Travelling in November

Hello everyone,

I had a trip to Japan planned in May 2020, due to the global situation we are all dealing with, this wasn't possible ^^

I have a voucher from my airline which I need to book before the end of March it will expire (and I lose my money), and I'm looking at my optionsi. Seeing the current situation, I don't expect international travel before the summer, so taking my work schedule into account I'm looking into a 3 (or even 4) week trip during the November 11th to December 11th timeframe.
*I'm aware nobody knows when travel will actually resume, but as mentioned, I need to make a decision :)

Originally I put Japan out of my mind and was looking to destinations like Vietnam, South Africa, Central America due to the better weather. However I came across some articles about autumn foliage and learned that November really isn't that bad of a time for travel. While it can be rather chilly, it should be rather dry and sunny during this period, so certainly not bad for travelling.

To be complete, my planned itinerary in May would have been (it would need to be (lightly) revised for a November):
Day 1: Flight to Japan
Day2-7: Tokyo and surroundings (Nikko, Fuji 5 lakes Area and Ashikaga Flower Park)
Day8-9: Kanazawa
Day10: Takayama
Day 11-12: Okuhida (hot springs) & Kamikochi
Day 13: Travel to Kyoto
Day 14-15: Kyoto & Arashiyama
Day 16-17: Hiroshima & Miyajima
Day 18: Shimanami Kaido (it might be a bit chilly for this end or November :D)
Day 19-20: Himeji & Osaka
Day 21: Nara
Day 22: Flight home

My "major" concern is daylight, taking a quick look sunset is already around 16h30, which is quite early.
I'm assuming opening hours or tourist attractions, etc are not impacted by the earlier sunset (I don't expect so, but no harm in checking).

I am aware this is Japan travel forum and it's quite likely that you will advise me to go. But I'm just looking for some honest feedback for myself to manage expectations if I would go. As said, weather should be quite OK. Walking around in May in a t-shirt is more appealing, but dressing for some chilly weather isn't the end of the world. Dry/sunny is more important. I'm mostly worried that my days in places like Nikko, Fuji 5 Lakes, Arashiyama, Miyajima, ...) would feel quite short as it gets dark quite early and you feel pressed to go back to the hotel/city earlier as public life comes a bit to a halt. In cities there should be more life and things to do I'm assuming.

Thanks for any feedback :)
Martin

Note that Kamikochi closes in mid-November, so be careful with your specific dates!

I think I would maybe do some tweaks to your plan and include less mountainous terrain and more Southern Japan. But yes, November is a good time to travel through Japan. I cycled from early Sep to end November from North to South a few years ago and did not find issues.

http://bicycletraveljapan.blogspot.com/

With Covid 19 I think Eastern Asian countries are MUCH more cautious than other regions (which has really paid off for them if you look at # infected/deaths). So I would expect that their borders open later than other borders.

Just as an example, while borders to Japan have been closed since March (for some time nearly completely now only open for visa holders going to live in Japan), other countries (eg Mexico) have kept open their borders all the time.

So if you can rebook only once, I think I would rebook to a country that left borders open and where you have reasonable hope that their health system is well enough organized to get a large chunk of their population vaccinated by October. If you can rebook again if Japan borders remain closed and you are set on Japan, I would rebook for November and replan a bit the trip.

Enjoy!

As mentioned above, if you will lose your right to a refund/rebooking should the borders not be open in November, I don't think it is worth the risk. Especially if you would prefer nicer weather anyway. If you are like me and weather is a major concern then I think planning for a later date may be a smarter move (nothing is certain but I think it is very highly likely we will be able to travel to Japan in spring/summer 2022). I find Japan in November to be... not great. Autumn colours are nice for those who like them, but I personally find the weather to be miserable. It's definitely drier than summer, and it is sometimes sunny, but it is also often very grey. I don't know, sunshine is a major factor in my enjoyment of travel, and summer is the best for me, though for some it is too hot and humid. It really depends on how much of a big deal the weather is to you. If it's that huge to you then I think it's a gamble. You might only get three sunny days in your three week trip, or you might get 18, who knows? But with travel restrictions in mind, and the fact that Japan probably won't even begin vaccinating until March at the earliest, personally I would go somewhere else this time and save Japan for when you can have the trip you really want.

Nov to Dec period is my favorite season in Japan, I like it better than the spring (Sakura) season.

Early sunset time is no problem at all, you just start dinner earlier. Food is what I look forward to, more than sight seeing in Japan.

Some destinations popular for autumnal leaves set up lights at night to enjoy the scenery after dark, so that is one option after sunset.

Hi !

I am actually facing the same dilemma right now, although my voucher is due to expire later.

My feedback on the weather in one week, mid-November 2016:
- rain, clouds and sun in Takayama. It was really cold, with little heating in the guesthouses.
- wind and snow in Shirakawa-go. I enjoyed my day of sightseeing, despite my frozen toes.
- clouds in Kanazawa, no rain. Autumn foliage had barely started
- sun and blue sky in Kamikochi. Beautiful.
- sun and clouds in Matsumoto, not too cold (or maybe I became used to it :D)

I did not feel like the days were too short. I usually get up early (6 am) due to the jetlag, which gives me time to stroll around the city before the gardens/museums/shops open.
One of the best thing in autumn compared to summer, IMO, is the variety of fishes. And if you like Christmas illuminations, they start mid-November (in Tokyo at least). Unfortunately, I have never been able to travel to Japan in Spring... it should have been last year, in April-May :/

Honestly, I miss Japan so much that I would go in November/December this year, if I could. But objectively, Vietnam or Mexico would be more enjoyable in that season.

