I thought I would start by simply {or as simply as my over eager self can manage} sharing our three week Japan itinerary exploring 1000 miles via every mode of transport and discovering both the well known Japan {aka The Golden Route} and so many off the beaten path hidden gems too {aka my favourite}.
A Little Note On How We Travel
It is worth saying that although I have listed the specific places and activities in each area/city, we also put great value and emphasis on merely exploring and wandering to get a feel of the place without rushing; instead soaking it in. This might not be the best signposting to make the list but wandering in a new place is one of our favourite things to do.
Slow exploring can lead to the most memorable experiences and finding actual hidden gems. You know the ones you may never write down or share but where the real travel moments live. That unknown restaurant with the human connection despite the language barrier. The local park where you really put yourself in the shoes of children and parents living their everyday. Stopping at the side of the road to see nesting cranes or admiring a beautiful sunset. Those moments are golden to us.
It therefore may seem that the activities listed aren’t a lot for the days we stayed. But this is how we travel and for us it has that perfect balance. Overpacked itineraries are no fun for anyone, especially with children, especially when it’s busy and also because in my experience you don’t really feel the travel and the moment the same way. You’re so busy ticking off the next thing there’s no time to appreciate it. There was so much more to each destination than I could ever convey in a list and I implore you also to stumble upon a shrine or street you never quite find out what it is called but appreciate it nonetheless.
So my best advice, especially for Japan? Realise you cannot do it all, find what lights your fire with your budget, ability and the time you have, and simply enjoy it!
Here is our full itinerary for three weeks travelling across Japan off the beaten path as a family.
The Itinerary
Firstly we landed in Tokyo Haneda airport at 7am local time in April before taking a 2 hour domestic flight to Kumamoto in the southern island of Kyushu. From the airport we hired a car to explore the area. You can use public transport but in Kyushu the trains connect mostly the major cities so it will take a little more planning with buses or organised trips.
Aso {Central Kyushu} – 3 nights – Stardust Village Hossyo
- Hotel Onsen Indoor and Outdoor
- Nabegataki Falls
- Beppu – Seven Hells of Beppu
- Takachiho Gorge
- Waterfall with a Horse Statue along Route 325
- Mt Aso Volcano
- Shiroyama Scenic Overlook for Sunset Views
- Cherry Blossom!
Hiroshima – 2 nights – Fav Hiroshima Stadium
After returning the hire car at Kumamoto train station it was time for our first Shinkansen (bullet train) to Hiroshima 250 miles, 2 hours direct. It is easy to navigate around the city on foot or via trains and trams. Hiroshima actually has the largest tram network in Japan. You pay for this with the same card you use for the trains (like a Suica or Pasmo), or cash on exit.
To visit Miyajima Island it’s an easy ferry ride either direct 45 minutes from Hiroshima peace park or via train or tram to Miyajimaguchi ferry terminal for a quick 10 minute ferry. More detail and costs in my Hiroshima Travel Guide.
- Hiroshima Castle
- Hiroshima A-Dome & Peace Park
- Miyajima Island
- Floating Tori Gate
- Itsukashima Shrine
- Miyajima Ropeway
Tottori – 3 nights – HamaVilla
Hiroshima to Tottori is a slightly more complex journey due to Tottori being one of the least visited prefectures of Japan. The 40 minute Shinkansen took us to Okayama where we changed for a 2 hour local train to Tottori Station. Collecting another hire car here. Tottori City actually offers ‘Gurruto’ {Tourist Taxis} exclusively for foreign tourists where you have a set number of hours to see major sights for a fee usually around ¥4000 for 3 hours {about £20}. Trains and taxis are readily available in Tottori, we just like the freedom of a car and it enables us to visit some of the more remote places, crucially, on our own timeline and whim!
- Tottori Sand Dunes
- Failed attempt to see The Sand Museum (closed jan – Apr; always check!)
- Beaches
- Uradome Coast Boat Trip
- Kurayoshi
- Kurayoshi Disused Train Line & Bamboo Forest
- Local Play Park
- and our favourite local S-mart supermarket food shop!
Nara – 4 nights – Miroku Nara by The Share Hotels
It was back on the local train after dropping off the hire car to travel 150 miles to Nara via Osaka with an onward 45 minute Shinkansen to Nara. For our first foray into the ‘Golden Route’ we were relying on the very well connected public transport.
Originally this was planned as our 5 night base hoping Nara was somewhat quieter than the big{ger} cities and we could explore Osaka and Kyoto by train as it is very well connected to both. Hopefully {and somewhat naively} meaning reducing the amount of time we moved on, and with only 40 min train journeys between them it made sense right? Theoretically at least.
