Hey all, I'm taking my pops on a 2 weeks (wish it was longer but you take what you can get) trip to japan at the end of September and am looking for some recommendations. We are flying into Tokyo and going to some sumo matches, but beyond that we havent formed any firm plans yet, so our itinerary is wide open and ready for some hot insider tips! We are both into photography, culture, hiking, nature and food. Thanks in advance!

It would help to know what interests the two of you... hiking, clubbing? Traditional ryokan style hotels or western style ? Hiroshima? The red fall foliage? Temples? Shopping?

good point. we are into photography, culture, hiking, nature and food. I like the idea of getting a rounded experience (albeit brief) experience of japan.

Kyoto definitely - don't miss the Fushimi Inari there (and go to the top where it's not crowded). South of Osaka is an area dedicated to three of the most important temples and shrines in Japan - the Kumodo Kodo https://www.insidekyoto.com/kumano-kodo-walking-trail...

It's an area of ancient pilgrimage routes that connect the three sites. Beautiful trails. In the villages on the routes you can book traditional ryokan accommodation - choose ones with their own onsen (hot springs - some are in rooms, some are dug out of the river bed!). They will likely also offer traditional kaiseki meals, and will pack a lunch for your days hike. Highly recommended but you need a few days, three nights does it very nicely. You can even stop in Mt Koya, take the cable up the mountain and stay overnight with the monks in one of the temples.

If you go to Hiroshima, which didn't interest me too much honestly, I would stay on Mijajima Island just a ferry ride away - very beautiful for a day of trekking around.

If you like art check out Naoshima Art Island.

In Tokyo check out http://thewanderbug.com/golden-gai-piss-alley-tokyo/. Lots of fun wandering, eating and drinking

also the Robot Bar in Tokyo, touristy but very unique and fun. Don't eat there though, just beers and a show.

I stay in Shinjuku at the Hotel Sunroute, because it's a very good hotel but also because it's right across from Shinjuku station, walking distance to the recommendations above, and a train hop from everything else.

Lastly, Japan has an awesome luggage transfer service. If you're hiking for example, and don't want your big luggage with you for a few days, you just send it ahead! Brilliant. Any hotel and most convenience stores will take care of it for you. You can even send it to the airport and pick it up there. Overnight service, except between small towns where it might take 48 hours.

thanks so much for all of this.

...the luggage transfer is awesome!

In Tokyo you can ride Mario Kart go carts around the city, super fun! Also Golden Gai was a huge hit with my group, a real experience. Ueno park is a must, can easily spend a full day there and very reasonable to take out a little boat.

Oh Cher I miss our vacation talk

Marco Ditto!

Check out Numazuko Kaisho for their all you can eat sashimi. My friend went and said it was fresh and delicious!

we had 2 wks ...bought rail pass ...Tokyo =amazing..fast paced lots of people who were kind and helpful even with no Japanese language skills

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Am going at the same time. Doing a walk Japan tour (2nd one)... Pricey but exceptionally good. Recommend the Nakisendo Way tour...

The Edo Tokyo museum is wonderful!

Jealous!
I strongly recommend you plan one of those days as a day trip to Kamakura. It's a great alternative to the hustle and bustle of Tokyo and gives you a number of photogenic shrines, gardens, and the giant Buddha. Plus you have a gorgeous beach on the ocean. Get started early and spend the whole day.
My other big recommendation is to eat and eat everywhere, including the 7/11s! Try Ichiran restaurant for the best ramen you might ever have. Ueno shopping streets for food and fun.
And make sure you hit up at least one department store basement for their food court.
Have fun!

Takayama and areas around Bepu

If you are going to several cities consider buying a JR pass, which has to be bought outside of Japan before you go. We saved quite a bit and was able to visit more places because it was included in the pass

Agree totally..allows bus and ferry routes too

We have been visited twice. I wld recommend the Peace Museum in Nagasaki over the one in Hiroshima, that being said..Hiroshima is a beautiful city. Should you visit Hiroshima take the ferry to Miyajima.
In Osaka...visit Osaka Castle and Osaka Museum of History, great views of.the city and the castle...they are adjacent.
Matcha ice cream...buy the matcha cookies in Kyoto. The store is across the street from the station. Go downstairs of the mall next door...great food and so interesting just to take a look around. The Japanese know how to display food! Visit any fish market.
The subway is a great way to get around...English signage.
Go to Kobe..they have a great Chinatown.
Eat everything! Go down small alley ways and visit the arcades (covered walkways) you'll find such interesting restaurants, stores, stand up bars, etc.
Enjoy..we LOVE Japan! So clean, safe and the Japanese people are lovely.
When in Kyoto..have patience...tonnes of tourists...

