Advice for two weeks or so in July

Hi All,

My girlfriend I are planning a two week trip to Japan in July but are slightly overwhelmed at all the amazing places to be seen. Now our itinerary seems a bit too hectic....

Please feel free trim it down or suggest alternatives. We are open to suggestions and are keen to explore with the right balance of site seeing and relaxing.

-Tokyo with day trip to Nikko (days 1-5). We think arriving in Tokyo will give it even more wow factor and we'll be keen to explore.

-Takayama with day trip to Kamikochi (days 5-8). Nice change of pace from Tokyo and we can relax in a beautiful town in the alps.

Kanazawa via Shirakawago (days 8-9). I love gardens and Shirakawago is en route.

- Osaka with day trips to Kyosan and Hiroshima (days 9-12). Lots of site seeing for a few days. The nightlife and food in Osaka seems to make it a good base for day trips.

Kyoto days (12-16). Perfect final destination for our trip. Lots of leisurely site seeing and relaxing.

Tokyo and Kyoto are the only definite places at the moment. We are undecided on Nikko, Kanazawa, Kyosan and to a lesser degree, Hiroshima. We would consider swapping Takayama for somewhere else if there's an amazing small town with rotenburo in the mountains. Also, we will fly into Tokyo and out of Kansai and will have a 14 day rail pass.

Thanks in advance! :-)

Kanazawa is a good town for a day or two or more, most people who been there will swore on it.

Nikko is a good day trip though 1 night there would be nice too, or so i read.

Kamikochi, a day trip, do be aware of massive influx on tourists to the area during summer, I was in the Matsumoto last year thinking to go Kamikochi but was put back by the sheer amount of tourists heading there (domestic and international tourists etc)

Takayama, in my opinion, is a tourist resort town, was there for 2 days, did not really enjoy the town. The scenery is good though.

Hiroshima, really depends on you if you really want to make this trip, Kyoto does have a lot to offer.

My opinion, Kyoto will make a better base than Osaka, personal preference.

Also, depending on how to arrange your itinerary, JR 7 days might be more than enough. It feels like JR14 days pass will not pay out for your itinerary.

There are a lot rotenburo accommodation available, what is your budget?

Many thanks for your detailed reply. I am worried about the summer crowds in Kamikochi so we are looking at Okuhida as an alternative. Seem very picturesque with lots of exceptional hot springs. We may even hire a car for Takayama and Kanazawa part of the trip. Like Kyoto, we are aiming to this part of the trip during the week to avoid the weekend crowds and stay in Tokyo and Osaka for the two weekends. I'll be sure to research Takayama a bit further following your comments. Not including flights and a rail pass, our budget is about 40,000 JPY per day for the two of us. Once we have our itinerary planned a liitle better I'll jump on hyperdia and crunch some numbers. Also, do you think that Nikko, Takayama, Kanzawa, Kyosan and Kyoto could be too much of a similar thing? Thanks again! This will be a trip of a lifetime..

The budget is for accommodation or for daily spending or for accommodation AND daily?

And for rotenboro, private or non-private?

While I do not like Takayama town in general, I do not mean to skip it, just do more research on it and its surrounding for Plan B. I went to Gero-Onsen rather than Shirakawa-go (I saw the Gassho village in the Takayama area, and figured I probably not interested with Shirakawa-go so i change to plan B).

Nikko temples are pretty nice and they are not really similar to Kyoto ones, but you might get a little temple-sickness after first couples of them or never get enough (really varies with people).

Kanazawa and Kyoto are very different town, Kanazawa deserves 1-3 days or more while Kyoto definitely deserves a lot longer. They are both my favourite towns in Japan as of now.

Nikko is well... pretty much temples and shrines. Koyasan (never been there) probably for temples too.

Takayama, most people stop here before heading to Shirakawa-go, probably the most English friendly town I have been to in Japan, aka resort town. Though again, the scene is good here, just that the town is more fabricated than authentic.

If you are renting a car, then you should really crunch in the numbers on Hyperdia on excel or something. Kanazawa uses a lot small alleys to get around the town, so it might get a little intimidating if you are not used to it.

Best is to enjoy each place and make 2nd trip plan after the first.

Osaka for night life, but you will have been in Tokyo already so maybe base in Kyoto and day trip from there.

You could overnight in Hiroshima if you wanted (there are some good and inexpensive hotels there).

Otherwise it looks like you have a good plan :)

Thinking public hot springs but will consider private if an amazing opportunity presents itself. Although we don't have a budget per se, it is for accommodation and daily expenses. I realise we may need to bump it up to 50,000+ JPY per day for a few days here and there.

Just on Osaka, we will only be there for night time and it's closer to our planned day trip destination. I hear the food is excellent so it makes sense to me. Plus I don't want to compromise our Kyoto experience by leaving it for a few day trips.

Hmm, maybe I was not going to be fair with Osaka but Kyoto food is a lot better.

40K yen for accommodation, means you are looking at around 25K ish on daily expenses for 2 people. It is doable though best is you can top up some cash in your card and bring them with you, as in ATM card AND credit card.

Okuhida seems nice too, I went pass it when traveling from Takayama to Matsumoto on bus. There was recommendation on some books on Shirahone onsen in Okuhida, you could probably look into it.

I do agree that try not to undercut you too much over budget, if you are able, bring more with you so you won't be missing out or worried about money as you travel.

Hi All,

This is the first time I've planned a holiday in such detail so you thoughts and recommendations are greatly appreciated.

We decided to add Kiso Valley to our itinerary in an effort to see a bit more of the countryside and natural scenery. We have scheduled our visits to the smaller places (Nikko, Kamikochi, Koyasan etc.) during the week in an effort to avoid the weekend crowds.

Wondering if anyone knows of any hidden gems or places off the beaten track near those mentioned below that are worth a visit? It's not possible for us to go beyond 17 nights / 18 days.

Thanks again.


T - Tokyo
F - Tokyo-Nikko-Tokyo
S - Tokyo
S - Tokyo
M- Tokyo-Kiso Valley
T - Kiso Valley-Kanazawa
W - Kanazawa
T - Kanazawa-Shirakawago-Takayama
F- Takayama-Kamikochi-Okuhida-Takayama
S - Takayama
S - Takayama-Hiroshima
M - Hiroshima-Miyajima-Himeji-Osaka
T - Osaka-Koyasan-Osaka
W - Osaka-Kyoto
T - Kyoto
F - Kyoto-Kurama-Kibune-Kyoto
S - Kyoto
S - Kyoto