How is the rest of the itinerary? How are the flights scheduled?
Isnft it possible to head to Kyoto on Friday, August 8 because the airplane may arrive too late?
Dates of Obon days vary by regions and it is not easy to predict crowdedness during the Obon season. But, it is considered that interregional transportations tend to be highly congested on August 13, August 16 and the closest weekends.
If you can travel to Kyoto on Friday, August 8 and travel back to Tokyo on Monday, August 11, you can avoid interregional trips on those possibly busiest days.
- Obon
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2286.html Aug 10 - We will go to DisneySea August 10, 2014 will be a Sunday and may be during summer vacation for many schoolchildren.
Considering possible crowdedness, I suppose August 12 - 14 (Tuesday - Thursday) may be better for visiting a Tokyo Disney park.
By the way, have you checked Tokyo Disney Resort Official Hotels? A guest of any of these Official Hotels holding a valid Tokyo Disney park ticket can be guaranteed admission to the park when entry is restricted due to crowdedness. (Please note that even if you are given this benefit, you may have to wait inside the park.)
If the two kids are ardent Disney fans, you may hope to choose one of Disney Hotels, whose guests are given the same benefit.
http://www.tokyodisneyresort.jp/en/about/rh/official.htmlhttp://www.disneyhotels.jp/english/index.htmlDo I need to buy JR pass for my 5 years old son? He will still be 5 years old during this journey, right?
If an adult always accompanies a 5-year-old kid and the two travelers are always in a non-reservation part of the train, no railroad fee is required concerning the kid;
however, if the kid uses a seat which needs to be reserved or no one can accompany the kid in a train, child-rate railroad fees are required concerning the kid.
Should I buy Green Car JR pass? No.
I suggest you choose JR regular tickets unless the amount you can save by choosing Ordinary-Class Japan Rail Passes is too much.
When you find Ordinary-Class cars unfortunately too crowded but a Green Car still has enough vacant seats,
if you have chosen JR regular tickets, you can pay the gap in the charges and use Green Car seats;
however, if you have chosen Ordinary-Class Japan Rail Passes, you should fully pay Shinkansen charges and Green Car charges in order to use Green Car seats.
And, if you have chosen Green Car Japan Rail Passes, you cannot get any refund even if your family end in not using any Green Car seat.
How to make all train reservations outside Japan? Regarding Tokaido Shinkansen (connecting Tokyo and Shin-Osaka) of JR-Central, even passengers living in Japan cannot only reserve seats without payment.
JR-East has a website in English for seat reservation and payment for its trains, but unfortunately no JR company is offering such a website for Tokaido Shinkansen trains.
