Check-in at Spirited Away Seaside Train, Hiking Kamikochi, Togakushi Shrine, Happo-ike in Hakuba Village, Entering Kyoto and Returning from Tokyo

Japan is very friendly for self-guided travel. A family of three really doesn't need a package tour. We planned a two-week self-guided trip to Japan during the summer vacation. I believe that travelers who love independent travel have probably been to Japan more than once. Same as us—we've been to Tokyo, Osaka, and Kyoto. So this time, we mainly wanted to visit other trendy spots: the Izu Peninsula, the scenic and beginner-friendly hiking paradise Kamikochi, Togakushi Shrine in Nagano Prefecture, and Happo-ike in Hakuba Village. So we chose to enter from Kyoto and return from Tokyo, so we didn't have to backtrack. There are many airlines in Tokyo and Osaka, so this combination of tickets was even cheaper than a round trip. We departed from Shanghai to Kyoto on June 30th, and returned from Tokyo to Shanghai on July 13th.

Flying from Shanghai to Kyoto actually lands at Kansai Airport. Osaka also uses Kansai Airport because it's closer to Osaka. So everyone thinks flying to Osaka means Kansai Airport. This time we directly chose an airport transfer service. Actually, the price for airport transfer from Kansai to Osaka and to Kyoto is similar, just a bit more expensive—the distance is indeed 20 kilometers longer. With the transfer service taking us to the hotel, we didn't have to drag our luggage and take different transportation ourselves.

Kyoto is a city well worth spending several days, or even longer. Kyoto was actually the capital of Japan! It was only 157 years ago that the capital moved to Tokyo. Kyoto's cityscape was built on the aesthetic consciousness of Japanese beauty that prevailed in the imperial court culture over the centuries. It is represented by shrines, temples, and other historical buildings, gardens, paintings, traditional events, and Kyoto cuisine. It is called the "Millennium Ancient Capital."

We booked the Hotel Hachijo Kyoto, which is closest to Kyoto Station, through Ctrip. Choosing this hotel is definitely not wrong—it has excellent value for money. It's a old, well-established Japanese four-star hotel with 988 rooms. The lobby is very large, and there are self-check-in ATM machines that support Chinese interface. If you have problems, staff are available to help. There are three breakfast options: buffet, Western, and Japanese. We stayed three nights, so we tried all of them. I suggest you don't need to try the Japanese one—it's a relatively simple set meal. For those who want to get their money's worth from breakfast, it's "not cost-effective." The hotel has convenient transportation: bus terminal, JR, Shinkansen, and subway all nearby. It's convenient to go anywhere, and also convenient for us to take the train to our next stop: the Izu Peninsula. Also, the hotel is adjacent to Isetan shopping center, which is great for shopping and dining!

There are too many classic attractions in Kyoto, such as Senso-ji, Kiyomizu-dera, Fushimi Inari Taisha, Tenryu-ji, Kyoto Imperial Palace, Nijo Castle, Heian Shrine, Tenmangu, Jisho-ji, Katsura Imperial Villa, Sanzen-in, Kyoto International Manga Museum, Kennin-ji, To-ji, Kyoto Tower, Daigo-ji, Tenryu-ji, and so on. There are a lot of intangible cultural heritage and world heritage sites. I won't list recommendations here—you can easily search on various platforms. You can choose according to your own time and preferences. Actually, our family went to Kyoto during the winter vacation in 2025 (February 8–12, four nights). We didn't spend enough time there—four days in Kyoto was indeed too little! That's also the main reason we chose to enter Kyoto this time. We chose a three-night stay, wanting to visit the "Tenryu-ji" and "Fushimi Inari Taisha" that we missed during the Spring Festival.

On July 1st, we checked in at "Tenryu-ji" and experienced the "Sagano Romantic Train." We took the JR Sagano Line from Kyoto Station heading towards Sonobe, costing 240 yen. The Sagano Scenic Train actually involves taking JR to Saga-Arashiyama Station and then transferring to the scenic train. You can choose a one-way ticket for the scenic train; from the terminal you can return by rafting downstream. The rafting return takes nearly two hours, riding a small boat on the clear stream in the valley—it's also great. Of course, you can also walk back, checking in at different attractions along the way, including "Tenryu-ji."

