Planning trip to Japan in December: where should I go? (also some concerns)

Hey guys. I finally have the ability to travel outside of the U.S., and I'd love to go to Japan. I'm planning a trip for this December. This will be my first time going to another country and obviously my first time in Japan, so I'd like some suggestions on where to go for a first-timer. I'm interested in Tokyo, but I'm also interested in areas that are more traditional and less like a big bustling metropolis.

My only concern is radiation. I know this has probably been discussed a lot here, but I'd like to hear some input directly to ease my mind. From what I've heard, the radiation levels in much of the country are safe - sometimes even lower than cities like NY, Denver, Rome, etc. but it seems like maybe the situation is different when you're receiving radiation from the ground rather than spillage in the air and settling on everything. Any truth to that?

I really don't want to have to go somewhere else. I've decided I am going somewhere in December, and Japan is #1 on the list if radiation isn't a real concern. I'll only be there a couple weeks at most.

Radiation levels shouldn't be of concern unless you travel in eastern Fukushima, in proximity to the Daiichi plant. As you mentioned, the background radiation in Central Europe and some cities in the US is higher than in Japan. Travel without fear.

streetwaver said:

Hey guys. I finally have the ability to travel outside of the U.S., and I'd love to go to Japan. I'm planning a trip for this December. This will be my first time going to another country and obviously my first time in Japan, so I'd like some suggestions on where to go for a first-timer. I'm interested in Tokyo, but I'm also interested in areas that are more traditional and less like a big bustling metropolis.

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How long is your trip going to be? Two weeks? Exactly when in December? December is pretty snowy in the mountains and on Hokkaido then, but from the sounds of things, you won't be headed to either location.

Usually, when people say they want "more traditional" places, they get advice about going to Kyoto or Nara. What else can you tell us about your interests?
castles
shrines
temples
various specific examples of culture
etc.

I also suggest visiting the lonelyplanet.com/thorntree site.

My only concern is radiation. I know this has probably been discussed a lot here, but I'd like to hear some input directly to ease my mind.

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As mentioned, put your mind at ease and focus on what you want to sightsee.

Alright guys thanks for the peace of mind on the radiation issue. It sounds like it's not much of a problem unless I for some reason really, really wanted to visit the nuclear reactors.

I figure for my first trip - and likely the only one I'll take for a while - I should at least see Tokyo, even if I'm usually interested in more quaint type things than big cities. Maybe I should stay there, but from there take a train to various other places like Kyoto or Nara? I'm interested in seeing temples and things of that nature, and of course any examples of natural beauty I can find.

It'll be late December to early January. I may only stay a week, and then maybe fly from there to another location like somewhere in China. I've got a couple of weeks to do some traveling so I'd like to make the most of it.

If you're interested in seeing a castle, don't bother with Osaka castle or Nagoya castle, or Okazaki castle or any other of the castles rebuilt after WW2. Some better ones for you to see would be Hikone Castle or Himeji Castle. If you like turn of the last century stuff, you could go to Meiji-Mura in Aichi prefecture and stop by Inuyama castle while you're at it. I thought that the ruins of Azuchi castle in Shiga prefecture were really intriguing, as well.

Another good place to visit is Hiroshima and Miyajima.

Kyoto and Nara are pretty standard.

Kamakura, near Yokohama, is pretty cool, too.

If you're not careful, your memories of Japan are going to be primarily of train stations and train interiors. What I'm saying is that by trying to jam too much geography into too short a time period you end up spending most of your vacation engaged in riding trains to get to and from places.

It may on a map look convenient to use Tokyo as a base of operations and then just lightheartedly hop on the train and pop down to Kyoto or Nara and return to Tokyo in the evening. Unfortunately, that just ain't the case.

Decide if you want to do a lot of places very shallowly or a few places more in depth; time constraints prevent doing both. I've never cared for the dash-in-snap-a-picture-dash-out type of tourism myself, but some people prefer it. I've just come back from a solo motorcycle tour up to Yamagata to see the 即身仏 (sokushinbutsu: priests who after years of grueling ascetic practice entered their graves alive in hopes of becoming mummified and attaining Buddhahood with their bodies preserved). I spent a couple of hours at one place....during which I got to hear the lecture about seven times, as others got ushered in and out. At another place, the following day, I spent five hours at the temple (and was the only visitor). I only had to visit about half a dozen places, all conveniently close enough together to be visited in one day at the typical tourist pace; I allotted myself three days to see them.

I know a Japanese man who once visited Turkey for two weeks. He spent the entire two weeks in one neighborhood of Istanbul, seeing it as deeply as he could and getting to know the people. He had a fantastic time and doesn't regret not dashing about all over the place trying to cram an entire country into his short visit.

It may not be nice to say this, but if you've never been to Japan before it really doesn't matter that much where you go, especially if you do the dash-about-madly routine. The reason is that on short and shallow acquaintance a whole lot of what you're going to see in one place is going to very strongly resemble what you will see in any other place. So much so that I would bet you find yourself wondering why you half killed yourself dashing from one city to another one, since they all pretty much look alike anyway.

Hi!

Like the others said, radiation is really not something you should worry about.
If this is such a big concern, then stay away from Fukushima and maybe Miyagi Prefectures.

