Kyoto, Nara, Hakone - what advance reservations do we need?
 

Here's our itinerary for our April 2015 trip:

Kansai Airport (1 night)
Nara (2 nights)
Koyasan (1 night)
Kyoto (5 nights)
Tsumago (1 night)
Karuizawa (2 nights)
Hakone (3 nights)
Kamakura (1 night)
Haneda Airport (midnight flight)

My question is what sites need advance reservations? I will make reservations for Moss Temple via a website I found that assists you. Can't make them earlier than 2 mos ahead as I remember.

I (think!) I made reservations for the Imperial Palace in Kyoto. The response was "confirmed" but I never got an email back. Should I try again? Does anyone know when the public days are (if any) in April?

Does Nijo Castle need advance booking? It didn't seem like it from the website.

Is there anything else you can think of for this trip that needs advance booking? Lodging all booked and will tackle trains later.

Thanks!

For Kyoto imperial palace you should have had an email with the information on, did you not get that? Did you get a confirmation number/ detail at the time of booking?

I didn't visit the Imperial Palace in Kyoto, but I did visit the magnificent imperial gardens there, Katsura Rikyu. If you are interested, you'll need a reservation.
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3914.html

>Does Nijo Castle need advance booking?

no

Smeagaol - Sounds like I need to re-do the reservation, as I did not get an email from them. kja, thanks for the tip - will check that out too. and thanks mrwunrfl, to hear that Nijo Castle doesn't need advance booking.