We’re planning our first trip to Japan in January 2026. We’re currently looking at January 1-15, although our dates are somewhat flexible a few days in either direction. My husband and I are in our mid-60s and we’ll be traveling with my 89 year old mom and 33 year old son. All of us are in good health and good walkers.

Flights will be round trip out of San Francisco. I’m assuming we’ll enter and leave from Tokyo, though we’re open to flying into a different city, if advantageous to do so. We’re all good at traveling light.

From my cursory research, I think dividing our stay into three cities from which we can do day trips makes the most sense to meet our interests. Assuming we fly into Tokyo, I’d like to start there for ~4-5 days, then the Japanese Alps (Nagano?) for ~3-4 days, then Kyoto or Osaka ~5-6 days, then return for one last night in Tokyo before catching the flight home.

We hope to use only public transportation.

I realize the weather in the Alps could be an issue. All of us are fine with wet weather and freezing temps, but if a major weather event is forecast, we would change our plans and not stay in the Alps. In that case, we would do all we could to at least make one or two day trips into the area.

I’m just beginning the research and would love some feedback before I go too far down any rabbit holes. My biggest question right now is whether this skeleton of an itinerary is feasible and whether we should divide our time differently. I’m not yet ready to start planning specific attractions, but from what I have read, all of these areas will offer plenty for us to do and have hotels that are well-equipped for accommodating US tourists. But please let me know if I’m wrong!

Also, any advice regarding air travel would be most welcome. We’re hoping we can all fly business class. It’s a necessity for me and my mom due to arthritis which makes sitting for several hours very uncomfortable. If we can’t get up and move regularly, then we need to be able to fully recline. My husband and son could probably handle economy, if we have to cut costs somewhere. I know it’s too early to book our flights, but I want to be prepared when the time comes.

Thanks in advance for any advice and insights.

Japan is delightful, is very easy to explore using public transportation, and has a well established tourism industry. You and your family should have a marvelous experience!

Some comments:

First and foremost, spend LOTS of time with Japan-guide.com. It is a truly awesome resource for travel to Japan!

If you can fly into Tokyo (Narita or Haneda) and out of Osaka (Itami or Kansai – each easily reached from Kyoto) or vice versa, you could avoid backtracking.

It’s hard to comment on your rough itinerary without knowing your interests or reasons for visiting Japan, but FWIW, I wouldn’t miss Kyoto. In comparison, while Osaka has much to offer, it just doesn’t rise to the same level of interest IMO. YMMV.

IMO, 4 or 5 days is reasonable for Tokyo, particularly if you start there and so will have a day of jetlag at first. IMO, 5 or 6 days is reasonable for Kyoto. I skipped Nagano and so can’t comment on it.

BTW: When you lay out your itinerary, consider plotting it by nights rather than days. That makes it much easier to see the number of FULL days you have in a place and when part or all of a day goes to transportation. For example, to have 4 FULL days in Tokyo, 3 FULL days in the Japanese Alps, and 5 FULL days in Kyoto (the minimums you list), you would, I think, need 15 days for the trip – one to get there and one day between each pair of cities. And that’s if you don’t need to return to Tokyo.

I hope that helps!

>> Japanese Alps (Nagano?)
Consider Takayama instead. Maybe do a daytrip from there to Shirakawago.

>> major weather event
Would have to be quite major to prevent travel. They know how to deal with feet/meters of snow in some areas.

>> please let me know if I’m wrong!
You are not wrong. Definitely feasible.

>> regarding air travel
Too soon to book but consider ZIPAIR nonstops from SFO or San Jose to Tokyo Narita Airport. They have lie-flat seats. It is a low-cost version of JAL. I think ANA was planning to offer a competitor soon.

From SFO you can fly nonstop to Tokyo (TYO = Haneda or Narita). Other nonstop optionis SFO to Osaka Kansai Airport (KIX).

Also, ther is a grand sumo tournament in Tokyo for much of the month of January. Great fun.

Thanks for the replies so far. Great information to check out.

