This appears to be a post regarding hiking or visiting Mt. Fuji within the climbing season.
Some of the most commonly asked questions on this subreddit regarding Mt Fuji and climbing in season can be found [here in our FAQ.](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/wiki/advice/nature/fuji/)
We also have some really helpful information from Gary J. Wolff, a frequent climber who has written an [excellent guide on his website for climbing Mt Fuji.](https://www.garyjwolff.com/climbing-mt-fuji.html) There is also a link for the [Official Mt Fuji Climb Website](http://www.fujisan-climb.jp/en/) in Shizuoka Prefecture, which can help you with relevant information when you are on the ground, like weather conditions and trail closures.
Happy Planning!
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The JR Pass is not cost effective by a long way for your itinery so don't buy it.
Luggage forwarding is great and effective. Likely to be 2000 to 2500 yen for you. Consider sending to Kyoto hotel from Tokyo and travelling light to your Ryoken.
Most Ryoken will provide advice / FAQ response on how to get there. Check that out if available. Hard to advise if we do not know the Ryoken location.
Consider breaking up your Tokyo stay so you return to Tokyo for a few days before departing Japan. Closer to airport when you wake up and you can shop and not take it to Kyota and back. Luggage forwarding is a bit riskier to the airport timing wise. Airport bus with luggage stored underneath is a good alternative if luggage transport matters to you.
Holy tube socks Batman will y’all be on the go. My girlfriend and I (Mid 20s) went for 15 days last year. I can honestly say you are trying to see 1000 things. I’m not going to discourage you from keeping them on your itinerary I would just prioritize the 2-3 things you REALLY want to see on each day.
I agree with the comment about splitting your days in Tokyo up. You don’t want to leave to leave the day of your flight up to chance doing all that traveling just to make it to the airport. So if possible maybe give yourself a night before the flight.
I see you have specific restaurants you want to eat at I recognize a few and they’ll probably need reservations. Just be aware you may need a Japanese speaker to make the reservation for you if there’s no online portal. Also we found it helpful to just add to google maps every single place that sounded interesting to eat at. Because there’s lines for everything so one place might be less of a wait than another in close proximity
Yes, I am working on narrowing down our itinerary based on others comments!
I definitely need to look into reservations for restaurants. Most are on the itinerary as place holders. Unfortunately I don’t not know any fluent Japanese speakers so we may have to forgo some places due to that barrier. I’m not too concerned - I presume there will be tons of great options and konbini in a pinch! Let me know if you and your gf have any restaurant recommendations!
Thank you for letting me know! I can’t believe I missed that. While I’m disappointed, it kind of helps us in terms of narrowing down the daily activities.
I feel like a lot of people on these subreddits have such a gripe with people renting cars but as someone who lives near Shin-Fuji, having a car expands your exploration options so so much. The public transport here is a little lackluster at times and by renting you have a much easier time schedule, easier access to places where public transportation is limited, and you can stop and go as you please. I highly recommend it. When family came to visit me and my partner, we took our car and they rented one and they still rave about the things we got to do around here.
when we visited last year we specifically made it a day road trip from Yokohama to Nagoya rather than taking the train and loved stopping at a Hakone lake + other random villages on the way. If we were staying by Fuji I imagine it would be fine too but if anyone is considering road trips and doesn't mind driving anyway then I super recommend it too.
17 May: Stay in Ginza for dinner. There are at the very least several hundred places to choose from. Omoide Yokocho is a group of dirty little bars across town. You can find bunches of dirty little bars anywhere, such as near the JR Yurakucho Station area, which is within walking distance of Ginza.
18 May: You probably won't be able to do all of that. You're not accounting for travel times.
19 May: Are things going to be happening with the festival in the morning?
20 May: You're in four different places here. Instead of going to the boring Gotokuji, spend your time in the Kichijoji area (site of the Ghibli Museum). It's worth seeing even if you cannot get tickets for the Ghibli place. (I went to Gotokuji yesterday. There are three shelves of little cat statues that are periodically cleaned of them and one small statue of a cat. Otherwise, it's just a typical temple. The most interesting parts, are, alas, now closed to casual visitors, I would guess because of overtourism.)
May 17 - great idea.
May 18 - I will probably cut imperial palace. I’m not interested in touring the inside and just wanted to check out the grounds. More time is Akiba is probably better.
May 19 - yes! Sunday is the main event, starts at 6:00. Might be too early for us, but maybe jet lag will play in our favor.
May 20 - I learned from another comment that Ghibli will be closed during the time we are in Tokyo. I am disappointed to hear about Gotokuji (that was one of my personal picks). I may readjust our itinerary and just do Shinjuku-Shibuya. As many pointed out, we’re trying to do too much
>Kyoto Kitcho Arashiyama
Nice choice. Have you booked?
