Trip Feedback - Jan 2023 to Apr 2023

Hello! I am excited for my upcoming trip to Japan. Because I want to ensure everything goes well, I'm trying to plan and book ahead for accomodations and things to do. Therefore, I am just looking for final feedback before I book accomodatioins for below specific date ranges.

Three personal things I intend to do everywhere I go:
* Visit thrift stores; Hard-Off, Book-Off, etc. I love thrifting and it seems far more interesting in Japan
* Visit music stores; particularily finding interesting, cheap used music :)
* Arcades. Love playing all the interesting games, and especially exclusive-to-japan ones (or ones like Mario Kart GP 2 with the card system)

One other thing, I follow a vegan diet but on this trip I think I will be following a bit closer to pescatarianism given the availability of fish products.
I prefer to avoid meat, oats, and dairy, for digestive reasons.

I have included some of what I'm interested in doing below, for each area, but everywhere besides where it says FIXED DATES are flexible ish.
I won't be renting a car, relying on the train primarily, I dislike flying.

Thank you for any feedback!

Kanto Region

FIXED DATES: Jan 18-25
but considering an extension of a few days, Jan 25-27th maybe?

* Tokyo, Part 1
* Akihabara
* Toyosu Market Morning Auction (where do I find the form to submit for the lottery? Found the prefecture page but can't find that specific form)
* National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo 東京国立近代美術館
* Ghibli Studio Museum (if they have tickets available, otherwise do in April, otherwise skip)
* Fujiko Fujio Museum, closer to Kawasaki though
* Pokemon Center Tokyo DX, Pokemon Center MEGA Tokyo,
* https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g14129573-d321140-Review...
* or is it Sony Archives, 6-6-39 Kitashinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo 140-0001 ?
* https://www.japan-experience.com/all-about-japan/tokyo/museums-galleri...
* Enoshima cat island?


Tohoku Region
if Tokyo is extended, Jan 27-Jan 31 else Jan 25-Jan 31

* Sendai
* Tokyo > Sendai, \11,580 train = $100 ticket one way
* Day trip to Tashirojima ? 3hrs one way from Sendai


Jan 30/Jan 31 - Feb 1

* Kakunodate. 2hr train from Sendai, \9,020 one way, stay overnight

Feb 1 - Feb 3
Kakunodate > Ganiba for example, \2500

* Nyuto Onsen, Tazawa Kogen plateau, Semboku region... TBD which onsen/hotel area to stay at. Something All-in-one + food would be nice
* Ganiba Onsen
* Tsurunoyu Onsen if it's even possible but their booking requirement seems extreme? 6 months in advance wow
* Alt Tsurunoyu Onsen - Yamanoyado aka " Yama no Yado "
* Full day of "visiting" on Feb 2nd. Rather than feeling rushed overnight. Unsure if it's excessive

Hokkaidō Region

Alt. plan is extending time in Semboku or Kakunodate before Sapporo, or visiting somewhere before Sapporo?

Feb 3-Feb 12
Ganiba/Semboku > Sapporo, \21,660!!!!!!
* Sapporo
* Snow Festival 2023! Feb 4-Feb 11th
* However, Tsudome area will not be run this year... also there are other things to do, so I won't be visiting the festival the entire time.
* Slowboat Jazz Club, possibly every night as an entertainment item. Ryo Fukui :)

FIXED DATES: Feb 12 - Feb 17
Sapporo > Niseko, \2850/3000 one way
* Niseko, skiing on Grand Hirafu, Niseko Village and Annupuri

Feb 17 - Feb 20
Niseko >
* Shikotsu-Toya National Park and (small) general region ?

Feb 20 - Feb 22?

* Noboribetsu on Feb 21st, full day

Feb 22 - Feb 26 ± 1 maybe?
Noboribetsu > Hakodate
* Hakodate
* Mount Hakodate
* First concrete electricity pole of Japan, Kanemori Red Brick Warehouses, Streetcar Jūjigai (十字街) stop
* Kōzen Temple
* Motomachi district
* Streetcar rides around Hakodate; "map of interesting places to visit in Hakodate by streetcar and bus"

* Food specific
* Visit a Lucky Pierrot location, or several. Not to eat the meat, just to see the designs
* Teuchi Soba Kitawase
* Rabbit Farm, Mihara 1-20-11
* Hakodate shio rāmen whevever it may be served affordably

Tohoku Region

Feb 26 ± 1 -> March 2nd

* Akita
* not worth it? too much time??

Mar 2 - Mar 6

* Fukushima
* I am aware of the nuclear/radiation incident. Per online reading, it does not seem to pose a threat long-term, however perhaps others have more insight.
* Maybe it's not even worth a visit, are there better areas nearby instead?

