Your first 7 days in Japan (2026): a first-timer's itinerary for Tokyo, Hakone, Kyoto, Nara and Osaka
Day-by-day plan with times and yen costs, a before-you-fly checklist, Shinkansen big-bag rules, Kyoto's hotel tax, the new tax-free steps and why most first-timers shouldn't buy a JR Pass.
The written version of our video Your First 7 Days in Japan — one day at a time, just photos plus times, prices and tips.
| Day | Where | In one line |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Land in Tokyo | Airport → Suica → konbini dinner |
| 2 | Tokyo | Asakusa at 7 a.m., Shibuya at sunset |
| 3 | Hakone | Train, cable car, ropeway, pirate ship |
| 4 | Bullet train to Kyoto | Seat E for Fuji, Kiyomizu-dera after lunch |
| 5 | Kyoto | Bamboo at 7 a.m., Fushimi Inari at dusk |
| 6 | Nara → Osaka | Bowing deer, Dotonbori at night |
| 7 | Fly home | The new tax-free steps |
Before you fly
- 📶 Install an eSIM at home
- 🛂 Visit Japan Web (recommended, not required)
- 💳 Suica
- 💴 ¥20,000–30,000 cash
- 🧳 Book big bags
Suica (an IC card for trains, buses and shops)
- iPhone: Welcome Suica Mobile (180 days, no deposit)
- Android: the Welcome Suica card at the airport (28 days)
- Leftover money is not refunded → spend it before you go home
Cash: in 2025 about 58% of payments were cashless (by the government’s newer measure). Small shrines, food stalls and some ticket machines are cash only. Withdraw at a convenience-store ATM (Seven Bank takes most foreign cards).
Big bags on the Shinkansen: a bag over 160 cm (length + width + height) needs an oversized-baggage seat (no extra cost).
| Bag size (L + W + H) | What happens |
|---|---|
| Up to 160 cm | Fine as is |
| 160–250 cm | Reserve an oversized-baggage seat (free) |
| No reservation | ¥1,000 on board |
| Over 250 cm | Not allowed |
Day 1: Land in Tokyo
- 🚃 Narita → Tokyo ¥3,140 (Narita Express)
- 🚃 Skyliner ¥2,580
- 🚃 Haneda → city a few hundred yen (Keikyu)
- 🏨 Check-in around 3 p.m.
At the ticket gate, tap your card and keep walking. Dig through your bag before you reach the gate.
- Early? Leave your bags at the hotel front desk and head out (usually free)
- First dinner: the konbini is genuinely good
- Few public trash cans → carry a small bag
Day 2: Tokyo
- ⏰ Senso-ji at 7 a.m.
- 🌳 Meiji Jingu free
- 🌇 SHIBUYA SKY ¥2,700 (before 3 p.m.) / ¥3,400 (sunset)
- 🎫 24-hour subway ticket ¥1,000
Asakusa at 7 a.m. → Meiji Jingu and Harajuku at midday → Shibuya at sunset → Shinjuku at night.
Miyabi’s fun fact: Meiji Jingu’s forest was planted by people. About 100,000 trees donated from all over Japan, completed in 1920 and designed to become a natural forest in 100 years.
- Riding the subway 4+ times a day? The Tokyo Subway Ticket pays off (¥1,000 for 24 hours)
- Trains run until around midnight. Check your last train
- On the platform, line up at the door marks and let people off first
Day 3: Hakone
- 🎫 Hakone Freepass (2 days from Shinjuku) ¥7,100
- 🚄 Romancecar +¥1,200 each way
- ⏱ About 1.5 hours from Shinjuku
This morning’s trick: send your suitcase to your Kyoto hotel (takkyubin). It usually arrives the next day or the day after, for a few thousand yen per bag. Go to Hakone with just a backpack.
Mountain train → cable car → ropeway → pirate ship: one big loop.
- Owakudani’s black eggs: locals say each one adds 7 years to your life
- On a clear day, Mt. Fuji rises behind Lake Ashi (some days it hides)
- The ropeway can stop because of volcanic gas → check that morning
- If you stay, pick a ryokan with an onsen. Wash before you get in
Day 4: Bullet train to Kyoto
- 🚄 Tokyo → Kyoto Nozomi reserved seat about ¥14,000
- ⏱ About 2 h 15 min
- 🗻 Fuji is on the seat E side (going west)
- 🍱 Buy an ekiben before boarding
- Coming straight from Hakone? Take a Hikari at Odawara (the Nozomi usually doesn’t stop there)
- Line up at your ticket’s car number. The train stops for 1–2 minutes
- Big bags go in the space behind the last row
Kyoto accommodation tax (since March 1, 2026): per person, per night. For most travelers it’s ¥400.
| Room rate per person, per night | Tax |
|---|---|
| Under ¥6,000 | ¥200 |
| ¥6,000–19,999 | ¥400 |
| ¥20,000–49,999 | ¥1,000 |
| ¥50,000–99,999 | ¥4,000 |
| ¥100,000 and up | ¥10,000 |
Afternoon: Kiyomizu-dera (about ¥500) → Sannenzaka → Yasaka Pagoda → Gion.
