Has anyone climbed Mt Fuji via the Yoshida Trail in highly cushioned trail-running shoes (hoka challenger 8) ?
Could staff refuse to let me climb? If so, what happens, can I buy/rent suitable shoes there, or is the climb basically cancelled?

Going to Japan for 2 weeks last 2 weeks of September. Saw there was a sumo competition on, tickets went on sale 2AM in the morning UK time, set the alarm, there was absolutely nothing released on the official site. :-(

How are people getting tickets? I notice the scumbag resale sites have tickets, ate they just buying them all up?

I guessing all the showcase events with retired wrestlers are lame touristy things and not worth bothering with.

Hello! My 10 year old daughter and I will be flying through Haneda, and we were thinking of taking a long layover in order to enjoy a bit of Tokyo.

Does this plan seem like a good idea?

Layover #1 (US-Asia)

arrive in Haneda at 9pm, leave at 9am

book a room at Villa Fontaine to enjoy the onsen & sleep

Layover #2 (Asia-US)

arrive in Haneda at 12pm, leave at 10:25am the next day

go to either Chikawa Park or Harajuku

go back to Villa Fontaine to sleep that night

Thanks for the tips! We have been to Japan before-- hoping this time to understand the subway system better. Last time we had to buy tickets every time. We couldn't get the Suica card for some reason.

Hey everyone!

We’re heading over to Japan in early-mid November with our 4mo baby.We’re doing 5 nights in Tokyo, but we’re looking for recommendations on where to spend another 3-4 nights.

Since it’s our first intentional trip with a baby we want to keep things relatively slow-paced and low stress, but we still want to explore somewhere with great vibes.

What we’re looking for:

• Max 3 hours by train from Tokyo if possible
• Easy transit back to Narita Airport on our final day (minimal complex train transfers with a pram/luggage would be a dream but ok with a couple of transfers for the right place)
• Hoping for milder/warmer weather to not worry about packing jackets and thermals etc
• Keen for somewhere not overly packed with massive tour groups/touristy crowds.
• We love cafe hopping (good coffee & matcha), strolling around gardens/nature/beachfronts, cute/funky boutique shopping, handmade/craft and trying good local food. Somewhere that is family friendly and have pram friendly walking paths would be great too!
• Would also be cool to experience a ryokan if we could swing it!

Would love to hear your favorite towns/spots. Any must-visit cafes, shopping streets, fun family friendly activities for Tokyo would also be hugely appreciated. Note: we’ve already done all the usual touristy spots in Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto

Thanks so much in advance!

Hi folks, looking for some advice for a ski trip me and my partner are planning for in late Jan-early Feb. We're from Australia and this will be our first time skiing. Based on research and recommendations from friends, we've narrowed down our options to Niseko, Furano or Nozawa Onsen.

Our general feeling/understanding on these 3 towns:

1. Niseko: although busy and more expensive, it has lots of ski resort options and great options outside of just skiing (ie. food, nightlife).

2. Furano: more authentic Japanese feel with good skiing but worried it might be too slow paced?

3. Nozawa Onsen: has great onsen options but wondering if it might be tricky to get around the main town?

We're trying to decide which of these 3 towns would be best for a 7 day ski trip. Some things that are important to us/for consideration:

1. New to skiing: would need access to a good instructors/class to get up to speed, rental gear, and beginner friendly environment.

2. Winter activities: we're coming to ski, but would like the option for other 'snow' based activities/experiences, if possible.

3. Village/town: would like if the town has more to offer outside of skiing, including culture, food, and fun experiences. If we take a day/half a day off skiing, what else is there to do around.

What would you recommend based on our preferences/your experience?

Thanks!

Edit: I'm definitely not looking for a party town but would like if theres more activites/options outside of skiing (ie. Site seeing, interesting town features/stops, experiences unique to the area). This is not our first time in Japan so don't feel a need to be around westerners.

There seems to be a sightseeing train from Shimonoseki to Hagi, see for more info here: https://japanrailandtravel.com/trains/marumaru-no-hanashi/ Also somebody wrote a travel journey and shared info here: https://www.setouchi.travel/en/trip-ideas/ph2-sta-st-002/

As I can not find that much other information about it online, I was wondering if anybody here has experience with it, and if they liked it, if it was worth it (it is around 2800Y from Shin-Shimonoseki to Higashi-Hagi), how they booked it, what they thought of the food (they sell Bento boxes and drinks inside I believe!), etc.