Sights:
* Hanamiyama Park
* Fukushima Racetrack, if open during March
* Ebisu Circuit, 1 Sawamatsukura, Nihommatsu, Fukushima 964-0088, Japan
* 2 hr train ride from Fukushima, so it's a day trip, unless it makes more sense to visit Nihonmatsu area overnight.
* Circuit may be closed due to snow as well?? winter is no good?
* Iizaka hot springs?
* Either the hot springs or Ebisu Circuit as one day trip from Fukushima

Kansai Region

Mar 6 - Mar 12

* Kyoto
* Flight from Fukushima to Kansai. OR Train from Fukushima to Kyoto

Mar 12 - Mar 19

* Osaka; Train from Kyoto
* Universal Studios Japan, full day visit only.

* 2023 Sumo World Championship Competition , maybe?
* https://www.sumo.or.jp/EnTicket/year_schedule
* I am only looking for a one day ticket.

Mar 19 - Mar 21

* Totori Sand Dunes

Chugoku Region

Mar 21 - 26

* Hiroshima
* Miyajimacho, Hatsukaichi, Hiroshima 739-0588, Japan

Kyushu Region

Mar 26 - Mar 28

* Miyazaki & Aoshima Island ( Devil's Washboard + it's a cat island??)

Mar 28 - Mar 31

* Yakushima

Kanto Region

Mar 31 OR Apr 1 - Apr 3

* Kawasaki
* Fly Yakushima > Kagoshima
* Or ferry to Kagoshima and stay overnight to Apr 1st.
* then, Fly Kagoshima > Haneda
* Kanamara Matsuri 2023 - Festival of the Steel Phallus, Apr 2nd
* Kanayama Shrine, Kawasaki


Apr 3 - Apr 13
Tokyo stay
* Tokyo Part 2 AND surrounding areas like Chiba, Hanno, Saitama??
* Moominvalley Park, Hanno, Saitama
* Day trip from Tokyo, 1hr30-40min on trains
* Hakone?? or just Mt Fuji
* Day trip from Tokyo
* From Tokyo, the easiest and most popular option is to take a direct bus from Shinjuku to the trailhead at Kawaguchiko Fifth Station

* Anything I really wanted to do the first time

* Apr 14
* Fly home from Narita NRT

1. Consider southern part of Japan. You are from Canada. Do you know Hokkaido is called “Canada in Japan”? Of course they are different, but you may find something more unlike Canada in southern part of Japan, especially Okinawa islands (including Yaeyama islands).

2. If your long leg is the problem in the flight, you may choose Peach Aviation’s “Fast Seat” which is the first row seats. With additional 1390 yen, you will have additional 30 cm of legroom.

3. You can see “drifting ice” in Okhotsk are of Hokkaido (Abashiri, Monbetsu and Utoro in Shiretoko) after the Snow festival in Sapporo.

4. February to early April is winter, but in several areas, the weather is sunny. They are “the Pacific coast area” including Tokyo, southeastern Kii peninsula, southern Shikoku and Miyazaki. On the other hand, the “Japan sea area” is windy and even snowy.

5. Pack light. Many accommodations provide washing machines. If you have a large suitcase, you can send it by delivery service usually called TaQbin which is nice, the most economical way is to carry by yourself.

6. For your train travel, consider “Rail Passes”. For example Sendai-Tazawako-Sapporo is covered by JR Tohoku South Hokkaido Rail Pass.
https://www.jreast.co.jp/multi/en/pass/tohokuhokkaido.html

Enjoy your trip in Japan!

Uff, this is such a long list… can you break it down where you actually have questions?

Btw, for such a long trip I wouldn’t organize yet all hotels so you have some flexibility to react to weather and your impressions.

I also notice a lot of travel in Tohoku and Hokkaido in the middle of winter. It’s okay, but you’ll spend the entire time in the snow. If that’s fine with you , go ahead. Also some local buses (Eg in the Hachimantai area) don’t run in winter.

For Ghibli there are specific instructions how to buy tickets. Check it out. You can’t buy them at the museum.
For Sumo at least for the normal tournaments the tickets sell out very quickly (within hours). So investigate when they start sales and buy immediately.

For the onsen a in Hachimantai area, some of them allow day guests, so you don’t need a reservation for THAT ryokan and can still enjoy their baths.

Hi!

