From Oita to Tokyo in 17days

Hi! this will be my 1st travel to japan during spring 2016. From sg going straight to oita towards tokyo. Please suggest itinerary. Been researching and still got confuse. Like to do outdoor activities and stuff. Help glady appreciated=) Thank you!

It really is up to your interests - you might go into more detail on what "outdoor activities and stuff" really means, plus your typical travel pace and if you want to go to many places, or see a few places in depth.
I'd suggest you get a 14 day JR Rail Pass which will easily pay off with such a long distance trip, and your last few days you can enjoy Tokyo.
You should do your own research on what you will finally use your time for. This site has a wealth of info, plus there is the JNTO page at www.jnto.go.jp and each major city has its own sightseeing page as well. So here are a few suggested places.
First, if you're landing in Oita, then seeing Beppu would be a logical first stop.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7LcPcmoSg-hOggZamc2lUNTr46ApKX...
Nagasaki is really the most interesting city on Kyushu - well worth a couple of days, especially to see Gunkanjima which will take up 3 hours and going to Mt. Inasa at night if the weather is good for a spectacular night view.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7LcPcmoSg-gbw2yXNLK92siHyNqSNx...
Fukuoka has a few very good places as well, worth a day and a half or so to see some places you won't forget.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7LcPcmoSg-j4RLa6iC7ayvBAbOn8-0...
Yamaguchi is sadly one place often overlooked by many; the Akiyoshi Limestone Cave is a stunning 300 million year old wonder with huge caverns and underground river running through it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DqIKC9S8TFQ
The Akiyoshidai karst plateau above ground also has some excellent hiking. Farther northward is Iwakuni with its historical bridge and mountaintop castle.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0COOZXi66mM
A stone's throw past that is Miyajima, one of Japan's biggest tourist draws, offering the Itsukushima Shrine and Daishoin Temple which should not be missed.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7LcPcmoSg-iCNZ6AdsKGUB-HPKNxP1...
Then there is Hiroshima City, with many sites - the Peace Park/Museum, castle, Shukkeien Garden, Mitakidera temple, Okonomiyaki-mura, etc.
Further along there are a few good places that few go to see, but still offer something worthwhile. Onomichi has its temple tour, and wildly ornate Kosanji Temple.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97Q5EjEOXI8
Kurashiki has its famous canals preserved from centuries ago, and are quietly picturesque. Okayama has some good places as well - one of Japan's Top 3 Gardens, Korakuen, plus Okayama Castle, and the beautiful and often overlooked Handayama Garden.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7LcPcmoSg-g4NNTCayREGdGupetT13...
Next, the Kansai area is probably where you should spend most of your time (maybe 4-6 nights) to explore Kyoto, Nara, Himeji, Koyasan, Kobe and Osaka.
From there, it's up to you - if you have time and want to see the older side of Japan, go see Kanazawa, Takayama, and Shirakawago. If not, you can get a similar but limited taste in Miyama, north of Kyoto City.
After that, Tokyo awaits. There are a dozen other places I could mention, but you've got enough to digest for now. Research more, and build up your itinerary.

hi ken! Thanx a lot for the fast reply. Im actually thinkin to spend about 4 nights in kyushu so am still considering which places a must to explore. I dnt think i can cover all in just 5days. With ur suggested places ill select from there. Im also considering going yakushima. Any thoughts about yakushima? i just read in the web thats its really a interesting place.
Have a good day!

Hi Mell,
Yakushima is an interesting island full of greenery. And if it does sound like back home, that's true. Though the little streams and Ancient trees are special. The hikes to see waterfalls takes half a day. So does the hike to a mountain Top with the scenery from princess monoke movie along the way. The trek to the giant cedar trees takes a full day. To do them all 2-3 days is needed not including the day you arrive. (Because tours guides start the tours in the wee hours of the morning and the boats comes in only after the sun rises).

