my itinerary

Hello dear japan-guide users!
First, I have to say this site is amazing and have helped me a lot!

We are two adults (male and female) who are planning a 19 night visit in Japan on April.

We already planned an itinerary using the sites guide.
I would like your advise on our itinerary; is it good? is it efficient? are we missing something? are we spending too much time in one place? etc..

An important thing to note is that we are going to travel with 2 suitcases.

In addition, we would like you to recommend us a suitable transportation ticket for our time there. We thought about the 21-Free-Pass but it is so expensive! Is it the right one to buy?

Day 1: Landing in Tokyo in the morning and spending the day walking around the city.
Day 2: One day itinerary in Western Tokyo.
Day 3: A one day trip to Nikko. (still sleeping at the same hotel in Tokyo.
Day 4: A one day trip to Kamakura.
Day 5: Early morning, go to Takayama, spend the day there and sleep there overnight. *new hotel
Day 6: Spend the day in Takayama, and afternoon go to Kanazawa. Sleep there overnight. *new hotel
Day 7: Spend the day and night in Kanazawa.
Day 8: Early morning travel to Kyoto and spend the day and night there. *new hotel
Day 9: Full day trip in Eastern Kyoto.
Day 10: Full day trip to Nara.
Day 11: Full day trip in Arashiyama in Kyoto.
Day 12: Full day trip to Ise.
Day 13: Early morning travel to Hiroshima, afternoon go to Miyajima and spend the night there. *new hotel **What should we do with the suitcases? Is it smarter to go firstly to the hotel in Miyajima, leave the suitcases there and then go to Hiroshima?
Day 14: Spend the day in Miyajima. and afternoon go to Osaka. *new hotel
Day 15: A day trip from osaka to Himeji Castle, return at evening to Osaka and spend the night there.
Day 16: Early morning leave for Koyasan - Mount Koya, and spend the night in a Ryukan. *new hotel **please note that we have already booked a hotel over there! ***what should we do with the suitcases? should we take them with us to Koyasan?
Day 17: Spend the morning in Koyasan, leaving at evening back to Tokyo. *new hotel
Day 18: One day trip to Fuji Five Lakes. Spend the night in Tokyo.
Day 19: One day trip in Asakusa and Odaiba.
Day 20: Leave early morning to the airport.

Firstly, good job on the planning. For first time visitors I would usually recommend spending more time in Kyoto and Tokyo. However, you want to see and do as many cities as possible and the chosen cities aren't bad in anyway either.

Your allocation of time for Kanazawa, Takayama, Hiroshima, Miyajima, Nara, Ise, Koya is sufficient in my opinion.

Some may ask you to stop by Shirakawago but is not overtly accessible and doing so may cause a huge disruption to both your costing and time allocation.

Others may recommend Okayama. Although, not a bad choice, I personally prefer Kenrokuan at Kanazawa. Kanazawa itself has hot spring hotels and many others in the vicinity of the city. Take your pick if onsens are your interest.

Luggage
Leave your luggage at Hiroshima Station, there are lockers available. Rent a bicycle. Speed through the city. 2-3 hours are enough for the major sites. 5 for comprehensiveness.
Cycle back to Hiroshima Station. Take the train to Miyajimaguchi station and take the ferry.
Another way would be to leave your luggage overnight at Osaka station and have a small handcarry/napsack for the Hiroshima/Miyajima portion.
Lastly, you could stay in Hiroshima. The last ferry departs Miyajima after the last cable car down from Mt Misen and after sunset so you wouldn't be missing much if you do not stay at Miyajima. Unless you are planning to spend the night at a ryokan at Miyajima...

Instead of making a trip from Osaka to Himeji, if you are only there for the castle, you could stop by Himeji as you do Hiroshima-Osaka. It shouldn't take more than two hours.
If you left your luggage at Osaka station, then no worries. If not Himeji station has lockers too. (Just a few hundred yen)

Train Pass
I would recommend the 14 day JR Pass, starting from Day 5 (Takayama)
Rest of the time purchase tickets at the station, either the ticket machine or ticket counter.

Nara and Ise
Nara and Ise can be both covered in less than a day each. But this depends on your travel pace.
If you have leftover time, I highly recommend a side trip to Uji.
Also, Nara/Uji has trains to Osaka that does not go pass Kyoto. So nighting in Osaka is possible.
(Geographically, Ise is south of Nara is south of Uji is south of Kyoto. Osaka is directly west of every place except Kyoto (southwest))

Kyoto and Osaka
What people usually do, especially if they have a train pass, is spend the day in Kyoto and the night in Osaka. Not that Kyoto does not have nightlife (Potoncho/Gion) but Osaka mostly comes alive at nighht.
In this way, you get to spend time efficiently.

Lastly, I do hope your western Tokyo includes Meiji Shrine. Doing Meiji and Ise Shrines on the same trip is great in my opinion.

Thank you very much for your detailed answer!
I will definitely check out the places you suggested and your tips!

A few questions though:
1. Train pass - are you sure about the 14 day pass and not the 21? What about the day trips from Tokyo? And how do i travel inside Tokyo?
2. Koyasan (mount koya) - is there no problem traveling there with luggage? How do I get there?
3. Night in Osaka vs Kyoto - Is it really that different? Can you please tell me about the nightlife in both places?
4. Is sleeping in one ryukan enough? (In koyasan), or should i sleep in more?
5. Fuji five lakes - is it worthwhile for a day trip?

Thank you very much!

