ULTIMATE FAMILY TRAVEL GUIDE TO JAPAN // TOKYO, KYOTO, & NARA

3 nights in Tokyo.4 Nights in Kyoto.1 day in Nara. Sharing our families summer Japan Itinerary in hopes it can help you with your planning if you’re heading to Japan with kids!

Things to note

Bring some cash with you, some stores and hole in the wall places only take cash.
Be prepared to hold on to any kind of trash, there’s barely any public trash cans in Japan so I always carried a plastic bag or something to hold all trash till we got back to our hotel.
Book Shinkansen tickets ahead of time online (it will save you time and hassle of finding where to get to at the station with kids).
Download and use Google Translate
Download Suica Card app and pay for most transportation with this on your phone instead of getting a physical card. Tap on the go for shops, convenience stores, taxis etc.
Highly recommend bringing a compact stroller (best if it can fit in an overhead bin on the plane) for kids under 5.
No need to tip in Japan.
Be respectful when entering shrines and sacred places.
Keep noise to a minimum on trains, indoors, and restaurants.
Might be useful to carry a compact umbrella for the unpredictable weather. (We travelled during end of May/early June and there were a few days with rain and had to buy umbrellas there).
Check with hotels/accommodations if it includes pajamas. Most of the places we stayed provided cute Japanese pajamas (and the kids loved it)
Leave space in your luggage for souvenirs!
Learn a few useful Japanese phrases:
- Hello - Kon nichiwa (こんにちは)
- Good Morning - Ohayō (おはよう)
- Excuse me - Sumimasen (すみません)
- Thank you - Arigatōgozimasu (どうもありがとうございます)
- Delicious - Oishii (美味しい)
- How much is this? - Ikura desu ka? (いくらですか？)

TRAVEL DAY - SFO TO HANEDA

We flew from SFO around noon and had a 10 hour flight to Haneda. Tip* if you can, try and book a flight in to Haneda airport instead of Narita airport (Haneda is closer to the city center than Narita, around less than an hour from most of Tokyo’s biggest neighborhoods, it is also relatively compact and easier to navigate than Narita with a complimentary shuttle bus service).

We landed around 3:00 PM (Japan Time) and I had pre-arranged a car pick up service which was pretty easy to get to. Once at the arrival hall we made our way down to the taxi stand area and on the left there is a designated spot for pick ups. We met our driver there and it took about 30-40 mins to get to our hotel.
*Our cab was booked through Klook which had the best rate of about $65 for a family of 4 including a carseat for our youngest.It was also a van sized cab rather than a sedan, which for the cost I think was worth it.

Got to the Grand Hyatt by about 5pm, checked in at the club lounge located on the 10th floor as we had club lounge access. This made an easier check in procedure, the kids could relax at the lounge, grab a few snacks. We checked into our room and joined for cocktail hour where they had quite a large selection of food.

TOKYO

3 Nights at Grand Hyatt Tokyo

DAY 1

Arrival at Haneda Airport - Pick up Pocket Wifi here if you need (we had international coverage so we didn’t have to), exchange money.
Plan to arrange for a cab pick up if you have young kids - it might be worth it
Check-in
Get settled, get some food from the hotel, have an early rest day

DAY 2

Woke up at 3am hungry - headed to a 7-Eleven right next to the Grand Hyatt for snacks
5am Decided to take a cab to the Meiji shrine bright and early to beat crowds and it was a great decision. We were the first and only ones there.
Open every day from Sunrise to sunset - no admission fee
Walked back to the hotel as we had plenty of time
By the time we arrived at the hotel, breakfast had started in the lounge.
Hopped on train to

DAY 3

Sent our large suitcases via ___ to our next hotel destination in Kyoto (This was so useful and helpful when traveling on the train and navigating the train stations with little ones)