I can say with 100% certainly I do not know why anyone would want to visit Kakunodate in the Winter. I went in March 1999 on my first trip to Japan. It was cold, snowy and most things were closed as you can see from Japan Guide's page on Kakunodate:
https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3602.html

I do not know how you are going to fill 2 nights there. Heck, I think you would be hard pressed to spend more than a few hours there in the Winter, when again most things are closed. It is likely to be cold and snowy.

There is nothing wrong with visiting Fukushima. I'm not even sure the areas you want to visit ever had a problem with radiation. I am also not sure what the train routes are like (in terms of frequency) and some of your destinations don't look like they are on train routes and you would need a bus or rental car, like Ebisu Circuit. (the nearest station appears to be 10 kms away!) And yes, you need to make sure things are up and running. I'm pretty sure Hanamiyama Park is known for sakura. You are way too early for sakura in Fukushima in March. I am not sure how interesting the park is when there is no sakura.

Personally, if your goal is to see flowers in bloom you are WAYYYYY better off going to Kairakuen in Mito, because you will be in Japan during ume season and Kairakuen is splendid then.

There are a lot more vegan options in Japan than one would think depending on where you are.

Good luck!

The Sony Building is scheduled to be completed in 2024.
The Sony Historical Museum seems to have closed.
Aoshima with cats is not Miyazaki Prefecture. (Although it may be in Miyazaki)
Ehime Prefecture.
https://www.mapple.net/original/226767/
I think the last time I went to Enoshima was 4-5 years ago, but I saw only about 5 cats.
It seems that there are still many cats on Tashirojima.
https://gogo-miyagi.com/84
You can see the radiation dose in Fukushima Prefecture here.
https://fukushima-radioactivity.jp/pc/
There are still areas that are off-limits, but apart from that, there are places where radiation levels are lower than in Tokyo.
Even in Fukushima Prefecture, the Aizu region is quite far away, so there is no problem at all.

If you go to Aoshima in Ehime Prefecture, please visit Matsuyama, Uchiko, Ozu, or Uwajima as a set.
https://www.japan-guide.com/list/e1235.html
I've been to Matsuyama and Uchiko and loved them both.
I also went to Tobe.
http://www.tobe-kanko.jp/en/
I wrote earlier that there aren't many cats in Enoshima, but it's a recommended tourist spot, so if you have time, please visit it together with Kamakura.
Apparently there are other islands famous for cats.
https://ontrip.jal.co.jp/tohoku/17578036
If you come to Japan, it might be a good idea to watch a cat program broadcast on NHK-BS2. I see it occasionally too.
https://www.nhk.jp/p/nekoaruki/ts/6VPMR3P1WX/
I've never been there, but a cat cafe might be nice too.
I don't know the address of Rabbit Farm, Mihara 1-20-11 in Hakodate, but isn't it a facility for the disabled?
If you want to see rabbits, Hiroshima's Okunoshima is famous.
http://rabbit-island.info/en/
If you are interested, if you go to Kawasaki, it might be good to see Toshiba Science Museum.
https://toshiba-mirai-kagakukan.jp/en/

I am planning to take my daughter here:
http://neu-catcafe.com/

It's a vegan cat cafe with all rescued cats looking to be adopted.

In such a long trip, things can change, so you should remain flexible. Make sure all your reservations are refundable. I took a 2-month trip to Japan once, and I had to revise my itinerary few times. One day out of those 2 months I just did not feel like doing anything, so I went to a shopping mall and watched people all day.

Hello, thank you everyone for your information and taking time to reply! I really appreciate it :)
I will reply to individual messages below, but if I do not reply to a specific part of your post, please don't take it personally I! It's just that I don't have any commentary :)

I have revised my trip fully, and made it easier to read:
* Tokyo Jan 18 - Jan 27, visit extended from Jan 25
* Sendai from Jan 27 - Feb 1
# Buy JR Tohoku-South Hokkaido Rail Pass, for Sendai > Akita > Sapporo
* Akita from Feb 1 - Feb 5
* Sapporo Feb 5 - Feb 12
* Niseko Feb 12 - Feb 17
* Hakodate Feb 17 - Feb 23
* Toyama Feb 23 - Feb 28 ; visit the YKK Center Park is easier this way than going Nagoya > Toyama > Kyoto. Another JR Pass here
* Nagoya Feb 28 - May 6
* Kyoto Mar 6 - Mar 12
* Osaka Mar 12 - Mar 19
* Totori Mar 19 - Mar 21
* Hiroshima Mar 21 - 26
* Matsuyama Mar 26 - Mar 30
* Kawasaki Mar 31 - Apr 3
* Tokyo Apr 3 - Apr 14

I have removed Kakunodate, Shikotsu-Toya National Park, Fukushima, and trying to go towards Yakushima this trip; all because of the season, or just distance and difficulty that way. I hope it's understandable, I suppose I will have to come back :)

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Reply to frog1954
> 1. Consider southern part of Japan. You are from Canada. Do you know Hokkaido is called “Canada in Japan”?

