coreyazwolf

Will be in Japan for 10 days and may have a choice on our time budget to go to Hiroshima for the day or to walk in the bamboo groves or Arashiyama Bamboo Groves in Kyoto
Any other suggestion for this "sampler" tour would be welcome
Also, suggestions for 3 days in Tokyo and 3 in Kyoto and 1 in Osaka
would like to see a baseball game We are doing a Friendly Planet tour
City tour of Tokyo including Tokyo Tower, East Gardens and Asakusa Kannon
Afternoon at leisure

DAY 4 Mt. Fuji & Hakone

Enjoy a beautiful panoramic drive from Tokyo to Mt. Fuji
Drive to the 5th station and see gorgeous views of the surrounding countryside
Continue to Hakone for lunch and a scenic cruise on Lake Ashi
Board the Komagatake Ropeway and ascend Mt. Komagatake
Return to Tokyo late this afternoon
Full Day Itinerary
DAY 5 Tokyo

Full day at leisure in Tokyo
DAY 6 Tokyo & Kyoto

3 nights Hotel Nikko Princess Kyoto. Breakfast.

Travel to Kyoto aboard the Shinkansen, Japan's bullet train
Enjoy a walking/subway orientation tour of Kyoto
Balance of the day at leisure
Full Day Itinerary
DAY 7 Kyoto
City tour of Kyoto including Nijo Castle, the Golden Pavilion, and Kiyomizu Temple
Balance of the day at leisure, or join an optional Kaiseki dinner show
Full Day Itinerary
Optional Excursion: Japanese Kaiseki dinner & entertainment (purchased locally)
DAY 8 Kyoto or optional Hiroshima & Miyajima excursion
Full day at leisure in Kyoto, or join an optional excursion to Hiroshima & Miyajima
Optional Excursion: Hiroshima & Miyajima (purchased locally)
DAY 9 Kyoto, Nara & Osaka

Drive to Nara, one of the earliest capitals of Japan
Visit Todaiji Temple and the Kasuga Shrine
Continue to Osaka and see Osaka Castle and Dotonboroi Street on an afternoon city tour
DAY 10 Osaka & Depart Tokyo/Arrive USA
Board the bullet train from Osaka to Tokyo
Transfer to Narita Airport to board your return flight
Arrive in the USA later today

mrwunrfl

Sounds like your itinerary came from an organized tour description. You can do this all on your own, but if you want a tour then ok.

I would want to know the details of:
"Optional Excursion: Hiroshima & Miyajima (purchased locally)"
before I could say it was a good tour option for a person who wants a sampler tour.

A free day in Kyoto could be well spent. There is more there than a walk in a bamboo forest.

How late can you exercise that option?

BigRuss

When is your trip? Can't see baseball games outside of baseball season.

Are you on a 10-day tour or are you just cutting and pasting an itinerary from a tour to solicit suggestions?

Go to japan-guide.com for information on Tokyo and Kyoto and figure out what to put on your wishlist.

shelemm

Bamboo groves can be very boring...... neatly trimmed paths, nothing but bamboo. Maybe on a mountainside with temples and lakes, etc like the South China Bamboo Sea, but you will probably find it pretty enough for one photo and then you should be on to something else.

thursdaysd

I just walked the bamboo path. It takes a few minutes and was jammed with people. However, there are other worthwhile things to do in Arashiyama, but you would need a guidebook rather than a tour catalog to find them. There is a GREAT deal more to see in Kyoto itself, too. You will find the sights listed on the tour full of other people as well - tour groups and school groups.

Kathie

The temples and gardens in Arashiyama were our favorites - we were there during the koyo (fall colors). If it were me - and it is not - I would skip the tours and do all of this independently.

We very much enjoyed our time at Hakone, but thought the pirate ship on Lake Ashi was the least interesting and least scenic part of that day.

kja

I strongly encourage you to spend some serious time with japan-guide.com

I preferred Hiroshima to the Arashiyama bamboo groves, but then, I've walked through several bamboo groves and there is (thankfully) only one Hiroshima. I'd also combine Hiroshima with an overnight in Miyajima. YMMV.

crellston

We didn't visit Hiroshima but loved Arashiyama. Some photos and detail of about trip there a few years ago @ http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog...7500/tpod.html

I agree with Thursdaysd that there is a huge amount to see in Kyoto and, in the context of the time you have, I would not venture further out.

thursdaysd

"... there is (thankfully) only one Hiroshima..."

Err - Nagasaki! Which I will visit instead of Hiroshima on my current trip.

kja

Oh my, that was embarrassing. Thank you, thursdaysd, for setting the record straight.