Japan Experts Help Please

I know there are a ton of threads already on Japan trips, but I am hoping to get some customized advice. Have been to Japan many times in business, but going to be taking my adult daughter in mid November for a solid week of vacation for her first time in the country and my first time really vacationing there. She is more of a fine dining, outdoors kind of person than temple tours and museums.

We will be starting and ending in Tokyo, and my first thought would be to spend some time in Kyoto, but have also had a lovely time in Nikko in the autumn. I think it is too early to ski, but perhaps heading south to Okinawa for a few days on the beach? Any suggestions on where to go, where to stay and where to eat from the experienced Japan hands would be greatly appreciated!

Good luck Jud. I haven’t been to Japan in 57 years. While I have a large number of customers from Japan, I only have one friend/customer who visits Japan every summer and he won’t be in for cigars until Friday or Saturday AND he doesn’t drink wine and isn’t on the board. He just got back from Japan last week and showed me pictures of the food he was enjoying in Tokyo, Kyoto and a couple hidden spots for locals. If he comes in soon I’ll try to dig info or have him join to help you out.

Fine dining and outdoor, I would highly recommend Hokkaido. I have some of the best meals there.

I just come back from a trip to Okinawa recently, certainly not in the same category as Hokkaido food wise.

Well, we walked all over Kamakura - probably 10 miles and it was quite fun. The place is loaded with temples but you can just walk on by as you get your exercise.

I had friends that took the bullet train to Mt. Fuji and hiked it…

I am not sure if you are referring specifically to the hiking trails around Kamakura, but I took one of them, the Ten-en trail out beyond Kenchoji, and it was a good way to do something a bit different for a day and you got some nice views. This link has some other suggestions for hikes around Tokyo, although I can’t comment on the other ones.

Yes, Danius.

I was referring to hiking around kamakura. It’s not life changing but a beautiful way to spend the day walking.

+1 to hiking around Kamakura. Beautiful sceneries.

It’s also worthwhile to visit the Yamanashi wine region. There’s basically one reasonable hotel there (Budo-no-Oka) to my knowledge, otherwise it’s just vineyards and countryside. The train from Tokyo to Yamanashi takes something like 2 hours and the hotel is 15 minutes walk away from the train station (well, basically a single platform on a hill). The sceneries in Yamanashi are spectacular and the whole valley is riddled with wineries. The only buggerance there is that people really don’t speak anything but Japanese (in the hotel the receptionist didn’t understand even words like “yes” or “no”). It’s best to stay couple of days there: one day to visit a handful of wineries and another day to stay at the hotel: there’s an underground vault full of local wines you can taste for an entry fee of approximately $15. You can stay there for hours on end, really.

Kyoto is my favorite city to visit just for walking around. You can simply stroll around the city aimlessly and just wonder the beauty of it all. It’s also easy to visit the Yamazaki distillery and the wonderful city of Nara from Kyoto as well.

Hiroshima was a wonderful place to visit too. The city itself is wonderful, there are lots of great wine shops, tons of okonomiyaki joints selling that ridiculously delicious stuff and beautiful islands to visit nearby. I also loved the more laid-back feeling the city had compared to Tokyo and Osaka.

However, I must warn you that a week is really a mere blink of an eye when visiting Japan. We stayed for three weeks, one of which in Tokyo alone, and still we had to drop lots of stuff from our bucket list and eventually it felt like we ran out of time all too soon. One can spend a month in Tokyo (well, the greater Tokyo region) alone and not worry about running out of things to do. Since it takes half a day to reach Kyoto from Tokyo, a week is going to get pretty short is planning on visiting more than just one city.

I myself am planning on returning to Japan in the future. Visiting both Hokkaido and Okinawa are very high on my list of places to visit.

Thanks for all the thoughts so far, please keep them coming. Otto - I remember the bullet train from Tokyo to Kyoto being a little over 2 hours?

Jud,
It depends which train you take. Here is a page with the timetables.

You want to take the Nozomi (the one in yellow). It will get you from Tokyo to Kyoto in about 2 hours, 20 minutes.

I agree with Otto that a week is short. You may want to consider combining a hike with a visit to an onsen (hot spring) and even a stay at a minshuku or ryokan. If you do a search with “Kyoto” “hiking” and “hot spring” you will come up with some suggestions.

Jud, reach out to Denny. He has been several times in the past few years. He and Sheri go for like 10 days at a time and spare no expense.

