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Alrighty folks, this is going to be a beefy post as I’m going to be sharing all of the juicy details from our recent trip to Japan in the hopes that it’ll help those of you planning similar trips, or perhaps inspire some of you to consider heading to Japan for a future holiday. This post kicks off a short Japan travel tips series on the blog. I’ll also be publishing blog posts about shopping, packing and all of my outfits, but we’re going to get all the nitty gritty things out of the way first.
I’m bashing out this post in an offline Google doc as we’re flying home to Sydney (which is such a pretentious thing to type but now that I’m doing it, I totally understand the satisfaction of making that fact known to anyone and everyone who will listen). For those of you wondering (ie. none of you), the ground speed is 565mph, outside air temp is -50.8 degrees F. We’ve travelled 347 miles with another 4524 to go and all of that data is lost on me given it’s imperial and I only speak metric. My husband heroically volunteered and is currently filling out all six of our incoming passenger cards. My 5 year old has turned me into a pillow (see below) so I’m essentially stuck in my seat until the completion of his nap. Basically just a long-winded way of me saying that conditions are perfect for writing this blog post.
Current writing situation
As for our holiday, here are some quick dot points to set the scene:
- How long? 13 days
- Who? Me, my husband and our 4 boys (14, 12, 7 & 5).
- Itinerary? 7 nights in Tokyo, 5 nights Osaka, 1 night in Tokyo (at Haneda Airport given our early flight home)
- When? early October 2024 (during the NSW Term 3 school holidays)
As I flagged earlier, I’m going to prepare separate posts of other travel-related things, including everything I packed because it warrants its own post given we all travelled with carry-on luggage only. It was a real triumph if I say so myself. Admittedly, the packing preparation consumed me for WEEKS before the trip. I was obsessed about the weather and kept way too many lists of all the things I needed to do/check/double-check before leaving for our trip. My type-A personality really took a shining.
It was our first time overseas since Covid and we couldn’t have picked a better time. The weather was mostly great (mid-20s and typically humid, some rainy days) but more importantly, the AUD to JPY conversion was fantastic. At the time we flew out, $1AUD was hovering around the 99¥ mark but it remained steady at over 100¥ the entire time we were away.
We flew in and out of Tokyo and spent our first week in Tokyo, and our second week in Osaka (with day trips to Kyoto and Nara).
Let’s start off with a few general observations in the initial aftermath of the trip.
A few general observations in the initial aftermath of the trip
- Tokyo is huge. Like seriously big. Greater Tokyo has a population of over 40m people to give you an idea of its sheer size. And while the public transport system is great, don’t make our mistake and ensure you limit your daily adventures to a small area, otherwise you’ll find yourself spending a lot of time on trains (where you aren’t always guaranteed a seat – something to keep in mind if travelling with kiddos).
- Osaka is smaller in scale and the vibe is definitely more laidback and relaxed. For that reason, we enjoyed our time there more.
- Google Maps is amazing. It will essentially tell you which carriage of the train to sit on, the station exits you should make a beeline for – unless you decide to improvise (because you’re a crazy person), it’s impossible for you to get lost.
- Related to item 3 above, you’ll need the internet. Predominantly for navigation, but also generally too. We ended up buying an eSIM before our trip to save some cash as our home carrier’s roaming charges (Telstra, for those wondering) were $10 a day and on the pricier side for both me and my husband for the almost 2 weeks we were away. I talk about this more in my “stuff we organised before we flew out” section below.
- There are heaps of tourists – but it doesn’t feel touristy. We travelled during the school holidays, and encountered a heap of Australians who seemed to have the same idea.
- Public toilets are awesome. I appreciate this isn’t new information, but it warrants a mention. I had zero anxiety taking the kids for pit stops in train station bathrooms.
- Certain behaviours are frowned upon – like eating and walking, drinking and walking, blowing your nose in public, speaking loudly in public. We were constantly at our kids at the start of the trip but they got the hang of things after a few days.
- Vintage shopping is next level – and there’s lots of Americana. The secondhand shopping market is huge in Japan for clothing and bags and they take such good care of their gear. In an ideal world, I would have had an entire week to myself to browse leisurely through the vintage stores. I’ll talk more about my (brief) shopping adventures in a separate blog post to come.
- Japan sunscreen is superior. Rather than the thick sticky stuff you get back home, the texture and consistency of all the sunscreen we bought felt like moisturiser, and on my limited reading, it doesn’t reduce the efficacy. This video is great if you want a deep dive on the debate as to whether Australian sunscreen is better than Japanese sunscreen.
