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18 days in Japan - what JR Pass will suit?

Hi

We are going to spend 18 days in Japan with the following plan, thinking to get a 14 day JR Pass.

29/10 (Day 1)
Arrive Haneda Aiport at 9.30pm and we will need to find our way to JR Komagome Sta.

30/10 - 2/11 (Day 2 to Day 5)
will stay in Komagome during these dates and will do a day trip to Fujisan one day.

3/11 (Day 6)
Heading to Kanazawa & stay 2 nights there.

4/11 (Day 7)
Kanazawa (visit the local crafts and other tourist attractions) - by the way, is Kanazawa an onsen town?

5/11 to 9/11(Day 8 to Day 12)
Heading to Osaka and will be based in Osaka (near JR Hirano) for 5 nights, will visit Kyoto as day trips by train.

10/11 to 12/11 (Day 13 to Day 15)
heading to Hiroshima and will stay there for 3 nights.

13/11 (Day 16)
this is a spare day we are not so sure what to do.

a. Should we stay one more day in Osaka and then head to Hiroshima on 11th Nov instead?
b. Should we spend an extra day in Hiroshima?
c. also, thinking to stay overnight in an Onsen Ryokan enroute to Tokyo

14/11 (Day 17)
Stay overnight in Tokyo

15/11 (Day 18)
Say goodbye to Japan.

Questions:

1. looks like a 14 days pass will cover most of the trip? is that right?
2. what type of travel pass that will cover our first 4 days?
3. can we use our JR pass while we are exploring Kanazawa?
4. looks like Day 16 is a spare day, any suggestion?
5. also, we will have another group joining us in Osaka & Hiroshima, what type of rail pass will suit them. They will need to travel to and from Kansei Airport.

welcome your thoughts.

thank you .

Gini

Comments

  • Hello, Gini!

    Kanazawa is a city, different from what you'd call an onsen town.

    You are spending enough time in Osaka and Hiroshima. Why not try Miyajima, Himeji and Fukuoka? By all means look into an onsen location.

    You can use a 14-day JR Pass from 11/1 to 11/14. Make sure to visit Fujisan with the activated pass, even though for the last segment you will still need to pay the fare to use the Fujikyu Railway Line. For the rest of the trip, you're covered by the pass.

    For your first days in Tokyo, there are city subway passes, but they limit your transport options and they only pay off if you're using the subway a lot.

    Getting around Kanazawa (scroll down):

    http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4208.html

    The group that will be joining you will surely benefit from getting a JR Kansai Hiroshima Area Pass

    https://www.westjr.co.jp/global/en/ticket/pass/kansai_hiroshima/

    Just keep in mind that even though they're allowed to take any Shinkansen serving Osaka-Hiroshima, your own pass does not allow travel on the Nozomi or the Mizuho services. You could all take the Sakura, then.
  • To answer your questions, first to get around Tokyo cheaply I suggest you look into a 2 or 3 day subway pass. Very easy to make worthwhile and you can travel all over.
    http://www.tokyometro.jp/en/ticket/value/travel/index.html#anc03
    If you are staying near Komagome then you'll be near the Rikugien Garden - you should definitely give it a visit.

    For the Fuji area, there are 2 places you could visit - Hakone or the Fuji 5 Lakes area. Both have their own good points. Have a look at these sites for more info:
    http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e5200.html
    http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e6900.html
    Some Odakyu passes can save you a lot:
    http://www.odakyu.jp/english/deels/
    There are onsen places at both.

    For Kanazawa, there are 2 big hot spring places in the area. The closest is just 25 minutes by train.
    http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4275.html
    http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4256.html

    Just an observation, but if you are spending most of your time in Kyoto, why not stay there? It's just half an hour from Osaka to Kyoto, but it is an unneeded commute. If you're already seeing Tokyo you can largely skip Osaka anyways since it is pretty much a clone. You should also give at least half a day for Nara - it has some of Japan's very best sights. After a day in Kyoto you can also go spend an evening in Kobe too.

    If you're still flexible with your schedule, then rearranging a few things might make more sense. IMHO 3 nights is a bit too much for Hiroshima, although Miyajima and Iwakuni are worth seeing, but Himeji is also a good add on and you can see Japan's best castle. If you are still interested in going to a hot spring, then Kinosaki is just a bit over 90 minutes from Himeji, and is one of the biggest hot springs resort areas in the country.
    Fukuoka was mentioned and is not far by bullet train either - and is actually a frequently overlooked place with some very good sights.
    http://www.thejapanfaq.com/fukpic.html
    But better with an overnight, and still better with some more travel there to other places like Nagasaki.
    There are other possibilities as well, including Onomichi, Kurashiki, Okayama, the Akiyoshido Cave in Yamaguchi, and even Shikoku with Kotohira and Takamatsu. You can see some previews of many places there on:
    https://www.youtube.com/user/thejapanfaq/videos

    For Kyoto info, try:
    http://www.kyoto.travel/
    http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2158.html
    and for Nara, see:
    http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2165.html
    http://narashikanko.or.jp/en/
  • Hello

    Thank you very much for the comment,

    Miyajima and Himeji are on the list.

    Question:

    I am always wondering, for Himeji, is it a place we should stop and visit while we are on the way to Hiroshima or on the way we heading back to Tokyo. How much time should we allow?

    Next

    I will incorporate your suggestion and re-arrange the itineraries for Day 13 to Day 16, and will come back to the forum for further comment, thanks in advance.

    We are certain that will arrive Tokyo on Day 17 and get ready to catch the plan on Day 18 in the afternoon.

    Thank you.

    Gini
  • Hi,
    I'd say if you can give ¾ to a full day for Himeji, so much the better. You can look at what there is on:
    http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3500.html

    If you only want to put in half a day, see the castle and garden.
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