Japan Trip with twin 1 year old toddlers

We are planning a trip next March to Japan with our twins who will be one at the time. My brother and sister in-law live in Himeji which will be our base camp. Our plan is to spend a few days in Osaka a few days in Kyoto, same for Hiroshima and Tokyo. We will be there for 12 days. I have been researching tips for the trip with the twins and am getting a bit worried, some seem to think traveling with toddlers is extremely difficult and others have said it is a very toddler friendly country? Also any tips or ideas for things to see? This will be our first trip to japan so I want to make sure we see the things that everyone will enjoy. Thanks!

Traveling with a toddler is horrible. But two is even more work. Good luck.

But I don't think you'll have too many issues. Especially with family living in the country. They'll allow you to source baby foods.

I would suggest using baby chest/back carriers over prams. Japan has a lot of steps at the train stations and tourist locations. This allows more hands to be free and quicker navigation of stations and alike.

As for you itinerary, 12 days for Hiroshima, Himeji (with family), Osaka, Kyoto and Tokyo seems quite ambitious. Unless you wanna rush each city and time spent with family. Considering that Tokyo is the furtherest from you families location, I'd consider omitting that if you itinerary becomes too rushed.

I totally agree with @Hakata14 The kids will be a handful but you know that & the country does seem well set up for travel with children. I would also say that there is so much to see between Osaka & Hiroshima that I would leave Tokyo for somewhen else unless there is something particular you need to see.

It's an odd thing to say, but your hardest thing will probably be getting them here on the plane. I'm not sure on the rules on taking two babies on the plane (even with 2 people - just check that).

The comment on the baby carriers is a really important one. Cities which have had subways for a while (Osaka, Kyoto and Tokyo) have many stops with no elevators or escalators which will make making your bubs around a bit more difficult.

The comment about moving around a lot is a big one. Have you thought about basing yourself in Tokyo/Kyoto and then taking day trips, specifically around Kyoto where there are plenty of places to visit which are reasonably close. The biggest hurdle in Japan will be moving your stuff between cities, so the less moves the better.

Also - how strongly do you want to visit Hiroshima? It's a long way and there is only so much to do there apart from the Atomic Bomb museum (make sure it's not being upgraded when you visit).

Japan in general is pretty good with kids, with people even allowing you to sit on a busy train which is a nice thing. Others will know better, but you have probably heard lots about trains being quiet places. I've seen in general that Japanese peoples are fine if babies are crying if the parent is trying to do something about it (showing some interesting in soothing the baby). I guess what I'm saying is don't be too worried if one of your babies is a little bit upset and how the locals will respond.

It's possible to travel with twins but just make sure you give yourself plenty of time to move between locations and don't try and pack too much into any particular day. As always, feel free to take this advice with a grain of salt...

Hi,

Just a clarification first, when you said Himeji will be your base camp, did you mean that you will stay in Himeji and do days trips from there to Osaka, Kyoto, Hiroshima and Tokyo; or you will spend just a few days there then move to other cities?

Anyway, with one-year old twins, long flights, 12-days holiday and visiting family, I would omit Tokyo and Hiroshima if your base would Himeji and just stick with Kyoto and Osaka. But first identify what are your and your partner's interests and what you want to do in Japan. As mentioned above, travelling with twins at this age isn't going to be easy, so make the trip slow-paced, and bear in mind that unexpected circumstances can happen, such as a sick child, earthquake, heavy rain, etc... so be realistic in your expectations and keep your plans simple and flexible.

One thing to keep in mind is that a lot of places in Japan are narrow. While putting twins side by side on one twin stroller can be easier in some parts of the world, in Japan it would be much better to place one behind the other, or put one in a stroller and carry the other.

Otherwise, a lot of places in Japan are just as toddler-friendly and unfriendly as many other parts of the world. In any case, I would keep the itinerary as flexible as possible if I were you. The great thing is that one-year-olds don't complain about how boring a certain sightseeing spot is. They either cry or sleep.

Other than steps, narrow paths, etc, which has already been said, I'd say that Japan is an easy place to be with young ones, and that if you're happy to travel around your home country with them then you'll be fine doing the same in Japan.

They'll be 1 then, so that means they're very young now and probably fall asleep with minimal effort. You're very ambitious to plan such a busy trip so far in advance. Make sure you can change/cancel plans if you realise it will be too crazy.