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Finally! I’m back.
I am sharing Brendan’s and my trip to Japan. We went for 10ish days in mid-October 2024. It was everything. We are already planning to return with the girls. If you’re in Seattle, there are several direct flights and it’s only nine hours and change. We started off in Tokyo for five nights, went to Kyoto for three nights, next we spent one night in Hakone and then back to Tokyo for a night before returning home.
In Tokyo we stayed at the Janu Tokyo - we could not recommend this property enough. Janu is part of the Aman hotel group and is focused on wellness. It's also in a beauitful neighborhood called Azabudai Hills. The Mori Group (developers of this property) describes the area: “The concept of the Azabudai Hills is a "MODERN URBAN VILLAGE"; it aims to be a huge open space at the heart of Tokyo filled with lush greenery that will bring people closer together and build a new community. The project seamlessly weaves offices, residences, a hotel, an international school, retail shops, restaurants and cultural facilities into the fabric of everyday life, encompassing work, learning, recreation, interaction and relaxation.”
Day 1 - Tokyo
After facials at Janu, we showered and explored Azabudai Hills. It’s truly a city within a city with over 100 restaurants / bars. We decided on a a soba place in the mall for dinner - Sobamae Yamato.
Day 2 - Tokyo
The next day we went to Shibuya and walked up to the Meji Shrine. Yoyogi Park is beautiful - I loved seeing the sake barrels and the french oak barrels.
We meandered back down to Harajuku and Omotesando. I loved poking around shops in Harajuku. We explored The Gyre mall on the main drag in Omotesando. At the top there is an amazing specialty food / home goods shop. Don't miss The Matcha Tokyo on Cat Street. Incredible.
We had an impromptu sushi lunch at Sanaka and stopped by this really cool artisanal soda shop called Iyoshi Cola. We loved walking on Cat Street.
There is a huge Tomorrowland near Miyashita Park / Train station. It was by far my favorite store in Tokyo - they have a lot of private label brands. I especially loved Caban. They hemmed some pants for me for $5 and delivered them to my hotel for free.
In the early evening, we met a tour guide near Shibuya Crossing for a night food tour. We both highly recommend doing something like this - we learned so much about Izakaya culture and Japanese culture in general. I would do it again. THIS is the tour week booked.
Day 3 - Tokyo
The next day we went to the Nezu Museum. The gardens were so beautiful and tranquil. It was a national holiday in Japan, so there were women in traditional kimonos having a tea ceremony. We heard the cafe is amazing to get a tea but the line was long. I would do it if it's a short queue. The art collection is small but impressive. The property was a private residence at one point. Loved the gift shop, picked up some incense for gifts - of course, impeccably packaged.
After the museum we walked to Daikanyama to shop and explore Tsutaya Books. We meandered in the area and stumbled upon an outdoor cafe called Urara, we got Udon noodles there.
Our dogs were barking after walking ten miles a day, so we booked foot massages near our hotel and then went to get ramen in the Roppongi Hills Mall at Afuri - there are multiple locations. It was UNREAL.
Day 4 - Tokyo
We planned an omakase style coffee experience at Koffee Mameya Kakeru so we ventured over to that neighborhood to explore Kiyosumi Gardens.
The coffee experience at Koffee Mamaya Kakeru was very unique, of course very Japanese.
We didn't really have lunch so we went to Family Mart and picked up random snacks. People thought we were insane for eating on the street, but yolo. We ended up taking the metro to Tokyo station (Brendan tried a Tokyo Banana, see below) and shopping around Ginza a little. The Ginza Uniqlo is a sight. It's fun to shop there as a shorty because all the pants are made for my height (hello JW Anderson collab). I also liked Marunouchi, next to Ginza - there is a cool outdoor store called And Wander. The main shopping street feels really European and there a ton of high end boutiques - Beams, Buly, Hermes, Caban, etc. There is a pedestrian walk and many salary men & women eat lunch around here. In Ginza, there is a huge designer mall called Ginza Six if you’re looking for that.
That night we went to Nishiazabu Sushi Shin. This was one of our only reservations (I don’t recommend having so few reservations, lesson learned). It was unbelievable omakase sushi. We decided to go there because it was noted that the chef is friendly to non-Japanese. This is true! The neighborhood it's in is very high end, we meandered back through tree lined streets on the way back to the metro. We read that lots of ex-pats and diplomats live in this neighborhood.
Day 5 - Tokyo
We went to check out Shinjuku the next day. Honestly, it was not our favorite area. It's a huge station and there was a ton of construction. We did have fun exploring Don Quixote, which a multilevel, super overstimulating store full of random things. We picked up a ton of gifts there, very fun, uniquely Japanese things. Phone accessories, interesting KitKat flavors, hello kitty stuff, cute tissues. A very fun experience.
We wanted to go back to Harajuku and ended up eating at a yakisoba place near BerBerJin vintage, called Hita Yakisoba.
We walked down the main road in Omotesando after lunch and did some window shopping. If you continue towards Aoyama the street will get narrower and more intimate - lots of designer stores and the famous Prada store.
There are a ton of great boutiques on the streets off the road through Aoyama. That night we went to a local yakiniku spot that our hotel recommended. It was right in Azabudai Hills called Arigataya. It is owned by a husband and wife who are darling. I would 100% recommend trying Yakiniku.
