2 week intinerary, wedding anniversary

Hi everyone!
I am wondering if someone would be able to provide some insight on the below itinerary. I get a little confused about how long I should stay in Osaka (been there before, really want to see Himeji and visit the Osaka Aquarium, thats it) and Kyoto (visited one day ad only saw a zen garden/temple). I really want to try and visit different places (not big cities) hence why I'd like to visit: Takayama, Shirakawa Go, Kanazawa... but unsure how long to stay in each place and which travel 'direction' to visit the places.. I would like to stay in a farmhouse for ONE night in Shirakawa Go though.

I would appreciate any help with the below itinerary :) I am purchasing a 14 Day JR Pass...


30-Oct Arrive Tokyo 8pm (accomo booked)
31-Oct Tokyo (accomo booked)
1-Nov Tokyo (accomo booked)
2-Nov Tokyo (accomo booked)
3-Nov Fuji Five Lakes
4-Nov Fuji Five Lakes
5-Nov Kyoto
6-Nov Kyoto
7-Nov Kyoto
8-Nov Osaka
9-Nov Osaka
10-Nov Osaka
11-Nov Takayama
12-Nov Shirakawa Go
13-Nov Tokyo
14-Nov Tokyo - Fly home 8pm

PS. I have visited Hiroshima, Miyajima, Fukuoka, Nara, Kobe...this is why I have not included them in the above.

THANK YOU!

Hi. Personally I wouldn't stay 3 days in Osaka. One or two night max for me (actually I wouldn't go at all, I'm not a fan). I'd lose a night there and stay at Nara, so maybe Kyoto - Nara - Osaka.

For the Takayama leg, your choices are really Osaka train Nagoya train Takayama bus Shirakawa bus Kanazawa, OR Osaka train Kanazawa bus Shirakawa bus Takayama train Nagoya or Toyama, shinkansen back to Tokyo.

I'd go to Takayama via Nagoya because the train trip on the Wideview Hida is magic. It isn't anywhere near as interesting from Takayama to Toyama. So shinkansen Osaka to Nagoya, wideview Hida to Takayama, then bus from there to Kanazawa.

For times in those places, I like Takayama so I'd stay a night or two, then I would consider a night at each of Shirakawa and Kanazawa. Most people say Shirakawa is better if you stay the night (haven't done it) and also most people prefer Kanazawa to Takayama and might stay 2 nights instead of one. I don't really think that Kanazawa shines if you've been to Kyoto in the same trip, so I'd keep it to a night.

Nice time to visit, have lots of fun!

Lazy Pious has some good advice about your itinerary! One thing I'd disagree with is staying in Osaka. I find it easier to have a "base" then do day trips, especially in the Kansai region. Staying a night in Nara means lugging all your stuff to yet another place. I'd stay in Osaka like you have, but plan one full day in Nara. OR, stay the whole Osaka/Kyoto time in one or the other, and just use the trains.

Also, I'd book the Shirakawa-go farmhouse ASAP. Spots fill up fast, and depending on availability, you might have to change around the plan you have now. Get that first, then you can plan the trip around it a bit if you don't happen to get the day you want.

True, true, but I have a real soft spot for staying overnight at Nara. We stay in the old part of the Nara Hotel, it is a real treat and breakfast is amazing. And because we don't want to pay for dinner there (which is very expensive) we wander into town - a 5 minute walk past the pond, sometimes with a deer or two skittering across the road in the dark. It is a really special place, up there as a favorite.

Hi everyone! thanks so much for the advice!

I will cut Osaka back from 3 nights to 2 nights, and then take the Nagoya train Takayama, stay one night, bus Shirakawa, stay one night, and then Kanazawa, stay one night, lol. Do you think this sounds too rushed? If I add an additional night in Takayama, I will need to cut Kyoto OR Osaka back by one night! Thoughts on this....?? Is there much to do in Takayama that I require 2 days?

Thank you re tip booking farmhouse. Will have a look now, dont know where to start haha.

We have already been to Nara on our last trip and my husband isn't planning on making another trip there... :(

What do you guys think of visiting Mt Koya??

Cheers in advance

Great choice. My choice would be to skip Takayama though. Kanazawa and Kyoto is a tier higher. More time should be spent there.

Koya is a great place. But a night here will suffice. It is not awfully big. You can walk to length within 3 hours. Before sunset, after sunset, and at dawn. Half an hour to an hour at each of these times would be sufficient. In other words, Check In, Walk, Dinner, Walk, Sleep, Wake, Hear Morning Chant, Walk, Breakfast, Check Out.

If you just want to see the aquarium in Osaka, base yourself at Kyoto for five days. Do a day trip to Osaka, and a half day at Himeji. Move that extra day to Kanazawa.
If you wanted to do Koyasan, you could do Himeji in the morning, get to Koya in the afternoon, stay the night, and then go to Takayama from there.

Hi! Awesome, thanks for the tips! We have decided to base ourselves in Kyoto for the five nights, and then spend one night each in Takayama, Shirakawago and Kanazawa. I figured one night will be sufficient in Kanazawa because I can leave Shirakawago early and depart for tokyo later the next day - so I hope to spend 1.5 days exploring Kanazawa :)

AND I found 2 farm houses available! yay!

I will look into Mt Koya, but I'm worried it may not be our thing..

Thanks so much for all the suggestions.

That'd be a nice trip. See if you can stop at Hikone as well. It is a few minutes from Maibara, the shinkansen station between Kyoto and Nagoya. It is a lovely little town with a nice original castle overlooking Lake Biwa, great grounds. Nice place to have lunch.

Thanks Lazy Pious, I will do that! :)