When my 91-year old father was asked if he still had anything on his "bucket list", and he said he wanted to take his boys to Japan, we jumped to make that happen.
Dad had visited Japan extensively and grew a strong appreciation for the people, the place, and its culture. I had been just a couple of times on business but never
as a tourist, and my husband and brother had never been. So we put together a great first experience tour, spending time in Tokyo and Kyoto, as well as Hakone
(a mountain resort famous for its traditional Japanese inns and hot springs) and Kanazawa (a real gem of Japanese cultural history).
Clicking on photos in this blog will take you to albums for that day or place, or
you're welcome to peruse our whole collection of albums from this trip.
Air Connections and Logistics
Tokyo is served by major airlines all over the world. Osaka is the only other Japanese city that has direct flights from the US. Because Tokyo has so many more flights, I thought it best to just begin and end our trip in Tokyo. Note that Tokyo has two airports: Narita (NRT), which is over an hour out of the city, and Haneda (HND), which is closer in. We flew into Narita and out of Haneda, driven more by preference about the time of day for arrivals and departures. Direct flights between LAX and Tokyo are over 11 hours. Our United flight from LAX to Narita left around 11am and arrived at 2:40pm the following day. Flights home typically leave in the evening. Ours left at 7:40pm and arrived at 1:40pm the same day (i.e., we arrived 6 hours before we departed). Traveling within the country, everything was by train between cities, and by subway or taxi within cities. The trains in Japan are famously fast and comfortable. We rented a car for one day for a day trip out of Kanazawa into the Japanese Alps.
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Tokyo (3 nights)
The Imperial Hotel is the classic grand dame of Tokyo hotels, originally designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, but with modern renovations.
This was a bit of a splurge, but it was so nice to arrive after that long flight into such comfortable accommodations. We were in a spacious room in the upper floors of the tower building
(Tower Building standard room, 30sqm/323sqft),
with a modern bathroom and a lovely view of Hibiya Park across the street. The location is very central, across the street from the Imperial Palace grounds, just a few blocks from Tokyo Station,
and on the edge of the Ginza (high end shopping district).
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Day 1 - Arrival in Tokyo
I think it best not to levy any expectations on your arrival day. If you have energy to go out, then go for it, but don't count on it. For us, it was around 5pm by the time we got settled in our hotel, and we just wanted to grab dinner right near the hotel, and then crash. We were in bed by 9pm, tired when we should be tired, and got a good night's sleep to start the next day fresh.
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Day 2 – Tokyo: Tsukiji Market, Shibuya, Harajuku, Meiji Jingu
 
In the morning, we walked from our hotel through the Ginza down to Tsukiji Market, a famous old wholesale fish market turned into a foodie paradise with several lanes of vendor stalls selling fish, shellfish, fruits, grilled and cured meats, and prepared foods like tamago (a kind of omelet cake). From there we taxied to Shibuya to see the famous scramble intersection where several large boulevards all come together, and as many as 3000 people at a time cross the intersection during a pedestrian all-directions scramble cycle of the traffic lights. We paid our respects at the statue of Hachiko, the famous faithful dog of Shibuya Station. From there, the Harajuku neighborhood is not far, full of trendy shops and younger people wearing the distinctive Harajuku fashion. Right next to Harajuku is the Meiji Jingu, a gorgeous Shinto shrine to a former emperor set in a 170-acre forest park, full of towering century-old trees, serenity in dramatic contrast to the bustling city surrounding it. We took the train back to our hotel, and lightly explored the Imperial Palace grounds before having a wonderful 9-course kaiseki dinner at Yachiyo across from the Palace.
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Day 3 – Tokyo: Sumo, Skytree, Tea ceremony, Senso-ji Temple
 
