Japan is easier than it looks and deeper than most trips allow. The trains run to the minute, the streets are safe at any hour, and you can eat superbly for the price of a sandwich at home. A first visit usually traces the same line - Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, perhaps Hiroshima - and that line is wonderful, but it is a thin slice of a country of 47 prefectures stretched over 3,000 km from the snows of Hokkaido to the coral of Okinawa.
The hard part is not getting around but choosing. Tokyo alone could fill a month, and Kyoto has more than 1,600 temples. Plan fewer places and longer stays, travel outside the cherry-blossom and Golden Week peaks if you can, and leave at least one day for somewhere nobody told you about.
When to go, honestly
Late March to early April (cherry blossom) and November (autumn leaves) are the famous seasons, and they are famous for a reason - but they are also when Kyoto is at its most crowded and hotels at their most expensive. May and October are often the sweet spot: mild, mostly dry and calmer. June to mid-July is the rainy season on Honshu, and July and August are hot and humid, with typhoons possible from August into October.
Winter is underrated: crisp blue skies in Tokyo and Kyoto, short queues, hot springs at their best, and real snow in Hokkaido and the Japanese Alps. Avoid Golden Week (roughly 29 April to 5 May), Obon in mid-August and the New Year holidays if you can: that is when all of Japan travels at once.
Five Japans
Five regions, and a first trip usually manages two or three.
Tokyo and around. One of the largest cities on earth, and a collection of very different neighbourhoods: Shinjuku and Shibuya for neon and crowds, Asakusa and Yanaka for old Tokyo, Ginza for department-store food halls. Day trips reach Kamakura's great Buddha, the shrines of Nikko and the hot springs of Hakone, with Mount Fuji on a clear day.
Kyoto, Nara and Osaka. Kyoto was the capital for over a thousand years and it shows: Fushimi Inari's thousands of torii, the Golden Pavilion, the geisha district of Gion and the bamboo of Arashiyama. Nara, 45 minutes away, has the giant bronze Buddha of Tōdai-ji and its free-roaming deer. Osaka is the food capital: loud, friendly and best at night in Dōtonbori.
The Japanese Alps and the Sea of Japan. Kanazawa has one of the three great gardens of Japan and a beautifully kept geisha quarter. Shirakawa-gō's steep-roofed farmhouses are a UNESCO site, Takayama has an old merchant town and morning markets, and Matsumoto keeps one of Japan's few original castles. In autumn and winter this is the most beautiful drive in the country.
Hiroshima and the Inland Sea. The Peace Memorial Museum is the most moving museum in Japan and deserves half a day. Miyajima's shrine gate stands in the sea at high tide. Further east, the art islands of Naoshima and Teshima mix contemporary museums with fishing villages.
Hokkaido. The northern island feels like a different country: wide open farmland, volcanoes and lakes in Shikotsu-Tōya and Akan, powder snow in Niseko from December, and Sapporo's snow festival in early February. In summer it is the coolest place in Japan, with lavender fields around Furano in July.
Where nobody goes, and should
Between them our explorers have marked all 47 prefectures, but the typical one has been to five, and they are nearly always the same five: Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Kanagawa and Hiroshima. The rest of Japan is just as easy to reach and far less crowded.
Shikoku, the smallest of the four main islands, has the Iya Valley's vine bridges, Matsuyama's Dōgo Onsen and the 88-temple pilgrimage. Tōhoku, the north of Honshu, has samurai houses in Kakunodate, the lantern-lit hot-spring street of Ginzan Onsen and the island-dotted bay of Matsushima. And on the Sea of Japan coast, Matsue's castle, the great shrine of Izumo and the sand dunes of Tottori see a fraction of Kyoto's visitors.
What to eat and drink
Eat regionally: ramen changes from city to city (miso in Sapporo, pork-bone tonkotsu in Fukuoka), Osaka and Hiroshima argue over okonomiyaki, Kyoto does tofu and the multi-course kaiseki, and the fish markets of Tokyo, Kanazawa and Hakodate serve breakfast sushi. Department-store food halls (depachika) and convenience stores are genuinely good for cheap meals.
