Japan

**I have often been asked about travel advice for Japan. Here's a good start for planning a trip to Japan.

What you do would probably depend on what your traveling style is, whether you like to hit all the sites vs. more chilling out, but hopefully I can offer some suggestions for both.

The two cities that are the staples for traveling in Japan are Tokyo and Kyoto. Tokyo is the capital and center of just about everything, while Kyoto is the ancient capital with wonderful history. If you are going south, it would be worth going to Hiroshima and Miyajima. The museum in Hiroshima is incredibly powerful and my personal belief is that everyone should have to go there once in their lifetime. Miyajima is about half an hour from Hiroshima by ferry and is where the famous floating red Shinto gate on the ocean is. Another beautiful site is obviously Mt Fuji. I have never done the hike, but it can be done in July and August, you go the night before, hike though the night and summit in time for the sunrise.

Tokyo
So many things to do in Tokyo, I actually like it more for the experiential piece than sightseeing, great place for eating, drinking, walking around.

Walk around Shibuya, maybe early evening/night, that’s where that huge intersection is you see in pictures all the time, I think it’s supposed to be the busiest in the world. Tons of shopping, restaurants and bars, and you will totally see the variety of Japanese pop culture there. FYI easy to get lost in there. And trains stop running around midnight. Not sure if you will be traveling with someone, but karaoke is a must. Integral part of Japanese pop culture.

Also just for the experience, go to like Ikebukuro or Tokyo station during rush hour. Any train station actually at like 8am. Pretty intense just to see. Tokyo Station was completely renovated and has amazing new restaurant rows and shops, definitely worth wandering. Also check out Shin Maru Building across the street - the view of Tokyo station from the 7th Floor restaurant/bar patio is the best.

Akihabara is the “electric city” where there are tons of electronics stores. Japanese electronics are so cool, I have spent hours in Big Camera, Yodobashi-camera and Sakura (equivalent to a Best Buy or Circuit City), though Akihabara are less branded retailers. Streets upon streets (and I use street liberally, many are alleyways) or shops that sell tvs and phones and computers and just gadgets.

Ginza and Omotesando are the really ritzy high end areas where lots of foreigners (gaijin) live and where all the Gucci, Prada, etc stores are.

Especially if you are jetlagged, I would go to the fish market at Toyosu* early in your week. The Tsukiji fish market was my favorite Tokyo site that I have brought many people to (old photos here). It's now Toyosu, and still the largest in the world, with 2000 metric tons of seafood passing through per day. The tuna auctions are exciting but done around 6am, and you need to apply for a spot to be on the floor. It's free to watch from the observation area above.  You can still walk around the the market to see all the seafood that you could ever imagine (and some that you couldn't dream of). Please keep in mind that this is an active market and these people's livelihoods -- stay out of their way!

After the market, find the rows of sushi restaurants at Toyosu (and still in Tsukiji on the outskirt of the old markets). Some are more famous than others (hence the lines) and I have a favorite (check out Sushi-bun), but you can't go wrong here.

*NOTE: Tsukiji still exists as a destination for restaurants and shops (recommend!), but the fish markets were moved to Toyosu in advance of the Tokyo Olympics and to modernize this important market. Toyosu market website and a guide to visiting.

While we are on the topic of food, other things you should consume…

• Yakitori – grilled skewers of chicken and other meat/veg, and is so much more delicious than you would ever expect. Might be tough to order, so get a local to take you or be ready for a food adventure.
• Kaiten sushi – others are better than me for sushi recs. Kaiten sushi is uniquely Japanese, and I think it's fun to experience. It comes around on conveyor belts and you pay by the plate. Can be very cost effective, kind of fast food though it’s good sushi
• Ramen – especially if you can find a little ramen cart. But also great at Tokyo Station Ramen Street
• Tempura – have the real stuff, nothing like the heavy greasy stuff you get here. If you can, high end places are this famous Ginza restaurant Ten-Ichi and these Tempura Yamonoue
• “Bento” – go to a “conbini”, or convenience store like 7-11 or Lawson’s, and get the ready made food to go (bento = lunch set). Also check out "eki-ben" which are bento that you get at the train station for long train rides.
• Beer – Japanese beer is great. “Nama” is the draft. Good stuff.
• Izakaya are local bars with small plates. Apparently the Ichibangai street in Akabane (where my mom grew up) is now known as a destination for izakaya and cheap(er) eats!
• Sake – have some beautiful, cold, unpasteurized ("nama") sake, there is nothing like it outside of Japan, because almost all sake that's exported has to be pasteurized to be shelf stable. Tsubo no Naka is my favorite Tokyo haunt, an all-you-can-drink sake bar, BYO food, and wonderful owner "Papa" to guide your evening

Here's a NYT article on eating in Tokyo, and another on cheap recs.

Also, summer is prime baseball season. If you can get tickets to a Tokyo Giants game (you can do it online, though you may need a Japanese address to get the tickets delivered, maybe your hotel?). They’re fun and pretty different from American games. The Giants are the biggest team in Japan, in that half of the country actually roots for them, huge empire (kind of Yankees-esque) and is where Hideki Matsui played. I actually took a classmate of mine from Kansas who was passing through Japan, and we had a great time. Watch for the little beer girls who carry quarter kegs on their backs, Zach got a huge kick out of that for some reason.

Sumo would also be interesting to see. The tournaments occur six times a year and the tickets are quite expensive, but it is supposed to be a great experience.

