Hi there! I am planning a trip to Japan for two weeks for summer 2023. it would be just me and my 10 year old son. Does anyone have a sample itinerary they could share or any advice as to where to go/ what to see? Starting from a blank page here as this is the gift for my son and he’s been very passionate about going. Thank you!!!

Make sure you get the JR rail pass before you leave Canada!
https://www.japan-rail-pass.com/?market=CA...
JAPAN-RAIL-PASS.COM
Japan Rail Pass - #1 Worldwide Official Distributor

Meredith thank you so much for the link!!!

Meredith I find that it’s cheaper to buy tickets while in Japan!

Wendy interesting. When I went, I got the green pass and went first class everywhere. It was a steal for us as we used it as much as possible and saw so much (Tokyo, shizuoka, mt fuji, Nagoya, osaka, kyoto, hiroshima, kanazawa, toyama, takaoka...)

jr pass totally depends on plans- also for me, it worked out better to just book the shinkansens once i got there.

Meredith unless you want to travel extensively throughout Japan there are many limitations with JR pass. For Margarita and her 10 year old son it’s probably not wise to buy the pass and just do a few stops and enjoy the sites. Odaiba would be an interesting place for your son! Asakuza , ginza ( very famous area) are interesting too. Each subway in Tokyo has something interesting to see, read up on it!

I agree. If you’re only going from Tokyo > Kyoto and back the pass is not needed. I recall the tickets for this route cost about $250cad when I purchased them in the Tokyo train station back in 2018.

My (17yr old) son & I are heading to Japan later this month for 10 days.
Our high-level itinerary is:
Tokyo: 3 nights
Then bullet train to Kyoto.
Kyoto: 2 nights
Train to Osaka.
Osaka: 3 nights (day trip to Nara)
Then we rent a car to drive up to Shirakawa, stay a night in the mountains/in an onsen town.
Then drive back towards Tokyo, stay the last night somewhere outside of Tokyo (maybe Mount Takao?) then airport & home. (Well, he continues to NZ..)
We have a handful of specific things to do in each place, but it all kind of focuses on food, temples, and weird things we’ve been saving to a shared map for months.

Barbara thank you so much for sharing!!! I would love to hear your thoughts when you are back and maybe some tips
have a safe and fun trip!

Margarit Remind me in December!
If we had a full 2 weeks, and it was not approaching winter, I’d add a coastal area.

Make sure you both watch Lost in Translation ahead of the trip!

Dave will do

If you can hop over to Okinawa. Absolutely beautiful. The beaches are beyond.

Denise thank you! I’m going to check this out!

Wendy
Denise you can’t really “ hop over” to Okinawa… it’s away from the Mainland .. the feel is too American.. did not experience the full Japanese culture I find. However the huge multi levels outdoor aquarium is amazing!

Tokyo is a must...take a day trip to Mount Fuji area. Osaka, Kyoto, I also recommend Hiroshima for the Atomic bomb memorial and museum.
You guys will have fun, the feeling that you are living 50 years ahead of the rest of the world and a true meaning of a first world country..

Tarek thank you!

Margarit Building on this, if you end up going to Hiroshima, set aside a day to visit Miyajima which is a nearby island. That was very easily the highlight of my trip to Japan. Make sure you go to the Daishoin temple.

Margarit I second The Peace Garden/museum in Hiroshima. Very moving and will be meaningful for your 10 year old.

Tarek Hiroshima and Miajima

I'm going for two weeks with my wife for our honeymoon so our itinerary might be a bit different than going with a 10-year old but we're kids at heart. This is it high-level but happy to share any extra details:
Tokyo: 4 nights
1 day at Disney Sea/Disney Japan
2 days exploring the sea (local food, Denboin Garden, the Meiji shrine, Sumida Park, local markets, etc)
1 day doing a day trip to Mt. Fuji (we are doing a self-guided trip but there are tours)
Kyoto: 3 nights
Check out the Hozugawa Riverboat Cruise, Fushimi Inari Shrine, Arashiyama Bamboo Groves
-We are spending 1 night at an Onsen Ryokan (Hot Spring Inn)
Osaka: 3 nights
There is a famous aquarium, the Osaka Castle and Shittenoji Temple, etc.
Okinawa: 3 nights
Note: that this is a small island off of Tokyo so requires a flight there and back.
And 1 last night in Tokyo before we go back home

Bowen this is great! Definitely stealing some of it
thanks for sharing!

Bowen May I ask how you’re getting from city to city? JR, bullet train. Planning something similar for my family of 4 . Are you booking transport in advance? There seem to be a lot of options in regards to reserved seating on the trains.

Hey Ruchi,
I looked into the JR rail pass that people have suggested previously and did the math through this calculator (https://www.japan-guide.com/railpass/). Basically because I am going to Okinawa and back which needs to be done via plane, it made more sense not to do the Rail Pass. I think the Rail Pass would be worth it if you're exploring a lot of different prefectures in Japan.
So knowing I'm not doing the railpass, I probably will just be booking bullet trains. I haven't done anything in advance yet but your comment makes me think I should haha! So I probably will look into it

Any tips in getting reasonable flight & place to stay? Is aurbnb preferable than hotels? Still scouting for best fare for summer next year too from Toronto?

