Please come in and check out our rough draft plan for 2 weeks in Japan, thoughts & suggestions... updated 10/22

[LovesTimone]

Hi everyone,

Update in Blue for 10/8
Update in purple for 10/22

We are planning on next year somewhere from mid November to the first week of December 2020... It will be just the 2 of us, we don't travel commando style. We are planning on 8 nights touring Tokyo and Osaka, and 5 nights at Tokyo Disneyland, We really want to be able to experience the parks dressed all up for Christmas... We have been trying decided on where to start and end our trip... In some ways I want to end at Disneyland, then I thought maybe we should change up do Disney in the middle of the trip so that we aren't completely tired and worn out... so we are still figuring out how the flow of the trip should be...

So this is a rough draft of what we have seen that we would like to do, see and experience... I am not through planning by any means.. and everyday I find more stuff that I would like to do, but there is only so much time... Any tips, thoughts or suggestions are very much appreciated...

We aren't sure about about airlines yet, as we have to wait for a few things to happen... rates for our time of year go up, how many points on the CC and loyalty points, for airfare and hotel, and DH approval for 2 week and 1 day...

Ideally this would be the perfect plan-

We would leave Orlando on a late flight after DH get's off work... hoping to fly Delta with our Sky miles... Staying over night at our departing airport..

Flying ANA business class, or Delta first class... this will totally depend on points, and cost... We are open to other airlines, such as JAL or Singapore Air, it really depends on the points and cost...


Planning on - JR pass, Sucia Card - picking up at the airport.
We will need - Wifi buddy and extra charger/battery order ahead pick up at airport -
Download - Google maps for trains
ATM's - 7-11 ...
Private car company -We are leaning on a private car service for pick at the airport to our hotel in Tokyo, and picking up at our hotel at Disneyland back to the airport - Still leaning on private car pick up for the airport due to arrival time, I am looking at limo bus from our hotel at Disneyland back to the airport...DH still leaning with private car... Asia Car Service is the company that we are at looking for transportation...

Staying in Shibuya- or Shinjuku

Hotels - Hilton in Shinjuku or Cerulean Tower Tokyu hotel in Shibuya.

1) Shibuya "Scramble" Crossing, and viewing from above. Starbucks has a great view from the second floor from what I have read...
2) Tokyo "Edo" National museum, Tokyo Skytree, and Nakamise Shopping street - I did come across some info that there is a sumo exhibition next door or very close to Tokyo National museum... looking more into this... DH really wants to check this out, while not a Sumo Wrestling match, it would be cool to check out...
3) Imperial palace and gardens. So I have been reading about the Imperial Palace and you are only allowed to tour the ground and gardens and not the palace itself... so not sure if this is something that we will keep on the list..
4) Shopping, Labi and Big Camera for electronic, Dasio and mega Donki
5) Niku Yokochu - to check out the food stalls on the 2nd floor
6) Odaiba - planning on a full day and evening - Team lab Borderless, Megaweb Toyota City, and see and check out the Gundam and get our grandson some to play with...and the National museum of Emerging Science and Innovation from what I can tell this is like MOSI? ... Possibly a dinner cruise, I have found a couple it would be nice to see the rainbow bridge and other buildings from the water at night...
7) Akihabara - Yodobashi Camera and big Camera, Chabara food & spice store, Yakitori - "Shimonya" resturant.
8) Shinjuku - Tokyo Metropolitan goverment building observation deck. Goen Park tea house, green house, and chinese gardens... Zauo - it were you can catch your own fish, then they prepare it for you...and of course we want to see Godzilla and get our pic with the big guy himself...
9) Disney store in Shibuya - ( Thanks HaleyR for reminding me)
10) Possibly a private or semi private tour day tour to Mt. Fuji... with it being November I am not sure if we could get to the 5th level, with the weather...so this more than likely would be something that we would book once there...
11) Harajuku - Yo Yogi Park, Cotton Candy, Meiji Shrine, lunch at "Harajuku Gyozalo", and finding the Zenkoji Temple which is a Buddist Temple off Omotesando Avenue, some friends stumble across it when they took a wrong turn, they said it was just beautiful...



