Our first trip to Japan together was certainly one of the most memorable ones. It was Darek’s third trip to Japan, my first, and it was also our honeymoon! In 2 weeks, our Japan itinerary took us to some of the most famous and amazing places in this country, as well as to some of the cutest and most hidden gems.
Interested in more of our efficient itineraries? Find them all here!
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Where to go on a honeymoon to Japan
If you are an active traveller, curious and excited about Japan, and looking for both touristic and authentic experiences, this honeymoon Japan itinerary is for you.
We visited the most famous metropolises as well as some famous smaller towns, and a couple of hidden gems.
- Big city life: Tokyo, Osaka, and Kyoto
- Smaller but still famous: Nara (where the deer park is), Hakone (lake with a pirate ship)
- Hidden gems: Shibu Onsen (traditional spas and monkey park), Kobe (incredible beef dinner)
It was a successful itinerary because it was balanced. we alternated between big cities and small ones, busy days and relaxed ones, so we had time to rest and avoid being overwhelmed. Also, we walked and saw a lot during the day, rested (and edited videos) in the evening, without waking up or going to bed at crazy hours. No sunrise at the temples or late nights at karaoke (maybe next time!).
In 2 weeks in Japan on honeymoon, we recommend going to:
- Shibu Onsen and Jigokudani Monkey Park (near Nagano), for the thermal water and the monkeys
- Osaka and the Universal Studios, for the fun attractions
- Kobe, for the beef
- Nara, for the deer park
- Kyoto, for the temples
- Hakone, for the landscape
- Tokyo, for… Tokyo 🙂
We were exhausted but incredibly satisfied. Addicted to the point that we travelled to Japan again exactly one year later. 🙂
These services and apps made my trip to Japan much easier and enjoyable! Check them out:
- The Wise Multicurrency Card where I could exchange money into yen with 3 taps on my phone, and save on unexpected bank fees
- Booking.com and its clear layout made it easy to choose and manage our accommodations
- Google Maps, full of attractions saved and very useful for the local public transport
- OneNote where I had all my plans and notes of where to go and what to do
- Snapseed for easy and quick photo editing
- And most of all, Japan Wireless, because we always needed an internet connection to make it all work! We used the handy Pocket Wifi, and next time we’ll try the magical eSIM.
Without further ado, here is the detailed itinerary, with a map and a few words about the highlights – cultural, romantic, exciting, logistical… A bit of everything.
Day 0 – departure and night on the plane
If you did not know it already, 1 hour of layover is pretty tight. Thanks to our small backpack, we skipped check-in in Budapest, but we still had to go through passport control in Warsaw, as we were exiting the EU. We made it fine, but on a particularly crowded day, it would have been very stressful.
USEFUL TIP: If you’d like to quit your big, heavy suitcases and travel light instead, find some motivation for minimalist packing here! And about cheap flights… I give up. I compare Google Flights and Skyscanner, get frustrated, and finally book directly with the airline to minimize the chance of third-party issues.
Day 1 – Arrival in Tokyo, train to Shibu Onsen and a little sightseeing
This was a challenging day, because instead of sleeping on the plane, we watched movies 😀 We landed at 9 am, collected our pocket wifi (2023 update: now I’d look for an e-sim card instead, it seems even more convenient!) and started our journey towards the village of Shibu Onsen.
10 minutes into our Shinkansen train ride to Nagano, I went out like a light. Another local train and local bus later, at 4ish in the afternoon we arrived to our accommodation in Shibu Onsen, Hishiya Torazo Ryokan (a gorgeous traditional inn, map and book here – highly recommended as a romantic accommodation for your honeymoon in Japan!).
Shibu Onsen is a small, traditional Japanese village. I am so glad that my first visit to Japan started in such a picturesque and pretty place! The excitement of arriving kept us awake and happy: we dressed up in the traditional “yukata” robes provided by the accommodation and set out to explore.
We visited a few of the many public baths “onsen” in the village, walked around a little, tried the in-house spa at the Ryokan (a dream!!), and enjoyed a fantastic “kaiseki” multi-course dinner from 6 to 8 pm – with food I didn’t even know existed. I fell asleep with my face on my phone at 8.30 😀 Darek was still incredibly awake and editing the video of day 1 – here it is, 1 day in just 3 minutes!
