Fukuoka or Kanazawa itinerary help

Hi all
Thanks for your support and help so far in planning my 2.5wk trip (20th March-8th April) I am feeling pretty good about it now.

It is now coming down to whether we want to go to Fukuoka vs. more traditional Japan at Takayama and Kanazawa. I really can't decide!
Pros: I love Ramen! Also I have had advice that seeing cherry blossoms will be more likely if we visit this area during our stay (especially early in our trip, as we are there the last 1.5 weeks in March, 1st week in April. I would rule out seeing blossoms on Kanazawa.) Its perhaps less 'touristy?' than Kanazawa/Takayama

Cons of going to Fukuoka: We live in London so are used to big cities, and would have already seen Tokyo and Osaka - but obviously Japanese cities are a different story to Europe and I know not all alike. Downside it is far (and looks like JR Pass not valid on quicker trains to Fukuoka. How long would it take on a JR pass train from Tokyo?) Would a day trip to Nagasaki be overkill, and if we didn't, is Fukuoka worth it? And can we not get amazing ramen and seafood elsewhere?


I'm pretty fixed on 7 nights Tokyo (4 at start, 3 at end), 3 nights Osaka, 1 night Mt Koya, 4 nights Kyoto, 1 night onsen (Taketoritei at Arima looks good to me as it has private and public and in Kansai, good reviews).

We then have 2 nights spare (3 as I am happy to take 1 night away from Kyoto if need be - would have 2 1/2 full days in the city if we did).


What do people think?

For interest here are the 2 potential itineraries:

WITH FUKUOKA


1 Friday 20th March - Arrive Narita airport 9am

2 Sat 21st Tokyo day sights

3 Sun 22nd Tokyo - Nikko day trip

4 Mon 23rd Tokyo - Kamakura day trip


5 Tue 24th Fukuoka arrive mid pm (start using JR Pass)

6 Wed 25th Fukuoka

7 Thurs 26th Nagasaki trip, Fukuoka overnight


8 Fri 27th Hiroshima and Miyajima - either overnight


9 Sat 28th Travel to Kyoto (2 hr journey)

10 Sun 29th Kyoto

11 Mon 30th Kyoto


12 Tue 31st Morning Kyoto 1 hr transfer to Taketoritei ryokan onsen


13 Wed 1st Travel to Osaka

14 Thur 2nd Nara day trip, Osaka overnight

15 Fri 3rd Mt Koya stay (leave bags at hotel in Osaka)

16 Sat 4th Osaka day and night


17 Sun 5th Himeji morning, then back to Tokyo late PM

18 Mon 6th Tokyo day

19 Tue 7th - Tokyo day

20 Wed 8th - AM Flight from Narita


KANAZAWA/TAKAYAMA OPTION (could switch the Osaka/Kyoto legs around if people think it works better Sakura wise, or general trains?)


1 Friday 20th March - Arrive Narita AM

2 Sat 21st Tokyo day

3 Sun 22nd Tokyo - Nikko day trip?

4 Mon 23rd - Tokyo day Ghibli museum


5 Tue 24th - Takayama (start using JR rail pass)

6 Wed 25th Kanazawa

7 Thur 26th Osaka eve

8 Fri 27th Mt Koya overnight temple stay (leave luggage at Osaka hotel)

9 Sat 28th osaka day and overnight

10 Sun 29th Nara day trip, Osaka overnight


11 Mon 30th Arima onsen town near Kobe - Taketoritei ryokan


12 Tue 31st Arrive Kyoto

13 Wed 1st Himeji castle visit, Kyoto overnight

14 Thur 2nd Hiroshima and Miyajima day trip, Kyoto overnight

15 Fri 3rd Kyoto

16 Sat 4th Kyoto

17 Sun 5th Back to Tokyo (2 hrs journey)

18 Mon 6th Tokyo - Kamakura day trip?

19 Tue 7th - Tokyo day


20 Wed 8th - AM Flight from Narita

Ramen and seafood are ubiquitous: no need to travel anywhere just for that.
Kanazawa is not at all a big city: it has many really interesting attractions: Kenrokuen, and truly superb garden, and the wonderful Seisonkaku villa; 21st Century Museum: fabulous; geisha areas, samurai areas, gold foil artisans; Omicho Market (there�fs your seafood); Ninja temple....
And by the time you are there, the new Shinkansen from Tokyo to Kanzawa will give you a wonderful trip both through the Alps and along the Sea of Japan. SO I�fd leave out Takayama, go to Kanazawa for 2 nights from Tokyo, then direct from Kanzawa to Osaka.
But I�fm biased: Kanazawa is our favourite place.
Have I not said this to you before?
Good luck.

