When we began planning this trip, we thought our house would have sold by the time we were to travel, and that we would be at the beginning of our journey to travel the world full time. However, after months of our home being on the market for sale, we found our date fast approaching and still no leads on the sale of our house. So, we had to adjust the trip substantially and make many changes to the itinerary.
Originally our trip was to be six weeks in Japan exploring from the top, up to the Sapporo region including Daisetsuzan National Park, down to the bottom to Okinawa and Kyushu Island and as much in between as possible. We wanted to really explore Japan.
We also had plans to spend time with our bonus daughter there and her family in the Tokyo area, so we felt like in the six weeks time frame we could see and do most of what we wanted and then we were to move on to S. Korea and then onto China and so on.
However, with the house not selling we cut our trip down to four weeks and also added in some time in the Seattle area to visit our children and grandchildren and parents and celebrate the Easter holiday with our family.
So here we are after seven weeks on the road and the house still has not sold so we have returned happy and grateful for our time we had with all of our family and our time in Japan but also discouraged as we had hoped to have the house sold by the time we returned. Patience in this buyers’ market is not my strong suit. Oh well, Gods timing right?
And now we would like to share about our trip to Japan and all we were able to see and do in our four weeks there.
We flew into the Tokyo Narita Airport from Seattle, Narita is a huge airport and beautifully done. It’s not just an airport, it actually felt like a destination.
We spent our first thirteen days in Tokyo area. We got a beautiful apartment Airbnb in Ota City, and it was fantastic. The apartment itself was well appointed, corner unit, with a balcony, newer and in a great location, we were within walking distance to four different train stations, we had several grocery stores, dining options, even medical and dental facilities if that became necessary which it did not, however it’s good to know it was right around the corner if needed. We had plenty of shopping mall options and even found some of our favorite American fast-food places nearby which was a lifesaver for me as I do not eat seafood and there is a lot of seafood in Japan.
We got very comfortable in the two weeks we were there and really got to know our way around the neighborhood.
After spending that time we came to the realization we do not want to travel fast for the most part. It would be ok once in a while but realistically we don’t want to stay in any one place less than two weeks at a time.
We spent a lot of time with our bonus daughter and her family the first week. They took us to Tokyo Station, Imperial Palace, Ueno Zoo, Ikegami Hommon-ji Temple, Asakusa, Dembo-in Temple, Senso-ji, Tokyo Sky Tree, Kamakura, Hase-dera Temple we also visited on our own the Tokyo National Museum and Yokohama’s China town which is the largest China town in Japan. All in all I’d say we covered a lot of ground. As this was our second visit to Japan there are things we did not do this trip that we had done before. Maybe next time we will revisit some places and find new things as well.
After thirteen days we headed to Nagano by Shinkansen. It was our first time on Japans bullet trains and it was a lovely experience. The trains were nice, clean, smooth and quiet. We traveled up into the mountains of Nagano and the primary reason for our visit there was to see the snow monkeys. This has been a dream of mine since our last visit 16 years ago and I was determined to see them on this trip.
It was a little bit of a hike up the mountain to go see them but well worth it to me. Once the bus dropped us off at the lower parking lot it was a half mile walk up hill to the trail head, and then another mile uphill on a dirt (muddy) trail. There was boot rentals and raincoat rentals, but we did it in our tennis shoes and were fine. As a matter of fact, when we finished and reached back to the bottom where the bus came for pick up, they had an area there to clean off your shoes.
The hike up was beautiful, very forested and a couple of small water falls along the way. When we neared the top, we started to see monkeys just wandering around a couple of structures that were there. But once we reached the park entrance where we purchased our tickets we were seeing quite a few monkeys just wandering around, they would walk right by you on the path. You could tell they were very familiar with human interaction.
Admission fees at the time of me writing this in March of 2025 was 800JPY per adult, 400JPY ages 6-17 and 0-5 are free. The hours the park operates in April-October from 0830AM-5:00PM and from November-March 0900AM-4:00PM seven days per week. Please check before you go as hours may change.
The rules are simple and common sense:
Do NOT feed the monkeys or bring food into the park
Do NOT touch the monkeys
Keep a respectful distance from the monkeys between 1-2 meters unless they walk by you, but do not approach them
NO Selfie sticks or flash photography allowed as these may disturb or upset the monkeys.
Again, common sense, these are in fact wild animals and need to be respected. Do not get up in their space.
This was a wonderful experience, one I know neither one of us will ever forget.
We stayed at the JAL City Hotel, it was walking distance to the train station, right in town so very convenient to dining and shopping.
