Japan tentatively itinerary

[Ehonda]

At last we have come out where we want to go, below is our tentaively itinerary, any comment on the below sequence of the travel, can anyone help?

 

Do let me know if any place we can give it a miss or we should go .. like Nakone, we wanted to go but due to the travelling distance seem a bit long... we give it a miss. Or shd we take out one of the place and go Hakone?

 

Also base on the below itinerary, should we get the 7 or 14 JR pass?

 

All suggestion and comment are wellcome.

 

07/05 - Landed at Kansai Airport (8am), train to kyoto - Gion

08/05 - Kyoto - Kobe, Nara

09/05 - Kyoto - Nijo Castle, Philosopher's Walk (Path)

10/05 - Nagoya - Nagoya Castle

11/05 - Nagoya - any places we shd go?

12/05 - Takayama - Shirakawa-go, Old Town

13/05 - Takayama - Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route

14/05 - Kyoto - Kiyomizudera Temple, Sanjusangendo

15/05 - Kyoto - Kinkakuji (Golden Pavilion), Shugakuin Imperial Villa,

16/05 - Kyoto - Fushimi Inari Shrine, Gion

17/05 - Osaka - Osaka Aquarium, Umeda Sky Building , Minami (Namba)

18/05 - Osaka Airport - Home sweet home

 

[Samshio]

looking at yr iternary, not worth it to get a JR pass.

 

pay as you go, or get a city pass more worth it

[Snowbell]

yup,u're not travelling from west to east & east to west,JR pass not worth at all.besides u willb in kyoto most of the time,u can take the bus too,or just walk & walk & walk,like what i did before.

 

Hakone is a distance away,near Tokyo,too bad u're nt gng Tokyo,if not dropping by Hakone would be nice,to see Mt Fuji.

[Potheader]

spend more time in kyoto. its worth it. go to kiyomizu!

[Ehonda]

thanks for the reply, yr think is it worth to go Nagoya? seem like there is not much thing and it look like city la ..

[KapitanE]

thanks for the reply, yr think is it worth to go Nagoya? seem like there is not much thing and it look like city la ..

 

Nagoya is only famous for its castle and is near the port where Toyota has her terminal and also very near Toyota city..........

 

 

I prefer the castle at Himeiji.......

 

If go Japan and not visit Tokyo... its a waste isn't it,... unless of course u tell me u have been...

 

 

 

 

Edited February 26, 2009 by KapitanE

[Yattokame]

My humble 2 cents.

 

Having stayed in Nagoya for some time, it is more of a residential city. Sakae is the main shopping district with the underground crystal square~oasis 21, or you can go to Osu for some cheaper shopping and "Komehyo" for pre-owned branded items. Other than its castle, Nagoya is also famous for its Atsuta shrine. If you are a baseball fan, Nagoya is the hometown of Ichiro.

 

If you can, find your way to Meiji-mura. Buildings representative of the Meiji restoration period were congregated in this open air museum for a very picturesque view. Sorry I can't help with directions as business associates drove us (spouse and myself) there.

 

Nagoya also boasts the biggest train station in the world.

 

I would agree that Nagoya castle isn't THE castle to visit; you might want to visit Inuyama castle instead, or Magome town.

 

Make sure you have fried chicken wings (tebasaki) at Nagoya's famous chain Yamachan.

Do also try their kishimen, misokatsu and hitsumabushi.

 

 

[Ehonda]

thanks for all the reply, below are my rev itinerary .. as for those day trip to those places of interest, may need to do some adjment, think i hv put too many places in one day .. hehe

 

any more comment are welcomoe.

 

07/05 - Landed at Kansai Airport (8am), train to kyoto - Gion

08/05 - Kyoto - Fushimi Inari Shrine, Kiyomizudera Temple, Sanjusangendo, Gion (if too many places, may reduce)

09/05 - Kyoto - Nijo Castle, Philosopher's Walk (Path), sanjusangen-do, kiyomizudera, (if too many places, may reduce)

10/05 - Kanazawa ( activate JR pass ) - Kenroku-en Garden, Nagamachi Samurai District, and Ninja Temple (Myōryu-ji).

11/05 - Kanazawa - Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route

12/05 - Shirakawa-go

13/05 - Takayama - Old Town, Higashiyama Walking Course

14/05 - Gero Onsen - Hida Folk Village, Takayama Jinya

15/05 - Kyoto - Kinkakuji (Golden Pavilion), Shugakuin Imperial Villa, imperial palace (remember to book online for the palace tour)

(if too many places, may reduce)

16/05 - Kyoto - Kobe, Himeji Castle, Nara

17/05 - Kyoto - day trip to Osaka - Osaka Aquarium, Umeda Sky Building , Minami (Namba) (if too many places, may reduce)

18/05 - Osaka Airport - Home sweet home

[Mona_lisa]

Visiting Kobe, Himeji Castle & Nara on the same day may be a little too rush. That time i spent the whole morning at Nara from 9plus till lunch on one day. As for Himeji Castle, I visited it on another day, spent abt 3hrs there, excluding the time i took via train there. Travelling time takes up quite a bit of time....

 

[Yattokame]

May I suggest you visit takayama old town and the Jinya on the same day as they are within proximity? Do visit the morning markets since you are around the vicinity too.