Sunset is later further south, but working on 5pm, many people would be finished their main sightseeing for the day by then. Some places also have "winter" hours and close earlier - sometimes only 30 minutes, other times an hour, but you can cover that in your detailed planning.
November is one of the nicest times to travel - much more settled weather than the fickle spring. The weather is usually better as well - not so much grey, often heading into the brilliant, dry, blue skies typical of winter. And, yes, it can get cold, but also you can get great warm days - I had a trip a couple of years back arriving into Takayama with 20C and warm, but it snowed heavily overnight so a -3C start the following morning, but it was a nice experience.
Is it a good risk to book for November? As reasonable as heading anywhere else.

Very busy itinerary. No time to breath.

I would omit a few of the harder to reach places to free up some time. Some locations will give you 6 hours of travel per day, buses in mountains etc.

Yes you may wanna see everything on you list. But no good spending 2 hours at a highlight when you needed all day.

November/December is a great time to visit Japan - my favorite season of all. With your itinerary, you will be moving around a lot. I would suggest dropping off Shimanami Kaido. Don`t get me wrong it is a great destination that I really enjoyed in May but November may be too cold and windy to enjoy the bike ride, the main draw of the destination. Similarly, Kamikochi is one of the most beautiful places in Japan but it shuts down in mid-November and the second week of November is already usually too late to enjoy the fall colors. Kanazawa is a wonderful place for autumn colors but the colors there, in Tokyo and Kyoto usually reach the peak towards the end of November and early December, something to keep in mind when planning your dates. Burcu (https://bizarrejourneys.com/japan)

It looks like a great - but busy - trip.

If you get to Takayama at the start of November, there would be a lot of colour and I am thinking I would leave the lower areas for later in the trip when they should have colour. So I would land, go to Kanazawa/Takayama etc, then more to the lower areas form there, finishing in Tokyo.

November is my favorite month. Not too busy until mid - month, cooling down (though we were there in early November a few years ago and it was actually hot in a few places), good season for food.

Unfortunately I think the chances of international travel this year are quite slim, but I am very much hoping to be wrong.

Hello everyone, OP here.

First of all, thanks a lot for your feedback, truly appreciated.
Regarding it being it busy trip: No worries, it's not my first time in Japan (first time for my wife though), so I had the itinerary planned out quite well for our needs. But thanks for the comments, I will review and tweak where applicable! I know for example Kyoto will deliberately not be a focusing point that why I have only 2 full days in the area ;)

Feedback on the weather is appreciated. Nobody can predict the weather of course, but your feedback was roughly inline with my expectations.

Regarding re-opening of the country, this was a point I didn't really consider. East asia is more careful compared to most of the rest of the world, so it's actually possible they will re-open relatively late. I'm foreseen to be vaccinated in the July-September period (if things proceed according to plan in my country, of course this is far from certain). I was under the assumption Japan was in the same timelines, but I was for example not aware vaccinations are not yet in full swing like in most of Europe and the US. I "assumed" that if the Olympics take place, the country would open further, but perhaps this will not be the case.

I'll need to sleep on it for some time. Any additional feedback is appreciated, and I'll hopefully let you guys know of my decision !

Please dont be too hopeful. I think it will take years until the borders open for Western tourists......... ;(

Nobody has been vaccinated yet. In fact the results from the trials required for vaccine approval have not even been given to the government, though this is expected to happen soon. But basically Japan is definitely operating on a very different timeline to Europe, America, etc. Expect it to be over a month before any member of the public receives their first shot.

That said, I still believe we can ignore people who claim it will be many years before they open the borders again. For one thing, the Japanese tourism industry can not survive that long. Unless the government is willing to sacrifice an industry that is vital to their long-term plans for the country, they are going to have to open up. It is true that Japanfs vaccine rollout schedule is several months behind other countries and this will delay things, but once things get approval there is no reason to believe that administration of the vaccine will be significantly slower that what we are used to in our own countries.

We donft quite know what is going to happen with the Olympics yet, but itfs guaranteed that whatever plan the government and the IOC are working on does not involve allowing people from every corner of the globe to enter freely. Unfortunately planning summer and even autumn trips for this year seems overly optimistic to me personally.

While there is no way to be sure and I could end up getting burned, I am planning my next trip for summer 2022 and I would be very surprised if I canft get into the country by then.

I was in Japan (Kansai & Chugoku regions) November 2018. The weather was lovely and sunny in the Kansai region, but it was not hot (I wore light jackets throughout my journey, I think the most chilly I got was in Mt. Koya because of the high altitude). I did get rain in Miyajima Island (but it was only for 1 hour or so). Hiroshima was pretty cloudy while I stayed there. But I was lucky to get warm/sunny weather in Okayama and Kurashiki (I wore Kimono and took photos, I felt extremely glad it didn't rain that day).

As for Covid-19. I want to go to Japan again, but things are looking so gloomy. I don't think it will be possible to travel long distances in 2021. Maybe 2022? I live in Europe, and it is fairly easy to explore other EU countries, but flights outside EU are not that many, especially for Asia where most countries have their borders closed.

I must warn you that Japan has 14-day quarantine. Are you sure you want to go this year? Even if they open borders for western foreigns, quarantine will be required, and you'll be confined to your hotel room for 14-days...Perhaps, it will be better for you to think of a different destination. I heard that Dubai is open for foreigners and you don't need to quarantine. Just show the negative Covid-test.

I am planning to go to Japan 2022 May to travel to Chubu region (and some parts of Kansai I've missed in my last trip). But I'm just planning in my mind, I won't book anything until I'm sure it is okay to go without restrictions.

Anyway, good luck ;) and if you end up going to Japan, I wish you a safe and enjoyable trip ;)