Pinky Pop I’ve mostly used booking.com, but there are some very reasonably priced accommodation options.
booking.com
BOOKING.COM: The largest selection of hotels, homes, and vacation rentals

Pinky Pop I got lucky through my Amex card - I was able to book a flight with a stop over in Paris with air france and it was very reasonably priced (booked business)

If you and your son like the Ghibli Studio films like Kikis delivery service, My Neighbor Totoro and Spirited Away then I highly recommend a day at the Ghibli museum near Tokyo. Easy to get to by train but you need to book dated & timed tickets at least 1 month in advance. JTB travel in Toronto helped us.
Also recommend searching themed restaurants ( like the Kawai Monster Cafe) in Tokyo.
Good luck and have a great trip!

I second all of the above. My kids were around your son's age when we visited and loved the Ghibli Museum and the Kawaii Monster Cafe. There's also a Studio Ghibli theme park that's opened recently. Pikkachu Outbreak is fun, if you're there while it's happening. Check out the events pages of websites like japancheapo, tokyocheapo, and Tokyo timeout to see what's on during your stay. There are a lot of incredible summer festivals. If your son is into baseball, going to a Giant's game when you're in Tokyo could be fun too.

The Theme park just opened up at the beginning of this month too!

Here you can book a free guide for as many days you want. http://www.tokyofreeguide.org/
TOKYOFREEGUIDE.ORG
TOKYO FREE GUIDE - Volunteer Tour Guide Service in Tokyo

Also, here you can find everything you need to plan your trip.
https://www.google.com/.../a-guide-on-how-to.../%3Famp%3D1
THECULTURETRIP.COM
A Guide on How to See Japan in 10 Days

Follow The Travelling
Traveling Canucks - Family Travel they posted wonderful information a few years ago about their family vacation to Japan.

Suzie thank you for the tip!

I went in 2012 & 2017. First time was a week in Oct based in Osaka with day trips to Nara & Kyoto. My 2017 trip, I hit up Tokyo, Kanazawa, Takayama, Osaka and Kyoto in Mar/Apr. You can view my itineraries and whatnot on my travel blog http://boketto.rosannau.com/ I also agree with many peoples suggestions of trying to catch a baseball game and studio ghibli. If you or your son are really into those movies, As of this month, they have opened a huge Ghibli Amusement park in Nagoya - Not sure if its similar to the Studio Ghibli museum in Tokyo tickets can only be purchased 1 month in advanced and sells out quickly. The 10th at 10AM Japan time of every month. Much cheaper to purchase from site than through a tour group (service charges are killer). The actual ticket is only 1000y. In Tokyo, there is Teamlab that looks amazing - tickets get released a month or 2 ahead. A short trip from Tokyo is Yokohama (I haven't been yet but planning for my next trip) they have a huge animated gundam statue there and also the cup noodle museum (also in osaka) and ramen museum. If you are planning on renting a car, make sure to get your international drivers license via CAA before you leave Canada. I used airbnb & Agoda for my bookings.

Apparently Robot Bar is considered all ages and it is a feast for the eyes and ears. It’s loud and lots of lights but if your kiddo isn’t sensitive to those sorts of things it’s super fun. I suggest to get your tickets ahead of time through Voyagin like this website suggests. It’s not cheap but not something you’ll never forget: https://tokyocheapo.com/.../robot-restaurant-cheap-tickets/
TOKYOCHEAPO.COM
How to Find Cheap Tickets to the Robot Restaurant | Tokyo Cheapo

My wife and I really loved Osaka. So much so we're going back in March. Kyoto was nice too, but much busier with other tourists and more reserved. Osaka is lots of fun. Look at staying in Nara to recover from the festive atmosphere of Osaka.

Be prepared for the heat and humidity!!

I’ve been a few times solo. Favourite things: • being in Nara at feeding time - they use tubas to call the deer to a clearing
• going to key attractions (ex: bamboo forests in Kyoto) early in the day to avoid the crowds
• leaving flex in every day to say “ooh, that looks interesting” and to go on a two hour detour
• Don Quiote in Akihabara (though the costume floor may be inappropriate for a 10-year-old)
• wandering through Yodobashi Camera and embracing the cacophony of sounds

Look into TripOppo tours. High quality

Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka (with a day trip to Nara).

JR pass for sure, and buy a SIM card online ahead of time for pickup at the airport. 7/11 food is low key awesome and always ready.

Super exciting! One thing to note is Japan in the summer is extremely hot/humid so you might not be able to be out the full day (i found I had less energy than normal to do activities)
Some food to try:
Okonomiyaki (I would recommend in osaka)
Ramen
Shabu shabu/sukiyaki (if you eat meat-I prefer sukiyaki, it’s like hot pot ! Mo mo paradise is a good spot to try it !)
Chicken katsu/tonkatsu
This is to name a few option, there’s so much good food in Japan for reasonable prices!

Here's the first blog post in a series about my trip to Japan. I went for a month but you could pick and choose the destinations in it. Tokyo is a really cool city for a 10 year old. https://whereisgrandma.com/.../2-canadians-in-tokyo-the.../
WHEREISGRANDMA.COM
2 Canadians in Tokyo. The beginning and end of a great trip starts in Montreal