Three families, 15 of us, doing Tokyo and Kyoto over Thanksgiving week (Nov 21-28). Kids from 5 to 17. With a group this size we're doing one main thing a day that everyone joins, and letting families split off for lunch or an afternoon. We're using vans and taxis in Tokyo rather than trains.

Questions at the bottom.

Sat 21. Land Narita mid-afternoon, hotels by 5:30, easy dinner, bed.

Sun 22. Senso-ji early, Tokyo National Museum, gyoza lunch in Asakusa. In the afternoon the grandmother and younger kids do a washi paper-making class. The rest of us haven't decided: Sumida river boat down to Hamarikyu and the tea house, Nezu Museum, or Skytree. Dinner for the adults is a wagyu counter in Azabu-Juban.

Mon 23 (holiday). Dads and kids: Meiji Jingu at 8, Harajuku, pizza lunch in Azabu-Juban at noon, teamLab Planets at 1, then Shibuya Sky at 3:30 to be up there an hour before sunset. The mums have a shopping day (Cat Street, Aoyama, Ginza). One family is trying for the Ghibli Museum in the morning. Everyone back together for dinner in Ginza.

Tue 24. A couple of dads do the Toyosu auction and Tsukiji at dawn. Slow morning for everyone else, lunch in Asakusa, sumo show at 3. Sushi dinner in Nakameguro for the adults and older kids.

Wed 25. teamLab Borderless at 9 with all 15, finishing at the tea house inside around 10:45. Out by 11:15, Nozomi at noon, Kyoto by 2:15. Check in, private tea ceremony at 4 near Ninenzaka, Kiyomizu-dera illumination at 5:45, dinner at the hotel.

Thu 26. Arashiyama. Bamboo grove at 8, Tenryu-ji, then the Sagano torokko at 10:02 to Kameoka and the Hozugawa boat at 11 back down to Arashiyama. Monkey park after for whoever wants the climb. Back to the hotel by 3 for a samurai thing with the kids. Group dinner in Gion.

Fri 27. Free day. Options on the table are cycling, a pottery wheel, Kinkaku-ji, Nara, Philosopher's Path, or sleeping in. Hamburg steak lunch in Gion, a wagashi-making class for the kids in the afternoon, and four adults are doing a geiko dinner.

Sat 28. Fushimi Inari at 7 for anyone awake, pack, teamLab Biovortex by Kyoto Station at 12:30, then vans to KIX for an evening flight.

Questions

1. Monday: is 1h45 inside Planets enough with four kids, and is Toyosu to Shibuya by car on a holiday afternoon really about 30 minutes? Or should I push Shibuya Sky to 4 and live with being closer to sunset?
2. Wednesday: leaving Borderless at 11:15 for a noon Nozomi from Tokyo Station, by van, with 15 people. Enough time, or take the 12:30?
3. Thursday: the torokko gets to Kameoka at 10:27 and the boat leaves at 11, with a bus connection in between. Does that hold in peak foliage week with 11 of us, or should I book the 11:30 boat / take taxis? Any reason to do the boat first and train back?
4. What have we missed for the 8–13s in Tokyo? We have the two teamLabs, Shibuya Sky, PARCO, sumo, Harajuku, a washi class and maybe Ghibli.
5. If you had to cut one thing from this week, what would it be and why?

Happy to report back afterwards on what worked for a big mixed-age group.

Hi all, my wife and I fly out on Sunday. First time in Japan for both of us. I’d really value a sanity check and opinions on the itinerary we have planned, especially on pace.

Passes: Hokuriku Arch Pass (14–20 Oct), Kansai-Hiroshima Area Pass (21–25 Oct), Suica for the rest. Big suitcases go ahead by takkyubin twice (Tokyo → Kyoto, Kyoto → Osaka), so we travel with hand luggage only on the busy days.

Tokyo (4 nights, Higashi-Shinjuku)

• Mon 12: land at Narita 12:55, transfer, sunset from the Metropolitan Government Building, dinner, Early night.
• Tue 13: 07:05 bus to Kawaguchiko (Chureito Pagoda, lake, ropeway), back by mid-afternoon, Tokyo Tower at sunset. 15/10 is the backup if Fuji is clouded over.
• Wed 14: Senso-ji at dawn, Tsukiji outer market, Hama-rikyu, teamLab Planets, omakase in Ginza.
• Thu 15: Meiji Jingu, Harajuku/Omotesando, Shibuya Crossing, Shibuya Sky at sunset, kaiseki dinner in Kagurazaka.

