Itinerary 4 weeks / 28 nights in May / June

Hello community,
my girlfriend and me are going to visit Japan for 4 weeks / 28 nights in May / June this year after golden week from 11th of May until 8th of June. It's our first time in Japan.
We are both 35 years old and experienced travellers. Actually after some research I find it quite hard to figure out a route which makes sense and has a good mix between nature, culture, city, different landscapes etc.
We are both activ people and middle paced travellers. Our budget is also in the medium range.

What dou you think about this itinerary for 4 weeks with a 14 or 21 day jr railpass:

5 nights (N) Tokyo with two daytrips to Kamakura and Nikko
1 N Nagoya with stop in Ise
1 N Takayama
2 N Kanazawa
5 N Kyoto with daytrip to Nara
1 N Mount Koya
2 N Osaka
2 N Hiroshima with Himeji on the way from Osaka
1 N Miyajima

Flight to Hokkaido or Okinawa from Hiroshima

6-7 N Hokkaido or Okinawa

Flight to Tokyo

1-2 N Tokyo

What do you think about this route? Is it a good mix between nature, culture, landscapes and citys? Do you prefer Okinawa or Hokkaido at the end of May / beginning of June?

We are open to every suggestion and despite of the flights from / to Germany nothing is booked yet.

Thank you and greetings, Fabian

Okinawa vs Hokkaido. Depends on want you want. Both are good in June.

Okinawa for hot beachy days etc etc.

Hokkaido for green lush scenery and escaping the heat.

In Kyoto, the Aoi Festival will be held on May 15th.
In case of rain, it will be postponed.
https://ja.kyoto.travel/event/major/aoi/
In Kanazawa, the procession of the Hyakumangoku Festival will be held on June 3rd.
https://100mangoku.net/schedule.html
Asakusa's Sanja Matsuri is scheduled to be held around mid-May, although the schedule for this year has not yet been decided.
https://www.asakusajinja.jp/sanjamatsuri/
The azaleas at Hakone Yama no Hotel are also famous.
https://www.hakone-hoteldeyama.jp/tsutsuji_shakunage/

Thank you for the tips so far.

So do you think the intinerary for the first three weeks is fine? With this route I would go for the 2-week JR Railpass.

We are still unsure in terms of Hokkaido or Okinawa end of May / beginning of June... We like both of them. Actually I think Okinawa is a bit more different to the first three weeks compared to Hokkaido. Am I right?

Hokkaido or Okinawa depends on your tolerance for heat. It will be getting very hot in early June, personally I would be going to Hokkaido (I've never been to either) as I understand that their food is fabulous that time of year and it is a good time to see their countryside.

I will comment on the main part because of your concerns that maybe they are too city focussed.

The main part of your trip looks fine, though personally I would make your daytrip to Nikko an overnight one (Hotel Kanaya is really nice) and I would try to make your trip to Kamakura an overnight one as well (Iwamotoro Honkan on Enoshima is great). Both are country-ish areas and at the moment I think you are spending a lot of time in cities.

Adding to that, I would try to squeeze in a night at Hakone (my favorite there at the moment is Fukumuziro ryokan), another foresty area, but I would do that the night before you depart because Hakone is pretty handy to Tokyo, and is quite a bit cooler than the city.

I would try to spend a night at Nara rather than just a day trip and in reality I wouldnt spend any time at all in Osaka on that trip, you are already spending time in various cities including Hiroshima, I dont think Osaka is going to add anything. There are plenty of places around Kyoto that are fascinating to see instead, eg Uji (usually a stop on the way back from Nara) or Hikone (not Hakone) which has a nice little castle, I recommend the Hikone Castle Resort and Spa which despite the grand name, is a lovely mid sized onsen hotel with fantastic food, with views of the castle from a lot of the rooms.

I have been to Hokkaido in February and August, and I have been to Okinawa twice in August.
Since early May to mid-June is the rainy season in Okinawa, Hokkaido may be better.
Hokkaido has almost no rainy season.
However, even during the rainy season, Okinawa has long hours of sunshine, so there is a possibility that it will be sunny.
I like both, so please choose according to your preference.
I especially like Shiretoko and Otaru in Hokkaido, and Iriomote Island in Okinawa.

Thank you for the tips so far. I modified it a bit to get a slower pace, what do you think:

5 nights (N) Tokyo with daytrips to Kamakura & Nikko

1 N Hakone

1 N Nagoya with stop in Ise on the way

2 N Takayama

2 N Kanazawa

5 N Kyoto with daytrips to Nara and maybe Osaka

1 N Kyosan

3 N Hiroshima with Himeji on the way and daytrip to Miyajima

Flight to Okinawa or Hokkaido

6-7 N Okinawa or Hokkaido

1-2 N Tokyo

Good idea? I think a 2-week JR railpass makes sense here?

We are still unsure in terms of the weather end of May in Okinawa. If it rains not permanent it is maybe more different to the first part than Hokkaido?

�g 1 N Nagoya with stop in Ise on the way�h
Do you mean Izu peninsula or Ise? Izu peninsula would be kind of �gon the way�h between Hakone and Nagoya, but isn�ft really a doable destination �gon the way�h, while Ise is in Mie prefecture which is beyond Nagoya, so not on the way. It just sounds like a long day Hakone - Ise - Nagoya.

Doable if you only want to see Ise and then go back to Nagoya, have dinner and take the train to Takayama tge next morning.

Regarding Hokkaido vs Okinawa, I have never been to Okinawa so cant say anything about those islands. Regarding Hokkaido the nice part is the countryside. So if you like hiking, walking, cycling it is a great destination. But I wouldn�ft just go to cities in Hokkaido as they aren�ft that interesting. Or alternatively you could tour a lot of onsen out in the countryside. This kind of travel is best done with a car. Driving in Hokkaido is easy (just remember to stay on the left side of the road) but slow, as everywhere in Japan. Btw, you don�ft need to fly to Sapporo. You could fly to Memanbetsu or other more remote parts.

