Week JR Pass Itinerary

Kold

I was just wondering if anyone could suggest some things that they think are kind of unmissable in Japan?

I started my trip with a couple of days in Osaka (whilst the castle grounds were impressively huge, I wasn't too fussed with the other touristy things I got up to. At the moment I'm staying with a friend in Fukuoka but in a couple of days I'm going to travel alone for a week before flying to China and whilst I have an idea of a couple of places, I don't know really what I'll do and what's worth missing.

I'm not particularly bothered about the food since everyone's suggestions tend to be seafood and I don't eat seafood so I've pretty much accepted that Japanese cuisine will be a bit lost on me. I'm an artist so Kyoto really appeals for the 'culture' factor. I've also noticed that a lot of places don't really offer much in the ways of English translation which made a couple of museums kind of lame.

My loose plan is ;Hiroshima- go to the museum. > Tokyo- I don't really know what to do here and I'm sure there's lots but if anyone can suggest some things that'd be awesome. Then perhaps Kyoto and Nara, finishing up in Osaka where I'm flying out from.

As you can see, it isn't much of a plan so if anyone has advice (especially if you stayed somewhere nice and reasonable) I'd very much appreciate it!

cocoshovel

Kyoto is a beautiful city. Walk over the river by Gion and all along that area you can walk for ages seeing so much!

Kiyomizu Temple
Yasaka shrine and Yasaka padoga
Fushimi inari shrine and the thousands of torii gates walk up the hill and through the forest (takes about 2 hours depending on your pace). A must see imo.
All that area has much much more to see and do, just explore the beautiful streets and you will come across endless attractions.

Then over on the other side of the city there is Kinkakuji - golden temple.
Also Saga Arashiyama, which is a lovely river area with bridge and walks through hills and. Nice bamboo forest around that area too.

I could post pics if you want me to.

hibby

If you are going to Hiroshima, Miyajima is a nice place to visit. It's a small island, just offshore, with a famous "floating" torii gate standing in the water.

Get a train and ferry ticket from Hiroshima station and allow maybe a few hours or half-day.

Have you been to an onsen? Especially one with a rotemburo, that's another Japanese experience you shouldn't miss. One place I can recommend is Arima Onsen - it's a small town in the hills near Kobe; I'm sure there are other similar towns.

You may want to visit an old-fashioned Japanese town with traditional wooden buildings. There are several options. Matsue has an Irish connection but takes a while to get to (it's on the Sea of Japan coast and all the major transport links go up the Pacific coast, so you have to take a slow train to get across there). Kurashiki is more convenient to your planned route; it's between Hiroshima and Okayama.


Also, there are good food options that don't involve any seafood. See if you can get someone to take you to a yakiniku restaurant where the meat is brought raw to your table and you grill it at the table. The meat is tender and delicious. It's originally Korean food but very much part of Japan's food culture.

hibby

Also, as an artist you may be interested in visiting a Japanese-style garden. Some of the famous ones such as Korakuen and Shukkeien are on your route. Shurakuen is in Tsuyama which is about an hour off your route.

Actually, there's a lot to be said for visiting a smaller city like Tsuyama rather than your only experience of Japan being big cities. Also for getting out into the countryside.

Kold

I was thinking that alright, when I was on the bullet train at first I was underwhelmed at a lot of the ugly architecture in the cities, but upon leaving I could see that the Japanese lay of the land was breathtaking. Unfortunately as I can barely manage "hello" and "thank you" I've been reluctant to leave the beaten track as I seem to get lost at least once a day ^_^ (I'm travelling on my own).

I have had a barbecue meal here (and an all you can eat in Korea!) I've also tried the excellent ramen and gyouza they have here in Fukuoka.

I think there will be enough shrines and temples to keep me occupied. I was hoping someone might have some quirky things to see or do in Tokyo? So far, Japan hasn't been the super modern, high tech place I imagined so perhaps somewhere I can take in the young otaku culture as a quirky comparison to the traditional things I've seen.

I haven't visited an onsen yet, I'll be honest, I'm pretty shy about being nude, especially in a country where I feel very overweight (I'd be chubby back home!) so I guess I wouldn't mind trying it but I'd love if there were an option to do it in a sparsely populated one (or even better, empty)

@cocoshovel: some pics would be great!

I guess another point to consider is that it is only 7 days and in this humidity, I'm getting wiped out pretty fast.

cocoshovel

Mmk.

First off just some streets and gardens around the area I mentioned at the start of my first post.

Street
Street 2
Garden, there are dozens of these around this area. Some free, some with a small entrance fee, but most worth the look.
Kiyomizu temple
Thousand torii walk up through the hills. Really nice.
More torii walk
Gion streets, thats a real Geisha as far as I could tell. Best indication was all the locals were bowing and saying konbanwa to her. There are lots of fake geisha around the place that pose for photographs etc, the real ones are apparently rare.

All those things above are within 15 minutes walking distance of each other, the entire area would keep you occupied for 2 days at least.

Below are things a bit more spread out that require buses and trains to get to, but still in the city none the less.

Kinkakuji (golden temple)
Arashiyama, viewing point on top of a hill
Arashiyama, Bamboo groves

Dont be at yourself

Hibby and cocoshovel have you pretty well advised, but I'll chip in:

Start at Hiroshima. Peace park is awesome. For Japanese food, check out Hiroshima-style Okonomiyaki (pancake-type things). Om nyom.

From Hiroshima, check our Miyajima. One of the 3 nicest view in Japan. The train and ferry to the island are all covered by the JR pass.

Back to Hiroshima, and then stop off in Kurashiki. Nice old town area for a wander around.

From Kurashiki, stop off in Okayama and pop down to the castle and garden -- they're right beside each other. The castle is interesting because it's black - as opposed to the more usual white -- and the garden is one the three nicest in Japan.

From Okayama, head for Himeji castle. It's a large, old castle -- the most famous in Japan. It's been used as a backdrop for a lot of movies etc too. There's a place nearby called Bizen which is famous for pottery.

From Himeji, head for Kobe or Osaka. I'd do one or the other -- but to be honest, I don't know either city super well. Make sure and try Osaka-style Okonomiyaki!

From there, on to Kyoto. Must-see places are Gion (old area downtown), Kyoumizudera, and Kinkakuji. Arashiyama is nice too. In addition to the picturesque river, mountains and forest, there's also a monkey sanctuary which is a lot of fun. I can recommend a really good Japanese bath house if you want to try something different (not quite the same as a trip to an Onsen, but still fantastic!) If you want to pick up some souvenirs, check out the Kyoto Handicraft Centre. It has lots of stuff - a whole floor of Japanese woodblock prints - and live demonstrations, so it should strike a chord with your artistic interests!

From Kyoto, pop down to Nara for the day, and check out Todaiji temple and the surrounding park. On the way back, stop off at Fushimi Inari, with its thousands of torii gates -- fantastic at night time.

From Kyoto, head straight up to Tokyo. Check out Shibuya (for the famous scramble crossing, and the love hotels), Shinjuku, Akihabara (if you're into videogames, technology, manga, etc), Odaiba (man-made island in Tokyo bay). Maybe stay in a capsule hotel.

Most of those cities are on the bullet train line, so should be nice and convenient!

cocoshovel

Dont forget Asakusa, while in Tokyo! . I said it in another thread, but places like Shibuya were my least favorite parts of Tokyo, and in general that whole side of the Yamanote line wasnt able to compare to Asakusa, Ueno, Akihabara, and that general side of the city. Shibuya was still pretty awesome all the same and you should see it anyway.