We finally made it to Japan! Since it was our first time, we opted for the bigger cities and while two weeks was the perfect amount of time for us, we also left feeling like there was still so much more to do and see. Needless to say, we hope to be back very soon! We did our best to balance the itinerary between popular social media places while leaving room to just explore so we didn’t feel like we were constantly on the go and it ended up working really well.
Itinerary Overview
4 nights in Tokyo | 1 night in Mt. Fuji | 5 nights in Kyoto | 3 nights in Tokyo
Tokyo (4 nights)
We stayed at the Daiwa Roynet Hotel Nishi-Shinjuku Premier in the Shinjuku area. This hotel came recommended to us by a friend and while it is located on the outskirts of the city, we found it to be easily accessible, clean, and reasonably priced.
Day 1
- Landed in the late afternoon at Haneda International Airport
- Took the airport limousine bus and got off at the nearest stop to our hotel
- Checked into hotel and explored Shinjuku
- Dinner was Japanese McDonald’s and Family Mart
Day 2
- Headed to Fuglen Coffee near Shibuya
- Lunch at Maguro-to-Shari (fast casual chirashi bowl spot with bar seating)
- Explored Shibuya Crossing and the Mega Don Quijote
- Dinner back in Shinjuku at Isuzu (walk up yakitori stall) in Omoide Yokocho
Day 3
- Made two coffee shop stops at X Coffee and Bongen Coffee (we went here several times)
- Ate our way through Tsukiji Fish Market
- Shopped in Ginza and Harajuku areas
- Dinner at Center Beef @WEST-Shinjuku (steak rice bowl restaurant)
Day 4
- Started at Coffee Swamp
- Hit Don Quijote for souvenirs
- Lunch at Gyukatsu Motomura (popular restaurant for their beef cutlet cooked on hot stone)
- Shopped around Shinjuku and purchased my first pair of Onitsuka Tigers
- Afternoon pick me up at Bam Bi Coffee (Korean inspired cafe)
- Dinner at Pizza Marumo (Tokyo style Neapolitan style pizzas – a must go!)
- Drinks at A10 (speakeasy in Ebisu hidden behind a locker room entrance)
Mt. Fuji (1 night)
This was our splurge of the trip because I always had a Japanese onsen on my bucket list. We stayed at Hotel Kaneyamaen, specifically in the Bessho Sasa suites. We purchased the all-inclusive package which came with in-room private dining, access to the wine lounge, and more. One of the my favorite parts of the entire trip was getting to soak in our private open-air bath overlooking Mt. Fuji.
Day 5
- Forwarded our luggage directly to our Kyoto hotel and packed an overnight bag for Mt. Fuji (highly recommend doing this to save the hassle of taking large bags on a train and hotels typically work directly with the luggage forwarding companies)
- Left Shinjuku and took the train from Tokyo Station to Fujiyoshida Station
- Hotel shuttle picked us up from the train station (another perk of booking with this hotel)
- Checked into Hotel Kaneyamaen (see more of our stay in this video)
- Enjoyed our ryokan and lounged around the property (see our room tour in this video)
- Had a private in-room dinner (see what we ate in this video)
Kyoto (5 nights)
We knew there were many options for day trips from Kyoto but we didn’t like the idea of constantly moving hotels so we stayed at Mitsui Garden Hotel Kyoto Shijo as our base. This hotel was a bit of a walk from the more popular areas of Kyoto but it was very reasonably priced, had very spacious rooms, and nice amenities.
Day 6
- Checked out of hotel and boarded a shuttle to Mishima Station (pre-paid our shuttle tickets with Hotel Kaneyamaen and the ride was about 45 minutes)
- Took the Shinkansen to Kyoto Station
- Walked around toward Gion and took in all the shrines
- Dinner at Ichiran Ramen
- Stopped in at Family Mart for a sweet treat
Day 7
- Coffee at Goodman Roaster
- Took the train to Fushimi Inari Shrine and Kiyomizu-dera Temple
- Explored the Sannenzaka and Ninenzaka areas for shopping
- Made a custom ring at Glanta (see my experience in this video)
- Dinner at Kyoto Tempura Ten no Meshi Gionhonten (very unique tempura omakase restaurant)
Day 8
- Coffee at Astrea Coffee
- Took the Shinkansen to Osaka for a day trip
- Started in Shinsekai (view of the iconic Tsutenkaku Tower and retro atmosphere)
- Grabbed small bites at different food stalls (takoyaki, katsu sandos)
- Headed to Sennichimae Doguyasuji Shopping Street (home goods and kitchen ware)
- Walked through Kuromon Market
- Ended up at Dotonbori and Americamura (to get a pic with the Glico man)
- Made a personalized teddy bear keychain at Object (see my experience in this video)
- Made our way back to Kyoto before dinner due to heavy rain
- Dinner at Tai Sushi (affordable, no frills sushi restaurant with sizable portions)
Day 9
- Started the day at Fiveran (incredible Japanese French bakery)
- Got custom watches from Kuoe (Kyoto based watch brand)
- Lunch at Kichi Kichi Omurice (an overall entertaining experience but food was nothing special and they only accept reservations)
- Bought matcha and did a tasting at the Ippodo Tearoom
- Dinner at Men-ya Inoichi (Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant for dashi ramen but make sure to go early around 4pm to get your name added to the list before opening)
Day 10
- Took the bus to Arashiyama Bamboo Forest
- Waited in a long line for coffee at % ARABICA along the river
- Rode the train to Kinkaku-ji Temple
- Lunch at Katsukura (very good pork katsu restaurant with a couple locations throughout Kyoto)
- Explored Nishiki Market for souvenirs
- Had pre-dinner cocktails at APOTHECA (no menu craft cocktail bar)
- Dinner at Pizzeria Osteria E.O.E. (mostly out of convenience and the pizza was just ok)
Tokyo (3 nights)
I wish we had explored more outside of Kyoto but unfortunately the weather made it difficult. After a slow-paced stay in Kyoto, we headed to Tokyo for our final days. We decided to switch it up and stay in Ginza at Mitsui Garden Hotel Ginza Gochome. While the location was good, this was the smallest room of all the places we stayed so it was quite cramped with all our stuff. I honestly wouldn’t recommend staying in Ginza as the area in general is more on the expensive side and places were not open as late.
Day 11
- Went back to Astrea Coffee before catching the Shinkansen to Tokyo
- Stopped at the JR Kyoto station shops for Marukyu Koyamaen matcha (if you’re not in line before 10am you’re too late and be prepared to run)
- Checked into the hotel
- Lunch at Menchirashi (the carbonara udon was actually really good)
- Drinks at Little Smith (social media hyped this bar up and it was interesting but way too expensive)
Day 12
- Caught the bus to TeamLab Planets
- Lunch at Gyukatsu Motomura (it was so good the first time we had to go again before we left)
- Roamed around Shibuya and Harajuku for more shopping
- Dinner at TAKAHASHIYA (a 4th generation unagi restaurant)
Day 13
- Coffee at Bongen Coffee
- Brunch at Tsukiji Market (sukiyaki bowl stall – also a must go!)
- Got a shampoo and blowout at Shiseido Salon & Spa (if you don’t want to spend the time or money on a head spa then highly recommend)
- Shopping in Omotesando
- Dinner at GINZA SUSHI BANYA KAI (pricey but really good Edomae style omakase)
Day 14
- Checked out of the hotel
- Coffee at Bongen Coffee
- Lunch at Godaime Hanayama Udon Ginza (restaurant that serves wide udon for dipping)
- Stumbled upon Pain Maison (saw a line out the door and the shio pan was worth it)
- Took an Uber to Haneda International Airport
