After getting over the initial shock of suddenly going to Japan I set about planning my trip. My fascination with Japan has mostly been with the language, and my knowledge of Japan is not very extensive. I'll be going on my own and apart from one tour guided day trip all my days are self-planned!
I started searching the internet for information on where to stay and what to see when in Japan. I knew I wanted to go to Tokyo, Kyoto and Yokohama. From my research I added a day trip to Nikko and a day trip to Kanagawa.
I will be staying at two hotels in Tokyo, one near Shinjuku Station, one near Shinagawa Station. The idea was to be near a station so I could quickly get to the Yamanote line. Hopefully I'll learn quickly and not spend ages getting through the stations! When I booked I had now idea how huge these stations are!!
My first shock came when I discovered that over 3 million people pass through Shinjuku station (新宿駅) every day. I considered changing hotel. But I love a challenge, so I studied a map of the station, know that I have to find the East exit (東口) then turn left, and hopefully I'll find my hotel:-)
My first shock came when I discovered that over 3 million people pass through Shinjuku station (新宿駅) every day. I considered changing hotel. But I love a challenge, so I studied a map of the station, know that I have to find the East exit (東口) then turn left, and hopefully I'll find my hotel:-)
Microplanning .....Neurotic or necessary???
Usually when I visit a new city I am fairly relaxed and think I can see and enjoy the city without too much planning. But the hugeness of Tokyo made it obvious to me that this trip needs plenty of planning!
Tokyo Subway Route Map!!!
So the googling started and after days and days of searching, printing and note taking I have come up with a tentative plan of my 2 weeks in Japan.The most useful sites I used for planning my trip:-
Finally reading the posts on this forum is fun: I was relieved to see that I am not the only one planning in such detail.
My tentative itinerary: Am open to all suggestions
You're definitely not the only microplanner! Last year, I made two notebooks- one for me and one for my daughter- that had maps, itinerary, emergency numbers and directions to the hotel, etc. We didn't need most of it once we got there, but we felt much more confident because of our advance planning. And as much fun as it can be to plan, it's so much more fun to go! I hope you have a great trip!
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