I can’t believe it!! I am going to Japan! For some of you it may be just another trip, but for me this trip is simply the absolute dream come trip.
Let me tell you about my planning of the trip to Japan.
The Pre-planning
I’d had my eye on a couple of trips from Inside Japan. What I loved about their offers is how varied they were and that they gave me an idea of how much money I’d need to save. With many trips I’ve done so far, I would be in charge of my finances. This time, going to Japan, I thought it would be best to sign up for an organised trip.
I also thought it would be best if I learned a bit of Japanese. I started learning Japanese last year, and have been getting to grips with all the alphabets and grammar 🙂
And unsurprisingly, I have also started reading some books about Japan. I wanted to make sure that I don’t do any faux pas, or misunderstand something. The Japanese culture after all is so unique.
Going to Japan – The Trip
While I wanted to do one of a couple of trips Inside Japan offers, I ended up booking a completely different one. This is because the ones that I wanted to do had simply sold out!
So I am going for Tokkaido Trail trip. And frankly, I think incidentally it will be a great opportunity to explore Japan as much as I’d like to. Here’s what this trip covers.
Tokyo
We will be staying in Tokyo for a few days at each end of the trip. My little dream is to visit Ghibli Studios Museum, and I am hoping that I will be able to do that while I’m in Tokyo. Annoyingly, at the moment, the Museum is only open to local residents, i.e. not tourists. Hopefully this will change by the time I get to Japan.
Apart from that, reading the itinerary, it sounds like I could do nearly anything I wanted while I was in Tokyo. Any suggestions of must visit places? I’ve got my ideas but would definitely welcome your suggestions 🙂
Hakone
Next stop after a couple of days in Tokyo is Hakone. This is a town near Mount Fuji, and with one of the most famous shrines.
There is a lot more to do in that region, and this is reflected in the itinerary as well. I’m looking forward to walking through the Open-Air Museum and following the footsteps of samurai down the Tokkaido Trail.
Just reading and typing it here sounds incredible!
Lake Biwa
From Hakone, we’ll be going to Lake Biwa. While we were there, we will visit one of the remaining castles that was built in 17th century and belonged to Samurai.
The plan is also to take a boat trip to the sacred island Chikubu.
image credits: Centrip Japan, Wikipedia, Voyapon
I love that we will be visiting places that are clearly worth seeing and are not just the main tourist highlights such as Tokyo.
Kyoto
Afterwards, we will head to Kyoto where we will spend 2 days.
Reading the itinerary, there are a couple of options to choose from while we are there. I could go to Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, which I feel is a must visit. In theory I could also go to Nara which is Japan’s ancient capital. Or go to the island of Miyajima in the Seto Inland Sea with the famous tori gate. This sounds like no brainer 🙂
Image credits: Viator, Wanderlust Crew, Kayak
We will also explore the streets of Kyoto which sounds super exciting as well.
Back to Tokyo
And then we are back to Tokyo to explore the metropolis even more.
What I thought of doing is extending the stay a little bit and either hopefully going to Ghibli Museum, or go to as many Ghibli themed places in Tokyo as possible. Having spoken with Ben, Inside Japan’s representative, he made me excited that there are many cafes or other places that are crazy about Ghibli like I am 🙂
Since I’m now going to Japan in June, I need to be prepared for its rainy season. That’s absolutely fine – a couple of rain ponchos will hopefully do the trick 🙂
I actually still can’t believe I am going to Japan. The trip of a life time is actually coming true!