Day 1 (10/20): Osaka
Activities planned by the client:
- FLYING IN FROM TORONTO;
- Rest day
Planner's Notes (if any): No notes. If you guys aren't tired, however I would suggest getting a good view of Osaka from the Umeda Sky Tower. It is a good way to get an understanding of the city's layout.
Day 2 (10/21): Kansai
Activities planned by client:
- Travelling from Kyoto to Osaka
- Lunch (Jukusei Buta Kawamura)
- Kiyomizu Temple
- Travel back to Osaka
- Dinner (Souikufu)
- Fushimi Inari
- Nishiki Market
Planner's Notes (if any): I know that you guys are going to be doing a little bit of back-and-forth between Osaka and Kyoto, which I think it actually a lot of fun. You'll get to familiarize yourselves with both cities simultaneously. I think that you could fit a little bit more into this day actually. On Day 3 you have Kinkakuji Temple listed, but it's actually easier to visit it from Kiyomizudera than it is from the Arashiyama district. However if you would like to keep the Day 3 schedule the way it is, I highly suggest adding Fushimi Inari to the plan for this day as I haven't seen it on your itinerary just yet, and it is also not very far from Kiyomizudera. Another location that I think may be of interest to you guys is Nishiki Market. The theme of this trip is very much food-centric, so I thought that perhaps visiting there and getting a good look at some of the ingredients that go into making traditional Japanese dishes would be a good experience. It's fun with a guide, but not at all necessary. The market is pretty big, and they typically have 'samples' for you to try out different eats along the way. One thing to be aware of though is that while the market will have a few stalls that have pre-made food, it isn't necessarily a market for that, it has a lot of cooking ingredients and snacks. Either of which would be feasible within a day with your current layout.
Day 3 (10/22): Kansai
Activities planned by client:
- Travelling from Kyoto to Osaka
- Arashiyama Bamboo Forest
- Monkey Park/Tenruyui Temple
- Lunch
Kinkakuji Golden Temple- Travel back to Osaka
- Dinner (Mugito Mensuke)
- Otagi-Nenbutsuji
- Sagano Romance Car
- Hozugawa Kudari
Planner's Notes (if any): I have three suggestions for this day. The first is to take the open-air Sagano Romance along the Hozugawa River. It's beautiful on a good day. You will need to get there early, or book your ticket in advance though as it books up quite quickly. The second suggestion is to take a boat back from that area to Arashiyama. The boat is such a fun way to see the valleys and mountains of that region, it is a completely traditional boat as well. No motors, just three people paddling you down the river. My third suggestion is to visit a temple in the Arashiyama area called Otagi-Nenbutsuji. I've actually just planned a trip for another group, and put this visit into their itinerary, so I'm going to copy that onto here to give you an idea of what makes it so special.
There are so many temples and shrines that are worth visiting here, but one of my favorites is a small temple that rarely ever gets visited. It has hundreds of statues, and each of them was made by a completely different person. One of the former head monks decided that he would teach sculpting to anyone that visited the temple and wanted to learn (this was in the 80's, I believe). All of the sculptures are spread around the temple grounds, and because he gave his students carte blanche with their designs, you'll see some of the ojizou statues wearing headphones, and holding a walkman or other contemporary paraphernalia. It is a site that is unlike thing else in Japan.
When I was a tour guide, I did group tours and I had to visit Arashiyama for tours 2-4 times a month. It is entirely possible to visit all of these places within a single day, with the exception of Kinkakuji (see previous day's notes). Tickets for the train can be purchased online on reseller sites like Klook for around $10. Hozugawa Kudari can be booked here: https://www.hozugawakudari.jp/ , and the location of the Otagi Temple is here: https://goo.gl/maps/EER1vXg4JeQv4eKd8
Day 4 (10/23): Kyoto
Activities planned by client:
- Travelling from Kyoto to Osaka
- Exploring Gion/ Dressing in a Kimono
- Lunch (Kichi Kichi Omurice)
- Ninja & Samurai Museum?
- Travel back to Osaka
- Dinner (Tempei Kitashinchi Honten)
Planner's Notes (if any): I have no notes for this day, as I think it is perfect. There are tons of shops in the area near Gion for renting a kimono and or getting traditionally prepped. Restaurant notes in separate document, but you'll need to book Kichi Kichi on their website.