USEFUL TIP: For the whole trip, we bought train tickets at the station, right before getting on the train. As we made our plans, we realized that the famous JR pass wouldn’t help us save much money (if any), so we opted for spontaneity instead. Google Maps helps a lot with train timetables and transit.
Day 2 – Jigokudani Monkey park and Yudanaka onsen
After a good night’s sleep, this was a relaxing day. The walk to the Jigokudani Monkey Park was pleasant, the monkeys were adorable, and we were back in Shibu Onsen by lunchtime.
Afterwards, we picked up our luggage and made our way to Yamanouchi Yudanaka. We stopped at the Kannon temple for a visit (it was exciting that my first Buddhist temple was a real temple and not just a tourist attraction!) and finally relaxed at the onsen of our second ryokan, Yudanaka Onsen Seifuso. Another delicious dinner, some editing, and we hit the hay.
Next time we go to the Nagano area, we definitely want to hike in the Kamikochi National Park! Here are many more awesome hikes in Japan.
Day 3 – train to Osaka and a couple of landmarks
It was a long trip to Osaka: local train to Nagano, train to Nagoya, train to Shin-Osaka, metro to Osaka, walk to Candeo Hotel (map and book here), for a total of almost 8 hours with gorgeous natural landscapes. It might have been faster with the railway pass, but we did not have it and we were not sure which trains to take and how long it took to buy the tickets at the stations, so we decided to relax a bit and buy one ticket at a time.
To celebrate Darek’s birthday, we enjoyed takoyaki balls (a local specialty with octopus) at Acchichi Honpo Dotombori and then a whiskey tasting with delicious beef at Suntory Whiskey Bar. We even squeezed in a ride on the Ferris Wheel on the Hep five mall! (not really a mind-blowing view, at least at night). At the Hotel, it was simply paradise to finish the day in the rooftop heated pool.
Are you taking notes of the itinerary so far? Let me know if you like it!
Day 4 – Osaka sightseeing
Tired from the day before, we started very slowly, then I freaked out a little “we won’t manage to see all the things in the list!” and we got moving. We spent 2,5 hours at Osaka castle, meaning the outer park, the walls, Hokoku shrine (where I bought the Red Stamp Goshuincho book!), the souvenir hall with the ninja star game, the castle itself and the historical exhibitions. When we arrived to Shitennoji Temple at 4, it was closing time 🙁 Time for delicious dumplings, more relaxing walks, and a simple dinner. Quite an easy day overall.
Day 5 – Osaka Universal Studios
This was a very busy and exciting day! Deciding what time to go to the Studios was a huuuuge dilemma. Finally, instead of waiting in line at 8 before opening hours, we decided to let the rest of the world queue and we would go at 10ish. At 10.30 there was no queue 🙂 also, being a Thursday in October, there was no time restriction to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, and all lines to the attractions were reasonable.
The Harry Potter part was magnificent, we spent 5 hours in there 😀 then from 4 to 6 we explored the rest of the park, we went back to Harry Potter, and finally again to the main area to see the zombies roaming the park. We left at 7.30, meaning 9 hours at Universal Studios, totally exhausted.
Day 6 – Kobe
A busy day was modified into a relaxing one. The original plan was Himeji castle in the morning (1,5 hours away from Osaka), then go back to Kobe (1+ hour) for the afternoon. We were too tired, so we decided to keep Himeji castle for the next trip 🙂 . After a nice relaxing morning, we travelled to Kobe and explored the centre (mainly Ikuta shrine). By 6.30 we were ready for our amazing Kobe beef experience at Steakland. We were glad to spend the night in Kobe at Hotel Trusty, instead of travelling back to Osaka.(Normally, our holidays last 4-5 days. On day 6 of documenting and posting every day, I was quite tired and almost wished for a no-tech holiday. At the same time, I could not imagine not making pictures and videos. I was struggling a bit, but Darek’s evening editing was a reassuring pillar of consistency.)
Day 7 – Nara
A relatively relaxing day, compared to the amount of temples to see in Nara. Easy morning of breakfast and train from Kobe to Nara, check-in at Edosan Ryokan at 1.30ish, and we spent 4 hours in the park. We visited only 2 and a half temples: Kohkufu-ji (with the pagoda) and Todai-ji (with the giant Buddha) also inside, Kasuka-taisha (with the stone lanterns) only outside. After a relaxing bath at the onsen of the ryokan, we were served dinner in our room at 18.30. What a fantastic, delicious, surprising, marvellous experience!
