Hello Flyertalkers,

Hoping somebody with a bit more experience in Japan than me can help. Heading over in December to celebrate the other half's birthday, and put this together as a rough plan:

13-17th December - Tokyo, landing at Narita around 2pm
17-20th - Sapporo, flying earlyish probably from Haneda. Day trip to Otaru
20-21st - Noboribetsu Onsen. This is the birthday so looking at some nice Ryokans in the area
21 - 22 - Activate JR Pass / Train to Hakodate
23 -
24 - Train to Sendai
26 - Kanazawa?
27 -
28-30h - Kyoto
30-2nd Jan - Osaka
3-4th - Kobe
5-7th - Shikoku Island
8 - Hiroshima
9
10 -
11 - Back towards Tokyo
12 - Flight home

There are a few blanks in the schedule to allow for shifting dates, but is there anything that looks glaringly weird, or that we may be missing? We're pretty easy travellers, big foodies. I appreciate it's winter time which may reduce our options, but December - January is pretty much the only time we can get this sort of vacation.

Thanks in advance for any input!

There is a lot to do in Kyoto. There are more World Heritage Sites in Kyoto than any other city in the world. Osaka has a lot of great food that is affordable and more restaurants and better night life than Kyoto. Nara is between Kyoto and Osaka and is amazing. You should visit Nara, but you don't have to stay overnight there. Near Hiroshima is Miyajima and I liked it a lot. Those are the first things that came to mind.

Thanks nutwpinut, much appreciated!

Would you say it's worth skipping Skikoku Island and spending more time on the mainland, between Kyoto, Kobe, Osaka, and Nara?

It's up to you. Shikoku is lovely, but I spent several days there in 2012 without encountering another Westerner, so it may be intimidating for a first-time visitor. (I work as a Japanese-English translator, so language is not a problem for me.)

You will have plenty to see just in Kansai (the Kyoto-Osaka area). I'm a big fan of Nara, which is more low-key than Kyoto.

A few general things to note:

1. When you put more specific itineraries together, note that the sun sets pretty early around that time, so your daytime activities will be more limited. Not that things close earlier, but just be aware.
2. As mentioned before, you can stay in Kyoto and visit Nara, Osaka, and Kobe, especially if you are on a rail pass. Nara especially is an easy day trip. If that seems like too much back-and-forth, I'd recommend only changing hotels once max in the region. One exception for #3 :
3. You are foodies and I assume you enjoy cultural experiences- I recommend splurging for a high-end ryokan in Kyoto, if only for a night or two.
4. If you are ambitious and still on a rail pass, after Hiroshima I'd recommend continuing on south to Fukuoka and/or Nagasaki. I looooved Nagasaki. Kagoshima is really nice as well but may be too ambitious for that timeframe.

What's your price range for Noboribetsu? And what do you think your partner would value in a ryokan - traditional room, dining, onsen water, mega-onsen activities? Pick two.

What kind of foodies are you? Is there anything you don't eat? Are you up for street food and b-kyuu https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/20...of-the-people/ if that means you bypass Michelin stars at formal restaurants?

If you are into fish and sushi, I'd advise Kanazawa for the white fishes. Toyama, while a more modern city, also has good sushi not easily available in other regions. I don't favor formally served kaiseki so I'd pass in Kyoto and stay overnight in Akita, dine at Takamura for counter service in front of an open kitchen https://tabelog.com/akita/A0501/A050101/5000664/ There's a running joke that foreign tourists don't go to Akita but I like it. Normal city with a manageable amount of tourist activities makes it a nice break from seeing too many attractions. Plus I also like rice and Akita's rice is well regarded.

Japanese businesses tend to take off for the new year. I think many well regarded restaurants close around that time range, not sure about b-kyuu.

You might want to flip Osaka, Kyoto, Nara around new year with another portion so more restaurants are open unless you want to visit shrines while a lot of people are there for the New Year https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2276.html. There's also the Yamazaki distillery tour which closes around New Year (reserve as early as possible) https://webapl.suntory.co.jp/factory/yamazaki/?lang=en

I think winter is crab season near Kinosaki onsen and Tottori beef is the ancestor of the branded Kobe wagyu. It might also be oyster shack season in Hakodate and Fukuoka. There's also a squid food truck in Hakodate - I think it was introduced on this episode of Journeys in Japan https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/t...s20150204.html but you should also be able to get it at restaurants https://savorjapan.com/contents/disc...squid-capital/

Do you like modern art? It is a Setouchi Art Fest Triennial year. If you're considering the side of Shikoku bordering the Seto Inland Sea, the Setouchi islands should have some the permanently displayed works still available. The ferry might be infrequent on a winter schedule https://setouchi-artfest.jp/en/

Other areas of interest:

Kinosaki, Amanohashidate (can be day trip from Osaka/Kyoto)

Matsue, Izumo (Needs overnight stay as the rather scenic train ride from Okayama is long)

Lots of HK / Taiwanese / Korean tourists, with direct LCC flights to Takamatsu. Language is not an issue at places frequented by tourists all over Shikoku.

