Anyone been to Japan with teens?

[HolidayHappy123]

Hi all

I'm looking for help with planning a trip to Japan. Current itinerary is:

Tokyo 4 nights
Hakone 2 nights
Kyoto 4 nights
Osaka 2 nights
Tokyo 1 night (before early morning flight home)

Is there any where I should add by dropping one or more nights in Tokyo/Kyoto?

And which places did your teens love?

All recommendations gratefully received.

Thanks.

@HelenHywater just seen your earlier post. We went to the coast and stayed at Hayama. It was fun and within easy striking distance of Tokyo for our return flight. Feel free to PM me for any info.
We did the trip on a budget and for the four of us for 17 days it was around £6k. Food can be very reasonable in small local restaurants- plus 7eleven had amazing lunch type food for picnics or when travelling.

My teens loved Osaka and Hakone. They had lots of their own ideas about things they wanted to do in Osaka and especially enjoyed the vintage shops and Dotonbori at night. We had very bad weather in Hakone so instead of doing what we had planned we went to the family onsen where they have all the novelty ones and you wear swimwear. It ended up being great fun for everyone. We were short of time so we did a day trip on the bullet train to Hiroshima from Kyoto and comfortably did everything we wanted to do there.

Hi,
HNY!
i know this is an old thread but I’m taking 3 x teens to Japan in October and would love advice on a rough itinerary. So far all I’ve booked is flights and an air bnb in Tokyo for 4 nights when we arrive.
where would you recommend we go to after this? We’re flying home from Tokyo too but would like to go to Osaka, Kyoto & Hiroshima as well as maybe Hakone/Mayajima
anywhere else people recommend?
we loved cities and would like a National Park but probably only for 1/2 days maybe? We’re planning on going to Disney Tokyo at the end and also Universal studios.
Thanks so much

All I would say is avoid the Japanese school holidays and avoid the hottest couple of months. Otherwise it’s 3 hour queues in the heat at Tokyo Disney. Very orderly queues according to trip advisor but we gave it a miss

@pinkpeony4 how long for? We went for three weeks and only did Tokyo, Hakone, Osaka, Kyoto. Happy to share more details of what was good if that’s helpful.

@wiltonian thanks so much for your message. Were there for 13 nights at the end of October. I’d love your tips and recommendations if that’s ok? Thanks

I'd be grateful for tips too! Going with a teen in June and haven't booked any accommodation yet.

I was there for around 18 nights. We went to Tokyo (Hakone day trip) - Osaka - Nara - Kyoto- Hiroshima/Miyajima and Izu Peninsula (beach) - Tokyo.

We were there in August and it was fine. Kids loved it. We didn't go to an onsen which I wish I'd done (but children wouldn't have enjoyed at all) and didn't see Mt Fuji. But l will go back. Hiroshima was a big highlight with my children and I'm so glad I went.

@HelenHywater thank you! Was it easy to do a day trip to Hakone from Tokyo?
I don’t think my teens would like the Onsen either so well sadly have to give that a miss.
what was Nara like? How long do you recommend staying in Osaka/Kyoto? Did you stay in hotels or air bnb’s? Thanks again

We stayed in a hostel in Tokyo (I think it was recommended on here!) which was lovely - I am single parent, so I was able to stay in a room with my children and also chat to other visitors. We also stayed in a hostel in Nara which we all really enjoyed - again talking to the other residents and the owners was really nice. We used Air bnb in both Osaka and Izu. And a hotel (probably found on Booking.com) in Kyoto and Hiroshima and in our last day back in Tokyo. It was nice to have a mix - kids obviously liked things like the buffet breakfast!

I booked at the last minute relatively speaking and didn't have any problems.

My children enjoyed Nara but a full day was enough. They probably preferred Osaka to Kyoto and I would spend longer there if I did it again. We hired a car for the last week which was also a lot of fun - we got to see more, and experience things like motorway services! I didn't have a problem with crowds in Universal Studios despite being there in August. It was very hot though! I booked both TeamLab Planets and Borderless in advance and kids enjoyed them too.

Yes the day trip to Hakone was really easy. Honestly, train travel there is so straightforward. It was a long day but we didn't have time to stay longer.

Thank you so much. That’s so helpful. What was the hostel in Tokyo?

My 16(m) teen loved Osaka so in hindsight we should have allowed more time there. Some of the guided walks available are great - we did a superb foodie one in Tokyo and BackStreet Osaka was a bit of an eye-opener. The Geiko tour in Kyoto was really interesting. Studio Ghibli Park at Nagoya was fine but it was a long detour and, at the time, international tickets didn't cover the whole park. It wasn't particularly interactive and there were long queues basically for photo opportunities with sets from the animations. It was interesting but, in hindsight, time would have been better spent elsewhere. Universal and Sea Disney were big hits but pre-booking of express tickets was a necessity. Nara was lovely. We also went to Koyasan and spent a night at one of the temples - I loved it but getting up pre-dawn was a bit of a challenge! I wished we have spent more time there - we were there for 3 weeks

Just been on a similar loop. I would either base in Osaka and day trip to Kyoto or vice versa. Probably Osaka is best as you will want to be there late at night (when it comes alive) and for the early start at Universal.

Or, if money is no object, book for the duration in Osaka, l eave most of your stuff there and just go to Kyoto with a small overnight bag for one night. A lot of the temples are best seen early in the morning so that might work quite well.