Miyabi’s fun fact: the Kiyomizu stage is a frame of pillars without a single nail. The Japanese saying “jump off the stage of Kiyomizu” comes from Edo-period records of people who really jumped, hoping a wish would come true.
Day 5: Kyoto
- ⏰ Arashiyama bamboo at 7 a.m.
- 🦊 Fushimi Inari free, 24 hours (grounds)
- 🚌 City bus ¥230 (crowded)
- ⛩ Many temples close around 5 p.m.
Bamboo in the morning → Tenryu-ji → lunch at Nishiki Market → Fushimi Inari at dusk.
- At Nishiki Market, eat at the stall (not while walking)
- Fushimi Inari is quieter at dusk. The upper path is dark at night → bring a light
Miyabi’s fun fact: each of the thousands of torii gates was donated as thanks for a wish that came true. Look at the back: you’ll see the donor’s name and a date.
Day 6: Nara, then Osaka
- 🚃 Kyoto → Nara (Kintetsu) about 45 min, under ¥800
- 🦌 Deer crackers about ¥200
- 🏯 Todai-ji ¥800 (Nov: 8 a.m.–5 p.m.)
- 🦌 1,465 deer (August 2025)
- Show a cracker and a deer may bow. Don’t tease; when you’re done, show your open hands
- No human food. Take paper trash home (deer eat it)
- September–November the males get aggressive → keep back from deer with antlers
In the evening, Kintetsu straight to Namba, Osaka. At night, takoyaki in Dotonbori (it’s hot — let it cool for a minute).
Day 7: Fly home from Kansai
- 🚃 Namba → Kansai Airport (Nankai) about 45 min, ¥970
- ⏰ Airport 3 hours early
- ✈️ Departure tax ¥3,000 (usually in your ticket)
New tax-free system (from November 1, 2026): pay the full price with tax at the store; you get the tax back when you leave.
- Store: pay with tax, show your passport
- Airport: before you check your bags, scan your passport at the kiosk
- Green = done / red = show the items to customs
- Get your refund (how depends on the store)
| Rule | Detail |
|---|---|
| Minimum | ¥5,000+ (before tax), per store, per day |
| Deadline | Within 90 days of purchase |
| Used in Japan | No refund |
| One item missing | That whole receipt loses its refund |
Use up your Welcome Suica balance at airport shops.
The JR Pass math
- 🎫 7-day JR Pass ¥50,000
- 🚄 Nozomi with the pass +¥4,960 per ride
- 🚃 JR fares on this route about ¥20,000
Bottom line: on this route the pass loses you about ¥30,000. Hakone, Nara and Osaka are mostly private lines the pass doesn’t cover. Tap your Suica and buy one Shinkansen ticket. The pass pays off for long rides, like Tokyo to Hiroshima and back.
Trains for the whole week
| Leg | Cost |
|---|---|
| Narita → Tokyo (Narita Express) | ¥3,140 |
| Tokyo trains (3 days) | about ¥3,000 |
| Hakone Freepass + Romancecar | ¥9,500 |
| Tokyo → Kyoto (Nozomi) | about ¥14,000 |
| Kyoto, Nara, Osaka, airport | about ¥3,900 |
| Total | about ¥34,000 |
Estimates as of November 2026. Nozomi = normal-season reserved seat; booking early online is cheaper.
Your 7-day checklist
- eSIM, Suica, ¥20,000–30,000 cash
- Big suitcase: book a seat or send it ahead
- Temples in the morning, Fushimi Inari at dusk
- Seat E for Mt. Fuji
- Bow to the deer; no human food
- Airport 3 hours early; tax-free check before you check your bags
- Skip the JR Pass (on this route)
Want it on paper? Print our free one-page checklist.
For the basics, see our 35 Japan etiquette rules and the free manners sheet.
Watch Miyabi & Momo on YouTube
Sources
- JR Central — Oversized baggage on the Tokaido Shinkansen
- JR East — Welcome Suica / Welcome Suica Mobile (press release, PDF)
- City of Kyoto — Accommodation tax from March 1, 2026 (Japanese, PDF)
- Kyoto City Tourism Association — Accommodation tax (Japanese)
- Impress Watch — Cashless ratio in 2025, METI (Japanese)
- Keisei Electric Railway — Skyliner fares and tickets
- Ekitan — Narita Express fares
- Meiji Jingu — Establishment
- GO TOKYO — SHIBUYA SKY
- Tokyo Metro — Tokyo Subway Ticket
- Odakyu — Hakone Freepass
- Hakone Town Tourism Association — The Hakone Checkpoint
- Yamato Transport — TA-Q-BIN luggage delivery
- smartEX — EX Hayatoku 21 fares (PDF)
- Bernama (Kyodo) — JR Central Nozomi fare increase from July 2027
- japan-guide.com — Kiyomizu-dera
- Kiyomizu-dera — Official visitor information
- japan-guide.com — Fushimi Inari Taisha
- Todai-ji — Official site (admission)
- Kyodo (via JST) — Nara Park deer count (Japanese)
- Japan Exchange Group — Dojima Rice Exchange
- Japan Rail Pass — Official price list
- JR Central — Nozomi/Mizuho ticket for JR Pass holders
- JNTO — Japan's new tax-free shopping system
- National Tax Agency — New tax-free system leaflet (PDF)
- JNTO — International tourist tax increase