Japan planning thread

[Takoneko]

I’ve just booked the hotels for my third trip to Japan next year and about to start planning the itinerary in earnest.

Japan threads pop up here quite a bit and I think people spend a lot of time on planning for Japan trips. I thought it might be nice to have a shared thread where we can pool questions, tips and share research for anyone who has a trip coming up.

All budgets and styles of trip are welcome, whether you’re going hiking, temple-hopping, skiing or visiting theme parks, maid cafes and arcades and whether you’re going to hostels or 5 star hotels. I don’t think there’s a right or wrong way to enjoy Japan. It has something for everyone.

We’re a couple in our late 30s and our trip will be mid-budget, probably up to about £3.4k per person with food and spends. We’ve splashed out a bit on direct JAL flights and have upgraded all our hotel rooms to at least king size beds in hotels that are in really well connected locations. They are all mid-range Japanese business hotel chains rather than luxury hotels though. (Candeo, Daiwa Roynet and Sotetsu Fresa). We like Japanese food but we’re definitely more likely to be eating eat in mom and pop restaurants and mid-range Japanese chains than in fancy kaiseki places. Any recommendations for mid range restaurants with relaxed atmospheres would be very welcome.

We plan to use the Sanyo-San’in rail pass in the second half of our trip and would be really interested to share ideas for places to visit with anyone else who is planning on using that pass (or who has used it in the past). At the moment we are thinking Iwakuni, Miyajima, Kurashiki and Onomichi from Hiroshima and Himeji and Uji from Osaka, but we are open to other ideas. I speak passable tourist Japanese and we are ok with going to places that don’t cater to English speakers and muddling through with broken Japanese and Google translate.

@Takoneko thanks so much for starting this thread it made my trip so much easier.

I did all of this except the day 1 evening food tour (jet lag) and teamlabs (I didn’t pre-book)

I did see a lot more of Osaka and Tokyo than my plan. I picked up short guided tours after travelling independently to the areas. That worked well.

There is a loop line in Osaka as well as Tokyo and the Kansai train pass is useful.

@SunnyTimes3 Wow! Sounds like you managed to fit loads in. Did you have a good time in Nara? Were the deer ok or was the rutting season a problem?

We never used the loop line in Osaka. We stayed on the Midosuji line, which we found really convenient as it runs through so many of the main tourist areas.

I’m really glad this thread was helpful. I’ve really been enjoying talking to people about their plans and hearing about their trips.

@Takoneko i loved those foot patches too, brought some home with me! @faffadoodledo agree with you on the crackers, we didn’t feed the deer, I’m
with you on the wild animals should be left to be wild. Interested to hear others experiences of Nara. @SunnyTimes3 looks like you had a fab trip!
I don’t suppose anyone has any suggestions for services apartments or hotels in Tokyo that aren’t ridiculously expensive do they? We’re there for 3 nights 17-20/7 and prices are eye watering at the moment! We need 3 rooms for 3, happy for suggestions on which area, we previously stayed in Ueno ( loved) and Hamamatsucho which we really didn’t like!! Thank you!

Just placemarking whilst I thoroughly read the thread and make some notes. We’re aiming to go spring 2026

went to nagasaki
moving
fewer tourists

there's a great yatai culture
had some great meals, gyoza, oden
castella - brought over by the portuguese

dejima has interesting architecture
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dejima

@tzarine Nagasaki sounds great. We won’t make it down that far on this trip but definitely want to spend a week or two in Kyushu one day.

@NotDonna the thing I should have done was go a bit more off the beaten track. Pick somewhere to visit that is less well known.

The deer at Nara were not really wild. They bow to receive a biscuit and bow a thank you afterwards. Lots of screaming from people holding biscuits and being chased by deer. People petting them and kissing them. Holding babies next to their heads etc 😦

@NotDonna Spring is the most wonderful time to visit. Will it be your first time in Japan?

Yes 1st time. Nit sure how long we’ll have.

I agree about the deer in Nara. I sat down on the grass there to read my book, and one of them sneaked up behind me and ate a big mouthful of the pages.

I agree about Miyajima, which is also really lovely and worth seeing while in Hiroshima, an incredible place to visit you shouldn't miss.

