Japan Trip Suggestions - 14 day trip in April
 

I am traveling to Japan for the first time with one friend in the first 2 weeks of April next year for cherry blossom season (we are both in our 30s FYI)

We are flying in/out of Tokyo and have 14 days in Japan. We want to do 4-5 days in Tokyo and 3-4 in Kyoto (with da trips) but open to other suggestions

Would love some ideas/suggestions for the following to help plan our trip

1) Tokyo recommendations (incl day trips outside of town)- not sure if too cold then to see Mt Fuji in April?
2) Kyoto recommendations (incl day trips outside of town)
3) Kanazawa - worth seeing?
4) Any ryokan suggestions for Tokyo/Kyoto ?
5) Hot Springs in or near Tokyo/Kyoto ?
6) Any other things we shouldn't miss?

<<Any other things we shouldn't miss?>>

What do you LIKE?

Answer that and you'll get better info.

P.S. - take more time in Kyoto.

We wanted more time in Kyoto than what you have. We enjoyed Kyoto much more than Tokyo. If you want to see Mt Fuji, a popular place to go to see it is Hakone. Hakone also has the advantage of having many hot springs, so you could go there and spend a night at a ryokan.

Spend many hours with www.japan-guide.com to help you plan your trip.

We loved our time in Kanazawa. But you are going to have to pick and choose, as there is so much to see and do in Japan.

You might find our photos helpful as you consider what to do/see. We were there for the koyo. www.marlandc.com/Japan-2013

Hi,
1) Many good day trips - Nikko, Kamakura/Enoshima, Izu, Kusatsu, Karuizawa, Hakone, the Fuji 5 Lakes area, the Hitachi Seaside Park, Boso Peninsula, etc. A Tokyo Wide Pass can save you a lot. For the Fuji area, look at the Odakyu passes.
http://www.odakyu.jp/english/deels/

2) Lots - and yes, you should spend more time in the area. Seeing Nara is a must. The Todaji Temple is breathtaking.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...TIKwkioxuAKwt5
Himeji is also an excellent choice to see Japan's finest castle - and the Kokoen Garden next to it is beautiful also. Staying overnight at Koyasan is a deeply spiritual side of Japan. Kobe is nice as well, and Hikone castle in Shiga is an often overlooked gem.

3) Definitely yes. The Kenrokuen Garden is widely regarded as Japan's finest historical traditional garden.

4)Try:
www.ryokan.or.jp/english/
www.japaneseinngroup.com/
Or for some cheaper places in Tokyo, there is the Kimi Ryokan, Taito Ryokan, and Tokyo Ryokan.

5) Too many to count. Near Tokyo there are good hot springs at Hakone, Nikko, Izu, and Kusatsu. Near Kyoto there is Arima Onsen in Kobe, plus in Wakayama, and Kinosaki is a huge resort place in Hyogo.

6) If you're going to see Kanazawa, then taking a side trip to Takayama and Shirakawago would be great. If not, there is Miyama in Kyoto. You could also make a good day trip out of seeing Hiroshima and Miyajima. If you really want an experience, catch a cheap flight by Jet Star, Peach or Vanilla Air and take a couple days to see Okinawa. You can fly for as low as $50 one way.
Even getting off the beaten path and seeing Kagawa in Shikoku is easily possible.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...XXfmDYjZaijlAq

It's all to your interests. Look at www.japan-guide.com and www.jnto.go.jp for some ideas. Also you can see a lot of popular places on
https://www.youtube.com/user/thejapanfaq

Some rail passes can also help out:
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2357.html
The more research you do, the better your trip will be.

Have you already booked your flights? If not, consider flying into Tokyo and out of Kansai.

1) see japan-guide.com
2) see japan-guide.com
3) IMO, yes! I can't speak for you. See japan-guide.com
4) See JapaneseGuestHouses.com or booking.com (for which you will need to select "ryokan" as a criterion)
5) See japan-guide.com
6) Of course!

If you go to Nara outside of Kyoto, make sure to check how long you will be there, actually on site. The tour we took didn't give us enough time. I would want about 3 hours actually on the ground there plus all the travel time. That might require a privately arranged driver and guide.

It is easy to go to Nara on your own and take as much or as little time there as you want. I wanted two full days, just for what I considered the highlights.

I would agree with suggestions to increase your time in Kyoto. I'd suggest a minimum of 4 nights for Kyoto itself and add extra nights if you want to do daytrips from Kyoto to Nara, Osaka, Uji or anywhere else.