Day 5 (10/24): Osaka
Activities planned by client:
- Universal Studios Japan in Osaka
- Lunch Break
- Universal Studios Japan
- Dinner
Planner's Notes (if any): No notes, USJ is definitely an all-day thing.
Day 6 (10/25): Osaka
Activities planned by client:
- FREE OSAKA DAY
- Lunch (Ramen Hayato)
- Dinner (Watanabe Curry Honten)
Planner's Notes (if any): I think that this break day is placed well since the other days are quite packed. No notes to add as of now.
Day 7 (10/26): Hiroshima
Activities planned by client:
- Kure/ Hiroshima
- Travelling from Osaka to Kure
- Yamato Museum
- Navy Museum (JMSDF)
- Dinner (Lopen Okonomiyaki)
- Shinshoji Zen Museum and Gardens
Planner's Notes (if any): I would strongly consider moving this day to Day 6, if possible. It is a LOT of back-to-back heavy travel. It is clear you are going here for a very specific reason. I'm not sure you'd be interested in my suggestion for this day, but it is the Shinshoji Zen Museum and Gardens. It is a lovely place to try zen meditation, enjoy a nice hot springs bath, and eat shojin-ryouri food. My only hesitation with adding it, is simply that there may not be enough time to visit it, given the travel time from Osaka to Kure. However, here is the location:
https://goo.gl/maps/4yuYDowcsGCcEYTF9
Day 8 (10/27): Nagoya
Activities planned by client:
- Nagoya/Shinfuji
- Travelling from Osaka to Nagoya
- SNMagliev & Railway Park
- Lunch (Sakuton)
- Travelling from Nagoya to Shinfuji
- Mt. Fuji Heritage Center
- Travelling to Kawaguchiko
- Dinner
Planner's Notes (if any): This is by far the most ambitious day in the itinerary. Train time alone is going to be brutal. It's about an hour to Nagoya, but then two or so to the Mt. Fuji HC. and then another two or so to get to Kawaguchiko. In all honesty, it would be better to rent a car when you get to Nagoya if you really want to fit all of this into a single day. My suggestion is to visit the Maglev facility on this day, visit the other locations on Day 9, and then visit the locations that I've listed on Day 9, on Day 10 before heading off to Tokyo. You could do all of these things comfortably without rushing that way.
Day 9 (10/28): Kawaguchiko
Activities planned by client:
- Currently unplanned
- Iyashi no Sato
- Chureito Pagoda
Planner's Notes (if any): If you have time left on this day I would highly, highly suggest visiting a small open-air museum near Lake Kawaguchi called Iyashi no Sato. It is small village similar to the ones you would see in Shirakawa-go, or Gokayama, but here, each house has a different craft or skill that you can experience. Most of them are traditional Japanese crafts, and some of them are places to buy from local artisans. It is a bit touristy, but overall a nice visit. There is even a restaurant that will teach you how to make udon noodles from scratch if you'd like (continuing with the food theme).
The other suggestion I have is to visit Chureito Pagoda. It is the iconic spot to view Mt. Fuji from, and an excellent photo op on a clear day. Hopefully around this time, you can also get a really good autumn foliage experience at this spot.
See Day 8 notes above for more info.
Day 10 (10/29): Tokyo
Activities planned by client:
- Travelling from Kawaguchiko to Tokyo
Planner's Notes (if any): See Day 8 notes above for more info.
Day 11 (10/30):
Activities planned by client:
- Shinjuku Gyoen
- Lunch (Soba House Konjiki)
Isetan or Toy Museum?- Dinner (Tamawarai)
- TeamLab Planets
Planner's Notes (if any): This day made me wonder if you guys have any plans for night activities? Shinjuku is a very colorful area and has a lot of interesting activities and spots for good nightlife. The Robot Restaurant is one, if you're into really camp dinner theater. I'm not going to put them on the list as I'm not sure you guys would be into something that crazy, but what I do want to put on the list is TeamLab's Planets experience. We spoke about this one briefly on the phone when we had your initial consultation. I think that it is a must-see experience when visiting Tokyo. The link to book it is here:
https://planets.teamlab.art/tokyo/jp/
Day 12 (10/31): Tokyo
Activities planned by client:
- Free Slot
- Lunch (Tsuta)
- Saitama Railway Museum
- Dinner (Yuan Yamori)
Planner's Notes (if any): No notes. I think that this is a good light day and it should stay that way as some of the previous days leading up to it are quite packed.