Also have you looked into open jaw flights? You could do Germany- Tokyo, Sapporo - Germany (won�ft be a direct flight, but if you buy it as 1 flight you�fll get through. I just think that the last 1-2 days in Tokyo are a bit lost days.

Check here for information on Okinawa's precipitation and weather.
https://www.climatestotravel.com/climate/japan/okinawa
If you plan to swim in the sea, the temperature may be a little cooler.
I went to Ishigaki Island and Iriomote Island for the first time and enjoyed the jungle cruise and the view of Kapira Bay.
The second time I stayed at Manza Beach and enjoyed marine leisure.
Both were 2 nights and 3 days.
If sea bathing is not your main activity, you can still enjoy it in the second half of May, but if sea bathing is your main activity, you may not be able to enjoy it for a long time.
In Hokkaido, Sounkyo (around Mt. Daisetsu) is also recommended.
The view of Onuma Park from the train was also nice.

It's in Japanese, but when I looked at the weather information for Iriomote Island, it didn't rain that much in May. More in August and September.
https://weather.time-j.net/Climate/Chart/Iriomotejima
Ishigaki Island is the same.
https://weather.time-j.net/Climate/Chart/Ishigakijima
Perhaps these islands are near Taiwan, so the conditions may be different from the main island of Okinawa.
https://weather.time-j.net/Climate/Chart/Naha
By the way, here is the amount of precipitation in Sapporo.
https://weather.time-j.net/Climate/Chart/Sapporo

Hello again, I rescheduled a bit, canceled Nagoya / Ise and integrated Shikoku. I also integrated the last two nights Tokyo. Actually we tend to Okinawa instead of Hokkaido:

5 nights (N) Tokyo with daytrips to Kamakura & Nikko

1 N Hakone

2 N Takayama

2 N Kanazawa

1 N Koyasan

5 N Kyoto with daytrips to Nara and maybe Osaka

1 N Tokushima with Himeji & Naruto Whirlpools on the way from Kyoto

2 N Oboke / Iya Valley

2 N Kochi

2 N Hiroshima with trip to Miyajima

Flight to Okinawa

5 N Yaeyama islands (Ishigaki or Iriomote or both)

Flight to Tokyo - Flight to Germany (10 pm)

What do you think? :-) Thank you so much!

Hi there,

I agree with the idea to slow down the trip. I've been many times and there is still much to see - you can always come back!

A few ideas for places that I don't think you have mentioned:

1. The Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine Route - just fantastic, one of the best experiences I've ever had travelling in one day.

2. Nagasaki - lovely place, lots to see, and Gunkanjima is a must in my eyes.

3. The Seto inland sea - beautiful and is filled with island with great art work.

Whatever you do, I hope that you have a great time, and in my opinion the greatest part of the experience is just being there, even if it is just getting food from a 7-11 or (as a Brit) observing how queuing should actually be done.

Thank you so much. I read about the Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine Route and it looks fantastic but we have been so many times in the European Alps for skiing and mountaineering that it ist nothing completely new for us. Thats the reason we skipped it.

Nagasaki and Gunkanjima looks also good but as you can not really enter the island we skipped it. The Seto island sea is not really our thing.

In terms of my last posted itinerary: Does it make sense? Are the transfer days too crowded or too lang? What do you think?

Have you reviewed for each leg of your trip how long transport takes?
I am left a bit perplexed by the Kanazawa - Koyasan stretch (doable but sounds like a full day of transport) and by the Kyoto - Tokushima day, as you�fll need to catch a bus , so not sure how that fits in with Himeji. Would Takamatsu instead make more sense? I love tha garden there (but have to admit that I have never been to Tokushima).
In Shikoku are you renting a car? Might be better specially for Iya valley.

Your flight back will be 1 ticket Okinawa - Tokyo - Germany or 2 separate? I�fd be worried if separate tickets as you might miss your international flight if something goes wrong on your domestic flight. (Eg cancellations due to an untimely typhoon). Not very likely but I�fd be worried if separate tickets.

Yes, I know - it is a lot of transfer....

What do you think of the idea of less overnight stops and more day trips - day trips are in braclets:

6 nights (N) Tokyo (Kamakura, Nikko, Hakone)
2 N Takayama
2 N Kanazawa
1 N Koyasan
6 N Osaka (Kyoto, Himejii, Naruto, Nara, Kobe)
2 N Oboke
2 N Kochi
2 N Hiroshima (Miyajima)
5 N Ishigaki

In Shikoku we are not sure if a car is really necessary.

The flights Okinawa - Tokyo - Germany are two tickets but no risk no fun. :-)

Personally, I recommend Matsuyama (Ehime Prefecture) and its surroundings (such as Uchiko and Uwajima) more than Kochi.
Naruto is in Shikoku, along with Oboke and Kochi, so it might be better to put it before Oboke.
In addition to the whirlpools, Naruto also has the Otsuka Museum of Art and the Naruto German Museum.
Naruto City is known as the place where Beethoven's 9th was performed for the first time in Japan.
You can also go by highway bus from Osaka and Kobe.
https://www.tokubus.co.jp/highwaybus/
I think it would be better to reduce the first 6 days in Tokyo to 4 or 5 days and then move to Tokyo for 1-2 days so that you don't have to worry about flights.
The day before yesterday, there was an emergency landing at Chubu Centrair International Airport, and airlines were unable to fly for about half a day.
As a result, many flights were canceled.
There is a possibility that the plane will not fly suddenly.
So I recommend arriving early by the airport back to Germany (Haneda or Narita?).