Beer vending machines, slurping noodles, face masks, geishas, and yes! Cherry Blossoms!
Since everybody here has been so helpful, I thought a trip report would be nice. We left las vegas on March 21st. Paid $870 RT to Bangkok on JAL, with a 2 week stopover in Japan (Star Tours, 323-644-1063). Since we are gone for 6 months, we left our luggage at a hotel near Narita that we would be staying at the night before we left (no cost!). Took the airport limo to our hotel ($30), the Renaissance in Ginza (traded in some Marriott points for this one).
Man, it was cold! We were not really prepared for the cold weather. I researched the weather online before we left, but just wan't ready for it being that cold.
We had fun in Tokyo (4 nights), but it is expensive! And since it was sooo cold, it took a little fun out of our time there. We left Tokyo for Takayama on a Sunday via a highway bus from Shinjuku station. What a great way to go. I think much better than the trains. You get to go into various small villages and cities. And the trip over the alps was great...yes, lots of snow...
The bus was almost 1/2 the price of the train. And no changes required all the way to Takayama. Just sit back and relax.
In Takayama we stayed at the Rickshaw Inn (about $100/night). Can't recommend it enough. Great place, fantastic staff. They really helped us out a lot. Takayama is a beautiful town. We were only there 2 nights, but got to see a lot. Most of what there is to see is in the old town, or on the walk around the town listed in most guide books (goes to all the major temples, and then some). We also got great walking guides off JNTO.COM. Good stuff there.
From Takayama we went to Tsumago to walk the old postal route (Nakasendo)from there to Magome. Whew...what a logistical nightmare it was to get there from Takayama. We took the train to Gero (about an hour), then the bus to Nakatsugawa (2 hours), then a bus to Magome (30 min), then one to Tsumago (30 min). Whew! An all day trip.
The first part of this was easy, as the tourist office in Tsumago were incredible. But, once in Gero, almost NOBODY spoke English. I mean nobody. We were down to trying to match Japanese characters to see if we were getting on the right bus. Frustrating, but everything went just fine. And as usual, the Japanese people were always ready to lend a helping hand.
We left our luggage in Magome at the tourist office, then caught the bus to Tsumago. Stayed at in Tsumago at Matsushiroya Ryokan ($200, including dinner and breakfast). It was awesome! Beautiful old, traditional Ryokan. The food was absolutely incredible. Quite the experience. But felt a little funny walking around in kimonos for dinner....
The walk back to Magome was fantastic. And yes, it snowed. But, we enjoyed it a lot. Fantastic walk. We then got a bus from Magome back to Nakatsugawa, took the train to Nagoya, then the bullet train to Kyoto. Another long day, especially after the 9KM walk.
Kyoto is just plain awesome. IMHO, way better than Tokyo. Easy to get around, very setup for tourists, and tons of stuff to see...almost too much. We are already planning our next trip back!
We stayed at the Econo Inn (about $55/night, with no daily service). The price was right, but it is a very run down hotel (and the bathrooms are incredibly tiny!). Pretty sad. The lady running it is very nice, but does not speak very good English. So, we could not get much help from the hotel for our tourist activities. Though the location was fantastic. Easy walking distance to many major areas and attractions, and right on a good bus route. Just relied on what we got from JNTO.COM and our guide book. Which was fine for us.
We were there 6 nights. Just about the right amount of time to see the city. We did not see Nara or any other places outside the city. The cherry blossoms were starting to come out, and were in almost full bloom when we left of the 6th. So, we had a blast walking around and enjoying looking at them. They are truly amazing.
The food in Kyoto is awesome. Ponto-Cho is great to walk around and check out the small canal and the cherry blossoms. And we saw quite a few geisha walking around that area. Dozens and dozens of places to eat there. As well as the Teramachi Arcade and surrounding areas. And don't forget the food in the basement of the Takashimaya Department Store! Unreal...also the nearby Nishiki-Koji Market.
We saw just about every major temple and garden while we were there. I am a garden fan and the Japanese are about the best you will find at this. Truly amazing. One of my favorites was at Taizo-in, located in the SW corner of Myoshin-ji. Beautiful.
The bus system is great. Get a map at the tourist office in Kyoto Station. We took them everywhere.
Again, JNTO.COM was great, as was JAPAN-GUIDE.com. And of couse, this web site! We booked the Ryokan via JAPANESEGUESTHOUSES.COM, and Econo Inn via Welcome Inn Reservation Center (
www.itcj.jp). We booked Rickshaw Inn via their website (
www.rickshawinn.com). Everything worked out perfectly.
We did not get a JR Rail Pass. It was just too expensive for 2 weeks. We bought train tickets when we needed them and overall, it worked out much cheaper. Especially since we took the bus to Takayama.
We don't speak any Japanese, but that did not really hurt us at all. The Japanese are so friendly and helpful. Just ask anybody and they will do their best to point the way. Though I butchered most names, they still got the gist.
So, overall, an absolutely fantastic trip. No problems, incredibly helpful and polite people, great food, and of course...cherry blossoms. Can't wait to go back!!!!