Perhaps it’s your first time traveling far from home or it’s your first trip to a foreign-speaking country. Perhaps it’s your first time in Asia or maybe it’s all of the above. Regardless of the reason, planning a trip to Japan can feel overwhelming; I know it did at least for me when I booked a trip to Japan for my boyfriend and I within a month and a half of our departure. Here’s the thing – when you find a great deal on Going (formerly Scott’s Cheap Flighs), you gotta book the flight.
I am the type of planner who likes a lot of time before a trip to research things to do, see, eat, etc. so that I have a general idea of what I’d like the trip to include and I quickly learned there are endless options in Japan. I knew our 6-day itinerary would leave me craving more but it’s all the PTO I could take at the time and I was going to make the best of it. A 6-day itinerary is significantly better than not traveling to Japan at all, right?!
Here’s what we did:
Day 1: From Nashville to Kyoto
I booked a flight from Nashville to Tokyo on Air Canada for $550 round trip (yep!) with a layover in Toronto. The flight from Nashville to Toronto was quick and we had lots of time to gear up for our next leg of the journey, a 13 hour flight from Toronto to Tokyo (HND) in economy.
After arriving into Tokyo at about 5pm the next day, we started the next leg of our journey via the 2 hours and 40 minutes bullet train to Kyoto. We arrived into Kyoto by 9pm and were absolutely exhausted. Needless to say, this was a very long “day” of travel…
Pro Tip: Stop in the station markets for a bento (called an “ekiben”) that are specifically designed for enjoying on a bullet train.
Days 2 & 3: Kyoto
Next we spent two full days exploring Kyoto’s Nishiki Market; Gion, Kyoto’s geisha district; the Imperial Palace; and of course eating ramen and sampling the best snacks from 7-Eleven. Seriously, don’t sleep on the 7-Elevens. Some of the best onigiri, fried chicken, and unique and curious salty and sweet options to sample.
We knew one of the days would be dedicated to exploring the Fushimi Inari-taisha Shrine which is a quick train ride away from Kyoto’s city center. We took the Keihan Line to Fushimi Inari Station and spent the day wandering through the shrine. One thing that really struck me is how peaceful it is there. We were there in January so it wasn’t too crowded but even still, the entire area is calm and quiet.
The shrine is famous for its thousands of orange torii gates which lead to trails behind the main area. Dedicated to Inari, the shrine includes fox statues throughout the grounds which were thought to be Inari’s messengers. The hike to the top of the mountain and back takes a few hours and offers stunning views from the summit.
The shrine is free to visit and really is a great way to spend a day.
Day 4: Hakone
The next morning we hopped on another bullet train, this time heading back east from Kyoto to Hakone for what was the highlight of the trip. My one desire for this trip was to experience staying in a traditional ryokan and, after a tremendous amount of research, I found the perfect venue.
A ryokan is a type of traditional Japanese inn that includes communal baths and we really wanted to find a ryokan with a private bath to enjoy together. Thankfully I found Yaeikan in Hakone and it was absolutely perfect. Read more about our experience staying at this traditional onsen ryokan here.
Days 5 & 6: Tokyo
After our one night in Hakone, we hopped on a bullet train back to Tokyo for our final two days. We knew this would be a quick trip and Tokyo is where we felt it the most. We could have stayed at least 2 more days in Tokyo. The energy of this city is like nothing I’ve experienced. I will definitely be back.
To make the most of our time there, we planned a few activities, including a bar hopping tour in Shibuya and tickets to the Robot Restaurant show. There’s so much to unpack for each so I drafted separate posts and linked them here. Overall, I highly recommend both experiences as they were unique and memorable.
We also spent time exploring various other neighborhoods around the city, including Shinjuku and Harajuku, slurped more ramen along Ramen Street in Tokyo Station, played claw games and tried VR googles in the arcades, and visited the Kawaii Monster Cafe. These were very full days and we barely scratched the surface of all Tokyo has to offer.
Tokyo is a fascinating blend of the traditional surrounded by the modern with tranquil spaces tucked in all over the city. Like I said, there’s so much to see, do, eat, learn and enjoy and I can’t wait to return for more. This trip was a series of quick hits with time well spent and memories to cherish forever. We’ll be back, Japan!
ALI IN OZ 