Staying in Osaka

Hotels - Hilton or suggestions please?

1) Dotonbori for street food in the evening
2) Todau ji Temple "Great Buddha", Umeda sky Building, Osaka Castle, and evening river boat cruise. If we do the dinner cruise from Odaiba will we more than likely look at a really nice meal at a up scale restaurant at least one night... Suggestions for a nice restaurant really needed...
3) Arashiyama - Sagano Railroad, or the romanic train as its called, and possibly Hozugawa river cruise back( not sure about late November)... Bamboo forest, and Monkey park, and the Golden Temple
4) Kyoto- Kiyomizudera Temple ( the wooden terrace) or Fushimi Anari Shrine, and the Gion District -


Toyko Disneyland

Hotel - Hilton Toyko Bay...

If I hit the lottery, Tokyo Disneyland hotel with package...

4 day ticket... So I have been checking out the tickets, Please correct me if I am wrong... You can only access one park each the first 2 days, then be able to park hop on day 3 and 4...

I haven't even begun to look at a plan for touring the parks yet...


So I have some questions, food for your thoughts! Please and Thank you.

In checking out all the transportation options... I found out it is fairly cheap to fly between Tokyo and Osaka, around 100 bucks, and plus it is faster from what I have read... We really want to experience riding the Shinkansen bullet trains...
1) yet if its less expensive and quicker, with only 2 weeks maybe this would be a better solution?
2) As well if we do decide to fly would we really need a JR pass?
3) could we just get around with our Suica Cards on the trains?
4) both in Tokyo and Osaka?
5) with the day trips to Kyoto, and Arashiyama we would want the bullet train option right so the JR pass?
Pretty much we have decide to go with the JR pass, and ride the Shinkansen round trip from Tokyo to Osaka, more than likely shipping our luggage to Hilton Tokyo bay, and just taking the roll on's with us on Shinkansen...

Shipping the luggage is sorta making me nervous... So if we ship our luggage from our hotel in Tokyo ( most like a Hilton property) to the Hilton Tokyo Bay, 1) how long will it take to get there, same day when we drop it off? 1 day or longer? and the Hilton will hold it for a few days before our arrival?

I have read that should look for some type of multi-plug unit for charging everything up? Suggestion on brand.

Electric converter? for things like curling iron, and electric shaver/ trimmer... have the ones we used in Paris, not sure if I need different ones?

Looking for a double earbuds for our I-pad and laptop. ? .. as well a fairly inexpensive (not cheap) noise cancelling head phones, these are going to be Christmas present to each other this year ? suggestions - We have been looking at some, I really haven't seen any head phones that look comfortable enough to sleep in... I'm a side sleeper, so this is a concern... suggestion are really needed...

In Osaka, our friends just raved about the hop on hop off bus?... If we have the Sucia card for the trains would this be necessary? Said that they got to see more and get off where ever they wanted to, plus some type of water taxi was included.... she said the bus ran like every 15 minutes, and her DH said more like a 45 to an hour... Anyone any thoughts on this?... We pretty much at this point have decided against using the Hop on Hop off bus right now...

I know there is so much that I haven't even scratched the surface yet...

As always, any thoughts, suggestions, or help you can give me is greatly appreciated...

 

[Douglas Dubh]

I don’t know if you’ll have time, but we really enjoyed our day trip from Osaka down to Hiroshima and Miyajima. If you do it, you’d definitely want the JR pass. I’d buy the pass and ride the Shinkansen rather than fly.

Also, if you get to DLR in the afternoon and aren’t too tired, you can buy an evening pass and visit one of the parks.

Lastly, there is a Tokyo Edo museum and there is a National museum at Ueno park. I haven’t had a chance to visit the latter yet but enjoyed the former. Lots of times days of operations get changed due to Holidays. We went to do the National museum and found it was closed because the day before was a holiday. A similar thing happened on the day I wanted to see the imperial palace in Kyoto.