I would also highly recommend this; it's at the top of our must sees in Japan. While the Setouchi Triennale ends in November, the regular Benesse Art Site museums and exhibitions on Naoshima, Teshima, Inujima, etc. will be open and winter time is a great time to go to avoid the crowds. http://benesse-artsite.jp/en/

The only problem might be that you'll prob need two nights there to see everything. Not sure you have that time in your schedule.

Maybe you could stay longer in Hokkaido and visit the likes of Otaru, do some more winter activities such as the drift ice in Abashiri.

Thank you all for the replies, and apologies for my tardy response. An excess of work resulted in not being able to think about the fun things!

Pureboy - Thanks for the suggestions, taken the point of only changing hotels once between Kyoto and Kobe, I think we'll base in Kyoto and Osaka and day trip from there. We may head further south, and skip Shikoku Island. Next step is pick up a guide book and properly map this out.

Freccia - Budgeting around �500 for Noribetsu for the two nights, and we'd both appreciate a ryokan style room, with good dining, and a good Onsen. This is looking ideal, http://www.kashoutei-hanaya.co.jp/en/cuisine-en/. Food wise, we love everything. Tend to have a preference for street food, and usually we go for more casual options over Michelin stars. Eaten in starred restaurants through the USA, Europe, and Asia, I'd take a quality Turkish doner or Pho most evenings. Looks like Akita might be a nice break in the journey from Hakodate, but might require skipping Sendai. Any opinions on this?

beep88 - Thanks for the extra spots, will check them out when the guide book arrives.

The other half is a real art buff, so the Art Site should score some well needed brownie point.

Thank you all again for all your help!

Hit send without including this in the reply. I've added Otaru as an extra day, so we will be in Hokkaido for six days, covering Sapporo, Otaru, Noribetsu, and Hakodate. I looked into Abashiri, and it looks stunning, but also miles from our trail.

ETA: Kashoutei Hanaya indoor bath is free flowing 100% source. This is considered to be of higher quality than adding tap water to the bath to warm or cool it & recirculate which is what most big baths will have. So it can be priced at a bit of a premium as it differentiates a bath from other nearby baths. Source water onsen is also prevalent in Oita prefecture and near Mt. Aso in Kyushu.

You might want to look for a reservable family bath and/or up the budget for an in-room onsen since it is a birthday splurge. Some of the higher end ryokan like Bourou Noguchi (more modern themed) have in-room onsen.

Try running these queries through google translate if a couple's bath (or privacy) is important.
Open air onsen attached to room
https://www.jalan.net/uw/uwp1400/uww1400.do?stayYear=&stayMonth=&stayDay=&dateUndec ided=1&stayCount=1&roomCount=1&adultNum=2&minPrice =0&maxPrice=999999&mealType=&carePribateBath=1&car eOnsen=1&lrgOsnCd=50006&photo=1&kenCd=010000&lrgCd =011100&rootCd=2401&distCd=03&roomCrack=200000&afC d=01&reShFlg=1&mvTabFlg=0&childPriceFlg=0,0,0,0,0& screenId=UWW1402
Reserved onsen available (usually a private one which can be reserved and not attached to room)
https://www.jalan.net/uw/uwp1400/uww1400.do?stayYear=&stayMonth=&stayDay=&dateUndec ided=1&stayCount=1&roomCount=1&adultNum=2&minPrice =0&maxPrice=999999&mealType=&careOnsen=1&careBathR ent=1&lrgOsnCd=50006&photo=1&kenCd=010000&lrgCd=01 1100&rootCd=2401&distCd=03&roomCrack=200000&afCd=0 1&reShFlg=1&mvTabFlg=0&childPriceFlg=0,0,0,0,0&scr eenId=UWW1402

I've day pass onsen hopped through most of the mega-onsen in Noboribetsu. My favorite mega-onsen is Dai-ichi Takimotokan https://takimotokan.co.jp/en/day_spa/. It is massive and has a lot of different water varieties + configurations like waterfall, outdoors, indoors, rock walking path, etc. They also offer gender segregated outdoor onsen with a bar next to it if you're looking for the (not-usually-permitted) drinking + bathing experience. Do check the details- the bar was certain hours only and maybe cash payment. You can ask your ryokan for an onsen basket/bag to carry towels for onsen hopping if one isn't already in your room.

Kashoutei Hanaya looks ideal for what we're after, a bit more boutique, with well rated dining options. I did look at staying in Dai-Ichi Takimotokan, but it seems more family orientated, and thought it may be a bit busy and loud for a getaway. Spending a day there would be preferable I think.

Thanks for the links, will take a look through this evening.

Am I right in saying most hotels in Japan don't open bookings until three months before? I've been searching just to research, and availability seems patchy at best.

Hotel rack rate usually gets posted about six months out these days with better deals being introduced three months ahead. Some hotels load availability each quarter - ie July 1 for July 1 - Dec 31.