Would appreciate advice on best passes to use for the following Kansai itineraries:
Based in Osaka
Day 1: Kyoto day trip and explore
Day 2: Koyasan day trip and explore
Day 3: Himeji, Kobe, Arima day trip
Is it best to buy Kansai Area Pass or Kansai Thru Pass (KTP) for the above 3-days? I did check Hyperdia/Google Maps and it seems KTP may be cheaper, but with the many day trips and the non-JR trains would actually consume a lot more transportation time and less exploration time in each place?
And then from Osaka to:
Day 4: Nachisan - stay Kii Katsura
Day 5: Hongu Taisha - stay Kawayu Onsen
Day 6: Ise Jingu - stay Toba
Day 7: From Toba to Kii Tanabe - Shirahama - stay Osaka
Day 8: Nara Day Trip from Osaka
For the above Day 4-8, it seems the Ise-Kumano-Wakayama Area Tourist Pass is the only choice I have, although checking train schedules with Hyperdia, the Toba-Osaka train schedule is less effective than the local train. Thus would appreciate if there are other suggestions/opinions/alternatives/modifications to the Ise-Kumano-Wakayama Area Pass.
Thanks so much.