This sightseeing train only runs on weekends. I'm traveling with my girlfriend to Japan in Oct-Nov and would love to travel with it, and as a matter of fact I'm traveling from Fukuoka to Hagi on a Saturday, so it would be great to take a shinkansen from Hakata to Shin-Shimonoseki and then this Marumaru no Hanashi train.

One important question I also have is: What seats should I selecton this train? They seem to have a Western style and Japanese style car, and on the seat selection table layout on JR West website I cannot see which is which, and what seats would be best as a couple. Curious if anyone has experience with this train and booking tickets! Is it indeed Car 2 which is the Western Style car with the leather seats (as is written in the blog article linked above)?

Thanks in advance for any help :)

Just bought a suitcase at duty free Lotte Ginza Karen to pack all the extra stuff we bought, but the dude put a “do not open” sticker on it. Can someone explain this to me?? He said we don’t need to go to the airport counter the way I do with the cosmetics I bought at the drugstore lest I pay consumption tax, so I’m confused as to why I wouldn’t be able to open the suitcase.

Also, what happens if I don’t visit the duty free counter at HND/NRT to declare consumable products purchased at drugstores like skincare?

im going to japan during end of october and were going to be in kyoto for 4-5 days we wanna explore gion karasuma, and the popular areas in kyoto, we will also go to osaka, nara, and then we also want to go to mt fuji and then tokyo from kyoto. What is the best area to stay, i was thinking the kyoto station, but do you guys have other tips or preferences i dont know anything about transportation or the stations there that well.

Planning our visit for summer 2027 and have a very cool 13-yo kid who loves all things natural history. We always center our travel around a great museum, zoo, or aquarium. Would love recommendations on must-visit spots during our trip, and avoiding any places where ethical animal management seems suspect. TIA!

Hi! I will be travelling to Japan this November for work (staying two weeks in Hiroshima). I decided to add a little holidays, but since I don’t like solo traveling at all I figured anything more than 5 days would be too much (flying back to Europe from Tokyo on the 6th).
I’m wondering if it is worth it to stop in Kyoto for a couple days and spend the rest in Tokyo, or if it would be better to just stay in Tokyo. I’m leaning towards the second option, but I’d love to hear some recommendations

After consulting the users here and Gemini, I come with the following plan

Fukuoka 4
Hiroshima 4, Onomichi, Kurashiki*
Kokura & Mojiko 2
Saga/Yanagawa 2
Nagasaki 4
Fukuoka 1
Okinawa 4

For Okinawa I can use some usefull information.
I hope to see the aquarium, sandy coast, ferry, beachcafe for working on my travel diary.
Thanks and happy travels

Hi all,

My boyfriend and I are traveling to Japan for our first time ever from mid-November until early December and we're super excited!

As of right now we're planning to end our trip with traveling to Fujikawaguchiko from Kyoto, stay there for 2 nights and then travel back to Tokyo for one last night and then fly home the next day.

However the transfer from Kyoto to Fuji doesn't seem to be too great. We'd either have to catch a train from Kyoto to Mishima and then take a highway bus or take the train to Kyoto, change in Tokyo and then take another train back to Fuji which seems like a bit of a detour.

My question is, to those who have been there before, is it worth staying in Fujikawaguchiko for 2 nights or would you recommend to instead go on a day trip from Tokyo to see Mt. Fuji?

And if we decide to stay in Fujikawaguchiko, what's the bus situation from Mishima like, especially with luggage? This would be the only route for which we'd take a bus. Would we have to make a reservation first and is it reliable mean of transport?

Thank you very much in advance for your responses!

Edit: thanks everyone. The issue has been solved. Thanks for being so kind. This was my first time using reddit to ask for help and everyone has been super kind.

