18 day itinerary

Hi! I am travelling to Japan (from Australia) in November with some friends and would like some advice on our itinerary. Thanks in advance :)

Day 1: Arrive in Tokyo
Day 2: Tokyo - Fukushima (day trip)
Day 3: Tokyo (Disneysea)
Day 4: Tokyo - Yokohama
Day 5: Tokyo - Nikko
Day 6: Tokyo - Osaka
Day 7: Osaka (Universal)
Day 8: Osaka - Kyoto
Day 9: Osaka - Nagoya
Day 10: Osaka - Nara
Day 11: Osaka
Day 12: Osaka - Tokyo
Day 13: Tokyo
Day 14: Tokyo - Hakone
Day 15: Tokyo
Day 16: Tokyo
Day 17: Tokyo
Day 18: Tokyo - Home

Right now, we were thinking of just getting a 7 day JR Pass for when we leave Tokyo to go to Osaka until we get back to Tokyo. The other days we will just travel with a Suica card. Would that be better than getting a 14 day pass?

Also, is there any other nearby cities that we can go to from Tokyo that we've missed? We are yet to figure out how to fill up days 15-17.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

For other daytrips outside of Tokyo, consider Kamakura. It was my favourite daytrip (I did Nikko, Kamakura and Hakone), and can be combined with a trip to Enoshima. I used the Odakyu Kamakura Enoshima Free Pass and followed this itinerary:

1. Train from Shinjuku to Hase; visited the Great Buddha and Hasedera Temple
2. Train from Hase to Kamakura; rented a bike from a place just outside the station
3. Rode to various temples around Kamakura; my favourite was Zeniarai Benten which has a small cave with water that you wash your money in!
4. Rode to the beach to watch the sunset
5. Train from Kamakura back to Shinjuku

I'm planning to go for another daytrip next year; at that time I'll have a JR Pass so I'll take the JR train rather than the Odakyu to Kamakura, see just the Great Buddha and the main shrine in Kamakura, then head over to Enoshima for a few hours.

I would suggest adding more days in Osaka to allow for at least another day in Kyoto, it really needs 2.5-3 days to see some of the more popular sights. With one day you can really only pick one section of Kyoto to explore without rushing things.

To maximise your pass, group your day trips together, so put Fukushima and Hakone closer to your Osaka trip. Tokyo to Fukushima is 8950 yen one way, so you really want that covered by the JR pass if you can!


Day 1: Arrive in Tokyo
Day 2: Tokyo - (Disneysea)
Day 3: Tokyo - Yokohama (start JR pass)
Day 4: Tokyo - Fukushima (day trip)
Day 5: Tokyo - Nikko
Day 6: Tokyo - Osaka
Day 7: Osaka (Universal)
Day 8: Osaka - Kyoto
Day 9: Osaka - Nagoya
Day 10: Osaka - Nara
Day 11: Osaka
Day 12: Osaka - Tokyo
Day 13: Tokyo - Hakone (take shinkansen to Odawara using JR pass, then buy hakone free pass)
Day 14: Tokyo -
Day 15: Tokyo -
Day 16: Tokyo (End JR Pass)
Day 17: Tokyo
Day 18: Tokyo - Home

I think considering what you want to do, a 14 day JR pass would be best. If you add up the cost of all the JR travel on those day trips using hyperdia, you'll see you are well ahead of the cost of a 14 day pass : http://www.hyperdia.com/

Adding on to the above, start the JR Pass on the first day to absorb the airport express fare.

I would stay near Kyoto for two reasons.
1. It is nearer to Nara and Nagoya
2. Kyoto station is much more interesting than Osaka station

The cons is that Osaka is more lively at night, the time one usually finish being a tourist and just want to crash onto the bed.

If you are using the above plan, do allocate for time for Kyoto. It really is a beautiful city. Not that Osaka is bad, for going to the major metropolis that is Tokyo takes away some of Osaka's charm.

A day trip to Himeji, Kobe, Okayama, Amanohashidate, Hiroshima, Ise, or Uji are some things to consider. One of the benefits of a JR pass is the flexible schedule if a location starts to bore you.