In the morning we went to a sumo stable in the Sumida Ward and watched the wrestlers' morning training regimen
(tour link). Afterward, we walked to the Tokyo Skytree where we went up the tower for the spectacular views across the city. After a tempura lunch in Asakusa, we enjoyed a tea ceremony experience where we were dressed in traditional kimono and had a lesson in the traditional ceremony of making tea. We then explored the Asakusa neighborhood, including the amazing Senso-ji Temple, with its pagoda, grand gate and lantern, and the ancient merchant-lined lane leading up to it. That evening we had a fantastic omakase sushi experience at Futaba Sushi, dating from 1877, in a small old building incongruously nestled among much taller modern buildings in the Ginza district.
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Hakone (2 nights)
The Mikawaya Ryokan, a very traditional Japanese country inn with a 140-year history, is like stepping back in time. You take off your shoes upon
entering the premises, and are encouraged to relax and wear slippers and a yukata (robe) around the hotel. The rooms all feature tatami mat woven floors, traditional Japanese furnishings,
and beautiful views of the surrounding woodlands. Traditional Japanese dinner and breakfast are provided (though a western breakfast is an option). The ryokan has its own onsen (hot springs baths),
and as per Japanese tradition, you bath in the communal onsen. A few high-end rooms have their own private baths. Our rooms just had a toilet and a sink, and we bathed in the onsen.
My brother was having none of that communal bathing, so while my father, my husband and I stayed in the ryokan, he opted to stay at the nearby
Fujiya Hotel, also 140 years old, but a grand classic western-style hotel with Japanese themed decor which has hosted both Hollywood royalty and actual European royalty.
We were all very satisfied with our choices.
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Day 4 – Travel to Hakone
 
Move from Tokyo to the traditional mountain resort of Hakone. We took the train from Tokyo to Odawara, where we had lunch, and then took a taxi up to Hakone. In the afternoon, we just relaxed and enjoyed our ryokan (traditional Japanese country inn) and its onsen (hot spring baths). A ryokan is typically a full board experience (breakfast and dinner included), with dinner being a traditional multi-course feast featuring nabe ("hot pot" - food cooked in a pot of hot broth at the table).
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Day 5 – Explore Hakone: The Ropeway, Lake Ashi Cruise
 
In the morning, we enjoyed a choice of a traditional Japanese breakfast featuring ingredients from Sagami Bay and the Hakone area, or a western breakfast if you like. We then set out to do the "Hakone circuit", a very scenic route starting with a funicular train that connects to a "ropeway" (cable gondolas up the mountain), and then a "pirate ship" cruise across Lake Ashi. Some days you'll get beautiful views of Mount Fuji from the lake, but even if Fuji is hidden in clouds, the lake and its surrounding area are beautiful. In the afternoon, we checked out the nearby Morinoyu hot spring baths, a lovely series of connected hot spring pools and baths set in a rock garden with views of the surrounding mountain forests. Dinner was once again a multi-course feast at our ryokan.
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Kyoto (4 nights)
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Day 6 – Travel from Hakone to Kyoto; Teppanyaki and Yasaka Shrine
 
After another Japanese breakfast feast at our ryokan, we set out for Kyoto, taxi down to the Odawara train station, and then high-speed bullet train to Kyoto. We enjoyed ramen for lunch in a Kyoto shopping district. In the evening, we set out for the Gion (historic geisha district) where we enjoyed a fantastic teppanyaki meal at
Planca Ken. After dinner, we wandered some Gion alleyways and explored the nearby Yasaka Temple, which is beautifully lit up at night.
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Day 7 – Kyoto: Higashi Hongan-ji temple, Shosei-en garden, Pontocho Alley / Gion
 
This was a pretty rainy day and for us it was a good opportunity to take a low-key recharge day. We just did some light exploring within walking distance of our hotel.
The Higashi Hongan-ji Temple is a large campus of ornate temple structures that one can wander around. A few blocks away, the Shosei-en garden is a large
traditional Japanese garden with manicured trees, ponds, lovely wooden bridges and pavilions.
For dinner this evening, we tried yakiniku (sliced Wagyu beef and other meats cooked on grills embedded in each table)
at a place with no English name down the Pontocho alley in the Gion (historic geisha district).
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Day 8 – Kyoto: Arashiyama Bamboo Grove, Kinkaku-ji Golden Temple, Kaiseki dinner
 