A pretty standard route for first-timers is: Tokyo-Kyoto(Osaka)-Hiroshima
Like Glenski said, it really depends on many things, though.
What are you interested in the most? How long will you stay in Japan?
Some areas in Japan get a lot of snow in winter and it might be difficult to travel around, other areas are BEST to be visited in winter, so I'd like to suggest a few things:
Shirakawa-go is stunning in winter!
The snow monkeys in Nagano are a must-see while they're bathing in a hot spa in the snowy mountains!
Visiting an onsen resort such as Kusatsu in Gunma might be a nice idea, too, but it really depends on how much time you have.
If you're interested in Ninja, then I recommend Iga-Ueno to you.

Mike Cash said:

It may on a map look convenient to use Tokyo as a base of operations and then just lightheartedly hop on the train and pop down to Kyoto or Nara and return to Tokyo in the evening. Unfortunately, that just ain't the case.

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Plus, the only way to even make this a viable option at all is to take the bullet train. That gets real expensive real quick.

It looks like his visit will coincide with the New Year hubbub, which can become a factor regarding transportation.

Another important question is: How do you feel about crowds? Don't mind them? Or can't stand them?

The first time I ever went to Japan was in December. I went to Osaka at the time and visited Kyoto and Kobe. Let me tell you it was COLD! I don't mean that it was below freezing, because it wasn't. In fact it rained a couple of times. But it got cold because central heating in Japan is nowhere near as prevalent as it is in the USA (where I came from). Once the cold set in, it was really hard to shake it. I imagine that you'll be staying in a hotel, so it'll be less of an issue, but you should be warned that heating in Japan is very different than in the US at wintertime.

Himeji castle is very nice, but you can't see it now. It is under major reconstruction.

If you only have a week, plan on visiting only about 2 cities. Personally, I don't find Tokyo all that fascinating, especially in winter. Go south.


If you insist on Tokyo, get a guide book and see what you can fit into a few days.
Kamakura for the big Buddha.
Imperial Palace.
Gawking in Akihabara electronic district.
Tsujiki fish market.

Not much more. Perhaps a day trip or overnight trip to Hakone to see Mt. Fuji. A week is VERY little time.

If you base yourself in Osaka for the week, you'll have plenty of places of visit that aren't too far.
Kyoto, with all its temples.
Osaka for the big city.
Kobe for its food. And they used to be real famous for their Christmas lights. I don't know if they still do that now. (I really like Kobe, by the way.)
Nara for its temples and nature.
Mino for its wild monkeys...but don't get too close. Wild monkeys are only cute from afar. Don't know how active they are in December, though.
That should be a good start.

It's too bad about Himeji Castle though. Otherwise that would definately been worth the trip.

I've stated this elsewhere, but I'll say it again:

Visiting the famous touristy temples is fine, but if at all possible try to also fit in a visit to a typical non-touristy run-of-the-mill neighborhood temple.

I think many foreign tourists must go away with the idea that all Buddhist temples are like the big famous ones. A notion that would be about as silly as someone visiting the Vatican and assuming all Christian churches must be somewhat along those lines.

Find a nice quiet temple without a bunch of tourists running around. Look around to your heart's content, snap pictures if you want. But then find a nice place to park your butt and just sit quietly for a while. To leave out that last step is to entirely miss the point.

And don't worry about feeling ill at ease or unwelcome. You'll never find any place that is more friendly or welcoming than a neighborhood temple. 99% of the time they'll just just leave you entirely alone, which is not the same as being unwelcoming or ignoring you.

I love the small rural temples. I wouldn't give a nickel for one that has tour bus parking.

Ill be going in December as well! My friend and I will be traveling to Kyoto and up north to Sapporo for some skiing. Hopefully the weather permits this but I don't see it hindering our plans. We'll be there for two weeks. Have you decided if you're going to Japan or not?

My friends and I are planning a trip to Japan around Christmas 2013 or Jan 2014. We are a group of 6, possibly 8, with a few snowboarding enthusiasts and a few who have not done much skiing nor snowboarding. The latter are more food enthusiasts but wouldn't mind giving the snow a go. I think we'll be able to go for 10days. We generally don't like the crowd but will tolerate it if we have to. We are thinking about heading straight to the snow. The foodies will leave the snow field and start the food and culture adventures after 2 or 3 days. The snow bunnies can stay on at the snow field a few extra days before joining the foodies at their destination. Where do you reckon we should go? I heard Hokkaido is a good place but I am not sure where in Hokkaido exactly? And would there be places for foodies in Hokkaido? All of us are from the sub-tropics but many of us have been in the snow before. I look forward to your tips. Thanks.

Get used to the idea that being on the slopes around Christmas is going to be very crowded.

As for Hokkaido, Google is your friend. Niseko is probably the most common place mentioned.
Let me google that for you

As for food, I would think that any place in a foreign land will do. Niseko itself has its own brand. Sapporo is not that far behind, as with almost 2 million people, it has all you could want from Japanese foods. Nearby Otaru is famed for its "sushi street".

Thanks your the tips

Glenski said:

Get used to the idea that being on the slopes around Christmas is going to be very crowded.
As for Hokkaido, Google is your friend. Niseko is probably the most common place mentioned.
Let me google that for you
As for food, I would think that any place in a foreign land will do. Niseko itself has its own brand. Sapporo is not that far behind, as with almost 2 million people, it has all you could want from Japanese foods. Nearby Otaru is famed for its "sushi street".

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Thanks for that. I will use your suggestions to start researching and forming a bit of a plan.