Visting Japan (Osaka/Kyoto) in June

[Sirenia]

So my husband has to do some training in Kyoto for work and we will probably be in Japan from May 29 to June 11. We will have a hotel and his flight will be payed for so we just have to pay for mine and entertainment/food/etc.

I just wanted to gather as much information as I can about the Osaka/Kyoto area and must things to do/see.


Is there anything concerning curfews we need to be concerned about?

He will be working during the days so I am wondering if it is quite safe for me to travel and sight-see by myself during the day or are there things I should keep in mind?

Are there any must-see's, best places to eat or shop?

Are there any places to avoid?

I also have an AMEX card, is there still a need to carry around a lot of cash?


I would appreciate any tips. I did search but it seems like most of those who post here visit Tokyo and we don't plan to do that. I have read up on Japanese etiquette and know about the deodorant and hand sanitizer.

[Pirian]

Bring a pair of these

http://www.photolizer.com/Photo%20St...in%20boots.jpg

[oldoldman]

and one of these

http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/mongso...ion%20suit.jpg

[Silenka]

First reply? REALLY?

Well, one useful bit I know is that they have a very strict drug policy (even on over the counter stuff). If you have some kind of medication I think you may have to get it specially cleared or worse not be able to bring it at all - pretty sure day/nyquil are illegal or at least prescription.

The Kyoto area would be my first choice of place to visit if (or when) I go to Japan, the history is just astounding... it was the aristocratic capital for most of the country's history and there are tons of things to see in that respect like shrines, temples, cool buildings, too bad Kyoto burned down like 10+ different times throughout its history as the Emperor's seat >_>

Having never been there myself though I can't give really good advice other than Kyoto is really cool.

[Yugl]

Kyoto is boring. Do Osaka. During summer, Japan is humid, so light clothing and water bottles are important (And w/e people do to prevent excess sweat). Make sure you have a wallet that can handle coins or a coin purse before you go. Umbrella is a "duh", but just in case you're not thinking straight, I'll add that to the list. I would also recommend picking up a card to use the Shinkansen immediately (i.e. sometime upon arrival) if you plan on traveling to distant areas. Shopping centers will be your main target. They have districts where it's a bunch of stands/tightly packed stores. That's where the action is at.

[Sirenia]

Well, one useful bit I know is that they have a very strict drug policy (even on over the counter stuff). If you have some kind of medication I think you may have to get it specially cleared or worse not be able to bring it at all - pretty sure day/nyquil are illegal or at least prescription.

The Kyoto area would be my first choice of place to visit if (or when) I go to Japan, the history is just astounding... it was the aristocratic capital for most of the country's history and there are tons of things to see in that respect like shrines, temples, cool buildings, too bad Kyoto burned down like 10+ different times throughout its history as the Emperor's seat >_>

It may be a stupid question, but in regards to prescriptions.....I would hope I would be able to bring birth control!?? I guess I can live without bringing acetaminophen but it would be nice to have. Never thought of that though, I'll have to look into it.

I do like the history in Kyoto and I plan to see temples/shrines but I have heard if you've seen one you've seen them all? I like that kind of stuff so I don't think I would mind. I plan on bringing my DSLR.

[vagus]

Make sure u find a place for takoyaki (squid balls!). Birth place is Osaka and i'm sure u can find a local to point you into the the right direction.

[Yugl]

I do like the history in Kyoto and I plan to see temples/shrines but I have heard if you've seen one you've seen them all?

This is true particularly for infrastructure, but not for the landscape.

[Osede]

I just wanted to gather as much information as I can about the Osaka/Kyoto area and must things to do/see.

Is there anything concerning curfews we need to be concerned about?

He will be working during the days so I am wondering if it is quite safe for me to travel and sight-see by myself during the day or are there things I should keep in mind?

Are there any must-see's, best places to eat or shop?

Are there any places to avoid?

