For what it's worth, I loved Takayama and think it's well worth being part of your itinerary. I agree that Hida-no-sato is well worth exploring if you decide to skip S-go.

334 minutes from Takayama to Uno with three train changes. 8 am - 13:34. Then walk across the street for a twenty minute ferry ride to Naoshima....piece of cake and is what I would do taking in Osaka at the end of trip.

Uno station is actually in Okayama iirc so you are close to OKJ

Although Takayama is a not a small town I think it is pretty cool lol

Some cool places you will be close to:

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e7850.html

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e5701.html

If you are staying on Nasuyama go up the mountain to the top where there is a Gondola ride and tons of hiking, beautiful vistas. It will be cool to cold in Nasu. You can rent a car at the JR station and drive the area. Real easy and convenient in this area of Japan. Only other public transports are taxis and buses. I did a trip report on this area a few years ago....

Aloha!

>>Although Takayama is a not a small town I think it is pretty cool lol

I agree.

On your other thread, filmwill, is where KimJ mentioned cool places nearer Kanazawa.

It is the 6 hour trip from there to Naoshima that makes me tense. My goal is to limit daily travel in Japan to 4 hours. Max of 5 hours, if that is the only way the plan works (for me). More than that then I have to re-plan - or go back to your original plan and make a stop on the way.

Osaka would be a good stop on the way to Naoshima. Maybe Okayama to see the castle, but Korakuen in December won't look like the pictures in the link that ht gave.

I don't get the idea of taking in Osaka at the end of the trip.

Thanks, guys!

HT, I'm not sure where Niki Club is in relation to the mountain itself. Is the Nasu ropeway/gondola be open? Or more importantly, will it be too cold or snowy to hike in December? I'm so excited about staying at this place and there is so much to do there (hiking, forest onsens, etc.) that I'm not even sure we'll want to wander all that far. :)

MW, I should clarify: we've already been to Osaka (on the last trip), so it's not really to take it in since we've done that -- but rather to use it as a way to better connect into NRT. It's looking like our options (for award seats) to BKK would involve early flights from NRT to BKK (or even from KIX to BKK, if luck allows). Looking like flying Takamatsu to NRT (only one flight a day) and connecting out would get us to NRT too late. So Osaka really is just a way to get out of Naoshima and closer to a major airport without having to rush like mad the day we connect out to Thailand.

>>there's a Jetstar flight from Takamatsu to NRT that arrives with plenty of time to catch 2 different flights to BKK

>> Looking like flying Takamatsu to NRT (only one flight a day) and connecting out would get us to NRT too late.

Ok, so I am confused. For the KIX-BKK trip I see there are two Thai nonstops. One is a 3-cabin A380, so I guess it is as good as it gets at NRT. The other is a 777-300 and I would have to compare the seating on that with what product is offered from NRT before deciding to use NRT or that flight from KIX.

>>334 minutes from Takayama to Uno with three train changes. 8 am - 13:34

That looks ok but the shinkansen is a Nozomi. With a JR Pass, take the same 8AM departure and get to Uno one hour later, at 14:34. Now the trip to Naoshima is (a whopping) 7 hours (or more) with 4 changes (counting the boat).

No need to be confused. We're using UA miles for award seats, and looking at dates so far in December...very few of the flights from NRT - BKK are available. The only ones that tend to be available leave in the morning from NRT. The only flight from Takamatsu to NRT is in the afternoon. Far more availability out of KIX and even other airports.

It bears noting, of course, that none of this is set in stone. When booking a mileage award, you're at the mercy of flights. We already have our outbound booked. But the stopover/open jaw sections from Japan to BKK and BKK back home promise (of course) to complicate things even further. We'll know in less than 2 weeks when we can add the return flights to our itinerary. What we end up with may very well completely end up changing our itinerary.

I thank you again for your continued patience and help.

Anyone have any experience with the area around Mt. Aso? I know there was a big eruption there back in November so perhaps not the best place to visit, but there's an amazing place near there called Takefue that is working it's way rapidly towards to the of my places to visit on this trip. That really seems to fit the whole 'onsen in the snow' dream I've been having.

I am aware that it's a bit of pain to get to, but it may be something we do instead of Takayama, etc. and head south at the end of the trip and fly out of Fukuoka.

I understand renting a car is an option there but I don't want to deal with snowy roads and chains on vacation so would probably look at getting a private taxi from Hita Station.

It does seem like a pain to get to, though. Just wondering if it's as beautiful as it seems.

If you're willing to take out Osaka, there are flights between Komatsu and Fukuoka on ANA.

By the way, I'm following your thread rather closely as I'm looking at aspects of a similar itinerary for a return trip to Australia and Japan for 2016.

Yes Bill there are gases leaking from Asosan at the moment but that will only keep you away from the actual crater. Lucy just went to the ryokan in that area with trip report here:

http://www.fodors.com/community/asia...kawa-onsen.cfm

and we did one a few years back here:

http://www.fodors.com/community/asia...-fall-2011.cfm

Kurokawa Onsen is high on our list for a return visit.The place is really magical....Sanga Ryokan if you can get it

Onsen in the snow? I would return here in a heartbeat. Not luxurious by any means, in fact a 400+ year old minshuku in the mountains but reeks with history and actually really easy to get to from Tokyo.

http://www.japaneseguesthouses.com/r...surunoyu+Onsen

Aloha!

