Japan Planning Thread 3

[Takoneko]

Hi!

This is a new Japan Planning Thread for when our last one is full.

Feel free to ask any questions here related to travel in Japan, regardless of budget or style of trip.

I know it’s not on everyone’s list (in fact not sure I’ve seen it on the thread yet) but if anyone makes it to Kyushu I HIGHLY recommend Yakushima. It is a world away from the golden circle and we’ve had an incredible few days here, I don’t want to leave!

@CitygirlrurallifeSounds great - we will be in Kyushu in November. So far we’re staying in Fukuoka and Nagasaki, and we were thinking of Kagoshima for our third city (three nights in each place). We were thinking of a day trip to Yakushima, but is it a bit too far just for a day? It does look lovely. What sort of accommodation did you stay in, and what did you do? (Not that I particularly need an activity). Thanks!

@Pusspot We just left them in lockers. We’ll be forwarding our bags from here onto Morioka and just taking a backpack with us.

We’re planning on stopping at Takasaki for the daruma temple and then visiting the Railway museum in Ōmiya where we’ve got a hotel booked for one night to chain together our rail passes without going all the way back to Tokyo.

@Citygirlrurallife That sounds fabulous. I’m so glad you’re having a great time.

Yes we were aware but it's the only time we could work together as our of work arrangements. Is there any device you would give for anything??

Also we want to go to the area which is like ghibli movie in Kyoto I think it's kibune, is this possible as we're staying in Miyakojima?

I used to live in Japan, I recommend every tries staying in a capsule hotel, ryokan and love hotel (if not with young kids) at least once each x

I wouldn’t do a day trip, the fastest ferry is 2 hours and the last one is quite early in the day. We’re in a forest lodge - Yaedake Sanso - which really feels in the middle of the rainforest.

you can hire a car yourselves but I would really recommend getting in touch with Yes Yakushima for their guided island tour

We did one night Kagoshima before here and we’re back there tomorrow night. I haven’t given it much of a chance but if it were me I would keep cities to Nagasaki and Fukuoka and get as much time on Yakushima as you can instead

There are benefits to visiting in the rainy season - it's quieter, and you get dramatic views, day and night.

I've added a few ideas to your list.

Tokyo:

• Harajuku - Look street, vintage stores, Yoyogi park, Meji Jingu, shopping (Daiso, cosme etc)
• Asakusa - Sensoji temple, nakamise shopping street, Sanrio + smiski
• Tsujki outer market
• Shibuya scramble
• Gotoku-ji temple
• Tokyo tower - outside only
• Team labs planet
• tokyo Disneyland
• Omotesando - the famous tree-lined upmarket shopping and dining street that links Aoyama-dori and Meiji jingu / Harajuku. Harajuku is for the youth, Omotesando is for grown ups. Be sure to explore the streets that branch off the main boulevard, as there are interesting independent shops and restaurants worth looking at.
• Shimokitazawa - like Harajuku but more authentic, with narrower streets, cool vintage shops
• Yanaka Ginza - old Tokyo feeling, pre-Second World War which is rare
• Shinjuku Isetan - the flagship department store of Japaneseness. The food court in the basement will be great in the rain.
• Marunouchi - an excellent cityscape view on the doorstep of Tokyo Station. Head into the Shin-Marunouchi building and have a quick drink at the Stand T on the 1F (ground floor), and then head up to the 7F to Marunouchi House, where you have several excellent dining options that people take in after work. Rigoletto is a popular one.
• Or go to the nearby Tokia building and go to Mucho for some lively and tasty Mexican food
• Ginza for the upmarket and sophisticated nightlife - cocktail bars
• The Ginza route between Yurakucho and Shimbashi lined with standing bars and izakayas frequented by locals after work.
• Yurakucho - visit the compact izakaya restaurants under the tracks for a proper feeling of the real Tokyo

Osaka

• natural history museum
• Nara day trip - got to do the deer park, there is no escaping that
• Kuromon market
• Ring making
• Food samples
• donki
• Umeda Sky Building - a must do. The open gallery at the top is superb. Excellent view
• Hankyu Umeda basement food court - very good and excellent in the rain
• Night time - Namba, Shinsaibashi - classic narrow streets, neon lighting, standing bars and clubs.
• Hozenji Yokocho - for the local standing bars and food options. Narrow streets, old world charm, paved streets

Kobe

• A day trip is possible, but it's actually a great destination in itself, visit
• Hyogo Prefectural Museum for the Tadao Ando architecture - get the apple shot
• Go to Kitano-cho, which is an area near the foot of the mountains with European-style buildings built by European merchant traders and is a quite characterful maze of narrow, steeply sloped streets, cafes and independent shops
• Visit Harbourland, Mosaic and Meriken Park (in the same place) in the evening for the excellent night cityscape views
• Venus Bridge - a splendid elevated view of the city which is much enjoyed by tourists and locals. One of the most prized night views in Japan. A short taxi ride or 20 minute challenging walk from the centre

Kyoto

• Arishiyama monkey park - this will be very busy. Recommend Otagi Nenbutsu-ji instead. A short taxi ride away. excellent memorable photo shots with hundreds of stone figures for a unique experience
• Okazaki shrine
• Nishiki market
• Kodai-ji bamboo forest
• Go to the Kamogawa River and take in Kyoto life in the evening. This is what the locals do. Restaurants should have set up their outdoor operations then, so you can eat there too. Or just sit there with a rice ball and drink you bought from the convenience store for a 2 quid like a local.
• Shijo / Kyoto Kawaramachi is a good spot to be near, as there is so much going on there in the evenings, from eateries to drinkaries, listening bars

Hakone

• Odakyu pass "Hakone loop" - it is much talked about, and is worth it especially in the rainy season as its quieter, and the moody clouds give you much more interesting views. Best to do it train, ropeway and then the boat.