@Netcam @faffadoodledo The situation with the Miyajima deer was actually quite controversial. Up until 2008 they used to be fed by people just like the ones in Nara. The local government then decided that the deer population needed reducing. They rejected suggestions by animals rights groups and vets to do that through a spaying/neutering programme and instead banned feeding the deer so the population slowly thinned out through starvation. The population has settled now, but by all accounts it was pretty miserable in the early 2010s, when the population was in the process of being starved off and skinny, sad looking deer wandered around trying to pilfer food from tourists.

https://www.odditycentral.com/animals/the-tame-deer-of-miyajima-island-are-starving-to-death.html

https://www.change.org/p/help-the-deer-by-protecting-them-from-starvations-promote-birth-control-and-help-the-mountain

There’s definitely issues with Nara, but those deer would not cope if they suddenly just banned feeding them.

We are thinking of going this summer. Is that a crazy idea (due to weather) or not feasible (£££) ?

Feeling quite overwhelmed with options so I'd be tempted to book through Trailfinders or another travel agent

Gosh @Takoneko both those approaches are quite different to the one we'd take in the UK of shooting and eating the resulting venison. I'm quite familiar with the situation in the Royal Parks where numbers are carefully monitored, numbers kept down, and people are encouraged to keep their distance.

I don’t know if it’s because they are sacred or because there is just no culture of eating venison in Japan, but I was also struck by the fact that nobody thought of eating them.

@toodles9 Summer is generally not considered the best time to visit Japan. The weather is very hot and humid at that time of year. The first time I went to Japan was in early June and we found the weather ok. If it’s your only opportunity to visit Japan then I wouldn’t let it put you off, although summer wouldn’t be my first choice.

In terms of cost, what would your rough budget be? Japan isn’t especially expensive, although you’ll obviously pay a premium if you book through someone like Trailfinders. It’s easy enough to book things yourself if cost is an issue. It will likely save you a significant chunk of money.

@toodles9 - we're going in July. We accept that the weather is going to be very hot and humid and understand that we will need to plan our trip accordingly. Fortunately there are plenty of indoor/air con activities and places to visit and we will intersperse these with outdoor things like parks and temples.

I think as long as you adapt your itinerary for the conditions it will be fine.

What’s on your itinerary @QueenMabby?

Thanks both of you. I'm expecting budget in the 9-10k region. Is that accurate or doable?

Unfortunately summer is the only time we can do due to exam leaves etc

I think I know how hot it'll be but maybe I'm underestimating the humidity?

I'm starting from a position of zero with my planning

@toodles9 How many people has the £10k got to cover? What are the ages and interests of your group?

Starting from zero is fine. You have plenty of time and there’s so much information out there.

There are four of us. Two adults and two teens (18/15)

Interests (things we'd like to see) include some of Tokyo's culture (tech and Pokémon fans here), I'd love to squeeze in Disney Sea if we could, maybe some Japanese culture (temples, traditional places).

I'm open to it alll and not beholden to 5 star luxury.

Is it possible?

@toodles9
£10k is possible for that time of year if you book yourself. It won’t be luxury but you will be able to get clean, decent business hotels in good locations for that price. I think it would be miles off what someone like trailfinders would charge though. I doubt you could book one of their tours for less than £25k.

Flights will probably eat up nearly half the budget (I think £4-4.5k) at that time of year. Hotels will will probably be another £3k for two weeks in 3-4 business hotels. That leaves £2.5k for your Shinkansen tickets, attractions and food.

For flights, I strongly recommend taking the Finnair flight to Osaka on the way there and then flying back direct with JAL or BA from Haneda on the way back. We did that last time and it was actually slightly cheaper than a Tokyo round trip and saved us precious time having to double back on ourselves. Based on your interests I would do 3 nights in Osaka, 3 in Kyoto (I didn’t like Kyoto but most people do and in theory it should be less crowded in summer) and then spend at least 6 nights in Tokyo. A lot of people will stop for one night in a ryokan near Mount Fuji but at that time of year I wouldn’t personally bother. Mount Fuji visibility is generally poor in Summer so I wouldn’t want to tie myself to a particular day. I’d watch the weather forecast when I was in Tokyo and take a day trip out as soon as it looks like there’s a decent chance to see the mountain.

If Disneysea is important to you then my advice is to stay close to Tokyo
station or Hatchobori station. That will be the morning where you need the earliest start, so you want to make that journey as easy as possible.

Thank you!

Not decided that yet! Flights are booked and I have a rough idea of where we want to go but it's on my list for next week to nail down the number of nights in each place and to start looking at hotels.

@QueenMabby have you worked out your towns/cities yet? After reading this thread I’m thinking we miss out Kyoto. But it’s our first time do tricky to work out priorities. Who are you flying with?