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I'm going to Japan. What should I check out?

AMSCD

Member
My girlfriend and I are going to Japan. We will visit Tokyo, Osaka, and Hokkaido. We'll be there in late December and early January. We're looking for suggestions of things to check out.

Things we like:
  • Video games
  • Ghibli
  • One Piece
  • History
  • Nature / Hikes
  • Japanese Food
  • Technology
  • Music
  • Dancing / Partying
We plan to visit onsens, but if anyone has specific recommendations we are all ears.

I would love to visit a Japanese arcade. Arcades are basically dead in North America, but I assume they are still somewhat active in Japan?

Thank you for any recommendations!
 
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If you can swing by Nara as well, which is 37 min from Kyoto, you can see the largest wooden structure on earth.

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Mistake

Member
The national museum and the other one nearby are pretty cool. For games and arcades, check out Akihabara. You can see people who are insane at rhythm games sometimes, and there are many different cafes nearby too, like owls, cats, maids, etc. For parties, bands, bars, shibuya is pretty good. You’ll need to see what is playing, but you can get tickets at 7-11 kiosks. Make sure to get a passmo card to make life easier, or the rail pass if you’re going between regions
 
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lachesis

Member
I am planning Hokkaido for winter time as well.
It's the best time for ski during that time. Little out of the way though - but I'm sure there's some shuttle services.
Sapporo is also known for a lot of great stuff - Jingisukan (Lamb/vegie grill), Ramen, Beer (famous Sapporo beer), Sushi, Seafood.... and fresh dairy. (their soft ice cream is well known)
Neighboring town Otaru has a small canal you can walk along & supposedly very romantic with lights and all. Got some charming shops along side - famous glass craft shop's there as well.
 
I'll add something later tonight, but one word of advise since you'll be visiting from Dec to Jan. a LOT of things will be close around New Year. my first visit back in 2008 was from Dec to Jan also, and a lot of restaurants were closed until a few days or a week or two after New Year. so make sure to keep that in mind.
 

TheMan

Member
I always wanted to visit Akihabara. I think there's a famous used game stop called Mr. Potato or something where you could find a ton of killer deals for stuff that's much more expensive in the US.

Maybe try a soapland while you're there.
 
I wish I could go to Japan as well to see all things video games. I also love guitars and pool cues and I wonder if Ibanez Guitars Factory and the Mezz Pool Cue factory are open to public.
 
I've been to Japan three times now, all of them solo trips for 3 weeks or so each. it's a great country to visit and can be lots of fun. is this your first time going to Japan? are you getting the Japan Railway Pass? how long would this trip be? if you don't mind sharing your plan so far, I can definitely add on some more suggestions to it. keep in mind that, other than the closures around New Year that I mentioned, the temperature can also be a little tricky. anywhere outdoor is really cold during that season of the year, but as soon as you step into any place in-door like a store, restaurant, even on the train, it's sweat inducingly warm. one can catch a cold or something very easily because of that, so make sure to dress in layers and wear things that's easy to put on and remove.

for Hokkaido, where are you going? I'm going to guess mostly Sapporo and Hakodate? maybe Otaru? if you can, try Hell Valley area in Noborietsu. it's an onsen town with plenty of hotels which all has their own hot spring baths. if you're not driving in Hokkaido thou, keep in mind trains and buses can have longer wait time than the mainland. I'm planning my own trip right now for next year and part of it would be driving across Hokkaido for a week or so.

the Robot Restaurant show in Tokyo is sadly closed now due to Covid, along with a lot of other cool stuff in the city, so make sure to check for the most updated info on the places you plan on visiting. I'm a big fan of Asakusa, and Shinjuku. can find lots of good eats at these two areas. the Ghibli Museum is great too of course, but it requires advance booking and it's kinda out of the main Tokyo area, so make sure to plan accordingly. if you want a good view of the city from up high and don't want to pay for the fee to go up Tokyo Tower or Skytree, consider Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building. the twin tower building has two observation decks up top that provides a bird's eye view of the whole Tokyo area. and it's completely free. it also has an government employee cafeteria that's open to the public. the food is actually pretty good there too if you want to grab a quick lunch.

when you said you'll be going to Osaka too, do you mean just Osaka or Kansai in general? if you have time, I would at least recommend going to Himeji, Kobe and Nara also. you can probably put a day to go to Nara in the morning and then return to walk around Osaka in the afternoon/night time. you can also fit Himeji and Kobe both in one day. head to Himeji in the morning and then visit Kobe in the afternoon, plus have dinner there. since you're going with your girlfriend, might I suggest you also check out one of three greatest night view in Japan from up top the observatory on Mount Rokko? it's a pretty romantic and beautiful view. just FYI, the other two night views are in Nagasaki and Hakodate, the later of which I imagine you might visit too when you're in Hokkaido.

do you plan on going to Kyoto at all? because Kyoto would probably need 3 to 4 days too. there are so many great places to see in that area. most well known being the golden pavilion in Kinkaku-ji, and the Senbon Torii pathways in the Fushimi Inari Shrine. there are also some really awesome places to see if you go to Arashiyama in the west side of Kyoto. Otagi Nebutsu-ji and Adashino Nebutsu-ji being two of my favorites. the Toei Kyoto Studio Park over in the Uzumasa area can be pretty fun too, if you're into the Japanese period films and stuff. not to mention many of the other Kyoto must sees, like Kiyomizu-dera, Kyoto Imperial Palace, Nijojocho, Ryoan-ji, Sanjusangendo, Sannen and Ninen-zaka, Gion and Hanamikoji Street etc.

in any case, let me know if you need any other pointers or suggestions. like I said, I'm planning my own trip right now as well so I have a lot of the info on hand.
 
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Ghibli museum requires advance tickets, so be sure to sort that out.

Japan Rail pass may make sense if you're seeing several cities/region.
Suika Card! I wonder if they still use it? I haven't been there in 4 years!? I still have mine, though.
 
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I hear arcades are still around, shame that they are no longer the iconic ones operated by Sega though.
Sadly the One Piece Tower/theme park closed due to Covid. Maybe you can stop in Nagoya to see the Ghibli theme park.
Try a capsule hotel.

Real answer: Find a local guide if you wanna eat right. The best food in any place is rarely the overhyped stuff on the internet.
 

lachesis

Member
Real answer: Find a local guide if you wanna eat right. The best food in any place is rarely the overhyped stuff on the internet.

True - especially if you look into the whole "experience" of eating.
Tabelog (I guess Japanese Yelp?) is a good guide, but some of their top recommended stuff - you have to wait in such a long line.
Once or twice on waiting such lines, it would be a neat experience... but every meal would be just waste of time unless you have days and days to spend in Japan. You have places to go, see and do...

Also making a smaller "themed" trip is a good one too.
Last visit to Tokyo - I did a bit of mix between Persona 5 places + Ghibli + Solitary Gourmet TV drama in my mind.

Took JR Chuo line & went out to Mitaka station. Walked along some quiet residential neighborhood to Ghibli Museum (You have to buy tickets months before) & enjoyed the visit / shops. When done, walked across Inokashira park & went to Kichijoji. (It was before the release of Persona 5 Royal though - but I got a kick out of it afterwards... that both Kichijoji and Inokashira park were presented in P5R) - and ate good old showa-heisei style Napolitan pasta at a small restaurant near Kichijoji station that I've seen in the drama. Did the some shopping around Kichijoji Station and took the train back to Tokyo. It was a good half day trip.
 
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Porcile

Member
My rule for a good restaurant in Japan or elsewhere in Asia is check the Google reviews and if the are reviews are primarily written in English or by foreigners then don't go to that restaurant.
 
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