Three beautiful weeks during the Japanese autumn

Conclusion: A varied trip. We tasted some excellent dishes. The weather was perfect (except for rain 2 days in Tokyo and 1 day in Osaka). If we did it again, we wouldn’t change a thing. Budget per person for 3 weeks: Flight: 1180 € Accommodation: 1200 € Transport: 360 € Entry fees: 180 € Food: 800 €

Thanks so much, Patrick, for this travel journal. I really enjoyed following it and I’ll definitely be revisiting it when Japan is on the agenda! 😊

Thanks for this trip report—I really enjoyed reading it. The many photos illustrating the story are also super interesting.

Thanks Patrick for this autumn travel journal. I’ve only just finished reading it—I didn’t have time during the holidays.

I have to admit that Japanese cities don’t really appeal to me. I hate crowds. Our son rented a van and they traveled around Japan sleeping in it. They mostly visited off-the-beaten-path spots. I think I’d prefer that way of traveling. But for now, Japan isn’t part of our plans.

Conclusion: A varied trip. We tasted excellent dishes. The weather was perfect (except for 2 rainy days in Tokyo and 1 in Osaka). If we did it again, we wouldn’t change a thing. Budget per person for 3 weeks: Flight: 1180 € Accommodation: 1200 € Transport: 360 € Admissions: 180 € Food: 800 €

I just skimmed your story—it blew me away! What an amazing trip! I’ve never been to Japan except for 2 days on a business trip to Tokyo, but that doesn’t really count. I’m planning my first *real* 2-week trip to this country that’s fascinating me more and more, from late September to early October (after 2 weeks in Taiwan), but it’ll be more ‘classic.’ I’ll come back to your story to pick up some ideas for Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, and even Matsumoto. And it’s not out of the question that I’ll return to Japan next year!

Among other things, I’m noting the budget you mentioned, which I’m translating as 2540 € per person for 3 weeks, excluding flights—that works out to 850 € per person for 1 week, right? So for a couple, I should budget around 3400 € for 2 weeks? That’s cheaper than I thought until now...

It’s not the most exciting question, but you’ve got to look at the financial side of the trip—Japan isn’t a cheap destination!

Ah, so you're the ones who got all the sunshine! [;)] We were there the second half of October, and the sun wasn’t really on our side—just white skies and rainy spells.

Lovely varied itinerary you took the time to share all the way through! [:)]

Japan isn’t exactly a budget destination!

Apart from the cost of flight tickets, Japan is actually quite reasonable price-wise. It all depends on the activities you do, the sights you visit, and the accommodation you choose. A few prices that surprised us: - the cost of a bottle of water from vending machines: 100 yen - the cost of entry to a temple: 150 yen - the cost of stamps to France: 140 yen

I didn’t break down all our expenses, but our budget for 15 days came to 3,500 € per person, including flights (2,000 €), and we visited theme parks (Universal and Disney).

Conclusion: A varied trip. We tasted some excellent dishes. The weather was perfect (except for 2 rainy days in Tokyo and 1 in Osaka). If we did it again, we wouldn’t change a thing. Budget per person for 3 weeks: Flight: 1180 € Accommodation: 1200 € Transport: 360 € Admissions: 180 € Food: 800 €

I just skimmed your story, and it blew me away. What an amazing trip! I’ve never been to Japan, except for 2 business days in Tokyo—but that doesn’t really count. I’m planning my first *real* 2-week trip to this country that’s fascinating me more and more, from late September to early October (after 2 weeks in Taiwan), but it’ll be more ‘classic.’ I’ll revisit your story to pick up some ideas for Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, and even Matsumoto. And it’s not out of the question that I’ll return to Japan next year!

Among other things, I’m noting the budget you mentioned, which I’m translating as 2540 € per person for 3 weeks, excluding flights—that works out to 850 € per person for 1 week, right? So for a couple, I should budget around 3400 € for 2 weeks? That’s cheaper than I thought...

It’s not the most exciting question, but you’ve got to consider the financial side of the trip—Japan isn’t a cheap destination!

Yes, excluding flights, which are a big part of the budget. I booked our accommodations 8 months in advance to get good hotel choices at reasonable prices. As for meals, you can stick to good ramen for 1500 yen or go for more sophisticated meals at 4000–5000 yen per person.

Japan isn’t exactly a budget destination!

Aside from the cost of flight tickets, Japan is actually quite reasonable price-wise. It all depends on the activities you do, the sights you visit, and the accommodations you choose. A few prices that surprised us: - the cost of a bottle of water from vending machines: 100 yen - the cost of entry to a temple: 150 yen - the cost of stamps to France: 140 yen

I didn’t break down all our purchases, but our budget for 15 days came to 3,500 € per person, including flights (2,000 €), and we visited theme parks (Universal and Disney).

The entry price for temples was more like 500 to 1,000 yen