How to plan 1 - 5 Jan 08 trip to Tokyo

Hi,

I am planning a trip to Tokyo from 1-5 Jan 08. Please advise whether train booking and lodging is a problem, esp during New Year season.

Intend to book flight from Singapore, reach Tokyo Day 1 on 3 pm, and depart on Day 5 around 5 pm.

Any itineary to recommend, is the below okay?
Day 1 (1 Jan), reach
Day 2 (tour Tokyo?)
Day 3 (go to Kyoto)
Day 4 (tour Kyoto)
Day 5 (return to Tokyo)

thanks!
Beng Yong

If you are planning on going to Kyoto, I would recommend spending most of your time there. You could easily spend 3 or 4 days in Kyoto, but there are also the neighboring, cities of Kobe, Nara and Osaka (all of which have there distinct differences and personalities). If you want a taste of big city Japan, Osaka is a much friendlier and upbeat alternative to Tokyo, and much easier to get around.

I'm currently a resident of Tokyo and have travelled all over Japan from Sendai, to the mountains of Shikoku. to the tiny tropical island of Iriomote and can honestly say Tokyo is my least favorite place. Tokyo has its nicer areas, but they are far apart, hard to find, or hard to get to. For the most part, Tokyo is really the very worst of Japan crammed into a small place: it's rude, it's crude, it's uptight, it's shallow, it's incredibly unfriendly, and it's very fake. Central Tokyo has also been experiencing a brain-drain as artists, intellectuals, or simply nice people have been moving out to outlying areas. What little culture remains, is really just an artificial attempt to be foreign: a combination of a giant American suburban shopping mall with endless chain stores and the prissiest of New York's 5th Ave. Once the thrill of almost suffocating crowds is over, it seems fairly bland.

You might even find a cheaper plane ticket to Osaka's Kansai Airpot (one of the most convenient airports in the world) or Nagoya's newly built international airport. From Nagoya, you can explore Ise, the amazing Kiso Valley area, or the beautiful Wakayama coast.

Don't forget too, that visitors are eligible for the Japan Rail Pass, a very cheap way of getting around Japan (but you must arrange for the ticket in your home country).

Tokyo is a wonderful city! With a positive attitude, the city can be described as the best Japan has to offer, packed into a single city: a tremendous variety of foods, culture, shopping and entertainment plus a lot of friendly people.

Regarding the traffic situation, the situation will be most busy on January 3 in direction of Tokyo. The afternoon of January 2 will also be very busy. January 4 and 5 will also be somewhat busy. The opposite direction is less busy.

So, my recommendation would be to fly into Tokyo, travel to Kyoto on the 3rd (try to make seat reservations as soon as you arrive in Japan) and then leave Japan through Osaka's Kansai Airport.

In my previous post I was recommending that you should skip Tokyo. I should clarify: don't skip it altogether, but save it for your next visit, when you have more time. During non-holiday times, Tokyo is a confusing and difficult place to get around. For many first time visitors, it is overwhelming, and you can easily spend the day trying to get to a single destination (in other parts of Japan people will go out of their way to help you, by the way). During the holidays, Tokyo will be much harder to get around.

Keep in mind, that Narita International Airport is 80K from central Tokyo. If you are really lucky, if you know exactly where you are going, and once you finally get through the airport, you might get to your destination in Tokyo in 2 hours. But, the Shinkansen trip from Tokyo to Osaka is less than 2.5 hours. For a short stay, Tokyo might not be worth the trouble.

Tokyo is by no means the worst place in the world. It just isn't the best of Japan, nor the most convenient for travelers. For the largest city in the world, it is remarkable it functions as well as it does. Tokyo is almost twice the size of New York metropolitan area
but no where near as rude or aggressive. It is cleaner, less polluted, safer, and more civil than most cities a fraction of its size. Once again, Tokyo has its good points, but much of it isn't worth visiting for an international traveler. Tokyo is a world unto itself, and it takes months to figure out.

Too many tourists make the mistake of focusing on Tokyo during their travels, and too many leave unimpressed with Japan. Japan is a remarkable place, and you could easily spend 2 months traveling here, but the best of it is outside Tokyo. Save Tokyo for next time.

I agree with Zoogy 100%
Many foreign tourists choose Tokyo on their first (and often only)visit to Japan because they likely believe that, as the capital of an old country, it has a huge number of historical buildings, just like other famous capitals (London, Paris, Rome etc.). In fact the Kansai area(Kyoto, Osaka, Nara, Kobe etc.) is the birthplace of the Japanese culture and the area where one can see very easily both the very ancient and very modern faces of Japan.
I visited the Kansai twice with my Japanese partner before going to Tokyo on my own and was able to navigate Tokyo easily because of the previous experience I got in the Kansai. Of course I am lucky as we have direct flights to both Osaka and Tokyo from the North American town where we live, but I DEFINITELY recommend that tourists spend more time in the Kansai than in Tokyo.

My opinion is, that depends on the personal preference. Some ppl like Kanto better than Kansai, others vise versa.

Yes, 5 out of 14 world heritage, and more than 70% of Japan's 1st-class historic architectures are located in Kansai. If you like Japanese history, Kansai is definitely NO1 destination. I actually love Kansai!!

but for those who love SUPER Otakish products only, Akihabara can be their one and the only purpose to visit Japan.

cheers!

I also advise any traveller with only limited time to drop either Kanto or Kansai. Travelling by Shinkansen might be fun, but expensive and not be fun.

To make the most of their money & time, a traveller with limited time should take into consideration to drop one of the 2 regions.

Hi,

My plane to Tokyo is cheapest, hence will only fly to Tokyo and back. Will consider the following stays:

1 Jan - Tokyo stay, exchange JR pass and buy shinkansen to Kyoto and back

2 Jan - go to Kyoto in am
(opposite direction should be okay?), Kyoto stay

3 Jan - Kyoto stay
(anything to see in winter?)

4 Jan (Sat) - return to Tokyo in am
spend am at fish market, then take 2 hour train back

Also, if unable to find lodging, may stay all 4 days at Japan.

Any comments please?

thks!

Sorry typo on last day

1 Jan - Tokyo stay, exchange JR pass and buy shinkansen to Kyoto and back

2 Jan - go to Kyoto in am
(opposite direction should be okay?), Kyoto stay

3 Jan - Kyoto stay
(anything to see in winter?)

4 Jan - return to Tokyo in am
(tour Tokyo), Tokyo stay

5 Jan (Sat) - spend am at fish market, then take 2 hour train back to Narita airport

Also, if unable to find lodging, may stay all 4 nights at Japan.

If you have difficulties getting an accomodation in Kyoto because of New Year, try ShinOsaka, as you are travelling with JR Pass you can commute the 15 min between Kyoto and ShinOsaka by hikari or kodama shinkansen and book a hotel next to the station for example Hotel ShinOsaka http://www.hso.jp/index_e.html
which still has vacancies on Jan 2 and 3. There are many other hotels in ShinOsaka area, too.