I recommend a day trip to both Nara and Hiroshima. (you can do Hiroshima and Miyajima in one day, especially if you book the ferry that goes direct). https://www.aqua-net-h.co.jp/en/heritage/

An excellent day trip from Tokyo is to the Great Buddha at Kamakura and then Enoshima Island (temple, caves you see with candles, great food) and beach. If you are lucky, you will see Mt Fuji from the beach.
Kamakura: www.japan.travel/en/spot/1588/
Enoshima: https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3117.html

Look at the local tourist board websites before you go to find local festivals and events. We were the only foreigners at an Obon festival at a local temple in Kyoto which was one of our more memorable nights. This is where the Kyoto events are: https://kyoto.travel/en/news/events_in_kyoto.html

We also had a great (and relatively inexpensive) tea ceremony experience at a cultural centre in Nara. https://www.sarusawa.nara.jp/services/

The baseball was fun! We were in amongst the super-fans which was brilliant. If you go to the Tokyo Dome, it is really near the Bunkyo Civic Centre (basically the town hall of the Bunkyo ward). It is free to enter their observation deck and you can see Mt Fuji on a good day.

Note, everywhere was a lot of walking and lots of stairs. I only took one pair of trainers and, in summer, that was a mistake. It was so hot that it would have been good to have two pairs and be able to alternate and allow one pair to dry out.

There are so many different train lines that I recommend researching all your possible routes before you go. It takes ages but is well worth it. I didn't use everything I researched but it was good to have all the possibilities mapped out and in some cases (Kamakura, Kyoto) there ended up being particular transport that was recommended for being historic or cute.

Thank you so much. This is all super helpful and I’m so excited about our trip!

@JamieFraserskneewarmer where did you book your walking tours? They sound like the sort of thing we’d Iove.

I was thinking of 3 nights in Osaka and 3 in Kyoto. Is that too many or should we just be in Kyoto?

thanks again

We took an internal flight from Tokyo to Osaka as soon as we arrived in Japan and then worked our way back to Tokyo. It's inexpensive and easy. We flew into the airport that's very close to Osaka city centre.

The answer to that depends if you are using them as a base to go Nara and Hiroshima or not.

I disagree with only needing one day in Hiroshima and Miyajima. We stayed 2 nights in Hiroshima and spent one full day in Hiroshima and one in Miyajima. We were there on the 6th August (anniversary of the bomb) and it was just an incredible, moving, experience. The museum alone can take several hours.

I agree that Osaka is worth more time than Kyoto (at least for teens who get templed out pretty quickly).

We also made an Obon event in Tokyo. Obon was a bit of a pain though if you go in August - you need to book up transport and hotels further in advance. We didn't book our last 2 nights in Tokyo and that was a mistake as we had really limited options. (luckily we were driving because the trains were also booked up).

I was fine with one pair of trainers, but I did so much research on this as I was dreading the heat and extreme humidity. In the event, I was ok.

I think the best approach is to assume you'll be back another time and not time to cram everything in. We definitely want to go back soon!

Re accommodation, hostels are good but I would also search for family rooms in places with tatami floors (if you are happy to sleep that way).

On booking.com, you can search for tatami rooms. We found places with shared bathroom, washing machine, kitchenette for less than £100 a night. We were happy to share as a four though.

Two days is definitely preferably, depends what amount of time you are playing with, I suppose.

We did it in a day and it felt sufficient but I can see where more time would be better. (We did get to the museum as it opened and get the last ferry from Miyajima, so we maxed our time out that way).

Being there for the anniversary would have been extremely moving.

Yes it was - probably the most memorable thing for me out of the trip. My 16 yo ds says the same thing.

Probably one night in Hiroshima would be doable. I keep forgetting we were there in the heat which probably slowed us down a bit.

I also think you can rush for some but not all of a trip. Hiroshima / Miyajima was a cram-it-all-in day for us but it would not be pleasant or rewarding to make the whole trip like that.

@pinkpeony4

I found them through tripadvisor to be honest - this is the BackStreet Osaka which was the best one (but it does go to the red light district so may not be suitable!)

Osaka Backstreet Tour With Tasting 2025 - Viator

Kyoto: Gion Geisha District Walking Tour | GetYourGuide

There are loads of foodie ones - really depends on your pocket!

thank you! Very useful and the tours look great:

Sorry, have been really busy.

Agree with a lot of what has been said, in particular:

• leave yourself some down time as it is a very full on experience. Also, you need time for shops, specifically Daiso, Don Quixote and Tokyu Hands. And just walking around staring.
• Osaka is brilliant and more fun than Kyoto, which feels very closed in and it was hard to find anything other than tourist stuff.
• I got templed out in Kyoto, never mind the teens.
• Nara is a really easy day trip from Kyoto.

Other thoughts are:

Book an introductory tour early on - we had a lovely lady in her 50s for half a day who taught us how to use the subway and what to do in temples so you don't look like an idiot foreigner.

Even if you don't go to an onsen, try to spend one night in a Ryokan, a traditional inn. We did this twice (with onsens, but not compulsory) and it was one of the highlights of the trip, particularly the meals.
Don't fly, get the bullet train and buy an amazing eki-bento - train packed lunch - at the station. Honestly, so much fun.
The Manga Museum in Kyoto has a lot of English displays and books and was great for the teen.