This was a beautiful day and we headed out to the Arashiyama District on the western side of Kyoto (about 25 min taxi ride) to wander the famous bamboo forest.
Coming down through the park by the river, you come to an area where there are many temples, with Tenryu-ji being the most significant. We enjoyed discovering its
gorgeous pavilions and gardens, contemplating the beautiful scenes that inspired centuries of monks. We walked the scenic Togetsukyo Bridge over the Katsura River
for a late lunch. We could have stayed for the nearby monkey park to watch macaques frolic in the forest, but instead we chose to cab it over to Kinkaku-ji
where we were able to catch the late afternoon sun on the famous Golden Pavilion.
That evening we celebrated a milestone birthday for my brother with a multi-course kaiseki dinner in a private room at the Michelin-starred
Shimogayo Saryo.
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Day 9 – Kyoto: Fushimi Inari, Nara
 
Another beautiful day and we made it an ambitious one. In the morning, we climbed a fair ways up the Fushimi Inari shrine, a famous and very Instagrammable mountain trail
lined with thousands of crimson torii gates, with hundreds of little shrines along the way, and lots of fox statues (the fox being sacred to this place).
In the afternoon we took a 40-minute train ride down to Nara, well worth the visit for Nara Park, a vast park abutting the town of Nara and going up a mountain,
containing some truly awe-inspiring temples. The UNESCO World Heritage site includes the Todai-ji Temple with a gigantic bronze Buddha statue,
and the Kasuga Taisha, a Shinto shrine dating from 768 A.D. with hundreds of lanterns decorating ornate vermillion pavilions. The famous bonus of Nara Park
is that it is filled with small gentle deer which are considered sacred and have no fear of people. If you bow down to the deer, they will often bow back.
And they may allow you to pet them and take pictures with them, especially if you feed them.
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Kanazawa (3 nights)
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Day 10 – Kiyomizudera, Travel to Kanazawa
 
Our last morning in Kyoto, we visited the beautiful hilltop Kiyomizudera shrine, and then walked down the ancient pedestrian shop streets that lead to it.
We lucked out to be there on the day of the Jida Matsuri festival, a traditional Kyoto holiday, so there were many locals visiting this area in their
elaborate kimonos (traditional costume).
In the afternoon, we took another shinkansen (bullet train) from Kyoto to Kanazawa, just under two hours, leaving us plenty of time to settle in,
explore our new neighborhood a bit, and enjoy a dinner of skewers (both meat and veggie).
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Day 11 – Alpine day trip: Takayama, Hida-no-sato open air folk museum
 
We rented a car for the day to visit the "Japanese Alps", an easy day trip from Kanazawa. The town of Takayama has a well-preserved historic core
where you can see several streets of wooden shops and homes from the Edo period (1600s to mid 1800s). A few wealthy merchant homes are preserved
as museums with period furniture. Century-old sake breweries still sell their wares there. Just a short distance out of town is the Hida no Sato
"open air museum", where many historic homes and buildings from the area have been relocated and restored to recreate a centuries-old traditional
village characteristic of this area, with each house in the village representing different traditional crafts and occupations.
(Renting a car for the day was easy to do near the train station, and made the Alps more accessible, with a 1:45 drive versus probably over
three hours getting up there by bus and train.)
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Day 12 – Kanazawa Castle, Kenroku-en Garden, Higashi Chaya geisha district
 
We spent this day exploring the highlights of Kanazawa, a small city that flourished in the samurai period
and has some real historic gems. Kanazawa Castle Park features the remnants of the feudal fortress castle
from the 1600s. Nearby is the Kenroku-en garden, a traditional Japanese garden considered to be one of the
most beautiful in Japan, and with a preserved Edo period manor house in the center. Just across the river
is the Higashi Chaya district, a well-preserved neighborhood of pedestrian streets and traditional wooden
buildings that had been geisha houses back in the day.
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Tokyo (3 nights)
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Day 13 – Kanazawa Samurai district, travel to Tokyo, Asakusa at night
 
