Finally! I am quite excited to share about my recent trip to Osaka and Kyoto in Japan. This is my third time in Japan but my first time travelling to Osaka and Kyoto. It is also our first time travelling around Japan on our own. If you need to a point of reference, you can refer to my travel itinerary below.
Travelling around Japan on your own
Travelling around Japan by yourself is doable – even if you do not understand a single word of Japanese. With Google maps, it is easy to get around from places to places. However, their extensive transport system can be somewhat complicated. Once, we took the wrong train and ended up reaching our destination late. To avoid such pitfalls, you just need to approach the locals to check if you are on the right train.
Planning our own travel itinerary
This trip was planned by my fiancé so most of the attractions are chosen by him. And I have not much control of this trip except to make changes to changes to some of the timings. Thus, if I were to revisit Kyoto and Osaka again, my itinerary would be very different from the one I am going to share with you.
As a computer game enthusiast, he included a few attractions, like Nintendo Office building, which are part of any gamers’ pilgrimage. So if you are not into that, you can opt those attractions out of our itinerary below. I would not say the itinerary was very well-planned because we did not manage to cover all the attractions. As such, I’ve made a few changes to the itinerary below so that you would not have to go through the same mistake as we do.
But overall, it is still a good trip and a memorable one as I almost wreck my fiancé’s proposal plan. I will share my proposal story in the upcoming blog post. As for now, I hope you find this Osaka and Kyoto itinerary useful.
My 7-day Travel Itinerary to Osaka and Kyoto
Day 1: Singapore – Osaka – Kyoto
- Booked a flight from Singapore Changi Airport to Kansai International Airport, Osaka
- Take a JR Haruka train from Kansai International Airport to Kyoto
- Check-in our accommodation, Gion Ryokan Q-beh
Day 2: Kiyomizu-dera temple + Tori gates
- Visit Kiyomizu-Dera temple
- Lunch at a nearby Japanese restaurant
- Visit Fushimi Inari Shrine and Tori Gates
- Check out Nintendo Development Centre
- Drop by Nintendo old building (Yamanouchi Nintendo)
- Have matcha desserts at a Matcha dessert house, Marukyu-Koyamaen
- Visit Samurai Museum
- Dinner at Mebaka Fire Ramen
- Head back to our accommodation
You might also want to read my article on the 5 places to visit in Kyoto to find out which are the places worth checking out.
Day 3: Nishiki Market + Kinkaku-ji Temple + Arashimaya Bamboo forest
- Shop and eat at Nishiki Market
- Visit Kinkaku-ji temple
- Lunch at Okonomiyaki Katsu
- Visit Arashimaya Bamboo forest
- Take Sagano Romantic Train
- Dinner at Ipudo Nishi Koji
Day 4: Kyoto – Osaka
- Have breakfast at Starbucks Coffee Kyoto Ninenzaka Yasaka Chaya
- Take JR train to Osaka
- Check-in Airbnb ( Onya Apartments)
- Dinner at Isakya Toyo
- Visit Den Den Town
- Walk to Dotonburi and have dinner
Day 5: Osaka Castle + Umeda Sky Building + Tempozan Ferris Wheel
- Visit Osaka castle museum
- Take the Osaka-jo Gozabune boat
- Lunch at Friendship cafe near Osaka Castle
- Umeda Sky Building
- Visit Osaka aquarium
- Tempozan Ferris Wheel
We bought the Osaka Amazing Pass for this trip and here’s how you can make full use of your Osaka Amazing Pass.
Day 6: Universal Studio Osaka
- Spend a day at Universal Studios Japan in Osaka
- Check out Harry Potter first and then cover the rest of the zones
What did we do at Universal Studios Japan?
Day 7: Osaka – Singapore
- Shop at Osaka Station
- Take a train to Kansai International Airport
- Scoot back to Singapore Changi Airport
Stay tuned for my upcoming blog posts on the aforementioned attractions in Kyoto and Osaka!
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