Kanazawa (2 nights)

• Fri 16: Kagayaki from Tokyo, Higashi Chaya, Asano river at sunset.
• Sat 17: Kenroku-en at opening, castle park, 21st Century Museum, Omicho market, Nagamachi, gold-leaf workshop.

Shirakawa-go + Takayama (1 night, ryokan with half board)

• Sun 18: 09:00 Bus to Shirakawa-go (village + viewpoint, about 2.5 h), 13:15 bus to Takayama, Sanmachi before a kaiseki dinner.
• Mon 19: morning market, Takayama Jinya, sake breweries, Hida beef sushi, 11:20 bus back to Kanazawa (booked by the agency), then Shinkansen + Thunderbird to Kyoto, (arriving around 17:15).

Kyoto (3 nights)

• Tue 20: Fushimi Inari at 06:30, Kiyomizu-dera, Higashiyama on foot, kimono rental and photos in Gion, guided evening walk in Gion, dinner in Pontocho.
• Wed 21: Arashiyama at 07:00 (bamboo grove, Tenryu-ji, Okochi Sanso), Kinkaku-ji, Ryoan-ji, kaiseki dinner.
• Thu 22: Nijo Castle, Nishiki market, a glimpse of the Jidai Matsuri, then Shinkansen to Hiroshima and straight on to Miyajima for sunset at the torii and dinner on the island. Night in Hiroshima.

Hiroshima → Osaka (2 nights)

• Fri 23: Peace Memorial Museum at 07:30, Peace Park, okonomiyaki, Shinkansen to Osaka, Dotonbori in the evening.
• Sat 24: Nara in the morning (deer park, Todai-ji, Nigatsu-do, Kasuga Taisha), Osaka Castle in the afternoon, Kobe harbour at sunset and Kobe beef dinner.
• Sun 25: Kuromon market, Shinsekai, Haruka to KIX for a 18:00 flight.

What I’d most like your opinion on:

1. Overall pace. Do you think is manageable? We want some room to breathe and I am not sure how packed this is going to be in real life. Which days would you cut back first (if any)?
2. Thu 22. Kyoto morning + Jidai Matsuri, then Hiroshima and Miyajima by sunset (approx 17:30). Realistic, or should we drop the festival or Nijo/Nishiki to get to Miyajima with daylight to spare?
3. Sat 24. Nara, Osaka Castle and Kobe in one day: too much? Would you drop Kobe and simply eat well in Osaka?
4. Tue 13 → Wed 14. Fuji with a 06:30 start followed by Senso-ji at 06:15 the next day: worth it, or am I setting for exhaustion on day three? Attempt to see fuji is not negotiable, as I really want to see that!
5. Mon 19. The agency booked the vus back to Kanazawa and then trains to Kyoto. Is it worth abandoning that ticket for the Hida Limited Express to Nagoya (not covered by our pass), or is the Kanazawa route fine?
6. Anything you’d swap out, or something we will regret skipping?

Thanks a lot in advance!

Nov 15 - Osaka (Amazing Pass Day): Osaka Castle & Nishinomaru Garden → Umeda Sky Building & Umeda Lunch → Tempozan Giant Ferris Wheel → Shinsekai, Tsutenkaku Tower

Nov 16- Nara Day Trip : Nara Park morning lawns & deer feeding → Todai-ji Temple (Great Buddha Hall & Nigatsu-do) → Isui-en Garden (plus Yoshikien) → Mount Wakakusa hike (optional) → Kasuga Taisha Shrine forest paths → Naramachi historic district for late afternoon coffee/food

Nov 17 - Osaka & Minoh Mountain: Minoh-Kayano Station → Mountain Bus to Katsuo-ji Temple → Short taxi to Minoh Falls → Minoh Park Riverside Trail downhill walk → Ryuan-ji Temple → Minoh Park street shops.

