Sample itinerary of Tokyo, Hakone, Kyoto and Osaka classic route in 7 days

7 to 9 days
Senso-ji temple and Tokyo Skytree in Asakusa ©Yasufumi Nishi/©JNTO
Highest mountain, Mt. Fuji from Lake Ashi, Hakone  ©Odakyu Electric Railway/©JNTO
Highest mountain, Mt. Fuji from Lake Ashi, Hakone ©Odakyu Electric Railway/©JNTO

Some of you are wondering if you should use JR pass or not for one way trip from Tokyo to Osaka via Hakone and Kyoto. Actually JR pass does not meet this trip. The price of 7-day JR pass is 29100 yen. One way base fare from Tokyo to Kyoto or Shin-Osaka plus Shinkansen surcharge is around 14000 yen. As long as you have one way trip from Tokyo to Kyoto or Osaka, JR pass is way more expensive than single fare. Even if you use JR pass when you stay in Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka, it is not realistic to spend another 15000 yen. Base fare in these cities is 200 to 500 yen.

In this post, I show you the sample itinerary and some deals in these cities.

*When you follow this sample itinerary, please check the updated timetable. You can find more information about timetable at the link below:

Guide to plan your trip. How to find Japan Railway’s timetables

Day 1 Narita or Haneda airport to downtown Tokyo

New train E259 series Narita Express
JR’s airport express train, Narita Express

Suggested deals for Narita passengers

There are many deals available. Please refer the following link about Narita deals:

Suggested deals for Haneda passengers

Please refer the following links:

Day 2 Tokyo

Senso-ji temple and Tokyo Skytree in Asakusa ©Yasufumi Nishi/©JNTO
Senso-ji temple and Tokyo Skytree in Asakusa ©Yasufumi Nishi/©JNTO

Enjoy sightseeing in Tokyo.

You can find the detailed information of train system in downtown Tokyo in the link below. You also can find the information about the deals:

In Tokyo, the single fare is very reasonable because of a short trip. The regular fare may be cheaper if you visit one or two places. You may use IC card, such Suica or Pasmo instead:

Day 3 Tokyo to Hakone

Owakudani is one of Must-See spots in Hakone.  ©Odakyu Electric Railway/©JNTO
Owakudani is one of Must-See spots in Hakone. ©Odakyu Electric Railway/©JNTO

Suggested itinerary
08:53 Shinjuku
Odakyu railway’s limited express “Romancecar” Hakone 9
10:35 Hakone-Yumoto

Leave your baggage at hotel or locker at the station. Enjoy sightseeing Hakone all day.

Odakyu Railway is most convenient to get Hakone and cheaper than JR trains. You can purchase base fare ticket and Hakone Free Pass Odawara departure at Odakyu Sightseeing Service Center at Shinjuku station.

Suggested deals

Base fare ticket (Shinjuku – Odawara) and Hakone Free Pass (Odawara departure 2 days)

You may find more information about Hakone Free Pass and Odakyu Railway in the link below:

Hakone Free Pass official site

Shinjuku departure Hakone Free Pass (5140 yen) is not required for this itinerary. Because it includes round trip to/from Shijuku. But you do not come back to Shinjuku and leave Hakone then go to Kyoto next day. Of course single fare for Shinjuku-Odawara is cheaper than the difference between Shinjuku departure Hakone Free Pass and Odawara departure Hakone Free Pass.

Once you get Hakone, use Hakone Free Pass as much as you can. You can get most of places in Hakone by this pass.

I recommend you to stay in Hakone for at least one night. But if you want to visit Hakone as “luggage free” day trip from Tokyo, Hakone Free Pass Shinjuku departure is the best deal.

I have the post which explains about the access to Hakone and the trip plan in Hakone in the link below:

Day 4 Hakone to Kyoto

Fushimi Inari shrine is most popular spot in Kyoto in these days. ©Kyoto Convention Bureau /©JNTO
Fushimi Inari shrine is most popular spot in Kyoto in these days. ©Kyoto Convention Bureau /©JNTO

Suggested itinerary
09:40 Hakone-Yumoto
Hakone Tozan Railway
09:54 Odawara
10:08 Odawara
Hikari 507
12:13 Kyoto

Odawara station is the nearest JR station to Hakone. You can catch the the Tokaido Shinkansen to get Kyoto. Please find the details about Odawara station at the following:

There are some Shinkansen train, “Hikari” stop at Odawara and takes you to Kyoto without any transfer. I picked 10:08 departure, Hikari 507. Please see the timetable at the link below and find the train what you want to take:

JR Central official site – The Tokaido and the Sanyo Shinkansen timetable

You may find Hikari which stop at Odawara mostly every two hours. Please try to catch this kind of Hikari. This is the fastest and direct way to get Kyoto from Odawara.