Day 13 (11/01): Tokyo
Activities planned by client:
- Isetan or Toy Museum (if other day doesn't work out)
- Lunch (Azabu Rokkaku)
- Yayoi Kusama Museum ** MAYBE**
- Dinner (Kagura Ishikawa - Seafood; Lim will consider his own dinner)
Planner's Notes (if any): Same as Day 12, I think that this day should stay the way it is, for pacing.
Day 14 (11/02): Tokyo
Activities planned by client:
- Tokyo Disney Sea or Disney Land
Planner's Notes (if any): Disney Sea is an all-day event, and sometimes even multiple-day event, thus I don't see a need to change this day either.
Day 15 (11/03): Tokyo
Activities planned by client:
- Ghibli Theme Park or Ghibli Museum
Planner's Notes (if any): If you end up going to the theme park in Nagakute, this is an all day event.
Day 16 (11/04): Tokyo
Activities planned by client:
- Salt & Tobacco Museum
- Lunch (Yakitori Omino)
- Kappabashi Street Shopping
- Ginza Steakhouse
- JSS Sake Taste testing center
Planner's Notes (if any): I've only added a single location/event to this day. The JSS Center. I'm not sure if you guys are big on Japanese spirits, but this place is essentially an educational center where they have gathered all types of spirits from all across Japan for people to taste them and learn their differences. It is such an excellent place to visit. With a proper guide, they can teach you which spirits are best served hot, or cold and what foods they pair best with. I thought that this may be a good addition to the overall theme of your trip. I think that if you're truly interested in spirits, a tour of a sake brewery would also be a good addition as there are multiple places that you could visit both here and in the Mt. Fuji area. I will consult with you further on this particular topic.
Day 17 (11/05): Tokyo
Activities planned by client:
- Tokyo free, unplanned day
- Sensouji Temple
- Tokyo Sky Tree
- Sweets food tour of Asakusa
- Yakatabune dinner on Tokyo Bay
- Wagashi sweets making lesson (optional)
- Narita Fireworks Competition (optional)
Planner's Notes (if any): Tokyo's many neighborhoods mostly have different purposes and for lack of a better term, 'vibes' to them. You can kind of tell when that neighborhood became popular based on what it's currently famous for, and just the general aura of it. Asakusa, I believe, because popular in the Showa Era for comedy... I don't know why exactly I'm bringing this up, other than to say that it is a very unique place. So far, outside of Kyoto I haven't seen many traditional stops in your itinerary (temples, shrines and so forth). I wanted to put a really quick stop in at this one as it is one of the more famous temples in Tokyo, and the surrounding area is great for food, and specifically for sweets. We actually have a food tour that we sometimes offer to our clients in this neighborhood. Of our food courses, this is one of the more traditional ones. The food that people eat on that tour are:
- kibi-dango
- age-manju
- yakkitori
- maccha gelato (there is a place that is famous for its extremely strong maccha here)
- yaki-dango
- nikuman
- taiyaki
The path that leads up to the Sensouji Temple itself is also completely filled with stands that sell Japanese sweets. If you are a fan of traditional Japanese foods/sweets then this neighborhood is a great location to visit, thus me adding it. There are also places here that do lessons on how to make wagashi-style sweets if you want to make something as well.
As I mentioned in the Day 1 notes, I think it is always nice to go somewhere in each location that gives you a scope of how big that city is. Tokyo Sky Tree is the best place for that in Tokyo. It's insane how endless the city is, and seeing it around sunset here would be perfect after the activities in Asakusa, and Sky Tree isn't far from it, so it wouldn't be a travel-intensive day. After that I think that dinner on a yakatbune would be a great "final dinner" in Japan. I've included a picture in the gallery below to give you an idea of what it would look like, but it is a really nice Tokyo tradition to eat in a traditional boat on the bay.
I have another suggestion for this day that would require a bit of time, but I think that it would be worth it if you can get close enough to the action. There is a Fireworks Festival happening on the 5th in Narita. Japanese fireworks are an absolutely stunning event, and are always memorable. It is the last night, so I was trying to think of something special to commemorate the moment for this day. I don't think it would be possible to do all of the suggestions on here, so I think you would have to choose between the yakatabune and the fireworks festival, all of the other activities are possible with either of them.
Day 18 (11/06): Tokyo
Activities planned by client:
- Tokyo free, unplanned day
Planner's Notes (if any): Last day, no plans to be made.
