About 24 days in japan

Oops i hit enter by accident, where is the edit button? :[ Anyways;

so if you have any suggestions, i would love to hear them. Also which JR pass would you recommend?

Thanks a ton in advance!

Hello there!

Just out of curiosity, will you take the JR Beetle to Hakata or a normal ferry from Pusan?
Actually it is normal for Ryokans to charge you per person per night, so fares can be quite reasonable for a lone traveler.
I am not too sure about this for Temples in Koya though, so I would recommend contacting them beforehand.

As for a JR Pass, you could go for a 14-day JR Pass and try to be in Tokyo by the last day, this way you cover all of your long-distance (and expansive) travel and try to budget a little when in Tokyo, this is most likely the most economic option.

A 21-day JR Pass would also be a great option and give a lot more flexibility, seeing that you also have plans for a couple of very nice day trips from Tokyo, going to Nikko would almost pay for the upgrade already. I think you may also find a Hakone Free Pass useful for local travel around the Hakone region.

As for further suggestions, I think that you really may like Kanazawa this place is home a very beautiful castle and especially the many parks around the city are wonderful. It makes for an easy visit from Kyoto and you get to ride the Thunderbird limited express.

From Tokyo an other interesting daytrip you could make would be to Kawagoe. The is a small and traditional castle town.

Lastly, if you have the JR Pass, a a visit to Sendai and especially the scenic nature around it are really worth the time.
Yamadera is very very beautiful and not as humid during summer. In addition, Matsushima is one of my favorite places in Tohoku and very beautiful.

I hope this helps,
Daniel

Hey,

I was going to use the JR beetle to Hakata. Did you have a better alternative in mind or something? I'm all ears.
I also decided on getting the 21 day pass. I used hyperpedia to check fares and it looks like i will use JR trains enough to justify the cost and the extra "freedom" is always a plus.

Should i trust hyperpedia with the routes it gives though? Especially the fukuoka - nagasaki part had some really wild stuff mixed in there, or is nagasaki just hard / kind of complicated to get to?

And wow. I will have to go to Kanazawa for sure!
The hakone free pass sounds pretty good as well, i will look into it.

Do you think Japan will be steambath in june - mid july? I was in China during some of the most hottest and humid months and it was mental. Felt like my skin or hair never dried after a shower and i just felt.. sweaty, all the time. Suddenly those hot springs don't sound so good.

If I drop out a day or two here and there, i could probably make it to the Tohoku region, but I fear my route will start to look too rushed. Sacrifices have to be made.

Do you have any idea how long it would take to see a bit Sendai and Yamadera/Matsushima? I will have to think about it.

And thanks for all your help!

Hi Again,

I would actually recommend the JR Beetle, its a great experience and a fun trip! Personally I would go for the 21-day JR Pass too, the difference with the 14 day JR Pass 12,600 yen, which can be easily traveled on a single day.

Hyperdia is very trust worthy and is updated regularly. You can be sure that route information is accurate. I think you may have made a common mistake when planning a trip from Fukuoka. The station is called Hakata, so be sure to put that into there. Here is the full route, it is very easy as you can see :)

About weather and humidity in Japan during the summer. I have been in Japan in the summer for the last 5 years or so and it can really get hot and humid but usually you will be able to do sightseeing and get around without too much trouble. In general it is much less than China and other parts of Asia but you will still sweat a lot, so be sure to drink enough cold water.

Going to Tohoku,
This can certainly be worth your time, if will be a little colder than the rest of Japan too, which is nice. The route Tokyo - Sendai is 94 Minutes so you could even visit it as a day trip from Tokyo, Matsushima is close to Sendai and would make for an easy visit too. Yama-dera is a little further and required a little more time so I would recommend stating in Sendai if you wish to visit it. I think you could cut a day in both Hiroshima and Osaka without losing too much and maybe add one from Tokyo too, giving you 3 days to explore Tohoku. This would mean making really good use of your JR Pass for sure!

You still have a good amount of time left, so take your time to carefully plan.
-Daniel

Hey once again,

Yeah it looks like i did a rookie mistake, hakata - nagasaki makes sense now. I was wondering, how on earth does it take 12 hours and 4 transfers to travel a short distance like that, haha.

I will arm myself with pocari sweat for those humid days. Pretty sure i will do the Tohoku part too, i can find a way to make it work.

Thank you once more for all your help!