Mind you, this trip is not about cost-efficiency. Some might even call this "luxurious" due to the way I spend for a trip for 1 person only.
The key points are
- Since I enjoy driving, the first half of the trip involves ... driving a lot
- I also enjoy onsen a lot, so the first half of the trip is all about onsen ryokan (溫泉旅館)
- (Edit: If you want to book Onsen Ryokan, try www.jalan.net. It has English interface which is okay to use and the prices are the same as Japanese version but less choice and detail. You can always go back to Japanese site and try to do a cross-reference)
- I know a bit of Japanese and a lot of places I visited outside tourist area requires some basic interaction (including fueling up) and reading menu that is Japanese only and mostly hand-written (Google Translate won't work). However, it's those places that gave out the actual charm what Japan is really like outside the big cities.
Places traveled
 |
| Google Mapping of places I visited in this trip |
The whole trip starts during mid-late March. In brief, the places I traveled (in this order):
- Tokyo (1 night)
- Yaizu (lunch)
 |
| Yaizu Fish Center |
 |
| You can make your own don! |
- Hamanako (onsen)
 |
| Hamanako |
 |
| Kaiseki Dinner at Onsen Ryokan |
 |
| Sashimi |
- Kyoto (buy stuff)
- Osaka (kobe beef dinner, 1 night)
 |
| Osaka |
 |
| Kobe beef |
 |
| Super delicious! |
- Kyoto (Fushimi Inari Taisha)
- Ise (Futamiokitawa, onsen)
- Mishima (Sky walk)
- Shizuoka (Shimizu-ku, 1 night)
 |
| Dinner at JR Shizuoka Station |
 |
| Morning |
- Oishi Park (Fujiyama photo)
- Izu (onsen)
 |
| From the private onsen window |
- Hakone (onsen)
- Tokyo (return car, 1 night)
- Hiroshima (via Shinkansen, 2 nights)
 |
| Dinner! |
 |
| From hotel room (Hiroshima Gransmere) |
- Kure (Yamato Museum)
 |
| IJN Yamato model |
- Mazda Museum (need pre-booking)
- Itsukushima (Floating Torii Gate)
- A-bomb Dome
- Tokyo (via Shinkansen, 3 nights)
- Kudanminami (for Sakura)
- Shopping in Shinjuku and meeting friends
 |
| Sunset of the last day in Tokyo |
 |
| Shibuya |
 |
| Yakiniku |
 |
| Omakase |
- Tsukiji Outer Market (morning)
Photo Album
Please check out later as I'm still sifting through my hundreds of photos and videos, and retouch them...
Modes of transportation
- From Narita to Tokyo central area
- Narita is very far away. If you can choose, try JAL which you can land in Haneda.
- You can take either NEX or Skyliner
- Skyliner is what I chose this time. It's faster but the stations where you disembark are not very convenient (as I stay in Shinjuku). Ueno and Nippori. Nippori is a better choice since you don't need to walk a long way to change to JR/Metro from Keisei Ueno
 |
| Skyliner side |
 |
| Skyliner inside |
- NEX is run by JR and has more choices for stations. A bit slower but more convenient if you are not living in Ueno or Nippori.
- Driving
- The first half of the trip I reserved for an SP1 class rental (Toyota 86) in Toyota-rent-a-car with ETC card picked up in Shinjuku 3-chome. Mind you this is not cheap at all (~1K USD for rental, 400 USD for toll and 300 USD for gas) but if you are traveling in group it might make sense. The hachiroku trunk didn't fit my luggage (89L Rimowa Sports Trunk, but it's a squarish luggage) though I had to throw it at the back seat.
 |
| Toyota 86 |
- During Hiroshima because of time constraints (going to Kure, JR line schedule is very sparse) I also rented a vehicle (HV1 class).
- JR and Metro
- You can get JR Pass especially if you want to ride the Shinkansen (normal class is included). However, it is a bit troublesome to use in rush hour in big stations (Shinjuku for example) as the gate is usually stuck with a bunch of folks.
- Metro in Tokyo is very convenient, and can complement with JR lines very well. You can get up to 72 hours of Tokyo Metro Pass. Metro is usually run by the city/municipal so they don't interchange!
- Suica - I got this for the first half of the trip when I was getting around Tokyo and Osaka because it's much easier than putting coins in ticket kiosks to get ticket. If you have iPhone 8 or above (sadly for iPhone 7 you need a Japanese version), you can set the locale to Japan and put your Suica into Apple Wallet.
- For routing, you can either use Google Map or use 乗換案内
- Shinkansen
- Think of this as alternative to domestic planes, except without the crazy air security check (maybe coming soon) and the extra wait time at the gate.
- The only downside is luggage space for international multi-day traveler (me!)
- Make sure to book your ticket early on to reserve your seat. If you have JR Pass depends on your pass at least normal class is included.
- Consider Green Car if you have large luggage with you, try to reserve the last row seat because there's a gap behind it for your luggage. (You still need to consult the crew first, but if you sit at the last row that's usually not a problem)
- Some Shinkansen are not included in the pass (Nozomi for example). If you are like me going from Tokyo to Hiroshima you'll need to change train once. Pay attention to the time for changing train (usually on the same platform) as the train will NOT wait for you.
 |
| Side |
 |
| I forgot, this probably is Nozomi |
- Of course, buy the bento box at the station. You can also buy on the train but those are usually more expensive...
- HyperDia is your friend for scheduling
Communication
- Google Fi has very cheap Global Roaming rate; Or you can use AT&T's plan which are ridiculously expensive and limited
- You can also buy a Data-only SIM in Japan and stick it into a Wifi box or a spare phone
- For voice call, EasyGo is the easiest one you can get. They can mail the card either to your hotel or to airport post office. For 14 days it costs less than 60USD. I have an old iPhone 6S to use this.
References
Hotel/Ryokan I stayed in this trip
| BESPOKE HOTEL Shinjuku |
| 浜名湖グランドホテルさざなみ館 |
Hotel Monterey Grasmere Osaka, Osaka
ホテルモントレ グラスミア大阪 |
| 和亭 朝日館 |
Hotel Route-Inn Shimizu Inter
ホテルルートイン清水インター |
| 今 ふたたびの ときめきへ 粋松亭 |
| 仙郷楼 |
Hotel Wing International Premium Tokyo Yotsuya
ホテルウィングインターナショナルプレミアム |
Hotel Granvia Hiroshima, Hiroshima
【札幌グランドホテル】札幌 宿泊・ホテル |
Hyatt Regency Tokyo
ハイアットリージェンシー 東京 |