Haha I did not know that! I had it in mind to visit Hokkaido just since it would be a different winter experience I feel, but... reading many of the other comments, it seems yes you are right, I should explore the south of Japan more.

> 3. You can see “drifting ice” in Okhotsk are of Hokkaido
Thanks for the suggestion! Very cool idea, I think it will be good for another visit :)

> 4. February to early April is winter, but in several areas, the weather is sunny. They are “the Pacific coast area” including ...

Thanks for the note! I am debating to just take my Doc Marten "combat boot" style boots and wear thick socks, or add some kind of inner lining, versus bringing my bigger thick "Winter boots".

> 5. Pack light.
I have come back from a 5 month trip in Europe recently, and after doing that with my big travel backpack, I am thinking this time to take that backpack, but in a suicase. That way, I can roll the bag around until I have too many souveniers I need more of the suitcase space.

> 6. For your train travel, consider “Rail Passes”.
Ah thank you for the specific South Hokkaido link, this is excellent!! This one pass is much better than the Sendai > Sapporo ticket cost. I will do a stop in Akita/Tazawako then before getting to Sapporo, and have cut the time in Sapporo a bit.

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Replying to LikeBike
First my apologies!! When posting the list it's much longer than I thought it was in my text editor. I also should have removed some of the intricate details, but I did get some good feedback.

I was looking for feedback on my time spent in areas in general; as well, any suggestions for particular things to see in where I'm visiting.

> For Sumo at least for the normal tournaments the tickets sell out very quickly (within hours). So investigate when they start sales and buy immediately.
Thanks for the heads up, I found some other online comments like on Reddit, detailing that if online tickets sell out, they do sell in person tickets day of, very early in the morning. So that is an alternative.

>For the onsen a in Hachimantai area, some of them allow day guests.
Thanks for the info! I had not considered being a day guest.

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Replying to rkold
> I am planning to take my daughter here: http://neu-catcafe.com/
Thank you so much, this looks awesome!!!

>...I do not know why anyone would want to visit Kakunodate in the Winter.
Thank you for the commentary, I have removed it from this trip since it probably won't be as nice as in Spring+. The "2 nights" was me staying overnight to simplify travel, since having my bag would make movement a bit awkward; so I would need to store it (although train stations should have storage perhaps).

>...visiting Fukushima.
Thanks for the notes. Indeed I wouldn't go near the restricted area. Unfortunately I have cut it from this trip to simplify the travel a bit, and per your comments, but I will visit some time in the future :)

>Personally, if your goal is to see flowers in bloom you are WAYYYYY better off going to Kairakuen in Mito...
It definitely is a goal to see the flowers in bloom, but hopefully with my revised travel plans I can still enjoy it somewhere :)

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Replying to haro1210
Thank you for all your links and suggestions! :)
>The Sony Historical Museum seems to have closed.
:( I suppose it will reopen with the new Sony building. But thank you for suggesting the Toshiba Museum, hopefully that has some interesting things to see!

>It seems that there are still many cats on Tashirojima.
I have removed Enoshima and will focus to see Aoshima and Tashirojima :)

>If you go to Aoshima in Ehime Prefecture, please visit Matsuyama...
Indeed I will go Hiroshima > Matsuyama, and take a day trip to Aoshima. :3
It seems my previous research was incorrect, I had found "Aoshima, Miyazaki", which is not the correct area or even an island.

>If you come to Japan, it might be a good idea to watch a cat program broadcast on NHK-BS2
Thank you!! I Will try to watch it, even if not understanding anything said. I may be able to do voice translation with my phone live.

>I don't know the address of Rabbit Farm
I am not sure what this is to be honest, I can't remember where this was from. My apologies and thank you for the rabbit suggestion!

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Reply to kamahen
>you should remain flexible. Make sure all your reservations are refundable.
Definitely, I had to book some spots at this moment as non-refundable only because it was the last option, but I am only looking at refundable options as often as possible

> One day out of those 2 months I just did not feel like doing anything, so I went to a shopping mall and watched people all day.
I hope it was an enjoyable day! I don't feel I could do that, I would feel awkward :(

Hi!