An izakaya - a Japanese pub with small plates - is the best way to spend an evening. Sake is brewed in every prefecture, Japanese whisky is now world-famous and expensive, and green tea is free with most meals. Tipping is not done and can cause confusion.
Where everything is
Every place named in this guide, on one map. Distances here are short - that is the whole planning trick.
Japan itineraries, by the kind of traveller you are
Four plans for the same country. They are written as schedules because the hard part here is not what to see, it is what order to see it in.
First time here
10 days
Four nights Tokyo, one in Hakone, four in Kyoto, one in Osaka
Days 1-2Tokyo. Asakusa and Senso-ji early, then Ueno or Akihabara; Shibuya Crossing and Shinjuku at night. Day two in Harajuku, Meiji Jingū and Omotesandō.
Day 3Tokyo, your way. teamLab, the Ghibli Museum (book weeks ahead), or a day out to Kamakura or Nikko.
Day 4Hakone. The loop by train, cable car and boat past Lake Ashi, with Mount Fuji if the weather allows, and a night in a ryokan with its own hot spring.
Days 5-7Kyoto. Fushimi Inari at dawn, Kiyomizu-dera and the old streets of Higashiyama, Arashiyama's bamboo grove early, the Golden Pavilion, and Gion at dusk.
Day 8Nara. Tōdai-ji, the deer park and Kasuga Taisha, back to Kyoto for dinner.
Day 9Hiroshima and Miyajima. A long day by shinkansen: the Peace Memorial Park and Museum, then the ferry to Miyajima's floating torii.
Day 10Osaka. Osaka Castle, the food stalls of Kuromon market and Dōtonbori at night, then fly home from Kansai.
Send big bags ahead with a luggage-forwarding service (takkyūbin) from your hotel: trains have little room for suitcases and it costs little.
Mountains and old towns
5 days
Kanazawa, Shirakawa-gō, Takayama, Matsumoto
Day 1Kanazawa. Kenroku-en garden, the Higashi Chaya geisha district and the 21st Century Museum.
Day 2Shirakawa-gō. The gasshō-zukuri farmhouses, and the viewpoint above the village. Stay overnight in one if you can: day-trippers leave at five.
Day 3Takayama. The morning markets, the old merchant streets of Sanmachi and a local Hida beef lunch.
Day 4Kamikōchi or Okuhida. In season (mid-April to mid-November) the alpine valley of Kamikōchi; otherwise the hot springs of Okuhida.
Day 5Matsumoto. The black 'crow castle', then the train to Tokyo in under three hours.
With kids
6 days
Tokyo and Osaka, with Nara in between
Day 1Tokyo's playgrounds. Odaiba's teamLab and waterfront, and the giant Gundam.
Day 2Ghibli or Disney. The Ghibli Museum in Mitaka (tickets go on sale a month ahead), or Tokyo DisneySea.
Day 3Shinkansen day. The bullet train is an attraction in itself. Arrive in Kyoto and walk Fushimi Inari, where children love the tunnels of gates.
Day 4Nara's deer. Buy deer crackers and watch the deer bow for them. Keep paper maps out of reach.
Day 5Osaka. The Kaiyukan aquarium with its whale sharks, and takoyaki for dinner.
Day 6Universal Studios Japan. Super Nintendo World needs a timed entry or an express pass on busy days.
Off the main line
6 days
Shikoku and the art islands
Day 1Naoshima. From Okayama by ferry: Chichu Art Museum (book ahead) and Yayoi Kusama's pumpkins on the pier.
Day 2Teshima to Takamatsu. The Teshima Art Museum, then Ritsurin garden in Takamatsu.
Day 3To the Iya Valley. The vine bridge of Kazurabashi and a night in the mountains.
Day 4Kōchi. Hirome market for seared bonito, and the castle.
Day 5Matsuyama. The castle on its hill, and an evening bath at Dōgo Onsen, one of Japan's oldest hot springs.
Day 6Back to Hiroshima. The fast ferry from Matsuyama to Hiroshima, and on with your trip.
Shikoku's trains are slower and less frequent than on Honshu. A rental car makes the Iya Valley far easier.
Things to do in Japan
Walk Fushimi Inari at dawnKyotoBefore 7am you can have the gates almost to yourself.