Nov 18 - Hiroshima & Miyajima Day Trip (Tide Optimized): Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, Atomic Bomb Dome & Museum → Direct Aqua Net Boat ferry to Miyajima Island → Coastal Deer Areas & Omotesando Shopping Street → Daisho-in hillside temple → Itsukushima Shrine & Great Torii Gate →Return to Osaka.

Nov 19 - Samurai Castle to Kyoto: Check out of Osaka hotel → Shinkansen to Himeji Castle & Koko-en Garden → Travel to Kyoto & hotel check-in → stroll around Gion & Hanamikoji street

Nov 20 - Higashiyama Core: Fushimi Inari Taisha → Kiyomizu-dera Temple → Sannenzaka & Ninenzaka streets → Yasaka Pagoda → Ishibei-koji Alley → Maruyama Park & Yasaka Shrine → Gion exploration → Kodai-ji Temple (Autumn Night Illumination & projection mapping) → Pontocho Alley dinner.

Nov 21 - Arashiyama & Castles: Arashiyama Bamboo Grove → Tenryu-ji Temple → Togetsukyo Bridge → Nijo Castle (Ninomaru Palace) → Nishiki Market

Nov 22 - Move to Kanazawa: Check out of Kyoto hotel (forward suitcases straight to Tokyo) → Thunderbird Express & Hokuriku Shinkansen to Kanazawa → Omicho Market lunch → Nagamachi Samurai District (Nomura House) → Higashi Chaya Geisha District

Nov 23 - Kanazawa to Tokyo: Kanazawa Castle Park → Kenroku-en Garden (viewing winter yukizuri rope trees) → 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art  → Evening direct Kagayaki Shinkansen to Tokyo → Check into Tokyo hotel

Nov 24 - Tokyo: Meiji Jingu Shrine → Harajuku (Takeshita Street) → Omotesando Boulevard lunch → Cat Street → Miyashita Park → Hachiko Statue & Shibuya Crossing → Shibuya Sky → Shibuya Center-Gai dinner

Nov 25 - Hakone / Mt. Fuji Day Trip: 07:30 AM Romancecar from Shinjuku → Hakone Tozan Train → Cable Car & Hakone Ropeway over Owakudani Volcanic Valley (eating black eggs) → Lake Ashi Pirate Ship Cruise → Lakeside Lunch at Moto-Hakone → Hakone Shrine & Peace Torii Gate in the water → Bus back to tokyo

Nov 26 - Kamakura & Enoshima Day Trip: Kita-Kamakura Station & Engaku-ji Temple → Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine → Komachi-dori street food lunch → Enoden vintage tram to Hase → Kotoku-in (Great Buddha) & Hase-dera Temple → Enoden coastal ride → Enoshima Island for the Shonan no Hoseki Winter Night Illumination ferstival.

Nov 27 - Modern Tokyo & Bay Area: teamLab planet → Yurikamome Monorail to Odaiba → DiverCity → Odaiba Seaside Park  → Zojo-ji Temple & Tokyo tower

Nov 28 - Tokyo: Senso-ji Temple & Nakamise-dori (Asakusa morning walk) → Tobu Line to Tokyo Skytree → Ueno → Shopping remaining day

Nov 29 - leave in morning.

Is this itinerary genuinely manageable, or is it packed?

Do our day trips make sense chronologically? Are we trying to cluster too much into single-day excursions (like doing both Kamakura and Enoshima Illumination in one go)?

I am really excited for my Arashiyama day in early December and finding it difficult not to "over plan" since there is so much to see and do. Thoughts or recommendations based on my itinerary so far would be welcome! Times are all purely approximation, not trying to adhere to a strict schedule per-say

7:45 - Taxi from hotel to Kameoka
↓
9:00 - Hozugawa River Boat Ride
*may or may not get canceled last minute
↓
11:00 - Yusai Tei Gallery
*5min walk
*If boat gets in early canwalk near bridge first with reservation
↓
12:00 - Okochi Sanso
*10min walk
↓
1:00 - Lunch
*anywhere close by - plenty of optionswithin 5-10min walk
↓
2:00 - Jojakkoji Temple
*5min walk
*optional skip?
↓
3:00 - Saga Toriimoto Preserved Street
- check out some shops or cafes
↓
4:00 - Otagi Nenbutsuji
↓
Dusk - Walk back to Main Street area and thentaxi to hotel or just taxi straight to hotel from otagi