HT (and others),

So Kim and you all have been so very helpful. The problem is: now I find myself narrowed down to two very distinct and somewhat different itineraries. And I really need to make a choice.

I have to say that I'm slightly obsessed with Kurokawa Onsen. First from Lucy's description then from HT's report. I *really* do want to go to Sanga -- as it looks heavenly. Kim did mention to me, though, as a warning, that there might not be snow in Kurokawa in December... but I might be willing to take that risk, either way. Sounds like Lucy did, indeed, get snow there in December.

So things have been narrowed down (I hope) to 2 distinct paths, as you'll see below. One version has us going through Tokyo and visiting Nasu (Niki Club) and the other has us going direct to Osaka and visiting Kurokawa Onsen (Sanga). Both, I think, are viable options. I understand there's some serious train time in these, and I'm really okay with that.

A few things that are important to note in what went into creating these paths:

*I've realized that going to Kurokawa involves quite a bit of logistics. It's clear that it's not easy to get there. I'm not sure if it's worth all the hassle, but the reviews here seem to indicate it is. I still struggle with the 'is it worth it?' question. Itinerary 1 doesn't involve is, to me, the alternate to the 'all that hassle' version (Itinerary 2)

*I know you'll all ask why we're flying out of Fukuoka, but WE MUST. These are the ONLY award flights available to go direct to BKK. Every other option out of NRT, HND, KIX or ITM all have at least 2-3 connections. I frankly don't want to fly to Beijing to fly to Bangkok. That's nuts. It's a very easy decision to say we go out of FUK. So that drives the way we leave Japan in both versions of this itinerary.

So please review options 1 and 2 and please give me your honest thoughts (all of you!) ... I need to make a decision on the in and out points within 5 days.

<b>ITINERARY 1</b>
Day 1 Depart from LAX
Day 2 Arrive Tokyo @ 4PM (overnight at Four Seasons)
Day 3 Train to Nasu (stay @ Niki Club)
Day 4 Nasu
Day 5 Train back to Tokyo > Kanazawa
Day 6 Kanazawa
Day 7 Kanazawa
Day 8 Bus to Takayama (stop in S-Go; overnight @ ryokan)
Day 9 Train to Osaka
Day 10 Train/Ferry to Naoshima
Day 11 Naoshima
Day 12 Train to Fukuoka
Day 13 Fly to Bangkok from Fukuoka (9 AM)

<b>ITINERARY 2</b>
Day 1 Depart from LAX
Day 2 Arrive Osaka @ 8 PM
Day 3 Osaka
Day 4 Train/Ferry to Naoshima
Day 5 Naoshima
Day 6 Ferry/Train to Kanazawa
Day 7 Kanazawa
Day 8 Kanazawa
Day 9 Fly to Fukuoka from Komatsu > Train to Kumamoto (overnight in Kumamoto)
Day 10 Kurokawa Onsen
Day 11 Kurokawa Onsen
Day 12 Fukuoka
Day 13 Fly to Bangkok (9AM)

Itin 1 is like the original plan. Ok, but IMO day 8 is a bit much with only one night in Takayama. You have removed the long travel day by stopping in Osaka. So it is much more doable, other than you are shorting Takayama.

Itin 2 smells like you are considering a UA itin via SFO to KIX, which I would avoid. But if it is a connection via ICN or NRT then you have options other than Osaka. Like NRT-Takamatsu or OKJ or ICN to Toyama. But if LAX-KIX then I would probably want Osaka- Kanazawa- Naoshima, etc.

Hear you, but the whole rationale for #2 was to get to Kurokawa with as little pain as possible ...and the best way to do that, from what I can see, is to fly there from Komatsu. If we switch the order of cities on #2, that whole plan goes out the window and we'd have to figure out how to get from Naoshima to Kumamoto. That's even beyond my limitations on how much I'd want to travel in one day. Out of curiosity, what's the pain point for you on the SFO-KIX flight?

Naoshima to Kumamoto - that is easy. Ferry or marine taxi to Uno; train or car to Okayama; shinkansen to Kumamoto about 5 hours all in.

Noashima to Kumamoto easy peasy :)

I like number two.,less moving around by far. Save nasu for another trip. You know you'll be back lol

Aloha!

Will, take a map of Japan and draw blue lines on routes for plan one then draw red lines for plan 2 routes. See what I mean? :)

The only thing attracting me to plan 1 is the Four Seasons in Tokyo OMG! ;)

Thanks guys. Even though it helps to know that it's not too long from Naoshima to Kumamoto I guess I'm still trying to figure out what the objection to the planned order of cities I have in itinerary 2 is.

ITINERARY 2.1
Day 1 Depart from LAX
Day 2 Arrive Osaka @ 8 PM
Day 3 Osaka-Kanazawa
Day 4 Kanazawa
Day 5 Kanazawa
Day 6 Day trip to Gokayma/Shirakawago, night in Kanazawa
Day 7 Train/Ferry to Naoshima
Day 8 Naoshima
Day 9 Ferry/Train to Kumamoto
(overnight in Kumamoto)
Day 10 Kurokawa Onsen
Day 11 Kurokawa Onsen
Day 12 Fukuoka
Day 13 Fly to Bangkok (9AM)

Which day in December is Day 1? What airline and connecting airport to get to Osaka (KIX or ITM)? That 8PM KIX arrival sounds like it might be Asiana, LAX-ICN-KIX. What class of service?