Trip review

Hello,

I am trying to plan a 6-week trip to Japan for mid-September - October. This will be my first time visiting Japan. Any feedback is welcome on the destinations to remove or add and the duration planned in each place.

Days Activity Overnight in
D0 Arrival in the evening Tokyo
D1 -5 Tokyo - 5 days Tokyo
D6 Daytrip to Kamakura Kamakura (or Tokyo?)
D7 - 10 Hakone - 3 days Hakone
D10 - 11 Matsumoto - 2 days Matsumoto
D12 – 14 Kamikochi - 3 days hiking (Hotaka Circuit or Yari-ga-take Traverse)
2 nights in mountain hut - last night in Takayama
D15 - 17 Takayama - 3 days Takayama
D18 Shirakawa-go Shirakawago or Kanazawa?
D19 - 20 Kanazawa - 2 days Kanazawa
D21 -26 Kyoto - 6 days Kyoto
D27 - 29 Hiroshima - 3 days (daytrip to Miyajima Island) Hiroshima
D30 Okayama Okayama
D31 Himeji castle Osaka
D32 Kumano Kodo trail Tsugizakura
D33 Kumano Kodo trail Kumano Hongu Taisha
D34 Kumano Kodo trail Koguchi
D35 Kumano Kodo trail Nachisan / Katsuura
D36 Koyosan Koyosan
D37 Koyosan Osaka
D38 Osaka - 3 days (daytrip to Nara(/Kobe?)) Osaka
D41 Departure at in the morning

A few additional questions I have are:
- Is it worth sleeping in Shirakawago or best to visit overday and sleep in Kanazawa? How many days would you recommend spending in Kanazawa and Takayama?
- I am struggling to find a way to do both the Kumano Kodo trail and Koyosan without adding really long stretches of transport. Any recommendation on this? Maybe best to choose one of the two but then which one would you recommend?
- Could the purchase of a Japan railpass interesting (maybe if shuffling some destinations?) My guess is no but any feedback is welcome.

Thanks a lot for your insights! :)

Maite

You can buy hakone free pass,
koyasan world heritage ticket
Surutto kansai pass etc

A few ideas - you could pull a day off of Tokyo and do a day trip to Nikko. If you want to put in 3 days for the Fuji area, I suggest you split half your time for the Fuji 5 Lakes, and the other half for Hakone. A Fuji-Hakone Pass might be worth considering.
For Matsumoto, it is up to your interests of course, but while the castle there is one of the nation's best, I don't find much else there that's so interesting. You could spend part of that time to see Nagano City, or the snow monkeys. Also 3 days is way more than enough for Takayama, and Shirakawago just takes a few hours. The overnight at a farmhouse is memorable there, though it is not cheap. That's something you'll have to decide for yourself. There are other good sights to see in the area, particularly if you are driving - like the Shin-Hotaka ropeway, and the HIda Limestone Cave. Three days for Hiroshima is good - there is enough in the area, such as adding Iwakuni, or the Sandankyo Gorge. Or if you drive, and can see the dahlias at the Sera Kogen Farm, you will find it mind blowing.
And absolutely take at least half a day and go see Nara Park.

For Shirakawa-go it depends on your tolerance for crowds and mass tourism. I have only been once but found it really crowded (in contrast to the other less accessible gassho zukuri villages). Staying overnight might allow you to see it in a more peaceful light. Agree that 3 days in Takayama and Kanazawa could probably be cut back. Takayama is very nice but it's small, and I was surprised that there didn't seem to be a lot else to see in the immediate vicinity - apart from Hida Furukawa, it seems you need to go towards Kamikochi to find places of interest. Someone may correct me on that!

There is no good/easy way anymore to go between Kumano Kodo and Koyasan, you�fll have to go around.

Also I recommend doing your request for accommodation as soon as possible, Kumano Kodo has been crazy busy this year.

For the Kamikochi part, both hikes are nice. Okuhotaka is easier/less exposed than Yari. Both are beautiful. Yari has a more interesting peak, Okuho has a more beautiful way up to the ridge (Karasawa). I would choose Yari if you can only do one. Also try to go during the week, it will be a lot less busy at the huts. People bring helmets for both hikes.

Thanks to all of you for the very helpful insights! It is priceless.

I have remodelled a little my itinerary by cutting back one night in Tokyo and one in Matsumoto and adding two in Nikko instead and cutting one in Takayama which I will try to add to Koyasan if I find something not too expensive (but that's another story it seems...). I have also send a request for accomodation on Kodo Kumano and await their answer. It won't be cheap but I think it should be worth it. And it was indeed really time to book as many places were already full.

One last question: would you recommend visiting Okoyama or Kurashiki if I only have one day (+transport from Hiroshima but I can start the day early) /one night?

Thanks one more time for the good recommendations received so far!

I wish you a very nice day.

Maïté

I think if you start reasonably early you can do Kurashiki and Okayama in 1 day. I am a Slow Traveller but would manage both.

I also think that Kurashiki + Okayama in 1 day is doable even with transport from Hiroshima. My priority would be Kurashiki and then Okayama - Korakuen garden and castle, which is right next to the garden.

As for Takayama, I think 1 day for the town is enough. Most of the interesting sights are on the right side of town close to each other (except for Hida folk village) so if you plan to spend more days there you should look at some day trips from Takayama (Shin-hotaka ropeway is quite nice trip, its also possible to go to Shirakawa-go or youcould just spend the day in onsen somewhere...)