1. For your trips, a 21 day pass probably wont pay off. Check your itinerary on a site like Hyperdia, add up the totals, then see if the 21 day pass is cheaper or not. If not, just get a suica and fill it up to use around Tokyo and Kanto.

2. Can't answer this one, sorry, I've never been. This article should help though: http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4904.html

I'd say for luggage, if you're able to leave bigger luggage, it'd be easier not to lug it around.

3. Kyoto's nightlife is considered quieter. Of course, there's Pontocho/Gion, but if you like to go out and do stuff at night, Osaka has much more to see and offer, and is in general much more lively.

4. I think if you're just looking for the experience, one ryokan is fine. They do tend to be more expensive just for the meals. Some people love them, though, and go for more than one. If you're not sure, search for some blogs that describe the experience, I'm sure there are plenty, then decide.

5. Yeah, but you wont see everything with a day trip, and you've already got a lot going on. This might be a part of the trip where you wait and see how you feel instead of booking in advance. If you're gung ho still by then, go and do it! Otherwise, chilling out in Tokyo will still be fulfilling.

Q1.
Mostly answered by dragon.
Travel within Tokyo and other cities is simple. There is this card named the Suica (Other regions have different names and companies but you can still use the same one card)
It is the same as the Octopus of HK and the EZLink of Singapore.
Tap the card and walk through the gantry.

The card stores value that can be added. If not, single use tickets based on distance can be bought either at a ticket machine or a ticket counter. (Counter only for major stations)

You could also use buses.
I personally like walking or cycling. Ask your hotel where to find rental bicycle.

Q2.
There is no worries with luggage. Had a friend with one of those large 4 wheeler bags. If in doubt, you can carry a separate bag for those out of the way trips. E.g. Hiroshima + Koya and leave your main bag at your previous hotel or train station locker.

To get there take the train from Shin-Imamiya (In Osaka city, not JR but connected to JR Station) station all theh way down south to the last stop. Then a cable car (tram car? ropeway?) to the top.
There is a Koya Train Pass that can be bought at Shin Imamiya station counter. Makes things cheaper and you can ask the counter staff about the next train etc
Journey takes no more than 2 hours.

After cable car top, it is a bus ride to the city center. (No walking and bus time table is coordinated to leave after as cable car arrives.)

Q3.
Osaka is a modern city.
Not that Kyoto isn't. But Kyoto does not have glitzy lights and skyscrapers. (There is Kyoto Tower, but I used skyscrapers not skyscraper)
Osaka has everything from snacks to side dishes. Karaoke to pubs. Clubs to Ladies calling out to you.

Kyoto has some streets with really expensive but mostly quality food and service. Some places to drink. But everything else seems to close really early.

Activity and food wise would be Osaka. Atmostphere would be Kyoto. (Kyoto has places that serve food at night, fewer and usually much more pricey)

Q4.
Like the lady dragon said, it is up to prefence. I personally love it, and if every night is a ryokan I would be esthatic. But it is truly pricey. Single night in a Kyoto ryokan can be $1000 upwards.
Sometimes $2,000 +

Outside of Kyoto, things are cheaper. Ryokan has amazing food and service. The futon is better than my own bed at home!

I've stayed in a temple lodge in Koya.
However, compared to other ryokans that serve meat, have hot springs (private or public), shared garden, personal garden), I found the one in Koya lacking.
Don't get me wrong, the vegetarian meals and the murals on the wooden sliding doors were great and I would love to return. But it may not be showing the true spirit of Ryokan that Japan has to offer.

Additionally, the monk(s) (although friendly) in Koya job is to be a monk and not to serve hotel guests.
Praying, chanting, etc

Q5.
Never been
:(


Enjoy yourself!!

Here is an alternative to getting a three week JR Pass.

The first couple of days will be without a pass. you may want to get one of the Nikko Passes, or the Kanakura Pass. Another option would be to use a Kanto Area 3 Day Pass to get you from the airport to you Hotel, and to Nikko and Kamakura. http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2361_06.html

For the first leg of your journey, you will need to get to Nagoya, and then use a Takayama-Hukuriku Area Tourist Pass. You could take a Bus to Nagoya, or get a discount Shinkansen Ticket.

http://www.jrtours.co.jp/kodama/en/?scid=jtt_kepEng001
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2361_takayama_hokuriku.html

You would then visit Kyoto without a pass, but most of Kyoto is best toured by bus. Just pay for the train ride to Nara and back. I would also put you visit to Mount Koya here, instead of later. You might consider getting a 3 day Kansai Thru Pass to go to Nara and Mount Koya.

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2357_005.html

Another option would be to get a 5 day Kitetsu Rail pass to go to Nara, Isa, and to go to Namba (In Osaka), and then use a Koyasan World Heritage Ticket to go to Mount Koya.

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2357_006.html
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2358_012.html

You should be able to use a 7 day JR Pass onthe final 7 days in Japan, with would also include the trip to the Airport.

I believe that the overall cost will be less than a 3 week JR Pass. You will find that the JR Pass is great to get you from city to city, but not as useful within the city that you are visiting. Some places, such as Mount Koya, and the Fuji Five Lakes, are really not covered by the JR Pass. Even when you get to some places like Nikko, the busses that get you to the attractions are not covered by the JR Pass. The are many flavors of passes at some of these places:

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2358_002.html
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e6905.html

So you might have to pick the pass from all of the options that works best for you.

About as clear as mud, Eh? Look though the options that I have shown, and things may become clearer.