Day 6 - Kyoto
The next day we went to Kyoto. We were really sad to leave the Janu - one of our favorite hotels we’ve ever stayed at (shout out to Cheval Blanc Paris, you’re still our #1).
After taking the bullet train (motion sick friends beware and take a dramamine. I have other tips below about the bullet train if you are interested ), we arrived to the Hotel Mitsui, which was such a treat. The rooms are tiny so if you end up staying there, it's worth upgrading to a garden view, which is the highlight of the hotel. I had one of the best massages of my life at the subterranean spa, which also hosts a natural hot spring onsen. It's coed so bring a suit!
For dinner that night, we stumbled into an izakaya near the hotel.
Day 7 - Kyoto
The next day we had a private tour of the Imperial Place and Nijo Shrine. This really brought the samurai era to life for us. We also stopped by this incredible tea room and pastry shop. They were the official pastry shop of the royal family. When the royal family moved to Tokyo, they opened a shop there to continue to serve the family. It's called Toraya Ichijoji.
After the tour we went to the Arashiyama Bamboo Grove. I swear every person in Kyoto was there. Unfortunately, it's super touristy and crowded, but honestly it's so gorgeous - breathtaking. I would recommend going first thing in the morning to have some meditative time. Our tour guide also recommended the gold pavilion (Kinkakuji) because the gardens are amazing. My parents loved the Kinkaku-ji - it's literally gilded in gold. We didn't make it to either. Next time!
That night we had an incredible dinner at a tempura omakase place called Enyu an Kobayashi. It has a Michelin star and was a very special experience
Day 8 - Kyoto
The next day we went to the Fushimi Inari Shrine. Again, super touristy and crowded. It was also pouring - ALL DAY. However, it's totally worth seeing, it's incredibly beautiful and would be peaceful if it wasn't full of tourists.
After, we walked to Chawanzaka to check out the ceramics and little shops. It's pedestrian walkways in the hills. The best part of the day was stumbling upon 66tantan which was the best ramen we had in Japan. Unbelievable hole in the wall.
One thing I would recommend in Kyoto is to go to an Onsen. We planned on staying at a ryokan in Hakone so we skipped the traditional onsen in Kyoto. Every spa treatment we got in Japan was unbelievable. If I went back to Kyoto, I would do more private tours. There is so much rich history in the city and I feel like wandering around and experiencing the monuments solo isn't as fulfilling or enriching. You can definitely find shopping in Kyoto, but to us the city is more about the cultural heritage and traditions of Japanese culture. I also wish we did a semi-formal tea ceremony - formal tea ceremonies can last three hours, so it might be good to find one that is like an "intro." I to try this tour company called Context Travel so I could give authenticated recommendations to some of my travel clients and both of our experiences exceeded expectations. I did a quick search and found THIS experience that looks really special. We were both very impressed with our Context Travel experiences and even took our girls on a food tour in Paris that was outstanding.
Day 9 - Hakone
After Kyoto we went to the mountain town of Hakone. The chef from Nobu owns a home there and has several restaurants in town. The town is TINY, so it was unexpected to have elevated food there. The brewpub was unbelievable.
We stayed at Gora Kadan, which is a Relais & Chateaux property. It was definitely a once in a lifetime experience, but I didn’t love the overnight experience and eating meals in the room. I was a little fatigued by Japanese food at this point in the trip and the kaiseki meal put me over the edge. BUT, I'm glad we did it. Perhaps the ryokan would have been better earlier in the trip. However, I LOVED the onsen. The town is on a volcano so there are natural hot springs everywhere - this was really special. They also had a huge wooden tub in our room that was fed continuously by the hot spring.
Day 10 - Hakone / Tokyo
Our last day we took a private transfer to Tokyo and Brendan flew out that afternoon for work. I stayed at the Four Seasons Marunouchi - amazing views of Tokyo and the Imperial Palace. I did some solo shopping in Ginza and Marunouchi before flying out the next day.
Hot Tips
Download Google translate and get Japanese - download the language so you can use it without cell / wifi. Also download the map of Tokyo on Google maps so you can use it offline too. Sometimes you have to look up to finding what you’re looking for.
Some helpful vocab
Sumimasen - Excuse me
Onegaishimasu - Please (don’t say the “u”)
Daijobu - It’s ok / No problem
Kanpeki - Perfect
And of course Arigato gozaimasu - Thank you very much (don’t say the “u”)
When in doubt, smile and bow.
The metro is amazing, download the Suica app, you can add money with Apple Pay and use your phone as your ticket. It's SO EASY. You can also use Suica in Kyoto.
If you're taking the bullet train, book your tickets ahead (use the smartEX App) of time and book the first class car and the seats with oversized luggage. They are at the back of the car and your luggage goes behind you. I got super nauseous on the train for some reason so if you get motion sickness, take a pill like 45 min before you board. It's kinda stressful waiting to board the train because they don't let you on until like 1 minute before it leaves, but somehow it works out.
For customs entering Japan you need to go to the visit japan website and fill out the forms before you leave - get the QR code - take a screenshot - and this will save you a lot of stress when you're in the customs line. You also have to get a QR code for your baggage to leave the airport - there are clear instructions by the baggage carousels.
If you’re curious about what I packed - check out THIS post.