5th trip to Japan

Hello,

First, big thanks to this site - my previous trips would not have been as fluid as they were without this guide and advice of different members.

My trip is from 15.05.19-26.05.19 with my wife, 65y mother and 7y child ; i planned to have all my nights in Osaka, in the same hotel near Osaka Castle to minimize the luggage carrying process and i like to have a base camp :-). I should arrive to my hotel around 18:00 and i have to be at KIX around 22:30 on 26.05.

My questions:
1. Because May is probably much warmer than April - is it wise to visit Amanohashidate, Shirahama beach and Kinosaki Onsen on weekdays or weekends? I assume, that even for japanese the sea might be warm enough so on weekends it might be difficult to secure non-reserved seats on limited express trains?
2. How good or bad is Okayama garden compared to the Kanazawa garden? Because my one plan is to use 7-day JR Kansai-Hokuriku area pass, i might have an extra spare day to maximise the usefulness of the pass.
Alternative plan is to buy 5-day JR Kansai-Hiroshima pass instead and skip Kanazawa and visit Hiroshima-Miyajima as a daytrip from Osaka?
3. Is it common that it is very difficult to get non-reserved seats from KIX to Tennoji on the Haruka limited express?
4. Do i have to pay extra when taking a limited express or similar train when using Keihan and Hankyu trains? It seams that some seats require the extra fee and some do not. And is it true, that limited express or other faster trains do not stop at Keihan Fushimi Inari station?
5. What is the best method to visit Shioashiya beach from the Hanshin Ashiya station? For 3 adults and 1 child the taxi might the most reasonable? Of course, if it would be solo trip, then i would walk - the distance is about 1,5 km.

Best regards,
Lauri

5. What is the best method to visit Shioashiya beach from the Hanshin Ashiya station? For 3 adults and 1 child the taxi might the most reasonable? Of course, if it would be solo trip, then i would walk - the distance is about 1,5 km.

There's no train or subway ... so that leaves walking, a taxi or a bus. You've already covered two of those alternatives so that leaves the bus - apparently a # 14, 41 or 43, depending on timing/day of the week. It appears they all go to the Beach park from Ashiya Station.

Try searching ....
https://www.hankyu-bus.jp//en/?mode=0&fr=Hanshin%20Ashiya%7BHankyu%20B...

4. Do i have to pay extra when taking a limited express or similar train when using Keihan and Hankyu trains? It seams that some seats require the extra fee and some do not. And is it true, that limited express or other faster trains do not stop at Keihan Fushimi Inari station?

If there's a limited express/seat fee, then you pay it, if there isn't then you don't ...

Without knowing your starting point, determining whether any particular train will stop at Fushimi Inari is hard to say .... try looking it up ... or just search for trains going to that station.

http://www.hyperdia.com/cgi/en/search.html?dep_node=DEMACHIYANAGI&arv_...

Note that for Hyperdia "Fushimiinari" is all one word. Click on the "Train timetable" link to see where any particular train stops and the "Interval timetable" link to see all trains for the day.

Hi Lauri,

May is warmer than April but it's still not beach weather and the water is not going to be warm enough to swim unless you are OK with cooler temperatures. In general, the Japanese only use mainland beaches from July to August. I was in Tanabe at the beach in early September on a very warm day and the water was definitely a pleasant temperature, but no one else was at the beach and no lifeguard was on duty because it was September and no longer considered beach season.

I've really liked all 3 of the big gardens: Kairakuen, Korakuen and Kenrokuen, though Kairakuen near Mito really is best during ume season and outside of that is not as lovely as some other gardens. I've been to Korakuen in Okayama several times. If some of the azaleas are still in bloom or if the iris has started it's quite attractive, though the grounds are quite pleasant even when nothing is blooming I liked Kenrokuen in Kanazawa as well.

Good luck!

Thank you for the answers.

During the weekdays - does Kanazawa Kenrokuen have usually bigger or smaller crowds in the middle of May than Fushimi Inari in Kyoto during the middle of April on weekends? Although experiencing crowds is part of the fun while being tourist in Japan - it was even too much for my taste :-) specially the starting part where you have a la one gate per metre; on the top of the hill it was quite OK. I read from TripAdvisor, that thanks to a tourism boom the Kenrokuen is already crowded after 9 AM?

