20 full days in Central/Western Honshu
 

I'm really looking forward to my 20 day trip to Japan in late March during cherry blossom season.

I'm still in the process of deciding what I want to see but I do know that the trip will only be to Central-Western Honshu.

I'd appreciate any input regarding the following questions:

- Which travel guide did you find most helpful? I have The "Eyewitness Travel Japan" and "Tokyo" guides as well as "Lonely Planet Japan" and "Lonely Planet Tokyo Encounter".

- Any specific recommended maps?

- How many days would you recommend I spend in each of the places mentioned? At the moment I'm thinking:

Nikko - 1 day

Hakone - 1-2 days

Tokyo - 7 days

Kyoto - 2-3 days

Nara - 0.5-1 day

Iga –Ueno - ? days - Supposed to be a ninja museum here. Anyone been here?

Osaka - 1-2 days (Is Osaka very different than Tokyo? Is it easy to spot Yakuza here?)

Mount Koya - 0.5-1 day

Himeji - 0.5-1 day

Hiroshima - 0.5-1 day

Miyajima island - 0.5-1 day (including 1 night). Does the great torii gate of Itsukushima shrine appear to be in water during this time of year?

Iwakuni - few hours - 0.5 day – Is it worth coming to see the bridge?

- Where would you spend the night to visit these spots? I was thinking Tokyo (for Nikko as well), Hakone, Kyoto, Osaka, Mount Koya (heard it's nice there at night) and Miyajima island.

- Any other place in Honshu you'd recommend?

- My cousin and I are thinking of flying into Tokyo and leaving the next day to other spots on our tour in order to leave Tokyo for last. We figure that we can always find something to do there where in other spots on our trip we should have a more fixed timetable. Do you think that this is a good idea?

- Good Hotel/Ryokan/accommodations you can recommend from experience in these places? Has anyone spent a night in one of the monastaries at Mount Koya? Miyajima island? Hakone? Good Ryokan in Kyoto?

- While my budget isn't limitless and I would prefer to spend the night in places that would cost less than 100 USD per night per person (I'll be travelling with my cousin so we'll share a room) , I would like to spend at least one night in a 5 star super modern luxurious hotel in Tokyo. Any recommendations? I was thinking of the Park Hyatt as an option. Oh, if you have recommendations for exceptional accommodations (places you think are worth to stay in a more expensive hotel/ryokan) in my other planned spots, I'd love to hear about them.

- Should I get a Suica card or PASMO card while in Tokyo?

- Would you recommend a 14 day JR pass for such a trip?

- This may sound like a weird/stupid question but I’ll ask anyway. I don’t speak Japanese and since I’ve heard that English isn’t understood by many locals outside of Tokyo, I’ve bought the Berlitz Japanese phrasebook. Has anyone used it? Let’s say I use it to ask a local a question. Even if he/she understands what I’m asking, how will I understand their response?

- Is it worth buying a DSLR camera in Shinjuku-Tokyo or are the prices not THAT cheap?

Finally, I've checked out a few Ryokan to try and book online but they don't seem to accept bookings for April at this time. I read that Japan starts the new year in April yet I was wondering when will it be possible to book for April in these places. Anyone ran into this problem?

Thanks for your help!

First off, speaking from the perspective of a photographer :) Cameras in Japan are not all that cheaper than those in North America. So if you are from the State or Canada (Sorry didn't check your info), you might as well get it there.

Iga-Ueno - Yes there is a ninja museum. Its interesting if you are really into that Ninja culture, but the theme is more mythical and legend centric, it doesn't truly represent the ninja culture in the old days

7 days in tokyo seems a bit overkill, does it also cover Yokohama? I would recommed spending at least 1 days in Yokohama.

Hakone for 2 days sounds good

2-3 days in Kyoto should also be ok. But if you planned on completing the route for Fushimi Inari, do expect that will take at least another half a day. So maybe you can spend 1 day in Nara AND Fushimi. If not, still plan for 1 day in Nara. THere are enoguh to see and do there.

Koya is nice, a bit remote and it will take you a full day.

I will let other comments on their experieince with the "language barrier". It is true that many Japanese don't speak or understand english, but some JR station have attendant that do, so you maybe able to get some help from these guys....

Good luck and have a lot of fun :) Do take pictures and post it up :)

Thanks for the input godwine!

I think you actually have a pretty good itinerary. I agree with Godwine to give yourself at least a day in Yokohama.

Hiroshima is pretty far, and a half day in Himeji is probably enough. I would add a day in Nara and maybe a meal in Kobe.

Ask anyone from Osaka and Tokyo if the two cities are that different and the resounding answer is yes. I think the two cities have very different styles and personalities.

The guys that look like yakuza probably aren't and the true yakuza look like normal guys. I would take that off your list of things to do unless you want to lose that brand new camera of your.

I personally didn't find much to see in Hiroshima, so maybe he can even skip that and just hop over the MIyajima, but the best bet is to stay in or around Hiroshima, as Miyajima really can't qualify as a day trip?

Osaka is fun... lots of food, lots of shopping...... ... but I still like Yokohama more :)

you seem to have a fairly good idea of where you want to go, and what you want to see.
the only thing i would suggest is give yourself one full day to recoup from Jet Lag at the beginning..
it took me a little while when i first arrived; but then, by the time we'd got off the plane, had a meeting in Tokyo then got the train to Kyoto, then another to out friend's village (and the car journey back) we'd been travelling for at least 40 hours solid (including the plane journey / getting to the airport in the UK)
:ywave:

hope you have fun; and please post up some pics when you get back :p

I agree with the jet lag thing. For those of you who traveled from the Americas, should I try and stay awake during the flight to Japan, thus arriving really tired so that I can sleep in the hotel? Or, should I sleep on the plane? It's going to be a looooong day. 2 flights, a few hours in Los Angeles (heard the airport sucks) and a Singapore Airlines flight to Tokyo. Total of about 18 hours and 16 time zones.

Since I'm arriving in Tokyo a day before my cousin, I'll have a full day for myself. I could use it to rest or go see something by myself. What would you recommend I do on my own on the first day in Tokyo, something that my cousin won't miss out on or that is interesting enough to see twice?

Once he arrives and sleeps at the hotel at night, we'll head out in the morning towards Hiroshima and make our way up the coast to Kansai.

I won't worry too much about the jet lag.... but if you really want, you can try pushing yourself to do short naps on the flight, and then you can sleep when you get there

I slept my way through the entire flight and sleep again when I arrived everytime I go

You guys have mentioned Yokohama. What's there that you recommend it so highly?

Regarding Kamakura. Is it a must or going to Nara is kind of the same?

A meal in Kobe? Where would you recommend? Does a good meal of Kobe beef cost a lot?

What time do you arrive in Tokyo? That really determines whether you should sleep on the flight or not. If you are arriving at 5pm Tokyo time you should try and prepare your body for it being 5pm. For me I always try and stay awake through the flight so I am tired at night when I arrive at my destination. However, because you have a nights sleep before needing to go anywhere don't worry about it.

I will second LAX being a bad experience. I flew through there on my last trip to Japan. Unless your flight into LAX is on Singapore Airlines you will have to travel to a different terminal and go back through security. There are something like 8 seperate terminals and it takes around 20-30 minutes to get all the way around on the airport shuttle. The international terminal is old and was undergoing some renovations when I was there in late September. It was dark and uncomfortable with no wireless and poor cellphone access once past security.