Final Plan - Japan 2011

[godwine]

Hey Guys

So I have finally slapped the detail plan together. Some of you blasted me for doing Burberry shopping during my Honeymoon (And I understand your point), but this time, this is not MY trip, i am only the tour guide, so please go easy on me if you think "Why are you going all the way to Japan to just shop"

Here goes:

June 6 - Arrive in Kansai, going to check in to Dotonbori hotel, dinner around Dotonbori/Namba

June 7 - Morning: Kobe. Night: Umeda area.

June 8 - Travel to Tokyo. Hotel will be in Odaiba (probably the HNT). Lat afternoon, shopping and signtseeing around Roppongi

June 9 - Morning: Harajuku - Visit Takeshita dori and the brand name stores along Omotesando, Omotesando Hills. Afternoon: Shopping around Shinjuku

June 10 - Morning: Electronics shopping around Akihabara. Mid Afternoon Asakusa. Late afternoon - Evening - Shibuya (there is a 19 years old girl coming with us, so I figure this is a good place for her to do some fashion shopping

June 11 - Morning: Lala Port. Afternoon - Evening: Minato mirai 21, do some shopping or sightseeing around china town

June 12 - Open day for them. I am going to visit my uncle in Omiya, and I will be going to the JR museum with my wife

June 13 - Fly to New Chitose and travel to Furano (staying at Furano Prince)

June 14 - early morning: Visit the cheese and wine factory. Mid afternoon: Visit the lavender field

June 15 - Travel to Sapporo. Hang around the city for the Hokkaido Matsuri. Late evening, go to Susukino to do a bit of shopping/sightseeing, dinner will be at the Ramen Yokocho

June 16 - early morning: Visit the Nijo Market. late morning - Mid afternoon: Travel to Noboribetsu. Check in to the onsen resort, relax

June 17 - Flight returning to Toronto

Thoughts?

[GoNative]

Personally I'm not a big fan of Noboribetsu. Since the bubble days it really hasn't weathered all that well. Doubt anything there has even had a facelift since the early 90's. I would suggest Toyako (which isn't that far away). To be honest the onsen town there is in need of a little facelift as well but I reckon it's got more attraction with the lake and Mt Uzu overlooking it.

[godwine]

Originally Posted by GoNative

Personally I'm not a big fan of Noboribetsu. Since the bubble days it really hasn't weathered all that well. Doubt anything there has even had a facelift since the early 90's. I would suggest Toyako (which isn't that far away). To be honest the onsen town there is in need of a little facelift as well but I reckon it's got more attraction with the lake and Mt Uzu overlooking it.

Ooh, thanks, i can still change that plan, i mean.. let me look up toyako.. which resort should we stay in? They want something grand, soemthing that offer a nice meal

And the reason why I looked at Noboribetsu is because my research seems to suggest that the onsen are "real natural"... i didn't want to take them to somewhere that just boil their water

I have never been to Hokkaido, so any help will be appreciated

[GoNative]

Lots of nice hotels at Toya and it is right beside an active volcano that last blew up in 2000. There's a part of the town that got heaved up around 70m during those eruptions. You can walk through the ruins, areas that were houses and roads are now craters and a cracked landscape with sulphorous fumaroles. Obviously the onsens here are genuinely naturally hot!
The lake itself is really beautiful with islands in the middle that can be accessed by a ferry. On Mt Uzu there is a ropeway from which you get great views of the lake and back down on Showa Shinzan, a smaller volanic peak that grew out of a farmers field during WWII. You also get a view on the other side out over the Sea of Japan. All in all a spectacular region. I spend a lot of time there in summer camping. The lake also has a whole heap sculptures around it which are pretty cool.

Here's some pics

From the ropeway looking back over the lake in winter



Looking back down to Showa Shinzan



A nice shrine at the lake edge



Awesome place for camping in the few warmer months we get up here

[princessmarisa]

Fellow shopping lover here haha, don't just leave an evening for Umeda. It is one of my fav areas and you really need to be there during a daytime to have time to look around it all.
Akihabara is far less electronics and far more otaku these days, if you like this try make time to go to den den town in Osaka too as it just as Otaku but much friendlier and less intense!
It is also better to go to aki at late afternoon/early evening night because all the lights will look better on the shops and most of the arcades and stuff come to life at night.

