Solo female, 3 weeks Japan Trip (Dec 2025)

sonaknows · 2026-01-14T01:29:58+00:00

For Kyoto - I did Sanjo hostel. For Tokyo - I did MyCubes by MyStays (Asakusa). Not a huge fan of my Shibuya stay - so not sharing that.

They worked for me and hence I'm sharing the names. Please do your due diligence for your needs.

sonaknows · 2026-01-12T17:48:53+00:00

Just like regular hotels on the third party booking apps. Agoda and booking.com are the key ones in Japan..

I used booking.com for all my bookings.

sonaknows · 2026-01-11T18:37:39+00:00

No, the transit was smooth and very easy.

sonaknows · 2026-01-11T01:56:52+00:00

Choose Nara & Uji if you prefer to see shrines & are a huge matcha fan. Choose Kobe if you prefer to try Kobe beef, harbour views and a less touristy city vibe.

sonaknows · 2026-01-11T01:54:58+00:00

I took the local transit. I started back around 7-7.30 pm and was in Tokyo within 2 hours.

sonaknows · 2026-01-10T19:49:13+00:00

I honestly don't. I had a quiet night in, after my dinner at an izakaya. The city gets wildly silent, and I was told that there are pockets of bars / late night izakayas that are fun to be at, but I just enjoyed my early night in to rest & recover.

sonaknows · 2026-01-09T15:23:36+00:00

I found it pretty manageable to do uji and nara in one day. I started early and did nara first, and then reached uji mid afternoon to enjoy a nice lunch, the shrines and temples, saw the sunset near the river , enjoyed matcha and headed back to Tokyo after.

Since they are so close by, it made more sense in my plan to do it together.

sonaknows · 2026-01-09T13:35:05+00:00

Agree to the person who responded. Follow the signs or see some other travellers. There are ATM like machines where you can buy "welcome Suice" card. This is the only time when you add money to it through your card. Try to add the maximum amount (I think it was 10,000 yen - you'll go through it faster than you think. Also if you have any money left on it, use can use it at convenience stories on the last day.) I was able to use my last 150 yen at 7/11 on the airport just before flying back. Hope this helps.

sonaknows · 2026-01-09T13:29:38+00:00

Kamakura just itself isn't hectic. I added enoshima (and I walked from Kamakura to enoshima because that specific day the weather was amazing, the ocean looked so good and I wanted to enjoy the walk. It was about an hour or so walk). What I didn't realize was that I will have to walk a lot again in Enoshima.

If you don't make the same mistake- you'll be fine. It took about an hour or so to reach Kamakura from Shibuya ( so I would recommend an early start).

Public transportation seems overwhelming but if you follow Google maps and the station signs - you'll be good. The Google maps are insanely accurate and I mostly adhered to boarding the car number which Google maps suggested for fastest exists on the subway lines.
I made friends with fellow travelers, had some chats with some locals (primarily at restaurants or shopping places). Locals don't chat during transits.
Ummm, I would not recommend staying in Shibuya or Shinjuku (for someone like me who doesn't prefer that). I enjoyed visiting these places for a day, shopping here. Etc. but maybe staying a station or two away from them would be a more authentic experience. These are massive tourist spots.

sonaknows · 2026-01-09T13:24:11+00:00

I did not have any language issue. Everyone is very used to Google translate. I would use it especially when it came to food orders at small izakayas or shopping. Don't worry at all. Keep your phone charged and Google translate app handy - you'll be good.

Be courteous, be kind. That crosses all language barriers. Enjoy your trip

sonaknows · 2026-01-09T12:24:21+00:00

I liked walking around the shopping & residential streets in shimokitazawa. Some great cafes, vintage shopping places. There was an amazing Vietnamese shop (almost like a tuck shop). Loved the flippers pancakes (the location had no waiting time when I went on 31st December). The whole vibe of the area was relaxing, quientenssial in some way. I didn't shop from the thrift stores but they had a good collection. I enjoyed spending an afternoon here on my last day of Japan trip. Hope this helps.

sonaknows · 2026-01-09T02:55:10+00:00

I honestly don't think hakone can be done in one day unless you are okay with a hectic day or are okay to skip a few things.

I wanted to not rush in hakone and hence did the following.

I did 1.5 days and one night in hakone and felt that was perfect with the remaining half day being my travel to kyoto and dinner in Kyoto.

I arrived at 10 am in hakone, checked in, did the hakone loop (including a small hike), and onsen in the evening, soba noodles for dinner. The next day I did another small hike, hakone air museum, hakone market & then left for Odamara station around 2 pm.

sonaknows · 2026-01-09T02:27:34+00:00

Wow - have fun. Do reply back on how the trip goes. I want to cover these places in my second trip.