Stay a night in a ryokanHakone, Kinosaki, GinzanDinner and breakfast are usually included and are part of the experience.
Bathe in an onsenAnywhereWash before you get in, no swimwear; some still refuse visible tattoos, so check first.
See Mount FujiHakone, KawaguchikoClearest in the cold months; climbing season runs July to early September, with fees and booking on the main trails.
Watch sumoTokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, FukuokaSix tournaments a year; Tokyo holds them in January, May and September.
Ride the shinkansenTokyo to KyotoSit on the right going west (seat E) for Mount Fuji.
Eat breakfast at a fish marketTsukiji outer market, TokyoGo early; many stalls close by early afternoon.
Visit the Peace Memorial MuseumHiroshimaAllow at least two hours; it is busy from mid-morning.
What our explorers actually reached
58 explorers with public maps have marked Japan, and 23 of them went on to mark the prefectures they reached. The typical one reached 5 of 47 - 11% of the country - and the most thorough quarter reached 30% or more.
Typical explorer 11% · top quarter 30%+
The prefectures they marked most: Tokyo, Kyōto, Ōsaka, Kanagawa, Hiroshima.
And where they went instead
55% of explorers who marked Japan also marked South Korea (vs 19% of everyone)
38% of explorers who marked Japan also marked Taiwan (vs 16% of everyone)
48% of explorers who marked Japan also marked Malaysia (vs 22% of everyone)
Read these as marks on maps, not as reviews: our explorers skew European, and a country nobody has marked is not a country worth skipping. Aggregates only, never an individual, and only from accounts that are public. Read on 24 September 2026.
Practicalities
Money
The yen (JPY). Cards are now accepted almost everywhere in cities, but small restaurants, temples and rural places may be cash-only; 7-Eleven ATMs take foreign cards. A rechargeable IC card (Suica, PASMO or ICOCA, also on your phone) pays for trains, buses and convenience stores.
Entry and taxes
Citizens of the EU, UK, US, Canada, Australia and many other countries can visit visa-free for up to 90 days. Since 1 July 2026 the departure tax is ¥3,000, normally included in your air ticket. An online travel authorisation (JESTA) is planned for 2028.
Getting around
The shinkansen links the big cities; local JR, private railways and subways do the rest. A 7-day JR Pass costs around ¥50,000 or more after the October 2026 price rise, so it only pays off for long journeys - for Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka alone, single tickets are often cheaper.
Shopping and lodging
From 1 November 2026, tax-free shopping becomes a refund: you pay the 10% tax in the shop and claim it back at customs when you leave, so keep your receipts. Kyoto's lodging tax went up in March 2026 and now depends on the room rate, from ¥200 up to ¥10,000 per person per night for the most expensive stays.
Flights, hotels and getting around
Tokyo (HND) is the main way in. Narita (NRT) is Tokyo's second airport; Osaka Kansai (KIX) is closer to Kyoto.
These are plain searches on other people's sites - no affiliate tags, no tracking, and we earn nothing if you book. If that ever changes, this line changes with it.
Other people worth reading
We are a map, not a guidebook, and these are better than us on the parts we are thin on. Hand-picked, nothing sponsored, nothing scraped.
JapanWikivoyagePractical and honest, with good sections on etiquette and getting around.
Ten days is a good first trip: Tokyo, Hakone, Kyoto with Nara, and Osaka or Hiroshima. Two weeks lets you add the Japanese Alps, Kanazawa or the art islands without rushing.
Is the JR Pass worth it?
Only if you are covering long distances, for example Tokyo to Hiroshima and back with side trips. For a Tokyo-Kyoto-Osaka trip, individual shinkansen tickets usually cost less. Check the price against your actual journeys before buying.
Do you need cash in Japan?
Less than before. Cards and phone payments work in most shops, hotels and chains, but carry some yen for small restaurants, shrines, markets and the countryside.
When is the best time to visit Japan?
Spring and autumn for blossom and leaves, though both are crowded and expensive. May, October and winter are calmer and often better value; avoid Golden Week, mid-August and New Year.
Been to Japan?
Mark it, and the prefectures you reached, and your own map starts answering this question for you.
