Luggage shipping

We are a family of four (two adults and two teenagers) travelling to Japan in March / April. We love manga, animation and Japanese culture so are expecting to do a bit of shopping. Our itinerary is Tokyo - Kyoto - Osaka - Okinawa - Tokyo.

Would it be possible to send luggage from Osaka before we leave for Okinawa and collect it at the hotel in Tokyo 5 days later? Seems pointless bringing anything we have bought all the way to Osaka and then back to Tokyo?

Do we let the hotel know when we are booking?
Which shipping companies have people had a good experience with?

TIA

Yes, it is easily possibe with a delivery service:
https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2278.html

Delivery dates of up to 7 days in the future can be selected.

Thank you for your response. Will the shipping company hold on to our luggage until it's time to deliver? Or do we need to clear storage with the hotel?

You pick a date. The company delivers that day.

Just make sure that your Osaka hotel will handle the shipping for you. Nearly all of them do, but I have seen some recently that only handle COD shipments (that is, the shipping company collects money on the receiving end) and I suspect that a lot of hotels won�ft want to accept COD shipments. Nearly all will accept prepaid deliveries (you can request delivery on the day you will check in, or the day before), but it isn�ft a bad idea to confirm with that hotel that they will accept the luggage. Most hotels have their policies for takuhaibin stated on their websites. (Often it is on a FAQ page.)

You don�ft have to pick the shipping company (your hotel will have an established one that they use), but just confirm with your Osaka hotel that they will provide the service for you, with you paying when you leave the luggage with them. Also, you might need to pay cash (not with a credit card) for this. It costs in the neighborhood of 2000 to 2500 per suitcase. This issue could be why some hotels are starting to accept takuhaibin only on a COD basis. They don�ft seem to be able to charge you by credit card for takuhaibin, but they have gone �gcashless�h so they can�ft handle cash transactions.

If your hotel won�ft accept the luggage for prepaid shipping to Tokyo, then theoretically you can take it to a convenience store or to the service counter of one of the shipping companies, but this can be a nuisance and add time and possibly stress to your trip.

This all may sound like a hassle, but assuming that your Osaka and Tokyo hotels handle takuhaibin in the normal fashion (nearly all of them will), the service is simple and reliable, and definitely worth using. You really don�ft want to bring all that stuff to Okinawa with you.

If your hotel doesn�ft handle the shipment just go to a 7/11. Other convenience stores also work (I think FamiMart). It�fs very easy to send from there.

I�fve never sent luggage from a 7-11 myself, and I read somewhere not long ago that a few of them (smaller ones?) don�ft handle takuhaibin, but I have learned that LikeBike always knows what she is talking about! If you happen to end up at a place that won�ft send your bags, I�fm sure they will be able to tell you where you can get it done nearby. Especially in a big city like Osaka, this shouldn�ft be a problem.

Just a comment, and I know it isnt for everyone, but after umpteen trips to Japan pulling around luggage my wife and I have done our last 5 trips with carry on luggage only (max carry on size rolling suitcase plus a small backpack thing for a bit of electronics and a spare tee). It saves a ton of time at airports, it's much easier on buses and trains and you can pop them in the overhead racks, we still buy a bunch of stuff but we just box it up and post it home (costs about $150 for a decent sized carton of things).

I reckon I could get away without the backpack now, it is amazing how much you pack that you dont use. The hardest thing is deciding on the second pair of shoes or boots if you have big hooves like me, they take up quite a bit of space.