7 Days in Japan end of May
 

I have 7 days to spend in Japan and want to see as much as possible. I arrive in NRT on Sunday and Fly out of KIX the following Sunday. The plan is to purchase a 7 day rail pass to take advantage of any night trains and fly to Osaka day 4. I also have a lot of avios and wouldn't mind flying as well. I would greatly appreciate any advice on maximizing my time and the combination of half day trips.

Day 1: Arrive in Tokyo:
Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden
Asakusa Temple
Oriental Bazaar
Meiji Shrine
Shibuya Crossing
Day 2: Tokio –Nikko - Toshogu Shrine
Chuzenji Lake-– Tokio
Day 3: Tokio – Kamakura – Hakone
Kamakura- Hasedera Temple
Great Buddha of Kamakura– Tokio
Day 4:Tokio-Osaka am flight-Osaka- Kyoto – Nara
Day 5:Kyoto- Nijo Catle – Himeji-
Kinkakuji- Golden Pavilon -The Higashiyama District- Historic
Day 6:Fly to Nagasaki-Hiroshima-Osaka
Day 7: Osaka

Unless you're arriving early in the morning from Australia or New Zealand, your first day in Tokyo is too ambitious. Flights from North America to NRT generally arrive after 3:00PM, and even if you make it through customs and immigration in record time, NRT is 60km/40 miles out of the city, and you will be jetlagged.

If you're flying into HND, you'll probably get there very early in the morning, still jet lagged.

Are you going to fly to Osaka or take the train?

There really aren't any overnight trains between Tokyo and the Kyoto/Osaka area. They're only about three hours apart by Shinkansen. Just take the Shinkansen straight to Kyoto. Much less hassle, downtown to downtown.

I guess you haven't looked at a map to see how far Himeji is from Kyoto.

Nagasaki-Hiroshima-Osaka in one day? No, no, no. Not even by plane.

If you're flying out of KIX, be aware that it is not in Osaka but 40km south. There are convenient trains from both Osaka and Kyoto.

Thanks for the tips ksandness. i plan on flying to Osaka and any other city that might save me time . As you mentioned my plan is a little ambitious. I was thinking about using Osaka as my base and commuting from there since its more central for Nara ,Kyoto and Himeji.

This would not be possible if you were Superman. Or the Flash.

Why fly to Osaka? If you will have a Rail Pass, it will take you less than 3 hours by bullet train. By the time you get to the airport, wait for check-in and security, fly the trip, get from the airport into the city, you will take more time flying. Just use the train like everybody else.

Kyoto/Osaka-Nagasaki-Hiroshima-Osaka is not possible in one day. At least if you actually want to get into the cities and see anything.

Thanks for the tips. I will definitely eliminate Nagasaki and Hiroshima out of the trip whiles sticking to the rail pass.

Definitely skip the flying and use your rail pass. Almost all of your destinations are served by Japan Rail and it's so much easier to just go to the station, find your train and get on. For the Shinkansen's you will want a seat reservation which I believe is included in the cost of the pass. Just go to the station office and they will do the reservation for you. You'll see things from a train that you would miss on a plane. Tokyo -Osaka,Kyoto goes by Mt. Fuji. Many of the places you want to see are close by so you should choose a base (Kyoto or Osaka) for Nara, Hiroshima etc and Tokyo (for Kamakura). No need to drag luggage every day. You can use your pass to go to KIX at the end of your trip. In Tokyo and Osaka your pass is good for the subway loop line. Just show the pass to the conductor when you enter and leave the gates. Relax and enjoy your visit. If you're like most of us who have gone to Japan . . .you will return (and then you can go to more places)

No, it's NOT good for the subway, although it is good for the above-ground heavy rail commuter trains that have "JR" on the side. In Tokyo, that means the Yamanote (silver with green stripes), Chuo (silver with orange stripes), and Keihin Lines (silver with blue stripes), basically, and in Osaka, that means the Kanjo Line.

You might want to think about Hiroshima which can be done in a long day trip from Osaka or Kyoto. You would want to get an early start and plan on returning in the evening but it can be done. Nagasaki, on the other hand, is on a completely different island and involves 5 hours of train travel just to get there from Osaka. Longer from Kyoto.

Thanks abmj-jr, i will reconsider Nagasaki. It looks like i can visit Nagasaki and Miyajima in a long day.

Thanks fdflys, any advice on when to purchase the J-rail pass and whether the first class is worth the extra money?

You have to buy the voucher for the JR Pass outside of Japan. Most travel agents can arrange this, or you can buy it online. You then exchange the voucher for the Pass when you are ready.

First class is not worth the extra money, in my opinion. Unlike European trains, you get only a little more space, no other freebies. Second class already has more room than the average coach class airline seat.

No, No. Hiroshima and Miyajima are very close together and can be done in a day trip from Kyoto/Osaka. Nagasaki is a LONG way from Miyajima and you just cannot do them together in one day.

For your short 7 day itinerary, you should forget about Nagasaki. Leave it for another visit in the future.

After you arrive in Japan.

Can you visit Nagasaki and Miyajima in a long day? Yes.
Can you actually see anything there? No.

Different strokes for different folks, I know, but just putting it out there:
However you formulate this one, you'll be spending a lot of time in transit between cities. While rail transportation within Japan is an experience in and of itself, is your goal of checking off cities that you barely see worth it vs spending more quality time in each place? You could do Tokyo and Kyoto and 1-2 day trips fairly well in this amount of time, with a much better "feel" for each city. And you would be seeing "more" in total after the seven days. The itins you are looking at would give you a handful of sites in each place and lots of time on the shinkansen bullet train and slower trains in between. If that is your preference, go for it.