Tokyo-takayama-shirakawago-kanzawa-hakone-mt fuji

On separate note, would anyone be able to tell me the travel time between those city? Just want to start scheduling the transportation time and places to visit

hmm maybe I should put little bit detail

Tokyo (20 Feb - 24 Feb including visit/travel to nikko (other than that probably just be inside tokyo itself, not sure yet)

Tokyo - Takayama (24 Feb - 25 Feb)

Takayama - Shirakawago - Kanazawa (25 Feb - 27 Feb)

Kanzawa - mt fuji or Hakone, which one would make sense? should I go back to Tokyo first to do this or is there any alternative way?

Mt. fuji - Hakone (27 Feb - 1st March) then back to Tokyo on the 1st March

Please let me know if it make sense, purpose of travel would be both sight seeing and relaxing...Definetly would love to see bunch of japanese cultures

All inputs are appreciated!

Hi there!

Thank for for posting expanding your post, this makes giving advice a lot easier :)

It's a very interesting itinerary, so let's have a look at ticket prices to see if a JR Pass would help.

Tokyo - Nikko (return) ¥ 10,860
Tokyo - Takayama ¥ 14,300
Takaya - Shirkawago - Kanazawa is traveled by bus, which is not covered by the JR Pass.
Kanazawa - Odawara (for Hakone). ¥ 15,890

For a total of ¥ 41,050 or ¥ 12,750 in savings, with the 7 day JR Pass (¥ 28,300). So I think that the JR Pass would work out great! Visiting Nikko, Takayama and Kanazawa is a great way to experience some of Japanese transitional culture. I would say swing by Kyoto (and possibly even Nara) as well for a day or so but you would probably have to limited your time somewhere else.

To look up travel time and other route information, use Hyperdia. Which is the best resource out there for planning. It does do show a lot of information, so I would recommend reading this blog post on how to plan with Hyperdia to get you started.

Have a great time in Japan!
Daniel

Hello Daniel-san

Thanks for the info. I did think to drop by Kyoto but I think it might rush it and not actually enjoying the whole trip. It's not going to be my last trip to Japan anyway so I think I'll pass it this time.
Actually if I have some time I might visit kiso valley.

Is there any festival going on around end of Feb? And is there any shrine that I could visit around that area?

Hi again,

The Kiso Vally is very beautiful and I think well worth visiting, although I am not completely sure if February is the best time of year because there's not a lot of green to be seen at that time. There are different temples and old folk villages in the area but maybe the most famous attraction is Matsumoto Castle.

Hi Daniel,

Just did little more research, apparently it was not suggested by some people to visit hakone/mt fuji for the view during winter season (Jan/Feb/March) is that right?

Should I cover kyoto instead of mt.fuji/hakone? I do want to try the hot spring though, although I think most ryokan probably has outdoor hot spring is that correct?

Thanks

Hi Denis,

It depends, Fuji does like to wrap itself in the clouds during winter and is rarely visible. However Fuji is never so majestic as on a crisp winter day when the sky is blue and you can see the snow covered mountain. It's a bit of a gable, chances are you may not see Fuji at all but at the same time you may get the best picture of the year.

Maybe Kyoto/Nara is a saver option. There's always something do be done there, even if the weather is not that nice.