Day trip to Nikko

Hello contributors,
We are visiting Japan 1st time in June. Having 5 days in Tokyo and advised to do a day trip to Nikko.
We are also visiting Kyoto 4 days, ISE Shrines and Miyajima (as well as Takayama, Shirakawa and
Kanazawa)
Based on us seeing all these other shrines are we better off taking the day trip to Mt Fuji rather than the day in Nikko? We want to see some shrines but figured we will see a good share in these other locations.
Thanks

Wow, this sounds quite packed!

Well, Nikko is not only the famous shrine, but also has a very beautiful huge lake and a waterfall, so you get nature + shrine.
But there are so many other cool day trips you can do from Tokyo, it doesn't have to be Nikko.

Shrines are NOT only attraction of Nikko, as mentioned above.
You will want to visit Nikko if you search well :D

If I were you, I would visit Nikko staying at least 1 night, Mt.Fuji as well.
For the day trip, I just go to the suburb like;
http://www.koen.pref.ibaraki.jp/foreign_language/en/index.html
http://www.kuranomachi.jp/english/
http://www.city.ashikaga.tochigi.jp/page/english-information.html#gakk...

Skip Fuji - really. How long do you want to look at it if you haven't already seen it passing by on the train or from one of the zillion spots in Tokyo. Spending a whole day to take a couple of photos isn't a good use of time.

Nikko also has Edomura Wonderland which is cool.
Enoshima is accessible, varied, scenic and has (among the shrines on the island) a cool shrine dating from 552. Kamakura is also in a similar direction south of Tokyo.
As for other day trips it depends on what else you want to day - within 2 hours of Tokyo is a huge area.

If you need to choose between the two personally will opt for Nikko it has its own character I feel.

Do note that it takes a reasonable amount of time to get to Nikko, plus the trains don't leave that often. As such, I tend to not suggest Nikko as a day trip. The same could also be said for Fuki Five Lakes.

Hakone is probably a quicker day trip, being better than Fuji Five Lakes but not better than Nikko.

During my visit to Tokyo we did side-trips to Nikko, Hakone (roundtrip) and Kamakura and they were all worthwhile. The first two day trips were just a little too short to see everything without rushing.

I really enjoyed Nikko but during one day trip we have only been able to see Togoshu shrine and went up to the lake and two waterfalls (Kegon, Ryuzu) before we had to go back to catch one of the latest trains back. You could spend another day there.

Thanks everybody. Looks like I need to extend the trip or plan another visit. There is so much to see. Am still considering what will work best and appreciate your comments.

Do note that it takes a reasonable amount of time to get to Nikko, plus the trains don't leave that often. As such, I tend to not suggest Nikko as a day trip. The same could also be said for Fuki Five Lakes.

Don't be misled by above, trains are not incovenient, it is not as freqent as merto in Tokyo though.
There are two train companies, Tobu and JR, only Utsunomiya-Nikko part on JR is what you might need wait for a while till the next train once you missed one.
For me, Hakone took me longer time to reach, at least.

However, I, too, say that Nikko is not a destination for a day trip, it is better to stay at least 1 night as there are so many attractive things to see.

Compared to other locations around Tokyo, it does take longer to get to Nikko or Fuji Five Lakes compared to other locations. The Tobu Line does leave from Asakusa around every 30 minutes and takes roughly 2 hours (1 way) to get there. However, Tokyo is large and depending on where you are it might take another 1 hour to reach Asakusa. The other option of going to Utsunomiya and catching the local train takes longer once you take into consideration changing trains (I think the train from here leaves every 40 minutes on average).

Nikko is also spread over a large area, specifically when you take into consideration the 4+ hours getting to and from the destination. Specifically if you want to see something to do with nature.

Fuji Five Lakes is the same - several changes in trains is needed.

I find both of these locations take a lot more time than most locations in general. For example, you can be in Kyoto or Sendai in the same time it takes to get to Nikko (albeit it costs a lot more to get to those locations). I do however agree that trains are almost always the best way to get to most destinations in Japan. The idea of driving to Nikko from Tokyo gives me a headache....

What locations he/she compared with Nikko?
There are many places farther than Nikko, both with distance and travel time.
I hope no more troller here.

Hi Gigi and Moomin,

Sorry for the miscommunication. My intention was not to make these locations sound bad or far away, but to state that it's a long travel day. The original post that I made should have stated that it would have been better to stay overnight to fully experience both locations. I've visited Kawaguchiko once and Nikko three times (I think). I also used to live on the Kanto plains for 3 years and I find it a hidden gem, specifically Gunma which has some fantastic onsens and some of the most beautiful scenery in the country.

I also probably also should not have responded to the original response as I responded to it like a personal disagreement when it's just a person's opinion.

To the original poster, I've included some of my original travel reports of both locations to encourage you to visit both locations...

Fuji Five Lakes: http://www.japan-guide.com/community/mfedley/report-936
Outer Nikko Town Walk: http://www.japan-guide.com/community/mfedley/report-994
Nikko Main Temples & Shrines: http://www.japan-guide.com/community/mfedley/report-993
Yumoto Onsen (lakes & waterfalls around Nikko): http://www.japan-guide.com/community/mfedley/report-1099

I hope this clears up any misunderstanding and it was not my intention to upset anyone....

A couple of extra points about "day-trips" versus "over-night". Both have their place but it is important to know with an overnight stay you do have luggage and the restrictions of needing to check-in/out of somewhere to stay.

In some of my trips over the last few years we decided (and from customer feedback) that the hassle of staying was too great because too much time is lost so I choose Nikko as a day trip from Tokyo in preference to an over-night. Same for Sendai, Hakone, five lakes, Kamakura and a few other locations. As for the travel time, it isn't bad and the trains are sufficiently frequent.

For an over-night, I plan on the destination/hotel/ryokan needing to be an important part of the journey. Hence, a trip to Nagano for its attractions are combined with onsen/food/geisha entertainment rather than just a there and back in a day.

If you decided to go to Nikko, since it has many attractions, I reccomend overnight stay.
Yes, luggage is concern, and trains are frequent enough so that a dat trip is possible, but really worth to stay
overnight.

If you finally dicided a day trip to Nikko, I reccomend you Tobu so that you will not waste your time.
Because a journey with JR might be longer as you have to transfer to local line at Utunomiya, and this local line with a few coaches is quite crowed with tourists.

Thanks everybody. Looks like I need to extend the trip or plan another visit. There is so much to see. Am still considering what will work best and appreciate your comments.