Nagano is also home to the 1998 Winter Olympics, the Zenkoji Temple founded in the 7th century and stores the first Buddhist statue ever brought into Japan in the 6th century. So a significant piece of Japanese history. We also stumbled across the Saiko-ji temple founded in 1199. Everywhere you go in Japan there are temples and shrines dating back hundreds of years.
Nagano is a beautiful mountain town and well worth the visit. There were many things to see and do there, but our time was short. We are glad we made the trek to Nagano and hope to return someday.
From Nagano we jumped back on Shinkansen and headed to Kanazawa.
Kanazawa is home to the Higashi Chaya District adjacent to the Asano River. It is the largest of three well preserved historical Geisha districts in Higashiyama area, and the geisha still entertain there today. The beautiful wooden Chaya have been well preserved and the area is officially designated as a Japanese cultural asset. The Higashi Chaya date back to the Edo period (1603-1868)
Gold leaf is a Kanazawa specialty producing 99% of the gold leaf used in Japan. Be sure and visit one of the gold leaf galleries or the Yasue gold leaf museum.
We then left Kanazawa and went on to Kyoto. We spent four days there and stayed at the Sakura Terrace The Gallery Hotel. Just one block from the train station, and our favorite hotel we stayed in. They had a small fitness center, a lounge area, free cocktail every evening at 5:00, firepit tables to sit around, water features, had an outdoor courtyard vibe with hot beverage bar, tea, coffee etc… open 24 hours a day. Theres a laundry room that is free to wash and dry clothes, two massage chairs in the lounge and a restaurant with full buffet breakfast for an additional fee and they served dinner with live entertainment. We really enjoyed the casual atmosphere.
What can we say about Kyoto besides the obvious. It is a beautiful city with a great blend of modern and historic architecture and culture. While there we visited Nishiki Market, Kyoto Sento Palace, Higashiyama, Gion District, Fushimi Inari-Taisha Shrine aka 10,000 Torii gates, we climbed Mt. Inari, that was exhausting, visited the Kinkakuji Temple covered in gold leaf on the second and third floor exteriors, the Kiyomizu-Dera Temple, Arashiyama bamboo forest, Nijo Castle, Ginkakuji temple, The Ryozen Kannon Temple and so much more. There are over a dozen Unesco world heritage sights in Kyoto, we visited several.
We were there at the beginning of cherry blossom, so the trees were beginning to bloom but not all of the trees were in full bloom. it was still a beautiful sight. If you visit Japan, Kyoto is a must see. Be prepared for large crowds as it is an extremely popular destination.
Our next stop on our journey was Hiroshima, it is an absolutely beautiful city. Here we visited the Memorial Peace Park and Atomic Bomb Dome where there are many structures symbolizing a time of tragedy for the people of Japan and yet these symbols call for eternal peace throughout the world. There you can visit a number of museums on the park grounds, there is the Children’s Peace Museum and the historic Rest House which dates back to the day of the bombing. There is also the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, and the National Peace Memorial Hall.
We also visited Miyajima Island where we rode the ferry to the Island, and then after viewing the beautiful Torii gate that at high tide seems to float in the water, we made the trek to the ropeways where we rode to the top of Mount Misen for the most spectacular views of the many Islands in the Seto inland Sea and far off views of Hiroshima City. If you opt to not take the ropeways there are three hiking trails leading up to Misen, the Daisho-in course trail is recommended for its views and not as steep a climb as the other two trails, and you must allow 1.5-2 hours for the climb to the summit. We opted for the ropeways.
This was one of our favorite days as we both love being out in nature. There were many deer who were all too familiar with people so they would walk right up to you hoping to steal whatever it is you may have that they can eat. There are clear signs to not feed the deer however we seen the deer go after people’s food if they lad anything down so be aware the deer will invade your space to steal your lunch.
After we came down from Mount Misen the tide had gone out so the Torii Gates were sitting on the sand bed and we could walk right out to them. That was a great experience to get to see them both in and out of the water. like I said before, this was one of our favorite days. I highly recommend a full day maybe even plan an overnight to Miyajima Island. It’s just one hour train ride from Hiroshima and so worth the visit.
We then went on to Nara where we only spent one night, so not enough time to see a lot. We went to Nara park, this was our primary reason for stopping, our daughter had asked us to stop there and feed the bowing deer and so we did. I wish that we had had more time to see Osaka and Nara but I guess that will have to be on another trip.
We then made our way back to Yokohama before we flew back to the U.S. This was a great trip, but we would love to have had that couple of extra weeks we had originally planned. I can’t say enough good things about Japan, the people, the history, the beauty, nature was all above and beyond our expectations. We look forward to returning someday, hopefully sooner rather than later.
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