We didn't choose the rafting, so we bought round-trip tickets. But we got off halfway on the way back. The bamboo groves were deep, and we walked downhill, also visiting "Tenryu-ji" along the way. Tenryu-ji is located at 68 Sagatenryuji Susukinobaba-cho, Ukyo-ku, Kyoto City. It is a pond garden created by the famous Zen master (revered as a national master) and garden designer Muso Soseki from the Nanboku-cho period. Tenryu-ji is based on a detached palace built in 1255, with a background of Arashiyama. The garden incorporates the scenery of Mount Kameyama and Arashiyama, blending the elegance of aristocratic culture with the profundity of Zen. It is a national Special Historic Site.

After visiting Tenryu-ji, we walked downhill and had ramen at an intersection. Around 2 pm, we visited "Otagi Nenbutsu-ji" along the way. Otagi Nenbutsu-ji in Kyoto: Legend of 1200 Rakan statues. Address: 2-5 Sagatoriimoto Fukatanicho, Ukyo-ku, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture. Admission 300 yen. Otagi Nenbutsu-ji is famous for its unique stone statues of Rakan (Arhats). The temple grounds are dotted with 1200 stone statues of Rakan, each with a different expression. Rakan, as people who have realized the essence of Buddhist teachings and scriptures, are often depicted in Buddhist art and stories as specific numbers of groups. For example, when Gautama Siddhartha finally attained nirvana, there were five hundred Rakan present.

After a day of exhaustion, we had to reward ourselves in the evening. Our child had already searched for a very popular and highly-rated sushi restaurant in Kyoto, called "Tai Sushi." The sushi was really excellent—you must go! The shop is not very big with not many seats, but definitely worth experiencing. I'll post more photos.

On July 2nd, we checked in at Fushimi Inari Taisha. Transportation: Take the JR Nara Line heading towards Joyo, platform 9, 4 stops to Inari Station. Fushimi Inari Taisha is a famous shrine located at 68 Fukakusa Yabunouchi-cho, Fushimi-ku, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture. It was built in the 8th century and primarily enshrines Ukanomitama-no-Mikoto and other Inari deities. Inari is the deity of agriculture and commerce. Worshippers come to pray for abundant harvests, business prosperity, and traffic safety. It is one of the most popular shrines in Kyoto.

Kyoto is also a food paradise. Our child loves meat, so we chose a trendy yakiniku restaurant. When in Japan, don't miss out on Japanese wagyu.

Staying near the station makes it convenient to use Shinkansen and JR. On July 3rd, we checked out and walked a few minutes. From Kyoto to our hotel on the eastern Izu Peninsula, we actually needed to transfer. First, we took the Shinkansen from Kyoto to Atami, which took nearly 2 hours. Then at Atami, we transferred to the JR line to Izu Inatori, to our hotel: Izu Inatori Ginsuiso. I bought the Shinkansen tickets on Ctrip. The line from Atami to Izu Inatori is a branch line, not available on Ctrip, so I purchased tickets in advance on another platform. Actually, you can also swipe a Suica card to ride, but I prefer to buy tickets in advance and print paper tickets at the ATM machine. As for how to print paper tickets, there are guides on various platforms. At the station, use the blue EX-labeled self-service machine to scan the QR code and print. The JR ride from Atami to Izu Inatori takes 1 hour. The hotel has a shuttle bus to pick up guests, making it convenient to check in and go out. The shuttle timing is from 11 am to 7 pm. It's quite convenient. We stayed at Inatori for three nights. The hotel package for a family of three including breakfast and dinner cost over 3000 yuan. It had all-day executive lounge service, indoor and outdoor hot springs, and an outdoor pool.

On July 3rd, we arrived at Inatori Station before 11 am. The hotel's earliest shuttle pickup was at 11 am. We contacted Ctrip to help communicate. This fully demonstrated the advantage of using the Ctrip platform—we got help when we had problems. Inatori Station is a bit far from the seaside hotel. The car ride took about 10 minutes to arrive. The hotel lobby was spacious, comfortable, with sofas, and there was a koi pond in the lobby with large, plump koi swimming leisurely. The hotel handled our check-in and assigned us a room on the 6th floor. However, check-in was at 2 pm, so we left our luggage with them, and they placed it in our room. The hotel faces the sea, so we walked along the seafront and spent time at a nearby 7-Eleven. When we returned, it was time to check in. The room had a balcony connected to tatami mats, with a direct view of the sea. The whole room was step-in tatami. We were fine with this traditional Japanese room, but the hardware was very old. Still, we were okay with it. The deep bathtub in the bathroom surprised us a lot—it looked like something from an old Japanese movie, quite interesting. We had always wanted to try it, but we had already washed up before bathing in the hot spring, so we didn't use it.

