Planning a trip to Japan can feel overwhelming; there’s so much to see, so many cities to choose from, and endless experiences to book. That’s exactly why I created this Japan Travel Hub: one easy place where you can find all my guides, itineraries, travel tips, hotels, and personal recommendations from my full trip across the country.
Whether you’re visiting for 7 days, 10 days, or 2 weeks, this page helps you plan a smooth route with realistic timing, insider tips, and honest notes about what’s worth it (and what you can skip).
✨ This Japan guide is part of a full travel series. New posts are added weekly, so feel free to bookmark this page and come back as new guides go live.
🇯🇵 My Complete Japan Route (12 Days)
This is the exact route I followed as a first-time visitor, and it worked beautifully:
Tokyo → Kamakura → Kyoto → Osaka → Himeji → Hiroshima → Miyajima → Fukuoka
You can follow this exact route or mix and match destinations depending on how long you’re travelling.
📍 All Japan Blog Posts
Here you’ll find every destination guide in this series, in travel order:
Tokyo
Kamakura
A Peaceful Day Trip from Tokyo to Kamakura – Temples, sea breeze & slow moments
📅 Release date: 17-04-2026
📅 Release date: 17-04-2026
Kyoto
Kyoto 3-Day Travel Guide – Temples, Nishiki Market & Gion Geisha tour
📅 Release date: 24-04-2026
📅 Release date: 24-04-2026
Osaka
Osaka 1-Day Itinerary – Street food, Dotonbori & TeamLab Botanical Garden
📅 Release date: 01-05-2026
📅 Release date: 01-05-2026
Himeji
Himeji Castle Stopover Guide – Perfect stop between Osaka and Hiroshima
📅 Release date: 08-05-2026
📅 Release date: 08-05-2026
Hiroshima
Hiroshima 2-Day Travel Guide – Peace Memorial Park, Genbaku Dome & Okonomiyaki
📅 Release date: 15-05-2026
📅 Release date: 15-05-2026
Miyajima
Miyajima Island Day Trip – UNESCO sights, deer & delicious oysters
📅 Release date: 22-05-2026
📅 Release date: 22-05-2026
Fukuoka
Fukuoka Guide – Sushi, shopping, Pokémon Centre & nightlife
📅 Release date: 29-05-2026
📅 Release date: 29-05-2026
🚄 Getting Around Japan Easily
Japan’s transport system is honestly one of the best I’ve ever used.
- 🚅 Shinkansen trains connect cities quickly and smoothly
- 🚉 Stations are huge but extremely organised and bilingual
- 📱 I always use an eSIM so I can access maps, translations, and tickets instantly
Having internet from the moment you land makes navigating Japan dramatically easier, especially when finding platforms or exits in big stations. Best to look into transport before you go; we had it all organised by our travel company.
🧳 Luggage Forwarding (Takkyubin): My Favourite Travel Hack
One of Japan’s best-kept travel secrets is hotel-to-hotel luggage forwarding, which lets you travel hands-free between cities.
Why it’s amazing
- Affordable (usually ¥2,000–¥3,000 per bag)
- Extremely reliable
- Perfect for train travel days
How to use it
- Ask the reception of your hotel to ship your luggage
- Provide your next hotel’s details
- Drop bags before ~11:00–12:00
- Pack essentials for one night
Most hotels offer this and help you fill in forms. It made multi-city travel so much easier for me.
🏨 Hotels I Stayed In
Most of the hotels are close to stations to save time and energy after long walking days.
My stay from this trip:
- Sunshine City Prince Hotel (Tokyo): inside a shopping complex with restaurants and even a Pokémon Centre
- Ala Hotel Kyoto: great location, onsen, laundry, convenience store opposite
- Hearton Hotel Nishi Umeda (Osaka): simple but perfect for short stays
- Hiroshima Grand Intelligent Hotel: elegant classic feel + spacious room with bathtub
- Hotel Clio Court Hakata (Fukuoka): practical, comfortable, near the station, with washing machines
📌 Tip: Book early in Japan. Well-located hotels sell out fast.
🎟️ Tours & Experiences Worth Booking Ahead
Some experiences sell out days (or weeks) in advance, especially in peak seasons. I usually reserve activities beforehand, so I don’t miss out.
Popular ones from my route:
- Night Walk in Gion (Kyoto Geisha district)
- Tea Ceremony with Maiko
- Meet the Geisha Miko with Gion Walking Tour
- Osaka Castle visit
- Universal Studios Japan
- Sumo experience in Osaka
- Osaka street food tour
- Himeji Castle guided tour
- Hiroshima historical walking tour
- Miyajima Island guided tour
- Hakata Old Town culture workshop (Fukuoka)
- Fukuoka: Nakasu Food Stall Private Guided Tour with tastings
Booking ahead saves stress and guarantees availability.
🇯🇵 Fun Things to Spot on Japanese Streets
One of my favourite things about Japan is the small details. Don’t just look forward, look around and down too.
Things to watch for:
- 🎨 Decorative manhole covers are unique to each city
- 🧃 Vending machines everywhere
- 🌸 Seasonal decorations
- 🚉 Station ink stamps (free souvenirs)
- 📖 Temple goshuin stamps
Tip: Carry a small notebook. Collecting stamps becomes addictive!
🧭 Suggested Japan Route Durations
7 days: Tokyo + Kyoto + Osaka
10 days: Add Hiroshima + Miyajima
12–14 days: Full route including Himeji + Fukuoka
10 days: Add Hiroshima + Miyajima
12–14 days: Full route including Himeji + Fukuoka
📱 Useful Apps for Japan Travel
These apps made my trip much smoother:
- Google Maps or Naver Maps: navigation
- Tablelog: local restaurant reviews
- GetYourGuide: tours & tickets
- Trip.com: hotel bookings
- Google Translate or Papago: instant translations
- Suica card app: transport payments (You can get a physical card at the airport)
- Airalo : E-sim for internet connection
👟 Practical Tip Nobody Tells You
Japan involves a LOT of walking. I easily walked 20,000+ steps daily, and cities are not flat, lots of stairs, hills, and stations with endless exits.
👉 Bring comfortable shoes.
👉 Do NOT bring brand-new shoes.
👉 Do NOT bring brand-new shoes.
Trust me on this one.
✨ Planning Your Trip?
Here are the tools I personally use when travelling in Japan:
- 📱 eSIM for instant connection → I use Airalo (discount code for first-time user: DANIEL22410)
- 🏨 Hotels near stations → saves time + energy
- 🎟️ Pre-booked experiences → avoids disappointment
I’ll keep updating this hub whenever I publish new Japan guides, so feel free to bookmark it if you’re planning a trip 🇯🇵
