Second visit - 3 week itinerary March/April

Hi everybody,

a friend and I are currently planning our second visit to Japan, now that the country finally opened up. We visited for the first time in 2019 and did the usual tourist route (Kyoto, Hiroshima, Hakone, Tokyo) in 2 weeks. Now we're excited to visit the country for a second time and especially want to experience northern Japan!

We have a total of 3 weeks and came up with the itinerary below - and we'd be very grateful for any advice and tips, as we're not that experienced in travelling overseas. We haven't booked anything yet and are still very flexible. I'm a bit worried that the schedule is too packed, so any input on that would be greatly appreciated!

Some additional information as to why we planned the trip this way:
- we want to start in Kyoto as there's still some things we missed out on the first time
- we might get some concert tickets for the 19th march, which is why we do the somewhat unusual short stop in Tokyo. The tickets are only available via lottery though, so we will not know until mid
december if we can actually attend it
- we really want to experience a ryokan in an onsen town. Any recommendations (besides Noboribetsu) would be great :)
- to have less trouble with baggage during change of locations we'd try out Yamato Transport (or similar services) to send our bags from (Kyoto -> Sendai), (Sendai -> Sapporo), (Sapporo -> Tokyo). That way we hope to only need to carry baggage for at most 3 days at a time. Do you have any experience with these services?

13-3-2023 1 Germany - Kyoto
14-3-2023 2 Kyoto
15-3-2023 3 Kyoto
16-3-2023 4 Kyoto
17-3-2023 5 Kyoto
18-3-2023 6 Kyoto - Tokyo (JR Pass activate)
19-3-2023 7 Tokyo (concert)
20-3-2023 8 Tokyo - Sendai
21-3-2023 9 Sendai
22-3-2023 10 Sendai (maybe visit Yamadera temple or Matsushima)
23-3-2023 11 Sendai (maybe visit cat island Tashirojima)
24-3-2023 12 Sendai - Noboribetsu (Ryokan)
25-3-2023 13 Noboribetsu - Sapporo
26-3-2023 14 Sapporo
27-3-2023 15 Sapporo (maybe visit Otaru)
28-3-2023 16 Sapporo - Hakodate (only one night in Hakodate to get an impression of the city)
29-3-2023 17 Hakodate - Tokyo
30-3-2023 18 Tokyo
31-3-2023 19 Tokyo (last day JR Pass)
1-4-2023 20 Tokyo
2-4-2023 21 Tokyo - Germany

Thank you guys so much for reading :)

Hi!

I hope you like snow, slush, and cold cause that is Tohoku and Hokkaido in March. I'd make sure to bring shoes good for slush.

I would think Matsushima might be an easier area to walk around because it is flat vs. Yamadera. The treasure house is also closed at Yamadera until April.

Unless Japan has clamped down on it, if you don't win the lottery look on Y!J for tickets if you want to go. I tried to get tickets to an event in February 2010 and failed, but I bought a ticket via Y!J and had an amazing seat.

I've used Yamato Transport or whichever specific TaQbin service my hotel was offering many times and I've always had a great experience. If you have a lot of larger bags it is a great way to get things moved around. I am planning to send some bags to Kyoto from Tokyo on my trip in December.

Good luck!

You were worried about the pace of tge trip. Obviously you know your own pace best, so if you feel this is too fast slow down. To me (slow traveler) it sounds okay.

What does sound challenging though is the choice if Tohoku and Hokkaido for a trip in March. As @rkold said Hokkaido will be at the end of winter. Probably no longer nice snow but melting snow. Sendai should be okay. But anything more north I�fd question.

What about exploring Kyushu? Shikoku? The area between Kyoto Hagi and Hiroshima instead?

