going to japan in may

hello
I am travelling japan for the first time this may, i arrive on the 7th and leave from narito airport on the 20th of may. i would like to see and do as much as possible,i cant wait to go, i was looking for help on my agenda, does this sound good? am i missing out on aanything?
7th, arrive and spend day in tokyo
8th, leave tokyo for kyoto(spend 9th site seeing)
10th, leave kyoto or hiroshima
11th, spend most of day at Miyajima
12th, leave hiroshima and head back to Tokyo
14th, go to Takayama
15th, back to Tokyo, for the rest of trip.
And then i would like to make a day trip to Nikko around the 18th.
20th back home.
i was thinking of using the jr one week pass from the the 8th to the 15th, is that reccomended.
some questions....thanks
Can you use the jr pass for travelling around tokyo or the other cities im visiting?
Can Takayama be done on a day trip from tokyo or should i stay there over night?
Would sumo or baseball tickets be difficult to get on the day of the event or should i try and book in advance?
How hard is it to travell around japan with no japaneese, i have a phrasebook but thats it?
Sorry for all the questions but any help is much appreciated.
thanks very much

You should visit Takayama on our way between Tokyo and Kyoto or between Hiroshima and Tokyo. Returning to Tokyo once in between would be a big waste of time.

Can you use the jr pass for travelling around tokyo or the other cities im visiting?

JR trains provide convenient transportation to many (but not quite all) sightseeing places in Tokyo. The situation is explained here:
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2017.html

In Kyoto, JR trains are not very useful. Subways and buses are more useful, but not covered by the Japan Rail Pass:
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2363.html

Can Takayama be done on a day trip from tokyo or should i stay there over night?

You should stay at least one night in Takayama.

Would sumo or baseball tickets be difficult to get on the day of the event or should i try and book in advance?

Don't know about baseball, but same-day sumo tickets are easy to get on regular weekdays. Much more difficult on weekends and national holidays.

How hard is it to travell around japan with no japaneese, i have a phrasebook but thats it?

Easy.

thanks very much Uji

Hi, i am planning my honeymoon trip to japan in Jun. Any recommendation on which part of japan to go? we love sashimi and the beautiful sceneries.

Thanks

Hokkaido has the best seafood, the fewest crowds, good scenery, and is cooler in June than southern Japan.

I'll second Hokkaido, that is where we went for our honeymoon. We were there in late April/early May and the weather was nice, little chilly, but really nice. June should be wonderful. I reccomend a day in Otaru (stay overnight), 2-3 days in Noboribetsu and a couple of days in Sapporo.

i was thinking of using the jr one week pass from the the 8th to the 15th

You said you were getting the 7 day pass, but this would be 8 days.

I would suggest:

8th Kyoto
9th Kyoto
10th Kyoto with day trip to Himeji and/or Osaka.
11th Hiroshima
12th Hiroshima
13th Takayama
14th Return to Tokyo.

You should note that it is a 6+ hours journey from Hiroshima to Takayama and 5 hours from Takayama to Tokyo.

yeah theat does sound like a better plan. thanks a lot.
im also wondering about some accomadation in tokyo. Which area should i try to stay in, im looking for the tourists sites, somewhere which is easy to jump on and off trains but has a bit of fun at night time to. i will be looking for a cheap hotel or hostel to stay in.
thanks again

I've used this site to book a hostel in the mount Fuji area, good service.

http://www.hostelworld.com/