In the morning, we wandered over to the Samurai district, where a number of homes from the feudal era are
preserved, and some can be toured. We toured one particularly good one called Nomura-ke, where a samurai
knight had lived, and enjoyed its carved wood details and lovely garden. On the walk back to our hotel,
we stumbled onto the impressive Oyama Shrine so stopped in for a visit, and wandered through the
Omicho Market, a huge foodhall full of farmers, fish mongers, and prepared food vendors hawking their
delicious wares. In the afternoon, we took the shinkansen (bullet train) for the 2.5 hour ride to Tokyo.
That evening, we went to the Asakusa neighborhood for dinner and to see the Senso-ji Temple
and its vendor lane all lit up at night.
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Day 14 – Nikko day trip
Nikko, a town in the mountains, is famous for the stunning Toshogu Shrine, a whole complex of fantastically
ornate temples, gates, pagodas, and shrines, leading up to the grave-shrine for Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first
shogun from the early 1600s. The shrine is set amidst a magical forest of towering cedar trees. There is a
lovely river and picturesque bridge separating the temple mount from the town. Well worth a day trip from Tokyo
(48 minute shinkansen to Utsunomiya, then hour scenic train ride up the mountain).
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Day 15 – Kamakura day trip
Kamakura, a seaside town about an hour south of central Tokyo by train, is most famous for the gigantic
bronze Buddha statue that has stood for centuries and withstood tsunamis. In addition to this awesome sight,
Kamakura offers several beautiful and historic temples and shrines, a bamboo grove, a scenic promenade
down its main street, and a nice pedestrian shopping street.
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Day 16 – Explore Shinjuku before heading home
Our last day in Tokyo we explored the Shinjuku neighborhood, a bustling district of bright lights,
highrises, massive department stores, 3D holographic billboards, and a lifesize Godzilla statue
attacking a highrise hotel. We then headed back to our hotel to pack and get ready for our evening
flight home.
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Reflections and Recommendations
We were very happy with how this trip turned out. I think we struck a good balance of seeing several different places,
but also staying in places long enough to get to know them a bit. For the length of time we had, I wouldn't have changed
anything. When planning this, the one uncertainty was Kanazawa, which I hadn't heard of before, but was recommended by
knowledgeable friends. It was definitely a trade-off, since including Kanazawa meant not going to Hiroshima and other
sights in western Honshu. But especially for those who appreciate culture and history, Kanazawa was a real gem,
and was the right choice for us. (Logistically, it also made a tighter loop around central Honshu, whereas Hiroshima
would have required more travel time.)
Notes On Timing
Mid-October seemed like a great time. The weather was mostly mild and we only had a couple days of rain.
We were a bit early for the dramatic fall foliage that comes in late October / early November, but we did
get a taste of it with some eager maples starting to turn. On the other hand, we did avoid the peak crowds
that come with peak foliage season (the taxi drivers and locals we spoke to were bracing for the onslaught
that would come in a couple weeks).
Notes On Money
The Japanese yen was about 2/3 of a cent when we were there (150 yen = $1), so just slide the decimal over
two places and then take a third off.
We'd heard rumors that Japan was fairly cash-loving and credit card phobic, we found that not to be true.
While cash is certainly used more there than here at home, we found our credit cards (and even Apple Pay) readily accepted
in restaurants, taxis, and most ticket booths for sights. (In general, I like the Apple Card for international expenses, because they
have no foreign transaction fees. The only glitch I had with that was when using my Apple Card to buy
train tickets on the Japan Rail website, and then not being able to pick up the tickets at the station
because they insisted I present a physical card.) If you want cash, ATMs are easy to find, including in
most of the 7/11 and similar convenience stores which are pervasive in Japan. We also highly recommend
getting the e-SUICA app, which is a stored-value "card" that you can keep in your Apple or Google Wallet,