My husband was told we should be wary of traveling into the alps because there are fewer places that speak English and take US credit cards. I’m of the impression that even if this is true, we would be okay as long as we stick with public transportation, visit the more popular tourist destinations and choose hotels that are known for accommodating Western tourists but maybe that’s presumptuous of me.

I guess the better question is what city (or cities) in the Japanese Alps could be a good home base for few days? We’re not interested in skiing or winter sports, but would like to take in the scenery, visit interesting towns, and take in local art and culture. As much as I would love to explore the more rural parts of the area, for this trip I’m good with staying on the beaten path.

Thanks for helping me realize what questions I need to be asking! Now I’m off to do my research but would still love to hear any other ideas.

And I just discovered the Japan specific forum (don’t know how I missed it!) and realize that I should have posted there. Other than responding to this thread, I’ll post any future questions in that forum.

In my own research for a 2026 Japan trip I found there are a few holiday times you might want to avoid. https://www.japan.travel/en/plan/bus...-and-holidays/ Can you plan for just a bit later in January?

Thanks for this information. Good to be aware of the holidays.

For the Alps, I second mrwunrfl's recommendation of Takayama, with a day trip to Shinakawago.

>> wary of traveling into the alps because there are fewer places that speak English and take US credit cards

Maybe that was true 30 years ago. Not true in Takayama when I first visited there about 22 years ago. Anyway, everybody has translator apps on their phones. It is good to have yen cash for things, but you can pay for lodging and transport with a US credit card.

>> Kyoto or Osaka
Kyoto

>> fly business class
Have you tried premium economy? The seats are more spacious and more recline than economy. You can try it out on a domestic flight, e.g. SFO-Newark on a United 787. I was flying from LA to NY and chose that. Liked it a lot and booked premium economy on Singapore Airlines on my next trip to Japan. Much better than economy and much less expensive than business class.

ZIPAIR warning: check their cancellation conditions. Might be no refund and no changes, so use it or lose it. Compare that with US carriers where if you cancel you can get a credit. Or an airline might offer a refund minus a penalty. Their lie-flat seat is like business class, but their service is not: no IFE, pay extra for food, seat selection, luggage, ...

>> round trip
Definitely look into getting two one-way tickets. Business class tickets from Japan to USA can be a lot less expensive than the other direction This is definitely true for LAX, in my experience. Fly premium economy (or zipair) to Japan and business class return. That sh/could cost $1000 pp less that business class roundtrip. Premium economy roundtrip or open jaw could cost another $1000, or more, less.

An excellent one-way business class fare from Japan would be $1500 or $1600, refundable minus a $300 fee.

Good advice on two one way tickets for business. Saw $1500 one way business on Asiana last year although not non stop but decent connection.

That is exactly the excellent fare I mentioned and have used twice and will do again. Asiana business class from Japan. I wrote there was a $300 refund fee but maybe it was 30,000 yen, so only $200. Either way I was happy with it because it was a foreign carrier.

Must have been 2019 (or 2022) when I got NRT-ICN-LAX for right around $1600. Was A380 and A350.That fare was available from many cities in Japan, but I chose NRT because NRT-ICN would be my first flight on an A380. Found that I liked the OZ A380 more than their A350. They have two flights a day from ICN to LAX with one an A350 and the other an A380.

In 2023 it was $1635 for NRT-ICN-LAX and I made sure to book the A380 to LAX.

One or both of those trips had about a 6-hour connection in Seoul. Got to Japan on business class award tickets.

This year it was $1508 for KIX-ICN-LAX (A380 of course) with a 3-hour connection. Yes, I saw the fare at ft and jumped on it. I first booked and then cancelled (free during 24-hr window) a ticket from Tokyo that was only $1473. Wanted to fly from Fukuoka but would have been on HA via HNL and a bit higher cost. Going to Tokyo on a nonstop JAL flight using 50K miles. Premium economy but hoping to find a business class award closer to the 60K I paid last year. I did see F for 80K but the date did not work for me.

I booked all of the tickets via Amex Travel because I could not complete the purchase on the Asiana website as an Asiana Club member or as a guest and multiple credit cards. Strange error.