Itinerary opinions/suggestions.

Hello Everyone,




Here is my itinerary:




August 13: Arrive in Tokyo


August 14: Tokyo


August 15: Tokyo


August 16: Arrive in Kyoto


August 17: Kyoto


August 18: Kyoto


August 19: Arrive in Osaka


August 20: Not sure if another day in Osaka or Mt Koyasan


August 21 Arrive back in Tokyo


August 22 Tokyo/Fly home.




My main question is that I am a single traveler and was wondering if anyone has any experience of staying at an overnight temple in Mt. Koya alone? I have tried looking at a few websites and haven�ft been able to locate any prices for single travelers as well as room types. Also, is 1 day enough to visit Osaka? I would really love to visit Mt Koya, but if its too expensive, anything above $80/night, I would probably just spend another day in Osaka or would 2 days be too much?

www.japanican.com can show you some temple lodging for a single traveler. Enter Wakayama as location.

I recently stayed in Shojoshin-in at Koyasan alone. I booked through Japaneseguesthouses.com. It wasn't cheap (about $110 USD), but it was definitely a great experience.

I found a cheapter alternative with the Koyasan Youth Hostel, which is somewhwere around $40 USD/night. Haven't seen the place, but may be what you're looking for.

http://www2.ocn.ne.jp/~koyasan/indexe.html

I'd think you should go to Koysan if you can--it's a nice town with lots of interesting temples (though Kyoto's are grander) and the cemetary is a very unique experience, especially in the mornings and at night. You can spend a good afternoon just winding up and down the alleys between the grave stones and massive trees.

As for Osaka, I did most of the 'major' sightseeing in 1 day. The castle has nice grounds, but it's a reconstruction with an empty interior, Umeda Sky building is nice to look at, but I'm not a huge fan of the Osaka skyline, and Dontonbori and the shopping arcades can be done from morning till night (especially Dotonbori, which totally neon).

So in general, if you're in the mood for temples and woods, go for Koyasan, if you're looking for eating and partying, go for some more time in Osaka. Personally, I wouldn't trade my night in Koyasan for another day in Osaka.