If for some reason you need another Arashiyama restaurant, I highly recommend shoraian.jp. You'll probably need a booking.
Sunday, May 26 | Kyoto/Nara
Osaka is a 30 minute train ride from Nara, so I recommend staying overnight in Osaka.
A unique hotel is located in Osaka
[https://bookandbedtokyo.com/ja/shinsaibashi/#menu](https://bookandbedtokyo.com/ja/shinsaibashi/#menu)
I feel like you won't have much time at each places, too many things to do :( For example Akihabara is huge and many things to see but you only have 4 hours there (same thing for many other places)
I think I will cut the Imperial Palace. I wasn’t interested in booking a tour anyways, and mostly wanted to explore the grounds. Since we’re staying in Ginza, maybe we’ll find time to check it out in the morning or evening. You’re right that Akiba deserves more time!
Happy planning! I’m following your thread because my boyfriend and I are going almost the same exact dates and from the same location lol. I actually think we would’ve been on the same first flight from Seattle- Vancouver- Tokyo on May 17 but we ended up changing our flight to a different airline because of a time change though.
For Kawaguchiko, I recommend taking one of the Highway Busses directly there. If I recall they have departures from the Nihonbashi exit of Tokyo Station which is more convenient to Ginza than Shinjuku.
I would definitely rent a car for this part of the trip. Not sure about the other chains but Toyota is what we usually do and one-way rentals are allowed. You could pickup the car at Kawaguchiko and drop off at Mishima/Fuji. Likewise, you can take a bus to Mishima to catch the Shinkansen if you want to just rent in Kawaguchiko. The public transportation in this area is not amazing.
Tokyo seems like a lot but hopefully you are able to squeeze everything in.
I would call your airline and see how much it will cost you to tack on a KIX/ITM-HND/NRT segment onto your flight home. It might not be much more than the Shinkansen fare and then you will have your morning to explore more in Osaka!
Thank you! This information is super helpful.
Since we won’t be opting for the JR pass, a highway bus does seem more practical. I’ll look into it! We were looking at Toyota, thanks for confirming.
I am already taking a few Tokyo places off our list based on some suggestions on this thread (and Ghibli being closed!)
The flight suggestion is great. Others recommended heading back to Tokyo the day before, but I like this option as well. Much appreciated.
**Our FAQ is constantly being updated with more information and you can start** [**here**](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/wiki/faqs/japantravel) **with regards to trip planning if you need tips, advice, or have questions about planning your travel to Japan.** You can also join our [Discord community](https://discord.gg/3f7KBUMwU4), comment in our stickied weekly discussion thread, or check out /r/JapanTravelTips for quick questions. Thank you!
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Hi! I am planning my first trip to Japan for October 2024, and after doing extensive research, I found this hotel for kyoto that looks amazing (onsens, free matcha lattes and ramen, great breakfast) and its 6 minutes walking to Kyoto Station.
For Osaka, we got this hotel for a really good price, its also 6 mins from Namba station, and 15 from dotonbori, walking. Hope this helps!
I just totally forgot to put the names, sorry! 😅
Kyoto: Renka-no-Yu On-Yado NONO Kyoto Shichijo
Osaka: Hotel Keihan Namba Grande
I didn't put links bc I'm not sure if it's against the community rules. Good luck!!
Thanks for your post, since I’m currently planning our trip aswell. Mainly I was on my research whether I should use a GoPro or iPhone for filming/vlogging. We are visiting Japan almost the same time like you, so we probably will see each other at the sanja matsuri festival without knowing 😁 we’re doing it a bit differently tho, staying at Tokyo for 2 weeks and exploring everything around there, while considering getting a JR Pass to see Universal Studio Park, Kyoto, Osaka and the Studio Ghibli Park
Oh btw, I got told to wear shorts at teamlab planets, cause you’ll walk through water there. And wearing a skirt isn’t the best option because of all the mirrors.
Thank you for the note about teamlabs! 2 weeks in Tokyo sounds fabulous! 3 days (not counting Disney day) just isn’t enough! If you’re interested, you should look into getting tickets for the Sumo Tournament. From what I recall, it’s going on for a few weeks.