I am with Kanazawa on this. Skip Takayama

Why not do the Alpine route?

Why not Kanazawa to Kyoto
2 nights Kyoto
1 night Arima
Arima onsen has bus services to Kobe (Mount Rokko)
From there go to Kobe, night in Hiroshima/Miyajima
Then to Osaka + Koya

No need to go to Kyoto twice

Fukuoka and the rest of Kyushu in my opinion needs 10 days to cover, proper. If not, it is too out of the way to consider.

In order of importance
1. Kyoto
2. Koya
3. Kanazawa
4. Tokyo
5. Osaka
6. Takayama
7. Hiroshima+Miyajima

If not for being so out of the way, Miyajima would be placed 4th

Thank you both

Can I ask Joshua why you say no need to go to Kyoto twice? Dont really understand, my itinerary doesnt do this I dont think? Do you mean I need to go through it at some point twice?

Is the train Kanazawa to Kyoto especially scenic, compared to say Kanazawa to Osaka? ideally I'm thinking Osaka first as might make sense in terms of Sakura following (25th 26 27 28 March feels too early for Kyoto to see them? I understand they could come much earlier or later though)

I was thinking whilst Nara makes sense from Osaka, and Hiroshima from Kyoto, I could have the option to reverse these day trips if Sakura come out early or late to increase my chances.

A couple quick comments.

If you are going to Kyoto then you can skip Kamakura. Spend the extra day in Tokyo or adjust your itinerary for an overnight on Miyajima.

If cherry blossoms are a priority then I would strongly consider Fukuoka for the best chance to see them close to full bloom.

On your Kanazawa itinerary, consider going from Arima to Hiroshima, staying overnight on Miyajima, and doing Himeji as a stop over on the way to Kyoto. That will be more efficient and reduce travel time.

I'd also skip Takayama if you do Kanazawa

And finally:

Ramen and seafood are ubiquitous: no need to travel anywhere just for that.

Blasphemy! ;)
Ramen, especially when talking Hakata Ramen, is not ubiquitous. If you are a fan of tonkotsu ramen then you must try it at a yatai stand in Fukuoka. Seriously some of the best dining experiences I have ever had in Japan!

Ha ha ha yllwsmrf!! Sorry: I was just trying to make the decision easier for the OP....must get t fukuoka one day JUST for ramen then!! :-)

Ah.

My bad. Saw wrongly.

Besides that, just wanted to point out that Hiroshima, Himeji, Kobe are nearer to Osaka station then Kyoto station.

It might be better to leave from Osaka then Kyoto.

Thanks - I am leaning towards Kanazawa now. Fukuoka better for blossoms but a mission and may also get to see them in Hiroshima if we visit there a bit later in our trip know it gets them earlier than Kansai.

I was thinking of Himeji on the way back from Hiroshima as its on the way but we will have luggage and it seems there isn't guaranteed locker availability at the train station. Plus as the day trips seem better suited from Osaka, I almost want to 'save' Himeji to do from Kyoto (sounds weird but I need to be in Kyoto for a good few days as a friend of mine lives there and is only free on certain days to hang out!)
It seems like ALL of the day trips are best suited from Osaka because you generally have to via Shinosaka.

