THE JAPAN PODCAST! - Sanaz joins Ryan on the Weisscast to recap their trip to Japan. Learn about the trip and tips for traveling around Japan. Refer to the below info for more Japan travel tips. Also, Sanaz is crazy cool for documenting this whole trip!

 

TOKYO PT. I

Where to Stay: We stayed at an Airbnb in Gotanda. Honestly, Tokyo is so massive, it doesn't matter where you stay as long as you're near a JR station.

Tokyo Tips:

• Tokyo is overwhelming so we split up our stay for a few days in the beginning and a few at the end of trip -- highly recommend this!

Day 1

• (night) Shibuya crossing

• Owl cafe

• Dinner & whiskey bar in Gotanda

Day 2

• Walk around Imperial Palace

• Lunch at food hall inside station

• Walk around Zojoji Temple and Tokyo Tower

• (night) Shinjuku

• Walk nearby to Golden Gai for drinks -- our favorite bar was 流民

• Omoide Yokocho (aka Piss alley) for dinner

Day 3

• Breakfast & explored Daikanyama (Tokyo) before heading to Kyoto

KYOTO

Where to stay: We stayed near the Kyoto train station but there wasn't much going on. I'd recommend staying further north from the station.

Kyoto Tips:

• Kyoto is very laid back compared to Tokyo.

• Kyoto is known for some amazing coffee spots!

• Highly recommend getting in 1 tourist activity in the early morning before the crowd

• Nara Deer Park is about an hour from Kyoto (or Osaka) but I would skip it.

• Make reservations to go whiskey tasting at Yamazaki Distillery. We couldn't get in :(

Day 3 cont.

• Train to Kyoto (~2.5 hours from Tokyo)

• Explore Gion

• Walk Pontocho and grab dinner/drinks

Day 4

• Walk around Higashiyama

• Grab coffee at % Arabica (popular Japanese coffee chain)

• Explore Arashiyama and walk the bamboo grove

• What did we do this night?

Day 5

• Go to  Fushimi Inari Shrine and walk through the torii shrine gates (it's quite a hike to go all the way up the mountain, we did < ½ the total walk)

• Get some sweet mochi treats outside of the temple

• Grab coffee at Vermillion Cafe (there's 2, go to this one -- nice spot outside and relax)

• Head over to Kiyomizu-dera temple

• Grab a matcha ice cream!

• Craft beer tasting at Kyoto Beer Lab (order the fried chicken!)

• Obanzai dinner in Kawaramachi neighborhood (was recommended to go to Kokora Ya but it was closed)

Day 6

• Coffee at Weekenders (famous Kyoto coffee spot)

• Day trip to Nara Deer Park

 

OSAKA

Where to Stay: Stay in Kita, which is actually a large area. Just make sure you're a near a station. We stayed at the coolest Airbnb - I highly recommend it. There's a few apartments that are similar and owned by the same people.

Osaka Tips

• Osaka is ALL about eating and shopping

• 2-3 days is all you need here

• We didn't have time but get ice cream at Zeroku Hommachi, it's like 100 years old

• Try Osaka's regional foods: Okonomiyaki and Takoyaki

Day 6 cont.

• (night) Check out Dotonbori

• Find dinner/drinks nearby at Hozenji Yokocho

Day 7

• Explore Nakazakicho, hipster neighborhood of Osaka

• Grab coffee at Salon de AmanTo, lunch at Minto, check out the shops

• Massage at Crocus (I was hurting!)

• Go to Torame Yokocho for dinner (there's a group of restaurants you can order at, best fried chicken of the trip!)

• Walk around Ura-Namba and grab drinks

Day 8

• Go to Osaka Castle

• Check out Tenma and grab lunch

 

NAGANO

Where to Stay: There's not a lot of options in Nagano City. We stayed at Hotel Kokusai 21 and would recommend it. Hakube is meant to be a nice area to stay as well.

Nagano Tips:

• 1 night would be plenty here, there's not much to do if there's no snow

• Nagano is only good for the onsens and the snow monkeys

• Nagano is known for Soba noodles -- order them with tempura!

• Onsens are similar to Korean Spas we have in LA. Read up on onsen etiquette before you go.

Day 8 cont.

• Train to Nagano (~3 hours)

• Walk the main street, Chuo dori

• Grab dinner at Gofuku

Day 9

• Coffee and toast breakfast at Sunday Life Coffee

• Check out Zenko-ji temple

• Spa time at an onsen (only one in Nagano City but there's more near the monkey park)

• Soba noodles for dinner

Day 10

• Get coffee at Maruyama in the station

• Day trip Jigokudani Monkey Park (it's a 50 min bus ride and 30 min hike to the park; at the station you can get discounted bus + park tickets)

• Train ride to Tokyo (~3 hours)

DAY 11

• Day trip to Hakone to see Mt. Fuji

• • You can buy a Hakone Free Pass for about ~$50 that will take you to the Hakone and you can use it for the tram, boat, bus etc. in Hakone. It takes about 2-3 hours to get to the top of the mountain

  • This was bust for us because it was totally cloudy and we couldn't see Mt. Fuji. Check the live cam before you head out. It's absolutely not worth going on a gloomy day

• Back to Golden Gai and Piss Alley for food and drinks

Day 12

• Shopping day!

• Explore Harajuku and Akihabara

• Go to Asakusa (we went at night but would be better during the day)

• Check out Sensō-ji temple

• Grab dinner/drinks nearby

Day 13

• More shopping

• Edo-Tokyo Museum

• Grab dinner/drinks nearby in Ryōgoku (ALCOHOL TO 肴 was a cool spot)

Day 14

• Breakfast and head to the airport

 

GENERAL TIPS

Transportation

• Get a JR pass! It's about $400 for 2 weeks but well worth it when you do the math. You can use to to get to different cities and locally in Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, etc.

• Order your JR train pass at least 1 week before you go. You must purchase it outside of Japan as it's for tourists only. They will mail a voucher to you and you will pick up your pass at the airport station. There's different sites you can order from, but we got ours here

• Besides JR, there are many other lines in each city so it can get confusing. For lines besides JR, you'll need to purchase tickets at a kiosk.

• Taxis can be pretty expensive and we only used them during rainy days.

• Lockers at station are clutch for leaving your luggage during day trips. Every train station will have lockers.

• Book reserved seats for longer train rides the day of/day before. You can do this at the ticket counter in any station.

• Download the Japan Travel app to check transportation routes (Google Maps works too)

 

Food & Drinks

• Most bars and restaurant close during the middle of day and open around 6/7pm.

• For food/drinks don't bother asking for suggestions, just walk around you'll find something interesting.

• Most coffee shops/cafes don't open until later in the day (i.e. 10am - 12pm).

 

Etiquette

• Don't talk on your phone or have your phone ringer on in public settings (i.e. trains)

• Trash cans are few and far between. Just hold on until you find one.

• Smoking in public is not allowed and you must smoke in designated areas only.

 

Other

• Get international phone service or pocket wifi (~$10/day), which you can pick up near most large train stations - you'll need to find your way around especially for transportation. Most Airbnbs will include pocket wifi. You can have 10 devices on each pocket wifi.

• Some museums won't have much in English so check before you go.

• Get at least 1 touristy thing done early in the morning before the crowds, trust me it's worth it.

• You can drink in public! Grab a beer while you walk around.