It may be better not to confirm on 23-3-2023, as there is a possibility that the boat will be canceled for Tashirojima.
It is better to choose a day when the sea is not rough during your stay in Sendai.
Cancellation information will be posted here.
http://ajishimaline.com/
Information on Tashiro-jima Island
https://www.city.ishinomaki.lg.jp/cont/10053500/0050/3639/3639.html
Matsushima sightseeing boats may also be canceled if the sea is rough.
https://www.matsushima.or.jp/safety/
If you go to Kyoto on the 15th, I would personally recommend the handicraft market(Tedukuri-ichi,Žè�ì‚èŽs�j. I have been to Kyoto twice on the 15th.
It is held at Chion-ji Temple, not Chion-in Temple.
https://www.tedukuri-ichi.com/hyakumanben/index.html
I have never been there, but there is a bus from Sendai to Akiu Onsen.
http://www.akiuonsenkumiai.com/
From Sapporo, there is a bus to Jozankei Onsen.
https://jozankei.jp/

Hakodate is famous for Yunokawa Onsen.
https://hakodate-yunokawa.jp/
There is also Yachigashira Onsen.
https://www.hakobura.jp/db/db-onsen/2010/07/post-1.html

Thank you so much for your replies.

@rkold @LikeBike
I have to admit that I underestimated Hokkaido and didn't expect there to still be snow (or rather slush) in late March. So you make a very good point that we probably should visit Hokkaido another time.

I'd love to explore the west of Japan as well but that could change the plan quite a bit (at least if we get the concert tickets). Still doable, but the itinerary would probably change to something like this: Tokyo -> Sendai -> Tokyo (concert) -> Kyoto -> Kyushu/Shikoku/... Are there perhaps some other places north of Tokyo that are as good for day trips as Sendai and could replace the trip to Sapporo?

@haro1210
Thank you for the useful links, especially for the onsen options. Akiu Onsen seems like a valid alternative to Noboribetsu, if we end up not going to Hokkaido.

There are a lot of things to see in/around Tokyo. We don�ft really know what interests you.

March: think of flowers , like plum, maybe Sakura

Nikko, Kamakura, Enoshima, Chichibu , Nagano, Izu peninsula �c

Lot of places closer to Tokyo.

Hi!

I highly recommend a day trip to Kairakuen in March for the ume festival. If you do on the week end, the Kairakuen train stop is open and there will be festival events. You can buy umeshu from ume grown in the garden and there use to be free samples pre-Covid.

But yes, anything north of Sendai can have snow and slush in March, even late March, and even into April if you're elevation is high enough. Heck, even Sendai can still have a little slush. I went to Morioka and Kakunodate on my first trip to Japan in late March and it snowed in Kakunodate. Yamadera is likely to still have snow and slush as well since it is in the mountains between Sendai and Yamagata.

Nagano itself should be fine, I was there February 2020, I have a friend who went to the monkey park in March and found it very muddy. Some of the hotels/ryokan in the area have galoshes for over night guests to borrow (mine did, but we brought our own because we were there in February and we'd gone to Shiga Kogen the day before.)

I'd avoid Hakone unless it is at the start of your trip, because March has a break for the Japanese and Hakone seemed to be a popular destination. It was very crowded when I've gone in late March. I suspect because it is an easy cheap trip from Tokyo.

Good luck and just make sure to look at elevations of places you want to visit. :)

Thank you for your suggestions. We talked about it and both agree that staying in southern Tohoku is more safe. The plum festival in Mito seems like a lovely idea, so we decided to spend some time there instead of Sapporo. Here's our updated plan.

13-3-2023 1 Germany - Kyoto
14-3-2023 2 Kyoto
15-3-2023 3 Kyoto
16-3-2023 4 Kyoto
17-3-2023 5 Kyoto
18-3-2023 6 Kyoto - Tokyo (JR Pass activate)
19-3-2023 7 Tokyo (concert)
20-3-2023 8 Tokyo - Sendai
21-3-2023 9 Sendai
22-3-2023 10 Sendai (maybe visit Yamadera temple or Matsushima)
23-3-2023 11 Sendai (maybe visit cat island Tashirojima)
24-3-2023 12 Sendai - Akiu Onsen (Ryokan)
25-3-2023 13 Akiu Onsen - Mito
26-3-2023 14 Mito
27-3-2023 15 Mito
28-3-2023 16 Mito - Tokyo
29-3-2023 17 Tokyo
30-3-2023 18 Tokyo
31-3-2023 19 Tokyo (last day JR Pass)
1-4-2023 20 Tokyo
2-4-2023 21 Tokyo - Germany

Thanks again for your input, I'm really excited for the trip :)

Is snow a major concern for you? Or something that you would like to see?

