Golden week 2013 - bad timing?

My family excitedly booked a flight to Japan (Osaka) because of plane seat sale. Arriving April 28 and leaving for home May 7. Surprised to find out later that it will be Golden Week in japan. Need some advise regarding tips on destination and scheduling to avoid overcrowding/hassles.

If you plan to travel around and stay at onsen ryokans, what you gained in the plane ticket sale you can lose for high hotel rates.

On the other hand, though, if you stay in Osaka city and visit sights in the city, do the shopping, may be day trips to Kyoto etc., you may not find it so bad.

People travel back to their home town to spend the holidays with family and friends, or to go to the countryside to get away from the city. The traffic in the city will not be so bad, nor the hotel rates for hotels in the city.

I will add that I am not so familiar with Osaka / Kyoto area but that is the way it is in Tokyo and I think it is the same way in Osaka. As for individual destinations, please wait for answers from others who are more familiar with the area. I will also add that even if you stay in the city, tourist sites in the city WILL BE more crowded and it would be a good idea to make reservations early where necessary and to avoid making tight schedule. You are smack in the middle of the bad week and that you can't change.

Thanks for the Information. We might spend two nights in Osaka and the rest stay in Kansai area, mostly in Kyoto. Is Koyasan a good idea?

I have traveled whole 2012 Golden week and did not met any problems. It will be wise to reserve sits when you travel by train. In any case, Osaka is good location. I did not find Osaka it self very interesting (except special events like robot football contest at Technological Institute), but it is perfect base to visit Nara and Kyoto. While Nara is good day trip, Kyoto will require at least 3 days. (I have alrady spent 7 days there in total and still have a lot of places to visit there). Try to arrange Miyajima and Hiroshima trip also.

Plan you trip and book hotels right now so Golden week will not bother you.

Golden Week is not as bad as some people make it seem. You just need to make sure you don't wait until the last minute on reservations, but since you are traveling with your family I would imagine you'd want to do that regardless.

There are a lot of special events during Golden Week in most places as well and it's an excellent time to visit gardens because there is usually a lot in bloom. Wisteria blooms around that time, as well as azaleas.

Thank you very much for this encouraging reply. Rail passes ought to be bought in Japan by foreigners, right? can't be bought in advance online? If that is the case what are the chances are rail passes usually sold out by APril 28 in Japan because of the Golden Week or Japanese nationals do not use them much? Sorry if my question may sound silly,

Hi Irma, the railpass needs to be bought in advance abroad. It cannot be purchased in Japan. You buy a voucher that you exchange for the actual railpass in Japan. So you can go ahead to buy ahead already. I hope other people can recommend good places to buy the passes.