Fukuoka to Tokyo Itinerary Feedback

Hi all,

My partner and I are travelling to Fukuoka in September for a conference. After the conference we are planning to travel to Tokyo and make some stops along the way. There is so much to see and do but I am worried that we might be trying to squeeze too much into 10 days. As we are both students, financially we wouldn't be able to extend the trip. Any feedback on my itinerary or tips for travelling on a budget would be greatly appreciated.

Day 1: Fukuoka to Hiroshima. 1/2 day Hiroshima 1/2 day Miyajima (Night in Hiroshima)
Day 2: Hiroshima to Nara, Day in Nara (Night in Nara)
Day 3: Nara to Kyoto, spend day in Kyoto (Night in Kyoto)
Day 4: Day in Kyoto (Night in Kyoto)
Day 5: Kyoto to Hakone, day at hot springs (Night in Hakone ryokan)
Day 6: Hakone to Tokyo, spend day in Tokyo (Night in Tokyo)
Day 7: Day in Tokyo
Day 8: Day in Tokyo
Day 9: Day trip to Nikko
Day 10: Flight back home (Ireland)

Many thanks,
Raidle

I don't see any big problems with your plans - a lot depends on your interests and you didn't list any arrival times.
If you can squeeze in the Nanzoin Temple near Fukuoka, it would be really worth your time.

You will also need to be selective with Hiroshima/Miyajima - unless you have most of the day, it will not be feasible or practical. You can choose a few good places in Hiroshima (Peace Park/Museum, Shukkeien Garden, castle, Mitakidera Temple) and a couple for Miyajima (Itsukushima Shrine, Daishoin Temple) and if you don't linger you can get some good places under your belt.
For Nara, given your limited time, try to concentrate on the Nara Park area.

You can also see some places in Osaka in the evening after your day of sightseeing in Kyoto - lots of great places - Dotonbori, Umeda Sky Bldg, Abeno Harukas Bldg, Cosmo Tower, Shinsekai, etc.
You also might consider taking half a day off of Tokyo and see some sights in Yokohama or Kamakura.

Agree with PP that this itinerary seems to be doable. Hiroshima and Miyajima in one day is slightly rushed, but you can see the top sights. But you can leave the itinerary unchanged. However a few suggestions to consider:

Although I am a big fan of onsen, i think Hakone is overrated. I�fd skip it, adding a day to Kyoto or doing the onsen experience down in Kyushu which is famous for its onsen (best one in my eyes Kurokawa Onsen. but they aren�ft really on your path). Or you could go half day to an onsen somewhere else along your path, eg Karuma onsen close to Kyoto which you can combine with some light hiking and sightseeing in the countryside.

If you want change hotel less frequently you can stay in Kyoto after your day in Nara. It gets dark early in Japan and attractions also close early. So you have all the time to come from Nara to Kyoto at the end of the day. If you do that, I would probably do Kyoto on day 1, Nara as a side trip from Kyoto as opposed to on the road from Hiroshima.

One problem traveling in August is the heat though. I personally in August can practically only stay inside air conditioned rooms. So unless you are fine with humid heat, be prepared that you might need to slow down.

Enjoy your trip to Japan!

Not much to add except to agree with @Likebike about going straight to Kyoto and then doing a day trip back to Nara. It would be much more convenient to be in one hotel for the extra night & it's a very short train journey. I also agree about skipping Hakone & would use that day elsewhere, probably in Hiroshima. Oh, and it will be astonishingly hot!!

Hi everyone,

Thank you so much for your quick responses! I really appreciate all of your help.

@ken I'll definitely try to visit nanzoin temple. The conference is actually for my boyfriend so I'll have the freedom to explore a bit on my own during the three days that we are in fukuoka. Yes if we have time we will try to fit Osaka in :)

@Ken and @likebike, yes I thought we might be a bit rushed for Hiroshima and Miyajima so I'll try to add in another day there!

@likebike and @stan I looked up the onsen near Kyoto. It looks gorgeous. I'm a biologist myself so some hiking in the countryside sounds perfect. The only problem with the karuma onsen is that I dont think you can rent a private bath. Ideally my partner and I dont want to be separated as we've never been to a bath house before. Would you know of any other onsens near Kyoto in the countryside where we could rent out a private bath? Sorry for being so particular. Also thank you the idea of going to Kyoto first and then Nara as a day trip. It's makes a lot more sense haha.

One of the reasons we were thing of going to hakone was to break up the trip from kyoto to Tokyo. Are there maybe some other better onsens that we could go to instead of those at hakone?