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kyoto, osaka, nagoya and tokyo trip

bibingoi
bibingoi
almost 10 years ago
8 responses

Hi i am planning to travel alone to japan this coming june about 15 days. I will be arriving at kansai airport morning and stay at hotel excellence kyoto station. I would like to explore kyoto first followed by osaka, kobe, nagoya and tokyo. Can someone advise what pass should i purchase between all these cities ? Can i just stay at 1 hotel only instead of moving around as i will be fly off from kansai airport at the last day of the trip. Thanks in advance.

avatar
Daniel-san
18830 posts
almost 10 years ago
Expert

Hello there,

I would recommend buying either a 7 day or 14 day JR Pass, depending on how many day trips you make outside of Kansai. Kansai is the area where Kyoto, Osaka, Kobe and Nara are located. This because travel within the Kansai reagion is net very expensive, however outside Kansai the JR Pass absolutely shines. Just a normal return Tokyo - Kyoto will make a 7 day JR Pass to pay off and you would make great savings if you visit Nagoya as well.

It is certainly possible to make day trips to Tokyo/Nagoya (or even Hiroshima) but keep in mind that it does involve a good amount of travel time. For instance a return Tokyo - Kyoto takes about 140-160min each way.

Hope this helps!
Daniel

bibingoi
bibingoi
8 posts
almost 10 years ago

Hi daniel,

Thank you for your advise. My itinerary as followed and kindly comments :
Day 1- arrival at kansai airport at morning and check in at hotel excellence. Hanging around.

Day 2 - visit nijo castle, nino maru palace, honganji temple, kyoto imperial palace and fushimi inari shrine.

Day 3 - visit kiyomizudera temple, higashiyama district and gion.

Day 4 - arashiyama and sagano

Day 5 - nara

Day 6 - universal studio and osaka castle.

Day 7 - namba (minami)

Day 8 - visit shirakawago and takayama

Day 9 to 13 - tokyo shopping, hakone and mount fuji.

Day 14 to 15 - return to osaka and return to singapore.

avatar
Daniel-san
18830 posts
almost 10 years ago
Expert

Hi Again!

Your plan looks great! One thing I would like to draw your attention to is day 8 when you plan to visit Shirakawago and Takayama. Know that the travel time involved is pretty long (over 5 hours Shirakawago - Osaka) so my advice would be to travel to Takayama on the 7th and visit Shirakawago the following morning.

For the reset I think that you are good to go!
Daniel

bibingoi
bibingoi
8 posts
almost 10 years ago

Hi daniel

Thank you very much, how ever can you suggest what pass should i purchase based on my itinerary. I am a bit confused about the pass.
Thank you.

avatar
Daniel-san
18830 posts
almost 10 years ago
Expert

Hi Again!

I think that a 7 day JR Pass would be perfect. Use it from day 8-14 and you can cover all of your otherwise expensive travel with it. Travel cost between Kyoto - Osaka is low and I would suggest just buying normal tickets there.

Hope this helps and let me know if you have questions.
Daniel

bibingoi
bibingoi
8 posts
almost 10 years ago

Hi daniel

Thanks for your advises. I have another question, do you think i would need to buy a haruka/ icoca for travel from kansai airport to kyoto and osaka. Is it worth it than the normal ticket ? Sorry for asking so many questions.

avatar
Daniel-san
18830 posts
almost 10 years ago
Expert

Yes certainly! The Haruka + Icoca package is the best way to travel to Kyoto if you don't have a JR Pass.


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