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Tokyo, Japan
- Tokyo activity - https://instagram.com/p/C9UfhYlPbHR/
- Easy, toddler-friendly activities: **teamLab Planets** (immersive art, toddlers love it), **Shinjuku Gyoen** (a relaxing park), **Asakusa & Senso-ji Temple**.
- Stroll through Sumida Park and visit Senso-ji Temple in Asakusa & Meiji Jingu / Meiji Shrine
- Walk through Takeshita Street en route to Meiji Shrine and garden
- Walk through Nakamise Street for snacks and souvenirs
- Explore Nippori Street and visit Nezu Shrine with Torii Gates
- Harajuku Shibuya crossing - busiest intersection in the world
- Afternoon: Stroll through Ueno Park and Ameyoko Shopping Street
- Shibuya Sky for sunset and dinner
- Go to a Sumo show
- The [Miraikan](http://www.miraikan.jst.go.jp/en/) museum is cool.
Best to time your visit to see a demonstration of Asimo if you can (though I just read on the website that the rest of the robot exhibition is closed, which is a shame!). Jeff Mills' soundscape plays on the circular walkway in the main atrium. If you plan your journey right and you can also recreate this Burial [video](https://youtu.be/j2Gppa-8hMA) on the Yurikamome monorail on your journey back.
- Good shops: Don Quijote for weird Japanese goods and snacks, Tokyu Hands for basically anything under the sun (from a full size human skeleton, to a capsule toy of Pikachu), T-shirts Store Graniph for interesting printed t-shirts, Village Vanguard for art books and Japanese toys (look out for Gudetama - great Japanese character by the Hello Kitty company, based on a lazy egg. I wrote the English [wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Sanrio_characters#Gudetama_.282013.29) entry!), Beams for clothes. They're all chains so you can google locations. Tower Records is surprisingly good out there too.
- Tokyo Sky Tree is craaaazy tall. Queue can be long, but the view is really ridiculous - Tokyo just stretches on and on
- Also convenience store meals have some of the tastiest quick meals to go and they also have great bakeries
- Restaurants: Ichiran (一蘭） and Ippudo（一風堂） both do excellent tonkotsu style ramen. Ichiran is especially interesting as there is no direct interaction between waiter and diner. You basically eat in a small cubicle. Ippudo serves better ramen though. Both may have queues at popular times. I would say its worth the wait if you're a fan of ramen. They're both chains so you can just google map them.
- Izakayas (Japanese pub type places) are great fun and cheap. Some do all you can drink. Lots of chains around. Watami（和民）is very reliable. Hanbey（半兵）is fun - full of kitsch 50s and 60s Japanese memorabilia.
- Jomon（ジョウモン）is great for yakitori (grilled meat and vegetables skewers). The branch in Roppongi is very foreigner friendly (the Japanese language website literally uses the presence of foreigners as a selling point!). For a more authentic experience you could try the branch in Shibuya. Can end up expensive if you eat a lot of skewers.
- For snacks you can try Mister Donuts which is a chain of donut restaurants which is everywhere - see if you can find the Katsu Curry donut, weirdly edible. Everything else you can get at the convenience store (Family Mart, Lawson, 7-Eleven etc) - including plentiful cheap Japanese beer.
- We used [Happy Cow](http://www.happycow.net/) to find Vegan restaurants. I remember eating at Ain.Soph.Journey in Shinjuku which was really tasty.
- Bars: Shinjuku is great for small Japanese bars and restaurants. The series of alleys called Golden Gai is definitely worth a look. If you like Haruki Murakami there are some jazz bars and cafes which feature in his novels around the Shinjuku area. We checked out The Dug. If you're drinking in a Japanese bar then Charlotte would recommend Ume-shu, which is a type of sweet plum wine. Good on the rocks.
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Fuji Five Lakes, Japan
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Isawa-Onsen, Japan
BOOKED THE 10:56 LIMITED EXPRESS TRAIN FROM ISAWA ONSEN TO MATSUMTO
Need to get the 09:08 bus from Kawaguchiko to Isawa Onsen → 10:06 ( 58min )
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Kawaguchiko Station, Japan
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Matsumoto, Japan
Travel from Fuji Five Lakes to Matsumoto.
How: Bus to Kofu station then train to Matsumoto
1. Bus from Kawaguchiko to Kofu Station
- Duration: under 1 hour
- Cost: 1,500 yen
- Operator: Fujikyu Bus
- This bus runs several times a day. You can book online or buy tickets at Kawaguchiko Station.
**2. Train from Kofu Station to Matsumoto Station**
- **Train Line:** JR Chuo Main Line (Limited Express "Azusa" or local trains)
- **Duration:** ~1 hour 40 mins (Azusa), ~2.5 hrs (local)
- **Cost:** ~2,270 yen (Azusa)
- **Notes:** If you have a JR Pass, the Azusa Limited Express is fully covered.
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Kamikochi Visitor Center, Japan
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Takayama, Japan
Google maps route from Kamikochi to our booked hotel Chisun Grand in Takayama https://maps.app.goo.gl/CKbtSmECBNo6g7AM9?g_st=ic
apparently the last bus is 5.30pm so we could make it, it’s a 2 hour bus & train trip to our hotel door to door so we’d arrive around 7.30pm in Takayama
- Arrive in Takayama around 7:30pm, a beautifully preserved Edo-period town in the heart of Chubu-Sangaku.
- Wander around the Old Town, check out the Hida-no-Sato (traditional village), and relax at a local sake brewery.
- Takayama tips: https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/comments/mg8ir9/autumn_weekend_in_takayama_gifu_prefecture/
- Takayama (高山) is a city in the mountainous Hida region of [Gifu Prefecture](https://www.japan-guide.com/list/e1220.html). To differentiate it from other places named Takayama, the city is also commonly referred to as Hida-Takayama. Takayama retains a traditional touch like few other Japanese cities, especially in its beautifully preserved [old town](https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e5903.html).
- [Hida-Takayama](https://theculturetrip.com/asia/japan/articles/the-best-hotels-in-takayama-japan) is nicknamed ‘Little Kyoto’ for its abundance of shrines, temples and picturesque 18th-century buildings.
The town, which is known for its [excellent sake](
- Hiking routes: https://visit-nagano.alpico.co.jp/travelog/tag/kamikochi
- **Morning:**
- Drive or take a bus to **Shirakawa-go** (~1 hour), a UNESCO-listed village famous for its **gassho-zukuri**(thatched-roof houses).
- Explore the village and visit the **Shirakawa-go Open Air Museum**.
- Sake Tasting: Educational Tour of Six Takayama Breweries
- One-way Bus: Takayama to Kyoto via Shirakawago
- Takayama: Old Town Guided Walking Tour 45min.
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Kyoto, Japan
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Tokyo, Japan
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Heathrow Terminal 4, United Kingdom