BR,
Lauri

I was in September 3 years ago in Kenrokuen and it was not specially crowded. I would guess that it won�ft be as crowded as Fushimi Inari, because at Fushimi Inari everyone starts at those torii gates , so a lot of people all at the same spot. While Kenrokuen is a garden which doesn�ft have one spot we�fre everyone congregates at the same time.

There is also a quite nice new Japanese garden in front of the rebuild castle.

Enjoy your trip to Kanazawa!

2. How good or bad is Okayama garden compared to the Kanazawa garden? Because my one plan is to use 7-day JR Kansai-Hokuriku area pass, i might have an extra spare day to maximise the usefulness of the pass.
Alternative plan is to buy 5-day JR Kansai-Hiroshima pass instead and skip Kanazawa and visit Hiroshima-Miyajima as a daytrip from Osaka?
This question is hard to answer, I think both is fine. Kanazawa itself with the rebuild castle some special temples and the samurai houses has more to see than Okayama. So you can easily spend 2D1N in Kanazawa. Plus you could pass through Takayama or Shirakawa on the way.
However to combine Okayama with Hiroshima and Miyajima is also totally a possibility. In that case I would probably do Okayama on the way to Hiroshima and then stay 2 nights in Hiroshima.
It is true that there are also other interesting things to see closer to Okayama, some of them not very touristic, such as Bichu Takahashi or Inujima and cycline in the Kibi plain. (plus there is Kurashiki). So you could also easily spend 2 - 3 days in Okayama. Ultimately you'll need to make the decision. Both are good decisions though.
3. Is it common that it is very difficult to get non-reserved seats from KIX to Tennoji on the Haruka limited express?
This train starts at KIX. I have taken this train maybe about 4 times and always in non-reserved, including once with a big group (about 6 people). We did not have problems with unreserved seats. It depends how many minutes you have to departure, if you are there early, then you are in the front of the line and no problem, if you arrive last minute then sitting together might be difficult. You could technically wait for the next one... but that's a rather long wait, at which point likely a local express train will bring you quicker to your final destination.

I went to Kenrokuen June 2018, so not even a year ago, and I would not have characterized it as "crowded." Maybe people are thinking specifically during sakura season or just seeing other people walking on paths too makes it crowded? I was there on a Monday and we didn't get out until the middle of the day because my daughter's camera's battery was dead and we had to wait for it to recharge.

In contrast on the same trip we went to Kiyomizudera on a Thursday and arrived before 8:30 am.
Kiyomizudera felt crowded outside of the special paid ticket you needed to go under the temple.
Kenrokuen was nothing like that. I've not taken my child to Fushimi Inari yet. I've been 2x without her before she was born when it use to be quiet and not all that popular. We're going to try to get there by 7 or 7:30.

If you decide to day trip to Okayama, you can also take the train to Takamatsu and see Ritsuin. It's not one of the big 3, but is really quite pretty. It is covered under the Kansai-Hiroshima pass but not the Kansai Hokuriku Pass. I've also done the Kibi Plain bike trip and it was lots of fun. If I didn't visit Japan in late June I would think about doing it again. I biked the Kibi Plain route about a decade ago the week after Golden Week. We went to Ritsuin in June 2018 on the same trip we went to Kenrokuen and Kiyomizudera.

I hope this helps!

So, back from my trip. Here are some feedback.

I stayed in Osaka 11 nights, near the Tanimachi 4chome subway station. I purchased 7day Kansai-Hokuriku rail pass. I visited:
16.05 - Nara. For me it was 3rd time, wife 2nd and for mother and daughter first time. Although it was pretty crowded, all my family members enjoyed it.
17.05. Kanazawa. Took the 8:40 Thunderbird; nor problem getting 4 seats from the Osaka station.
18.05 Amanohashidate. Again, starting around 9:00 from the Osaka station it was not problem getting the seats to the Konotori train.
19.05 Himeji; managed to visit the castle (quite empty compared to the mid april in 2017), zoo and Shosha mountain. Lost our child for a brief moment, had a 2 minute panic moment, but in the end everything was OK - she did not saw mother and wife in the temple and started walk toward another temple. Some shouting was all that was needed to locate her.
20.05 Fukui Dinosaur park. Otherwise OK day, but the train stopped for 2 hours between Kyoto and Tsuruga (so the total time from Osaka to Fukui was 4 hours instead of 2). Official version was strong winds, however we did not saw any houses without roof or even broken trees. Then just before the arrival to the Fukui station mother lost her phone probably somewhere between the seats. We discovered that when we were already in local train to Katsuyama. When we were back to Fukui i informed the local JR West station and hoped for the best. Well, after some days later the phone arrived to the hotel, we had to pay 800 yen for the delivery. Phone was found in Kanazawa.
21.05 Kinosaki onsen. The ropeway was under maintenance so we had to walk to the top. Was doable even for my mother who wore shoes with a 1cm heel :-). For some reason, most of the eateries were closed after 17:00 so we had to have our lunch-dinner in the train.
22.05 Shirahama onsen.
23.05 Okayama and Arima Onsen
24.05 Kyoto - Fushimi Inari shrine and Daigo-ji temple.
25.05 Aquarium and beach vacation near the Suma Kaihinkoen station.
26.05 Osaka, flight back home in the evening.

