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Sakura itinerary - Ifm late 2018/1/24 12:24
Hi all,
We are planning a trip to japan the first 2 wks of April. We will be flying in and out of Tokyo and have a total of 12 full days {plus 2 which Ifm not counting as half the days will be on flights in and out).
These are the places I have in mind -
Tokyo ( and hakone + Disney overnight ? Or day trips?)
Kyoto ( and Nara day trip)
Osaka
Hiroshima - mijayama overnight ?
Is this too ambitious? we will be more likely to do tokyo again in the near future for work etc vs Osaka so keeping that in mind which places (if any) should we omit from this trip? Itfs our first time to Japan and we will have young kids 2 and 6 with us as well as grandparents so a medium paced itinerary would be perfect.
We are planning to get the 7 day JR pass so how would u suggest we plan this itinerary best?! Thanks in advance !look forward to all your inputs!

by F_S (guest)  

Re: Sakura itinerary - Ifm late 2018/1/24 15:20
Before buying the JR pass, make you itinerary. There is a good planning part on this webpage where you can enter your expected travel duration and it gives you tips. Also other webpages do that.
If Sakura is a must, you will need to be flexible. It is hard to foresee exactly when it is where, but you might have slightly better chances somewhat north of Tokyo rather than South to catch the full blown Sakura.

Kyoto is obviously one of the top destinations, so I would try to reserve accommodation there ASAP.

once you have your itinerary, there is a JR pass calculator on this webpage that will tell you if the pass pays off.

Enjoy planning your trip to Japan!
by LikeBike rate this post as useful

Re: Sakura itinerary - Ifm late 2018/1/24 15:27
You'd better book lodging ASAP. I'm traveling at that time and Kyoto was already mostly booked up and overpriced months ago. You'll probably still be OK for Tokyo and Hiroshima. If Kyoto is booked, you can stay in Osaka and it's only 30-45 minutes train into Kyoto or Nara.

Hakone can be fun to stay at if you want to stay in an Onsen, but it's an easy day trip from Tokyo (90 mins roughly)
Disneyland is a short train ride from Tokyo, so not much point moving hotels for a day there. Disneyland is likely to be very busy, though.

Your listed places are pretty much the classic "Golden Route" and I think you won't have much trouble seeing all of them in 12 days.

Here's a pretty good itinerary for you as a starting point: https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2400_tokyo_11.html

by Me2 (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: Sakura itinerary - Ifm late 2018/1/24 15:38
If you include Hiroshima and Kyoto/Osaka within a 7 day period, then yeah a 7 day pass will pay off.

So a couple of days in Tokyo, then off to kyoto for 4-5 days, the hiroshima for 2-3 days, then back to tokyo for a couple of days.

As above, you'll struggle to find accommodation booking this late, so plan the middle kyoto/osaka days first, then work around them for the rest of the itinerary.
by hakata14 rate this post as useful

Re: Sakura itinerary - Ifm late 2018/1/24 15:48
Depending on how many places you'd like to go, your travel style, and your fitness level. I'd say 12 days is too tight as you are flying in/out from Tokyo. The Disneyland trip is fine, but the JR Pass only gives you 7 days, which means within 7 days you have Hiroshima, Osaka, Kyoto including return trip to Tokyo.

Personally, I've been on this route with my parents and it's challenging to even fit in Hiroshima. Mainly due to the short daylight time and the proximity to the train station. During spring, the shinkansen are booked out really fast. It may be difficult to get morning departure and get the entire family sit together. Spare sometimes for moment of confusion.
by Moccy rate this post as useful

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