Hello! Based on my itinerary, I cannot figure out whether I should buy a 7-day or 14-day pass (and if a 7-day pass, when should I activate it) My itinerary is as follows:

May 19-22: Tokyo (arriving in Narita); we will day trip to Nikko or Kamakura on May 21
May 22-23: 1 night in Gora
May 23-27: Kyoto; we will day trip to Nara on May 26
May 27-28 1 night in Miyajima
May 28-30: Tokyo again

Also, I have a few questions about getting to/around Gora. How do we buy tickets for the Hakone railway if we are not buying the Hakone free pass? We are only spending one night at a Ryokan in Gora - we will probably explore the area around our Ryokan a little, but we are not necessarily planning on doing the whole Hakone loop.

We are two couples travelling together, and someone suggested getting off the train at Odawara and taking a taxi to our Ryokan (Gora Hanaougi) - is it easy to find a tax that could fit 4 people plus luggage? How much would the taxi cost

As always, thanks so much for your responses!!!

You may find that a pass is not cost effective for this trip. Go to hyperdia.com and price your train trips individually, then compare to the cost of a pass. Don't forget to include the seat reservation fee. There is no reason to pay extra for green class.

One way train fare Miyajima --> Tokyo is about 18,949 Yen.
One way train fare Kyoto --> Miyajima is about 11,790 Yen.

Just these two trips alone is 30,730 Yen, which is more than the cost of a 7-day JR Pass.

Therefore you'll be ahead if you purchase a 7-day JR pass and use it to cover train travels from 5/22 ~ 5/28.

You may change your JR voucher to a JR pass in Tokyo or at Narita airport, whenever that is convenient to you. Just need to specify that you want the JR Pass' starting date to be 5/22, in order to cover your longest train ride on 5/28 from Miyajima back to Tokyo.

I do not know if a 14-day pass will be a better deal for you. You will have to add the rest of your train fares outside of these 7-day range to see how the numbers compare.

7 - start it on the 22nd to run until the 28th.

Thanks for the input. Any advice on cost of taxis and if a taxi could fit four adults plus luggage?

Depends on the amount of luggage. We were in Japan a couple of weeks ago. Four of us and our luggage fit fine in all taxis we took in Kyoto and Tokyo. We had one 25"ish wheeled suitcase, two 22" wheelies, and one duffle bag. Each of us had a school type backpack that we usually carried on our laps. No issues at all.

Don't know about prices in Hakone. Tokyo taxis are quite pricey, Tokyo not much

The last line above should have read:
Don't know about taxi prices in Hakone. Tokyo taxis are quite pricey, Kyoto cabs are not so much. Most of our rides in Kyoto cost about US$6. One long ride across the city cost under $30.

Kyoto cabs are fairly cheap. Tokyo cabs not so much.

You'll have a tough time running up a $20 fare equivalent in Kyoto unless you take a cab to some far outpost of the city from Shijo or Gojo. We rode from the station to an apt at Kawaramachigojo (3/4 mile to 1 mile away) for about 700-800, which is roughly the same as the bus for the four of us. In Tokyo, we had a cab ride NINE years ago that was 700Y for about 600m (didn't know where we were getting out of Shinjuku - this is common).

Thanks, everyone!

Your plans would make both a 7 and 14 day pass pay off, but you'd get far more value by doing the long distance travel within 7 days. For going to Nikko, you could then use a Tobu Nikko Free Pass.
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2358_002.html

Or, if you choose Kamakura & Enoshima, there is the Enoshima-Kamakura Freepass.
http://www.odakyu.jp/english/deels/f...hima_kamakura/

If you want a cheap way in from Narita, there is the 1000 yen bus.
http://accessnarita.jp/en/home/
And if you still have some energy after seeing Kyoto and Nara during the day, you can also easily go to Osaka or Kobe for the evening.
For Miyajima, everyone stampedes for the Itsukushima Shrine from the ferry dock. Since you're staying overnight, you could wait a bit and see some other place first and then go in before the next ferry arrives to avoid the crowds. The Daishoin Temple is also an absolute must see place.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...KGUB-HPKNxP10Q

And if you still have a bit of time the next day, you could also go see Iwakuni, which is a bit farther south from Miyajima. It has one of, if not the loveliest old bridge in Japan.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0COOZXi66mM

You didn't mention if you will also see Hiroshima City, but if so, your JR Pass can also be used for the Loop Bus to get around.