Some conclusions after my 5th trip.
1. Popular tourist spots are much more crowded compared to 2008, when it was my first visit.
2. Both Korakuen and Daigo-ji temple garden are IMHO more beautiful compared to Kanazawa.
3. Fukui Dinosaur Park rocks!! Should i visit Japan again - would visit it again.
4. If you want to enjoy beach region near Osaka, the Suma is the answer.

Everyone is entitled to their own views, but the general consensus is that Kenrokuen is best. Kairakuen outside of the ume season to me was rather lackluster (though admittedly you can't beat the price).
Between Kenrokuen and Korakuen, I'd pick the former if forced to, but the better answer really, is to see both. You can see them here though and decide for yourself:
Kenrokuen:
https://goo.gl/MkGZYp
Korakuen:
https://goo.gl/JQF2bY

There are of course many more - and not jammed with people like some other tourist spots.
https://goo.gl/KoqErH

Thank you so much for coming back and saying what you decided to do.

I always like knowing what itineraries people went with and what they enjoyed.

Some more conclusions-observations-advice:

1. If you are poor, but want anyway experience Japan - then it does not matter which is your starting point. Both Osaka and Tokyo and even Nagoya and Fukuoka provide you the experience of Japan, even if you could not afford JR Nationwide pass or stay in ryokans. For sleeping any business hotel is more than enough; just choose the hotel which maximum 15-30 minutes away from the major train station (Osaka-Umeda, Namba, Tennoji, Tokyo, Shibuya, Shinjuku). One week is enough to experience Japan and you can see why the europeans find Japan fascinating and why japanese adore Paris, Toscana, Iceland etc.
Just try to catch cheap airfare, use some regional pass (Tokyo Wide pass, JR Kansai Wide Pass) and walk as much as you can on foot i.e in big cities the distance between the 2 subway stops is not that long for a person who is physically fit.
Also, skip Disneyland and Universal Studios and focus on those sites which are aimed for locals and not owned by worldwide corporations. For example, Osaka Science museum, ferris wheels, temples-gardens, etc. These are all cheap i.e the price is less than 1000 yen.
2. When you are first time in Japan and first time in BIG train station - have some spare time! I strongly recommend for rookies to have at least 1 hour to spare when you arrive first time to either Tokyo, Shinjuku or Umeda-Osaka station. Those are huge and finding your platform might take time.
3. No problem at all if you do not have time to visit the must-see sights in Kyoto. Japan has plenty of temples and shrines, which are not crowded and the architecture is quite similar unlike the cathedrals-churches in Europe. Although in general - if you have seen one big cathedral, then others are also similar.
4. Food is cheaper in traditional supermarkets than in those huge food courts that are located in big departmentstores (Daimaru, Lucua, Kintetsu etc.)
5. Google Maps is an excellent tool to find temples, shrines, stores, beaches etc.
6. Bring or use cash. My Mastercard was disabled by my bank's automated security system, because it did not like, that JR West did 3 payments in row and also did not asked the pin during the payment process. Was not fun. Also, even the food courts in department stores might not accept credit-debit cards.
7. Again, 100% IMHO - but Japan does not have a Grand Canyon/Iguassu Falls/Cinque Terra/Paris etc type of sights. If you expect that you find such sights - you will be disappointed.
8. When do i have a 6th trip - never-say-never, but probably not next year (to have 4th trip in row). Daughter goes to school so that limits the time slots to have vacation and i have a temporary Japan poisoning :-).
9. And again - i am very thankful for the advice of other experienced posters.

BR,
Lauri