- Convenience stores are next level. We already miss the 7 Eleven, Lawson & Family Mart stores we visited daily.
- Japan’s sneaker game is strong – we spied so many locals in New Balance particularly. I didn’t know this before our trip so we felt so cool schlepping around in ours.
Now that I’ve reached 11 dot points, that seems like a catchy number to wrap up those initial observations.
Stuff we organised before we flew out
Our eSIM cards – my husband purchased eSIM cards for each of us via Airalo. From memory they were around $30AUD each for roughly 30GB of data. When we were chilling at our accommodation, we were logged into WiFi so the 30GB of data was more than sufficient for when we were out and about. Telstra offers international day passes for $10 a day but we both didn’t consider the math to be mathing in comparison to the value of the eSIMs.
Disneyland tickets – these were booked via Klook as soon as the booking window opened (2 months in advance) as we had a specific day in mind. I have a whole Disneyland section further down in this blog post.
TeamLab tickets – again, booked via Klook to keep things simple. We were able to scan our QR codes stored on the Klook app for straightforward entry.
Shinkansen tickets – my husband booked all our tickets via Klook where you can also select your seats in advance. For our flights and train trips, we would book 2 rows of 3 seats to ensure we sat together.
Some commonly asked questions
I put up a question box over on Instagram and received multiple questions on the same topics we also considered before our trip. In no particular order, here goes:
To JR Pass or not?
The price for a JR Pass increased by around 70% in October 2023, which has meant that for most, it’s no longer an economical option.
Whether or not you choose to buy a JR Pass ultimately depends on the cities you’re visiting but we did the calculations and found it to be cheaper to buy individual Shinkansen tickets via Klook given our travel was limited between Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto.
Disneyland!
I’ll try and keep this section short but it doesn’t reflect the amount of reading and videos we watched in preparation for our big Disney day. Tokyo Disneyland is notorious for being busy and crowded, so we strategically chose to go on a Monday to avoid the weekend. We booked our tickets via Klook to keep things simple.
We had every intention of arriving at the park at least an hour before it opened, given the fact that your day is effectively ruined if you don’t (according to the internet). We failed, and only managed to join the entry queue at 8:40am. Despite this, our day wasn’t a catastrophe. It was far from it. We walked in at 9:05am and hopped on our first ride at 9:15am.
A lot of the Disney content out there stresses the importance of having a “plan” for your day. Our “plan” was to go on as many rides as possible and we used the Tokyo Disney app to check off the rides with short wait times first (the Tokyo Disney Report app has all of the wait time info). This meant our day already felt full when we had to line up for the more popular rides.
We spent the entire day at the park, and left when it closed at 9pm. Here are the 12 rides we went on (in order):
- Star Tours
- Pinocchio’s Daring Journey
- Alice’s Tea Party
- Monsters Inc
- Beauty and the Beast
- Pirates of the Caribbean
- Jungle Cruise
- Western River Railroad
- Pooh’s Honey Hunt
- Splash Mountain
- Castle Carousel
- Big Thunder Mountain
We made use of the priority passes as they became available on the app (roughly every 2 hours), and managed to use that to shorten our queuing time for Pooh’s Honey Hunt, the Monsters Inc ride and Big Thunder Mountain. It’s possible to pay an additional fee for ‘premier access’ but we managed to avoid it.
For everything else, we joined the general queue. The two popular rides where we queued for lengthy periods were the Beauty and the Beast ride (roughly 85 minutes) and Splash Mountain (just over 70 minutes). And yes, they were both worth the wait. Everything is worth it at Disney!
We ate at the Queen of Hearts Banquet Hall for lunch and the Tomorrowland Terrace for dinner (FYI, the Baymax burger looked cute but it tasted a bit weird).
Our top Disneyland tips are:
- Arrive as early as possible, but your day won’t be a disaster if you show up after opening time.
- Download the Tokyo Disney Resort app before you arrive so you’re not faffing about with it while at the park. If you can, you should also pre-load your tickets to the app for smooth entry.
- Once you’re inside, you’ll be able to access the priority passes that refresh every couple of hours. My husband was on the ball with this and booked priority passes for Pooh’s Honey Hunt, Monsters Inc and Big Thunder Mountain for us.
Accommodation
Booking hotels for a family of 6 wasn’t straightforward. It seemed particularly tricky in Japan with the additional quirk that children 5 and under are assumed to co-sleep with adults so you have to pay additional fees for a separate rollaway bed for them.
