Day 2 sounds awfully busy to me, assuming you have jet lag. But I could be wrong and you can always adjust your plans if necessary.

Visiting Nara en route to Kyoto and spending three nights in Kyoto strikes me as an improvement over your original plan.

mrwunrfl mentioned baseball above. We went to a Yakult Swallows game last year (May), and it was great fun. Very different environment than MLB - especially at the historic Meiji Jingu stadium. If it happens to coincide with your schedule, maybe an interesting evening activity (especially when staying near Shibuya)? We bought our tickets a week or two ahead of time and picked them up at will call.

https://www.yakult-swallows.co.jp/en/

ms_go, thanks for the link for the baseball info. There are games during the front end of our stay, and it's not too complicated for us to take the Ginza line to the stadium, so we will definitely consider that!

kja, yes, we will keep it flexible; i think most of the sights that day is fairly low-key except for Senso-ji, but we will see!

I have booked our accommodations for our trip, so that is a relief. My cousin was in Japan this summer and she has 2 ICOCA cards for us. I will need to get a third one however as my son is 12 and I think he counts as an adult.

I know you don’t want to include too many temples during your time in Kyoto, but IMO the one that might interest your son the most is Kenninji. It has some really cool paintings of dragons on ceilings and walls (and also beautiful zen gardens).

I’d also advise doing the observation tower in Tokyo at night. The daytime views are great, but I found the night view to be spectacular.

Yes, it is a good plan and makes sense.
Day 1 - what day of April is this? if you don't mind
Day 2 - looks good to me though Ueno Park might be a stretch
Day 3 - IDK anything about Teamlabs. Also don't know if the IP garden is worthwhile. Shinjuku Gyoen is worthwhile and is quite large.

Your itinerary is a bit heavy on parks (and maybe gardens).

Day 4 - That museum is by the main entrance to Osakajo-koen (Osaka Castle Park). japan-guide says that is the Otemon Gate and you should use that for the best approach to Osakajo. You can continue on, aroiund/behind the castle, and exit the park at Osakajokoen Station on the JR loop line.

Day 6 - I highly recommend using the luggage delivery service. It is a great bargain that you will find nowhere else. Besides that, I would not count on finding available lockers (though I imagine there is some alternative to handle the overflow if/when the lockers are full).

>> probably near Kyoto station
ok, good option. Definitely look into staying along/near the Kintetsu Line in Higashiyama. Gion in particular. Or Pontocho. You can walk to several places of interest nearby (tourist sights, restaurants, useful bus line). The Miyako Odori is held in Gion. You would probably enjoy the walk across the bridge between Pontocho and Gion. It will be bust with tourists.

The must-see in Nara (i.e. in Nara Park) is Todaiji.

If you go to Nijo-jo in Kyoto then take some time for the garden.

Golden Pavillion in Kyoto is where you are likely to come across some school kids who want to practice their English with you.

memejs was it you who went to several observation decks while in Tokyo? I read several TRs in recent days and I definitely recall someone (you?) who had some gorgeous photos of sunset.

Which makes me remember to ask (anyone here) - is there a preference for North tower vs South tower for views?

mrwunrfl We arrive Friday April 18 (Day 1) and depart Monday April 28 (Day 11). I didn't notice until you pointed out that our Tokyo itinerary is heavy on gardens. My son likes zen gardens and I like flowers... I was hoping to visit Edo-Tokyo museum but sadly it is closed through 2025. Do you have other suggestions besides gardens and parks for Tokyo (for rainy days just in case?) My son has no interest in art so I don't want to "waste" time in those with him being miserable. As for Teamlabs; several of my friends went recently and one went to both on the same trip (he has teenage kids) and said both were the highlight of their trip. I don't know how much time we should allocate on shopping, and / or eating (or standing in line to wait at restaurants)

The Kyoto hotel I booked is a 3-min walk from Kyoto (main) train station.

About the luggage service - is this Yamato service? Looks like they can do same-day delivery Osaka -> Kyoto. I will ask our Osaka hotel when we arrive as well as the Yamato kiosk at Namba station. Either will be convenient since we will be taking the Kinetsu train to Nara from Osaka-Namba anyway.
https://www.global-yamato.com/en/han...bastation.html

Takuhaibin (luggage forwarding):
https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2278.html

I went to both Shibuya Sky and Tokyo Sky View but it was overcast/hazy both days, so the sunset pictures wouldn’t have been mine.

oh jeez, i just timed out from submitting a long post. I accidentally copied this entire thread instead of just the text of my reply. All gone.

April 27 is a good day for a wedding at Meiji Jingu. The day is "lucky all day except at noon. It is Sunday, so go to Harajuku that day. Your son might enjoy seeing the cosplayers, especially because Japanese girls are different.

You could move the observatory visit to Day 2, weather permitting (or weather-encouraging becdause that is the one thing on your itin that is weather dependent, so go that day if sunny (at least if not rainy/cloudy, i.e. go when the going is good).

I don't really have any other suggestions for you for Tokyo. Have heard/read that Disney Sea is good and maybe better than Universal Studios.

Same-day luggage shipping would be good. Overnight could work as you might only need a clean shirt and underwear times three in one small backpack that would have a better chance of finding a locker in Nara. Best, though, is hands and backpack free travel (and then you can depart from JR Nara Station because your hotel is near Kyoto Station.