Plan your perfect trip to Japan with my detailed and inspiring posts:
- 2-week honeymoon itinerary in Japan, our full guide with maps and details
- How much we spent on our honeymoon to Japan
- Useful and practical travel tips to plan your trip to Japan
- 5 unique Japanese experiences you have to try
- The most unique Japanese souvenir: the Goshuincho book
Day 8 – train and Kyoto bamboo forest
Half-way through our trip, this was a day of transition. We were approaching Kyoto and Tokyo, which Darek had already visited: I relied on his memories and experience, but we still had choose what to see and what to dismiss. The problem with Kyoto is that all the main temples are on opposite sides of the city. Sightseeing in a couple of days becomes a game of tetris – my overplanning mind was overwhelmed.
In Nara, breakfast was served at 8.30 and at 10 we were out, feeding the lovely but slightly aggressive deers.
On the train to Kyoto, we decided to start with Arashiyama bamboo forest, which was both far away from the centre and also a new sight for Darek. We spent a couple of hours there and in the nearby park, and made our way to Uronza Guesthouse in the centre by 5ish. Relax, easy dinner at a “fast food”, and back to the guest house to rest.
Day 9 – Kyoto: Nijo Castle, Kinkaku-ji Golden Temple, Philosopher’s Path, and Pontocho by night
What a glorious, efficient and sunny day! I still don’t know how, but we visited Nijo Castle in the centre, Kinkaku-ji Temple on one side of the city, the Philosophers’ path on the other side of the city, and still had energy for a walk and dinner on Pontocho street.
We visited Nijo Castle from 10.30 to 13, as usual spending more time on gates and exteriors than inside (but in this case, only because it was forbidden to take pictures: the interior of the palace was gorgeous and super interesting).
Lunch, bus to Kinkaku-ji, and at 2.30 we were at the gates. It’s really crowded, but the Golden Pavillion is worth it! The path is quite short and restricted, so at 4 we were out and with still a bit of sunlight left!
After 20 minutes by bus, we reached the Philosophers’ Path. I’m sure that one could spend a whole day there, visiting every temple along it, but we only enjoyed a slow stroll by the narrow canal, and we were done by sunset at 5.30 ish.
Finally, Pontocho street was torture: an endless sequence of restaurants, all with inviting aromas and traditional furniture, all a bit more expensive than we wished, but after all impossible to ignore. We were satisfied with our choice and even more satisfied to lie down our tired bodies on the bed at 8.30 😀
Day 10 – Kyoto: Tea ceremony, Fushimi Inari, Kiyomizu-dera
A tiring but exciting day. When we signed up for the morning tea ceremony at our Uronza Guesthouse, we had no idea that we were actually going to watch it AND perform it. It was really fun! (and a wake-up call on how clumsy we are 😀 )
Due to Kyoto’s painful geography, we chose to visit Fushimi Inari shrine and Kiyomizu-dera temple, which are on the same side of the city. We hiked to the top of the Torii path in a couple of hours and spent approx. three in total (12 to 3).
After lunch and a few train stops back, we made our way to Kiyomizu-dera temple through a very suggestive cemetery. Even though part of the temple is covered for renovations, the view from the terrace was still lovely and the pagoda was marvellous 🙂
On the way back to the centre, we walked down Sannenzaka and Ninenzaka, narrow streets with cute houses and traditional shops, very cute but it gave off a Disneyland vibe. Dinner at Il Lago with Anri, an old friend of Darek’s, and home.
Day 11 – train to Hakone and sightseeing, night in Hakone
Some rest and some activity. Waking up early was hard, but we were on a Shinkansen train by 9 and we got off at Odawara at 12! I will probably write another post about Hakone and the way it’s organized.
We were super-efficient this afternoon after turning our itinerary around because of early sunset: we managed to cross Lake Ashi on the pirate ship while the sun was still high, see Mount Fuji from the lake and from the ropeway, smell the sulfure at Owakudani station, and make our way back on Japan’s oldest mountain railway to Hakone-Yumoto after sunset. After dinner and after making the daily video, we even had energy for a few drinks and chats in the common room of Guesthouse Azito!
Day 12 – morning in Hakone, evening in Tokyo
Late night = late morning! Even though we did not do much, this was quite a tiring day.Breakfast from the supermarket, backpacks in a locker at the station, and off we were to the Hakone Open-Air Museum, which was really interesting and unique. We visited the vast grounds from 12 to 2, but we could have stayed longer.
