Japan by Rail: the ultimate 11-day itinerary

Japan has got to be one of the most popular international destinations, especially for Australians. There’s so much to do in this amazing country, from skiing to experiencing local culture and viewing the Cherry Blossoms or stunning Autumn colours. My family and I visited Japan in 2015 in December. There were still some autumn colours remaining at this time of year, but you could tell winter was approaching because of the cool weather and incredible Christmas decorations! We chose to buy rail passes to get around the country, which was such a convenient and simple way to get around! So today, I will be sharing the perfect 11-day itinerary for Japan by Rail.

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Day 1: Arrive in Japan (Narita)

Depending on where you are flying in from, most of today will be spent travelling. The flight from Australia arrives at around 6pm in the evening, so we didn’t have any time for exploring. Instead, take this opportunity to have your first Japanese meal! We ate at the hotel and ordered some delicious Japanese food, including soba noodles, sushi and tempura prawns. Our hotel also had a small Christmas light display in the gardens, so we took the time to wander through and take a few photos.

Sunset and a glimpse of Mt Fuji on the horizon as we flew into Tokyo

Christmas is a big celebration for couples in Japan, so many of the places we visited had impressive Christmas lights. There were huge street displays in Hiroshima (more on that below!) and a giant Christmas tree lit up the Kyoto Station. If you are visiting around Christmas time, be sure to take the time to check out these amazing decorations!

Day 2: Narita to Hiroshima

Again, most of today will be spent travelling. Buying a rail pass means you can hop on just about any train you like to get around Japan, whether it’s an airport train, Shinkansen (bullet train) or local train. I recommend you book your Shinkansen tickets in advance to ensure you get seats. This doesn’t cost any extra but does lock you in to certain travel days.

Shinkansen coming into the station

The Shinkansen network is such an amazing way to get around the country. Plus, the trains are super cool-looking! Reaching speeds of up to 320 km/h, you can cover vast distances in a short time. The Shinkansen network connects cities throughout the country, all the way from the Hokkaido in the North to Kagoshima-Chuo in the South. It also covers all of the major cities in this itinerary: Tokyo, Kyoto, Hiroshima and Hakone.

Using a combination of the airport train from Narita, and two Shinkansen trains to Osaka then Hiroshima, you should arrive in Hiroshima in the early afternoon. Make sure you keep an eye out for a view of Mt Fuji on the way! My mum still tells the story of how a young boy in our carriage started yelling “Fuji-san! Fuji-san!” and we all rushed to the window to catch a glimpse of this famous mountain. We never saw the top again, even when we visited ourselves. So we consider it super lucky we saw it out the train window that day.

The peak of Mt Fuji peaking out from above the clouds!

Things to do in Hiroshima

This afternoon, you should go for a walk around the city and visit the Peace Gardens and the Genbaku Dome. Hiroshima was the first city in the world to suffer a nuclear attack, so I believe it’s important to take the time to learn a bit about what happened by visiting the Hiroshima Peace Park. The following morning, I recommend you check out the Hiroshima Castle and Shukkeien Gardens.

Hiroshima Peace Park

Located in the centre of the city, the Hiroshima Peace Park is dedicated to the victims of the nuclear bombing in 1945. The gardens themselves are really stunning, especially in autumn when the trees turn red, orange and yellow! There are also some beautiful monuments within the park, such as the Bell of Peace and the Children’s Peace Monument. Seeing the thousands of paper cranes at the Children’s Peace Monument was very touching and a really incredible sight.

One of the memorial monuments in the Hiroshima Peace Park

Make sure you also cross the river to view Genbaku Dome, otherwise known as the Hiroshima Peace Memorial. This UNESCO World Heritage site is the only structure left standing near the hypocentre of the atomic bomb that hit Hiroshima in 1945. I found it beautiful, in its own unique way.

Genbaku Dome at sunset

The Hiroshima Peace Park is also home to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. By displaying the belongings of victims, artifacts, and testimonials of the survivors, this museum conveys the message of “no more Hiroshimas”. Admission is 200 yen (at 22/11/20) and due to COVID, you must choose a timeslot to visit.

Hiroshima Castle

The city of Hiroshima developed as a castle town, meaning that the castle was the physical and economic centre of the city. Whilst the original Hiroshima Castle was destroyed in the atomic bombing, it has been re-constructed and is well-worth a visit. The castle precinct is home not only to the impressive five-storey keep, but also a shrine, ruins and some of the buildings of the second circle of defence (Ninomaru). Not only that, but the entire precinct is surrounded by a moat.