enabling you to use your smart phone to tap on and off all of the trains and subways and buses in Tokyo and Kyoto.
It is also accepted at many convenience stores (and at the Nikko shrine visit, we were lucky to have it, as
it was the only form of payment accepted!).
Notes On Language
We've gotten spoiled in Europe where English has become quite pervasive. In Japan, not so much. Some people
speak it well, some not at all, and perhaps most studied it in high school but speak it as well as you speak
that language you studied in high school. On the other hand, there is at least more signage now in English
lettering than I recall from thirty years ago. And Google Translate is huge (many store clerks are adept
at translation apps on their smartphones if they don't speak English). And I will add that Japanese people
in general are extraordinarily helpful. If you stop a stranger and ask for directions, they'll do their
best to understand your question, and more often than not, they won't just point, they'll walk you to where
you're wanting to go.
Notes On Gluten-Free Food
Japan is probably one of the most challenging places for those with a gluten intolerance to visit. Celiac disease is little
known in Japan (it is genetic and mostly occurs among people of European ancestry), the restaurant culture is not highly
allergy conscious, and Japanese cuisine has pervasive hidden gluten (between soy sauce and malt vinegar). That being said,
it is possible. We chose to use a travel service called Gluten Free Tours Japan
which specializes in making Japan accessible for the gluten-intolerant. Our trip would have been nearly impossible for us
without them, and they made it thoroughly enjoyable. My celiac husband was able to enjoy a wide variety of Japanese foods,
and they took that big worry off our plates, allowing us just to enjoy our travels.
Notes On Cost
Japan has a reputation for being very expensive, but that may be outdated. Hotels could be slightly expensive, especially if you prefer to spend more to get more space (Japanese hotel rooms can be quite small). Our hotels averaged $350/night, but one could certainly stay comfortably for less. On the other hand, meals seemed quite inexpensive. On the very high end, we had one 4-course kaiseki dinner in a private dining room for an all-in cost of $150/person, and we had a similar dinner in a private room at a Michelin star restaurant for $225/person (these were anticipated splurges, and I think comparable meals in LA would cost much more). For more ordinary but still very nice dinners, we spent ~$70/person for an omakase sushi dinner and $75/person for a teppanyaki dinner that featured steak and lobster and was one of our favorites (definitely less than we'd pay in LA). Lunch in a sit-down restaurant was often $15-30/person. Taxis seemed quite reasonable, comparable to Uber's early pre-pandemic prices. Bullet trains between cities ranged $80-150/person for 2-3 hour rides that got you there faster than flying and as comfortably.
For our international airfare, we flew United between LAX and Tokyo, and were able to get $5000 roundtrip business class (cubicles with lie-flat seats).
I can't give my usual cmprehensive detailed cost breakdown on this trip, for a couple of reasons. First, we booked a package with Gluten Free Japan Tours that included most of our hotels and also included their invaluable meal planning and consulting/concierge service, as well as a few other things, with no way to break out the costs. Also, we traveled with my father and brother for part of the trip, with each of us picking up various tabs. But if you don't have an allergy issue, I'd estimate you could replicate our trip for a little over $9,000 excluding international airfare, which is a little over $600/night.
(And if you do have a gluten allergy, we would highly recommend Gluten Free Japan Tours.)
Notes On Driving in Japan
For most all of Japan, a car is unnecessary, but we did find it a helpful way to get into the Japanese Alps for a day. Like Britain, they drive on the left in Japan, and the driver's side of the car is on the right.
The roads we saw were all well-maintained and well-signed, using standard international signs for important things, and at least on the highways, most place names were printed in "Roma-ji" (English writing) as well as
Japanese characters. Google Maps is definitely your friend for navigating, and worked well there. (It actually works great as a pedestrian navigating the subways and trains too!) Drivers are generally more
orderly and polite than in America.
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