Wow, where to begin. I loved this trip through Japan. We had beautiful sunny days almost every day of the trip except for the last few days in Nara, which were more cloudy and had a few drizzles. I actually got quite a tan on my face and arms from being in the sun all the time. We got a lot of things done, saw tons of temples and other interesting sites, tried so much food that I think I gained a few pounds too. My shoes are so worn now from all the walking too, but it was totally worth it.
Tokyo: 9 until 14 April
Kyoto: 14 until 18 April
Nara: 18 until 21 April
Our accommodation:
Tokyo - Khaosan Kabuki Tokyo
Very recommended. We had the room with 2 bunkbeds, so we shared with two other people. Bed and bathroom facilities were clean and fine. The hostel is in a great location, close to many restaurants and walking distance to Sensoji Temple, which looks awesome at night. There is also a 24-hour department store called Don Quixote (I think the local people call it Donkey) near there which is cool to explore. Subway Ginza line is in walking distance as well and provides easy access to Ueno and transfer to a JR line. 7-Elevens are near there too, for ATM usage.
Kyoto - Super Hotel Shijo Kawaramachi
We wanted to stay in a hostel, but everything was booked for our dates so we settled for a hotel for this part of our trip. And it wasnt bad at all. Its a budget hotel located in the center of Kawaramachi. And in contrast to many other hotels, this one actually provides a free breakfast so that was quite nice. Its a simple breakfast of fresh bread, rice, salad, and some other stuff. Perfect to get some energy to start the day. The location of the hotel was excellent, about 2 minutes from Nishiki market and the Teramachi shopping district is less than 1 minute on foot. Its also quite convenient to walk from the hotel to the Gion district and see the geishas and temples there. Also so many restaurants, bars and cafes in walking distance. The one downside is that the hotel is a bit hard to find the first time, the directions of the hotel aren't clear and we walked around for about 2 hours trying to find (unfortunately we were given wrong directions too).
Nara - Yuzan Guesthouse
For Nara we stayed in Yuzan Guesthouse. We had the private room, so cant really comment on how the dorms were, but the private room was pretty cool. We slept on tatami mats and those were really comfortable. Theres a common room but not as lively as the Khaosan in Tokyo. Location is about 5 minutes walk from the JR Nara station. Its also very easy to find the Nara park from here as you just have to walk straight ahead along the main road. Service was pretty good as well. The place is clean and well-maintained.
Random unorganised thoughts:
- We arrived late at Haneda airport and crashing at the airport for the night was no problem. We went down to the lower floor and tried to get some rest on the benches there. Theres a 24-hour Lawson that serves food and drinks so it was convenient.
- At Haneda, you can also buy JR Shinkansen tickets at Tourism Travel Desk besides at the JR East office. The Tourism office opens earlier than the JR East one, so we just bought them there.
- Everywhere we went people in Japan were so friendly and helpful to us. We met some very nice people in the most unusual palces.
- Tokyo is still one of my favorite cities Ive visited. Love the diversity, the parks, the shopping, the layout, and also the transportation system.
- Kyotos transportation system somewhat sucks compared to Tokyos. It was a bit confusing for me to read the subway maps and the bus system.
- We got templed out after a while in Kyoto. There are just too many too see. Luckily Kyoto is varied enough with plenty other stuff to do. At times we loved the parks surrounding the temples more than the temples itself. Its a good idea to add some variety to your trip instead of going all out on temples imo.
- The Sumiya onsen in Kameoka is highly recommended. Hot, but an amazing experience all in all. Best part of the onsen experience was getting out of the bath and chilling in the cool weather with a warm body. We got the private bath, which is maybe not as traditional, but it was great. Silent, quiet enjoyment of the hot spring and the area.
- Food was less expensive than I thought. You can find a decent meal for under 1000 yen. The food was great overall, we didnt have a bad meal there.
- Language barrier was not a problem.
- Travelling by Nozomi Shinkansen was amazing. We didnt get to see Mt. Fuji, but it was still a hell of an experience. So fast and convenient.
- As far as prices went: Tokyo > Kyoto > Nara
- Japan is freaking beautiful even if we only saw some of the late late cherry blossoms.
About some places we visited:
- Akihabara was a bit boring to me, maybe because Im not much into that culture. It was fun for a while, but I wouldnt spend there too long. Exploring the backroads of that place was fun though and I think we stumbled upon a little black market in one of the parking garages over there. They were selling all kinds of equipment for very cheap including an awesome powerback for 200 yen. Nice deal.
- Studio Ghibli Museum was fun but less impressive the second time around. There wasnt much newness to it for me. Still nice to visit though and the weather was great. Thanks to Scarlet for helping with tickets too!
- Harajuku is awesome. I dont mean the main roads but the little back streets filled with boutique stores which are also less crowded in general.
- We loved the parks in Japan. Perfect for strolling, relaxing and having a great time. We visited many: Ueno, Meiji, Imperial Palace, Sumida, a bunch in Kyoto, and of course the parks in Nara.
- Kyoto was just a blast. Loved the Nishiki market, the food (burnt ramen, ippudo ramen, and some small boutique restaurants), walking around Gion, going up the temple gardens, visiting Arashiyama, the whole onsen experience in Kameoka, and the bars/cafe area in Kawaramachi.
- Nara was quite interesting too. Of course we visited the park and played with deers. We went to the temples, walked up the hills and ate ate ate so much. Our guesthouse had some nice recommendations for local restaurants so we tried those too.
- In Nara we organized a tour with the Nara Student Guide organization. It was really fun and I would recommend it heartily. We were guided by Kaede, fresh graduate from Nara Tourism University, and she showed us around some temples, explained their histories, brought us to the old part of town, got us into a sake testing shop (500 yen for 6 glasses of sake, plus you can keep the little glass afterwards), and some old houses. We had a lot of fun and it was free, we just needed to buy her lunch and transportation costs.
Hmm, I think I forgot to mention some things...
Ill post some pics once Im done with transferring and organizing them.