One of the buildings within the Hiroshima Castle Precinct

Entry to the Hiroshima Castle is free, unless you want to go into the keep itself. We found it enjoyable enough to just walk around the grounds, admiring the buildings and having a picnic morning tea in the shade of the trees.

Shukkeien Gardens

After visiting the Hiroshima Castle, walk a few more blocks to the Shukkeien Gardens. When I wrote about the Japanese Gardens in Toowoomba a few weeks ago, this is what I was comparing it to! Sukkeien Gardens is such a beautiful and peaceful place to visit. Because of the time of year we visited, we were also treated to some incredible autumn colours. I personally also loved trying to spot the turtles in the main pond, which I’m sure surprises no one.

Shukkeien Gardens – view over the main pond

Shukkeien Gardens include many of the traditional features of Japanese gardens, while also representing valleys, mountains and forests in miniature. The best way to explore the gardens is to follow the path around and through all of the different sceneries. There is a small fee to enter (260 yen as at 18/11/20) but it is definitely worth it in my opinion!

Night time in Hiroshima

If you’re looking for somewhere to have dinner, I recommend Suikoden. The food was great and you will be able to sit in a traditional-style room. If you are visiting around Christmas, I also highly recommend walking around the city to admire the Christmas lights! These are genuinely the best Christmas lights I have ever seen. They were unbelievably impressive. Below is a photo of one of the many displays (most of my pictures were blurry unfortunately, but you get the idea).

One of the many light displays in Hiroshima

Day 3: Hiroshima to Miyajima

After spending the morning exploring all Hiroshima has to offer, take a local train to Miyajimaguchi. This small city is the perfect place to use as a base to explore Miyajima (also known as Itsukushima) Island. The island is a Unesco World Heritage site and is home to the famous Itsukushima Shrine and floating Torii gate. The only way to get to the island is by ferry, but it is well-worth the trip. I recommend visiting the island twice, in the afternoon on Day 3 and the morning of Day 4 to make the most of everything you can experience there. The activities I recommend for each day depend on the tides and the weather.

Things to do in Miyajima

Head to the peak of Mount Misen

If you have clear weather, it’s well worth heading up the Miyajima Rope Way on Mount Misen for a great sunset view over the surrounding bay. At this time of day, the view is made even more amazing by the gorgeous pink and purple hues of sunset on the horizon. That said, if you have more time, I recommend heading up earlier in the day to give yourself more time to explore. We only went to the Shishi-iwa Observatory, but you can walk further to the peak of Mount Misen. On the way, you will go past some Buddhist temple structures which belong to the Daisho-in Temple at the base of the mountain. For more information on Mount Misen, click here.

View from Mount Misen with sunset colours

Make friends with the local deer

You may notice that this itinerary doesn’t include Nara. That’s because there are plenty of friendly deer on Miyajima Island! You can’t feed them here, but they will still pose for photos and come to say hello. I wish I could fill this entire blog with just funny photos of the deer but that would get a bit boring… So here is my favourite photo:

One of my many deer friends!

Itsukushima Shrine

Itsukushima Shrine, as I mentioned earlier, is the main attraction on Miyajima Island. This famous “floating” shrine is definitely a must-see! There is a small fee to enter, but given that it is completely different to any other temple you will see in Japan, it is worth paying to walk around. When you’re planning your visit, make sure you check the tide times. At low tide, the water recedes quite a way and all that is left surrounding the temple and its torii gate is mud. On the other hand, at high tide, the tori gate and temple are surrounded by water and appear to be floating in the ocean. It’s super cool!

Itsukushima Shrine at high tide

Explore the various temple buildings and marketplaces in the main township

Miyajima is home to a variety of different temples and shrines, as well as the famous Itsukushima shrine. In particular, I recommend checking out the five-storied pagoda. This building is set high up on a hill, so you get a good view over the township from its base. There are also many shops selling unique souvenirs on the island. My dad got a traditionally-made wooden rice scoop at one of the stores, which we still use at home five years later! Not sure what you want to see? Check out this Miyajima Guide Map.

View over Miyajima Town

Food to try on Miyajima

Looking for a sweet snack? Momiji Manju is a sweet that is unique to Miyajima Island, so it is worth finding one in a local cafe to try. Made from buckwheat and rice, the cake is usually filled with red bean paste and is made in the shape of a Japanese Maple leaf.

