plans

a few days ago, all i knew was that i was 98% sure i was going to japan this spring. now, i have most of the trip blocked out in a schedule and the flights and hotels are booked. hooray! (it was really hard to find hotels that had availability on the dates we wanted, especially in kyoto. granted, we are going at pretty much the busiest time of year. keep that in mind if you plan on going to japan during cherry blossom season. book waaaaay in advance.)

Day 0 – Tuesday, March 31
fly to Japan
13:40pm ….

Day 1 – Wednesday, April 1
….15:35
arrive at Haneda airport
pick up JR passes
check in to hotel - Celestine Hotel (Shiba)

Day 2 – Thursday, April 2
asakua http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3004.html
sky tree http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3064.html
open everyday 8:00-22:00 3090 yen
ueno http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3019.html
shitamachi museum – closed M, open 9:30-16:30 300 yen
national museum closed M, open 9:30-17:00 620yen
ameyoko http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3012.html

Day 3 – Friday, April 3
take shinkansen to kamakura and back
daibutsu
temples – hasedera, engakuji, kenchoji
shrines – hachimangu

Day 4 – Saturday, April 4
shibuya http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3007.html (dogenzaka, center gai, tokyu)

Day 5 – Sunday, April 5
harajuku http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3006.html
yoyogi http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3034_002.html closes at 20:00
meiji http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3002.html closes at sunset - inner garden 9-16:00 500 yen

Day 6 – Monday, April 6
yokohama http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2156.html
chinatown http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3201.html 
ramen museum http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3202.html
open everyday 11-22:00 300 yen

Day 7 – Tuesday, April 7
akihabara http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3003.html
edo-tokyo museum http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3070.html
closed M, open 9:30-17:30 (19:30 on sat) 600 yen
kokugikan http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3022.html 
closed W, open 10-16:30

Day 8 – Wednesday, April 8
ghibli museum http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3041.html
closed tues, open 10-18:00 – purchase tickets in advance from JTB (with JR passes)

Day 9 – Thursday, April 9
check out of hotel
take shinkansen to Kyoto http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2158.html 
check into hotel - Hotel Boston Plaza Kusatsu
shopping in kyoto station
ginkakuji
ryoanji
byodoin

Day 10 – Friday, April 10
fushimi inari taisha
gion
higashiyama
yasaka shrine
maruyama park

Day 11 – Saturday, April 11
take shinkansen back to tokyo
check in to hotel - Ginza Grand Hotel

Day 12 – Sunday, April 12
imperial palace http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3017.html
closed M & F, open 9-16:30 - book tickets online
tokyo station http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3037.html 
ginza http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3005.html 
kabukiza – single act ticket available at window on the day
http://blog.gaijinpot.com/kabukiza-theater-tickets/

Day 13 – Monday, April 13
take train to nikko
check in to hotel - Nikko Station Hotel Classic‏
toshogu http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3801.html
open everyday 8-17:00  1300 yen

Day 14 – Tuesday, April 14
nikko edomura http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3879.html 
closed W, open 9-17:00  4700 yen
take train back to Tokyo
check in to hotel - Royal Park Hotel The Haneda‏

Day 15 – Wednesday, April 15
check out of hotel
shopping at airport
fly home 17:40-16:40


71 days to go!

accommodations

now is the time when i have to start looking into places to stay in japan. we'll definitely be in both tokyo and kyoto again, but since we haven't narrowed down if we adding other stops and which those might be (nikko? nara? etc.), i haven't even started with those yet.

i saw a video about a group of themed hostels in tokyo from a girl i subscribe to on youtube who lives in japan. she only highlights the one she stayed at (obviously) - the ninja one - but they also have samurai, kabuki, origami, labratory, and "world" themes ones. they look so cool! and the prices are pretty good.
but hubby said "shared bathroom? no way." so that kiboshed that. but if you're headed to japan and aren't afraid of shared facilities, check it out. www.khaosan-tokyo.com




another cheaper option are the business hotels. meant for business men who don't live in the area but are attending late night company parties and meetings, i guess. they are often VERY cramped, but at least have the privacy that hostels and economy hotels lack.
this list has a few, as well as some other options http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2012/feb/01/10-best-budget-hotels-tokyo

and for the extremely budget conscious, check out this list of options (mcdonald's? really?) http://blog.gaijinpot.com/cheap-accommodation-in-japan

i have a feeling the husband is NOT going to go for any of those options. he mentioned just staying at the same place we did last time - the prince park tower hotel in hamamatsucho. it was pretty expensive... but hey, he's paying. whatever. it was also supernice, so i would not complain. 

as for kyoto~ last time was stayed at the hotel granvia. again, supernice... superexpensive.

it was great. connected to the kyoto station. very convenient. but... not helpful for anyone who doesn't want to spend a shitton. i gotta work on that to come up with some more affordable options (whether we go that route or not ourselves, it's helpful info for other people who may be looking at this to help plan their own trips) so i'll get back to you on that later. 


a lot of stuff i know about japan - these little tidbits i become obsessed with - are usually things i hear about from documentaries. one (of the thousands) of these things i saw on a doc and am enchanted by are machiya. otherwise, townhouses. these would be the really old, street front homes. generally one would think of kyoto for this type of home. there was a lot of them being renovated in recent years and i just found out that someone has turned some into guest homes. sweet! 

so, this may be an option too. 
http://www.kyoto-machiya.com/eng/ 
i have yet to show it to my husband so we'll see how that goes. it looks amazing. *fingers crossed*