First Time in Japan: 21 Day Itinerary
We travelled to Japan for the first time recently. Here’s how we spent our 21 nights in Japan… as well as some reflections on how I’d do things differently if I had my time again.
Tokyo – 2 nights
Accommodation: Hotel Sunroute Ginza
We chose to stay in Ginza to get our bearings on arrival in Tokyo. It’s an upmarket part of the city with some great shopping. We wandered around Ginza and explored on our one full day in the neighbourhood. A highlight for me was the beautiful stationery stores: the 12 floor Ginza Itoya, and 400 year old Kyukodo.
Hakone – 2 nights
Accommodation: Hakone Suimeisou
After leaving Tokyo, we traveled to Hakone. A hot spring town that’s a popular destination as a day trip from Tokyo.
Osaka – 3 nights
Accommodation: Hotel Granvia Osaka
We spent three fairly relaxed nights in Osaka, exploring the city, Dotonburi, and enjoying the famous street food.
Okayama – 4 nights
Accommodation: Hotel Granvia Okayama
Relaxation time was over once we got to Okayama. We used it as a convenient base to (jam)pack in a few day trips to:
1. Hiroshima (on our travel day between Osaka & Okayama)
2. Kibiji bike trail
3. Miyajima
4. Naoshima Art Island
5. Himeji Castle (on our travel day between Okayama & Kyoto)
Kyoto – 4 nights
Accommodation: Ryokan Mugen
We loved our time in Kyoto despite experiencing some of the most hectic crowds of the trip. From here we also squeezed in a day trip to Nara, which was definitely a highlight.
Kanazawa – 3 nights
Accommodation: Onyado NoNo Kanazawa
Three nights in Kanazawa felt like a breath of fresh air after the crowds of Kyoto. We enjoyed exploring the quieter, more compact city with it’s beautiful gardens, gold-leaf crafts and Samurai history.
Tokyo – 3 nights
Accommodation: Hotel Century Southern Tower
On our return to Tokyo we chose to stay in Shinjuku. It was another great base for shopping which was our priority for the last couple of days of our trip!
What I’d do differently:
– If I had my time again, I’d drop the three nights in Osaka. Instead I’d stay 7 nights at Ryokan Mugen in Kyoto (our favourite place to stay!) and just make Osaka a day trip. The two cities are only 20 mins apart by Shinkansen.
– All the day trips from Okayama worked well, but it was a hectic few days! Instead of staying four nights in Okayama, we probably could have moved around a bit more. Perhaps we could have spent two of the nights in Hiroshima since we had to go through there for Miyajima anyway. Spending the night on Naoshima and/or Miyajima would have also been lovely. I’ve seen some people recommend staying overnight on Miyajima to enjoy the quieter atmosphere before and after the day tourists.
– Overall, I think we planned out an excellent first trip itinerary. Next time I’d try and get a little more off the beaten track. But I would love to go back to Kyoto and stay at Ryokan Mugen a second time.
