Japan 20th - 26th Jan (5 day tour)

Effectively I only have 5 days of touring and sight seeing in Japan as I'm excluding day of arrival and leaving.

I think visiting Kyoto, or other places too far away may be too rushed so I only plan to tour around Tokyo, Nikko, Hakone, etc.

I will land in Japan on the 20th - check in.
21st - Asakusa to Odaiba: New to old (as seen in suggested schedules on this site)
22nd - Tour Tokyo, Shinjuku, Shibuya, and the Imperial Palace. Can I get to the electronic district as well ..?
23rd - Head out to Hakone and spend the night there. I'm hoping to find a nice traditional place to stay with a hot spring.
24th - Either stay longer in Hakone, or head to Nikko.
25th - not sure ...
26th - Head to Tokyo airport

I'm still drafting my plan at the moment, but will definately be staying the first 3 nights in Tokyo.
My wishlist of things to do are:
* see some old traditional Japan. Shrines and temples.
* See some hi-tech new Japanese buildings and nightlife. Maybe some of the crazy resturants.
* Visit a Japanese museum.
* Stay in a nice traditional Japanese hotel (which doesn't cost the Earth)
* See some of the natural countryside.


I was also wondering if doing one of the ''who wants to be a ninja'' class would fun (found a link on this site).

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. :)

21st - Asakusa to Odaiba: New to old (as seen in suggested schedules on this site)
- You can take a boat from Asakusa to Odaiba along Sumida river.
22nd - Tour Tokyo, Shinjuku, Shibuya, and the Imperial Palace. Can I get to the electronic district as well ..?
- Yes, you can go to Akihabara via the subway and JR line after visiting the Imperial Palace. But keep in mind that the Imperial Palace grounds is so large that you cannot see much in one hour or so, the best way is to just go and see the Sakurada-mon and Megane bashi (or double bridge) area.
23rd - Head out to Hakone and spend the night there. I'm hoping to find a nice traditional place to stay with a hot spring.
- How about staying at Gora-Kansuiro (a traditional Japanese hotel)near the Gora station (the Hakone-tozan line)in Hakone with a nice open-air bath. The hotel fee ranges between 22,000yen and 32,000yen per night with two lovely meals.
24th - Either stay longer in Hakone, or head to Nikko.
-Nikko will be too cold in January, so how about going to Kamakura which is a historical city with many temples in the natural surrounding. It is easy to get to by train from Hakone.
25th - not sure ...
- You can visit the Edo Tokyo museum and the Ueno National museum in Tokyo.
26th - Head to Tokyo airport

Have a nice trip^_^

Thanks for the suggestions. I'm glad your suggestions where made with respect to the time of year. It will be /cold/ especially for an Aussie. :)

So Nikko is a miss.

Is there anything interesting/popular happening in Tokyo about this time of year?

Is Disneyland too crowded, or worth the trip?

I saw a ''want to be a ninja'' class that is held in Japan linked on this site. Anyone tried it? Worth doing for the price?

Link for the above tourist ninja class:

http://hisexperience.jp/index.php?option=com_content&task=vi...

Hi, again
the Disneyland will be very crowded because the school children will be having the winter holiday then.

If this is your first visit to Japan, and if you are traveling alone, in a short amount of time, you might find the Kyoto area more rewarding based upon your wish list.

Kyoto is less than 2.5 hours by shinkansen from Tokyo, and provides a nice view of the countryside along the way. In Kyoto, there are more temples and museums than you will have time to see, and ryokan everywhere. The old Imperial Palace in Kyoto is much more rewarding, for there isn't really much you are allowed to see at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo. In the nearby city of Osaka, about 1 hour from Kyoto, you will find all of the same tall buildings, and night life of Tokyo, but with a friendlier and more convenient atmosphere. Plus the weather will be warmer than both Kyoto or Tokyo. In the mountains near Kyoto, you will find Shirakawa-go, a historic farmhouse town (though harder to get to), and Iga Ueno, the birthplace of Ninjas, is about 1 hour away. Onsen (hot springs) are common all over Japan, but are the least common in the Tokyo area.

As a resident of Tokyo, I have to say, if you are less familiar with Japan, I recommend putting off Tokyo for another time. Though, Tokyo is the biggest city in Japan, it is really just an enormous business center, with bitter salary men crushed into trains, and thousands of the most trend conscious in Japan wearing almost identical fashions. Resist the tendency to assume it has the most to offer because it is the world's largest megapolis. Some of the most remote parts of Japan have a lot to offer.

Also, if you don't need to fly into Narita, the most inconvenient airport in Japan, fly into Kansai (which is surprisingly uncrowded) or the new airport in Nagoya and save yourself a lot of time and frustration.

For a first time visitor, the Tokyo area can be overwhelming and takes too long to get around if you don't know exactly where you are going, plus people are less inclined to help you with directions. But, if you do stay in Tokyo, focus on Kamakura, for it is the closest match to Kyoto and easy to get around. Also, if you end up going to Kamakura, skip Asakusa. Though nice, it is highly over-rated and not worth the trouble to get there, and you will better in Kamakura. Meiji shrine, though different, is equally interesting, and is in the Shibuya area. Akihabara (the electric town) is usually interesting for first time visitors. And though I like Shinjuku, it is probably the least entertaining for tourists.