DAY 4

Breakfast at the hotel
Pack & Check out
Head to Tokyo Station to catch train to Kyoto ( We got there 1.5hours before our train time to be able to do some shopping and get Ekiben’s for the train ride)
Used a station locker to store all our backpacks and a carrier suitcase (there’s a few stairs to get in and out so its nice to have that option and our hands free for the kids)
Checked out a few stores, got souvenirs and picked out everyone’s Ekiben for lunch on the train (Ekiben: boxed meals sold at train stations)
2 hours from Tokyo to Kyoto
Take cab from Kyoto Station to hotel (there is a cab line right to the exit of Kyoto station)

OTHER THINGS TO DO IN TOKYO:

Nakano
Ginza Fugetsudo
Oedo for Unagi
Tsujihan
Tempura Miyashiro

KYOTO

4 Nights at the Hilton HIgashiyama Kyoto - cute and conveniently located right next to Kiyomizu-gōjo station

DAY 4

Check in to hotel around 4pm
Unpacked, had dinner at our hotel and spent rest of the evening in the hotel onsen which was perfect for relaxing after a travel day

DAY 5

Breakfast at hotel
Nishiki Market - the best time to visit Nishiki Market is in the morning, around 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., before the crowds arrive
Lunch at Nishiki
Misayama Park or Seisho Park is a few minutes walk from the market and is a small park and playground in the middle of the city for the kids to take a break
While the kids played I went for a little vintage shopping (many are around the Nishiki Market area)
Nishiki sushi Shin for an Omakase experience
Shinpuhkan - stores, bars, restaurants, cafe. Travelers Factory was a fun spot for the kids to get stationary souvenirs
Dinner and back to hotel for onsen

DAY 6

Early morning solo trip to the Fushimi Shrine ( not in our planned itinerary but just because I was jet-lagged and up at 5am before the kids. First train is at 5:20am, this was perfect as there were no crowds I got to do a slow walk up and down and get back to the hotel in time for breakfast).
*Tip: if you plan on bringing kids or babies, there is a path way that is stroller accessible. There will be a lot of uphill walking for the kids.
Breakfast at hotel
Exploring Gion district, some of our favorites listed: (Yasaka Koshin-do shrine, Studio Ghibli shop, Glanta custom jewelry)
Lunch at すし善 - a very small, family run restaurant, lunch bento boxes were delicious. We loved how local this place was and popular, people started lining up around noon. We were there as the restaurant was opening and was able to get a table after 10 mins wait.
Roku Juan - a real hidden gem, we went for warabi mochi dessert set but the lunch menu also looked amazing! (tip* Reservations are required). It’s set in a tea house, there is a short tour of the property and garden prior to getting seated.
Unagi Kawatou - the best unagi we’ve ever had, highly recommend this place! (tip* ground floor gets very smokey with the open kitchen, try and ask for a table upstairs.

Day 7

Breakfast at hotel
Day trip to Nara (made reservations online to take a private sightseeing limited train which comes with 2 levels on the train, tables, and large windows, also less stops than the public trains which made it faster to get to Nara)
(see notes below on Nara)

OTHER THINGS TO DO IN KYOTO:

Eikan-do Zenriji Temple
Kinkaku-ji Temple
Sanjusangendo Temple

NARA

Day trip to Nara from Kyoto/Osaka (30mins by train)

DAY TRIP

Kyoto station -> our train left from the Kintetsu platform within Kyoto station. These are by reservation only, recommend sitting on upper level for better views)
Nara Park for deers and feeding deers
Lunch at Soba Dokoro Kitahara -a real tiny local home style restaurant serving fresh handmade soba noodles and tempura. (tip* arrive before opening time and get in line, we waited about 10mins and got a shoes off sit down table for our family of 4. The whole restaurant has about a capacity of about 20 people.
After lunch we walked to the main town to see the mochi making show at Nakataninidou that happens ever hour and their mochi is a 9/10!
Take a walk around other parts of Nara to check out the temples and parks, it really is a zen experience.