Somehow building any kind of rail connection to LAX is up there with the Panama Canal in complexity and effort. They literally delayed the Olympics four years for the rail link, and it still might not be ready in time.
thanks, i think Nikko and Kamakura are already penciled in.
do you have an opinion on visiting Hiroshima?
Bringing Roku on trips is great
It is extremely rare for me to take a non-stop domestic flight. I Iām willing to pay a premium to avoid connections. Iāve only done one this decade that I can think of. I donāt travel that much. Iād say on average I take 10 flights a year. Also, I fortunately have no reason to go anywhere that doesnāt have a direct flight. And I have lived nearly all my life in large cities with major airports.
Iād say once your trip goes above the 8hr mark, then thatās dire.
Have never been to Hiroshima but I hear itās great. Okonomiyaki is supposed to be amazing there.
Have been to Nagasaki (another great destination) and experienced all of the A-Bomb stuff and itās moving.
I would just keep in mind what I mentioned about trying to cram too much into one trip with limited time, and plan accordingly.
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I donāt think you posted your tentative itinerary, but if youāre doing the classic itinerary of Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka, plus trips out to Nikko, Kamakura, and Fuji, Iād say including Hiroshima would definitely be cutting it pretty thin.
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Tāes fou
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yeah, itās a concern.
followup question on hot spring baths etiquette. internet claims they are all separate gender, no tattoos, no clothing of any kind allowed. true/false?
Usually separate gender. Usually no tattoos allowed. Youāll want to find specific gaijin/tattoo friendly hot springs if thatās a concern. Usually no clothes allowed.
Another option is a kashikiri, meaning baths you can reserve exclusively for your own use.
A third option would be to stay at an inn with a private hot springs bath connected to your room.
These latter two options you could use with a partner of the opposite sex, if you so desire, and tattoos should not be an issue (but you should still check about tattoos to make sure).
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Is the no tattoo thing a Mafia thing or a conservative society thing?
Yakuza in origin. And being an inflexible society when it comes to rules, exceptions are seldom made for foreigners or regular tattooed citizens who clearly arenāt a part of the underworld culture.
Too many tourists in Japan
Indeed:
I saw one Geisha fleetingly in Kyoto in 1998-ish. I was under the impression they were on the way out even then.
In the Gion district of Kyoto, where old traditions are maintained, geisha (or maiko) are still very much a fixture, but generally, yes, they are mostly a thing of the past.
My own neighborhood used to be a geisha district. Not anymore. My 90-year-old next door neighbor is a former geisha. Still makes a mean cup of tea.
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Are tourism levels a lot more burdensome than historically or did everyone just get used to massively reduced tourism during Covid times and itās a tough transition now?
When I first lived here in the mid to late 90s, I barely remember ever seeing a tourist.
But the Internet & social media, rising interest in manga & anime, and an aggressive campaign by the Japanese government to boost tourism completely changed things, to where now itās really raging out of control, particularly in places like Tokyo & Kyoto.
So much so that overrun destinations are starting to take active measures to dissuade tourists from visiting those spots.
Are you familiar with the term āweeabooā?
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Haha I went to that Lawsons when I was in Fujikawaguchiko, had no idea it was a selfie destination. In hindsight Iām pretty glad I went in low season (December), everything was pretty chill, especially weekday mornings, even in Kyoto, and the weather was actually pretty pleasant. Great ramen and katsu curry weather.
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No.