Will 14 Day Pass Work For Me?

Hi there!

Yes, the JR Pass will take you to all of your destinations except for the journey up to Mt Koya from Osaka which is a non-JR train. For reference, I calculate your costs from the 1st-14th as:

1. Nagoya > Hiroshima: ¥13,430 (168mins, 528km)
2. Hiroshima > Miyajimaguchi: ¥400 (26mins, 21km)
3. Miyajimaguchi > Kyoto: ¥11,110 (165mins, 402km)
4. Kyoto > Nara: ¥690 (45mins, 41km)
5. Nara > Osaka: ¥780 (51mins, 48km)
6. Osaka > Yoshino(nara): ¥1,720 (101mins, 72km, incl. non-JR)
7. Yoshino(nara) > Kanazawa: ¥9,190 (254mins, 308km, incl. non-JR)
8. Kanazawa > Takayama: ¥4,180 (161mins, 148km)
9. Takayama > Tokyo: ¥14,300 (273mins, 532km)

JR ticket cost: ¥44,890 for 7 legs

As you can see the rail option just about breaks even with the cost of the 14 day JR Pass (¥45,100). If you thought you'd like to do a little more exploring while you are in Japan I think I can recommend the 14 day pass as it will give you more flexibility. (Note that you'll need to travel to Tokyo on the 14th night to really make the most of your rail pass.)

Hope this helps!

I could just leap through my phone and hug you!!!! Thank you so much for your information!! And a few more side trips maybe? Any recommendations?

:D not a problem!

For side trips, I think I recommend:

• Kurashiki
• Koyasan
• Naoshima
• Kinosaki Onsen

Certainly you should try and get one night at an onsen and Kinosaki is excellent!

Hope this helps

Mt Koya is Koyasan right? I'm definitely heading there. And someone else recommended Kinosaki, but I have 2 small tattoos :-( so just open baths for me! But I'm excited to try them!

yes- Koyasan is Mt Koya - sorry I forgot that you're planning on going there! One last thing I recommend is to stay a night on Miyajima rather than in Hiroshima. The Island completely changes after the last ferry leaves for the mainland and is a fantastic location to spend the night.

Hope this helps!

Hmm. I'll have to price the hotels in Miyajima. I'm budgeting like crazy so hostels and couch surfing for me lol.

I had another question please. Would it be better to get the 21 day pass for when I'm in Tokyo and take trips to Nikko and Kamakura? And do JR trains run in all the major cities? Like, would I have to buy a rail or subway pass specifically for Kyoto trains? Or Osaka trains around town? Or does my JR pass cover local transportation too?