Here's my top 5 tips after spending 5 weeks in Japan this past March-April. I wouldn't go back again without getting pocket wifi. Order in advance and pick up/drop off at the airport. As mentioned, the JR Pass is excellent. Reserve seats for your next trip on arrival at your daily destination.
Try Hiroshima style okonomiyaki if you go there. We went to Okonomi-mura -a Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki food theme park that has 24 okonomiyaki restaurants, each with a slightly different style and set of ingredients. Great food and experience. Miyajima near Hiroshima has been mentioned and worth the trip to see the iconic floating torii gate.
Another uniquely Japanese food experience is the cheap kaiten sushi (conveyor belt) . Kura Sushi is a chain has expanded worldwide I think, but is worth searching out for the good quality sushi at rock bottom prices and experiencing the highly automated restaurant itself.
In Tokyo I would highly recommend the teamLab Borderless exhibition at the Mori Digital Art Museum in Odaiba,Tokyo. Google it. One of the top highlights of my trip.
Finally, for a mix of hiking and culture, though kind of out of the way, look up Yamadera. Spectacular views, climb of 1000 steps, and temple at the top.

Nara, just outside Kyoto.

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Lived there for 4 years, and have been to most prefectures in Japan. It was a second home to me.
For 2 weeks I would suggest a classic tour. It will keep you busy for the entire time and you will see the most popular and most culturally significant parts of Japan. Suggest the following:
Tokyo (1d) -> Hiroshima (2d)-> Miyajima (1d)(day trip from Hiroshima)-> Kobe (1d)-> Osaka (2d)->Kyoto(2d)->Nara (1d)(Todaiji)->Ise(1d) (Ise Jingu)->Hakone(1d)->Tokyo (2d)
If you want to take out a day and add a day in Kyoto or Tokyo, then I would take out Kobe and/or Ise Jingu, although Ise Jingu is one of the most culturally significant places in Japan (just isn't as nice to look at, but still nice, not as well traveled). Kobe is a cool town, and it has a good live music scene, but I think another day in Kyoto might be more important for the first any maybe only trip there. So much to see in Kyoto, and by extension Osaka.

Kyoto. Hands down the best.

Kyoto was wonderful to see temples, fushimi shrine, Nishiki market. In Tokyo, we quite enjoyed the digital museum by team Lab borderless which sells out and need to reserve online a few weeks out. I’m glad you got tickets for sumo wrestling, it was a tick off bucket list for me as well. MarioKart looks like a lot of fun too, a unique experience but unfortunately missed out on last year when I went.

Definitely go to a baseball game. The fans get really into it. Hiroshima Carps all the way!!

Take a day trip from Tokyo to Nikko! Or stay a couple days if you can. Beautiful shrines and temples, as well as hiking and waterfalls if you have a couple days to spare. About 2.5 hours by train from Tokyo.

Shimokitazawa area in Tokyo was my fav by far. It had a ton of small little shops, micro brews, small little windy streets and more of an east vancouver feel than big buildings and major billboards.

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If you are interested in historic cultural experience, I definitely recommend you to stay in Kyoto area longer than Tokyo. If you have time, I recommend at least 1 night in Hiroshima (1 day for Miyajima and another day for Peace memorial museum). And you have to eat Okonomiyaki in Hiroshima!
If you are into baseball, it would be fun to go to baseball games either in Tokyo, Osaka or Hiroshima (popular tourist destinations with a team). it’s very different experience from MLB games due to Japanese cheering styles.
If you are a foodie, check Michelin Star restaurants in the area. There are a lot!
If you are into sake, you can find sake distilleries and visit them!
If you are into cooking, don’t forget to check cooking classes and knive stores!

Get pocket wifi and a rail pass before arriving. Carry cash and a change purse, you'll need it. Google translate especially with offline dictionary is handy. 7-11 has healthy cheap food options. Dont be loud, especially on subways and bus. Dont be afraid to travel randomly and experience the small things that will make your trip memorable for all your life. My nest experience was helping a disabled man on the bullet train being ignored by everyone, and a helpful english speaking japanese who searched the entire train to tell me my stop was coming. Dont pack your trip too full with things to do so you can have time for the spontaneous. Kyoto is elegant and beautiful, bullet train there is reasonable price. Take the romance train and possibly boat ride, memorable! Eat in local shops and be respectful of the local people, the culture is beautiful.

7-11 food

If you take the bullet train, get a lunch box from one of the lower level food places !

Opt for japanese breakfast if you are given the choice of Japanese or wester.

If you like photography, kyoto station is a magnificent space, very worth a visit!

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Tokyo Disney seas if the best Disney in the world and well worth a day

Spending the night in a shrine in Koyasan was the best decision ever. If you are into peaceful tranquility, then you can explore more about it ^^.

Hui-yu we did this as well. Unique and amazing experience. Participating in the Buddhist prayer ceremony was certainly memorable!