If you are not even the tiniest bit into anime/video games/otaku you wont "get" akiba very much and will probably just scratch your head at all the toy shops and be outraged/confused by some of the dodgier places and goods for sale

[godwine]

Originally Posted by princessmarisa

Fellow shopping lover here haha, don't just leave an evening for Umeda. It is one of my fav areas and you really need to be there during a daytime to have time to look around it all.
Akihabara is far less electronics and far more otaku these days, if you like this try make time to go to den den town in Osaka too as it just as Otaku but much friendlier and less intense!
It is also better to go to aki at late afternoon/early evening night because all the lights will look better on the shops and most of the arcades and stuff come to life at night.

If you are not even the tiniest bit into anime/video games/otaku you wont "get" akiba very much and will probably just scratch your head at all the toy shops and be outraged/confused by some of the dodgier places and goods for sale

yeah thanks for the advise, i actually haven never been to den den.. or amerikako no particular reason, just didn't have the urge to go. but i am familiar with Akihabara.. tihs will be my 7th or 8th trip to japan, just never been to Hokkaido, kinda need help with that

[princessmarisa]

Originally Posted by godwine

yeah thanks for the advise, i actually haven never been to den den.. or amerikako no particular reason, just didn't have the urge to go. but i am familiar with Akihabara.. tihs will be my 7th or 8th trip to japan, just never been to Hokkaido, kinda need help with that

By Amerikako do you mean amierkamura/amemura/triangle*something* between shinsaibashi and namba in Osaka?

I went it is kinda teenage girl shopping paradise, kinda the harajuku of that area. Didn't see anything that American though, at all

If you mean somewhere else do let me know

I loved den den so much, even more than akiba, it was friendly and so many random little collectable shops and sale figurine shops and a massive specialist gundam shop with all kinds of other merch and clothes in it as well as kits

oooh and sorry if i sounded patronising had no idea it was your 8th trip wow
This year will be my 3rd

[GoNative]

One thing to note about Hokkaido in June is that it's a hell of a lot cooler than down Tokyo way. Expect the nights to still be getting down close to 10 degrees celcius (50 F) especially around Furano. Days should be nice up around the high teens to low 20's (mid 60's to mid 70's F, sometimes higher). June is not normally an overly wet month but it can still be very cloudy and feel quite cool. So make sure you have a jacket packed for when you head up north.

[godwine]

Originally Posted by princessmarisa

By Amerikako do you mean amierkamura/amemura/triangle*something* between shinsaibashi and namba in Osaka?

I went it is kinda teenage girl shopping paradise, kinda the harajuku of that area. Didn't see anything that American though, at all

If you mean somewhere else do let me know

I loved den den so much, even more than akiba, it was friendly and so many random little collectable shops and sale figurine shops and a massive specialist gundam shop with all kinds of other merch and clothes in it as well as kits

oooh and sorry if i sounded patronising had no idea it was your 8th trip wow
This year will be my 3rd

Do not worry, keep the suggestions coming.....

GoNatve - I thought that Hokkaido would have climate very similar to Toronto Canada. Its crazy cold if its 10 degrees in June, that means i need to have the family bring both summer AND autumn outfit

[Firebird]

I´d second Gonative opinion, if possible rather go to Toyako. The Onsen are natural and the Area is nicer than Noboribetsu. The walk through the ruins are really special if you haven´t seen natural destruction of houses and streets before. When i visited there was a nightly firework at the lake as well. Noboribetsu seemed very artifical to me and it is a bit aged.
Here are my 2 webblog-posts with pictures to Noboribetsu and Toyako.
The pictures from noboribetsu are all inside the Town or in walking distance. In Toyako i haven´t stayed directly in the city but the surrounding Area is great, however i´d recommend to rent a car in Sapporo for this day trip ( the destroyed are is a bit outside).

For shopping in Tokyo: Have you thought of Kichijoji? Its the are mosz of my japanese friends recommend and i did like it alot. There are no real speciality shops like in Harajuku but it still serves a young and hip crowd.

Firebird