Two weeks in Japan

[Iloveabaconbutty]

We've got a fortnight booked in Japan. We need to do it on a fairly modest budget but would like to make the most of the two weeks we have there. We've never been before and are sorting out an itinerary now.

We're really looking forward to it. We're sorted with Japan Rail Passes. We have a number of ideas but would welcome recommendations, suggestions, advice from anyone who has been before. Thanks!

Again, thanks so much for eveybody's suggestions, recommendations - and enthusiasm! There are a whole load of ideas we are now considering as a result.

Absolutely say small case or rucksack for trains… courier big luggage pieces.
Miho is like a Bond movie.

@Iloveabaconbutty how did your trip go? Particularly interested in whether you went to Kyoto and whether its been ruined by insta-tourism

@faffadoodledo I don’t think a city with 17 world heritage sites will be quiet. Just won’t happen. Not sure what you mean by ruined. When we were there it was school week. Kyoto was full of school children having fun and discovering their history. Most tourists are Japanese and it’s up to them what they do. There’s quite a culture of dressing in a kimono snd photographing yourself but who cares. The whole city of Kyoto is worth it regardless of Instagram devotees!

I loved Japan. We did train and hired a car. Highlights were hiking in Japan alps, baseball game in Tokyo, Kanazawa Gardens.
You'll have such a great time!!

I second the 7-11 stores for train picnics. Excellent quality and value fresh food.

@TizerorFizz there have been a lot of news stories on the past week or so about authorities clamping down on bad tourist behavior in parts of Kyoto, and limiting numbers to the Gion and other districts. Just making me a bit twitchy. I live in a part of the UK where Instagram has frankly ruined a couple of a lovely spots - people sweep in and out for the pics, and the places just can't support the numbers. It rang a few bells for me.

@faffadoodledo When you go to Japan, the first thing you notice is that most tourists are the Japanese. There’s around 125 million Japanese people and in, for example, prime cherry blossom time, Kyoto is busy. You cannot stop people visiting their own country or using technology even though you don’t like it. If you prefer quiet, there’s a lot better places on earth to visit! Japan is busy unless you do countryside walks - eg the Nakasendo highway. At popular sites, tourists are inevitable and that will include you! Therefore I would aim for a visit slightly out of peak season. Or if you want to be the only tourist in town, don’t go to Japan!

@TizerorFizz I am not disputing anything you say. But the Japanese authorities themselves seem to be saying that something has shifted of late. I'm perfectly happy with cities - indeed we are deliberately making our trip an urban one; we live rurally so find it refreshing to get some of that energy. https://www.travelweekly.com.au/article/tourists-banned-in-kyoto-streets-after-locals-say-neighbourhood-is-not-a-theme-park/
https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/geisha-district-kyoto-tourist-ban-b2509208.html
and many more stories. It seems to have ramped up here post pandemic for some reason. And the problems seem to be because of foreign not Japanese tourists. It's obviously a recent thing. Not sure when you went.

I’ve just read an article in the Guardian about this. I can see it’s worrying the Japanese. We did go some years ago! I can also see where the majority of tourists come from - apart from home tourists. Some people/tourists won’t have western manners. The Japanese have impeccable manners! A big problem with closing this area off is that the restaurants are here! I’m wondering if they might clear the area out when the Gaikos and Maikos are on their way to the tea houses? Otherwise some business will really suffer.

Rather mundane question on a thread about a beautiful country, but how easy is it to be a vegetarian (no fish) in Japan?

It may have changed since I was there. They used fish sauce in many vegetarian dishes. If you are ok with this then it should be ok. Again it may be better than it was when I visited.

Watching this thread for tips.. Really want to do a trip to Japan but my budget will be minimal. I was thinking hostels or capsule hotels?

You can do it cheaply, the biggest expense will be flights.
If you’re flexible for timings and can go outside of cherry blossom and autumn colour it will help for costs.
https://tokyocheapo.com/
Good budget hotel rooms are cheaper than in the UK. Capsule hotels sometimes work out more expensive, they’re fun for one night though.

I was there a few years ago and visited Tokyo, kamakura, hakone, Hiroshima, Osaka, Kyoto.

All worth seeing and the best holiday I have been on.

I signed up to a tour which was worth it.

@deliciouschilli you can eat very cheaply. We had a pretty OK budget every time we went, took cash (recommended at the time, it’s probably easier to use cards now) and brought masses of it back. Every railway station is surrounded by ramen places that serve delicious, freshly-cooked and cheap food. Not fancy cuisine but a sure-fire bet for a satisfying meal wherever you happen to be.

Get to any templates as early as possible before the tour busses turn up!

Thankyou Saturdaygiraffe and Halsall : ) I would like to do a night in a capsule just for the experience.

Japan is surprisingly cheap in general. You can get a bottle of decent Italian wine at the 7/11 or Lawson convenience stores for £4 or £5. Look for modest eateries called shokodu, which are greasy-spoon type places, often with no name over the door. A standard lunch is teishoku, which is a tray with a main, rice, soup, and condiments, and costs about £6 in most towns (outside Tokyo, anyway).

Also use Google Lens for reading menus, and install the DeepL app on your phone for when you need to communicate something complex (it's much better than Google Translate).

Just come back from 10 days in Japan. We flew to Osaka and were based there for 3 days, spent a day in Kyoto, then travelled south to Shikoku island which is probably off the tourist trail. From there we went on a ferry to Hiroshima for one day.

I've lived nearly all my life in a huge city so wasn't daunted or culture shocked by Osaka really. Kyoto was pretty but already rammed with tourists. Hiroshima was an incredible experience. Matsuyama (largest city on Shikoku) just felt friendly and pleasant and easy to get around. And from there we were able to travel rurally and see villages and beaches and another side to Japan (rice fields, orange groves, stunning sunsets etc).

You will need a surprising amount of cash! So many places, including local public transport, need cash for payments.

It’s peak cherry blossom season in Kyoto! Of course it was rammed. Very much high season. Wait a couple of weeks or three and it won’t be so bad. Early March would be ok too. For me, a day in Kyoto is next to nothing. If you haven’t been, a day is barely touching the surface of this amazing former capital city.

@TizerorFizz I was also in Kyoto last week and rammed with tourists doesn’t even begin to describe just how busy it was. This isn’t my first time in Japan and there has definitely been a change.

We stuck to just a day trip to Kyoto because I knew it would be unpleasantly overcrowded and I was very glad we didn’t spend any longer there. Kyoto will have to be one for a future off-season trip because it’s not a pleasant experience in early April now, beautiful as it is.

There are so many more tourists in Japan in general compared to the last time we were here. In particular, huge numbers of Chinese and Taiwanese tourists. That wasn’t something we encountered on our last trip over a decade ago. Most tourists that we encountered in Kyoto last week were definitely not Japanese.

The only tourist place that we’ve been to where the majority of people seemed to be Japanese was Disneyland. That and the more local parks and gardens.

@Takoneko yikes. My suggested 4 nights (3 days) in Kyoto in November is looking far from attractive. I appreciate its cherry blossom season, but November should be the season for lovely leaves. I'm going to contact the tour company i've used to book, and see if I can tweak. I don't usually stress much about holidays, but this is a long way and not cheap. And my choice, not DH's, so i don't want a chunk of it to be a big fat disappointment.

I agree with @Takoneko.
Large groups of Chinese, and Hong Kong. They are not as friendly or polite.

I would love to go to Japan so it's somewhere I'm planning to go in the future. Just a note to say that Race Across The World starting in Japan is on BBC1 from tonight.