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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/LittleTinyBoy on 2025-07-19 01:45:20+00:00.

My family of 5 recently went on an 8-Day trip to Japan for the first time. I wanted to make a report/summary of our trip for both myself as a journey log and for reddit as a thank you to the community that has helped me so much. I hope this post can be helpful to other new travelers. So far, I have made a post to review my itinerary and a post of my revised itinerary. Now I will make a summary of the itinerary that was actually executed.

Context: Was always a dream to visit Japan ever since discovering anime. Did a lot of research about the places we were going to visit and the activities we were going to do and even the restaurants we could eat in. Made a lot of backups incase things didn’t go as planned (It didn’t lol). Learned basic Japanese phrases through YouTube and ChatGPT (The goat 2nd only to Google Maps) that would help me communicate with locals when eating, commuting, shopping and sightseeing.

Apps That I Used:

Google Maps - My general primary travel guide. It was almost always on or in my background checking if we were on track and on time.

Google Lens - Go-to translator/ information guide. Instant and relatively accurate.

ChatGPT - My preferred translator when I wanted to ask questions on the fly. Preferred it because I was able to provide context and made the translations more appropriate.

Japan Transit Planner - Used it whenever the trains got too confusing (mostly due to the local and rapid train schedules). Side note: Whenever I asked locals for directions on trains, they always used this app.

CardReader - To keep track of our 5 suica cards

Ecbo Cloak - Booked a reservation on our final day, so that we didn’t have to drag our luggage around Tokyo. Highly recommend if you have large luggage.

NERV - An alert app for natural disasters. Thankfully never had to use it

Accommodation: We booked directly through a Japanese resident costing 11,600yen per night for a small 3-storey house complete with amenities in Kawasaki. Cheaper than a hotel booking especially for a family of 5 and imo more comfortable. Made our stay a lot more fun when we would buy bento and grocery food. The host was also sooo accommodating.

Things I learned: Be flexible. The first few days I tried my hardest to stick to the itinerary and in turn quickly tired out my family. I could keep going, but I realized this was our family trip so I made retroactive changes. I also greatly overestimated my family’s willingness to walk long distances.

Small Gripes - As we were going in and out of Tokyo, it was baffling how the left & right walking etiquette kept changing. I’ve noticed only Tokyo walks on the left and the further you are from Tokyo, right side walking becomes the norm. Bus stops outside of Tokyo are very discreet. A few were basically playing hide & seek with us. Lack of shade. The fact that rain did not become a hindrance to our trip was both a blessing and a curse. The constant walking under the sun took a toll on my family. Changes had to be made due to this. This could be a tourist specific problem as everyone else would jump between being indoors and outdoors compared to us who would spend hours outside. The heat and humidity were fine like any SEA country, but it was the combination of long shadeless walks that became a problem.

Essentials: 1. Pocket Wifi - Must-have for stress-free navigation. Ninja Wifi suited our needs the best. 2. IC card - Must-have to avoid wasting time at ticket machines and getting stuck at ticket gates. Welcome Suicas are the best IMO as you can easily empty it out on your last train ride by choosing the option to top up the exact amount needed to exit the station. 3. Umbrella - Or any other thing to protect you from the sun. 4. Power bank - A small 10000 mAh one is enough to ensure your phone gets through the whole day. Your phone is your key to everything; don’t lose access to it.

Summary: Amazing people. I’ve read some people say that the Japanese do not like foreigners, but I still went in with an open mind and made sure I would be able to communicate with them on a basic level. I was equally met with kindness and sometimes even more as there were instances where they would personally lead us to where we needed to be. Staff were almost always kind except for one tourist trap place we ate at. Amazing public transportation. When you factor in the volume of daily commuters they need to cater, it’s amazing how efficient the system is. Even in the Outer Tokyo parts, they manage to provide great service. There were times when the platforms, exits, train lines, local vs rapid trains got confusing, but it was manageable and I was getting more accustomed as time went on. Amazing food. Don’t be scared to try anything. Amazing culture. If you respect the culture, I promise you it’s very worth it. We weren’t perfect ofcourse, but everyone was very understanding.