Out of curiosity, what are you planning to do in Toyama and Akita? Do you mean the prefectures or the cities? If you mean the cities, I think even slow travelers will find you have given yourself a lot of time there. If you're thinking Akita with day trips to Nyuto-onsen and you don't plan to overnight at one of the ryokans there, I would think Tazawako might make more sense as a base or even Morioka. The Yokote Festival is later in February: https://www.japan.travel/en/spot/443/

For Toyama, if your goal is to visit the Hida region, just go to Takayama, Toyama is not all that convenient for many things outside of the Alpine Route (which is closed your whole trip) and Kurobe Gorge (which again is closed your entire trip.) If you're just looking for someplace to hangout Kanazawa makes a lot more sense.

I get not wanting to schlep bags, sometimes there are lockers, sometimes I takkyubin, it really depends on the situation.

You should definitely see some sakura from Hiroshima onwards in your trip.

Thank you for your reply.

Regarding Sapporo , it is good that you did choose the Snow festival time to be in Sapporo, but hotels get very expensive/ hard to find during that time (at least pre Covid). So I’d rearrange a bit to only have 2 nights coincide with the snow festival and the other days outside of the snow festival. (Unless you already found a hotel).

Also you’ll be under the snow for about a month. Ie from when you leave Tokyo until you get to Nagoya. There is nothing bad with that specially if you plan to do a lot of snow things. There are many snow themed festivals. But for normal tourism, places can be shut and well the landscape just isn’t that nice with only snow. Good thing though it doesn’t get that cold in Japan so you should be fine without your Canadian winter boots.

* Sapporo Feb 5 - Feb 12

I also am planning Sapporo-Eastern Hokkaido trip in this period. I will stay 3 nights and see the Snow Festival, Mt Moiwa, Lake Shikotsu Ice Festival and maybe Otaru. It will be very cold so just strolling the town will not be so enjoiyable. What are you planning for 7 nights?

* Hakodate Feb 17 - Feb 23

Hakodate is smaller town and honestly I cannot imagine what can you do for 6 nights.

* Toyama Feb 23 - Feb 28 ; visit the YKK Center Park is easier this way than going Nagoya > Toyama > Kyoto. Another JR Pass here

Hakodate to Toyama is about 31000 yen by JR Shinkansen (transfer at Omiya) while the nation wide Japan Rail Pass (7 days) is about 33000 yen. With 7 days of varidity period you can go almost everywhere in Japan. It will be long train rides, but at least within the train it will be warm and comfortable. As a Japanese who cannot buy the Japan Rail Pass, I really envy foreign tourists.

* Nagoya Feb 28 - May 6

Nagoya is a big city, but is not touristic place.

Anyway you will have 3 months to plan and consider your trip. Enjoy planning!

Reply to rkold
> what are you planning to do in Toyama and Akita?
Hi, apologies, I mean the cities!

In Toyama, my main plan is going to Kurobe city to visit the YKK Center Park for the day. They have two zipper workshops I want to take part in, and otherwise I Would like to see the history of YKK. Maybe it's silly , but I love their zippers, so this would be really great to finally check off my list :)

Otherwise, nothing in Toyama specific. It's just easier to fly from Hakodate to Toyama prefecture/area
rather than Hakodate > Nagoya/Osaka > Kurobe for a day trip (4hr train ride both ways).

In re-checking flight info however, it is actually better to fly into Kanazawa direct from Hakodate; then the train to YKK Center is only 1hr20 - 2hr, which is acceptable for a day trip. So I think I will rebase in Kanazawa after Hakodate, and visit Toyama/YKK Park as day trips. It's also easier to Nagoya from Kanazawa.

* Hakodate Feb 17 - Feb 23
* Kanazawa Feb 23 - Feb 28 < changed!

Would it still then be a good idea to stay in Kanazawa Feb 23 - Feb 28? I can plan to visit YKK Park Feb 24, 25, or 26th. Monday they are closed.

-

Akita, outside of visiting nearby Nyuto-Onsen areas, I am not sure yet. I picked it as it was a major city next to the rail system, and would be easy to go to Sapporo from.

I additionally picked Akita city because I am confused as to where/what Tazawako city/area is now. When I search on Google Maps, I get "Lake Tazawa", and there is Tazawako JR station, but otherwise it seems like there's not much out there... have I been given something incorrect information wise?

It seems you are right, perhaps basing in Morioka would be better, as it's close to onsen areas (about 2hr still), and it's directly easier to go to Sapporo from Morioka. So I will change that as well.

* Morioka from Feb 1 - Feb 5 < changed
* Sapporo Feb 5 - Feb 12

-
As for time spent in Morioka, Feb 1st is the arrival day. Feb 2/3/OR 4th would be visiting Nyuto/Semboku onsen areas, other two days in Morioka. 5th would be travelling to Sapporo due to it being 8hrs by train (I really dislike flying).