There are also a variety of places to have dinner on the island if you are spending more than a day here. We ended up at Kinsuikan’s Pub which made some pretty amazing ramen! There isn’t a huge number of restaurants on the island, but there seems to be something for everyone.

Day 4: Miyajima to Kyoto

Day four is another travel day. After spending the morning back on Miyajima Island, catch the ferry back to the mainland before heading back to Hiroshima on the local train. From here, you will catch a Shinkansen to your next destination: Kyoto! You will not have time to explore Kyoto today, but with three full days here, you will have plenty of time to explore sites like Arashiyama, Kiyomizu-dera temple and Fushimi Inari Shrine. In the meantime, settle in to your hotel and head out to find somewhere for dinner.

Eating out in Kyoto

While in Kyoto (and anywhere in Japan, really), train stations are the place to go for any meal. We had breakfast and dinner most days at Kyoto Station. There was a huge range of options here, from traditional Japanese food to Western meals.

One of our delicious meals at Kyoto Station

We also found an interesting little restaurant near the local train station to our hotel. There were no English (print) menus and you had to order your meal on a machine! My dad understands some Japanese, so he was able to decipher enough of the menu for us to choose what we wanted. If none of your party understand Japanese, not to worry – the machine has an English option!

Days 5-7: Kyoto

There’s so much to see in Kyoto so make sure you have at least a few days to explore! We spent three full days here to make the most of all the city has to offer. We managed to see most of the main sites, but there were still places we missed including Kinkakuji, the Golden Pavilion. Below are some of the amazing places you can check out in your time at Kyoto! (Shared in chronological order of when we visited).

Wander through the gardens of Ginkakuji Temple

Also known as the Silver Pavilion, Ginkakuji is a villa-turned-Zen Buddhist Temple located along Kyoto’s Eastern mountains. It was modelled after Kinkakuji (the Golden Pavilion) and it is believed that it was given the name “silver pavilion” to contrast it with this structure (the pavilion itself has never been silver). You cannot enter any of the buildings in the temple complex, but they are beautiful to look at from the outside and are surrounded by gardens. Ginkakuji Temple is home to not only a moss garden, but also a unique dry sand garden. It definitely stood out as being unique amongst all the temples we visited and was by far the most green!

One of the buildings at Ginkakuji Temple

Admire the autumn colours at Eikando Zenrin-ji Temple

Eikando Zenrin-Ji Temple is one of the most famous places in Kyoto to view autumn colours, so if you are visiting between mid-November and early December, this temple is a must-visit! This is also a Buddhist temple, but from the Jodo sect of Japanese Buddhism, and was established in 853AD. Unlike Ginkakuji Temple, here you can go inside some of the buildings. However, the gardens are still the main attraction, especially those surrounding Hojo Pond. Small streams surrounded by beautiful Japanese maples run through the temple grounds into this pond and there is a small shrine at the centre. If you are visiting in the peak of autumn, be sure to check out the night time illumination sessions! They weren’t on when we visited, but I’ve seen a couple of photos online and they look fantastic.

Eikando Zenrin-ji Temple – check out all the autumn leaves carpeting the ground!

Want to visit both temples? Take the Philosopher’s Path!

The Ginkakuji and Eikando Zenrin-Ji Temples are located at either end of the Philosopher’s Path. This stone path follows a canal and in spring is famous for its cherry blossoms. You can also spot some autumn colours here, though they are more impressive at the temples. There are a number of restaurants and cafes along the path, so this is a good place to stop for lunch. If you have more time, you can also venture off the path to one of the smaller temples nearby, such as the Honen-in Temple with it’s spectacular entrance gate surrounded by autumn leaves.

Can you imagine how stunning this would be during cherry blossom season?

Experience Kiyomizu-Dera Temple

One of the most popular temples to visit in Kyoto, and probably in Japan, is Kiyomizu-Dera. This temple belongs to the Hosso sect of Japanese Buddhism and was founded in 780AD. Kiyomizu-Dera Temple is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The thing I really loved about Kiyomizu-Dera was how interactive it was. Whether you choose to participate yourself or just watch, there are many shrines you can visit. You can even drink from the Otowa Waterfall, with a stream for longevity, success in school and a fortunate love life. Make sure you only choose one stream to drink from, as it is considered greedy to drink from all three! The temple is most famous for its wooden stage jutting out from the main hall. From here, you can get a fantastic view over the gardens and the city beyond. In cherry blossom season and in the height of autumn, this view is especially spectacular. Unfortunately when I visited, the temple was being renovated and as such was covered in scaffolding.