I hope some of those prove interesting!

@Citygirlrurallife thank you - that looks wonderful. It sounds like a very relaxing place. I will do a bit of research over the long weekend.

Thank you so much I will look into these! Do you think we would be able to go to the area which is like ghibli movie in Kyoto I think it's kibune, is this possible as we're staying in Miyakojima Osaka?

Kifune is wonderful if you can beat the crowds! It's about 2 hours from Osaka and 1 hour from central Kyoto so very doable. It is great and the atmosphere actually peaks during the rainy season with the mist and reflection of colour on the leaves. The rainy season also means fewer people. Try to arrive either at or before 8am for views and lunch, or late afternoon (4.30pm) for the lanterns and fireflies.

Today we took a train to Fukui and then rented a car to explore a bit. We went to the dinosaur museum, echizen daibutsu and the katsuyama castle museum. Theres’s still loads that we didn’t get to see. (Eiheiji, Echizen-Ono castle etc.)

I can’t recommend Fukui prefecture highly enough. The dinosaur museum is fantastic and Echizen Daibutsu (although modern) is really something. It is worth having a car there, but they do very affordable rentals near the station and we got a discount with our rail pass. Everywhere you look the views are breathtaking on a clear, sunny day like today.

@Takoneko Excellent! On the Japan sea side you definitely benefit from a car, so that was a good call. We haven't done the dinosaur museum since it was newly renovated 3 years ago. It sounds like it was fab. Were there many billigual descriptions on the various exhibits?

@FrauPaige Yes, there were plenty of bilingual descriptions. Almost everything had English explanations. It’s a brilliant museum and far less crowded than NHM in London, so you can take your time and properly read things.

In Kyoto I really enjoyed dressing up in a kimono and wandering about, lots of people do it and rental shops are all over the place.
the modern art museum had beautiful pictures and good value for the amount you could see.
the town where the monkey park is, was crowded but nice souvenir shops. Also we enjoyed a day trip to uji where there’s the matcha museum and everywhere sells matcha products

We’ve really enjoyed our time in Nagano and Kanazawa. We’ve been lucky to have sakura everywhere that we’ve been so far.

Yesterday we were at the sumo jungyo and I had an absolute blast.

I’m not sure I’d recommend it as a tourist activity if you’re not already a fan. The time spent on matches is pretty short and they aren’t anything like full intensity. It was also really not set up for non-Japanese speakers. I know just enough Japanese and about sumo to follow what was going on and get by but it’s by far the least English-friendly activity I’ve done. The match sheets etc are all kanji only, all of the announcements were Japanese only, all of the signage at the food stalls etc.

If you’re a sumo fan, then it’s worth it to see the fan favourites in a relaxed setting and having some fun. Ura and Ichiyamamoto are great fun at jungyo.

We stopped in Fukushima on our way up to Morioka this morning and did the hike at Hanamiyama Park. It’s incredibly beautiful right now. The mountains are a riot of colour. If anyone is within daytrip distance of there in the next few days then I highly recommend it.

We did the longest hiking route and it was very manageable. It’s not too steep anywhere and the views at the top are fantastic. They are running special shuttle buses from Fukushima station and there’s loads of helpful staff around. It is chilly up in Tohoku though. We could definitely feel that we’re getting further north when we changed trains in Sendai just now.

I’m having a blast in Japan. Feel like I live here now and I’ve forgotten all about my normal existence at home. We’re on the final leg, though, currently in Osaka and getting the ferry cruise to Busan, then flight home at the weekend. I can’t believe it’s coming to an end.

I'm going to be saying “arigato gasaimas” (sp?) for the next 3 months. I’m going to miss 24 hour convenience stores and toilets every 100m. I’m going to miss the tinkly sounds everywhere you go. And temples around each corner. And Muji. I wont miss don Quijote though.

Making the most of our last few days and see you when I get back!

I can’t believe it but I think my favourite place has been Tokyo. Loved it there, and wish we’d had a few more days. Kawaguchi was my second favourite.

@Actnaturally Do you know how cheap rent is in Japan? 400 quid per month gets you a holiday apartment that a family would normally live in, within 10 minutes of a city centre, and a short hop to an airport. It makes a mockery of the grind and extortionate house prices that we think are normal in the UK!

@Actnaturally glad to hear you’ve had a great time. I felt the same about our trip in October. We absolutely loved the trains, vending machines and Japanese manners. We were nodding and bowing days after we got home! Enjoy South Korea - it will be interesting to see how it compares to Japan.
@Takoneko good to hear your updates. Sounds like the Sakura has been abundant on your trip.
How would you rate Kanazawa? We’re going to stay five nights there in November, using it as a base.
We considered Fukushima, but will have to leave it for another time. I’m already thinking about a third trip to Japan!

also a bit sad about our final leg coming up, we go to Fukuoka tomorrow. I really really love Nagasaki, it’s a super city and wish we had more time here.

our road trip round Kyushu was also brilliant and I’m so glad we focused on this island this trip.

off potter shopping in Arita now!

Kanazawa is lovely and really well connected to other places. If you have a Hokuriku arch pass then you really can treat that Shinkansen line almost like a metro line and zip up and down it. We actually went all the way back to Nagano for a day for the sumo and it only took an hour. It can take longer than that to get from one part of Tokyo to another. We stayed 4 nights and could happily have stayed another night or two.

The median salary in Japan is under £19k though, so around half what it is in the U.K. I’m sure it doesn’t feel so cheap for people paid in yen and the work culture involves really long hours. I think quality of life here is pretty good but it’s misleading to try to compare prices to the UK when the locals earn co much less than we do. The weak yen and stagnant economy are a big part of what make it feel so cheap for foreign visitors.