This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/Bossball4 on 2025-08-13 13:49:11+00:00.

With money from my summer internship flooding in, I decided well in advance to see the sakura in April for peak Japan. A full budget breakdown will be at the end including a link to the Spreadsheet I used to track my expenses. This was a solo trip I began planning for 8 months. I tend to overplan before cutting stuff out in the moment. This is going to be very in depth, so strap in and grab some popcorn if you want to tuck in!

Day -1: Flying nonstop MSP to HND was ~$1500 for regular Economy. I have my classic drink order: Woodford Reserve whiskey to sleep lol

Day 0: High Table: Landing in Haneda (HND), it took just 30 minutes from getting off the plane to leaving customs with my backpack and checked luggage. I reserved a 3GB Pocket WiFi from NinjaWiFi like always, which was plenty for solo travelling and using Google Maps every other moment. I used Timeshifter to help minimize my jet lag, which did help!! I also had melatonin with me as well to ensure my best chances of being jet lagged for not that long. I reserved a Gran Class ticket (to be used later) with my JR Rail Pass at the JR East Travel Center, and got some free chopsticks, neat! I wandered around Haneda Airport Garden but wasn’t too impressed.

LODGING, which I booked for my whole March 31 - April 12 stay: Pegasus Hostel. 200 USD total via AirBnB.

While the hostel was a little cramped, and you have to carry luggage up stairs, the in unit (I forgot if it was coin operated) laundry and free WiFi is nice to have, and I was more than happy given how cheap the accommodation was. The receptionist mainly speaks Mandarin, so my Cantonese did not really work, and we made do with English and Google Translate which had no issues. Let me tell ya, this hostel is a sleeper pick location-wise!! You are <5 min away walking from Asakusabashi Station, ONE stop away from Akihabara, ONE train ride to-from HND if you take Keisei thru line to the Asakusa Line, and a more involved walk to Bakurochō Station. There is a FamilyMart and 7-Eleven within a 2 minute walk, along with Naruto Taiyaki Honpo Asakusabashi shop for a nice evening Taiyaki. There is a caveat though, taking the Chuo Line from here is almost always super busy, and the station’s east exit is a little cramped, so I would not recommend it as much if you have more than 1 rolling luggage.

I ate supper over in Akihabara at Wako Tonkatsu Akiba 8th Floor, as PremierTwo recommended it, quite nice and super filling! I would need this to prepare my liver for…

HIGHLIGHT: Bar BenFiddich. I had to reserve this in advance, and I felt ultra intimidated being in such a curated and intimate space. I felt small in my expansive seat, as I was seated right in front of Hiroyasu Kayama himself! I got to see him make most of the drinks ordered in that 2 hour slot, and it was magical. I had to wrack my imagination for drink orders since this place has no menu. He put me at ease, and made 3 cocktails that I will never forget.

Scotch? + Passion fruit w/ Muscat Liquor, chocolate?, and fennel sprinkles

My request: something using the muscat grape. He blowtorched the top?! WHAT. But it was a brilliant gradient of flavor.

Japanese Gin w/ Lavender Distilled Water

My request: something floral. It’s perfectly fragrant, topped with a sprig of lavender. It’s wavy in the sense of winds going over a lavender field.

Chery Brandy + Drouet Cognac VS Grande Champagne

My request: “a warm hug on a cold snowing day.” He then makes this HOT tiny dainty signature cocktail, which was literally on fire at some point. WHAT. It was right on point with my abstract request, and my only regret was that I could not finish it… because 3 drinks would put me to sleep. I am a lightweight, 6’ 2”, 160 lbs, half white (Germany + Wales), half Chinese, and 2 drinks is enough to make me drunk. I needed to make sure I could take the train back to my hostel lmaooo

Step Count: roughly 9k steps

Day 1: Eye’s Up: It’s April Fool’s Day, so I did not sleep great, only sleeping 11-3-5-6? The rain in the morning was not welcome. Maybe it being April Fool’s was unrelated. I ate breakfast at Kameido Gusto (decent, but would’ve preferred a konbini) before buying a shirt from Work Land. I got new glasses at Jins (Akihabara Yodobashi Camera), but it took 2 days of having a mental breakdown before I started liking the glasses lmaoooo.

Lunch was at Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building’s Cafeteria bc I make it a consistent staple to eat there once per Japan trip. The curry was good, but the cafe pastry left much to be desired.