However. Train travel, and the crowds that accompanied that, was in fact quite the feat for our family. You actually don’t realise how physically demanding public transport is vs a car and this is something we have to factor in.
FYI stations are HUGE so there is quite a lot of walking.
Also, our next onward journey would have to connect through Kyoto anyway so we decided to save ourselves a journey and spend one night in Kyoto, checking out of Nara 1 day early.
Due to this (the travel fatigue is real) we probably also spent more time exploring Nara than we would have planned to. Though I have to say that is not a bad thing. Most people come just for the day and there really is so much more to explore. Subsequently it meant the mornings and evenings were quieter as the tourists depart.
- Nara Park – Sacred Deer
- Tōdai-ji Temple Great Buddha Hall
- Tōdai-ji Nigatsu-do Temple
- Isuien Garden
- Kasugataisha Shrine
- Meoto Daikokusha Shrine
- Takabatakecho Area
- Noboriojicho Area
- Araike Pond
- Nara Visitor Centre Japanese Cultural Activities – Kanji Name Writing & Origami Deer
Osaka – Day Trip
Train from Nara to Osaka takes 50 minutes
- Osaka Castle & Park
- Dotonburi
- Kuromon Market
- Umeda Sky Building
- Shinsaibashisuji Shopping Street
- Glico Running Man Sign
Kyoto – 1 night – Minn Karasuma Gojo Kyoto Station North
I want to add here that the internet might make you think {at least it did me, no judgement here!) that Kyoto is a small city filled with wooden houses and traditional Japanese streets with nature and trees. And there are these areas.
However it is also a huge city with as many modern buildings and busy streets as other big cities. Whilst being huge. The major sights that you see shared are very far apart and so either understand it isn’t doable or allow alot more time here than 1 night. Personally we didn’t want to prioritise it as we knew it would be busy and not our scene unless we slow travelled and we didn’t have the time. It was great to experience a slice of Kyoto even if it was our least favourite place which was a definite surprise.
- Kinkaku-ji (Golden Pavillion)
- Bukko-ji Temple
- Nishiki Market
- Pontocho Alley
- Gion District
Izu – 3 nights – Il Azzurri
Departing Kyoto with a 2 hour bullet train directly to Mishima we were very happy, after some physically gruelling days, to have another hire car. The 90 min drive into the west coast of Izu peninsula to experience an epic sunset over the ocean and the best sushi of my life was WELL worth it.
We chose Izu over staying near Mount Fuji mostly because we wanted to explore off the beaten track and some coastal nature but also because we are aware at that time of year the chances of seeing Mount Fuji clearly is slim. Although we did stay on the west coast of Izu Peninsula to give us a chance of a sighting. We didn’t want to spend time in Fuji area chasing it. As it turns out, we would have had a clear couple of days but then again we totally fell in love with Izu Peninsula so I still wouldn’t change it. I would just love to visit the Fuji area too if I could guarantee the same visibility!
- Tombolo Land Bridge
- Dogashima Coast
- Amagiso Ō-daru Falls Waterfall Onsen {quickly became my favourite place in the world!}
- West Coast Fuji Viewing Spots
- Cape Ose & Beach
- Heda
- Lovers Cape
- Koganezaki Park
- Tabibito Misaki
- Iwachi Beach Matsuzaki
- Ishibu Rice Terraces
- Wasabi Root – aka ‘real’ wasabi
- Shuzenji Bamboo Path
Tokyo – 4 nights – Fav Tokyo Nishinippori
Dropping in the hire car back at Mishima Station meant we then caught our last Shinkansen to Tokyo for the final leg of our trip. This is also where we used the shipping luggage service for the first time rather than take 5 cases into Tokyo. More on that service in another post!
Of course being a city there is an endless list of things you can do and fill your time with. We are not big city people nor are we shopping people so finding some fun activities for us was amazing aswell as places for great views. Lovers of views that we are. Unfortunately we did experience an insane amount of rain which did adjust our plans slightly; but you have to work with what you got and we had alot of fun in Tokyo nevertheless. It was the place that surprised me as I didn’t expect to enjoy it as much as I did. An amazing way to end our trip for sure.
- Shibuya Sky
- Shibuya Crossing
- Mario Kart Driving Experience
- Gesen – Multi Floor Arcade Game Centres – My seaside dance mat days coming back with a bang!
- Senso-ji Temple
- Rent Kimonos
- Teamlab Planets
- Tsukiji Market
- Ueon Park & Zoo {do NOT recommend}
- Ginza District
- Karaoke Booth
Haneda is the closest airport to Tokyo and is very easy to navigate to via train. Yes even with luggage. Then we were back on the plane after what felt like the most amazing three week blur.