I’m hardly an expert but I’ve been to Japan a bunch, including twice last year :slight_smile:

I think you should avoid Okinawa; it doesn’t feel much like Japan to me. Given that she likes food and the outdoors I would second (third?) the Kyoto suggestion. Alternatively, if you’re feeling adventurous Shikoku is an amazing, off the beaten path sort of place to visit with great outdoor scenery. Caveats: you’ll have to rent a car and it will be a trifle chilly. But I do enjoy driving in Japan and the hot springs are excellent. In case you’re interested here is the Shikoku leg of my itinerary from last December:

Day 1: Osaka/Takamatsu

  • Car rental
  • Uzu no Michi
  • Bizan Ropeway (眉山ロープウェイ)
  • JR Hotel Clement Takamatsu
  • Dinner at Ikkaku (一鶴 高松店)

Day 2: Takamatsu

  • High-speed ferry from Takamatsu to Naoshima (Miyanoura)
  • Chichu Art Museum
  • Chichu Garden
  • Lee Ufan Museum
  • Benesse House Museum
  • Ando Museum
  • Dinner at UOGAZHI 7070

Day 3: Takamatsu/Kotohira

  • Check-out JR Hotel Clement Takamatsu
  • 小歩危峡(こぼけきょう) + Ooboke Gorge (大歩危峡 / おおぼけきょう)
  • Lunch at Senkichi (仙吉; 323-3 Nishiiyayamamura Oinouchi, Miyoshi-shi, Tokushima-ken 778-0101; 〒778-0101 徳島県三好市西祖谷山村尾井ノ内323−3; VRP4+V9 Miyoshi; +81 883-87-2733)
  • Kazurabashi of Iya (祖谷のかずら橋; 162-2 Nishiiyayamamura Zentoku, Miyoshi-shi, Tokushima-ken 778-0102; 〒778-0102 徳島県三好市西祖谷山村善徳162−2; VRGP+35 Miyoshi)
  • Check-in Kotohira Kadan (1241-5 Kotohira-cho, Nakatado-gun, Kagawa Pref., 766-0001; +81-877-75-3232)

Day 4: Kotohira/Miyoshi

  • Check-out
  • Sake tasting at Kinryo Tadotsu Brewery (1880 Kazuhara, Tadotsu-chō, Nakatado-gun, Kagawa-ken 764-0028; +81-877-33-4133)
  • Mount Tsurugi Chair Lift (剣山 見ノ越第1駐車場; Higashiiyasugeoi, Miyoshi, Tokushima Prefecture 778-0201; 〒778-0201 徳島県三好市東祖谷菅生; V38Q+WW)
  • Okuiya Niju Kazura Bashi Double vine bridge (奥祖谷(おくいや)二重かずら橋; 〒778-0201 Tokushima Prefecture, Miyoshi, Higashiiyasugeoi 620; 〒778-0201 徳島県三好市東祖谷菅生620; V23W+96 Miyoshi)
  • Check-in Hotel Iyaonsen (367-28 Matsuo Matumoto, Ikeda-cho, Miyoshi-shii, Tokushima Pref., +81 883-75-2311)

Day 5: Miyoshi/Ehime

  • Check-out
  • Dōgo Onsen Honkan (道後温泉本館; 5-6 Yunomachi, Dōgo; +81 089-943-8342)
  • Lunch at Nikitatsuan (にきたつ庵; 3-18 Dogokitamachi Matsuyama Ehime; 愛媛県 松山市 道後喜多町 3-18; 1100-2130)
  • Matsuyama Castle (松山城)
  • Check-in Setouchi Aonagi (794-1 Yanaidani-cho, Matsuyama, Ehime, 799-2641, +81-89-977-9500, yoyaku@setouchi-aonagi.jp)

Day 6: Ehime/Hiroshima

  • Check-out
  • Car ferry to Hiroshima

Mid November is a great time to visit as the autumn leaves will be peaking in most places other than the north. Of course this means that some of the best places to see them will be packed so book early.

When we did the Romantic Train ride in Arashiyama, Kyoto (Sagano Romantic Train | Sagano Scenic Railway) and the boat ride back up the last week of October we kept wishing we were there 2 weeks later as there were only a few trees tipped with color. It could be a great way to see the foliage and then get a bite to eat, browse the shops and walk the bamboo grove.

Of course it depends. We had a JR pass for two weeks allowing for free travel with all JR train lines using Shinkansen (the high-velocity train) and it took us something like 3 hours station to station, not including moving to and from the station at both ends.

Of course you can take a Nozomi train, which takes less than two hours from Tokyo to Kyoto, but a one-way ticket is something like $150 per person on that line.

this

Thanks for sharing, I will use your itinerary as a main reference for our upcoming trip to Shikoku. We are likely to spend two nights each at Takamatsu, Iya Valley, and Matsuyama.

Anything else would you recommend for the trip?

I’m a big fan of the food. They raise olive wagyu there, which can be spectacularly good, and I liked the rice enough to bring several pounds home with me. Have a good trip :slight_smile:

I noticed you only spent on night in Matsuyama, was that sufficient?

It really wasn’t; we should have done at least 2, but we were rushing to get to Hiroshima

One last favor - any recommendations on hotels in Kyoto - does not have to be super fancy, but would like convenient location to tourist areas, public transport. Thanks!

We stayed at the Royal Park Hotel. It’s in a pretty good location for walking and train.