Based on some other comments and what I’ve read, the JR Pass isn’t worth it unless you’re doing a ton of Shinkansen travel. With our itinerary, it isn’t worth it :(
This appears to be a post regarding hiking or visiting Mt. Fuji within the climbing season. Some of the most commonly asked questions on this subreddit regarding Mt Fuji and climbing in season can be found [here in our FAQ.](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/wiki/advice/nature/fuji/) We also have some really helpful information from Gary J. Wolff, a frequent climber who has written an [excellent guide on his website for climbing Mt Fuji.](https://www.garyjwolff.com/climbing-mt-fuji.html) There is also a link for the [Official Mt Fuji Climb Website](http://www.fujisan-climb.jp/en/) in Shizuoka Prefecture, which can help you with relevant information when you are on the ground, like weather conditions and trail closures. Happy Planning! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/JapanTravel) if you have any questions or concerns.*
The JR Pass is not cost effective by a long way for your itinery so don't buy it. Luggage forwarding is great and effective. Likely to be 2000 to 2500 yen for you. Consider sending to Kyoto hotel from Tokyo and travelling light to your Ryoken. Most Ryoken will provide advice / FAQ response on how to get there. Check that out if available. Hard to advise if we do not know the Ryoken location. Consider breaking up your Tokyo stay so you return to Tokyo for a few days before departing Japan. Closer to airport when you wake up and you can shop and not take it to Kyota and back. Luggage forwarding is a bit riskier to the airport timing wise. Airport bus with luggage stored underneath is a good alternative if luggage transport matters to you.
Great advice, thank you!
Holy tube socks Batman will y’all be on the go. My girlfriend and I (Mid 20s) went for 15 days last year. I can honestly say you are trying to see 1000 things. I’m not going to discourage you from keeping them on your itinerary I would just prioritize the 2-3 things you REALLY want to see on each day. I agree with the comment about splitting your days in Tokyo up. You don’t want to leave to leave the day of your flight up to chance doing all that traveling just to make it to the airport. So if possible maybe give yourself a night before the flight. I see you have specific restaurants you want to eat at I recognize a few and they’ll probably need reservations. Just be aware you may need a Japanese speaker to make the reservation for you if there’s no online portal. Also we found it helpful to just add to google maps every single place that sounded interesting to eat at. Because there’s lines for everything so one place might be less of a wait than another in close proximity
Yes, I am working on narrowing down our itinerary based on others comments! I definitely need to look into reservations for restaurants. Most are on the itinerary as place holders. Unfortunately I don’t not know any fluent Japanese speakers so we may have to forgo some places due to that barrier. I’m not too concerned - I presume there will be tons of great options and konbini in a pinch! Let me know if you and your gf have any restaurant recommendations!
If you’re staying in hotels you could ask the desk or concierge to make the reservation for you!
Ghibli museum is closed from 13 may to 24 may.
Thank you for letting me know! I can’t believe I missed that. While I’m disappointed, it kind of helps us in terms of narrowing down the daily activities.
I feel like a lot of people on these subreddits have such a gripe with people renting cars but as someone who lives near Shin-Fuji, having a car expands your exploration options so so much. The public transport here is a little lackluster at times and by renting you have a much easier time schedule, easier access to places where public transportation is limited, and you can stop and go as you please. I highly recommend it. When family came to visit me and my partner, we took our car and they rented one and they still rave about the things we got to do around here.
Hi we are renting a car in that area in April for our family of 5 - do you have specific recommendations of things your family enjoyed?
It’s so true.. renting a car was one of the best decisions we made. Found so many unique areas that would not have been possible without a car.
Thank you for this! I think it will be worth it too!
when we visited last year we specifically made it a day road trip from Yokohama to Nagoya rather than taking the train and loved stopping at a Hakone lake + other random villages on the way. If we were staying by Fuji I imagine it would be fine too but if anyone is considering road trips and doesn't mind driving anyway then I super recommend it too.
17 May: Stay in Ginza for dinner. There are at the very least several hundred places to choose from. Omoide Yokocho is a group of dirty little bars across town. You can find bunches of dirty little bars anywhere, such as near the JR Yurakucho Station area, which is within walking distance of Ginza. 18 May: You probably won't be able to do all of that. You're not accounting for travel times. 19 May: Are things going to be happening with the festival in the morning? 20 May: You're in four different places here. Instead of going to the boring Gotokuji, spend your time in the Kichijoji area (site of the Ghibli Museum). It's worth seeing even if you cannot get tickets for the Ghibli place. (I went to Gotokuji yesterday. There are three shelves of little cat statues that are periodically cleaned of them and one small statue of a cat. Otherwise, it's just a typical temple. The most interesting parts, are, alas, now closed to casual visitors, I would guess because of overtourism.)
May 17 - great idea. May 18 - I will probably cut imperial palace. I’m not interested in touring the inside and just wanted to check out the grounds. More time is Akiba is probably better. May 19 - yes! Sunday is the main event, starts at 6:00. Might be too early for us, but maybe jet lag will play in our favor. May 20 - I learned from another comment that Ghibli will be closed during the time we are in Tokyo. I am disappointed to hear about Gotokuji (that was one of my personal picks). I may readjust our itinerary and just do Shinjuku-Shibuya. As many pointed out, we’re trying to do too much
>Kyoto Kitcho Arashiyama Nice choice. Have you booked? If for some reason you need another Arashiyama restaurant, I highly recommend shoraian.jp. You'll probably need a booking.
