RushBijoux

Hi,

We're planning our next trip to Japan in early February. The main reason to go is the Snow Light Path festival in Otaru but other than that, we honestly don't know what else to do since it's winter.

We've set aside 1.5 - 2 weeks for the trip, and the other attraction we would like to visit that can still be done in winter is the Fox Village, which is a day trip from Tokyo.

We plan to base ourselves in Tokyo, probably spend 3 days in Otaru just to see the snow festival and the music box museum, the rest will be spent in and around Tokyo.

Not sure what to do in Tokyo as all the recommended places don't seem all that interesting to me, and not sure if they will be open since it's winter. I'm not interested in amusement parks and not really into shopping. I'm also crowd-averse. So far only Tsukiji Fish Market interests me but I heard it's very crowded there. I love quiet atmosphere and sampling local cuisine. I also love the idea of visiting aquariums, zoos, and museums.

I'm interested in Yokohama for some reason and I think I'll actually love Kyoto more (shrines and gardens - but not sure in winter).

So now I'm a bit confused because it's all over the place and I need help narrowing it down. Any suggestion will be appreciated, thank you.

Kathie

I highly recommend that rather than basing yourselves in Tokyo, base yourselves in Kyoto. I think you will find that the temple gardens have a special kind of stark beauty in winter.

kja

If you haven't already done so, spend some time with japan-guide.com.

Good luck!

someotherguy

Will you be there at the time of the Kamakura Festival in Yokote? I've not seen the festival but I have seen the igloos (they keep a couple in a refrigerated display). It looks good: http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3690.html

There are several interesting places in that part of Tohoku (Akita, Kakunodate, Morioka are all along the same rail line).

Kavey

If you are visiting for the Otaru Snow Light Path Festival, I assume you will also do the nearby Sapporo Snow Festival which I think coincides?

You could take an internal flight and go south, right down to Okinawa which should be enjoying balmy weather in February. You may be able to catch Sakura (cherry blossom) season there, as it peaks there at least 2 months earlier than Kanto / Kansai regions.

RushBijoux

Hi, thanks for the suggestions.

I didn't know the cherry blossoms bloomed earlier in Okinawa. Unfortunately, we don't have a budget for the additional domestic flight to Okinawa even though the cherry blossoms and the aquarium really interest me.

I read the plum blossoms will be in bloom in Tokyo in early to mid Feb, though. Is this true? I'm interested to visit Koishikawa Korakuen for this.

Kavey

If you are flying into Japan on an international flight, many of the airlines offer a special fare for internal flights, which I think brings it down pretty low. I used this in 2013 for a flight between Fukuoka and Tokyo, and I think the fare is a flat fare for any domestic flight in Japan. If you let us know the airline, I'm sure one of us can have a look and see if there's anything like that available.

Kavey

Re the blossoms, early February seems extremely unlikely for main peak of blossoms in Tokyo - where did you read that? It's unlikely that timings would vary by more than 2-3 weeks from the usual, and that's a LOT earlier. It's almost impossible to give a definitive answer this far ahead, and there's a vested interest in the travel industry to try and do so, but early Feb for Tokyo just sounds crazy to me.

kja

According to japan-guide.com, the plum trees in Tokyo normally bloom from mid-February through March. I have no idea if that is true, but IME, japan-guide.com is a credible source for most things:
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3034_003.html

Mara

Yushima Shrine in Tokyo not far from Ueno has a plum blossom festival starting in mid-February. I was there a number of years ago in the beginning of March and they were blooming. Also I visited Kamakura that trip and just looking at my photos a number of trees, don't know what kind, had blossomed.

Kavey

Kja, I've just read the page you linked and it says that the PLUMS are from mid February through March. The cherry blossoms "usually takes place in late March and early April and features several early blooming weeping cherry trees around the garden's entrance gate."

Kavey

Sorry, I note you DID reference the plums.

Kavey

To make up for my *deplorable* lack of comprehension / reading skills, here's a Japanese language page on where to enjoy plum blossoms in Japan and when.

If you drop the link itself into Google Search, it will offer you the translated page, which lists places that have a lot of plum trees planted so are good for blossom viewing. And you can then click on links to find out more about plum festivals...

http://www.rurubu.com/season/winter/ume/

mrwunrfl

Otaru is a great place for sushi. I liked the Hilton there.