 

[LovesTimone]

I don’t know if you’ll have time, but we really enjoyed our day trip from Osaka down to Hiroshima and Miyajima. If you do it, you’d definitely want the JR pass. I’d buy the pass and ride the Shinkansen rather than fly.

Also, if you get to DLR in the afternoon and aren’t too tired, you can buy an evening pass and visit one of the parks.

Lastly, there is a Tokyo Edo museum and there is a National museum at Ueno park. I haven’t had a chance to visit the latter yet but enjoyed the former. Lots of times days of operations get changed due to Holidays. We went to do the National museum and found it was closed because the day before was a holiday. A similar thing happened on the day I wanted to see the imperial palace in Kyoto.

We have batted around the idea of going to Hiroshima, and for us, its just not in the top things that we want to get done... It's not off the list, and if we get there and change our minds, and/or decide we might still try to go...

I will check out the National museum at Ueno park and see where it's at... The Tokyo Edo museum is on the top of the list to check out... Once we get closer to going I will start checking opening and closing, and planning around those day...

With the JR pass, I am going to find out about website where you plug in your trip destinations, and see how things look then decide. We both really want the experience of riding the bullet train... then again I want to be smart with our budget...

Thanks for your thoughts and help..

 

[Douglas Dubh]

In Osaka, our friends just raved about the hop on hop off bus?... If we have the Sucia card for the trains would this be necessary?

We didn't do a hop on hop off bus in Osaka, but we did one in Hong Kong and I thought it was pretty good. You would definitely see more from a bus than a train. We went to a couple of things by train in Osaka and I think we were underground for a lot of it (but I could be remembering wrong).

I think the Suica cards work by putting a number of dollars on them and then each time you use them the fare is subtracted so you can still have them and use a HOHO bus, just put a little less on the Suica card.

 

[bibbidibobbidibecky]

I think you are off to a great start! Use the website I gave you to see if the pass is worth it for you or not. I would fly just to save time if it were me. I would suggest getting the pass (if it's worth it) that comes with reserved seats so you don't have to worry about not sitting together, unless this doesn't bother you of course!

Definitely Gion in Kyoto; it's a great area. We loved our tea ceremony!

Don't forget it's going to take a lot time to get place to place, so don't try to plan too much each day.

If you can get out toward Fuji, I think that would be nice, too. There is an onsen near it that is popular with tourists. I would have done this, but I have a small tattoo on my ankle that likely would have kept me from being allowed in and I didn't want to risk that.

I second Hiroshima and Miyajima Island. You'd have to give up a Tokyo day to fit in in, but it's a really neat thing to see.

If I think of more, I'll let you know!

 

[gelatoni fan]

Suica works for Tokyo and Osaka. Price out the JR pass because if you don't take the shinkansen from Tokyo to Osaka, it usually doesn't make sense to buy one.

Are you from the US? Japan uses 100V plugs that are the same as the US 2 pronged. So a laptop or something with 3 prongs may need an adapter but most electronics work although they may charge slower than you're used to.

Sennheiser has some acceptable noise cancelling headphones in the 150 USD range. Only reasonably good ones in that price point but there's a noticeable difference between them and even the oldest/cheapest Bose. I think the Bose 700 still has the best noise cancelling for planes but Sony has a pair that is supposedly pretty good and outperforms slightly for high frequency sudden noise like a loud talking person. The bose one is also slightly more comfortable but charges slower and is less portable than the Sony one. If you don't have a pair of noise cancelling earphones in case your headphones run out of battery, you may opt for a Bose QC25 because no rechargeable noise cancelling headphones that I know of can work while charging.