Because in March, there is still the high chance of there being snow being around the Yamadera area.
Coincidentally, I was in Sendai around the same dates as you've proposed (I was there in 2015) and there was still plenty of snow on my visit to Yamadera [My video of my visit to Yamadera in late March 2015: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e55IUdUWd2A].
This made for some very interesting sightseeing along the way up to the observation deck, that gave amazing views. Though, the steps on the way up proved challenging due to the snow and ice. So you might want to buy some ice grips that you can strap onto to your footwear.

I also made a visit to Matsushima during my time in Sendai and it was a very cold day, that was made even more bitter by the chilling winds from the ocean.

My time in Sendai went like this (after arriving the night before)...

Day 1:
Morning: Yamadera
Afternoon: [Sendai] Zuihoden Mausoleum, Aoba Castle & Gyutan Dinner.

Day 2:
Morning: Shiogama Shrine, Basho cruise (from Shiogama to Matsushima) & Matsushima Area
Afternoon: Matsushima Area.

2 questions
1) what are you going to do 4 days in Mito?
2) did you check if the JR railpass really pays off? I never used it and am anything but an expert, but it seems that you are pretty stationary so wonder if it pays off. Maybe a combination of normal ticket Kyoto to Tokyo and some Tohoku pass is more cost effective? Just check it out.

Hi!

If OP is comfortable renting a car, I think it can open up a lot more things to do in the Mito/Ibaraki-ken area. I've not been yet, but Furukoda Falls looks pretty and the Youtube channel "Life Where I'm From" went to a sweet potato farm in Ibaraki-ken (and stayed at a cute looking family ryokan in the area.) But I agree 4 days might be a lot,

I too am not sure a rail pass will pay off, particularly a 2 week one which is what you are looking at. Rail passes can be great depending on your itinerary. And yes, I get more than anyone that sometimes you can't optimise an itinerary because of what you want to do on a trip. Let me think a bit since I get wanting to see a new part of Japan, but also not wanting lots of snow and slush.

I think the number of days in Mito is too long.
If you go to Mito, I think you should go during the Plum Festival if possible.
Next year, it will be from February 11th to March 19th.
https://mitokoumon.com/festival/ume.html#event
I think you can still see plum blossoms after that, but the event will not be held.
Mito can be visited on a day trip from Tokyo.
About 1 hour and 30 minutes from Tokyo Station on the Joban Line Limited Express Hitachi or Tokiwa.
https://www.jreast-timetable.jp/2212/timetable/tt1039/1039170.html#tim...
About 2 hours by bus.
http://www.ibako.co.jp/contents/information/2022/11/3365.html#mito
If you like plums, Kitano Tenmangu Shrine in Kyoto is also recommended.
https://kitanotenmangu.or.jp/guidance/baien/
If it is possible to change hotels, there may be a way to go sightseeing in Tokyo first, leaving Kyoto last.

�«
In the previous comment, I wrote that Kyoto should be the last stop (probably because the cherry blossoms are likely to bloom around that time), but in that case the train might be delayed, so April 1st and April 2nd You'd be better off staying in Tokyo.

Thank you again for your kind comments!

@haro1210
I didn't realize that the last day of the festival is March 19th. So thank you for pointing that out! We might spend one day less in Kyoto then and do a day trip to Mito on March 18th instead. Which again leaves the question where to go after Sendai though. I'll have to research a bit more.

@LikeBike
1) It's really just 2 full days, so my initial idea was to spend one day in the garden and surrounding area and one leisurely day doing a bike trip or something similar. But as the plan changed now anyway, we probably end up just doing a day trip from Tokyo to Mito.
2) I didn't check other options yet, as the first tour went from Kyoto to Sapporo and back to Tokyo, so I thought surely the JR pass is the best option. But now, you might be right. I'll look into that.

@rkold
Renting a car is a great option and I know that there are a lot of great places only reachable by car. But for this trip we want to stick to trains, as we're more comfortable with them and there should still be enough new places for us get to by train. Thank you for you insights.

@Kari Haruka
Thank you for sharing your experiences. I like snow, it's just that I don't want to spend a good chunk of the journey wandering in slush. We'll come back one day and explore northern Japan during winter I'm sure. Yamadera temple looks lovely in your video. I wouldn't mind spending a day there, even if the climb might be a bit difficult. But it's great knowing what to expect beforehand.