 

Hida folk village (Hida no sato) is accessible by buses at the terminal of JR Takayama station; an hour at the village suffice.

 

Hida beef is a delicacy, if you have no diet contraints.

[Ehonda]

May I suggest you visit takayama old town and the Jinya on the same day as they are within proximity? Do visit the morning markets since you are around the vicinity too.

 

Hida folk village (Hida no sato) is accessible by buses at the terminal of JR Takayama station; an hour at the village suffice.

 

Hida beef is a delicacy, if you have no diet contraints.

 

tks for the adv, is Hida folk village in the Old Town? a bit blur here ... mix out with all the names ..

 

by the way, i wl be staying at Kanazawa(2 days), Takayama(1day) & Geron(1day) ang onsen ryokan ( not too ex ) to recomment?

[Ehonda]

Visiting Kobe, Himeji Castle & Nara on the same day may be a little too rush. That time i spent the whole morning at Nara from 9plus till lunch on one day. As for Himeji Castle, I visited it on another day, spent abt 3hrs there, excluding the time i took via train there. Travelling time takes up quite a bit of time....

 

thanks and i wl re-schedule again ... wl do Himeji Castle and Kobe ( hv dinner there) and another day for Nara ..

[David]

Namba - please visit to the electric town.

[Yattokame]

tks for the adv, is Hida folk village in the Old Town? a bit blur here ... mix out with all the names ..

 

by the way, i wl be staying at Kanazawa(2 days), Takayama(1day) & Geron(1day) ang onsen ryokan ( not too ex ) to recomment?

 

 

No, they are different :)

This is takayama old town - free of charge

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e5903.html

 

In the map at the middle of the page you can see the morning markets are quite near to the old town.

 

This is Hida no Sato (folk village) - paid entrance

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e5901.html

 

they are opposite directions from each other from JR takayama station

 

This is Gero Onsen

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e5990.html

 

I am sorry I cannot recommend any onsen ryokan in Gifu area as I always go to those along the Izu peninsular. :)

 

[Coburn]

hi

 

note you have included a lot of shrines, temples, castles, gardens - the more ancient and cultural part of japan

not sure if you will find it an overkill unless you are a big fan...

 

in kyoto, you can also consider Nishiki Market (link below)

 

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3931.html

 

We like it as it is food paradise.. can find all sorts of snacks and food there..

we bought dried scallops, tea, fruits etc

and the oyster stall at 1 end of the street is absolutely fresh and delicious (bbq on the spot and eat)

 

we like osaka as it is pretty modern.

Shinsaibashi street has nice shopping.. shops like Tokyu Hands, Loft has interesting household products

the other end of shinsaibashi is dontonburi, lots of food and restaurants.. further down is more shopping like takashimaya

 

if you intend to shop at takashimaya (burberry is cheaper in japan), pls bring your Singapore DBS taka card along.

can get 5% discount coupon if you pay using cash...

then go to customer service and claim back your 5% GST as well

 

for shopping, there is factory outlet near kensai international airport..

not as cheap as US but stil have decent buys...

bought levi's jeans @ S$20+, timberland shoes etc

check the outlet list first to see if you are interested in those shops

 

 

[Babyt]

in kyoto, u can go to arashiyama ... there is a bambo forest walk ...

 

that golden pavilion...hehe looks nice on pic right? but when u go there, all so crowded w students and tourists...and its just that standalone structure that is the attraction in the compound THATS ALL. ;p u need to pay to enter.

 

[Ehonda]

in kyoto, u can go to arashiyama ... there is a bambo forest walk ...

 

that golden pavilion...hehe looks nice on pic right? but when u go there, all so crowded w students and tourists...and its just that standalone structure that is the attraction in the compound THATS ALL. ;p u need to pay to enter.

 

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3912.html#river

 

one more place for me to go, did you Hozu River Boat Tours & Sagano Romantic Train ?

[Ehonda]

hi

 

note you have included a lot of shrines, temples, castles, gardens - the more ancient and cultural part of japan

not sure if you will find it an overkill unless you are a big fan...

 

in kyoto, you can also consider Nishiki Market (link below)

 

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3931.html

 

We like it as it is food paradise.. can find all sorts of snacks and food there..

we bought dried scallops, tea, fruits etc

and the oyster stall at 1 end of the street is absolutely fresh and delicious (bbq on the spot and eat)

 

we like osaka as it is pretty modern.

Shinsaibashi street has nice shopping.. shops like Tokyu Hands, Loft has interesting household products

the other end of shinsaibashi is dontonburi, lots of food and restaurants.. further down is more shopping like takashimaya

 

if you intend to shop at takashimaya (burberry is cheaper in japan), pls bring your Singapore DBS taka card along.

can get 5% discount coupon if you pay using cash...

then go to customer service and claim back your 5% GST as well

 

for shopping, there is factory outlet near kensai international airport..

not as cheap as US but stil have decent buys...

bought levi's jeans @ S$20+, timberland shoes etc

check the outlet list first to see if you are interested in those shops

 

one more place to go .. Nishiki Market .. we all love to eat .. hehe

 

all the shrines, temples, castles and gardens all i got during the research .. i just keep on adding .. hehe .. think need to re-adj .. believe one day cant finish soo many places ..