There is no deals to cover the trip from Odawara to Kyoto. The base fare ticket and the Shinkansen seat fee ticket are required to take the Tokaido Shinkansen. You can purchase these tickets in advance if you want. The Shinkansen and limited express surcharge tickets can be purchased at most major JR stations that have reservation window, a.k.a. “Midori no Madoguchi”. The base fare ticket also can be purchased with surcharge ticket at same time. If you do so, you can just transfer from Hakone Tozan Railway train to the Shinkansen at Odawara.

If you follow my suggested itinerary, you have half day for sightseeing in Kyoto. I recommend you to visit south part of Kyoto, like Fushimi Inari. It’s just 5 minutes away from Kyoto station by Nara line local train. If you want, you can visit even Nara.

If you need some more information about Kyoto station, please refer the link below:

Day 5 Kyoto

Arashiyama is very popular in any season.  	© soryofu/© JNTO
Arashiyama is very popular in any season. © soryofu/© JNTO

You can enjoy in Kyoto for all day.

Please refer the links below to find the information of train system in Kyoto and deals in Kyoto.

Day 6 Kyoto to Osaka

Osaka castle is very accessible. ©Osaka Government Tourism Bureau/©JNTO
Osaka castle is very accessible. ©Osaka Government Tourism Bureau/©JNTO

Suggested itinerary
09:14 Kyoto
Special rapid
09:43 Osaka

I use JR train, Special Rapid which is the fastest way to get Osaka (Umeda). It is a sort of commute train. Only base fare is required to take this train.

There are many other trains running between Kyoto and Osaka. Please see the link below to find the train network in Kansai area:

After arriving in Osaka, you may add the deal as you need.

Day 7 Osaka to Kansai airport

There are some deals available. Please see the link below:

Summary and total costs

If you have one way trip from Tokyo to Osaka, as you read above, the key is how to combine some local deals and the regular fare ticket. In this itinerary, approximate total cost is 23,000 to 26,000 yen. It is cheaper than JR Pass 7-day. And JR Pass does not cover Hakone area, subway and city bus in Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka. You might feel the total cost is very close to JR Pass 7-day. But actual different is much bigger.

I show you 7 days itinerary but you can extend staying in Tokyo, Hakone, Kyoto or Osaka. And also I have another sample itinerary that includes Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka only. Please see the following post to find it.

I hope this post will help you to build your trip plan to Japan!

Comments

  1. Kevin says:

    Hi Takeshi!

    I am planning a trip and was hoping you could take a quick look at my itinerary and help me with some of my questions

    May 19-22 – Tokyo
    May 22-23 – Hakone (Hakone Free Pass)
    May 24-25 – Kyoto
    May 26-27 – Osaka (Day trip to Nara)
    May 28 – Tokyo

    1) Would the JR pass be the cheapest and most efficient option?

    2) Are there any edits to this you would recommend? Additional locations/day trips?

  2. Kas Gounden says:

    Hi Takeshi
    We are a group of 4 adults trying to tour Japan on our own on a low cost budget.
    24-27 March 2018 …..Tokyo, Shinjuku
    27 March …. Shinjuku to Hakone ( sightsee for half a day plus onsen experience)
    27 March …… Hakone to Kyoto
    27th, 28 th. …..Kyoto
    29th….. Osaka
    30 th… fly out of Osaka international

    Please can you advise how we could save on base fares, etc on this routing. Any other suggestions. Just wondering how much time is needed for the loop in Hakone.

  3. Marina says:

    Hi takeshi
    I plan to travel to Japan fr 23rd feb to 3rd mar 2018. My plan is below:
    23rd feb (D1) arrive at Haneda airport at 10.30pm
    24th feb (D2) tokyo
    25th feb (D3) tokyo
    26th feb (D4) yamagata
    27th feb (D5) hakone
    28th feb (D6) Kyoto
    1st mar (D7) osaka
    2nd mar (D8) osaka
    3rd mar (D9) depart at 11am fr osaka-kansai airport

    When is the best time for me to activate the 7 day JR pass. And kindly advice the additional pass that i should get.