I would say ginkakuji, kinkakuji, kyoumizudera all those temple. And some of these does require entrance fee, however it worth. The only problem in kyoto is remember go to tourist center to ask for a fully bus guide map. Because most of the places you will travel will have only bus available. And some of the bus guide will shows which bus number you need to take in order to get to that place.

But for osaka, basically you can go any where with just train. As for a crab fan, I would say just try the crab dine in osaka. And over there has a freaking huge shopping street, probably 2-3miles long. I only remember it tooks at least 1hr to go from one end to some where that still not end yet. And aquarium if you are the fan of sea life, they have a huge shark whale inside there.

I also have an AMEX card, is there still a need to carry around a lot of cash?

Cash is better, many place will not accept credit card. Like those convenience store, they only accept card if any purchase over 10k yen. But many restaurant would accept card, you may want to check with them before go into dine.

[Jinn]

When I went to Japan to visit a friend, we ended up taking the bullet train from Tokyo to Kyoto. Once in Kyoto we just took the train all around, ended up visiting Inari and Nara. Some cool Temples/Shrines there and also the bowing deers in Nara!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LsojaZdXtVk

[Correction]

Gion is extremely picturesque.

[Flarega]

First two replies:

http://i25.tinypic.com/27zdw92.jpg

ilu BG

[Sendordm]

Not a lot of places take AMEX, but you should be ok with a Visa or Mastercard. Japan is a cash based society like others have said so make sure you keep a decent amount on you.

Kyoto is a nice town, been living here for 2 years now. Its built around tourism and has dozens of historic temples and what not to visit, just check out Japan Guide for the most popular spots and get an all day bus pass for 500 yen. If you're banking you could look into a traditional dinner on Kamogawa river accompanied by a Maiko (Geisha before they level up). Can easily spend 2-3 days visiting all of the famous places here, and there are many terrific places to eat all over town.

Osaka is a fun town to party in on the weekend, but when friends/family come to visit I don't really take them there for more than half a day usually. Would recommend the Shinsaibashi area on a weekend just for that "wtf how do so many people fit in one area" feeling Japan has, and the new Osaka station should be fully open by the time you arrive.

If Tokyo is a no go then you will likely be bored by the end of your visit. Consider jumping on the Shinkansen for 2 hours and go to Hiroshima for a day, maybe go to Himeji castle, Hikone castle, Lake Biwa, etc.

[Anton]

Went to Japan a year ago.

-First thing you must do is get yourself a JR pass. It's good for all the regional JR lines, Bullet or Subway, including the Tokyo one, (but not the tokyo metro which is separate... Tokyo has two subway systems that overlap. Weird). It's pricey, but if you plan on riding the bullet train more than twice it pays for itself already. So that's a good bargoon and, hey, that's alot of country at your fingertips. Which might change your itinerary, since you don't need to reserve bullet train seats (unless.. you want to... for some reason) and Tokyo is exceptionally cool.

-Parks in Tokyo have hobos at night. They are mostly domesticated hobos, though they may have crabs.

-Kyoto is the old capital of Japan, and was actually left untouched in WWII due to the lack of war related targets. So everything is from the period. See scenes and roads from Memoirs of a Geisha. See Toji's pagoda. See the golden temple (kinkakuji i think). The stage at Kiyomizu. The thousand budda temple. Walk the zen gardens. Consider taking a tour, they're everywhere, every language. Though every temple is similar, each one has different features and different themes. One temple has a 50ft tall buddha and is completely filled with deer (Nara :O). One temple has this badass pond that kinda reflects the structure, giving the illusion of a 'flying' temple.

-Practice as much etiquette and language as you possibly can. Every foreigner will stick out like a sore thumb obviously, but they will adore you if you take the extra steps for politeness and learn a few words. They just don't like people who show up, don't learn a single damn thing, and act like a genuine boor wherever they go. Nobody will ever confront you and tell you to stop... pointing at people, say... for that's almost equally rude. They're passive-agressive types, which also means you can offend and not realize it.