The hotel provided breakfast and dinner. That evening, we experienced a multi-course kaiseki dinner of about ten dishes. On the first day of check-in, you can take the hotel's custom chopsticks home. Remember to bring them back after dinner—I heard the wood is local "hard aromatic wood."

On July 4th, after breakfast at the hotel, we took the hotel's free shuttle to Inatori Station. Then we specially chose the "Spirited Away Seaside Train" that we had been fascinated by many years ago to visit Mount Omuro. Each carriage had few people, and the seats by the window were all empty—we could sit anywhere.

After transferring to Mount Omuro, we queued to buy the ropeway ticket opposite that shop.

After coming down from Mount Omuro, we took a bus to "Jogasaki Coast." We chose a seaside hiking route along the coastal cliffs formed by volcanic lava. We hiked for about an hour and finally reached the "Instagram-famous suspension bridge."

Returning to the hotel, it was almost dinner time. We stayed for three nights, and each day's dinner was different—a good experience.

On July 5th, we visited Shimoda Park on the Izu Peninsula. In summer, the park is famous for its colorful hydrangeas covering the hills. We actually missed the peak blooming period—by early July, the flowers were beginning to wilt. Still, we insisted on walking around the entire mountain! By the way, Shimoda Park is free.

After visiting Shimoda Park, don't miss the nearby "Shimoda Aquarium." Here, there are many marine animal shows at scheduled times: dolphins, sea lions, seals, etc. There are various marine fish, plants, insects, and even dolphin training sessions. If you have kids, you definitely shouldn't miss it. You can walk or take a bus from Shimoda Park. We walked, passing through a tunnel, taking about 20 minutes.

After the aquarium, we actually went to Shirahama Beach. Before that, we left the aquarium and looked for a place to eat lunch in the neighborhood. It was already 2 pm, and almost no restaurants were open. Just as we were disappointed, we found an "antique-looking" family restaurant run by a local old grandma. Very nostalgic. We ordered three rice bowls. After eating, we took public transport to Shirahama Beach. The sand was fine and soft, and many tourists and locals were surfing or playing in the water. There was also a famous "Red Gate with Sea View."

After visiting Shirahama Beach, we returned to the hotel. The last night's dinner featured a local famous red fish (kinki), which was delicious.

On July 6th, we chose a private car to Matsumoto, mainly to avoid the hassle of dragging luggage and transferring multiple times. The hotel shuttle picked us up around 10:30 am. Private cars in Japan are almost always 7-seat Toyota Alphards. To make it convenient for visiting Kamikochi and Nagano City, we chose a hotel near Matsumoto Station: Hotel LiT Matsumoto. It included three breakfasts for a family of three, and the room had a washing machine, which was convenient. That day, we washed clothes and dried them in the public dryer on the 2nd floor. However, the third child's bed was a futon mattress placed on the floor in front of the two beds—this felt not so good. It was the first time I had stayed in such a room layout. In the evening, we found a highly-rated wagyu yakiniku restaurant, which was excellent. We planned to go again after Kamikochi the next day, but it turned out the restaurant was closed on Mondays ("Monday rest"). So we found another yakiniku place nearby, but the quality was much worse.

On July 7th, Kamikochi day. The hotel was about a 10-minute walk from Matsumoto Station. For first-timers, here's how to buy tickets: At the station, use the machine shown in the picture to buy a ticket to "Shinshimashima." Then, at Shinshimashima Station, get off and buy the bus ticket into the mountains at the station there. Various platforms have many suggestions. For beginners, get off at "Taisho-ike" and then follow the path and the crowd forward. You won't get lost because there's only one road. The scenery along the way is picturesque.

On July 8th, we took the JR from Matsumoto Station to Nagano City. We chose the Hotel Metropolitan Nagano, which is part of the JR Group and connected to the station. We booked three nights. After tax, it was 1500 yuan for three adults including breakfast, 30 square meters, three beds. The breakfast was good, the room was clean, and the location was extremely convenient. The hotel is connected to JR Nagano Station, and there is no train noise at night—you can't hear it at all. If I go to Nagano again, I would still choose this hotel.