    Also I am not sure if about the Yamagata or Hakone first fr Tokyo before proceed to Kyoto.

    Thanks.

  4. sonia says:

    Hi Takeshi,

    I have the following itinerary :

    3 nights in Tokyo
    1 night in Sounzan
    3 nights in kyoto
    1 night in Hiroshima
    Train back to airport in Tokyo

    Does it make sense to get the JR pass?

    Thanks for your help,

    Sonia

  5. Janice says:

    Hi Takeshi!
    I will be travelling to japan in the following itinerary :
    Tokyo (3 days)
    Yokohama(day trip)
    Hakone (2days)
    Kyoto (4days)
    Osaka (3days)

    1. You mentioned taking the shinkansen from odawara to kyoto and osaka by buying the Shinkansen reserved seat surcharge (Odawara-Kyoto) and Base fare ticket (Odwara-Kansai airport), and then reactivating it when i travel from kyoto to osaka. Does the reactivation work if i am staying in kyoto and osaka for more than one day each?

    2. You also mentioned that for going to Kansai airport i can reactivate base fare and take Kansai airport rapid, i don’t have to pay for anything else?

    3. Same as point 2, for travel from kyoto to osaka if i take the special rapid i don’t have to pay anything else if have the shinkansen base fare?

    3. Can Pasmo or Suica be used in all the places i am travelling to?

    4. Can i purchase any of the above tickets online before my trip? if yes, where can i purchase them?

    Apologies for the long inquiry! I am intending to travel alone for the first time so i am a little worried.

  6. Carol M Scoville says:

    This is such a helpful service. Thank you!
    We are arriving Yokohama by cruise ship Apr 1.
    Apr 2 to Hakone.
    Apr 3 to Kyoto.
    Apr 5 (morning) to Osaka
    Apr 5 (evening) Osaka to KIX-Kansai.
    Can we use JP 7 day pass for entire itinerary?
    Can we use Bullet train on pass?
    Yokohama to Tokyo included?

  7. Angelica says:

    Hi Takeshi,

    My husband and I are going Japan.
    Arriving in osaka – Kanazawa – kagaonsen – Kanazawa – shirakawago – takayama – gero onsen – takayama – Toyama – Shibu onsen
    Then we will be meeting my family in Tokyo
    Shibu Onsen – Tokyo (7days) – Lake Kawaguchiko – Hakone – Kyoto (5-6 Nights)- Hiroshima day trip – Osaka (2nights)

    Would buying the 21 Days JR pass be suitable?

    • Hi Angelica,

      21 days may be more expensive than regular fares total. But there is no other deals available to cover your trip. If you want convenience, 21 days pass is okay. Or if you can get back to Kyoto in 14 days and can include day trip Hiroshima in 14 days period from arriving days, you may use 14 days pass. If you can’t, 21 days pass is your choice.

      Cheers,

      Takeshi / JPRail.com

  8. Miss S says:

    Hi there,

    I will be travelling from Tokyo to hakone to Kyoto then to Osaka from the 12 December to the 20th December. I will be using the exact transportation method as per your itinerary.

    However, I would like to ask if there is an expiration date for the odawara-kansai base fare ticket? This is because I will be stopping for 3 days in Kyoto and 3 days in Osaka before finally heading to Kansai airport.

    My itinerary is as follows:

    12 – arrive at Tokyo, head to hakone
    13 – Hakone
    14 – arrive at Kyoto
    15 – Kyoto
    16 – Kyoto
    17- Arrive at Osaka
    18 – Osaka
    19 – Osaka
    20 – Head to Kansai airport

    Also, as I will be buying single tickets instead of the Japan railway pass, can I get all the tickets for my trip at Shinjuku station so I don’t have to buy them individually at different stations?

    Thank you very much.

  9. Sari says:

    Hi Takeshi!

    Planning a family trip to Japan on April. Our itinerary starts from Tokyo- hakone- kyoto- tokyo. Is it best to purchase the 7 days JR pass or buying singles tickets instead? Which is more convenient to this trip?

    Thanks,
    Sari

  10. Dori says:

    Hi Takeshi –

    I think I would need to follow your posted itinerary but just want to be sure.
    I would be traveling from Tokyo to Hakone , Hakone to Kyoto, Kyoto back to Tokyo.

    Could you please advise? Thank you so much.

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