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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/allycakes on 2024-04-21 16:06:06.
Hello everyone! I got back from Japan just over a week ago and well it’s taken a bit of time to write up this report because traveling with a two-year-old is exhausting. It’s been awhile since we took a big trip with her and let me tell you, traveling with a fully mobile two-year-old is wayyy harder than with a partially mobile one-year-old. I know there are a lot of reports on here already so mine below is probably going to focus more on the toddler/child aspect; I hope this might be helpful to other parents preparing for their trip!
I also want to thank this sub for their feedback on my original itinerary. I ended up reworking my itinerary from what I planned (I had us originally ending in Okayama as well as staying a night in Nara on the way to Kyoto) and I think things went a lot smoother because of the changes!
Osaka (1 Night)
General Impression: Osaka was our first city and I liked it way more than I thought I would! We only stayed one night though and looking back, I would have maybe stayed longer and gone into the Osaka Castle as well as visit Team Labs.
Accommodations: We stayed at the Hotel Elcient Osaka Umeda. Location was excellent - very close to Osaka Station. The room was on the smaller side but that was fine for us for one night. Best part of the hotel was the free, on-site spa! We had been travelling for two days and it was a nice way to relax.
Sites:
- Kids Plaza Osaka: After all that travel, we decided to take it easy and give our toddler a chance to run around by going to the Kids Plaza Osaka. Highly recommend! Our daughter loved it and there was activities for kids of all ages. My only suggestion is if you have younger children, stay close as despite all the signs and announcements to not run, there are a lot of kids running around who will knock your kid over if you’re not careful.
- Waterfront: We kept it easy it later by walking down the waterfront. It’s a nice walk and there were a ton of food stands. No cherry blossoms unfortunately but still pleasant and relaxing, plus gave another opportunity for our toddler to get some of her energy out.
Food: For dinner, we went to a shopping area near Kids Plaza Osaka and got some delicious okonomiyaki from a little restaurant run by these two older women. We got a more traditional okonomiyaki with beef and then one with yakiudon - so good. I only slightly regret getting okonomiyaki and not something else because when we went to Okayama the next day, the majority of restaurants around us in Okayama were okonomiyaki restaurants.
Okayama (2 Nights)
General Impression: I enjoyed Okayama but I will say if you are going, be prepared that there is almost no English. Most menus are in Japanese only. We were able to make it work with Google Translate but there was one Izakaya menu that was extremely complicated and definitely gave Google Translate a run for its money (we ended up ordering the couple of food items that we could figure out what they were). Everyone was still very polite but just know that it will be more difficult with limited to no Japanese.
I also wish I had done more shopping here! The shopping areas were way less crowded than in Kyoto and they had some interesting shops I didn’t see later in the trip.
Accommodations: We stayed at the Grand Base Okayama Ekimae which did cause some travel struggles (which I’ll detail below), but the hotel itself was great in terms of location (just five minutes away from Okayama Station and close to a lot of food) and the room was a really good size for Japan. We had two double beds which meant we could switch off who got to sleep with the toddler at night. The room was definitely not soundproof by any means - you could hear a ton from both the street and within the hotel. It did have a nice cooking area and fridge which is great with kids. There was also no bathtub; our kid is fine with showers but I know that can be an issue with younger children.
Sites:
- Korakuen Gardens: The Korakuen Gardens were nice but I wasn’t blown away. Our daughter did like them a lot, especially getting to feed the koi fish and to navigate little bridges. I think the gardens are probably lovelier in other times of the year when more is in bloom.
- Kurashiki District: The Kurashiki District was definitely the highlight of the Okayama portion of our trip, even though it unfortunately rained almost the entire day. The historical district was beautiful and there were a lot of nice stores with local artisan products. The temple gives a nice view and is very peaceful. If you want a historical experience without the crowds, this would be my recommendation.
- Momotaro Museum: We went to the Momotaro Museum in the Kurashiki District mostly to get out of the rain but also because the area is a possible origin of the Momotaro story (though that is up for debate). This museum is more of an optical illusion museum than a Momotaro Museum I would say. I thought it was cute but our toddler hated it. It is small and tight and pretty dark and she doesn’t really enjoy dark places.
Food: The food was good here but we only had one great meal and that was in the Kurashiki District. As mentioned, it was raining and we found this cute place that did curry and desserts. The curry was amazing (especially on a rainy day) and the strawberry parfait we got our dessert was one of the best things I’ve ever tasted. We did get some pretty tasty ramen from a place where you had to order through a vending machine which was a fun experience.
Kyoto (6 Nights)
General Impression: Overall, I enjoyed the Kyoto. However, people aren’t joking about how busy certain areas can get. I would compare areas like the Gion District, Fushimi Inari, and some of the shopping districts to Times Square level of busy which can come off as overwhelming (especially when you are with a young child). However, there are a lot of areas that are not busy at all that are just as beautiful and those were the parts I ended up liking most. We walked a lot instead of taking transit and I thought it was a great way to see more of the city.
Accommodations: In order to get more space for not a huge price, we ended up not staying in a super central location - we stayed at the Stay Sakura Kyoto Gyoen East near the Kyoto Imperial Palace. The location worked out for us! It was pretty close to several subway stations, including the one we needed to do the Kurama-Kibune hike. Plus because it’s a chain, you could drop off your bags at their Guest Centre near Kyoto Station and they delivered it up to your specific hotel.
The room was smaller than the one we had in Okayama but it still had enough space for all our bags. It had a really nice large bathroom - the tub even had a tv in it which let me tell you, our toddler loved.
Sites:
- Komo River Walk: One of the great things about our hotel was how close it was to the Komo River and the trails that run alongside it. The cherry blossoms were blooming when we were there and the river is a great place to view the cherry blossoms without all the crowds.
- Fushimi Inari: Like everyone said, get to Fushimi Inari early. It was already pretty busy when we got there at 8 but it was crazy when we left around 10. The first part of the Fushimi Inari hike is pretty accessible if you want to go with the stroller, but farther up, you will need to fold up your stroller or go back. I liked the hike but admittedly started to get annoyed with the number of people who expected you to stop so they could get their “perfect” picture without people in it; please don’t do this. It’s way too busy. There are definitely opportunities to get photos without people in it the further you go.
- Miyako Odori Geisha Show: Since we were coming in early April, I decided to take the opportunity to book tickets for one of the annual Miyako Odori shows and man did I get nervous closer to the show based on how our toddler was acting on this trip. I had booked seats in the upper balcony towards the doors in case we needed to get up and leave if she didn’t behave. It fortunately went super well! My toddler loved the show and was pretty quiet except for a few “wow”’s here and there (she was even quieter than an adult woman behind us who talked off and on throughout the show) until she fell asleep about halfway through.
- Gion District: I didn’t really enjoy the Gion District because of how crowded it was, especially after we had experienced the much more peaceful Kurashiki District. If you really want to see a geisha or a maiko, I would recommend either going to a show like we did or booking a tea ceremony.
- Kurama to Kibune Hike: On the Saturday, we did the Kurama to Kibune hike which was one of my favourite parts of the trip. Even the train ride was fantastic. I recommend starting in Kurama though you can go either way. For this hike, we left the stroller at home and just used the baby carrier. The toddler loved climbing the stairs all the way up. We were able to time the hike so she fell asleep on the way down; the hike down was pretty steep trail and I would not have been comfortable with her walking it. If you like hiking, this would be my recommendation.
- Nara Park: I was nervous going to Nara based on some of the descriptions of how aggressive the deer were; however, we ended up having no issues with the deer at all! They were mostly pretty chill and our toddler had a great time feeding one. The pa…
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