alibi13

Hello,

my wife and I are planning a 4 week trip to Asia in mid-December. We begin with 10 days in Japan. It is our first time. The tentative plan is:
4 nights in Tokyo
1 night in an onsen (ideally one b/w Tokyo and Kyoto)
4 or 5 nights in Kyoto
We fly to Bangkok out of Osaka

Here are some questions:

Does this sound like a decent plan?
Can anyone suggest an onsen?
I wonder if our itinerary is too city-heavy?
Should we spend two nights at an onsen?
If we were going to to add an extra night, should we spend it in Kyoto or Tokyo?
Any lodging suggestions for Kyoto (ideally in the $150 a night range)?

Thank you very much, Jeffrey

laurieco

I think your plan sounds fine. Try and spend 5 nights in Kyoto, it's a lovely city with much to see and there are side trips to take as well (Nara, the Miho Museum was a highlight for me). 4 nights is not too much time in Tokyo, it's a great city and lots to do. You can do side trips from there as well.

In Kyoto, I can suggest the Granvia Hotel, a 5 star property right above the main train station and bus station so transportation is very convenient. The rooms are large and well appointed. I checked on utell.com, the site I used to book the Granvia and put in dates of Dec 10-15 just to get a price. I got 18,000 Yen per night, which is $165.00, a very good price for this hotel but you should check other sites in case you can get it lower. We paid $150 per night but this was in March 2004. We had breakfast included but I'm not sure this is part of the current deal.

glorialf

I would spend at least five nights in Kyoto -- 6 if possible.

alibi13

Thanks for the Kyoto hotel tip: the place looks great, and the website has good deals. And thanks, Gloria for the nudge towards an extra night in Kyoto. I am leaning in that direction.

Here's a question: should I buy a 7-day JR rail pass if the extent of my use will be:
1. Tokyo to Kyoto
2. 2 day-trips from Kyoto
3. Kyoto to Osaka airport?
and possibly one day-trip in Tokyo

Should I just purchase the tickets individually? I think the 7-day JR Pass is about $250.

emd

My son and I stayed in Tokyo for 5 full days and Kyoto area (with day trips to Hirshima and Miyajima and Osaka, and Ohara) for 7 full days. It was perfect for us for a first trip. We were able to relax in only two hotels, send luggage ahead from Tokyo to Kyoto hotel. Since it was our first time there, we were getting used to the transportation system and the layout of all the areas so being based in two cities gave us freedom from any more woories about shuttling ourselves around to different hotels, etc. Also, realize that there are many many day trips that can be taken from Kyoto to smaller and more rural areas, like Ohara (lovely), Kibune/Kurama for hiking and beauty, Uji, Kurashiki and Okayama (smaller cities), Nara, Himeji for the castle, outlying western areas of Kyoto like Sagano and Arishiyama, etc.
There are many onsen in the Hakone area just south of Tokyo on the way to Kyoto. Many people have recommended the ones they like, if you search for them here. The area closer to Lake Ashi has many, but I also have heard good things about the onsen at Atami (on the JR line) and Gora in the Hakone area. We will be trying out our first onsen in Hakone next spring.

laurieco

I don't think the JR Pass will save you any money, in fact, you will probably pay quite a bit more than you would just buying your tickets seperately. For example, a regular roundtrip on the Hikari Shinkansen between Tokyo and Kyoto is more money than just buying the same roundtrip on the same train. You will only be going one way so it will cost a lot less. Osaka is very close to Kyoto, maybe 20 minutes and one or two stops on the train (I think it's one stop). Day trips may be done by bus or train and should not cost very much. I would not buy the pass for your itinerary.

Spend the extra night in Kyoto, you won't regret it.

laurieco

I just checked the JR website http://www.jreast.co.jp/e/index.html and a one week pass for ordinary travel is $259.00 and a one way between Tokyo and Kyoto is $121.00. One way between Kyoto and Shin-Okaka is about $12.66. All travel is on the Shinkansen (bullet train), which is wonderful. I did the calculations at 109 Yen to the dollar.

laurieco

That's Shin-Osaka

alibi13

Thanks for all the info. I guess the JR Pass isn't the best option for us. I think we will skip the onsen for this trip. They sound great, but it might ultimately be a hassle to get to with our big bags and they look to be a little out of our budget. It may be easier to just spend 4 nights in Tokyo and 6 nights in Kyoto. Does that sound like a good mix? Or we could do 5 and 5.

nickn

Re: 7 day JR pass, if you are taking Narita Express at NRT or Haruka Express to KIX, you can overlap 7 days to cover on of these. They are quite pricy. On top of this, if you are going to Miyajima and back from Kyoto, sum of your point to point ticket cost would approach the JR pass price.

If you are staying at JR member hotels, such as Granvia, they give discounts to JR pass holders, but need to compare since these discounts start from different base prices.