So thinking now:

1 Friday 20th March - Arrive Narita AM
2 Sat 21st Tokyo day
3 Sun 22nd Tokyo - Nikko day trip?
4 Mon 23rd - Tokyo - Ghibli museum

5 Tue 24th - Kanazawa (start using JR rail pass)
6 Wed 25th Kanazawa

OSAKA BASE
7 Thur 26th Osaka eve
8 Fri 27th Mt Koya overnight temple stay (leave luggage at Osaka hotel)
9 Sat 28th osaka day overnight
10 Sun 29th Nara day trip

11 Mon 30th Travel to Hiroshima (Miyajima island PM and overnight)
12 Tue 31st Hiroshima peace park morning, on to Arima Onsen night via Kobe

13 Wed 1st Mt Rokko cable car morning, back to Kobe and on to Kyoto
14 Thur 2nd Kyoto
15 Fri 3rd Himeji castle day trip
16 Sat 4th Kyoto - Hang out with Tom

TOKYO
17 Sun 5th Back to Tokyo (2 hrs ish journey)
18 Mon 6th Tokyo - Kamakura day trip? Or something else in Tokyo
19 Tue 7th - Tokyo day

Looking good!
As far as Kamakura goes, see how you feel....there is SO much to see and do in Tokyo.
If you DO go to Kamakura, I can recommend the Diabahtsu hiking trail from Kita Kamakura: lovely on a nice day....not worth it if weather is against you.
Have a great trip!

I'd suggest that you do both, but to do both as a single day trip. Do a Fukuoka day trip from Hiroshima, and a Kanazawa Day trip from Kyoto. Hataka Station in Fukuoka is about one hour away from Hiroshima Station, and Kanazawa is about two hours away from Kyoto.

I would try to plan your travel in the early morning and evening, when places you want to visit are closed. When I looked up the trip on Hyperdia, taking the JR trains from Tokyo to Kanasawa would take 263 minutes, which is almost four and a half hours. I would suggest smaller hops. There are exceptions to this rule, like when you are trying to be somewhere in the evening, such as the yatai stands in Fukuoka, or the Gion district in Kyoto. Fireworks and Night Illuminations would also fall into this exception.

I would also recommend going to Miyajima as cloce to a full or new moon as possible. You will get the largest tidal shifts at the floating Tori gate. The Gate will be "floating" late in the morning (9:30-11AM), and "beached" in the afternoon (3:30-5PM). If you make Miyajima a full day trip near April 4th of 2015, you should get both views.
High tide +3.42 meters @ 9:37 AM
Low tide +0.42 meters @ 3:31 PM
If the only reason to go to Fukuoka is for the Ramen, your should be done at Miyajima around 4PM and could be back to Hiroshima Station aroud 5PM. You could board a Shinkansen for Fukuoka and the Yatai stalls for dinner.

As for fireworks and Illuminations, do you have any interest in these. The might be some fireworks in Atami (between Tokyo and Nagoya), and the winter Illuminations in Nagashima Park in Nagoya go through the end of March, so you might look into these.

Here is a link to Nagashima:

http://rivercam.wordpress.com/2010/04/01/jp%E3%80%82winter-illuminatio...

I also remember something about a night flower viewing somewhere in Kyoto. I don't remember where.

I hope this helps...

I poked around for a while and found something about the night cherry blossom event at the Heian Shrine. I think this is what I remembered seeing earlier last year. I arrived in Kyoto just afer Golden Week, and I was too late to attend.

http://mooyeejoy.blogspot.com/2013/06/kyoto-heian-shrine-s-sakura-nigh...

Since cherry blossum season differs from year to year, this would have to be an event that does not have a fixed date each year. It makes it have to plan, so your itinerary would have to be flexable.

Thanks all - Fukuoka as a day trip sounds interesting and hadn't considered it thanks, might be a little exhausting though.

I read that the train to Kanazawa from Tokyo will cut from 4 1/2 hours to around 2 1/2 hours in March - perfect timing.

Do people think 1 or 2 nights in Kanazawa given our 19 day itinerary?

Ok playing around I could take 1 night off Kanazawa, just do this as a 1 night loop from Tokyo on the way to Osaka - then spend 2 nights in Hiroshima after Osaka (1 day Mijajima island, half day Hiroshima, half day and evening visit to Fukuoka).

But don't want 1 day Kanazawa to be pointless. With the new 2 1/2 hour journey from Tokyo though it could be worth it.