Hello everyone ! We’re going to Japan for 17 days. We will be mostly in Tokyo, with 5 days in Osaka. Any must do and eat that you can recommend us ? We have 3 young kids. We are staying in Ginza and Shibuya in Tokyo. Our family is active and like to explore. Any tip and/or advice is greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance.

Dont miss a day trip to Kamakura from Tokyo!!!

Penne will second that great place to go!

Marcusyes! Kids may enjoy riding the historic Enoden electic railway from kamakura along the seaside and thru green hills to enoshina. At enoshima explore the island market and beautiful beaches!

Penne yes yes and yes! Kamakura and Nara are my two easily accessible small towns to visit.

Well since you're going to Kyoto, you can visit Hie Shrine which is similar to the famous Inari shrine.

Bring some cash, and a small wallet because you'll have a lot of coins. Bring garbage bags because it is not easy to find garbage bins. Stay near a metro station. Wear comfortable shoes because you'll be walking a lot.

My neighbours went with their toddler and found that there were no high chairs.
Not sure how old your kiddos are

In Tokyo - team planet labs and art aquarium ( Ginza) are fun and cool for the whole family. Tokyo tower has a gaming center and n the base . Doing a temple like sensoji is beautiful late aft early evening. There’s a great YouTube video of family trip for 4 days I think where they hit the things I mention plus a few more.

Book all this stuff s month out on Klook.com
KLOOK.COM
Klook Travel - Activities, tours, attractions and things to do - Klook

The APA hotels are quite reasonable and have everything you need but rooms are small. They are also very convenient to the train stations. I suggest you get suica train passes to get around from place to place.

With 3 young Kids? That could be a handful but doable. Main advice is be early as everything runs on time (ex. Bullet Trains. They do not wait for you)
In Osaka I recommend their Aquarium, fun for you and the kids, and booking tickets in advance for a scheduled time (again plan to be there a bit earlier)
https://www.kaiyukan.com/language/eng/ticket.html
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KAIYUKAN.COM
Tickets

I went with my kids last time this year one of our favourite trips!! Harajuku is fun with kids lots of treats and fun shopping, Mejia Shrine is close by and worth seeing. Sushi conveyors are cheap and always neat to do. If you go to Kyoto from Osaka go see the Monkeys. Checking out Godzilla at night worth a quick visit to see in Shinjujuku better at night for the little show he does. Arcades are every where worth hitting up some. Osaka is the most fun at night and there are some really cool ramen places. Highly recommend a day trip to Kamakura and Kawagoe. Both easy to get to from Tokyo and very neat to see. Fushimi Inari Shrine is also worth a little trip while in Osaka or Kyoto but go at night. Nobody was around and it has lights, was a very cool place to explore that way. There are tonnes of themed cafes pick one that suites your family and check them out. The Animal cafes were not great we preferred other themes.

One of my mistakes was buying day passes or the Japan Rail pass ahead of time and stressing about reservations. Different lines are owned by different companies and we bounced around and were far better off buying individual tickets as needed. Did the math and we didn't save money with the JR Rail passes with trips to Kyoto, Osaka, Tokyo etc. Also our tickets we got ripped off by a company for them for freight and non-refunable. I bought from an approved place and thought I did my research and they took my money and demanded $75 more in freight for the tickets AFTER getting an invoice. Careful with this. DO NOT buy passes from jrpass.com they will rip you off.
JRPASS.COM
Japan Rail Pass | Explore Japan by train | JRPass.com

Day 1-3: Explore Shibuya and Harajuku, visit Meiji Shrine, and enjoy shopping on Takeshita Street.
Day 4-6: Discover Odaiba's attractions like TeamLab Borderless, visit Tokyo Disneyland or DisneySea.
Day 7-8: Spend time in Ueno Park, visit the Ueno Zoo, and explore museums like the National Museum of Nature and Science.
Day 9-10: Experience Asakusa's Senso-ji Temple, cruise the Sumida River, and visit the Tokyo Skytree.
Don’t overpack they have laundry in the hotels. Bring comfortable shoes.

Maine Where is the best area to have a home base in Tokyo?
Also curious about seeing the bathing monkeys in Jigokudani Valley.
Any tips on this?
Arigatō!

Mieke I just got that off in ChatGPT. I would post on TOKYO travel TIPS lots of tips out there and experiences from other people. Good luck.

Oh and Japan Disney is cheaper than the US and has some unique rides and scenery. My kids loved it and we went back the last day and did Disney At Sea as well. The area is a little tricky to get to from some places.