Aside from the one night we booked at an airport hotel the night before we flew home, we very quickly ruled out hotels generally because of the hefty price tags and opted to stay in Airbnb accommodation instead. I was apprehensive about losing the safety net of a reception desk to help you out with all of the things, but we ended up being okay. We booked accommodation with highly rated hosts who were pretty responsive.
Hotels came out to be thrice the price for the 6 of us, and interconnecting rooms weren’t always guaranteed – something to be mindful of if you’ve got a big family too.
For our Tokyo leg of the trip, we booked a 3 bedroom home in Okubo in Shinjuku, very close to Little Korea, and around a 5 minute walk to the closest train station (Nishi-Waseda). Importantly, we were a 2 min walk from Lawson, Family Mart, and a 4 minute walk on either side of our accommodation was a 7 Eleven. I suspect wherever you stay, you’ll find yourself within a couple of minutes from one of these stores!
In Osaka, we stayed in a 3 bedroom apartment in a complex that was a 2 minute walk from Dotonbori, just above Nipponbashi station. The location was fantastic – it meant that my husband and I could duck out and have ‘me’ time while one of us stayed with the boys. But our sleep was disturbed by the sirens of the emergency vehicles late at night which was less than ideal. If we had our time again, I’d pick an area that was quieter (or perform better due diligence with sourcing quieter options).
Places to eat
You don’t have to travel far to find amazing food in Japan. In fact, it’s impossible to have a bad meal in the country. So many folks in their Japan travel tips have their go-to restaurants and we really just prioritised the places around us to keep it easy with kids in tow. So just go with your gut.
Some of our favourite meals we had were:
- Katsutaste Tonkatsu (2 Chome-7-5 Okubo, Shinjuku City, Tokyo 169-0072, Japan) – the owner was so sweet and despite the language barrier, she was very caring and accommodating with our boys
- Kurasushi (these are everywhere)- essentially the Macca’s of conveyor belt sushi but it was a favourite with the boys. You also get to play a game by slotting your empty plates through a chute and potentially win prizes. The chute swallowed up all 35 of our plates and we won a mediocre magnet. But the kids loved it.
- MOS Burger – enough said
- Melon Pan Ice Cream in Dotonbori (Shibata.Bld, 1 Chome-5-8 Dotonbori, Chuo Ward, Osaka, 542-0071, Japan) – we went here 3 nights in a row – it was so good! There’s a line but it moves relatively quickly. Listen out for the Melon Pan song that’s blasting on the speaker once you’re at the front of the line. It’s equal parts cutesy and annoying (depending on how you see the world).
- Suwaki Kouraku, Chuka-soba Osakajo near Osaka Castle (Japan, 〒540-0002 Osaka, Chuo Ward, Osakajo, 3−1 ＴＥＲＲＥ－ａ－Ｓ 2F 大阪城公園内 JO-TERRACE OSAKA E) – delicious ramen and ample space to eat with a big family just outside the restaurant
- Okonomiyaki Zen in Kyoto (23 Nyakuojicho, Sakyo Ward, Kyoto, 606-8444, Japan) – highly rated and in a perfect location after walking down the Philosopher’s Path. Service was abrupt (and hilarious) likely because of the high volume of tourists that frequent the joint.
We also had a couple of konbini dinner nights too. And we relied heavily on convenience stores for breakfast. The kids went absolutely nuts with onigiri during the first few days but switched to all things baked after they got completely sick of sushi (which I learned was possible). My husband and I were the same, and ended up resorting back to our usual yoghurt & granola combo after a couple of days.
Kid-friendly experiences in Japan we recommend
Disneyland – a no brainer, see above. This was our family’s first foray at a Disney theme park, hence opting for Disneyland over Disneysea. You’re guaranteed to have a magical time at whatever park you choose.
Teamlabs Planets – we’d read so much about this and saw so many shorts on YouTube, but experiencing it was another thing. You MUST go. It’s essential to book ahead to avoid disappointment (we saw a number of people arrive and attempt to buy tickets on arrival though there was no availability for at least 5 hours). You should also book a time slot as early as possible – as I’ve read it can start to smell like feet towards the end of the day given you’re required to make your way through without shoes & socks.
