Came back from an amazing trip as a family of 5 (w/ kids 11, 8 and 6). Did lots of shopping, took in the sights, ate yummy food and we survived...
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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/BlueRex1985 on 2024-08-06 12:32:11+00:00.

Came back from an amazing trip as a family of 5 (w/ kids 11, 8 and 6). Did lots of shopping, took in the sights, ate yummy food and we survived the heat! Will just give the highlights and things I found useful.

Just some general things to that we did to survive the heat and with kids:

  1. Definitely get IC cards, major time savers. Got mine at Narita Airport.

  2. Set expectations with the kids. We began prepping them weeks ahead of our trip of how hot and how much walking we have to do.

  3. Read up on all the usual tips to beat the heat. Personal preference are the Pocari Sweat and the Sunbrella.

  4. Google maps works 99% of the time. Found Navitime more accurate/useful during the day we had a pass for Hakone. Also, had trouble with it looking for a store inside a building and when it tries to tell you to walk underground.

Feel free to ask any questions!

Day by day report

Day 1: Narita Airport to Hotel

You can get Welcome Suica cards from the machine and barely anyone was in line (this was around 5:30pm). You can also get child Welcome Suica through the machine as well.

Day 2: Harajuku/Shinjuku

The Meiji Jingu is a nice walk before all the shops opened!

Day 3: DisneySea

Suggest to arrive at around 7am if you are looking to get into the new area Fantasy Springs to better your chances at getting passes.

Day 4: Shibuya

I was ready to be disappointed as when I checked their website, the top of Shibuya Sky was closed due to heat, but by the time we arrived at night, it was opened again! So consider getting night time tickets if going in summer.

Day 5: Hakone

Couldn’t pick up the day passes at Shinjuku station as the timing didn’t work out, but you can easily purchase it at Odawara station. Also, be sure to be on the lookout for Mt. Fuji! Our only clear view of it was from the train ride. Also consider doing to loop clockwise (we did the Hewa Torii to Pirate ship to Ropeway) as many sites I’ve read suggests doing it counter clockwise. I found it to be less crowded.

Day 6: Asakusa/Kawagoe

Went to the ‘Million Lights Festival’, which is a small summer festival at Kawagoe.

Day 7: teamLabs/Diver City/Shinkansen

Our hotel did not offer luggage forwarding service to Kyoto, but luckily there was a Yamato Transport office a few minutes walk from the hotel. Staff was super nice and helpful in getting the forms filled out. Dropped it off when it open at 9am, and got the luggage next day around 11am according to their website.

For those going to Gundam Base, make sure you check the website on if you need to ‘win’ a lottery to get in, but tbh, other hobby stores have similar if not better stock.

For Shinkansen tickets, we bought on the day we got to the station with no issues, but make sure you do reservation if you are travelling during busy season.

Day 8: Uji/Fushimi Inari

Uji was beautiful and was not crowded at all when I went. Also, went into an unassuming building and they offered tea sets where they teach you how to make tea for approx. 1000 yen! They were super nice and tried their best to communicate in English.

We got to Fushimi Inari at around 4pm, but they closed it off for watering until 6:00pm. We thankfully found some ledges and shade while we waited, and it was reopened at around 5:30pm. We made it up all the way to the top, but the best spot was at the fork where when we made our way down, we arrived shortly before sunset and had an amazing view. And by the we made it down to the station, it was dark. So just a suggestion to visit around this time if you want to see it under different time of day.

Day 9: Arashiyama/Kyoto Aeon Mall

Got to Arashiyama at around 8am. Wasn’t very crowded at all. Feeding the monkey was definitely a fun experience.

Day 10: Osaka

Hotel didn’t offer luggage forwarding service to airport, so had to again visit Yamato Transport (and thankfully, was only a 5min walk from the hotel)

There is an area between Dontobori and Shinsekai with lots of shops related to anime/hobby stuff. We ended the night at Harukas300, where it have a must visit bathroom!

Day 11: Nara

If you are planning on feeding the deers, don’t feed the swarm near the entrance. I had gotten bitten multiple times on my legs and they left quite the bruise. Feed the ones further in the park as they seem less aggressive and you are not surrounded.

Day 12: Kansai Airport

Took the Haruka Express from Kyoto Station. Picked up the tickets a day before and also familiarize myself with the layout of the station since I don’t want to get lost on the day to the airport. Also, consider reserved seating if not departing from Kyoto, as the seats were filled up pretty quickly and not many non-reserved seats were available by the time it got to Osaka.