Pro-tip: Japan has many public holidays and a few holiday weeks (Golden Week, Obon, New Years) that you'll want to plan around.

The Tokyo sightseeing stuff might be better gleaned from a guidebook, but here’s a quick list

• Meiji Jingu – Meiji Shrine, beautiful and historic
• Imperial Palace and Gardens
• Senso-ji – also known as Asakusa Kannon, it’s the main Tokyo temple (see right). Nakamise-dori has lots of little shops and stuff, good for buying trinkets and gifts
• Harakuju - center for fashion from high-end international showcases to bargain boutiques. Ometesando has the boutiques and Takashita-dori the teen culture
• Tokyo Tower or Skytree
• Tokyo Disneyland if that's your thing
• teamLab Planets Tokyo in Toyosu is a cool digital museum

For the totally rare experience, Ogasawara is an island off of Tokyo’s coast. It is a surfing mecca, supposed to be just beautiful, sea turtles and dolphins, great natural beauty, and odd nature (mushrooms that glow at night), and this is in Tokyo Prefecture. BUT there are not many ferries to the place, takes 25 hrs? But everyone who makes it there just comes back enthralled. The nature there is incredible because it’s so hard to get to, but supposed to be an incredible experience if you are looking for something off the beaten path.

Here's a post on the Tokyo layover, if you only have a few hours to spend in the city!

Nikko

Nikko is a beautiful historical city in the mountains, and can be a day trip from Tokyo (about 2 hrs north by train). Toshugu is the famous shrine built by Tokugawa Ieyasu (shogun who started Edo-period) and you can also take a bus up to the beautiful Lake Chuzenji and Kegon Waterfall. If you can, I highly recommend staying at a ryokan at Okunikko. We stayed at Yu no Mori where every guest room has a private outdoor hot spring bath. As many with most ryokan, they serve a beautiful dinner and breakfast that's included in the price. 

Kyoto
Kyoto is beautiful and unusual in Japan that the architecture is intact because it was left untouched in the war. So there are temples and shrines that are over a thousand years old and the city has literally 150 or 200 shrines and temples I think. By the way, Japanese are generally one or both Shinto and Buddhist, and a lot of both are ingrained in the culture more than being active religions. Shrines are Shinto places of worship and temples are Buddhist. There is actually a path, I think it’s called the Philosopher’s Trail, that is probably one or two km, with some famous temples/shrines along the path.

Some of the must sees in Kyoto…

*Kinkaku-ji – temple that is painted completely in gold)
*Ginkaku-ji – the sister temple with amazing gardens
*Kiyomizu-dera – ancient wooden temple that overlooks city
*Sanjusangen-do temple – there are 1001 sculptures of Buddhist gods there
*Ryoan-ji – zen gardens
*Nijo Castle – less a fortification than imperial court

Nara (with Todai-ji and the HUGE Buddha) and Uji are both old cities that are near Kyoto and have many temples and shrines, but unless you are really interested in the ancient religious architecture (which I was so I saw a lot of), you might get your fill in Kyoto.

Hiroshima This can be a day trip from Kyoto. I truly believe that everyone should go to the museum they have there. They still have a number of buildings they left as it was after the bomb (the famous dome is one), and the museum is both a memorial for those who were lost as well as a tribute to peace and education against war and nuclear weapons. Really powerful. Also eat okonomiyaki, one of the signature foods of the area.

Miyajima
This island is about half an hour from Hiroshima, and it has that shrine that floats on the water. I was really surprised to find that it only “floats” during high tide and that you can actually walk up to it during low tide, so I would make sure that you are there during high tide. Also can do a pretty cool hike to the top of the mountain there.

Mt. Fuji
A few hours from Tokyo, this would be awesome if you could fit it in. It is a 5-6 hour hike, I think, though I haven’t had the opportunity to do it yet. Not too difficult, and you can drive to a certain point. If you can stay at a minshuku (inn) for before and after, you can experience the hot springs, which you definitely should do. Either way, you should try to find the baths wherever you end up going. Very Japanese experience.

Okinawa
Okinawa has the most beautiful white sand beaches and would be a great break depending on what you're looking for in your trip. Very different from the rest of Japan, including their food!

Onsen If you have a few days to go to an onsen area, I would HIGHLY recommend it. Onsen are hot springs that result from volcanic activity that created the Japanese islands and still rock them today with earthquakes. Atami, Hakone, and Izu are closer to Tokyo.

Kinosaki Onsen is off the beaten path but one of my favorite trips I've taken in Japan. A beautiful village on the western Sea of Japan, it's about five hours from Tokyo (2 hrs past Kyoto) with lovely public hot springs and amazing seafood. Nothing better than walking around in a yukata (casual kimono) for three days, taking baths and drinking sake.

ETC.
There are so many other places that are not on this list or I haven't been. Other cities that may make your list are Osaka, Kobe and Nagoya, which are all major metropolitan areas with lots of commerce, but not sure how fun to visit. Kanazawa is a beautiful city on the Sea of Japan (west coast of main island Honshu) with well-preserved Edo-era feel and fantastic seafood.

Hokkaido is the northern island, the biggest city is Sapporo. Hokkaido has world class snow in the winter for snowboarders/skiers, and phenomenal food (seafood and ramen to start).

Traveling with kids is relatively easy in Japan. Here's more on traveling with a toddler