I'll be flying in the autumn from JFK to Tokyo, where I plan to stopover for several days. I then plan to continue on to Kyoto.

My question for the Japan hands on the board (who have previously been very helpful to me) is this: when traveling from Tokyo to Kyoto, is it quicker to fly to Osaka and then cab it over to Kyoto, or to simply take the train from Tokyo directly to Kyoto? Thanks kindly in advance.