You might want to give yakushima a skip this time round, and save it for when you do Kyushu and only Kyushu. The whole of Kyushu without yakushima already needs about 10 days!

I recommend spending some time in a few parts of Kyushu before moving on to mainland Japan. Ken has recommended a hot Spring town and some other cities. I would cut one city and focus more on mainland Japan. Kyushu needs a trip in itself.

After spending 3 nights in Kyushu you should leave it. Taking 14 days with you. You can now start the using a 7 day jr pass.
Your first stop should be Hiroshima and miyajima. You should stay a night here and spend at least 4 hours sightseeing each in each place.
Next on the list would be 4 nights in Osaka. Using Osaka as a base, visit nearby himeji, Nara, and the lovely Kyoto. Himeji and Osaka can be done in a day.

Next spend time in Kanazawa. Be sure to arrive in Tokyo before the end of the 7 day jr pass. From Tokyo you can make trips to Nikko or hakone or enoshoma if you get bored of shopping; the first two has transport passes that you can take advantage of.

Another thing you can do is the get a northern Kyushu train pass and spend more days in Kyushu. But to do north and south Kyushu plus yakushima is too much. Though in my opinion, yakushima is nice but... This depends on how many other natural locations and pristine forests you've been too. Do note that it isn't rated best of the best by the Japan guide people.

Howdy Jh! Awesome reply, gosh its really helpful. Now my iti is shaping up:) im kinda have a picture of my trip. Ur ryt i shud just skip yakushima for now.
Just a bit of confusion regarding transport. Shud i just get a 7days jr pass or 14? Is there another pass i shud get when i reach tokyo for the 7days?

Good day!

Okay.
Your options are as follows:
Get a shinkansen train ticket from Fukuoka City to Tokyo City. JR Company allows a person to drop off somewhere along the line for a day for every 100 km travelled. (Instead of purchasing multiple one way tickets from city to city it is cheaper to get one long distance ticket that allows stops) Since both cities are far apart, you can do this. Problem is calculating the actual distance between the two cities. Since the line between Fukuoka and Tokyo does not go via Kanazawa you'll have to change your plans.

Get a 14 day JR Pass as Ken mentioned. This allows maximum flexibility. But is also pretty expensive. Since you'll probably be spending some time in the beginning of the trip around Kyushu and some time at the end of the trip in Tokyo or the surrounding areas, it may be better value to get the pass below.

Get the 7 Day JR Pass. Use it to get from Kyushu to Tokyo within 7 days. This makes the journey pretty hectic as some of these cities need a good few days to enjoy fully. You can get the Northen Kyushu Pass for your days in Kyushu. If you want to make day trips from Tokyo, the Nikko and Hakone Passes allows return trips from Tokyo within 2 days.

Considering you are trying to go through half of the country, in this case a 14 day pass would make more sense and take a lot of pressure off of you. It's not a question of the pass being 'pretty expensive'. Your itinerary is pretty expensive. The real question is how much you can save by using a rail pass, plus the amount of freedom and sightseeing you can have with it. I used a 14 day pass myself in the same area and ended up saving 30,000 yen over paying the regular fare tickets.
Given that you really should spend almost a week in the Kansai area to get a good taste of what there is (not to mention a lot easier not changing hotels daily), plus an overnight at Koyasan is very worthwhile, it makes more sense to take your time over the 14 days if you're traveling such a long distance.

It allows you to see the beaten path tourist places but also some stunning places that few make it to. As said, in Yamaguchi one of the biggest natural wonders of the country is the Akiyoshido Limestone Cave - it really has to be seen to be believed. A huge 9km tunnel (1km you can walk through) with big caverns and underground river going back over 300 million years. It's the biggest in East Asia that's open to the public. There are many other good places on the Japan Sea side, but given the trains to get there and back, I'd say save those for a future trip.
To try and cover the same sights and distance in 7 days is simply impossible. If you're going to see Japan, then go see it, and not just stick your toes in the water.