August Japan Travels

hi :)




we (two 20 yr old females) are travelling to japan late july early august.. we are getting jr passes..


heres our itinery..




july 31. fly into osaka, stay at friends




aug 1. leave for hiroshima then travel to matsuyama stay at friends




aug 4. leave matsuyama travel to tokyo, stay at hostel




stay in tokyo, doing disney land, summersonic festival




aug 15 leave tokyo, for kyoto.. staying in hostel until aug 21st, flying out from osaka.




any suggestions of what we should do with our time would be awesome.. we are both pretty big kids, a day or two of temples in kyoto will probably temple us out.. do you know of any gig guides. we are both big music people.. have you heard of the drummers gocoo and goro? is there anything like that on..?




should we go back to osaka a day early and have a look round there or just stay in kyoto..? we have free accom in osaka so that option is easy..

do you know of any taiko drummers playing around these times?


Thanks in advance guys! help very much appreciated!!! :)

Have you booked a hotel in Kyoto already? You visit there coincides with one of the busiest travel seasons of the year, so if you haven't booked, you might run into problems there.

you may want to keep your kansai traveling all together instead of doing a loop around southern japan, i.e. visit osaka then kyoto then go do the rest of your trip.

also you're missing a lot of the really nice northern parts of japan, sendai is a great city, and hokkaido is quite nice this time of year as well. make sure to be prepared for the heat. kyushu / south honshu are extremely hot and humid right now.

The hot areas include the Tokyo and Kyoto/ Osaka areas. It was 33 degrees on the weekend in both areas and it will probably be hotter by the time you arrive.

If it were me, and it's not, I fully realize, but anyway, I would totally without hesitation skip Kyoto that weekend. August 15th weekend will be the busiest travel time and it will be brutally hot. Kyoto is a city with nice things in it, but as a city it will seem hotter than out in a more rural area.

how about going somewhere like closer to fuji for a few days just for relaxing and then go to kyoto for a few nights.. we have accom in kyoto, but like you's have said, it will be busy.. so train travel will be even more hectic...

You have enough time to cover a much larger area, if you have a rail pass. The shinkansen (bullet train) from Tokyo to Kyoto takes less than 3 hours. The shinkansen can be very expensive for those of us who reside in Japan. Take full advantage of it.

Outlying areas of Japan, such as smaller islands, Kyushu, Shikoku, northern Honshu, and (cooler) Hokkaido are some of the best locations.

Fuji would make an excellent break from the heat, and is a common stopover point from Osaka. Also consider other mountain destinations like Takayama, the Japan Alps, Kiso Valley, Koya-san (near Osaka), etc.

revised itinery - i just added a few nights at fuji... good option..? is 3 nights enough/not enough?

july 31. fly into osaka at night, stay at friends
aug 1. leave for hiroshima then travel to matsuyama stay at friends
aug 2. matsuyama
aug 3. matsuyam
aug 4. leave matsuyama travel to tokyo, stay at hostel
aug 5. toyko - hostel
aug 6. tokyo - hostel
aug 7. tokyo - hostel
aug 8. tokyo - leave hostel, stay at friends
aug 9. tokyo - stay at friends. summersonic
aug 10. tokyo - stay at friends. summersonic
aug 11. tokyo - stay at friends
aug 12. tokyo - stay at friends. disney
aug 13. tokyo - stay at friends. disney sea
aug 14. tokyo, fuji - hostel
aug 15. tokyo, fuji - hostel
aug 16. tokyo, fuji - hostel
aug 17. travel to kyoto - hostel
aug 18. kyoto - hostel
aug 19. kyoto - hostel
aug 20. kyoto - hostel
aug 21. travel to osaka, fly out at night


i have a medium suitcase.. do u think that is ok to take on the train all the time..?

thanks so much!

are going to get a 21 days JR pass? you will not get your money worth as you can't really use it within Tokyo that much. You should land in Tokyo, stay there for whatever then go to Hiroshima, and Miyajima and back to Kyoto with a JR pass. then leave from Osaka. I also think that you are wasting too much time on Tokyo, not the most interesting town in the world, and even wasting a couple of days too many on Mt Fuji. you could lop off 6 day easy. I will never understand why anyone over 12 would come all the way from wherever to Japan and spend time in a fake Disneyland ??!!!

Two days at Disney at the hottest time of the year, during the school holidays! Be prepared to spend hours in queues in roasting heat. Doesn't sound like fun to me at all, but to each their own.

we have decided not to get jr passes - we are not covering enough distance to make it even... the disney thing, im not too sure about.. it will be decided there..

so, if you were in my shoes.. you have recomended not to go to kyoto on the 15th (we do have accom, we can cancel it though).. if you were leaving toyko on the 14th, what would you do with a spare few days, i do want to get to kyoto by the 18th though..

thanks alot guys and girls, your help is very very appreciated..

If you already have accommodation in Kyoto then you might as well go, it will probably be crowded but so will just about anywhere.

avoid disny at all costs ...august heat is tough ..queues unbearable.you would be mad to go there at that time.

Actually the price of single tickets from Tokyo to Hiroshima then Hiroshima to Kyoto is just a bit more than a 7 days JR pass. As you would also use it to go to Miyajima from Hiroshima and back it is worth it, as long as you land in Tokyo and leave by Kansai. Many people do that. You just have to change your itinerary around some as you have planned too much time in Tokyo--of course I am the type of traveller who scrounge cheap tickets and go to Osaka or Paris or.. just for a weekend. If you have booked hotel in Kyoto you can always cancel and either find another one or stay in Osaka as it is only 45 min by train. I have been to Kyoto many times and always stay in either Osaka or Kobe. While in Tokyo it would be way more interesting to go to Odaiba, Kamakura etc. (both by the water)than to Disney.

I went with a friend when I was about your age, and I do agree that sometimes you feel a little templed out.

One thing I'm not sure many people realize is that you can fly out of Tokyo if that is where you intend to visit last. Both times I've been I flew in through Narita and out through Kansai.

While you're in Osaka, consider seeing the aquarium. They have whale sharks!

JR passes really are a lifesaver, because instead of waiting in some lines you can just flash the pass and go right through. At very busy times this is quite useful.

Have a great time!

Keep your rail pass and just take full advantage of it. It will also give you the flexibility to change your plans. You might decide you prefer Osaka to Tokyo, or prefer the mountains, or prefer beach destinations...

You will likely find as much or more to do in the Kansai area (Kobe, Osaka, Kyoto, Nara), but If you intend to spend most of your time in Tokyo, consider outer destinations like Kamakura and Nikko.