How to plan a traditional two-week journey in Japan

This tackle Japan’s hottest itinerary celebrates quieter corners in addition to massive hitters, delivering a quintessential style of the nation — from shrines to matcha tea, volcanic peaks to wealthy wildlife, metropolis thrills to samurai historical past — throughout a two-week itinerary.

Days 1-4: Tokyo popular culture, temples & onsen

Spend your first day absorbing the neon lights in Shinjuku, quirky teen tradition in Harajuku and the fashionable cafes and izakayas (pubs) in Shimokitazawa — all in Tokyo’s west. If jet lag is preserving you up, there’s karaoke, late-night bars and drag exhibits in Shinjuku’s nightlife district, Kabukicho.

During the next days, flip again the clock with a go to to Asakusa district’s lantern-lined temple Sensoji and a wander by way of Ueno Park, residence to the Tokyo National Museum. Or go to interactive digital gallery teamLab Borderless in Azabudai Hills and scale the two,080ft Tokyo Skytree for metropolis views. tnm.jp

Take a day journey to the new springs resort city of Hakone, an 80-minute experience on the Odakyu Romancecar prepare, to expertise Japanese onsen tradition and catch views of Mount Fuji. Try Tenzan onsen in Hakone-Yumoto.

Day 5: Mountains in Toyama

From Tokyo, the Shinkansen can whisk you to Omachi, in Nagano Prefecture, for a day within the Japanese Alps. Hop on the Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route (open 15 April to 30 November), which incorporates railway, cable-cars, ropeways and buses reaching 2,500 metres (8,200ft). End with an evening in Toyama, residence to rice paddies and ryokans (conventional inns). In winter, go to the thatched homes of Shirakawa village.

Day 6: Garden strolls in Kanazawa

It’s simply an hour-long prepare experience from Toyama station to Kanazawa, a well-preserved Edo centre with geisha teahouses, a historic samurai district and one among Japan’s most extremely prized gardens, Kenrokuen. This is a good spot for stays in ryokans corresponding to Auberge Maki No Oto.

Days 7-10: Street meals, geishas & ninjas

Basing your self in Osaka, take day journeys out to discover the broader area through the prepare community and use the evenings to hunt out the metropolis’s famed avenue meals. The full of life Shinsekai district is the place you could find Osaka’s kushikatsu (deep-fried skewer) scene; Kuromon Market, in the meantime, is known for its fish.

Kyoto may be reached through a 30-minute prepare experience from Osaka and has many temple highlights value a day. These embrace the shimmering, golden Kinkakuji temple; Fushimi Inari Shrine, amid 1000’s of pink torii gates; and huge Kiyomizudera temple, based within the eighth century. Also go to Nara ­— capital of Japan earlier than the town ceded the title to Kyoto in 794 ­— which has equally spectacular temples an hour’s prepare experience from Osaka. Or spend a day within the ninja capital and chateau city of Iga, which is round two hours from Osaka by prepare.

Day 11: Buddhist reflection in Koyasan

One of Japan’s holiest locations, set on a mountain plateau, the temple settlement of Koyasan offers a reflective ambiance for an in a single day shukubo (temple keep) at Daienin. See the brilliant pink Konpon Daito Pagoda and Daimon Gate by day and go to sacred Okunoin Cemetery with a information by evening, when the towering forest and stone lanterns are notably atmospheric. Next morning, rise early for a Buddhist prayer ceremony in one of many many native temples. To get to Koyasan from Osaka, it’s a scenic 90-minute experience through prepare, bus and funicular.

Days 12-13: Hiroshima homage & island escape

It’s troublesome to not be moved by a go to to the positioning of the devastating atomic bomb that landed on Hiroshima in 1945. In the guts of the fashionable metropolis, a half-day journey from Koyasan, a skeleton-like bombed-out dome sits throughout from the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum — a vital cease for any customer to the town. While primarily based in Hiroshima for 2 nights, you may as well pattern the native okonomiyaki savoury pancake, uniquely filled with noodles, and go to the Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art, Japan’s first modern artwork museum.

Finish off with one among Japan’s most iconic sights: the island of Miyajima, famed for its pink torii gate rising dramatically from the encircling waters. It may be visited as a day journey from Hiroshima, through prepare and ferry (round 1.5 hours) or take a direct boat from Hiroshima Peace Park (45 minutes, however costlier). Once you’ve obtained pictures, take a hike across the inexperienced, hilly island or experience the ropeway up Mount Misen.

Day 14: Shopping in Tokyo

The return journey to Tokyo takes round 4 hours on the Shinkansen. Before flying residence, top off on souvenirs: Shibuya has massive branches of outlets corresponding to Don Quijote, Hands and Loft. Across their multi-floor emporiums, you’ll discover all the pieces from seaweed snacks and chopsticks to cute stationery.