This is my first trip to Japan and I only have 8 full days (March 28-April 4). I was thinking of spending 3 days in Tokyo, 3 days in kyoto, 1 day in Osaka and 1 days at a hot spring by Mount Fuji. Is this reasonable? Is Osaka a must see? I like more historical/traditional things so any suggestions as what to see, eat and stay would be greatly appreciated.

Osaka is not a must imho, with so little time I would definitely cut it out of your schedule

I don't know if you realize it but you are planning to visit Japan at a very busy season(cherry blossoms) so if you really want to go you should have had reservations in place already. Kyoto may be difficult to make arraignments for the better places at this late date.....good luck

Aloha!

I agree with hawaiiantraveler about Osaka. AND about the advice to try to book your lodgings ASAP!!

Japan Travel Bureau in San Francisco was able to find us accomodations in Kyoto during high season in November when we were having trouble on our own. They were kind and helpful--that said, we were not happy with the Westin hotel where we stayed (see my trip reports from November). If you will only be in Kyoto for three days, the Westin's location would be advantageous, however.

We liked the Park Hotel in Tokyo very much and found it to be very good value. It is quite modern, however, just opened in the past 10 years.

Thank you so much.

In this case, I will book all my hotels this weekend. I took what everyone said in consideration and this is our itenary:

Arrive Sat. Spend Sat and Sunday in Tokyo. Take the bullet train to Kyoto for Monday through Thursday morning. Here I have 2 options:
1) Go straight to Hakone from Kyoto and spend Thursday and Friday there. It seems that the train to do this is complicated.
2) Go back to Tokyo on Thursday and then take the bullet train to Hakone on Friday. Come back to Tokyo on Sat morning.

Is this feasible? Is the train from Kyoto to Hakone doable? Any recommendations would be appreciated.

Also, we wanted to stay in a ryoken in Kyoto for around 300 max a night for 3 people. Any suggestions? It seems this may be hard due to the time that I am going. The alternative is the Westin.

If anyone has a good recommendation for ryoken/onsen in Hakone for max of $400 a night for 3 people, this would be great.

Thanks.

I am not sure what the Japan experts would say, but based on our stay, I would opt for the complicated train trip and 2 nights in Hakone. We liked Hakone very much and I think by that time in your trip you will be ready for a noncity. It is very beautiful--and the open air museum is spectacular.

We did one very long complicated day from Koya-san to Miyajima--two taxis, eight trains, a cable car and a boat. It was well worth and we managed just fine with our 200 word vocabulary in Japanese and the English of JR staff. The train system is efficient, pleasant and incredibly accurate (someone told my husband that the average train is 4 seconds late).

Buon viaggio. Se my November trip reports for ideas about how to make one's way through Kyoto in high season and raptures about its gardens (some of which need permission and/or advance arrangements)

Kyoto to Hakone is not at all difficult. Just slightly more difficult than coming from Tokyo.

In either case, you can take JR only as far as Odawara. From there, you would travel by other means: bus, boat, train, ... There is a tourist route; search the web for Hakone Free Pass.

From Kyoto there is a Hikari shinkansen through train to Odawara every two hours. Do not take the Kodama shinkansen trains - they are too slow (you would rather take a Hikari train to Nagoya and change there for another Hikari train to Odawara instead of taking a Kodama through train).

If you don't get a JR Pass (but I think you should), then your other option is to take a Nozomi train to Shin Yokohama and backtrack to Odawara. Again, this would be better than the Kodama shinkansen.

If that sounds complicated, then book the trip in advance and just tell the JR person that you don't want a Kodama shinkansen.

Skip Osaka.