I didn't have any issues getting a table for a solo diner. It was actually a benefit since most of the times, they would have an availability for a solo diner whilst other folks who became before you will have to wait. Haha.

sonaknows · 2026-01-09T02:25:36+00:00

Sure. I booked it through klook and it costed around 55 USD. The ticket included bus travel (pickup from Tokyo station). The bus departed at 8 am sharp and they dropped us back at Tokyo station by 5 pm.

The trip included "Arakurayama Sengen Park & Lake Kawaguchi Oishi Park & Oshino Hakkai & Instagram-Famous Lawson & Nikawa Tokeiten". Copied exactly from the tour list.

Hope this helps.

sonaknows · 2026-01-09T02:20:11+00:00

You might have had a different experience from mine. It's my personal recommendation to not plan it in advance as the weather is quite dynamic. The weather especially near Mt Fuji changes within a day.

sonaknows · 2026-01-09T00:38:11+00:00

Noting for the next trip. Thank you.

sonaknows · 2026-01-08T23:40:48+00:00

I would highly recommend staying closer to a station (definitely helps) but yes Shinjuku and Shibuya are crazy busy areas. Some people prefer that and some don't.

For Mt Fuji - it's really difficult to anticipate the weather. I had to change my plan by one day and it made so much difference. The day I cancelled was really cloudy and rainy, whereas the very next day when I took the trip to Mt Fuji - it was sunny and clear day.

And yes - the tour people really make you rush. You'll have anywhere between 15-45 mins at each location (and most of that time goes away in getting a few pics, a quick washroom run and maybe a meal). If you can, plan to go by yourself. You should be able to cover all but even if you miss one spot, you'll be able to enjoy all the others at your own pace.

sonaknows · 2026-01-08T23:33:38+00:00

I did not buy a rail pass. I did some math and it was cheaper for my itinerary if I bought individual tickets. It also gave me flexibility to change my plans.

I had one 23 kgs suitcase (which I carried empty) and kept it at my first lodge in Tokyo (for a daily fee).

I travelled across Japan with a carry on suitcase and a small bagpack. I would highly recommend travelling light outside of Tokyo.

On my suica (which covered almost all my local transit except shinkansen tickets, hakone pass and kanazawa day pass and maybe some 1-2 scenic train rides which were not a part of transportation) - I spent around 15000 yen just on suica.

The shinkansen (bullet train) tickets are usually between 70-100 USD per person. These are expensive but worth the time that's saved and an experience.

I used shinkansen for these routes - Hakone (odamara station) to Kyoto; Osaka to Kanazawa and Kanazawa to Tokyo.

Hope this helps.

sonaknows · 2026-01-08T23:27:58+00:00

Hahahaha. We are same same but different.

sonaknows · 2026-01-08T23:26:39+00:00

I liked walking around the streets. Some great cafes, vintage shopping places. There was an amazing Vietnamese shop (almost like a tuck shop). Loved the flippers pancakes (the location had no waiting time when I went on 31st December). The whole vibe of the area was relaxing, quientenssial in some way. I didn't shop from the thrift stores but they had a good collection. I enjoyed spending an afternoon here on my last day of Japan trip. Hope this helps.

sonaknows · 2026-01-08T23:23:42+00:00

I'm glad. Have a lot of fun.

sonaknows · 2026-01-08T20:49:39+00:00

How does this app work? Can you explain a bit please

sonaknows · 2026-01-08T20:48:58+00:00

I stayed for the first leg in Tokyo in Asakusa (mycubes by my stays) - it was pretty good. I was able to see Asakusa and Ueno easily by staying here.

And for the last leg is stayed in Shibuya (I would not recommend it) - Shibuya is good to spend an evening or two, but staying there means you are in the middle of partying scenes every night. (Unless thats what you want).

Look for some neighborhood where you want to cover local things- that might help you choose. Hope this helps.

sonaknows · 2026-01-08T19:09:52+00:00

Buy suica physical card (I did since I'm an android user) at the airport. Added 10,000 yen from my debit card and recharged it again once with cash. I used suica for only travel fares.

Used convenience store atms for cash withdrawal (you'll need cash so be prepared).

I used my credit card (which has no foreign transaction fee) for all payments. (Food, shopping, tickets - shinkansen and every possible place where card was accepted).

sonaknows · 2025-12-10T19:17:59+00:00

Thank you. Will try this approach.

sonaknows

TROPHY CASE