onsen experience

Reply in red

 

[evilerniex]

Hi guys , will be heading to japan in may 08-may 22 with my GF

tentatively this will be my itinerary , but would like to see if its feasible

Day 1 ( THU ) - Tokyo
arrive at narita at 1:55pm
check in @ shibuya area
explore shibuya area for the rest of the evening

Day 2 ( FRI ) - Kyoto
Early shinkansen to kyoto
Check in before lunch
Fushimi Inari shrine ,Tofukuji , Nijo castle , Kinkakuji ,Ryoanji ,Ninnaji
Pontocho
[it takes about 3hrs to get from tokyo to kyoto by shinkansen, leaving u with only half a day for sightseeing after checking into hotel. going to be very rush to squeeze in so many places]

Day 3 ( SAT ) - Kyoto
Ginkakuji temple ,Philosopher's Path ,Nanzenji ,Heian Shrine ,Kodaiji
Kiyomizudera
Walkthrough Ninenzaka/Sannenzaka
Gion

Day 4 ( SUN ) - Kyoto -> Arashiyama

Day trip to Arashiyama

Not sure if a full day here or a half day here would be good
[u may wanna spread some places from day 2 and 3 to this day. maybe put fushimi inari in the morning before going arashiyama.

overall for kyoto, i suggest dropping some of the shrines and temples and focus on just a few. if u try to squeeze in too many places, u may suffer from traveller's fatique. traveller's fatique is when try to visit too many places, resulting in touch-and-go at each place, and after a few while, u cant really remember and differiate one temple from another]

Day 5 ( MON ) - Kyoto -> Hiroshima/Miyajima

A-Dome , Peace park , Itsukushima

Might skip A-dome + peace park and do a full day in miyajima instead since i have been to nagasaki peace park/museum
[i have been to both nagasaki and hiroshima and i think the hiroshima one is worth going visiting. maybe just drop by in the evening to take a look at the a-bomb dome]

Day 6 ( TUE ) - Kyoto -> Osaka

Osaka Aquarium ,Osaka Castle ,Namba

Day 7 ( WED ) - Kyoto -> Nara
Nara Park ,Todaiji Temple ,Kasuga Taisha ,Kofukuji Temple
[u may want to consider staying in osaka instead of kyoto for day 5-8 since u are making day trips out. there are more options for cheap accommodations in osaka, and osaka has more shops and eateries open at night]

Day 8 ( THU ) - Kyoto - > Tokyo
early shinkansen back to tokyo
check in @ shibuya again

not sure what to do here after check in @ shibuya , will probly check in before lunch or around lunch time

Day 9 ( FRI ) Tokyo - Sanja Matsuri day 1
Tsukuji Fish Market ,Imperial Palace ,Tokyo Dome
Asakusa
Shinjuku
[seems quite packed. y not shift shinjuku to day 8?]

Day 10 ( SAT ) Tokyo - Sanja Matsuri day 2
Ueno Park
Asakusa
Tokyo Tower
Roppongi

Day 11 ( SUN ) Tokyo - Sanja Matsuri day 3
Day trip to nikko
Asakusa in the evening for end of matsuri
[it is going to be very rush to make it back to asakusa in the evening, coz it takes 2hr to get to nikko. i personally think u may be having an overkill of temples and shrines with kyoto, nara, nikko and kamakura. instead of going nikko, maybe stay in tokyo and explore some of the other places not covered, such as odaiba, harajuku, ginza]

Day 12 ( MON ) Tokyo
Morning : kamakura
Afternoon : Enoshima
Evening : Yokohama

Day 13 ( TUE ) Tokyo -> Hakone
Hikari 512 to odawara , get hakone free pass
Check in ryokan ( yoshiike )
explore surrounding/ryokan

Day 14 ( WED ) Hakone -> Tokyo
Hakokne round trip
Owakudani
Shinkansen Hikari to Shinagawa + Osaki to Kokusaitenjijo
Odaiba in evening

Day 15 ( THU ) Tokyo
Last min shopping
depart at 7:15 pm


Day 2 and 3 in kyoto seems very packed , not sure if i will take away 1 day trip in kyoto to space everything out more even

As i will be attending sanja matsuri for 3 days , most of the event will be in the afternoon so i am trying to based the 3 days with Asakusa in the afternoon ( 12pm - 3/4pm) , might leave earlier to other place if time is tight

would take away hakone to spend more time in tokyo if needed but would like to try ryokan/onsen experience
[i would suggest taking away nikko instead, coz for a day trip u probably only have time to cover the temples and shrines, and no time for waterfalls and lake chuzenji. and u have already covered many temples and shrines throughout the trip]

comments above

 

[cpuer]

IMHO, if you want to limit shrines/temples visit, just cover Sensoji and Zojoji will do. Both located at their respective sightseeing area and offer their own points of interest. if still not enough, throw in a Meiji Jingu when you are in Harajuku area.

One nice and controversial shrine is Yasukuni, worth a visit if you are always intrigue by all the angers from some countries over the Japanese government officials visits to Yasukuni.

But unless you are those religious type and want to "bai bai" whenever you see one shrines/temples, then maybe the more the merrier.