Lunch, local train, local train, Tokyo train, metro, walk… We were at our accommodation at 6pm, quite tired but excited to be in Tokyo for Halloween! We set out to Shibuya Crossing to explore and find these crazy Japanese dressed-up people. We were not disappointed 🙂 Still, after one hour of crowd-watching and crowd-crossing, we made our way to a popular “gyoza” dumpling spot in Harajuku, made friends with Tegan and Matt from Australia, and enjoyed a beer together while swapping Japan advice 🙂
Day 13 – Tokyo – Shibuya, Shinjuku, Senso-ji Temple, Asahi terrace, Golden Gai
Still tired from the day before (and the day before that), this day started pretty late and made me a bit nervous. In the morning, we had to move to our second hostel (super cool Book and Bed Shinjuku), exchange cash, find breakfast, buy gifts, all with our backpacks and with the thought of all the places we would NOT visit constantly bugging me. Only 2 days in Tokyo, it was just as hard as Kyoto!
Finally, some pieces of the puzzle found their own place. Close to the hostel, we got some delicious street food and visited a festival at Hanazono Shrine. By 3, we were in front of Senso-ji Temple, the oldest Buddhist Temple in Kyoto, bathed in beautiful golden light. At 5ish the sun was setting, so we crossed the bridge and reached the Sky Room of the beer-shaped Asahi skyscraper (genious!). Ramen at 7.30 and we still had energy for a whiskey in the Golden gai streets of tiny bars. A reminder of how the location of your accommodation is eeeeeverything.
Here you can find more useful advice to help you choose the best Tokyo hotel for your tastes/location/budget.
Day 14 – Tokyo – Metropolitan Government Building, Meiji-Jingu Shrine, MoriArt museum, night by Narita Airport
Our last day! No matter how tired we were, this was our last precious day. No time to spend wandering around fancy Ginza, pop Akihabara, traditional Yanaka, no time for the Imperial Palace or for the arcades.
We chose the morning view from the Tokyo Metropolitan Government building (fantastic), a walk through the park until Meiji-Jingu shrine (fascinating wild park, very humble shrine) and MORI Digital Art Museum (absolutely amazing).
The Digital Art Museum definitely deserves another post, but let me just say two things: 1- buy the tickets in advance on the website! We stood in line just 30 minutes thanks to that, and 2- plan at least 3-4 hours to enjoy, explore, get lost, see the same room twice with totally different art in it. Also DO NOT waste time on the Floating Nest room.Out at 7.15, metro, fast food dinner, train, arrival to our hotel by Narita Airport at 11.30 at night. That took much longer than expected and drained our last energies.
Day 15 – early flight back home, night in our bed 🙂
We were soooo so happy we stayed by the airport. Waking up at 7.30 was hard enough, I would have killed somebody if I had to wake up at 6 in Tokyo city centre. Also, not having luggage to check-in allowed us to go straight through security and passport control 🙂 Again, no sleep on the plane and rushing at Warsaw Airport, but this time WE BOUGHT POLISH DOUGHNUTS so I was happy. 🙂 Super weird to wake up in Japan and go to sleep in Budapest in the same (long) day.
Plan your perfect trip to Japan with my detailed and inspiring posts:
- 2-week honeymoon itinerary in Japan, our full guide with maps and details
- How much we spent on our honeymoon to Japan
- Useful and practical travel tips to plan your trip to Japan
- 5 unique Japanese experiences you have to try
- The most unique Japanese souvenir: the Goshuincho book
Final thoughts on our honeymoon to Japan
We had a wonderful time in Japan on honeymoon – as a matter of fact, we decided to visit Japan again as soon as we came back home!
We also learned a lot about ourselves:
- Giulia can still improve her stress management skills
- Darek is much better at editing videos on the road than at home
- We need to include relaxing days, to avoid freaking out
- I actually really need to travel with an enjoyment mindset, instead of an Instagram-driven bucket-list-ticking mindset (or a blog/vlog mindset – hmmmm)
- We really love to have active holidays and to explore different cities, accommodations and eating styles
- Travelling light was an excellent choice
- There is still so much to see, that Japan is already back on our bucket list 😀
Unsure whether Japan is the right choice for your honeymoon? Check out these amazing honeymoon destinations in Asia!
Do you think that our itinerary would be suitable for you? Or not? And why? Let us know in the comments! Cheers!