Kanazawa is lovely, we finally made it there this April on our third trip. Kenrokuen is indeed beautiful, it took my breath away in fact, and I'd been wondering whether it'd be worth the hype given the lovely gardens we'd enjoyed elsewhere. It was worth it! I'd suggest 3 nights for Kanazawa to give you time for Kenrokuen, one or more of the tea districts, the samurai district and the food market, which I adored. There are other attractions too - art galleries, museums and various artisan craftspeople.

Unlike most, I have found that into and out of Tokyo works well for us. We'll do one or two nights on landing, and another two or three on departure. It allows us to split the stay across two neighbourhoods too, though of course it means more nights and less full days there too so you'll need to decide whether Tokyo-Tokyo or an open-jaw works better for you.

When you say you have 14 days in Japan, can I ask how many nights?

With 14 nights, for my money I'd give 4 to Tokyo, 5 to Kyoto and 3 to Kanazawa plus a couple of one nighters for Nara and for Hiroshima/ Miyajima. But as long as you don't try and cram too much in (and some might consider my suggestions too much), you'll love whatever you do.

<<If you go to Nara outside of Kyoto, make sure to check how long you will be there, actually on site. The tour we took didn't give us enough time. I would want about 3 hours actually on the ground there plus all the travel time. That might require a privately arranged driver and guide.>>

Bugger all tours, drivers and hired guides. Take a bloody train to Nara and walk yourself around there for as much time as you want. This isn't difficult.

I like Kavey's itinerary. Although we did spend the night in Nara (on our way to Koyasan), it is perfectly easy to do as a day trip. It is literally 60 minutes by train from Kyoto station. You could easily spend 6 hours there and still be back to your hotel in time for a pre-dinner nap.

You might consider adding a temple-stay in Koyasan, if that interests you. Here is some info:

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4900.html

We stayed in this temple and it was one of the highlights of our trip.

https://japaneseguesthouses.com/ryok...n=Shojoshin-in

Have fun!

Staying in Shojoshin-in next April at the recommendation of many on this board. Looking forward to it very much (except, perhaps for the extensive tofu part of the menu...)

Although many of the dishes served at Shojoshin-in are tofu-based, the monks there have (over many, many, many years) developed ways to make them taste like just about anything but tofu. FWIW, I'm not fond of tofu; my meals at Shojoshin-in are among the best I've ever eaten.

I also liked the food there. Maybe not among the best I've ever eaten, but overall surprisingly good.

It's not just tofu, there are lots of beautifully cooked vegetables too. I loved the whole meal at Shojoshin-in but then I do like tofu anyway.

Glad to hear about the beautiful veggies. Nevertheless, I better bring some tssty snacks along with me to Koya-san!

If you are worried you won't enjoy it be satiated, definitely bring with you. There aren't a lot of stores there and the little one opposite Shojoshin-in is mostly tourist sweets rather than snacks for eating - an expensive way to buy snacks if that's what you are looking for! ��

Thanks Kavey. Just want to be sure I don't go to bed hungry. I could probably force down a bit of tofu but with no fish, poultry or beef, I'm hoping the veggie dishes are plentiful and tasty.

Yes, the vegetable dishes are incredibly tasty -- or at least I thought so! I'll be interested in hearing what you think once you've experienced them, along with the tofu dishes.

It would be better to decrease the number of day trips, while you are still young enough to do so. With day trips, you would lose your time in transportation, go and back for each, and also chances of experience in different accommodations. The use of the same hotel means you would use the same room, meet the same staffs, and so on, losing the opportunities of exposures to the different cultures.

Nara seems to be regarded somewhat differently by posters. Nara-ken (prefecture), not Nara-shi (city), has some top sites comparable to Kyoto. Todai-ji and Horyu-ji could be the top two in Nara. They could be compared with Kiyomizu-dera and Arashiyama in Kyoto, in a geographical way. With Nara Park nearby, Todai-ji might be better fitted with Arashiyama. Between Kiyomizu and Arashiyama, there are Kinkaku-ji and Ginkaku-ji in Kyoto. It is the same in Nara; there are Toshidai-ji and Yakushi-ji between Todai-ji and Horyu-ji. In Kyoto, there is Fushimi Inari in the south. Nara has Hase-dera in the south. Moro-ji in Nara might be analogous to Sanjusangen-do in Kyoto. In this sense, I could not nod only a day for Nara. Moreover, there is a famous cherry blossom site, Yoshino, in the deep south in Nara...

Kamakura, as one of the ancient capital in Japan like Nara and Kyoto, does have many spots. Enoshima could be Arashiyama in Kyoto. JR Kamakura station could be compared with Kintetsu Nara station, or Hankyu Kawaramachi station in Kyoto. I mean the east side of the Enoshima-Kamakura area is a full of temples and shrines. It could be tough to get around there in a day.