>You should definitely see some sakura from Hiroshima onwards in your trip.
Awesome!! I look forward to it :)

Thanks again for your feedback :)

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Replying to LikeBike
>Regarding Sapporo , it is good that you did choose the Snow festival time to be in Sapporo, but hotels get very expensive/ hard to find during that time

At the moment I have about 10 hotels to check between, in the date range I picked that have available spaces. In a worst case, I would be fine to pick an AirBnB or stay in a youth hostel space, but I should be OK I think with the hotels :). And the prices for the ones I picked are good, with good reviews. Thank you for the notice though, because yes pricing seems crazy for some other spaces! Rearranging the dates would be difficult due to Niseko being fixed dates.

>Also you’ll be under the snow for about a month. Ie from when you leave Tokyo until you get to Nagoya.
This is OK with me :) The only concern I have is not being able to go to Slowboat Jazz Club in Sapporo, but I figure they would be open even during winter...

Thanks again for your replies and info!! :)

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Replying to frog1954
>I also am planning Sapporo-Eastern Hokkaido trip in this period. I will stay 3 nights ... What are you planning for 7 nights?

For 7 nights, well, I want to see the Snow Festival a few days at least. Since I am from Canada, I am used to the cold weather :)
For nighttime activity, I intend to quite possibly visit Slowboat Jazz Club every night, no matter who is performing. I am a big fan of Ryo Fukui, and I love jazz, and this is a well regarded performance space. I know pricing is a bit high for entry fees, but I feel it will be worth it.

Beyond that... I don't actually have anything planned activity wise. Since Sapporo is one of the bigger cities in Hokkaido, I am glad to just stroll around even if it is wintertime :)

Would you feel I may spend my time better with a day trip outside Sapporo somewhere? Or to a smaller city? I mainly prefer to keep thing simple with regards to moving bags/changing rooms where I stay, so to have a good base for 7 nights will be nice. I consider the 5th and 12th as travel days sorry to not be clear on that, so it will be Feb 6-11th I am visiting Sapporo (6 nights).

I also must stall time until Feb 12th (fixed dates) when I go to Niseko in the morning by train.

> Hakodate is smaller town and honestly I cannot imagine what can you do for 6 nights.
I don't know either :(

Mainly I want to fly out of Hakodate, but no time limit there. I can spend less time in Hakodate, like 3 nights, but I want to be close to the Hokuto JR Hokkaido line if I stay somewhere after Niseko but before Hakodate; coming from Niseko I see Oshamabe and Yakumo.

Alternatively, anywhere to add 3 nights to visit, in my current places to visit after Hakodate (Kanazawa, Nagoya, Kyoto, Osaka... etc.), or somewhere else? I will shift the dates around to work.
Since you had mentioned the Japan Rail Pass, perhaps that would be better to use to go from Hakodate > Kanazawa (instead of flying), and to take time away from visiting Hakodate towards somewhere more worth an overnight visit/stay, before going on the next train to Kanazawa.

>Nagoya is a big city, but is not touristic place.
Thanks for the heads up! I think it should hopefully still be a good visit, but if you have a suggestion for somewhere around Nagoya to visit as a day trip, please let me know! And being south of Hokkaido area should be warmer :)

Thanks again for your replies and info!! I am enjoying the planning for sure :) Just hoping to have it done before I go so this is no stress trip :)

Update reply to frog1954

Apologies! I do have a list of current interests I want to see in Hakodate:

* Mount Hakodate, but perhaps it's difficult in winter/inaccessible?
* First concrete electricity pole of Japan, Kanemori Red Brick Warehouses, Streetcar Jūjigai (十字街) stop
* Kōzen Temple
* Motomachi district
* Streetcar rides around Hakodate; "map of interesting places to visit in Hakodate by streetcar and bus"

* Food specific
* Visit a Lucky Pierrot location, or several. not to eat the meat, just to see the designs
* Teuchi Soba Kitawase
* Hakodate shio rāmen whevever it may be served affordably

But I don't think this is 6 nights worth of visiting for sure; I move fast, so you are right, 6 nights is a lot. But please let me know your thoughts on taking the train from Hakodate > Kanazawa, to perhaps spend 3/4 nights in Hakodate, and the other on overnight stops towards Kanazawa, using the JR Pass you mentioned (since the cost will be the same as taking a direct train from Hakodate).

Thanks!

Hi @jpuguu333

I remember you mentioned you are currently vegan and I would just warn, that depending on how long you've been vegan, while fish is unlikely to upset your stomach if you decide to eat it, pork is likely to have you rushing to the bathroom. A lot of ramen in Japan has a pork base so just be prepared.