I would make this trip with a large rollaboard carry-on and a small bag with a trolley strap. The small bag gets packed with what I need for two nights in Osaka and it gets shipped to my Osaka hotel (from my Tokyo hotel or the airport). Large bag gets shipped from Tokyo to Kyoto. Small bag gets shipped (overnight) from Osaka to Kyoto. In Kyoto swap clean clothes from large bag with used clothes from small bag. Large bag gets shipped to Tokyo.

We were in Japan in October. I fully agree with hotels near train stations.I loved The Thousand in Kyoto. There were two Hiltons near Osaka’s station.

for eating, don’t forget 7/11. Not like 7/11 in US.

Tsujiki Market in Tokyo I loved. But it was crowded.

The temple in Kyoto with 1001 statues is a good suggestion. So is the golden temple. It is easy to get temple’d out. I did.

i also recommend Two BowlRamen Adventure one evening in Tokyo. It is on Airbnb Experiences He, Shotaro, will also show you the amazing cat billboard, which is a must, IMHO.

In Kyoto I found it helpful to get a headstart on the hoards of tourists (like me!) by starting out early in the day. All three of you might enjoy the Sagano Romantic Train, then take the Hosogawa boat back to the Arashiyama area. Finally, Kyoto is a big city with sights spread out. You might find it most efficient to get a guide. We used Hiroshi Yano (https://hiroshiyano.com), who speak English well and provides historic narrative as he drives and escorts you from site to site. He picks you up from your hotel and parks as close as possible to the sites you and he decide on your itinerary. He discusses what you might want to see, and give his suggestions as well. We found him to be reasonbly priced.

The Japanese National Tourism Organization coordinates free volunteer guides throughout Japan. These “Goodwill guides” – who are generally knowledgeable and happy to guide you in return for practicing their English – can be excellent, but as I understand it, they are a bit of a luck-of-the-draw. I don't know how it works now, but in the past, you could communicate by email in advance to ensure that the plan meets your needs.

You pay any entrance fees and his/her meal if your time with the guide includes one. Do NOT tip these guides (or anyone else in Japan). My suggestion would be to make your needs regarding any meal (including price range and any particular dietary requirements or restrictions) very clear in advance.

https://www.japan.travel/en/plan/lis...unteer-guides/

Thank you again - I'm reading a lot on the temples and shrines in Kyoto, mapping their locations etc. I'll post some kind of a Kyoto itinerary once I figure this out!

thanks again for all your input; the Miyako Odori tickets go on sale on Monday, so I am hoping to come up with some form of an itinerary for our 2.5 days in Kyoto to see if this makes sense?

Wednesday - leave Osaka in am (forward luggage directly to Kyoto hotel), aim to get to Nara by 9am, visit for 5 hours? If we leave Nara by 3pm, I'm hoping we can go directly to Fushimi Inari around 4pm and hike up for sunset. I've read that going in the late afternoon/evening is usually less crowded, esp if we plan to hike to the top. (Sunset is 6:15pm). I know this will be a long day but we can rest a bit on the train

Thursday - early start at Kiyomizu dera, sannenzaka, ninenzaka, Kodai-ji, Yasaka shrine, Maruyama park, walk around Gion district, 16:30 performance of Miyako Odori, finish the day at Nishiki market

Friday - start with Otagi Nenbutsuji Temple, then Adashino Nenbutsuji, walk down to Arashiyama (probably will skip bamboo forest / monkey park / Tenryu ji) and head over to Ryoan-ji and Kinkaku-ji. If there's still time, Nijo castle, or a few temples near Kyoto Station (where our hotel is)

Saturday - suggestions? Maybe head to Ginkaku-ji and walk the philosophers path southward ? Or just visit the several temples (Higashi Hongan-ji, Nishi Hongan-ji, To-ji) near Kyoto station? We need to leave Kyoto by 1pm so we can get to our hotel in Tokyo Shibuya around 4pm (so I have time to rest/ change/ eat before 6pm concert).

Do all Shinkansen trains between Kyoto and Tokyo stop at Shinagawa station (so we can switch over to Yamanote line to Shibuya)

yes to the shinkansen question

Ginkakuji is definitely worth visiting and I would choose it over Kinkakuji if the choice had to made. Maybe go to Philosophers Path early. I finally went there about 7 or 8 years ago during cherry blossom time and it was downright unpleasant due to the overwhelming number of tourists. It was unpleasant being served ocha by yet another irked Kyoto-jin at a spot on the path. But going early and it being after hanami season and YMMV.

Saw a youtube that mentioned Shibuya Sky which might be a good alternative to the gov building in Nishishinjuku. I think he (Takashii) said get reservations two to three weeks in advance.

I bought our tickets for the Miyako Odori performance! Getting excited for this trip.

Seeing an odori can be a delight -- I'm glad you were able to get tickets!

Wonderful, I hope you love it like I did.
If you would be interested in learning about geisha/geiko then check out the book Geisha by Liz Dalby. Dalby is an anthropologist who became a geisha (in Pontocho hanamachi, iirc). It is kind of a mix of a personal story and an anthropology study.

Progol, we have almost the same pics from our May trip when we spent a week in Kyoto as part of our 2.5 weeks in Japan. Loved Otagi Nenbutsu, Adasnhino Nenbutso and the preserved street in that area. Eikando was anohter favorite, as was Kiyomizudera and Sansusanjendo. Kennin-ji and the dragon painting too. They were all so different. We are returning to Japan in March, and bringing my husband this time. Again, spending a week in Kyoto with some day trips. We will explore the Fushimi Sake district this time too.