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.

@MondayYogurt yes I agree. We're upgrading our luggage this year mainly for that reason.

The Sakura forecast has been updated again. It looks like the blossoms will be late again this year. That will probably suit most of people going in our school Easter break, as it’s a late one this year.

https://s.n-kishou.co.jp/w/sp/sakura/sakuratop.html?f=cntn250213#googtrans(en)

Has anyone on here ever taken one of the novelty themed Shinkansen? We are thinking of taking the Hello Kitty Shinkansen for one of our day trips, as the timing seems to work out. Does anyone else have any experience of this?

It’s included in the price of our rail pass so the only “cost” is a slightly earlier start than we would otherwise have planned in the morning. We’d need to leave the hotel around 8am, so not the crack of dawn but probably around an hour earlier than we would otherwise have set off. Just curious as to whether anyone else has done this and whether they enjoyed the experience.

Please, please update if you go on it! 😂
It's on my bucket list, if I can make it before it stops running. Funnily enough, I was reading a review on it just yesterday. It sounded worth doing for the novelty of it, even if you're not a HK fan.

@DancingLions I’ll report back after the trip if we do end up going on it. I can’t really think of any reason not to give it a whirl. It seems to work out for our trip so hopefully I’ll be able to let you know what it’s like.

If you do this, I definitely wouldn’t recommend watching the film ‘Bullet Train’ first 😱 😂😂

Yes, it was fine but unless you’re a huge fan it’s really more for entertaining kids IMO.

@Halsall Now I feel strangely compelled to watch it. 😂

@MondayYogurt We won’t have any kids with us. I’m not sure I’d describe myself as a “huge fan”. I’m not really into hello kitty as such, but do like experiencing these sorts of slightly nuts, only-in-Japan experiences. We’ll only be on the train for about half an hour. I’m assuming there’s no real downside to getting the Hello Kitty Shinkansen over another train if we’d be doing the journey anyway? We’ll be travelling in the Hakata-Osaka direction, which the website says is less busy.

Can anyone recommend a hotel or apartment in Osaka with some character? Need bedrooms (4 people total) Everything I look at seems rather dull. Near (but not in the thick of) Dotonburi would be ideal.

Sorry should have said budget is about £800 for the 2 nights for all of us.

Also I have a question about futons, do they have feathers in them? I am very allergic and it seems hard to get this info!

@OldieButBaddie We stayed in the Henn Na Hotel Osaka Shinsaibashi.

The check in desk is staffed by robot dinosaurs and there’s a little troupe of dancing robots in the reception area. Does that count as character?

It’s walking distance to Dotonbori but not right in the middle of it. It’s also just steps away from one of the entrances to the Shinsaibashi metro station.

I don’t know what the ages of your group are, but if two separate rooms would be OK, then I’d recommend it. We thought it was great.

Forgot to include a link.

https://global.hennnahotel.com/en/shinsaibashi/

No downside at all. Makes for some unique photos as well.

@MondayYogurt Great! Thanks so much.

Sorry for my late reply, yes we took the Hello Kitty train from ( I think!) Hiroshima to Himeji ( or maybe Himeji to Tokyo?), we hadn’t realised we had booked it and I was so excited when it came into the station! There is a carriage where you can buy merchandise and a few hello Kitty lifesize figures . It was fab and I’d recommend if it fits in, just something a bit different!

@Waffles21 Great! That’s definitely decided it. We’ll give it a go. It doesn’t involve going out of our way and it sounds like the sort of thing that’s worth experiencing once.
I’m getting excited for this trip now. I think it’s going to come around quickly.

Oh thanks that looks fab but unfortunately has no availability for when we are there 🙁

@OldieButBaddie That’s a shame. It’s a really good area to stay in. Hopefully you’ll find something that appeals.

Oh I was looking at the wrong one, it does! Thanks I will book!

@OldieButBaddie Hope you enjoy it! We really liked it.

We also really enjoyed this okonomiyaki place just around the corner too.

https://maps.app.goo.gl/hzRtgEyXsgnuEzk46?g_st=com.google.maps.preview.copy

The Gion Matsuri is going to be on when we're in Kyoto. Has anyone been and is it worth watching?

Also can anyone recommend a place to go for a kimono experience? Dd is keen to do one. Thank you.

@QueenMabby No doubt it will be insanely crowded, but I don’t think I would miss it if I was going to be there at that time. It will be an experience you’ll probably only get to have once, so I’d go for it.

Thank you! We are travelling with my dd and her bf (both 22) who are ecstatic at the thought of this hotel! Despite having lived in Tokyo for some time now they have never encountered robot dinosaur receptionists 😂

Went 10 years ago when it was very popular but not insanely popular. If you’re there at the time I don’t see any reason not to attend, unless you hate crowds. Festival food is delicious.