To the OP - I have looked at your other post, and I agree with Crellston. We are all volunteers here, and we are not inclined to design an itinerary for you. I will, however give my insight into Japan costs in the hopes that it will help others who stumble across this thread.

I agree with all the posters upstream that Japan is among the most expensive countries in Asia. I found that small aspects of Japan travel add up. For example, the tiniest of houses and museums all charge at least $5 to get in. For example, when we in Takayama, where there are a series of historic houses to visit there, it could really add up by the end of the day. Also, posters upstream have mentioned buying food at grocery stores. However, a small tray of sushi costs about $8, and it is enough for little me. However, a normal size guy would want two trays for a meal. Lastly, even if you don't get a rail pass, the trains and buses are super expensive. For example, I paid $225 for a train ticket from Nagasaki to Tottori. And I spent about $15 for a bus ride around the outskirts of Kumamoto. As you can see, all this ends up. I have not even mentioned hotels. The single rooms that thursdays mentioned are typically the size of a postage stamp, and are rarely less than $70 per night.

The only suggestion I can make for saving money would be to look into the myriad of passes available in Japan. Many cities offer day passes for museums and/or buses. For example, I got a one day bus pass in Nagasaki which proved helpful, since the sights there are all spread out. I also got a one day "Fun Pass" in Kumamoto which included the buses and ferries.

thursdays and crellston - I am glad you are both well. We are well here in So Cal as well. I see lots of people walking in my neighborhood, and lots of sidewalk chalk street art by children.

Thursdaysd, "I hope your housing situation will be OK after June, wonder if somewhere like South Korea will be letting foreigners in then”

Thanks, I sure it will all work out ok- it usually does. I hadn’t really thought much about travel this year. South Korea would be great (if only for the food!!) but even if things are ok there then I doubt they will be welcoming foreigners with open arms. I am already detecting some “xenophobia” here which has mainifested itself in a great deal of resentment for those attempting to visit second homes in holiday area. Spoke with my son in Sydney today who seems to think that Australia will be closed to tourism for at least the remainder of this year. I think that will likely be our next trip, but who knows when.

Had to chuckle re you changing your hairdressers appt. Carolyn is adamant they should be classed as an essential industry

Good to hear you are well CaliforniaLady. Seems that the lockdown in the US is not so strictly enforced as it is here, which in turn is not as strict as it is in Italy and Spain. Who knows who has got it right? Our time outside is only for an hour a a day for exercise or shopping for essentials. on Thursday it will be extended for another 3 weeks at least. I only hope that the “cure” for this horrible virus doesn’t turn out to cause more damage to the world than the disease itself.

I am really glad we managed to visit Japan in January!

are your interests.

They can be found almost everywhere across Japan. These are the essential elements of Japanese tourism.
can become viable, if you go for the more affordable destinations. Destinations in Kyushu and Shinkoku may allow you to travel at this budget.

A BestWestern hotel room in Kagoshima in Apr 2019 cost around $30 (early bird) per night. You still have $30/�3,500. You can grab lunch in a restaurant at �1,000. If you settle with a fast food restaurant for another meal, you should still be able to get a city transport pass and pay for some attractions in the city. Or, if your hotel provides bike for rental, the transport cost would come down a bit.

Kyushu regional rail pass also comes off a lot cheaper. You can choose between the Northern Kyushu and Southern Kyushu versions, both of which covers Shinkansen in the respective region.

Another inter-city option is the high speed bus, which might be a bit more affordable.

Kagoshima may not sound as reputable as Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto. It is home to the World Heritage Site of Meiji Industrialization, e.g. Sengan-en and Shuko Shuseikan Museum https://www.senganen.jp/en/experienc...orld-heritage/

You will find the Sakurajima volcano a throw away from the city centre- a backdrop of the Kagoshima Bay. An aquarium is not far away.

Do they tick your boxes?

Yes, I'm traveling solo. I don't mind 1 star travel. We all would love 5 star travel but like you said I rather go do a 1 star than never go at all

I'm not asking for a complete itinerary. I'm juat looking for ideas on what to do from people that have traveled to Japan. I'm actually tweaking the trip. Im going to go for 31 days so I can fly business class

This all seems unlikely.

You've had six weeks to consider the advice and ideas that you were given;. You started with the highest planning level: your destination is Japan, you will spend some number of days, and have a budget of some amount. Six weeks later have you made any progress on your plan other than changing the length of stay?

Isn't that progressed? Haha the trip has changed so therefore progress

To thursdaysd's list I would add Nikko as a day trip from Tokyo, Takayama for the town and its open air museum, and Matsumoto for its castle:

https://flic.kr/p/7pXfPa https://flic.kr/p/7q235j https://flic.kr/p/7q2Htf

I visited those on my first Japan trip. I would add the Art Nouveau museum in Takayama as well worth seeing. I visited Shirakawa-go on the way from Kanazawa to Takayama.

Information????????

https://mytimetotravel.wordpress.com...u-in-takayama/

Awesome pictures! Thanks for these recs

Here's what I have so far.
Tokyo-7
Hakone-2
Kyoto-7 (Day trip Nara)
Kanazawa-4 (Day trip Shirakawa-go)
Osaka-3 (Day trip Mount Shigi
Hiroshima-3 (Day trip Miyajima)

I was in Japan for a conference a long time ago and then had a week to myself. I took the train from Tokyo to Kanazawa, stopping for a couple of nights in Takayama, and on the way back stopped in Matsumoto. Nikko was a day trip from Tokyo. Kyoto and Nara were part of a group tour in a previous year.

Not sure why you are spending all that time in Osaka, easy enough to do a day trip from Kyoto. Also, that is a lot of time in Hiroshima (some people sleep in Miyajima instead of day tripping, but it may be expensive). I would consider Takayama and Matsumoto instead of Osaka, especially if you are going to Kanazawa. Matsue is another option on that side of Honshu.

Ok, that is a good start. I like that you found Shigi-san. It is not a typical stop and all I know about it is what I learned in the last 5 minutes. You will want to stop at Himeji on the way to Hiroshima. You could fly into Tokyo and home from Hiroshima. You have lots of city and not much countryside, but ok. You could change the order. For example going from Tokyo to Kanazawa and then the rest to avoid a backtrack (only 2 hours tho). You could move a longer stay to the end.
One thing you can do now is to look into lodging.

I have 26 things that I've picked out to do in Osaka. I may not get through all 26 but I think 3 days will help achieve that. I don't like to rush. I did Italy last year and had fun since it was my first time out of the country but if I'm being real with myself I rushed the trip. The longest I stayed in 1 place wasa 3 days and the shortest 1 day. I told myself from now on I'm going to take my time and not rush through these trips.

You didn't specify what the "things" are, but don't overdo it. Prioritize and as you said, don't rush things. Osaka is really at its very best at night though.