Kiyomizu-Dera Temple surrounded by autumn leaves

For an extra fee you can also visit Zuigudo Hall, which is dedicated to Buddha’s mother and is located underneath the temple. Visitors walk through winding paths in complete darkness before coming to a large, smooth rock. The stone glows and is the only source of light in the hall. When you touch and spin the stone, you can make a wish which will be granted by the Buddha. I can’t remember what I wished for so I can’t tell you if it came true or not!

Explore the Higashiyama District

As you walk back down the hill from Kyomizu-Dera Temple, make sure you take the time to explore the busy lanes of the Higashiyama District. This area of Kyoto is full of shops and restaurants with unique foods and souvenirs. My personal favourite shop ONLY sold merchandise with cats! I bought a cat umbrella that I used for years before losing it on the bus and honestly I’m still disappointed. There’s heaps to explore in this area so be sure to take the time to wander slowly through!

Wander through the thousands of Torii gates at Fushimi Inari

Fushimi Inari is one of the most famous places in Kyoto and Japan, and is well worth the visit. It blew my mind seeing the sheer number of Torii gates! I know 10,000 is a lot, but you don’t really realise how many that means until you see it for yourself. Before starting your walk up the mountain, take the time to check out some of the temple buildings. This temple is dedicated to Inari, the Shinto God of Rice. Since foxes are believed to be Inari’s messengers, there are lots of fox statues within the temple grounds.

I didn’t really get any good photos of all the Torii gates but this gives you a bit of an idea

You will find the beginning of the Torii gate hiking trail at the very back of the shrine’s main grounds. If you go the whole way to the top of the mountain and back, it will take 2-3 hours. If you have less time, you can turn around at any point; the Torii gates are the most densely packed lower down the mountain, anyway. I recommend you walk up to the Yotsutsuji Intersection before turning around, as from here, you get a great view over Kyoto!

View from Yotsutsuji Intersection – we turned around to head back down the mountain here

On the way back to the train station, take the time to walk through the local markets. There are a variety of local food delicacies you can try, such as Inari Sushi and Kitsune Udon. There are also plenty of cute fox souvenirs, if that’s more your thing!

Explore the Arashiyama District

Though it is famous for its bamboo forest, there is so much more to do in the Arashiyama district! We spent a whole day plus an evening in the area, which allowed us to see most of the highlights. Below, are some of the best places to visit!

Arashiyama Bamboo Forest by night

Arashiyama Bamboo Forest

Of course, no trip to Arashiyama would be complete without a visit to the Bamboo forest. It certainly lives up to expectations and is quite beautiful! To get here, we entered via Tenryu-Ji Temple. We only visited the gardens here as it was nearly closing time, but they were quite beautiful. If you have more time, I recommend going into the temple itself as it is home to a dragon painting on the roof who’s eyes appear to follow you as you walk around!

The night we visited was the first evening of the Pathway of Blossoms and Light Festival so we were lucky enough to also experience the bamboo forest lit up after dark! If you are visiting in December, I highly recommend finding out when this festival will be on, as we spent a number of hours wandering through not only the forest but the surrounding parklands in Arashiyama seeing all the different lanterns and light displays.

One of the many lanterns as part of the Pathway of Blossoms and Light Festival

Arashiyama Monkey Park

Here’s a shocker for you: I’m writing about a wildlife park. Yup, another one! Arashiyama Monkey Park is a really cool place to visit, not only for the monkeys but for the views over the city. The park is located on Mt Arashiyama so it is quite the hike to get up there! The monkeys here are wild, so you need to take certain precautions. For example, you should always stay at least 2 meters away from the animals and avoid crouching to take pictures. You can purchase food (banana, peanuts or fruit) to feed the monkeys here, however you must do so from within an enclosed hut. Yes that’s right, here it is the humans that are in the cages! The monkeys will reach through the bars and gently take the food from your hand.

Feeding a wild monkey! It was interesting being the one in the cage for once (this was before my zookeeping days!).

How to get around Kyoto

Kyoto is very easy to get around, especially if you have a rail pass. You can catch a train to get to Arashiyama and Inari. You can also catch the subway to local destinations. There is also an extensive bus system! We used the number 100 bus to get to both Ginkakuji Temple and Kyomizu-Dera Temple, and the number 5 bus to get home from the Eikando Zenrin-ji Temple.