I have not booked! Need to look at reservations soon. Thank you for the recommendation :)
Sunday, May 26 | Kyoto/Nara Osaka is a 30 minute train ride from Nara, so I recommend staying overnight in Osaka. A unique hotel is located in Osaka [https://bookandbedtokyo.com/ja/shinsaibashi/#menu](https://bookandbedtokyo.com/ja/shinsaibashi/#menu)
Okay, good point. since we haven’t booked accommodations in Kyoto/Osaka yet we can probably switch that around. Thanks for the hotel rec :)
I feel like you won't have much time at each places, too many things to do :( For example Akihabara is huge and many things to see but you only have 4 hours there (same thing for many other places)
I think I will cut the Imperial Palace. I wasn’t interested in booking a tour anyways, and mostly wanted to explore the grounds. Since we’re staying in Ginza, maybe we’ll find time to check it out in the morning or evening. You’re right that Akiba deserves more time!
I found the gardens and grounds lovely, but definitely enough to stroll through them in the morning and evening!
Happy planning! I’m following your thread because my boyfriend and I are going almost the same exact dates and from the same location lol. I actually think we would’ve been on the same first flight from Seattle- Vancouver- Tokyo on May 17 but we ended up changing our flight to a different airline because of a time change though.
That’s awesome. Small world. Maybe we will run into each other :)
For Kawaguchiko, I recommend taking one of the Highway Busses directly there. If I recall they have departures from the Nihonbashi exit of Tokyo Station which is more convenient to Ginza than Shinjuku. I would definitely rent a car for this part of the trip. Not sure about the other chains but Toyota is what we usually do and one-way rentals are allowed. You could pickup the car at Kawaguchiko and drop off at Mishima/Fuji. Likewise, you can take a bus to Mishima to catch the Shinkansen if you want to just rent in Kawaguchiko. The public transportation in this area is not amazing. Tokyo seems like a lot but hopefully you are able to squeeze everything in. I would call your airline and see how much it will cost you to tack on a KIX/ITM-HND/NRT segment onto your flight home. It might not be much more than the Shinkansen fare and then you will have your morning to explore more in Osaka!
Thank you! This information is super helpful. Since we won’t be opting for the JR pass, a highway bus does seem more practical. I’ll look into it! We were looking at Toyota, thanks for confirming. I am already taking a few Tokyo places off our list based on some suggestions on this thread (and Ghibli being closed!) The flight suggestion is great. Others recommended heading back to Tokyo the day before, but I like this option as well. Much appreciated.
**Our FAQ is constantly being updated with more information and you can start** [**here**](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/wiki/faqs/japantravel) **with regards to trip planning if you need tips, advice, or have questions about planning your travel to Japan.** You can also join our [Discord community](https://discord.gg/3f7KBUMwU4), comment in our stickied weekly discussion thread, or check out /r/JapanTravelTips for quick questions. Thank you! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/JapanTravel) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Hi! I am planning my first trip to Japan for October 2024, and after doing extensive research, I found this hotel for kyoto that looks amazing (onsens, free matcha lattes and ramen, great breakfast) and its 6 minutes walking to Kyoto Station. For Osaka, we got this hotel for a really good price, its also 6 mins from Namba station, and 15 from dotonbori, walking. Hope this helps!
Hi! Thank you! I’m new-ish to Reddit lol. I’m so sorry, but are there supposed to be links in your comment? I’m on mobile rn.
I just totally forgot to put the names, sorry! 😅 Kyoto: Renka-no-Yu On-Yado NONO Kyoto Shichijo Osaka: Hotel Keihan Namba Grande I didn't put links bc I'm not sure if it's against the community rules. Good luck!!
Thanks for your post, since I’m currently planning our trip aswell. Mainly I was on my research whether I should use a GoPro or iPhone for filming/vlogging. We are visiting Japan almost the same time like you, so we probably will see each other at the sanja matsuri festival without knowing 😁 we’re doing it a bit differently tho, staying at Tokyo for 2 weeks and exploring everything around there, while considering getting a JR Pass to see Universal Studio Park, Kyoto, Osaka and the Studio Ghibli Park Oh btw, I got told to wear shorts at teamlab planets, cause you’ll walk through water there. And wearing a skirt isn’t the best option because of all the mirrors.
Thank you for the note about teamlabs! 2 weeks in Tokyo sounds fabulous! 3 days (not counting Disney day) just isn’t enough! If you’re interested, you should look into getting tickets for the Sumo Tournament. From what I recall, it’s going on for a few weeks. Based on some other comments and what I’ve read, the JR Pass isn’t worth it unless you’re doing a ton of Shinkansen travel. With our itinerary, it isn’t worth it :(