 

[Snakepit]

Thanks guys for the advice , have made a few changes

my day 3 was based on Kyoto Itineraries - Eastern Kyoto Full Day which seems doable as most are walking distance

Day 2 ( FRI ) - Kyoto
Early shinkansen to kyoto
Check in before lunch
Fushimi Inari
Tofukuji
Kiyomizudera
Higashiyama area (Ninenzaka/Sanneizaka, Ishibe Koji, Gion Shirakawa River area and Hanamikoji)

Day 3 ( SAT ) - Kyoto
Ginkakuji
Philosopher's Path
Nanzenji + Kaege Incline
Heian Shrine ( Optional )
Kodaiji ( Optional )
Nishiki Market

Day 4 ( SUN ) Kyoto
Kinkakuji
Ryoanji/Ninnaji
Nijo castle
Arashiyama

have tried to spread out most between this 3 days and this is the best i came up with , any advice on it ?

Day 5 ( MON ) - Kyoto -> Hiroshima/Miyajima
Miyajima in the morning
ferry to hiroshima memorial park around evening for A-dome ( as suggested by evilerniex)

I might also consider staying in osaka on day 5 - day 8 as i have not book any accommodation yet.

have decided to drop nikko to spend more days in tokyo probly something like this for day 11.

Day 11 ( SUN ) Tokyo - Sanja Matsuri day 3
Studio Ghlibli Muesum
Yoyogi park/Meiji shrine
Harajuku
Ginza / Akihabara
Asakusa in the evening for the end of matsuri

 

[evilerniex]

Day 11 ( SUN ) Tokyo - Sanja Matsuri day 3
Studio Ghlibli Muesum
Yoyogi park/Meiji shrine
Harajuku
Ginza / Akihabara
Asakusa in the evening for the end of matsuri

going to be very rush.
studio ghlibi museum would have taken a good part of the morning, and yoyogi park, meiji shrine and harajuku will take the whole afternoon. u can probably go ginza or akihabara at night after asakusa, depending on how long the sanja matsuri takes

 

[samtcy]

Thanks guys for the advice , have made a few changes

Day 11 ( SUN ) Tokyo - Sanja Matsuri day 3
Studio Ghlibli Muesum
Yoyogi park/Meiji shrine
Harajuku
Ginza / Akihabara
Asakusa in the evening for the end of matsuri

This day is very packed plus you will spend time travelling around.
You could probably do this:
- Morning: Studio Ghlibli (make sure you know how to buy the tickets for this place)
- Afternoon: Ginza, and if you don't spend too much time shopping at Ginza, you could probably squeeze in some time for Akihabara.
- Evening: Asakusa.

Don't think you will have time to fit in Yoyogi park/Meiji Shrine/Harajuku.

 

[PowerBB]

- Morning: Studio Ghlibli (make sure you know how to buy the tickets for this place)
.

Why did u say that? The ticket is not easily available? Need to book in advance?
I am not a fan of anime but i love One Piece. Do u think i should go Tokyo Anime Fair 2014?

 

[Snakepit]

Kinda forgotten about my day 8 which i am coming back to Tokyo from Kyoto thus adding more stuff for day 11

Day 8 ( THU ) - Kyoto - > Tokyo
early shinkansen back to tokyo
check in @ shibuya again
Yoyogi park/Meiji shrine
Shimokitazawa
Harajuku


Not sure if theres anything to see in harajuku in the evening , might opt for tokyo metropolitan building / tokyo tower / tokyo skytree instead

Day 11 ( SUN ) Tokyo - Sanja Matsuri day 3
Studio Ghlibli Muesum
Ginza / Akihabara
Asakusa in the evening for the end of matsuri

will try to buy the ticket at lawson on day 1

any advice/comment for my updated kyoto itinerary? would it be still too packed?

 

[anyhowsaysay]

You should consider taking flight to Osaka instead of Tokyo. Then departure at Tokyo (Open Jaw) will save you a lot of time eliminating unnecessary travelling. SQ fly direct to Osaka with quite good timing (Midnight departure and morning arrival in KIX). Kyoto is only 90mins away from KIX.

Thanks guys for the advice , have made a few changes

my day 3 was based on Kyoto Itineraries - Eastern Kyoto Full Day which seems doable as most are walking distance

Day 2 ( FRI ) - Kyoto
Early shinkansen to kyoto
Check in before lunch
Fushimi Inari
Tofukuji
Kiyomizudera
Higashiyama area (Ninenzaka/Sanneizaka, Ishibe Koji, Gion Shirakawa River area and Hanamikoji)

Day 3 ( SAT ) - Kyoto
Ginkakuji
Philosopher's Path
Nanzenji + Kaege Incline
Heian Shrine ( Optional )
Kodaiji ( Optional )
Nishiki Market

Day 4 ( SUN ) Kyoto
Kinkakuji
Ryoanji/Ninnaji
Nijo castle
Arashiyama

have tried to spread out most between this 3 days and this is the best i came up with , any advice on it ?

Day 5 ( MON ) - Kyoto -> Hiroshima/Miyajima
Miyajima in the morning
ferry to hiroshima memorial park around evening for A-dome ( as suggested by evilerniex)

I might also consider staying in osaka on day 5 - day 8 as i have not book any accommodation yet.

have decided to drop nikko to spend more days in tokyo probly something like this for day 11.

Day 11 ( SUN ) Tokyo - Sanja Matsuri day 3
Studio Ghlibli Muesum
Yoyogi park/Meiji shrine
Harajuku
Ginza / Akihabara
Asakusa in the evening for the end of matsuri

Your new Day 2, Day 3 possible.
Day 4 will now be a rush unless you cut away Arashiyama.
Typically Arashiyama will take half to whole day.
Day 5-8, you can stay at your Kyoto hotel to avoid changing hotel.

 

[stars87]

Just a note: ghibli museum tends to be fully booked a month or even two months ahead for weekends.suggest to go on a weekday. They are closed on Tuesdays though iirc. weekday