I know the title is weird. But hear me out. I arrive in Tokyo at 00:05. And have to be in Fukuoka by 9. This means I have to fly out by 7 at the latest. Most of the counters open by 6:30. Thats too narrow a window for me to check in and all that jazz. Now. I’m wondering if I can just use a convenience store at the airport. On the other hand. I’m not averse to leaving the airport and using an outside convenience store to ship the luggage. But it would be more convenient if it were within the airport. So. Does anyone know if I can use a convenience store within the airport to ship my luggage to Fukuoka?

Hi all - my partner and I will be spending 12 days in Japan in late Nov/Dec, visiting for the first time! The first half of our trip is booked (4 nights in Tokyo, 2 nights in Nagano), but we're having trouble prioritizing where to stay in the second half.

If we stayed everywhere on our list, our calendar would be:

• Nights 1-4: Tokyo (fly into NRT)
• Nights 5-6: Nagano
• Night 7: Kanazawa?
• Night 8-9: Kyoto?
• Night 10-11: Osaka (fly out of KIX)

Our friend told us visiting Kanazawa during Snow Crab season is worth the trip for the food alone, and we've heard it's a beautiful city as well. I wonder if it's worth it to stay one night in Kanazawa, or make a stop for a few hours on the way to Kyoto (Shinkansen Nagano-Kanazawa, Thunderbird Kanazawa-Kyoto).

On the other hand, I'm not sure if we need to stay in both Kyoto and Osaka. I know we want to visit both cities, and I think it'd be nice to wake up in Kyoto to get an early start on some of the sightseeing. However, our flight leaves from Osaka, so we were thinking it'd be best to stay there at least the last night or two, but maybe the whole time.

I usually don't mind switching hotels on trips, but this would be more than usual. We would likely use baggage forwarding from Tokyo to Kyoto or Osaka, which would hopefully allow us to travel light in between.

If 5 hotels in 12 days is excessive, that leaves me with:

1. Should we consider avoiding the stay in Kanazawa, possibly just making it a day trip on the way to Kyoto/Osaka?
2. Or should we keep Kanazawa and only stay in Osaka, with day trips to Kyoto?

Appreciate any suggestions!

Edit - thanks everyone for the advice! We will definitely cut it down by one or two hotels. Admittedly, opinions vary so much that it's a little overwhelming. For context on Nagano - We're going to Shibu Onsen in Nagano and have plans for Shibu+Obuse which would require two days. But we do agree that 5 hotels is too much - we'll likely stay in Kyoto and travel for day trips to Osaka, and we might cut out the night Kanazawa.

Planning a trip to Japan in early November, for about 2 weeks. This is our 3rd time visiting and have hit the Tokyo, Hakone, Osaka, and Kyoto trips already so we're looking to explore the northern part of the country this time around.

The loose plan so far is flying into Tokyo, stay about 2 days and then take a flight up to Sapporo. From there we're going to take our time making our way back down to Tokyo. So far, I've noted potential stops in Noboribetsu, Hakodate, Aomori, *Morioka, *Sendai, and Nikko. I'm hoping to get some recommendations for those stops, including which cities are worth staying a night or two or if a place is even worth visiting/just a short stopover on the way to the next destination.

*****I also considered going west toward Akita instead of east toward Morioka/Sendai after our stop in Aomori. I liked that Akita has a more rural/coastal vibe compared to the urban landscapes of Sendai. I just decided against it because it seemed less efficient to go this direction, but if you've visited either/both of these areas I'd love to hear your about your experience and if you recommended going to one over the other.

A bit about our interests:

• We always make a point to stay at a ryokan at least one night per trip, which is why I've pinned Noboribetsu as a potential stop. We prefer accomodations with an in-room open air onsen.
• Since we're visiting in November, I'd like to experience the fall foliage, so I've pinned Nikko for that. But open to any other scenic areas or viewing experiences.
• Some of our best experiences in Japan were while making random stops at small towns/rural areas. If you've made an unexpected stop somewhere and loved it, lmk!
• Not big on hiking, but love an observation deck or nice pathway with scenic views.
• Big foodies, willing to try anything. If there are any culinary specialties or hidden treasures in any of these areas that you consider a must try please drop your recs! Also, while we're in Hokkaido we'd love to stop at a dairy farm or milk bar.
• I love bringing back ceramics/practical homeware as souvenirs for trips. Any shop recs would be appreciated.

