Itinerary suggestions with 7 day JR Pass

Hi people!
I will be visiting Japan soon and would like some suggestions- recommendations and a second opinion to see if I am making a realistic trip.

I'm arriving from Korea and will be on Yakushima island for two days before I activate my rail pass, on March 1st in Kagoshima.

Basically, I want to see as much of the country as possible over the 7 days. I don't mind long train rides, I actually like them. But I also don't want to feel rushed, especially if there are some great areas that deserve two days.

My plan is

Day 1- Kagoshima to Kumamoto
Day 2- Kumamoto to Mt. Aso
Day 3- Aso to Fukuoka
Day 4- Fukuoka to Miyajima/Hiroshima
Day 5- Miyajima to Kyoto
Day 6- Kyoto to Fuji
Day 7- Fuji to Tokyo (head home)

Thanks for any advice! ^-^

You are going very fast. I don't know what you are planning at each location, but the usual amount of time in Kyoto is 3-4 days, and that also goes for Tokyo.

My general advice is to get to a city the night before. Many places, such as shrines and parks will close around 5 PM, and you can use the evening to get to the next location. In the morning, check out of your hotel and have them hold your luggage while you visit the city, and return in the early evening to get to your next location.

I am assuming that you have looked at the YakuMonkey Paperback or online guide for Yakushima Island. I am giving you the YakuMonkey link to the bus timetables.

http://www.yakumonkey.com/2012/05/new-yakushima-bus-timetables-2012.ht...

I would recommend the Kotsu Sightseeing bus, which will also take you to your hotel. Do the "A" tour the first day, and the "B" tour, which will end at Ando Port about 20-30 minutes before the Jetfoil departs for Kagoshima. The Jetfoil will depart at 13:30 and arrive at Kagoshima Port at 15:30. You can take the bus from the port to Kagoshima-Chou Station.

I don't know what you are planning to see in Kumamoto, but it is less than a hour away by Shinkansen. After leaving Yakushima Island, I went of the east coast of Kyushu. I know that Mount Aso can be closed due to gaseous eruptions. You may want an alternate plan, such as going to Beppu if it is closed.

Your plan to visit Miyajima is fairly good in terms of tides and seeing the shrine and the floating gate.

March 4th
9:04 High Tide (+3.20 meters)
15:06 Low Tide (+0.81 Meters)

Miyajima is on the Seto Inland Sea, which flows out to the Pacific Ocean, so it is always a little above sea level, even at low tide. You will see a "floating" shrine and Tori Gate in the Morning, and a "beached" shrine and Tori Gate in the afternoon.

You might want to go to Hakone instead of Fuji. Hakone is south of mount Fuji, and is accessable from Odawara, which is a Shinkansen Bullet Train Station between Kyoto and Tokyo. If you like transportation, you might like the Hakone Round Course.

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e5210.html

The trip does seem fast to me.

I agree about the fast pace.

7 days is too short for Kyushu alone yet you are fitting in Kyoto and Tokyo.

I would remove Aso and Fukuoka. At most use Fukukoka as a transit point to sleep a night before setting of for Hiroshima the next day.

1 Kagoshima
2 Kumamoto with night at Fukuoka
3 Hiroshima and Miyajimas
4 Kyoto with night at Osaka
5 Kyoto till lunch, then Tokyo
6 Tokyo
7 Tokyo

Japan is such an amazing country that I would recommend about 7 days for each region, if you could, please consider focusing on either Kyushu or Kyoto and ending up in Tokyo for the flight out. Unless you can fly out of Osaka Airport...