Trip to Himeji, one night stay?

Hello,

Finally I will be able to go see Himeji Castle on my next trip to Japan in November.

I will be in Japan staying with family in Kyoto city. I was planning to go to Himeji to visit the castle with my wife and 18month old for the first time.

I recently talked about this with my in-laws from Japan and they said "Himeji is too far, there's too much walking, you'll be tired you'll see" is this true?

I find Japanese people like to exaggerate on how far somewhere is or how "taihen" it is to get there. Especially when they live in a urban city. But this did make me stop and think.

I was planning on doing a one day trip since its just 1h30mins away from Kyoto using the JR Special Rapid Service.

My question is: Is it worth it to stay a night in Himeji? I dont mind staying at a hotel if there's more to do in Himeji other than the Castle. Travelling with a child does make a normal trip more tiring at the end.

What are other interesting spot in Himeji to see or do?

Thanks!

I don't think it's worth staying the night. The castle is a nice 20 minute stroll from JR Himeji and the whole castle can easily be seen leisurely in 4 hours tops.. I would do a day trip from Kyoto or a stopover if headed to Hiroshima for the night, etc.

Totally agree. Note that the time mentioned is for slow speed. Normal walking speed will take far less time. Though with a kid it can be tiring since the castle itself is on elevated ground.

Besides the castle there is not much else to do in Himeji. You can pop by their tourist info counter. I did so, and there were some attractions they were trying to promote that i did not have the time for.

Went there in April 2015, cherry blossom season with my wife. Would recommend taking the shinkansen instead of rapid trains..

as for the walk from JR station to the castle it took about 20-30 mins, and we were tired by the time we reach the castle entrance. highly recommend that you take the bus from the station since you are with kid.

Be prepared to spend time Queueing to get into the main castle. Took me 1 hour to enter the main keep. and another 1 hour to climb to the top and back down..

Total time spent about 4 hours. just to walk there, climb to the top of keep. and walk back to station. missed the side compounds of the castle.

But I still think its worth it to go there. the castle is beautiful. especially with cheery blossom

Thanks for the input guys!

I guess I'll do a one day trip if everything goes well. No point staying the night if there's not more to see the next day.

I'm not sure how busy it will be during Momiji season compared to the springs cherry blossoms. Hopefully it won't be too crowded.

When I went there back in 2010 before the reconstruction started, me and my friends took about 3 hours from JR Himeji Station, Himeji Castle and back.

When I went recently back in Nov 2014, the Castle keep was not open yet and only finished it in about 2 hours and then shopped around the town for the total stay of about 4 hours.

I also recommend taking the Shinkansen as it will be faster but if saving 5600 yen per person is what you need and your okay with adding extra 1.1 hours to the round trip, then take the rapid trains.

Hope this helps!!!
Have fun!!!

I'm not leaving from Kyoto station but rather one station before it. So the Special Rapid Service is better for me since its more flexible time wise like it comes by every 8mins or so depending on the time of day. So transferring one station later at Kyoto and then making my way to the Shinkansen gate seems like more trouble than just staying on this train. Lots of people get off at Kyoto too so guaranteed a seat.

I'm really excited for this trip. I feel like this is the missing part of my Kansai experience.

Thanks!