Osaka Kids Plaza (2 Chome-1-7 Ogimachi, Kita Ward, Osaka, 530-0025, Japan) – this features on a lot of “rainy day things to do” lists but it was a great place for the kids to blow off some steam. Public playgrounds leave a lot to be desired in Japan (limited grass area, really old play equipment), so the kids loved the few hours we spent here. You can also bring in food from outside and have lunch on the many tables they have available. There’s also a great outdoor space adjacent to the centre too – so you’ve got the option of lunching indoors or outdoors.
Cat Cafe (Japan, 〒150-0001 Tokyo, Shibuya City, Jingumae, 1 Chome−14−25 クロスアベニュー原宿 4F) – these are everywhere, but we stumbled across the Mocha Cat Cafe in Harajuku after visiting the Meiji Shrine and the kids loved this. For 30 minutes, it was roughly $71AUD, but you get unlimited drinks from their vending machines. Like good little Asian kids, the boys stocked up on those as we walked out 😉
We took the kids to all the major sites in town – the shrines, temples, gardens etc. This was probably the most difficult part of our day as our kids showed zero interest and were often bored. Our tip is to make sure you find a playground nearby so they can burn off some energy and have something to look forward to. We found ourselves bribing the kids with ice cream to buy silence while my husband and I were trying to enjoy the sites.
What the kids enjoyed most and their top tips (in their own words)
While walking around the Imperial Palace Gardens in Tokyo, I asked the boys to give us their top travel tips / observations about Japan and here are some of the delightful things they shared:
Master 5:
- Be careful around the trains so you don’t get squished.
- Don’t push someone into the train gap.
- Don’t run in the Disneyland park because you might slip.
- Come see Disneyland.
Master 7:
- Trains are busy.
- If you go to Disneyland, go very early so you are not stuck in big lines.
- Don’t eat sushi every single day because you might get sick of it.
- Make sure to see all of the famous stuff in Japan.
- The currency is yen. 100 yen buys $1 Australian dollar.
- The arcades are very fun.
Master 12:
- Don’t eat and walk.
- Don’t drink and walk.
- Keep an umbrella on you all the time.
- Go to Disneyland.
- Get the fettuccini candy from the convenience stores (the grape flavour is the best)
Master 14:
- Try the melon pan – it’s the cheapest at Lawson but they’re all good.
- Don’t speak too loud in public.
- Offer your seat on the train for locals.
And while we’re at it, the biggest boy in our house, my husband:
- When travelling with kids, Japanese parks are subpar. Consider private shopping centres such as the Isetan rooftop.
- Tokyo is very big and takes a long time to get anywhere. But the trains are fantastic and Google Maps is your friend.
- Early morning walks are highly recommended. It’s very quiet and it’s interesting to see locals exercise in the park.
L to R: Masters 5, 12, 7 and 14
Other sightseeing things / useful things to know
Train tickets – We ended up buying Welcome Suica cards for the family (it’s the tourist version of their Suica card that lasts for 30 days). The proper Suica cards aren’t available at the moment due to a worldwide shortage of card chips (who knew?). However, the Welcome Suica cards aren’t widely available everywhere so you’ll need to make a beeline for a station that sells them (we bought ours from the JR office in Shibuya).
Airport transfers – we flew in and out of Haneda Airport and while there’s a train station at the airport, if you’re travelling with kids, just book a taxi. It cost us around $90AUD and it meant that we didn’t need to faff about buying train tickets and navigating the train network with our luggage and grumpy kids. The drive was over 40 minutes to our accommodation in Shinjuku so it was $90 well spent in my opinion.
Re Nara – it’s a bit kitschy, and probably a place we would skip if it were just me and my husband. Though it’s very difficult to describe the sound that deer make – so it’s worth a visit for that alone.
Re Kyoto – it’s beautiful, but we only set aside time for a day trip. Again if was just me and my husband, we would have probably stayed the night here to properly visit the shrines, particularly Fushimi Inari Shrine which we couldn’t manage to get to. Our boys were particular killjoys on our Kyoto day – grrr.
Mount Fuji alternative – we would have loved to have paid a visit to Mount Fuji but we couldn’t make it work with the limited time we had. Instead, we went on a day trip to Mount Takao, which involved a train ride about an hour out of Tokyo. On a clear day, you get a beautiful view of Mount Fuji from the summit. Sadly, it rained on the day we went but it was still a great walk nonetheless. There are lots of cute restaurants along the walk to have lunch and there’s also a cable car and chair lift that you can take (to cut the hiking time in half).
I hope you found my Japan travel tips to be helpful! And if you have any questions, feel free to pop them in the comments below.
Arigato!
