So, undeterred by the global financial crisis, I am going to do my bit to stimulate the world economy and travel to Japan. I am able to spend 10 nights, flying into Osaka and out of Tokyo. After hours of reading and speaking with people who have been there, there are some key areas I would like to see.
These are:

Kyoto (4 nights, day trip to Nara), arrive at 8pm at night on the first day

Miyajima via Hiroshima (for an overnight stay to see the place without all the daytrippers)

Shikoku (?Matsuyama and Tokushima - ?a night each, ?more time in this region)

Mt Koya (?one night, stay in a temple)

Mt Fuji/Hakone (a night, do the "circuit", or is this just way too touristy)

then Tokyo and home (9pm flight).

We tend to prefer to see authentic life when we travel and experience different cultures and avoid the touristy crowds where possible. That's what attracted us to Shikoku but the other places may be more touristy. We will be there in January - cold I know, but you have to take your chances where you get them - so I'm hoping that the crowds will be down a bit anyway.

Our budget will be limited, but we don't worry too much about what our room is like as we aren't generally in our rooms much when we travel. Location and experience are probably more important to us. I'm sure we'll splurge on an onsen ryokan (?maybe on Miyajima) for the authentic experience we love, but I have also found a townhouse in Kyoto for only 10,000yen a night for two which sounds ideal for us.

The trip as above has a lot of one nighters which could get annoying. What could we drop? What should we add to?

I imagine we'll use a 7day JR pass - would have to activate on leaving Kyoto.

I have found this forum so helpful in the past and there are some really knowledgeable people on the Japan forum. Your help and assistance would be greatly appreciated!

Looks well thought out, but you might fly to and from Osaka's KIX and skip Fuji, Tokyo, etc. to give yourself a more relaxed time. You might not need the JR pass, which doesn't help a lot in Shikoku (consider ferry travel to get there). You'd also be able to use other trains than JR for getting to and from Osaka and Nara. And check out the Karasuma Kyoto hotel, which is 3-star, as central as you can get, and less than ¥10,000 per night in January. A stay at one of the temples on the 88-temple Shikoku Pilgrimage might be possible in addition to or instead of Koyasan.

Use the quicker hydrofoil ferry(than the slower large ferry) from Hiroshima to Matsuyama. This will help maximize your time in Matsuyama.

There is a limo bus that will take you from Matsuyama ferry right into Matsuyama. You buy your tickets on board the bus which is right outside the ferry terminal front door to the left. I wrote the times of the schedule on my recent trip report, if you care to investigate, click on my name and see the latest trip report listed.

Think about staying two nights in Matsuyama and eliminate Tokushima or vice versa.

Do Koyasan on another trip and add the extra night to either Hakone or Tokyo. If you do go to Hakone, check out the Hakone Free Pass for all your transportation in and around Hakone and then on Tokyo.

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2358_008.html

Just at first glance, I don't think you don't need a 7 day JR pass for this trip but don't have time right now to check for you as I am at work

Check www.hyperdia.com for your train and fare information. Press the English button.

Aloha!

You got some good advice above. You need to be careful about how much time you spend on the train so using hyperdia or http://www.jorudan.co.jp/english/nor...norikeyin.html is a good idea.

Hakone can be a bit tourist so you might want to skip that and spend more time in Shikoku.

I have visited Mt Koya 5 times while living in Japan and love it. I have only eaten at Shojoshin-in Temple but I am sure that the other temples also serve wonderful food.

You can also get a volunteer guide or goodwill guides is many cities in Japan. Please see
http://www.jnto.go.jp/eng/arrange/es...uides_o-z.html
for a list. These guides might not speak as good of English as the paid guides but they also seem more real.

Thank you so much for the advice.
I could fly in and out of Osaka, and I had been thinking about leaving Fuji/Tokyo for another trip. That would certainly ease the pace a little I think. The flights that suit would then actually give me 11 days/nights rather than 10.
Then I could possibly spread my time between Kyoto (4 nights), Miyajima (1night), Shikoku ?Matsuyama, ?hire car to explore the area (3 nights), ?could then go to either Mt Koya or Hakone for 2 nights then return to Kyoto to fly home.
I haven't explored the trains as yet. I thought I'd get a basic outline for the trip first and then explore more details.
Cheers everyone from sunny Queensland!

In and out of KIX would be better for this trip it seems.

Check out this site when renting cars:

http://www2.tocoo.jp/?file=rentcar_inbound/main

You might want to see if you can use one of the regional passes instead of the 7 day pass. Don't know how your time will be spent now, but use this site for all train info.

http://www.japanrail.com/JR_regionalrailpass.html

If you pick the Sanyo Pass, you have to pay a small supplement to get back to Kyoto.

We had a lovely spring stay in Iwaso Ryokan on Miyajima. Recommend you spend a night on the island and if you can in Iwaso if possible but there are other places for different budgets there. We used Japanese Guest Houses to reserve the ryokan for us. I have used them many times with great success.

http://japaneseguesthouses.com/db/miyajima/iwaso.htm

They also have temple stays on Koyasan if you are interested

http://japaneseguesthouses.com/db/mount_koya/index.htm

I might drive on Shikoku,especially if I were to do the temple run..... I wouldn't want to be driving to Osaka or anywhere too far though. Lots of tolls,traffic and trains are cheaper and much faster for the longer distances. Good luck with the planning.

Aloha!