I bought souvenirs at Shinjuku Marui Annex before walking to Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden which was not that busy due to the light rain throughout the whole day. I sauntered into Omotesando but did not buy anything there. I took the train back, and it stopped for several minutes, an odd occurrence… My night ends with a mashup supper of a 7-Eleven onigiri, a FamilyMart fried chicken, and some dried persimmons before going to SAKE street nearby for a flight of sweet sake.

14.5k steps

Day 2: PremierMe: After a crisp 9 hours of sleep, I’m up for breakfast at Ootoya. HIGHLY RECOMMEND! For only 600 JPY, I got red rice, miso soup, chicken, and unlimited drinks. A killer breakfast set for basically $4 USD. Once again, my train stops in the middle of the line… huh.

I spend a fair amount of time taking Shinkansen pictures from the Nippori Station’s North Bridge before trying to find cats at Yanaka Ginza. The rain eventually stops, but not before I get some gelato and a latte from Guru Guru. The Yanaka Cemetery is a great place to visit. A stroll around leads to some peaceful adages, loads of sakura, and the rare stray cat. Another train down to Ueno leads to plenty of souvenirs, shaved ice, and lunch at Uo Tsuka: full of oysters, ikura-don, and a sweet sake to pair with the seafood. I eventually end up at Ishibashiinari Shrine where I adjust my itinerary until loud bells begin ringing. It’s 3PM, and a ceremony of sorts seems to be happening. I bask in the loud noises, before I drop off my purchases at my hostel.

Following a few of the steps that PermierTwo took in his 2024 Meguro walk and talk, I witness the sakura festival at Naka-Meguro! Stopping at Kura Sushi for supper, I go to the raised crossing that is the inspiration for the location where Akane Kurokawa is saved by Aqua Hoshino in Oshi no Ko Season 1. A bit of a trek from the station, but nothing unusual. I stop at Traveler’s Factory, a haven for stationary lovers, although I only buy a small notebook refill there. Next is SLOWJAM GARAGE for a sakura highball, where somehow I feel a brief and fleeting sense of community. I get a bit more food, some gyoza at Ohka the Bestdays.

Last stop of the day was Bar Panorma Ginza, which fun fact: is not located in Ginza. A pain to find, but once you enter you are in a textbook otaku paradise. No no, not for anime. Trains! The bulk of the floorplan is taken up by the lovely trainset! A shinkansen zips around. A local train whirs past, and there are more model trains on the walls! All of the drinks are train line themed, you HAVE to order the Yamanote Line drink if you like sweet and/or melon.

To unwind, I went to Akihabara because I found a Taiko machine cheaper than all the others… how? I got 3 songs per play instead of 2… ohohoho it is #MusicMaxxing time! I would do this most nights… I like combining violence (hitting a drum) with music (anime openings).

20.3k steps

Day 3: A Simple Meal: I didn’t sleep that long, which was okay because I spent 6 hours in Akihabara! I got Pork Belly Curry for lunch at Hinoya Curry before spending 2x retail price on a countryside Miku figurine at a crane game, oof. I popped into Yusha Kobo which is a super cool physical keyboard shop. Yeah, you’re better off buying it all online, but it’s nice to see and test the keyboards and switches yourself!~

I waltz on over to Shibuya, and I immediately get lost. Not in the station, but in the basement department store of Shibuya Mark City. I swear, every department store could use better wayfinding, but I’ll live. I eventually found Kageyamarou to have some soba for supper! A perfect fuel for the drinks I am about to indulge in, I get out on the streets, and what’s that? PLAYERS by YOASOBI is playing! I am so elated, I saunter, skip, and dance my way down the street to LOST Bar. I enjoy the April Cocktail: License to Chill, Like a Magic Mule, and the cracker-cheese plate! I push myself to eat it all, even if I accidentally stalled my appetite… oops lol my greed tends to get the best of me >~>

10.4k steps

Day 4: A-S-O So Much Volcano: It is time to be ambitious! I take a 7AM flight down to Kumamoto, with a rental car in wait, ready to drive towards Aso. No, there were no Pikachu plushies in the vending machines, very sad. I was amazed security took only 1 minute AND I could bring water through security??? America could never. I miss spotting Mt Fuji from the plane which is very sad, but I was about to see more mountains!

The rental kei car was awesome! Getting >50 mpg, taking only <10 seconds on ignition for it to recognize and automatically play music from my iPad, and the snazzy gps. Oooo, now this is a nice upgrade from my Chevy Spark. While it was only 57F outside, it was warm coming from Minnesota~. Ozu Roadside Station was filled with samples aplenty, so ofc I had to buy some Ube Cheesecake, which was the tastiest thing I s…

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