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First timer solo itinerary 2015/4/28 16:15
Hello all,

I'm going on my first trip to Japan in October, and while it is a little early, I want to start trying to pin down some dates, aside from airfares, which are already locked in.

So far, I have the following as my plan:

Day 1 (2nd October): Arrive early AM Haneda, Shinakansen to Kyoto, wander the local area in the afternoon.
Day 2: Kyoto
Day 3: Kyoto
Day 4: Nara in the day, to Mt Koya at night.
Day 5: Return to Kyoto, explore a bit. (Maybe swap this and the previous day)
Day 6: Visit Himeji on the way to overnight at Hiroshima.
Day 7: Miyajima all day, back to Hiroshima o/night (or maybe stay Miyajima. Not sure about staying solo, would appreciate some advice)
Day 8: Travel to Osaka, explore a bit, o/night Osaka.
Day 9: To Takayama, o/night there. This is the second day of the Takayama festival, so I'm a little concerned about accomodation.
Day 10: Takayama exploration, o/night there again.
Day 11: To Kanazawa, o/night there.
Day 12: Full day in Kanazawa, o/night there.
Day 13: To Tokyo.
Day 14-21: Tokyo, side trips to Nikko, Kamakura, Fuji Five Lakes. Departing Haneda at the end.

One other question, would there be any reason I might want to avoid going to just day 2 of the Takayama festival? Would I miss anything?

Many Thanks
by MarcusdCB  

Re: First timer solo itinerary 2015/4/28 20:10
Hi

I'd suggest swapping the plans for days 4 & 5. If you go to Nara first, then by the time you've done sightseeing there, it'll be too late for anything on Koyasan. I suggest going to Koyasan from Kyoto, then sightseeing there during the afternoon, which should be ample.
The next morning you're likely to rise early for morning prayers and will probably have finished with breakfast around 7am, leaving you free to do a little more sightseeing on Koyasan before heading on to Nara and then back to Kyoto in the early evening.

As for Hiroshima/Miyajima, it's definitely more pleasant to stay on the island. After the tourists have all left in the late afternoon, it becomes very quiet and it's lovely to wander around in your yukata after dinner at your ryokan. Staying solo is fine. Although there are some ryokan which discourage single guests during busy times, there are still plenty of options for you on Miyajima.

Re Takayama. If you haven't yet sorted out your accommodation there, you REALLY need to get cracking with that as I suspect that the hotels will already all be full for the nights of the Festival. This should be your number 1 priority now if you want to stay there. If you don't have any luck, just swap the order of Kanazawa & Takayama and do Kanazawa first, then take the highway bus to Takayama, which should be fine after the Festival.

Hope this helps!
by Saru Bob (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: First timer solo itinerary 2015/4/28 20:54
Thank you very much, that is very helpful. Managed to book a hotel in Takayama, though there weren't many left.

The Nara/Koya swap is an excellent suggestion, I will definitely follow it!

Good to hear staying on Miyajima works! Definitely seems like the kind of place to maximise your time on.

Much appreciated!
by MarcusdCB rate this post as useful

Re: First timer solo itinerary 2015/4/28 21:09
You should also check out this page:

http://tbone.biol.sc.edu/tide/tideshow.cgi?site=Itukusima%2C+Hirosima%...

Enter the date that you'll be on Miyajima and it'll tell you the times of high & low tide as well as sunset so you can time your visits to Itsukushima Shrine to be the most photogenic!
by Saru Bob (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: First timer solo itinerary 2015/4/29 02:03
why dont just book a flight to Osaka then Haneda or Narita Airport (Tokyo) will be your exit point? so you dont have to travel from tokyo to kyoto then tokyo again

my plan is osaka - kyoto - nagoya - ( nice places in betwwen for tourist, if any) - tokyo
by soontobetokyogirl rate this post as useful

Re: First timer solo itinerary 2015/4/29 09:43
Thanks for the link, Saru Bob. Good to know I'll get most of the effect of high tide before sunset.

I have been looking at flights to Osaka, instead of the train, soontobetokyogirl, but most flights are too expensive to be worth it for me. But that is the ideal way, so I'll keep looking!
by MarcusdCB rate this post as useful

Re: First timer solo itinerary 2015/4/29 10:02
Never heard Koya and Nara in a day. But now that you mentioned it, i think it is a wonderful idea. But of course, this depends entirely on the person. As some take a few moments to soak in the ambience. For myself, after visiting Kyoto, Nara holds little pull over me and i can leave in 3 to 4 hours. Surely enough time to get to Koya.

The attractions of Koya are
1. Okunoin- best seen at dawn for atmostpheric effect especially if there is morning fog
2. Main and side temples- can stroll about anytime of the day, though the night illumimations are mystifing
3. The meals- Reach before dinner and leave after breakfast
4. The morning chants

Naturally, as long as you reach before sunset you can see all that Koya has to offer.

If you don't mind half a day in Nara (Some people says spend the whole day, or better yet day and overnight), like i do, then this might be a good idea as Nara is nearer to Koya than Kyoto is.

The rest of your plans are excellent. I can't see any problems. In fact, I slightly doubt whether this is your first japan plan.

Miyajima has an international award winning hostel if that is what your idea of single lodging.
by joshua hugh (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: First timer solo itinerary 2015/4/29 10:32
Thank you for your feedback, joshua hugh. The Kyoto, Nara, Koya section of the trip got a bit squished when I realised the Takayama festival was on in the early part of my trip, ultimately I'd prefer to space it out, but circustance made it a little difficult.

Also, I really can't take much credit for the itinerary, it is mostly a rearranged and slightly tweaked version of the 21 day suggested itinerary on this very website!
by MarcusdCB rate this post as useful

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