If you are interested in visiting an onsen town there is a great one south of Sapporo - Noboribetsu Onsen. If you go there, visit the onsen at Daichi Takimotokan even if you don't stay there. http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e6750.html

Toyako (Lake Toya) is not far from Noboribetsu. I visited the budding volcano and got the great view of the caldera that holds the lake. I thought I should stay there but stuck to the plan of just passing through on the way to Hakodate.

mrwunrfl

My point being that if you make the effort to fly to Sapporo and go out to Otaru that you ought to look at spending more time in Hokkaido on that trip.

Boveney

¬¬¬¬¬¬I'd like to second Mara's suggestion of the plum festival at Yushima Shrine. This year it was held Feb 8 to March 8 - it is small but lovely, with music and dance performances on the weekends and lots of food and sake. It is in the Ueno area, so easy to get to. And within walking distance (3 minutes walk from Yushima station ) of Kyu-Iwasaki-tei, well worth a visit. This is a historic property, the main residence of the Mitsubishi family and an intriguing blend of Western and Japanese architecture. http://teien.tokyo-park.or.jp/en/kyu-iwasaki/view.html
OP mentioned worry re winter closures - don't worry! The only time museums/visitor attractions shut down is really the New Year period, 29 Dec - Jan 1. It's not like the UK when National Trust properties can close from end of summer through Easter.
And I did want to say that fixation on cherry blossoms leads us to forget that in fact there is a flower celebrated in virtually every season in Japan. Not on the scale of hanami, of course, but still wonderful. The winter peony garden, in Ueno, for example will be open January through February.
Picking up on the OP's interests: the aquarium at Sunshine City, Ikebukuro gets good reviews. Due to discovery of contaminated ground at the new site, the relocation of Tsukuji market has been delayed so it should still be operating at the old site in early February. The OP is crowd adverse - which means visiting in the off season is a good idea - although lunar new year 2017 falls on January 28 so there might still be Chinese tourists around. Museums and restaurants can be enjoyed year round - and there are dishes that really are best enjoyed in the cold season, eg nabe.
In short - I think early February is a fantastic time to visit Tokyo.

LuisJp

In Hokkaido, you might interested in Asahiyama Zoo and Poroto Kotan.
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e6892.html
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e5375.html

Fox Village is rather far from Tokyo. Sendai Aquarium might attract you, or Ginzan Onsen and Saiho-ji Temple.
http://www.uminomori.jp/umino/en/index.html
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e7975.html
http://www.johgi.or.jp/

There is another Kamakura festival in Yunishigawa Onsen, much nearer than Yokote from Tokyo.
http://www.yunishigawa.co.jp/kamakura/

I heard a good review on Shinagawa Aquarium. Here is another page for Ume:
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2013.html

Kanazawa, Shirakawago and Gokayama, Kinosaki Onsen, and Kifune-jinja Shirine are all nice with snow in winter.
http://kifunejinja.jp/

RushBijoux

Thank you so much for all the suggestions, I really appreciate it!

We've decided to give the fox village a pass since it's getting in the way of our planning. Once we did that, we focus ourselves on Hokkaido and are still deciding between Tokyo and Kyoto for the second base. It's most likely going to be Tokyo, though, simply because it has more choices in terms of everything.

We'll be flying with either JAL or ANA, if that matters.

I'm interested in onsens but I have to find a private one since I have a tattoo.

I'm a little bit miffed by how expensive things are in Japan. Does anyone have tips on how to save money? Any hotel / airbnb to recommend in Tokyo?

Frankly, part of the reason we canceled our plan to visit the fox village is because there's a blog that says it costs about USD300 per person for a return trip to the village from Tokyo.

kja

If you plan to visit both Tokyo and Kyoto, consider flying into one and out of the other.

LuisJp

I had written it would cost 5000 JPY between the Fox village and the nearby Shinkansen station:
https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopi....html#76442416

Baselines would be; capsule hotels could be less than 3000 JPY, ryokans around 5000 JPY, and some business hotel chains less than 10000 JPY, such as APA hotels and Toyoko Inns.