a COMPLETE Japan itinerary 🇯🇵🎋🏯🍱

travelled to Japan in early May when it was still pretty cold and we stayed in Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka! we also planned 2 day trips to Fujikawaguchiko and Nara 🦌

are 9 days enough? i would say it was perfect for us, but we would’ve set aside more time for Tokyo instead of Osaka because we felt that there were more things to do there

Day 1️⃣: Tokyo

📍Tokyo Skytree: this building was really HUGE, we only took photos outside and didn’t head in but that was enough for us since we were heading to Shibuya Sky for a panoramic view of the city anyways

📍Harajuku: we went to shop at Harajuku and had dinner at the popular roast beef ohno restaurant (I’d rate it ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5)

Day 2️⃣: Fujikawaguchiko

📍Mount Fuji: we arrived at the famous Kawaguchiko Station but was devastated to NOT see mount fuji when we arrived in the morning at about 10.30am so we explored the rest of the area like Lake Kawaguchiko and chanced upon this AMAZING beef cutlet restaurant (Koushuya) and had our lunch there (it was ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 for me)

🗻 After lunch, we managed to see Mount Fuji 😭 i was really shocked because we were already mentally preparing ourselves to not see it (i was deadass complaining about not seeing the mountain while back facing it, before turning around to realise it was there - really felt like a miracle!!!)

📍Mount Fuji Panoramic Ropeway: queued for quite abit to go up this ropeway and we managed to still catch a glimpse of Mount Fuji despite the cloudy weather

Day 3️⃣: Tokyo

📍Sensoji temple, Tokyo tower and Meiji jingu: spent the entire day exploring all these cultural and famous landmarks

📍Hie shrine: this shrine has a tunnel of 90 red torii gates which felt like a mini Fushimi Inari Taisha

📍Shibuya Crossing and Shibuya Sky: booked our Shibuya Sky ticket before our trip but we weren’t early enough to book a slot during sunset (so do book wayy in advance - a month atleast)

Day 4️⃣: Kyoto

🚅 Took the Shinkansen from Tokyo to Kyoto, had lunch and went to Fushimi Inari Taisha where spent a few hours (the further you go, the less crowded it gets)

Day 5️⃣: Kyoto

📍 Sannenzaka and Ninenzaka: started our day really early (6am) to avoid the crowds and we did manage to snap some photos of these streets without people around us!

👘 We then went to Rental Kimono Wakana to put on our kimonos! it was a 10/10 experience and the staff were really friendly and welcoming 💖 we wore our kimonos for about 4 hours while exploring Gion and Kiyomizu dera before taking them off

📍Menya-Inoichi Hanare: went to gojo and tried the highly rated ramen though we found their wagyu meshi rice to be superior as compared to their ramen (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5)

Day 6️⃣: Kyoto

📍Sagano romantic train: woke up early for this train ride at Kameoka Torokko station, it was the most scenic train ride EVER though I’d imagine even better views with the sakuras and autumn foliage

📍Arashiyama bamboo forest and Tenryuji temple: the bamboo forest looks exactly like what you see in pictures!!! we also spent hours in Tenryuji temple before having lunch at the street located right outside the temple

📍Kinkaku-ji temple: bought our entrance tickets at the door, the temple was very pretty and it was pretty much the only attraction there

📍Nishiki Market: Had our dinner there, ate SOOO much food from fried skewers to meat cutlets to unagi (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5)

Day 7️⃣: Osaka

🍰 Bought the famous Rikuro’s cheesecake (LOVED IT ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5) at Shin-Osaka station

📍Dotonburi and Shinsaibashi: took a photo infront of the iconic Glico sign and we shopped 🛍️

Day 8️⃣: Osaka

🎟️ We got the 1-day Osaka Amazing Pass and toured around famous landmarks like the Osaka Castle, Umeda Sky Building, Hep Five and even took a river cruise down Dotonburi! it’s the most affordable way to explore Osaka without breaking the bank by buying individual entrance tickets

Day 9️⃣: Nara

📍Nara park: the park had two areas that we were aware of (separated by a small road) and we felt that the deers in the smaller area were less aggressive 😅

📍 Unagi no Himekawa: Ate lunch at this unagi restaurant and the unagi was absolutely bussin (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5)

📍 Kaneido Main Shop: Had a break at this wagashi shop infront of Kintetsu Nara station and the desserts were pretty great ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

We actually spent 10 days in Japan but we started day 10 late and had a quick lunch before heading to Kansai airport for our evening flight ✈️

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