Best

Hello

We are a family of 4 travelling from Australia to Japan for the first time. Our itinerary is as follows:

11/12/14 arrive Narita airport
Stay 1 week Tokyo ( shinagawa) - sightsee Tokyo
18/12/14 travel Tokyo to Osaka - Sightsee Osaka, day trips Kyoto, Nara, Hiroshima?
27/12/14 travel Osaka to Hakuba happo one
6/1/15 travel hakuba to Narita airport

Are you able to advise the best way for us to travel between our destinations including the best day to activate JR pass?

My understanding is that we won't need the pass until 18/12/14 when we travel to Osaka? Will we need the pass to get to Hakuba and then back to Narita at the end of our trip?

Thank you for any advice you can provide to assist us.

Kind regards
Jane