 

[catmegs]

We just returned last week from 10 days in Tokyo/ Kyoto. I would definitely take the shinkansens over flying. Both Haneda and Narita are somewhat expensive and a pain to get to from central Tokyo (even more so from Tokyo Bay), and the experience of riding the train is incredible. You also see so much of the countryside and smaller towns, it would be a shame to skip that by flying. We did not buy a JR pass as we were just going from Tokyo -> Kyoto round trip, although it might have ended up being cost effective since we did use a lot of JR train lines.

If you still haven't booked your Tokyo accommodation I highly recommend Ueno. It was so convenient to both the JR and metro lines (and express train from Narita), and a lovely area to walk around in (you mentioned the national museum which is there, in a lovely park). Great markets there too. Shinjuku and Shibuya were actually my least favourite areas we visited- way too touristy, somewhat seedy at night, and felt like any large Asian city. We also stayed in Hatchobori, which was also quite charming but harder to access the trains.

Also highly recommend Nara, which is easy to access from Osaka. It was definitely our highlight of the trip- obviously for the deer, but also for the temples and gardens.

Unless you really don't care about the cost, don't bother with an airport car service. The trains and buses were so clean and accessible. The airport limousine bus picks up from the Hilton Tokyo Bay, it's very easy to use.

 

[ten6mom]

@LovesTimone , we are planning to go around the same general time frame! (late November 2020). It did not even occur to me that the parks might be decorated for Christmas! Anyone know for SURE when this happens? Because I would love to see it! Last year we were there when they were decorated for Halloween. Super cute but I far far prefer Christmas decorations!

If you haven't already, please consider the Japan Planning group on reddit (hopefully I can say that here). I think it gets a wider audience and it seems very common to post itinerary ideas. I've been playing around with mine for weeks now....

We will definitely be doing TDR (probably 3 days to appease me), a couple days in Tokyo, and then the rest of the time (not sure how many nights just yet) based in Kyoto.

Also someone just recommended to me a travel site called Travel Caffeine which I just started looking at, if you are looking for assistance there.

@catmegs , I am so glad you recommend the Ueno area because that's where I am planning to book our 2 Tokyo nights! It appears to be literally steps from the train station (to which there is what appears to be a direct train from Narita... score!)

 

[catmegs]

@ten6mom The Narita express to Ueno is so easy (and we did it with 3 kids at night after a long haul flight- so it really is easy). There's even a youtube video that will show you how to do it. And those Japanese Planning groups are amazing. Even when we were travelling, if I had a question I would ask the group and get an answer in minutes (silly things like, where would i buy ___ ). So helpful!

 

[LovesTimone]

Suica works for Tokyo and Osaka. Price out the JR pass because if you don't take the shinkansen from Tokyo to Osaka, it usually doesn't make sense to buy one.

Are you from the US? Japan uses 100V plugs that are the same as the US 2 pronged. So a laptop or something with 3 prongs may need an adapter but most electronics work although they may charge slower than you're used to.

Sennheiser has some acceptable noise cancelling headphones in the 150 USD range. Only reasonably good ones in that price point but there's a noticeable difference between them and even the oldest/cheapest Bose. I think the Bose 700 still has the best noise cancelling for planes but Sony has a pair that is supposedly pretty good and outperforms slightly for high frequency sudden noise like a loud talking person. The bose one is also slightly more comfortable but charges slower and is less portable than the Sony one. If you don't have a pair of noise cancelling earphones in case your headphones run out of battery, you may opt for a Bose QC25 because no rechargeable noise cancelling headphones that I know of can work while charging.

Yes we live in the US, in Winter Garden Florida, which is right behind WDW...

Yay on the plugs, now I just need like a power strip so that we can plug in and charge several things at once...

On the head Phones, I am looking for comfort as well as noise cancelling, we were thinking in the 200 dollar range, maybe a bit more, we are hoping for deal around black friday... Thanks for the info..

 

[LovesTimone]

We just returned last week from 10 days in Tokyo/ Kyoto. I would definitely take the shinkansens over flying. Both Haneda and Narita are somewhat expensive and a pain to get to from central Tokyo (even more so from Tokyo Bay), and the experience of riding the train is incredible. You also see so much of the countryside and smaller towns, it would be a shame to skip that by flying. We did not buy a JR pass as we were just going from Tokyo -> Kyoto round trip, although it might have ended up being cost effective since we did use a lot of JR train lines.