Ahhhh once you mentioned zippers I recognized YKK. They do make amazing zippers! I still think you are better off staying in Kanazawa, because there is more to do there and it is easier to get from Kanazawa to other areas. It also just has more options for things to do outside of YKK. I would stay in Kanazawa the whole time, from what I remember it's only about 20-30 minutes from Toyama Though it is less scenic, I might stay near the station in Kanazawa to make trips elsewhere faster. There are a lot of cheaper hotels a short walk away. Kenrokuen, should have some ume in bloom going by their floral calendar and ume is just lovely.

Tazawako has some cheaper places to stay vs. Nyuto onsen and is closer than Akita or Morioka and I knew you wanted to go to Nyuto, so I mentioned it. But Morioka should have lots of very affordable hotels all close to the train station. I've stayed in Morioka a few times. And yes, if you want to take the train to Hokkaido, Morioka puts you in a MUCH better place than Akita and it doesn't really increase our time to Nyuto onsen over Akita. It makes your trip from Sendai faster and sets you up for an easier trip to Hakodate. If for anyone reason you want to break it up more, I would go to Aomori next and stay there, even if you have to transfer on Shin-Aomori, since again it is heading in the general direction you want to go.

I flew into Hakodate back in 2009 and it was a small and very pleasant airport. I was coming from Nagoya, and got some stupendous views from the air of the Shimokita Peninsula and Towadako.

I think your new plans look a lot better than your original plans. I hope your trip is lots of fun!

Thank you again for your answers this is very helpful.

I still think that you are too much time up in the North (specially for winter - I actually like winter, but it limits what you can do as a tourist.

Tokyo Jan 18 - Jan 27, visit extended from Jan 25
* Sendai from Jan 27 - Feb 1
# Buy JR Tohoku-South Hokkaido Rail Pass, for Sendai > Akita > Sapporo
* Akita from Feb 1 - Feb 5 —> now Morioka: Motioka city itself isn’t interesting but it can be a good base to visit Hiraizumi. Tazawako area is more touristy. I only went there is autumn so don’t know what is open. But it might be nice to stay in that area in a hotel with onsen.
BTW, if you have tattoos check where you are allowed to enter into the onsen. In the majority of onsen it is not allowed.
* Sapporo Feb 5 - Feb 12 —> what about going first to Hakodate , 2 days should be ample of time for Hakodate and then come up to Sapporo. You still get plenty of days for seeing the snow festival. You wrote above you want to see the festival for a couple of days. I think that’s realistic. 2 days. And you want to stroll the rest of the time through Sapporo. I have been to Sapporo 3 times, twice for the snow festival, once in summer. The city isn’t interesting. But you could say trup to Otaru and to Asahikawa plus there is an open air museum in Sapporo (and I am a sucker for that type of museum). Someone above mentioned the Trift ice. I haven’t seen it but it sounds like an interesting thing to see. Not sure though if for a Canadian it’s also interesting. Anyway it’s quite far from Sapporo.
* Niseko Feb 12 - Feb 17
* Hakodate Feb 17 - Feb 23 —> if you follow my suggestion above you could fly after Niseko to Kanazawa. Probably from Chitose.
* Toyama Feb 23 - Feb 28 ; visit the YKK Center Park is easier this way than going —> now Kanazawa. Much better choice. The only thing I liked about Toyama (well the only interesting thing I found at all) is their glass art museum. From Kanazawa you could also daytrip to Noto peninsula.

In my suggestion you would arrive in Nagoya about 1 week earlier plus I would scrap a few days from Nagoya.

For new places where to stay:
I would extend the time on Shikoku. Make at least 1 week on the island but with different hubs. Eg add 3-4 nights in Takamatsu. You can visit from there the art islands.

You could even extend your time in Kansai. There is just sooooo much to see. Eg Lake Biwa area (2-3 days, kind of doable from
Kyoto if you don’t want to change hotel). Actually also Osaka is doable from Kyoto. Many of my Osaka colleagues actually live in Kyoto and commute (at least pre Covid) daily to Osaka. Just in case you want to reduce change of hotel.
Also Nara province is very nice. Additionally yo Nara itself there is Uji, the area around Yamatoyagi / Sakurai … , Yoshino …
You could also make it into Wakayama prefecture. I have very fond memories of an onsen town Dorogawa onsen (would definitely suggest at least 1 night in a ryokan there)
Or you could go to Mie prefecture:Ise, etc.