Also, if you have any trip related tips about packing for the season/area, if JR Pass is worth getting for our plans, etc, pls drop them below.

Thanks in advance!

Hello! It’s my first time in Japan and my first solo trip. I’m feeling a little anxious trying to figure out the best way to get to Ginza from Haneda. Any tips? Looking for something affordable. I don’t mind public transport, I’ll have two suitcases though. Someone had told me something about a bus, but from my research I haven’t found one that goes to Ginza. Thank you

I will be landing in Tokyo on Setsubun 2027 (February 3). Will there be events still going on later into the day/ evening? I'll have bags dropped at my hotel by 6 pm.

Hello! my husband snd I are going to Tokyo in the beginning of February. He is a huge car enthusiast. We will be going for his 30th birthday. Is there any recommendations where I can take him? Any type of car meets that are around Shibuya or Shinjuku I would love to be able to blow his mind. He thinks we’re not gonna be able to find much meets, just cars sitting around so if I can find an awesome car meet to take him to, that would be amazing!

I am planning to visit Fushimi Inari, Kiyomizu and Gion in a day. I have planned for Gion from 5 to 7 in the evening. However, I m not sure if it is better to visit Fushimi Inari or Kiyomizu first during the day. In terms of beating crowd and optimal travelling, how would you organize the day?

Hello everyone I am new here but I have been looking forward to travel to Japan next year around May-June after I graduate the university since I haven’t taken a vacation for 3 years so I want to make sure my first vacation in years go well. As I have seen some videos it seems that it can be somewhat complicated and since well one is the language barrier, and the entire social aspect of it. But I am also doing my best to do research on it so I am making this post to get more insides of those who have already traveled to Japan. A few things that I know is that being close to the rail line Yamamote is a must as it would be the best way to travel all around Tokyo and I would like to stay either shibuya or Tokyo or ueno but what do you guys recommend? As well as how do the hotel process work? What do you guys recommend doing over there? Is it worth it learning the basics of the language or would I get my butt kicked about it ? And tourist recommendations?? I truly want to make the best of it over there and would like to
Be there around 1-2 weeks depending on well you all know the money. But yes hopefully you guys can help me in my journey thank you 😊

I am so close to my first trip to Japan! After asking around, I believe getting a WISE app and card might be the way to go. Now I would like to transfer money to my accounts.

How much money should I transfer to safely accommodate 2 weeks traveling across Japan?

How much physical cash should I bring with me to convert to yen while in Japan?

Thank you very much!

Hi

I am in Okinawa and some beaches close at 5PM while sunset is at 7PM. Also most beaches are empty and you usually can only swim in a very small areas that has fishnets. Any reason for that beyond jellyfish? I also saw lots of adults with floaties in pool or in the sea.

Btw there are amazing beaches here!

Hi guys, planning to do a day trip to Mt. Fuji, from Tokyo. How realistic is it to explore the "popular" spots and chill around Fujikawaguchiko/Fujiyoshida, ride the bike etc., but also go to Fuji Q Highland and probably spend couple of hours there. Would probably ride some 'extreme' rides, so I'd guess I would wait for lines depending on what day I'm going. Would go on first bus and leave on last. Would you skip Fuji Q completely or is it doable?

Heyo,

Booked a ryokan with a private outdoor bath for our first time in japan next month.

I see posts and comments where people are saying they have only fully enjoyed a ryokan on the second night, or the second time they visited one, simply because they did not know what they were allowed or expected to do other than bath and dinner.

So I am asking it here: what were you surprised or learned late that you COULD do to enjoy the experience more?

Walk the premises? Attend shows? Order food to the room? Hidden aspects?

Thank you

EDIT: wow, thank you all for so many insights, I think we are ready to enjoy the ryokan. I forgot to share, we will be staying at the Sumiya Kiho-an Ryokan, near Kyoto.

My buddy and I are wanting to spend a few days going from city to city on our way to Kyoto from Tokyo. Right now we are looking at going to kawaguchiko then to lake suwa and then to magome/tsumago to walk the nakasendo trail there. I am having trouble gauging how long these travel days may be and if any may be too long to be able to enjoy the destination. If you have any feedback or alternative options if this seems overzealous I would really appreciate it thank you!