Itinerary Tips & Hindsight
Take these tips and hindsight as you will. This is our experience as a family with as much nuance as yours and only you know your circumstances and preferences.
Don’t over plan and know your limits. Travelling at a slower pace allows much more connection and, especially for children but adults too, it reduces the travel fatigue. So pace yourself, whatever that looks like for your family, you and your children will be thankful for it.
I will talk about this more in my transport post but look into the best transport for you. Shinkansen is faster but more expensive, car is freeing and affordable, flying domestically is easy and trams and buses run so perfectly you can’t really go wrong in the bigger cities.
In direct opposition to what the internet will tell you. We didn’t book in advance for the majority of our journeys with availability at the station on the day or the day before direct online, not via other platforms eg Klook. We did avoid rush hour wherever possible though. Japan is so well connected you can pretty much get anywhere with a little plan. The JR Train pass is something people talk about but we calculated and even with all the travel we were doing it didn’t make financial sense and we paid as we went.
There are many off the beaten path destinations. You don’t have to follow our path or any specific route. Some as far south as Kyushu like we did, some all the way in the north of Japan. Honestly though you can find so many towns and cities worth visiting even close to the golden route and I would say it is a totally different experience to the popular tourist spots. You get to encounter a real authentic side of Japan both architecturally, culturally and in every personal interaction too.
Plan for flexibility. Things happen, whether that’s peoples moods, physical ability, illness or indeed the weather (hello surprise snow in Kyushu and the most amount of rain I’ve ever seen in Tokyo!) so being able to flex a little is important.
Book in advance. Contrary to the above, there are some experiences that you do really need to book in advance, especially popular spots like Teamlabs, Shibuya Sky and the boats in Takachiho Gorge. Look at what you need to book and set an alarm for when the slots open, often a few weeks or months in advance, as some sell out in minutes. We had some set in stone days where we had booked but alot of flexibility in the others.
Utilise google maps. Google maps was SO helpful in Japan (with a portable wifi box) at not only being able to get to places we had planned in advance but finding restaurants and adding pins for shrines and interesting things we saw along the way. We would often not overplan but look what I had researched and saved in advance and make a decision from there on the day or the night before.
Essentially the biggest itinerary tip is to plan for you. The joy (and ok I know the overwhelm too) of making your own itinerary is that you can cater to your needs, your interests and budget. You do you.
So What Would We Do Differently?
Itinerary wise if I could do this trip again {which we all would in an absolute heartbeat} I would stay one more night in Hiroshima and explore more on the Izu Peninsula, we fell totally madly deeply in love with that area, and it’s only about 2 hours from Tokyo. I almost want to keep it to myself but you know there’s no gatekeeping over here!
Nara/Osaka/Kyoto feels like a more complicated answer…..
In hindsight, and likely unsurprising given what I have already written above, we would change our middle city part in Nara. We made the naive assumption that staying in Nara would be the best base to explore them all. Which I do think it may be for some people. For us it was all just a little too busy to see all three from one place in the time we had.
However, I honestly don’t know. I feel really torn here because I know we didn’t get the best experience with how we travelled there and that influences my feelings and advice. How you fit it all into one trip is difficult. Having said that, and I feel like this is travel blogger internet sacrilege so much that I should say with a whisper but I would be quite happy to skip Kyoto altogether.
I know!
Now, hear me out. I think it is either spend MORE time there, or skip it. Having experienced other places around Japan I would say for me it just didn’t give me anymore than I can experience elsewhere. The crowds make it such a different experience and there is absolutely no getting away from that truth. Albeit a different perfective from the rest of the internet. But then when have I ever been one to follow the crowd just because! My bad.
Of course there is so much to see do and explore and it’s like trying to see half of Europe in three weeks. I have lived in the UK my entire 41 years and still haven’t explored half of it! Just choose wisely. Yes the popular spots are nice/interesting/worth visiting but, and this may be controversial again but having been to both I would say the typical ‘Golden Route’ places are no nicer than other less explored (for now at least) parts of the country and you know what? There really should be no ‘must do’s’ when it comes to exploring a whole new nation.
So that’s it. Our Itinerary, our experience and our opinions. I would love to know if it helps you, if there is any more information you would like to know and indeed if you have a great trip. Japan really is the most enigmatic and special place and I could talk on our travel there for hours on end! Look out for many blog posts and details to come.
Happy planning and don’t forget, you do you.
I will be sharing complete destination travel guides soon but any questions leave below or DM me on social media.
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