Not sure if you like outdoor activities eg hiking , cycling. But there are great options in that area too. Kumano Kodo comes to mind. Or less hardcore Yamanobe no michi. If it’s cycling you are interested in the first thing that pops into mind is Shimanami Kaido. Here my impressions from a 2 months bike trip :

http://bicycletraveljapan.blogspot.com/2017/11/part-10-day-48-49-ridin...


You could also add some time to the Sea of Japan coast. Eg Matsue , Izumi , Hagi

Or you could even add Kyushu to your plan.

Or add Nagano area after most of the snow has gone. Maybe cutting short your second time in Tokyo. I like Tokyo (live here) but I also like the nature around Nagano (and we’ll nature on many other places.

Still I would seriously consider in cutting your time in the North in the winter. Potentially you could rearrange your entire time in the North to

Tokyo 18/Jan to 5/Feb and add more things here and /or cut short your second visit to Tokyo.
Hakodate for 2 days
Sapporo until you need to go to Niseko
Then fly South. Eg why not fly from Hokkaido to your Southern most point and the work your way up to Tokyo again.
As you stayed in Tokyo long at the beginning you can cut your second stay in Tokyo short and venture again North to go to Senda, morioka etc. Bu then the snow is gone and you should be able to see things such as Kakunodate or Yamadera.

For JR passes just know that there are a lot of regional passes which would be what you need mostly. Even those regional passes only pay off if you do enough daytrips in a short time. Otherwise simple tickets (using an IC card) can be better also consider that there are many train companies different from JR, specially around cities and those other companies might have better lines for where you want to go.




Nagoya > Toyama > Kyoto. Another JR Pass here
* Nagoya Feb 28 - May 6
* Kyoto Mar 6 - Mar 12
* Osaka Mar 12 - Mar 19
* Totori Mar 19 - Mar 21
* Hiroshima Mar 21 - 26
* Matsuyama Mar 26 - Mar 30
* Kawasaki Mar 31 - Apr 3
* Tokyo Apr 3 - Apr 14

Btw where is the Kawasaki you are aiming for?

* Kawasaki Mar 31 - Apr 3

Close to Tokyo , ie between Tokyo and Yokohama???? If so I have no idea what you are doing there. Just add those nights to Tokyo. Or use to go to Sendai/ Morioka…

If you go to Kawasaki, it might be a good idea to visit the Japanese Folk House Garden, the Doraemon Museum, and the Taro Okamoto Museum of Art, even though they are all in Kawasaki City, but they are a little further away.
https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3250.html
https://www.taromuseum.jp/
From Kawasaki, it is easier to make a day trip to Kamakura, Enoshima, or Hakone than from Tokyo.
https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2166.html
https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e5200.html
If you're interested, it might be a good idea to go to Shin-Yokohama's Ramen Museum, Yokohama's Cup Noodles Museum, Gundam Factory, or Sankeien.
https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2156.html
Gundam Factory will be closed on March 31st.
https://gundam-factory.net/

The Doraemon Museum I commented on earlier was already scheduled. I missed it.
Even if you don't stay in Kawasaki, you can do it on a day trip from Tokyo (about 30 minutes by train), so you may not need to stay overnight.
The Kanamara Festival is held on the first Sunday of April, so all you have to do is be in Kawasaki on April 2nd.
I think it would be a good idea for you to shorten your schedule in Matsuyama and go to Ritsurin Garden in Kagawa Prefecture or an island of art.
https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e5401.html
https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e5475.html
Naoshima is easier to get to from Okayama Prefecture, so it might be a good idea to stop in front of Hiroshima Prefecture.
https://naoshima.net/access/
https://benesse-artsite.jp/
It takes about 15-20 minutes by ferry from Uno Port in Okayama Prefecture, and about 50-60 minutes from Takamatsu Port.
If you're going to Okayama instead of Kagawa, it might be a good idea to stop by Korakuen or Kurashiki.
https://www.japan-guide.com/list/e1232.html
I think I'm going to see Shinro Ohtake's exhibition at the National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, but there's an I Love Yu (public bath) on Naoshima.
By the way, Shinro Ohtake lives in Uwajima, Ehime.
I have been to see an exhibition held at the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo.

The only concern I have is not being able to go to Slowboat Jazz Club in Sapporo, but I figure they would be open even during winter...

https://slowboat-jazz.jp/live_11

Per their webpage they are open every day. Although looking at their list of concerts it seems they are closed on Mondays. Here at this link you can see their program. Normally it’s 19:30 for the first stage and 21:00 second but on some days (Sundays) they have afternoon sessions only. The page also tells you the price.

If you are really into Jazz, why not open an other thread to get suggestions for Jazz venues in other cities. They must exist. (I have to admit that I have 0 idea about it, but someone else may).