If you still haven't booked your Tokyo accommodation I highly recommend Ueno. It was so convenient to both the JR and metro lines (and express train from Narita), and a lovely area to walk around in (you mentioned the national museum which is there, in a lovely park). Great markets there too. Shinjuku and Shibuya were actually my least favourite areas we visited- way too touristy, somewhat seedy at night, and felt like any large Asian city. We also stayed in Hatchobori, which was also quite charming but harder to access the trains.

Also highly recommend Nara, which is easy to access from Osaka. It was definitely our highlight of the trip- obviously for the deer, but also for the temples and gardens.

Unless you really don't care about the cost, don't bother with an airport car service. The trains and buses were so clean and accessible. The airport limousine bus picks up from the Hilton Tokyo Bay, it's very easy to use.

DH and I both want to ride it, and the more I think about it, the more I am leaning to the Shinkansen, it's on our list...once we get closer next year, we will have to decide...

I will have to check out Ueno, - Was there alot of Restaurants, and shopping in this area?

I have Nara down for when we are in Osaka, I think that it's going to be if we can squeeze it in sorta option..

We have used private car companies when we travel, and it is a splurge ... It was a blessing from above we went to Paris, We had so many problems, and delays... having someone waiting for us when we came through custom's, and immigration, was a gift from above, We had been up almost 24 hours, and having someone help us with our luggage, and get us in the car, and drive us was just one big relief... Honestly, I almost cried when I saw our name on the Card... Our friends have contracted with a private car company to pick them up, and to have the driver ( English speaking) help them pick up their JR Pass, WIFI, and Sucia cards all in the airport... so if all goes well with that, we will most likely go that route...

 

[LovesTimone]

@LovesTimone , we are planning to go around the same general time frame! (late November 2020). It did not even occur to me that the parks might be decorated for Christmas! Anyone know for SURE when this happens? Because I would love to see it! Last year we were there when they were decorated for Halloween. Super cute but I far far prefer Christmas decorations!

If you haven't already, please consider the Japan Planning group on reddit (hopefully I can say that here). I think it gets a wider audience and it seems very common to post itinerary ideas. I've been playing around with mine for weeks now....

We will definitely be doing TDR (probably 3 days to appease me), a couple days in Tokyo, and then the rest of the time (not sure how many nights just yet) based in Kyoto.

Also someone just recommended to me a travel site called Travel Caffeine which I just started looking at, if you are looking for assistance there.

@catmegs , I am so glad you recommend the Ueno area because that's where I am planning to book our 2 Tokyo nights! It appears to be literally steps from the train station (to which there is what appears to be a direct train from Narita... score!)

From what I have read, and gotten some answers on here, The decorations should be up, like the week or so before Thanksgiving, so you should be able to see them, I would try to visit at the end of your trip, so you have the best possible chance of seeing them...

Thanks for the tip on Reddit, I will have to check that out,

We changed our minds and decided to stay in Osaka for a couple of reason, 1) we are planning on staying on points, as well the cost of hotels seems to be less, with the major chains there. 2) we want/need a King size bed 3) more options for nicer meals, plus there are several things that we want to check out in Osaka...

 

[LovesTimone]

@ten6mom The Narita express to Ueno is so easy (and we did it with 3 kids at night after a long haul flight- so it really is easy). There's even a youtube video that will show you how to do it. And those Japanese Planning groups are amazing. Even when we were travelling, if I had a question I would ask the group and get an answer in minutes (silly things like, where would i buy ___ ). So helpful!

Nice to know I will jot that down in my book... Thanks...

 

[Douglas Dubh]

I will have to check out Ueno, - Was there alot of Restaurants, and shopping in this area?

Yes.

