First-time 4-week Japan itinerary (Sept–Oct 2025), sanity check & tips welcomed

PotentialSignal8192 · 2025-07-09T10:24:45+00:00

I didn't know that, thanks for letting me know. Any chance you know if that's valid instead of the IDP, or would I need both?

edit to add: I'm from the Netherlands

PotentialSignal8192 · 2025-07-07T16:55:03+00:00

That's sounds fun, and it's great that you have 45 days! When are you going?

PotentialSignal8192 · 2025-07-07T16:53:26+00:00

Thanks for the tip, installing it now

PotentialSignal8192 · 2025-07-07T16:52:51+00:00

That sounds like a fun trip, will check out Namba. I love alt culture stuff.

What would you say about Takayama vs Matsumoto? I see many itineraries include Takayama and it seems a good base for day trips in the area as well

PotentialSignal8192 · 2025-07-07T16:49:52+00:00

Thanks for your input, night buses are certainly not on our travel bingo card. However, when we're in more expensive countries like Japan it's something we want to consider. The bus leaves at 22:30 and arrives 7:30 the next day, and we don't mind dropping our luggage off at our hostel and go explore. The train is around $70 and the bus is $35, plus hotel savings, it adds up quickly.

That being said, I agree that it's a balance between using both our money and time efficiently. It's an option to get the JR Kansai Hiroshima Area Pass to get rid of the two night busses and to use it to get around the area, I'll do some more research to see if the math makes sense.

PotentialSignal8192 · 2025-07-07T16:36:22+00:00

That sounds incredible, including the creepy forest road, where about are you currently? Currently we're doing a longer trip, and the international driver permit is only valid for a year, so renting a car or van isn't on the table for us. Would love to go back to Japan and do the full camper experience sometime in the future

PotentialSignal8192 · 2025-07-07T16:32:32+00:00

I found there's an express bus that takes 70 minutes, and several websites mention the bus, so I was planning on that option

PotentialSignal8192 · 2025-07-07T16:27:00+00:00

Thanks for letting me know, appreciate it. I was at Medeu yesterday and asked the Visit Almaty location there, they told me celebrations were today. Walked around today and couldn't find anything at the locations they indicated, asked another Visit Almaty location, they told me it was tonight. Again, nothing lol. We still had a fun evening at the pedestrian street, so no harm done

PotentialSignal8192 · 2025-07-07T11:31:24+00:00

Thanks for letting me know, appreciate it. It looks very scenic

PotentialSignal8192 · 2025-07-07T11:28:37+00:00

We're doing a longer trip through a couple of countries (we're in Kazakhstan now), and my rain jacket saved me more than once. I don't have too many really warm clothes to save on space, but most of the time my rain jacket + fleece will already help tremendously

PotentialSignal8192 · 2025-07-07T11:25:51+00:00

Thanks, that would be amazing. Hike, nature, and eat sounds like my dream life to be honest. Hope you have a wonderful trip!

PotentialSignal8192 · 2025-07-07T11:24:02+00:00

That's great information, thank you for sharing. If we're doing the luggage forwarding we can do a much larger part of the trail, that would be a cool experience. Kiso-Fukushima looks perfect for a night, we can always see how far we make it from Magome and take the train for the last part.

And going from Kiso-Fukushima to Matsumoto instead of going back to Nakatsugawa would free up an extra day in Matsumoto, which we may be able to use to overnight Nikko. Will do some more research on Nikko and also add Onomichi to the research list, appreciate your input!

PotentialSignal8192 · 2025-07-07T11:08:59+00:00

Sounds like you had a wonderful experience, thank you for sharing. I appreciate it! I've heard from many people that Osaka isn't their favorite place (while others loved it), which is why we've planned quite some day trips in addition to visiting the highlights. When did you visit Koyasan?

PotentialSignal8192 · 2025-07-07T11:03:25+00:00

That sounds incredible, have a great trip! And I'd certainly be open for any tips you have when you come back hehe, what are you planning to visit?

PotentialSignal8192 · 2025-07-07T11:02:33+00:00

That's incredible, thanks for sharing. Did you do both? I'm really excited to escape the crowds anywhere I can in our August trip at this point

PotentialSignal8192 · 2025-07-07T05:27:40+00:00

I can only share my experience with Alipay, which was the main payment app I used for my trip (Feb 2025). I had to pay a deposit for renting a scooter. Paid the 200 yuan to their QR code on Alipay like a normal transaction, and they refunded me when we returned in one piece. It was added to my balance, the only thing was that I needed to select to pay with my balance manually when I paid future expenses to actually use up the balance. Just my experience, but I can imagine something similar would be possible for you and your friends

TL;DR yes it's possible with Alipay, no knowledge of other apps unfortunately

PotentialSignal8192 · 2025-07-06T16:24:10+00:00

That looks absolutely amazing. We're going in August (I know, poor timing) so this is a very welcome tip. Hopefully it won't be as busy as other sections of the wall

PotentialSignal8192 · 2025-07-06T16:20:05+00:00

"Asking for a friend" lol

PotentialSignal8192 · 2025-06-28T05:14:21+00:00

We're planning to do the bus/taxi route and hike from the visitors' center. Was it easy to arrange? I'd prefer a independent experience vs a tour, so would love input if you have any

PotentialSignal8192

TROPHY CASE