On July 9th, we planned a day trip to Togakushi Shrine. We bought the bus tickets to Togakushi at the tourist bus ticket center across from the hotel. Actually, we bought the tickets for the next day's trip to Happo-ike in Hakuba Village at the same time. To go to Togakushi Shrine, just board the bus at the ticket center gate according to the ticket time. After breakfast, we walked to the tourist bus stop in front of the ticket center and took the bus. About an hour later, we arrived at the entrance of Togakushi Shrine. From there, you need to hike in. The first 90% is flat, but the last part to the innermost "Togakushi Shrine" requires climbing steps. It took about 2 hours round trip with stops. Fortunately, the scenery was nice, and even in midsummer, the forest temperatures were cool. All my photos are unedited, no filters, and not auto-adjusted like many phones. Most were taken with a phone, some with a mirrorless camera.

Dinner that evening was at a local grilled seafood restaurant popular with young people, not far from the hotel.

On July 10th, we took a bus from the hotel entrance to Happo in Hakuba Village. A note: The ticket to "Hakuba Village" purchased at the ticket center can be boarded at multiple stops. At Nagano's Hotel Metropolitan, this tourist bus stops at the hotel's bus stop to pick up passengers, so hotel guests don't need to go to other boarding points—how convenient! After about an hour, we arrived at Happo in Hakuba Village. On the second floor of the arrival station, there is a "MONT-BELL" store, said to be the only "TAX FREE" directly operated store in Japan. We didn't browse the store first; instead, we went directly to the 3-stage ropeway ticket office (first photo below). From the station, walk up the road opposite, about 20 minutes, and we arrived at the ropeway ticket office. Remember to buy the full 3-stage ropeway ticket, which connects to the starting point of Happo-ike (see second photo below).

Heading to Happo-ike is challenging—you need to hike uphill. However, the mountain trail is paved with wooden planks, which is friendly for trekkers. Actually, at the start there are two paths: right and left. The right path is challenging—a rocky wild trail that is tiring but saves about half an hour compared to the left wooden plank path. The two paths eventually join somewhere above. You can choose. Our family leader took the rocky wild trail—exhausted me! But along the way, there were various wildflowers, all very beautiful. I thought if it were spring, the whole mountain would be covered—how beautiful. The whole hike took about 3–4 hours. We turned back after reaching Happo-ike. We took the ropeway to the second station, where there was a Starbucks. We ordered coffee and a local specialty mountain apple ice cream, and sat on the outdoor slope overlooking the distance... After a while, when we were about to take the last ropeway down, we noticed an outdoor shop there with various brands. The shop assistant told me in broken English that their clothes at the top were cheaper than at the foot of the mountain. Our family bought three long-sleeved T-shirts from "Chachat" at the mountain shop—really, about half the price.

After the three-stage ropeway, we had lunch at the restaurant next to the ticket office. We ordered three set meals, just our family of three. The shop looked very nice—the first photo below is the exterior, and the next two are the interior.

After lunch at the ropeway station entrance, we walked to the station, taking photos of the street scenes, still almost no other tourists. Then we went to the station and continued shopping at MONT-BELL on the second floor—don't miss the tax-free shopping.

We took the bus back to the hotel. Tired from the day, we needed to replenish. We had wagyu yakiniku again—wagyu yakiniku in Japan is indeed cheaper than in China.

On July 11th, we took the Hokuriku Shinkansen from Nagano to Tokyo, train number: Asama No. 162, departing 9:30, arriving 11:12 in Tokyo, total 1 hour 42 minutes, no delay. (We bought tickets from Nagano to Tokyo in advance on Ctrip, and printed them at the station in advance.) We've been to Tokyo before, so we didn't linger much. Our family leader suggested we stay at the Prince Hotel Shinjuku, which we stayed at last year—convenient for shopping and familiar with the area. Tokyo doesn't need much introduction; there are many posts on various platforms, you can refer to them.

If I have to recommend one thing, I suggest you check out a grilled beef tongue restaurant in Shinjuku called "Log 50." The storefront is strange, underground, with many people queuing. Most have reservations, but they also accept walk-ins. We went directly and were second in line, waiting about 20 minutes.

On July 13th, we returned to Shanghai. At Tokyo airport, you can only check in 3 hours in advance, so there's no need to arrive too early, otherwise you'll just wait. Also, you don't have to choose the same city for both departure and return. Flying between popular cities in different directions can be cheap, maybe even cheaper.

Finally, I'll post a video of the wildflowers we filmed while hiking at Happo-ike in Hakuba Village.

Travel notes directory:

1. Kyoto Trip (June 30–July 3)

2. Izu Peninsula (July 3–July 6)

3. Matsumoto City / Kamikochi (July 6–July 8)

4. Nagano City / Hakuba Village (July 8–July 11)

5. Tokyo City (July 11–July 13)

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