 

[MKTokyo]

For the headphones, I use Bose QC35 & they are fabulous. The QC35 II model was just released so you can probably get the original model in the range you're looking to spend.

The Godzilla at Toho Cinema Shinjuku activates periodically with music and does a little smoke & laser thing complete with roars. I love him. Don't miss him.

Shinjuku & Shibuya are NOT "seedy" outside one small area of Shinjuku. You will know that area when you see it. Do not let that comment deter you from venturing out at night.

 

[Haley R]

For the headphones, I use Bose QC35 & they are fabulous. The QC35 II model was just released so you can probably get the original model in the range you're looking to spend.

The Godzilla at Toho Cinema Shinjuku activates periodically with music and does a little smoke & laser thing complete with roars. I love him. Don't miss him.

Shinjuku & Shibuya are NOT "seedy" outside one small area of Shinjuku. You will know that area when you see it. Do not let that comment deter you from venturing out at night.

I completely agree with the bolded statement above. I was worried about that area in Shinjuku but it’s like one street and you can clearly tell which one it is. It’s very easy to avoid. We never once felt unsafe in Japan

 

[Haley R]

Hi everyone,

We are planning on next year somewhere from mid November to the first week of December 2020... It will be just the 2 of us, we don't travel commando style. We are planning on 8 nights touring Tokyo and Osaka, and 5 nights at Tokyo Disneyland, We really want to be able to experience the parks dressed all up for Christmas...

So this is a rough draft of what we have seen that we would like to do, see and experience... I am not through planning by any means.. and everyday I find more stuff that I would like to do, but there is only so much time... Any tips, thoughts or suggestions are very much appreciated...


Planning on - JR pass, Sucia Card - picking up at the airport.
We will need - Wifi buddy and extra charger/battery order ahead pick up at airport -
Download - Google maps for trains
ATM's - 7-11 ...
Private car company -We are leaning on a private car service for pick at the airport to our hotel in Tokyo, and picking up at our hotel at Disneyland back to the airport.

Staying in Shibuya- or Shinjuku
1) Scramble Crossing, and viewing from above.
2) Tokyo "Edo" National musuem, Tokyo Skytree, and Nakamise Shopping street
3) Yo Yogi Park, and Imperial palace and gardens.
4) Shopping, Labi and Big Camera for electronic, Dasio and mega Donki
5) Niku Yokochu - to check out the food stalls on the 2nd floor
6) Obidiba - planning on a full day and evening - Team lab Borderless, Megaweb Toyota City, and see and check out the Gundam and get our grandson some to play with...and the National museum of Emerging Science and Innovation from what I can tell this is like MOSI? ...
7) Akihabara - Yodobashi Camera and big Camera, Chabara food & spice store, Yakitori - "Shimonya" resturant.
8) Shinjuku - Tokyo Metropolitan goverment building observation deck. Goen Park tea house, green house, and chinese gardens... Zauo - it were you can catch your own fish, then they prepare it for you...and of course we want to see Godzilla and get our pic with the big guy himself...
9) Still working on the other districts..

Staying in Osaka
1) Dotonbori for street food in the evening
2) Todau ji Temple "Great Buddha", Umeda sky Building, Osaka Castle, and evening river boat cruise.
3) Arashiyama - Sagano Railroad, or the romanic train as its called, and possibly Hozugawa river cruise back( not sure about late November)... Bamboo forest, and Monkey park, and the Golden Temple
4) Kyoto- Kiyomizudera Temple ( the wooden terrace) or Fushimi Anari Shrine, and the Gion District -


Toyko Disneyland
Staying at Hilton Toyko Bay... If I hit the lottery, Tokyo Disneyland hotel with package...
4 day ticket...
This is as far as I have gotten....

So I have some questions, food for your thoughts! Please and Thank you.

