Kon'nichiwa!
I am planning to visit Japan in May/ June and hope to see a lot of your beautiful country in about 3 and a half weeks, I plan to do this by purchasing a rail pass.
I would love to visit the following and was wondering if you could provide tips on a sensible route to get between them (and not necessarily in the order I have listed but ideally in the most efficient combination). It would be great to get your expert input on a possible itinerary so as to minimise backtracking/ time etc and to maximise the use of the rail pass.
Land in Toyko (Narita)
Masumoto
Takayama
Tsumago
Hike Kumano Kodo (Tanabe to Hongu)
Kamicochi
Kyoto
Nara
Cycle Shimanani Kaida (from onomichi)
Hiroshima
Thanks in advance for your time and help and if there are an other attractions that could easily be fitted in along the way I would love to hear your suggestions
Kind Regards
Neil
3 weeks May/ June
Hello Neil,
Consider traveling the following route: Tokyo - Matsumoto (and day trip to Kamkochi) - Tsumago - Takayama (bit of a long trip coming from Tsumago but still the best part to include it) - Kyoto - Nara - Onomichi (try the local Ramen, they are the best!) - Hiroshima and return to Tokyo, though there are many great stops you could make on the way back. Such as Himeji, Kobe, Osaka, Kanazawa, Shizuoka (to view Mt. Fuji) and more!
The route above would give you the most effective route of including all the places you wish to see and more if you like.
Nice plan and good luck with your travels!
Daniel
Thank you Daniel, that's very useful. Can I use the jr pass exclusively for the route you describe or would I have to buy extra tickets for other bus/ rail companies?
I also read there is due to be a new bullet train to hokkaido. Will this be in effect by May/ June and if so would it be included on the jr pass and how long would it take to get to Sapporo?
Thanks again
Neil
Hi Neil,
While by far the greater part is covered, some parts would require additional tickets. Mainly the bus to Kamikochi and possible for local travel within cities, such as on the metro system.
The JR Hokkaido Shinkansen is covered and will get you from Tokyo - Sapporo is about 7 hours. The Hokkaido Shinkansen will open an the end of March 2016.
Hope this helps,
Daniel
Great, thanks again Daniel