Day 8: Kyoto to Tokyo

Take this morning to explore one more of Kyoto’s many attractions before travelling back north to Tokyo. (On this morning, we visited Fushimi Inari before heading back to Kyoto Station for lunch). If you catch a train at around lunch time, you will arrive in Tokyo in the evening.

Day 9: Mt Fuji and Hakone Tour

On our second-last day in Japan, we decided to take a tour to Mt Fuji and Hakone, which included a night in a traditional hotel. In all honesty, seeing Mt Fuji from the train on day two was much more exciting than the tour; we had bad weather and couldn’t actually see the mountain from any of the view points they brought us to! That said, it is cool that I can say I’ve been on Mt Fuji! The tour took us to the 5th station on the mountain, home to snow, cool views, and a small shrine.

View towards the peak of Mt Fuji from 5th Station

Whilst a lot of the tour was a bit of a flop, I do HIGHLY recommend you stay in a traditional Japanese-style hotel for at least one night! It wasn’t cheap, but it was an incredible experience and well-worth the money. Both dinner and breakfast were included, and both were of traditional style. Dinner was a hot pot which we cooked ourselves, so that was great fun!

The room we stayed in was very nice, though when we first arrived we weren’t so sure! When we first walked in, all we saw was a tiny room (which I doubt would have fit all three of us!). In one cupboard, we found the stuff to make our futons, and in the other, a bigger room with a couple of tables, a TV, a toilet and even our own private hot spring bath! In the morning, we were greeted with a beautiful view over the local river. I thought that staying in a traditional hotel was a great way to learn about and experience Japanese culture.

View of the local river from our hotspring bath!

Day 10: Hakone to Tokyo

After breakfast at the hotel, catch a Shinkansen back to Tokyo for your last full day in Japan! You will have most of this afternoon plus the next morning to explore. Below are a few ideas of places you could check out.

Admire the view from Tokyo Tower

Tokyo is home to multiple towers, but we chose to go to the original Tokyo Tower due to its proximity to our hotel. Our ticket only allowed us to go up to the second level, but you could buy tickets to the top if you wanted. We thought the view from the second floor was good enough, as we got to see all the way across the city! Going up Tokyo Tower really puts into perspective how big Tokyo really is, and on a clear day you can see all the way to Mt Fuji!

View from Tokyo Tower towards the Rainbow Bridge

Check out ZoJoJi Temple

Not far from Tokyo Tower is ZoJoJi Temple. In comparison to the other temples you’ve seen, this one may seem a little plain but at this temple, we got to hear the resident monks singing! This was certainly interesting to experience as we hadn’t heard it anywhere else. It was also cool to see a combination of the old and the new, with the Tokyo Tower rising up behind the temple’s main building. Unlike most of the other temples, entry to ZoJoJi Temple is free.

ZoJoJi Temple main building – you can just see the Tokyo Tower in the background

Wander around the Imperial Palace

Tokyo is home to the Imperial Palace, the current residence of Japan’s imperial family. Guided tours are available on certain days, and the East Gardens are open to the public daily. However, to have a guided tour you need to book well in advance. Even if you don’t enter either the palace itself or the gardens, it is worth having a wander around if you have time to kill before checking in to your hotel. The moat is quite cool to see, with beautiful reflections of the buildings on a clear day. We were also lucky enough to see a white swan! The Imperial Palace is only a short walk from Tokyo’s main station.

Another example of old and new… Tokyo Imperial Palace

Looking for something a bit more unique? Try the Kite Museum!

This kite museum isn’t exactly easy to find, but it’s worth the trip once you get there. It is within walking distance of the Tokyo station, which makes it a great place to visit if you have a couple of hours to kill. The museum is located above the Taimeiken Restaurant and is quite small. Over 300 kites are on display here, all made of paper. Each and every one is an amazing piece of artwork! We just walked around admiring the kites, but you can also ask for an English booklet at reception if you want more information about some of the kites.

Day 11: Travel home

So that marks the end of my 11-day Japan by Rail Itinerary! On your final day, explore more of Tokyo in the morning before heading back to Narita Airport to travel home. We had until the early afternoon to explore, as the flight back to Australia doesn’t leave until the evening.

I hope this post has inspired some of you to explore Japan! There’s so much more that you can see that I haven’t mentioned in this post. Feel free to mention some of your favourite places in the comments below – I’d love to head back to Japan some day and would love ideas on where else to visit.


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