In checking out all the transportation options... I found out it is fairly cheap to fly between Tokyo and Osaka, around 100 bucks, and plus it is faster from what I have read... We really want to experience riding the Shinkensan bullet trains...
1) yet if its less expensive and quicker, with only 2 weeks maybe this would be a better solution?
2) As well if we do decide to fly would we really need a JR pass?
3) could we just get around with our Suica Cards on the trains?
4) both in Tokyo and Osaka?
5) with the day trips to Kyoto, and Arashiyama we would want the bullet train option right so the JR pass?

I have read that should look for some type of multi-plug unit for charging everything up? Suggestion on brand.

Electric converter? for things like curling iron, and electric shaver/ trimmer... have the ones we used in Paris, not sure if I need different ones?

Looking for a double earbuds for our I-pad and laptop. ? .. as well a fairly inexpensive (not cheap) noise cancelling head phones, these are going to be Christmas present to each other this year ? suggestions

In Osaka, our friends just raved about the hop on hop off bus?... If we have the Sucia card for the trains would this be necessary? Said that they got to see more and get off where ever they wanted to, plus some type of water taxi was included.... she said the bus ran like every 15 minutes, and her DH said more like a 45 to an hour... Anyone any thoughts on this?...

I know there is so much that I haven't even scratched the surface yet...

As always, any thoughts, suggestions, or help you can give me is greatly appreciated...

We used Japan Wifi Buddy for our Mifi and it worked perfectly. They were very efficient and great with communication. I highly recommend them.

I know you're wanting a private car service, but I don't think I would use it from Disney-airport. The airport limo bus is super cheap and really efficient. I would choose that to help you save money. Using the private car service when you first get there might work though if that's what you're wanting.

Tokyo
1. The Edo Tokyo Museum is amazing. I loved it! I don't know about the other museum you mentioned. An alternative to the Skytree would be the Askakusa Culture and Tourism Center. It's completely free and gives a great view of the Asakusa area. We walked from there to the Edo Tokyo Museum. The Nakamise shopping street gets jam packed. Either go early or late to avoid crowds, but I'm not sure if the stalls stay open late.
2. Odaiba-The digital art museum is a MUST. Buy your tickets online ahead of time and get there early. We got there in the afternoon because we went after the Ghibli museum. We had to wait in a pretty long line to get in even though we had our tickets ahead of time. We walked past the Gundam statue on the way to the art museum. There is a free shuttle bus that goes around Odaiba if you're interested in using that. It's just the Aqua City shuttle bus.
3. I didn't see you mention Harajuku, but I definitely think you should go there. For the most part we liked the main strip with stalls and that's where you'll find the giant cotton candy and the crepes to eat. It's very close to Shibuya (within walking distance for sure). I also think you might want to add the Disney store in Shibuya and the Shibuya Crossing.

Osaka/Kyoto
1. Fushimi Inari is really cool, but you need to be there super early if you want to enjoy it. The crowds show up around 8 am. We went at 6:30 am and barely saw anyone. It was super peaceful and relaxing. I recommend going all the way to the top if you're able. After the crossroads (I think that's what they're called) there are a lot less people. The crossroads is where you can get ice cream and stuff. We bought ice cream cones and they were pretty standard, but pricey. Also, buy water before climbing or bring your own. The prices go up the further up you get.

Transportation
1. I really think you should stick with the Shinkansen. It is such a cool experience and unlike something you can get anywhere else. I would never make myself go through the airport process. Getting on the train is a breeze. Once you solidify your plans you can figure out if the JR pass will be worth it.



A PP mentioned this, but if your plug ins are 2 prong you shouldn't need an adapter. We didn't bring any sort of adapter, but everything we plugged in was 2 prong. We had nothing that had 3 prongs.

Are you talking about a power bank to charge stuff? If so, we got ours at Walmart a couple years ago on Black Friday. They were super cheap and last a really long time. They have 2 charge ports. I think the brand is Black Web. We got them for like $9.99 on Black Friday.

 

[LovesTimone]

We used Japan Wifi Buddy for our Mifi and it worked perfectly. They were very efficient and great with communication. I highly recommend them.

