Itinerary check first trip to Japan

Hi,

we are visiting Japan at the end of October the first time. We are staying 16 nights, arriving and departing from Haneda, Tokyo. Inside Japan we want to travel mainly with Trains and Buses.

Our itinerary so far:

Tokyo, 4 nights: (Tokyo Station-Hotel)
Fuji-area (with Tokyo-wide pass)
Nikko (with Tokyo-wide pass)
Activation of JR-Rail pass

Takayama, 2 nights: (Tanabe Ryokan)
Old Town
Higashiyama Walk
Onsen

Kanazawa, 2 nights: (Sumiyoshi-ya Ryokan)

Kyoto, 5 nights: (1 night at Hiiragiya Ryokan, 4 nights at Solaria Nishietsu)
Nara
Lake Biwa

Hiroshima/Miyajima, 1 night: (Oriental Hotel)
Okunoshima, Miyajima

Layover: Himeji

Osaka, 2 nights: (1 night at Imperial Hotel)

Back to Tokyo

Questions:

- Would you choose a different route?
- Would you combine Kanazawa and Takayama into a stay at only one of the two places?
- Depending on the question before: If either Kanazawa/Takayama could be combined to a stay in one of the places for only 3 nights, maybe it is advisable to stay at Tokyo one night longer?
- Any other comments/recommendations are highly appreciated!

Sincerely

looks quite good!
Kanazawa & Takayama 2+2 is fine, you also have time to discover area between them (incl Shirakawa-go).

I would stay longer in Hiroshima - there can do wonderful daytrips, and not at all in Osaka.

Hi! You are staying at some of our favorite places. Tokyo Station Hotel is awesome, make sure you get the breakfast package!

We have stayed at Tanabe Ryokan a few times, Tanabe-san is lovely and it is in a nice area. Make sure to go to the squirrel park just out of town if you like squirrels (and who doesnt?). The locals call them "Risu". Personally I wouldnt go on to another ryokan at Kanazawa. 2 nights in a row of ryokan food is heaps, by the third day all you want is something plain and you virtually dread dinner. I'd stay at a normal hotel at Kanazawa, and I'd recommend Hakuchoro which is lovely inside, has great restaurants, big rooms, and good onsen with dark water. Maybe the ryokan on the second night after you recover.

With Kyoto it is very very busy these days, think about spending one of the 5 nights at Nara. We stay at the Nara Hotel in the old section which is amazing. It is a "classic hotel" like the Tokyo Station Hotel, so if you like old stuff you'll love it.

I like Miyajima too, the walks are nice and it is far better after the day trippers have gone and before they arrive. Other than that dont really have an opinion, save that I wouldnt stay 2 nights at Osaka, I'd move on to Hikone (not Hakone) which is on Lake Biwa and has a great little castle and nice town. It depends I suppose whether you like cities more.

One thing I do is to stay at Enoshima on the way back to Tokyo, so that I'm not in a city on the last night. You can catch the Narita Express from nearby direct to the airport. Kamakura and Enoshima are really nice.

Have fun!

A sensible itinerary and it will be a lovely trip. Having said that, the suggestions that @Lazy Pious makes are worth considering. Either way have a great time.

Hi there!

Definitely don't forget to check out Shinjuku & Harajuku & Asakusa while in Tokyo and in Osaka definitely check out Dotondbori and the ferriswheel in Hep5. There is a huge amusement building across from Hep5 too, which is a lot of fun!

If you'd like to know about what to do in all of those areas, definitely check out some of these:
https://alovingladytravels.com/2018/07/04/how-to-make-the-most-of-thre...
https://alovingladytravels.com/2018/07/14/how-to-make-the-most-of-thre...
https://alovingladytravels.com/2018/07/18/travel-diary-day-one-and-two...

Also, these are some things you should definitely know about Japan before you go: https://alovingladytravels.com/2018/08/15/never-been-to-japan-before-t...

Looks like a great trip. From my own experiences with some of the locations my feedback would be:
-Nikko, great choice - do take the bus up the mountain lake and waterfalls.
-Tokyo - if you have not been there before two days in the city is not much. I would add a day.
- Nara - also great choice. I would make this a day trip from Osaka. In Kyoto you can easily spend a week sightseeing during daytime. Osaka is mainly interesting in the evenings.
-Hiroshima - would add a night on the mainland. If you travel to the island from Kyoto the day is mostly gone traveling.

These are my 2 cents but the trip looks great either way.