Korean Job Discussion Forums

[sonicmatt]

I am looking to spend 10 days in Japan during Summer Break. I know this is probably not enough time to see everything but was wondering what people with experience travelling over recommend and what cities. I do want to see Osaka, Tokyo and Kyoto. I also would not mind being in the countryside for a day or two and seeing some sites there as well. Any and all recommendations would be helpful. Also, some ideas on types of places to stay would be great too. Thanks.

[Otherside]

I've got the same idea. I'll be watching this thread with interest

[farrepatt]

I've answered this question a couple of times before, so most of this is cut and paste from a previous post of mine:

"Any chance you're getting a Japan Rail pass? That's far and away the best way to see Japan. There's so many amazing things to see.

I can't say Tokyo is my favourite, I prefer the Kyoto-Nara area. If you do get the rail pass some must sees are:

Hiroshima. The peace park and A-bomb dome are quite powerful and worth a visit. I found it to be quite a powerful experience to stand pretty much directly below where the first atomic bomb was dropped. When I took my wife there last February we even met a survivor of the bomb (technically, his mother was 6 months pregnant with him when it exploded). He showed us his documents showing that he was a survivor and showed us a few spots that I didn't notice my first visit. He told us a few stories too that I'll never forget. All he wanted in return was a pin or small souvenir from our country. He told me he visits the site regularly to tell people about the horrors of atomic weapons.

Miyajima. If you go to Hiroshima, you should swing by Miyajima in the afternoon. It's about 25 minutes by train outside Hiroshima and another 10 minutes by ferry. Considered one of Japan's "top 3 views". It has a huge torii in the water as you approach (you'll probably recognize it if you've ever seen any photos of Japan). The island itself I believe is considered a holy island and there are deer wandering around and you can see monkeys if you hike up the hill.

Himeji Castle. Probably Japan's best preserved castle. About 45 minutes by bullet train from Osaka/Kyoto. Easily one of the more beautiful places in Japan. Though I really love Japanese castles.

Mt. Fuji (You can spot it from the bullet train on the way towards Osaka from Tokyo, though I'd recommend stopping for a closer look. I like to get the Hakone pass so I can get up close to it, but that's expensive and takes a full day. Though Fuji is one of my favourite sites in the world).

Nikko. Nikko is much closer to Tokyo, so even if you don't get a train pass you can probably still get there for cheap enough. It's where some of the famous shoguns are buried. It's quite beautiful.

Kamakura. Another trip you can do from Tokyo in a day. It's famous for the outdoor Buddha, which I believe is Japan's 2nd largest (behind Todaiji Temple in Nara). It's pretty neat. You can even go inside it if you'd like. I've seen a lot of Buddha's around the world, but never been allowed to go inside one aside from this one. There are also a few neat temples around Kamakura aside from the one with the large Buddha.

Odawara. If you don't get a rail pass and can't get to Himeji castle. Odawara is about an hour or so from Tokyo and it has a small castle. It's nothing compare to Himeiji or Matsumoto (near Nagano) but it's alright. I'd pair this with seeing Mt. Fuji as it's a great jumping point to Hakone (the national park around mt. fuji).

I haven't included Nara or Kyoto, because there's just too much to write about there. They could take up your whole week alone. I'd strongly recommend spending a day in Nara and two in Kyoto if you have time. That isn't nearly enough, but there are quite a lot of world heritage sites in the Kyoto area. If you think you'll go I can write up some info on that. If you go to Kyoto, both Hiroshima and Himeji Castle are fairly easy day trips from there (with the rail pass)."

Here's a how I'd plan a possibly itinerary (I did a similar route with my wife last year):

Day 1
Flew to Hiroshima. Headed into the hotel and then spent the afternoon at Miyajima (and island about 20 minutes from Hiroshima)

Day 2
Morning at Peace Park and A-Bomb Dome
Afternoon at Himeji Castle (about an hour and a half by bullet train)
Night in Kyoto (about 40 minutes by bullet train from Himeji)

Day 3
Kyoto: Golden Pavilion (probably Kyoto's most famous site), Ryoanji (apparently the best Zen rock garden in Japan..and therefore likely the world), Kiyomizudera (a beautiful temple in the hills of Kyoto).

