10.5 days itinerary in Japan

Hi,

I'll be arriving in Tokyo at night on 15 december. Will be leaving from osaka on 26 dec in the evening. i'm looking for any advice you could give me on the allocation of my time, also what passes i should get to save as much money on transportation.

Here is my itinerary:

15 Dec- 18 Dec in Tokyo 3d2n
18 Dec- 20 Dec Fuji, Gotemba outlet, Hakone, Shinjuku
I was thinking 1 night in Fuji, 1 night at Hakone
20 Dec-22 Dec Kyoto
22 Dec-23 Dec Shirakawago
23-26 Dec Osaka, probably will have a day trip to Nara

Is this itinerary too rushed? Let me know what you think, i would greatly appreciate any advice that you could provide me with. As for the transport should i get the JR 7 day pass? Thank you for your help!

That is quite a bit of time in Shirakawago. The place is pretty bare. How are you getting there? I find it most convenient from Tokyo to Kanazawa/Takayama and then a train. Kyoto-Shirakawa-Osaka is a detour, do make better use of your time.

Seeing as you are going in Autumn, some autumn sights sounds nice. For example going to Fuji 5 Lakes, or to Nikko.

In total, your plan is pretty good. I would skip shirakawago as it is not a pretty autumn place. I would use that time for Kyoto or Kanazawa or a day trip to Hiroshima.

If you include the trip to Hiroshima, getting the JR Pass 7 days is worth your $. If not, it is not.

@ joshua hugh, please read the question and think very carefully before you respond to a post so as not to mis-inform.

To the OP:
Since you are traveling in winter (December) NOT autumn, then I would highly suggest a trip to Shirakawago. It should be snowing in Shirakawago and it can be quite beautiful!

Per the JR Pass, as you are traveling from Tokyo to Kyoto (and several places in between), then yes, it is worth it.

Hi thank you for your replies. For the JR pass, i understand that it does not cover fuji and hakone. I was wondering would it be more worth it for me to just buy the Takayama-Hokuriku Area Tourist Pass and the Fuji-Hakone pass?

These links will be helpful per the transport for the Hakone/Fuji parts of your trip:

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e5206.html
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e6905.html

The JR Pass would still be useful, and cost effective, for the remainder of the destinations on your itinerary.

There is another poster "Frog1954" who is quite knowledgeable
about rail info and perhaps he will reply to your post.

Hi there. Since you are going in early winter, would recommend spending more time around Kanazawa area since you are visiting shirakawa-go.
Kanazawa will get their snow early and there's konrekuen garden and onsen resorts around.. i think the scenery will be nicer than the barren landscape in central japan.

Since you are arriving in Tokyo and leaving by Osaka, the National JR Pass will not be beneficial to your itinerary. Unless you make a side trip to Hiroshima from Osaka, I would discourage any thought of purchasing the JRP.

@Ohara, you asked the first poster to think carefully about their response...maybe you should do the same. The OP is travelling from Tokyo to Osaka, but not returning to Tokyo, so unless they do include a trip to Hiroshima it's unlikely that a 7-day JR Pass will pay off.

Use Hyperdia (hyperdia.com/en) to calculate all your train fares before purchasing a JR Pass.

@ by�c

Yes, mostly as it pertains to information regarding the time of year (winter not autumn) and Shirakawago in winter.

Per the rail pass based on the OP's itinerary (and fares taken from hyperdia):

15 Dec- 18 Dec in Tokyo 3d2n
18 Dec- 20 Dec Fuji, Gotemba outlet, Hakone, Shinjuku
I was thinking 1 night in Fuji, 1 night at Hakone
20 Dec-22 Dec Kyoto
22 Dec-23 Dec Shirakawago
23-26 Dec Osaka, probably will have a day trip to Nara

The cost of rail travel without the JR Pass would cost approximately 41,940 Yen vs. 29,110 Yen (which is the cost of a 7-day JR Pass if purchased in Singapore, where the OP is from).

I would like to ask: "How did i mis-inform?" Thank you.

Hi Joshua,

I believe Ohara means that you said the OP was travelling in autumn. Late December is winter, not autumn.

Hi everyone, thank you for your replies. After taking into consideration your comments, I will change my itinerary slightly

15 Dec- 18 Dec in Tokyo 3d2n
18 Dec- 20 Dec Fuji, Gotemba outlet, Hakone, Shinjuku
I was thinking 1 night in Fuji, 1 night at Hakone
20 Dec-21 Takayama (1 night) , day trip to Shirakawago
21-23 Dec Kyoto
23-26 Dec Osaka, probably will have a day trip to Nara

I was thinking if I should skip a night in Fuji, and just stay 1 night in Hakone instead? Is it worth staying in Fuji? Cause from what I read, I would be able to see Mt Fuji from Hakone as well? So I was thinking maybe I'll give the additional night to Tokyo?

As per my calculations for transportation, it seems like buying the Takayama-Hokuriku Area Tourist Pass and Fuji-Hakone Pass (or Hakone pass alone if I decide to visit Hakone only) would give me the most savings.

Cheers!

Totally my bad. I thought i saw October. Must be the Osaka. My apologies there.

Fuji means Fujigoko? Or as in Fuji the city? Or the mountain? Need to be clear there.

Fuji city has views of Mt Fuji and is known for the reverse Fuji. The mountain reflects off the glassy train station.

Hakone has views but compared to Fujigoko is said to have lesser chance of a clear view of the mountain. I have not stayed in both places for an extended period so I can only give hearsay.

yup Fujigoko