Home Base #1: Okubo, Shinjuku

Day 1 (Start: 5PM) :

Early Dinner: Noseya (Abura Soba); Great first stop. Host/Chef was friendly and helpful. Lovely local soba restaurant.

• Shinjuku - Saw the cute 3D cat. Went to Alpen Tokyo to check out shoes and admire the baseball merch (All hail Ohtani-san)
• Shibuya - Shibuya Crossing photo ops and Starbucks for an aerial view; Saw Hachiko the goat; Shibuya Loft to buy stampbooks
  • PS: We bought stampbooks for us to collect eki stamps of train stations we would pass through. A memorabilia I cannot recommend enough as it is a fun experience and something you can return to and reminisce on. We also bought a Goshuin book for the same reasons, but for shrines and temples. Instead of being free like in eki stamps, goshuins cost 500 yen but you get to watch beautiful calligraphy each time.

**Day 2 (**7AM 7:30AM) - Was also able to get the famous train-staff-pushing-you-into-the-train experience due to peak hours; Was very surprising and uncomfortable, but is now a memorable experience and a fun story to tell.

• Hachiko Statue - Removed as photos were adequate the night before.
• Tokyo Station - Extremely photogenic train station
• Kokyo Gaien National Garden - Was only able to view from the outside
• Tokyo Metro Govt Building - Beautiful cityscape, but there was a haze/fog surrounding the city.

Lunch: Blue Plate (Curry) - Amazing curry, beautiful blend of spices and herbs.

• Koenji - I expected we would’ve spent more time here, but the walking fatigue took a toll on my family. Adding the fact that they weren’t too amazed with the local scenery, the stop was cut short.
• Nakameguro (Night Afternoon) - Walked along Meguro River to Starbucks Reserve Roastery. Good coffee, amazing decor and layout.
• Shin-Okubo (Korea Town) - Due to the additional time we had, we were able to visit Korea Town which was nearby our stay. Okay place, was able to witness Japanese Police in action: Calm and used numbers to surround the alleged offender’s car.

Dinner: Ramen Kagetsu Arashi - A ramen chain restaurant. Delicious cheap ramen. On the saltier side, but I’ve read that Japan prefers ramen to be salty.

**Day 3 (**7 6AM) - Decided to leave earlier to avoid the morning rush as we were also moving to our second and last stay place.

Home Base #2: Shitte, Kawasaki

• Yamashita Park - Beautiful Park. Also saw the Hikawa Maru Museum Ship.
• Komachi Street - Lots of street food. Ate lunch here
• Tsurugaoka Hachimangu - Out of the 6 shrines/temples we visited, this was my favourite. The combination of very few tourists, beautiful scenery and watching the monk handwrite the calligraphy made the experience memorable.
• Hokokuji Temple - A serene bamboo forest.
• Shonan Coastal Beach (Sunset & Mt. Fuji) - Went to this beach hoping for a shot of the sunset and Mt. Fuji together. What made this spot memorable was enjoying the sea winds and cloudy views with friendly locals. I asked a local where would you generally see Mt. Fuji and he was very kind and helpful and although we only saw a silhouette of it, we stayed to chill and listen to a couple singing.

Dinner: Kinokuniya Shokudo (Seafood Donburi) - Local restaurant that apparently was one of the oldest in the area. Very friendly staff with family vibes. Delicious and fresh seafood. Affordable prices. One of the top places we ate in.

Day 4 (7AM, Travel to Hakone)

Lunch: Daiyuzan Line Station Cafe (Omurice) - Arrived right as it opened. Cool aesthetics as it originally was a train station and they maintained the theme. Pretty pricey omurice and hamburger steak, but it was high quality Ashigara beef and soft omelette.

• Amasake Tea House - 400 year old teahouse. Okay tea and desserts. Go for the vibe.
• Train to Gora Sta. (Hydrangea Viewing) - *Vibrant flo…

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