Day 4
Morning: Fushimi Inari (about 15 minutes from Kyoto station by train). A temple with tonnes of Torii gates. You can hike through the thousands up a hill.
Late Morning: Byodoin Temple: Phoenix Hall (about 20 minutes past Fushimi Inari I think)
Afternoon: Nara (Todaiji Temple - Japan's largest Buddha and the world's biggest wooden building, Deer Park, Kasuga Grand Shrine)

Day 5
Kyoto. Gion area, Palace, more Temples, shopping, etc... You can spend over a week easily in the Kyoto/Nara area without getting bored.

Day 6
Hakone National Park to view different angles of Fuji (better in winter than summer though. Fuji can be elusive in the summer). In the summer you might be off with an extra day in Kyoto or Nara.

Day 7
Tokyo and Kamakura (about an hour from Tokyo). The Kamakura part is optional. If you're templed out it's not worth the trek.

Day 8
Nikko (about 1:30 from Tokyo) or Matsumoto Castle (about 2 hours from Tokyo).

Day 9
Tokyo (I don't overly like Tokyo myself so I'd probably spend an extra day in Kyoto over this, but if you've never been to Japan you might enjoy more time in the Tokyo area).

Day 10
Fly from Tokyo back to Korea.

If you're getting a 7 day rail pass this works fairly well. If you'd prefer to fly in and out of the same spot, I'd fly into Osaka. Then do Hiroshima as a day trip and Himeji Castle as a half day trip. Though start with Kyoto and activate the JR pass after you've spent you time in kyoto as you won't use the JR pass in Kyoto aside from the trip to Nara. You can easily get from Tokyo to Osaka's airport in a half day too. It's about 2.5 hours from Tokyo to Osaka and another hour to the airport.

Hope this helps. Feel free to ask for more details.

[harlowethrombey]

Yes, Farrepatt is spot on.

Osaka is not really worth seeing if you only have 10 days.

My suggestions are: Tokyo and up to Nikko.

Kyoto and Nara

Hiroshima and def. Miyajima.

If you have time on your way to Hiroshima try and stop and see Himeji castle, it's worth it!

[sjv8603]

Thanks for the very detailed info Farrepatt. I'm also planning a trip to Japan. I'm wondering if there's a website with train schedules in English?- hate to miss the last train, then get a late start the next day.
Also, where's the best place to buy the rail pass- any old train station or the net?

[farrepatt]

The best site I know of for train info in English is:

http://www.jorudan.co.jp/english/norikae/e-norikeyin.html

It's pretty amazing the info you can get out of it if you know the station names you're traveling from and to.

As for the JR Pass. You need to buy it before entering Japan. You can't get it in country. I've always just bought mine from a travel agent in Korea. I think I used Unique Travel, but any respectable one should be able to get you one. They are all issued by the Japan Tourism Board so the price is fairly standard. Just Google "JR Pass" and you should be able to find the current price in yen.

Once you have a voucher for the pass you can exchange it for the actual JR Pass in country at all major JR stations and airports. You can even activate it for a few days ahead of time if you want. When I landed in Osaka I activated mine at the airport for a few days later (not wanting it to be active for my couple of days in Kyoto).

Hope this helps.

[Xuanzang]

You can buy it at Lotte or Hana Tour locations as well. Same standard price.

[sonicmatt]

Cool guys thanks alot. Would any of you know of the best places stay-hostels, tube hotels, hotels, inns etc? And maybe average price. I might be doing a bit of travelling on my own since people are backing out.

[farrepatt]

I always stay at the Toyoko Inn.

It's probably not the cheapest you could find, but it's a decent hotel chain with a free breakfast and usually located near major train stations. You can find them in most towns and even make reservations online in English. The prices vary depending on the city and location.

http://www.toyoko-inn.com/eng/

By the way, the breakfast is Japanese style. So if you don't like rice balls and miso soup then you won't enjoy it. They do make the rice balls and miso there so it is very fresh. I quite like it, but I love Japanese food.