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If you happen to get stuck in a typhoon while at the Narita airport like I did, make sure to immediately go get one of those hotel rooms! Or else you’re stuck sleeping under a bench and all the stores are closed...

Thres Dan

7-eleven had the best dessert on a stick, they have mango, strawberry, and kiwi flavours, great treat after a meal.
I second Nikko. Kyoto is amazing. Osaka has a cool food scene but you only need to do one or two days max. Nara is cool too for a day trip as well.

Don't miss Kyoto. Take the bullet train

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I recommend spending a night or two at an onsen ryokan. I went to one in Hakone, close to Tokyo, but I hear there are great ones out in Osaka too. We stayed in a traditional tatami room room and purchased a package that included dinner and breakfast. It was a wonderful experience and I would definitely do it again!

Iris what was the name of the ryokan?

Diane Hakone Onsen Hotel Okada https://www.hotel-okada.co.jp/

Iris thank you very much. I will check into tit

Tokyo. Robot Restaurant.

Hi, wonderful! I lived there 17 yrs, it's all good! I'd say don't miss Kamakura, Noge neighbourhood of Yokohama on a Sat night, Ameyoko street market in Tokyo, Nippori/Yanaka neighbourhood in Tokyo, my fav trip was to the Inland Sea area, Kurashiki, and Kiso Valley area. So exciting!!!

Many people will say to spend a night at a hot spring:onsen hotel in Hakone.... Honestly, it's over Rin with tourists and there are much nicer places to onsen.

Penne what area would your recommend then?

Penne do you know of any close to either Kyoto or Tokyo?

Also, don't miss Kanagawa, the old geisha/ tea house and samurai house districts as well as the amazing new art gallery!

Sorry, not Kanagawa Should say Kanazawa!!

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Go to Hakone
https://lifamilytraveltips.weebly.com

http://shin-hinomoto.com/...

I went Tokyo>Kyoto>Nara>Osaka>Hiroshima in 3 weeks. So I’d say do Tokyo>Kyoto>Nara>Osaka in 2 weeks. Definitely get JR Rail passes before you leave. The shrines in Kyoto are incredible! I really enjoyed the sake shrine. Also eat so much food and hit up all the street markets!

I went to Japan to see Nature-my top recommendations: Kerama Islands in Okinawa Prefecture, Shirakawa Village in Gifu, Natchikatsuura on the Kumano Kodo Trail, Kazurabashi Vine Bridge in the Iya Valley and Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park...also lived on ramen, sushi, tonkatsu and meals from the “combini” (convenience stores) 7-Eleven, Family Mart, etc. Great inexpensive meals

I recently returned from a month-long trip around Japan. Since you've got two week:
Tokyo for a few days... Shibuya, Shinjuku, the Mori Art Museum in Roppongi Hills is cool, the Imperial Palace, Ueno Park. You can go to Kawaguchico (Mt Fuji area) or Hakone as either day trips, or as overnight stays.
Kyoto is a beautiful city with some of Japan's most picturesque spots (Fushimi-Inari Shrine - the one with all the orange gates, the Arashiyama Bamboo Grove - go all the way to the top for a nice view into the valley below, tonnes of temples). Kyoto is also a good place to day trip into Nara and visit the giant Buddha hall and cute deer.
Nikko is a nice little city north of Tokyo. It has a tonne of history. There's a really cool walk along the river to the Kanmangafuchi Abyss, with interesting statues lining the path. On the other side of Nikko, there is the Suginamiki - an old imperial road lined with thousands of cedar trees.
https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/kanmangafuchi-abyss
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cedar_Avenue_of_Nikko
For something off the beaten track, you could check out the Ryu-Q Kan. This is part of Tokyo's flood control system and is their underground discharge tunnel. Trust me, it's an interesting place to see. You may need to book a tour time in advance. https://www.japanvisitor.com/.../kasukabe-underground...
https://www.gaikaku.jp/
Hiroshima is also worth checking out, with a day trip to Miyajima Island. If you're rushed, you could do Hiroshima as an overnight trip from Kyoto or Osaka.
Depending on your travel plans, the JR Pass is well worth the price. As of this year, you can get the JR Pass within Japan, but it's cheaper to arrange it ahead of your trip. As others have noted, the pass does cover some buses and ferries. Read the pass details carefully to understand its limits. If you're not sure whether the cost is worth it, you can research some train options using Hyperdia.
http://www.hyperdia.com/#
Go to More Options and uncheck "Airplane", NOZOMI/MIZUHO" and "Private Railway" to find only JR Pass options. The results will give you the estimated cost (in Yen).

Matt of course you did!

Shinjuku Metropolitan government building has an amazing view from the top observation deck - huge viewing area of all of Tokyo!! Best experience!!

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Following - SO much to do! I only have a very flexible week there (flying into Tokyo) as of September 21st and this was all great information.