dtoyozumi

Hi,

My husband and I are traveling to Tokyo over the Christmas and New Year holidays to visit his family in Tokyo. Since I've never been to Japan and he never really traveled around when he lived there, we want to explore a bit.

We both want to visit somewhere outside of Tokyo and stay in a Ryokan but don't want to spend too much time travelling to get there. Does anyone have any suggestions of where to go/stay?

Thanks!

emd

Hakone; get a nice ryokan with good onsen baths. Where exactly to stay there depends on your budget. I would book a ryokan now for that time.

Florence

Bonjour dtoyozumi,

Like emd, I would advise that you book as soon as possible for that period of the year. From Dec 28 to Jan 4 approximately, all official agencies (except post office) close and Tokyo residents leave the city to spend the New Year in their hometown or in Onsen/spa/ski resorts.

Mt Fuji's vicinity is usually full to capacity, especially since it is the best time of the year to view it due to clearer skies.

There are other areas withing 1 hour train from central Tokyo worth visiting, like Yugawara ( http://www.jnto.go.jp/eng/location/r.../yugawara.html ). Check on the left of the page for other suggestions in nearby prefectures (Tochigi, Saitama, Ibaraki, Gunma, Chiba, and Kanazawa).

mrwunrfl

Kanagawa, of course, not Kanazawa, is near Tokyo. There are some nice ryokan at Atami Onsen, just south of Yugawara.

dtoyozumi

Thanks! I appreciate the advice. What's the best way to book a ryokan? Is it best to have someone in Japan make the reservation or can I take care of it from here?

emd

some of them you can book directly online, some you can book here:

http://www.japaneseguesthouses.com/index.htm