-Not that you have to learn Japanese to travel - everything is in roman lettering too, the bullet train has an english announcer, theres english all through the rail systems, there's attendants trained to speak basic english who can guide you to your destinations at the ticket booths. It was a breeze to navigate around. People sometimes speak with you to practice english, so learn some japanese!

(Hint: Shigemo's FFXI Guide. Next-level phrases your previous-level tour book left out. That "Otsukaresama Deshita" phrase blew people out of the water. Lit "you must be tired" it implies "... from working so hard", it's like "Good Job". Thanks Shigemo!)

-If you like fish, you will never go hungry. Ever. Ever ever. Japan is to fish what Italy is to pizza/pasta. You just don't find bad restaurants unless you have some sort of talent for it. Get used to ordering by portion rather than meal - the menu structure is like tapas: "Have a little of this, this, this, this, this, and this." Be adventurous - order the chef's courses! (Rather than stumble my way through ordering sides, I mostly stuck to the preset menus out of laziness/experimentation. Though I don't think I ran into something I absolutely couldn't eat)

-We tried to order sake once by "bottle" (those little pour-me-outs), they gave us the 3-litre magnum super sake bottle. Lost in translation fun for the whole family

-The toilets are awesome. Everywhere.

-We ate two meals in Kyoto: A dinner in... a restaurant near the alleyway scene from Memoirs in Gion district... does that make any sense? It was in Fodor's, you would never see it from the street, it was a small, almost mom and pop shop, and it was packed+the food was unreal. We also ate lunch at... can't remember the name either. The guides know. There is a ramen shop that has several hundred years of tradition cooking for the royal family you absolutely must find in Kyoto. Bring yer cash though, Japan... is not cheap.

[Correction]

Tokyo is a rather long train ride away from Kyoto, even by Shinkansen. There are plenty of cosmopolitan, foreigner friendly places in Osaka, much closer nearby.

[Anton]

Well it's like... what. Hour and a Half? And you will literally never run out of things to do in Tokyo. Tokyo also has the Sword museum.

[aduidarnenye]

I was in Kyoto with my husband a couple of years ago. It's absolutely beautiful.

You must go see the Golden Pavilion. It's gorgeous.

And go up the tower in Kyoto too. It's gorgeously tacky.

Also, there is the Imperial Palace in Kyoto as well. The thing we did not know when we went was that you have to get special permission and book a date to do a tour of it. And it can take some time to get this. If you want to see the Imperial Palace you need to start looking into it now. You can't see much from the outside but a massive gravel parking lot and massive stone walls.

Other than that, there are a lot of beautiful temples in Kyoto. And by a lot I mean a lot. I would highly recommend walking around and just visiting the ones you see. They're usually all open and don't seem bothered by tourists. Just remember to take your shoes off.

Which reminds me: wear very comfortable walking shoes. The streets through the temples and the temples themselves are not sandal friendly. I had a lot of blisters because I was stupid and wore sandals.

We also saw Osaka and I have to tell you, I have never seen so many pachinko parlours in my life.

If you are doing some side trips, go down to Hiroshima to see ground zero of the atomic bomb. It's overwhelming and eerie.

Have fun!

P.S. Japan is a very tourist friendly country. We always had Japanese people coming up to us offering help in English. Or maybe we just looked hopelessly lost all the time.

P.P.S. And yes, Japan is definitely not cheap. Take trains, subways, and buses. Taxis are insanely expensive.

[Correction]

Well it's like... what. Hour and a Half? And you will literally never run out of things to do in Tokyo. Tokyo also has the Sword museum.

The JR rail pass isn't good for the two fastest bullet trains, so really it'll take 3 hours unless you're willing to pay ~$120 one way.

[aduidarnenye]

The JR rail pass isn't good for the two fastest bullet trains, so really it'll take 3 hours unless you're willing to pay ~$120 one way.

The slow train trip is worth it. The scenery is amazing.

[Correction]

I don't disagree, I did Tokyo -> Nagoya -> Kyoto -> Hiroshima with my JR pass on my first trip to Japan, but I wouldn't have paid Nozomi prices for the trip.