I know you're wanting a private car service, but I don't think I would use it from Disney-airport. The airport limo bus is super cheap and really efficient. I would choose that to help you save money. Using the private car service when you first get there might work though if that's what you're wanting.

Tokyo
1. The Edo Tokyo Museum is amazing. I loved it! I don't know about the other museum you mentioned. An alternative to the Skytree would be the Askakusa Culture and Tourism Center. It's completely free and gives a great view of the Asakusa area. We walked from there to the Edo Tokyo Museum. The Nakamise shopping street gets jam packed. Either go early or late to avoid crowds, but I'm not sure if the stalls stay open late.
2. Odaiba-The digital art museum is a MUST. Buy your tickets online ahead of time and get there early. We got there in the afternoon because we went after the Ghibli museum. We had to wait in a pretty long line to get in even though we had our tickets ahead of time. We walked past the Gundam statue on the way to the art museum. There is a free shuttle bus that goes around Odaiba if you're interested in using that. It's just the Aqua City shuttle bus.
3. I didn't see you mention Harajuku, but I definitely think you should go there. For the most part we liked the main strip with stalls and that's where you'll find the giant cotton candy and the crepes to eat. It's very close to Shibuya (within walking distance for sure). I also think you might want to add the Disney store in Shibuya and the Shibuya Crossing.

Osaka/Kyoto
1. Fushimi Inari is really cool, but you need to be there super early if you want to enjoy it. The crowds show up around 8 am. We went at 6:30 am and barely saw anyone. It was super peaceful and relaxing. I recommend going all the way to the top if you're able. After the crossroads (I think that's what they're called) there are a lot less people. The crossroads is where you can get ice cream and stuff. We bought ice cream cones and they were pretty standard, but pricey. Also, buy water before climbing or bring your own. The prices go up the further up you get.

Transportation
1. I really think you should stick with the Shinkansen. It is such a cool experience and unlike something you can get anywhere else. I would never make myself go through the airport process. Getting on the train is a breeze. Once you solidify your plans you can figure out if the JR pass will be worth it.



A PP mentioned this, but if your plug ins are 2 prong you shouldn't need an adapter. We didn't bring any sort of adapter, but everything we plugged in was 2 prong. We had nothing that had 3 prongs.

Are you talking about a power bank to charge stuff? If so, we got ours at Walmart a couple years ago on Black Friday. They were super cheap and last a really long time. They have 2 charge ports. I think the brand is Black Web. We got them for like $9.99 on Black Friday.

Hi Haley,

Thanks for reminding me to check out the Disney Store... That's going on the list right away...

I still haven't gotten through all the districts, Harajuku is on the list to check out next... Good tip about the Cotton Candy...

I did not realize as well that some of the shrine are open very early, some are open 24 hours... I do have a question about how long did it take you to get to the cross-roads... at Fushimi Inari... ?

 

[Haley R]

Hi Haley,

Thanks for reminding me to check out the Disney Store... That's going on the list right away...

I still haven't gotten through all the districts, Harajuku is on the list to check out next... Good tip about the Cotton Candy...

I did not realize as well that some of the shrine are open very early, some are open 24 hours... I do have a question about how long did it take you to get to the cross-roads... at Fushimi Inari... ?

I’m not really sure how long it took us to get to the crossroads. We never timed it or anything. If I had to guess I’d say half an hour but that’s a guess lol. It will also depend on what time you go. LOTS of people stop for selfies and expect everyone to wait so that no one is in their picture. If you go early morning it shouldn’t be nearly as bad

 

[LovesTimone]

I’m not really sure how long it took us to get to the crossroads. We never timed it or anything. If I had to guess I’d say half an hour but that’s a guess lol. It will also depend on what time you go. LOTS of people stop for selfies and expect everyone to wait so that no one is in their picture. If you go early morning it shouldn’t be nearly as bad

LoL I don't know if I will be able to get DH up that early... He will say we are on vacation, I'm not getting up that early... then I have to play the crowd card...