Instead of Disneyland, you might want to go DisneySea instead. Go on a weekday and you will expect a lesser crowd than Disneyland - for example queue around 15minutes after getting a fast-pass for a ride instead of more than 30minutes in Disneyland.

Hmmm ... I was told going to Kyoto is a bit rushed.

I do definately plan on staying the first 3 nights (2 days of touring in Tokyo).

You recommend I shoot off to Kyoto on the third morning of my tour with only 3 days touring in Kyoto?

New Kyoto visiting schedule:

I will land in Japan on the 20th - check in.
21st - Asakusa to Odaiba: New to old (as seen in suggested schedules on this site)
22nd - Tour Tokyo, Shinjuku, Shibuya, electronic district.
23rd - Head to Kyoto (instead of Hakone) find a nice traditional place to stay with a hot spring.
24th - Tour Kyoto (?)
25th - Tour Kyoto (?)
26th - Head back to Tokyo airport.

I'm not sure where Kinsai Airport is and I'm don't know if I can change my flight details at this time.

It is sure that Kansai(Kyoto, Osaka and etc.) is more enjoyable than Kanto(Greater Tokyo), though Osaka alone might be inferior to Tokyo alone. It is because Kansai had been the capital region for more than 1600 years and most of the important historical sights are located there AND some Japanese modern cities such as Osaka & Kobe are located too.

Anyway, if you have only 5 days this time and are sure to visit Japan again, stay in Kanto region and see everything there. :) Do not think historical attractions in Tokyo are "historic", though I guarantee they are still historical attractions of Japan :P
and visit Kansai and western Japan next time.

sample itinerary in Kanto
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2401_4.html

If you have no specific interest and have general interest of Japanese history and art, the best museum(s) for you should be National Museum in Tokyo, Kyoto and Nara(and Kyushu).

I'm generally interested in anything cool. Cutural differences, interesting crazy resturants, and high-tech video games / gagets.

* see some old traditional Japan. Shrines and temples.
= Kansai is undoubtly superior in this aspect.

* See some hi-tech new Japanese buildings and nightlife.
= Tokyo is superior in this aspect.

* Visit a Japanese museum.
= Both Tokyo and Kyoto hosts the National Museums.

* Stay in a nice traditional Japanese hotel
= Regardless of a region, you need to visit a rural area to stay at an authentic Japanese ryokan.

* See some of the natural countryside.
= Kansai is superior, considering there are too many people living in Tokyo.

* Cutural differences,
= Kansai is superior, considering its looongest tradition and history in Japan.

* high-tech video games / gagets.
= Both Tokyo and Osaka offer them, though Tokyo is a bit superior in this aspect.

to be continued.

Ideally, as zoogy says, average foreign tourists should visit Kansai first, since it offers more and more sophisticated, though thousands of tourists make a mistake every month.

But, since you have already booked a flight to Tokyo, it seems that you'd really like to visit Tokyo first, and you have only 5 days in Japan, I advise you to travel like this:

I will land in Japan on the 20th - check in.
21st - Tokyo
22nd - Tokyo
23rd - Head out to Hakone 24th - Kamakura(or 1 more day in Hakone)
25th - Tokyo(or Kamakura)
26th - Head to Tokyo airport

and MAKE SURE to visit Japan again to view authentic Japanese Shrines and temples, to experience the historical Japan :)

I have been in Japan for some weeks and from my point of view you should reduce your time in Tokyo to a minimum!

If you want to have the "feeling" of staying in Japan - Kyoto is a much better choice. Tokyo is bustling and somehow sterile. After five days you will probably be dissatisfied. "Just a modern town of uncontrolled growth" maybe your feeling if you don't have anyone who shows you the interesting "details". Kyoto and even Osaka is much easier to access as they are of a size easy to survey.

Japan can offer quite a bit to do (including temples, museums, nightlife and unusual restaurants) almost anywhere. One of the most unusual restaurants I have ever seen is in an unknown suburban neighborhood of Tokyo. One of the best trips I've taken, started with just a random drive on a secluded mountain road.

Some people in Tokyo make day trips to Kyoto. But, If you stick to the Kanto (Tokyo) area, at least make sure you make it to an outlying area. Most of all, don't try to cover too much in central Tokyo; you won't have enough time. And, while in Tokyo, don't be afraid to explore side streets: you can suddenly find a tranquil, older area with more unusual shops and character. Definitely frequent the tiny oba and oji (mom and pop) restaurants where you will have the best food and the friendliest service.

And most of all, if you don't have the best time, don't be afraid to come back, and try someplace different.

If you go to Kamakura, get off at Kita (north)-Kamakura station, which few people do, and walk toward the beach--you will experience a miniature old Japan experience, as you pass the outlying temples. Kamakura also has "shukubo" or temple guest houses similar to ryokan that are sometimes the best.