12 day trip in April 2019

Cherry blossom depends not only on time of year,but also elevation,specific location and climate/weather...the last of which is unpredictable.

So don't assume there will/wont be blossom on a particular day.But if it IS peak blossom,things will be very busy in the famous places.

Anyway apart from that...with that timeframe I'd base in Tokyo and Kyoto.

Split the trip half in each,and then you can do day trips...eg Hakone and Nara,but there are plenty more options too.

On the others you mention...

Hiroshima is worth a couple of days,if you had the time.On your tight timeframe and travelling with young child,I probably wouldn't include it.

Osaka is a big city,like Tokyo but less interesting.Not a priority for me if you are already spending enough time in Tokyo.

Agree with everything luca says!

This year the cherry blossoms peaked in late March, particularly in the Kanto region. They were already fading by April. If that happens again, you might need to head up to higher altitudes to see them. I saw some lovely cherry blossoms late in the season in the mountains above Kyoto.

I would add some days in Tokyo. From there you can also do nice and easy daily trips to Kamakura and Yokohama.

As others have said, Kyoto and Tokyo make for good bases to explore Kansai and Kanto respectively.

As for seeing cherry blossoms in my country Japan---
(I don't know when OP visit my country Japan in April)

In recent years, cherry trees began to bloom around 3/20-23 in famous big tourist destinations--Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Nara(ciyty), Hiroshima etc.
With its reason, visiting Japan in April is a bit late to see "beautiful" cherry blossoms in those tourist destinations.
So if you cannot come to Japan and visit those cities till , at latest, 4/3-4 in April, you need to have an alternative option to go to somewhere(but on your travel route) between Tokyo and Kansai area.

My reccommendation is "have an option to go to Mt.Yoshino in Nara" in your plan.

The time of blooming of cherry blossoms(including full bloomings) in Mt.Yoshino is "from the end of March to around 4/21-22"(very long!) so even if you miss to see cherry blossom at your main destinations, you can surely enjoy to see beautiful and very geogious cherry blossoms and walk under cherry blossoms.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_xMdhcHvhvw ---by drone

Mt.Yoshino is a mountain and devided into 4 stages to see beautiful cherry blossoms as below.
http://www.yoshinoyama-sakura.jp/english/flowers.htm ---map①
http://87yama.sakura.ne.jp/news/sakura-spot/map/sakura-map.jpg ---map②
--"Kintetsu" Yoshono station(近鉄・吉野駅)=starting point has 207m in altitude--
①Shimo-senbon(下千本）=lower part of Mt.Yoshino(altitude:230～350m)
②Naka-senbon(中千本）=middle part of Mt.Yoshino(altitude:350～370m)
③Kami-senbon(上千本）=upper part of Mt.Yoshino(altitude:370～600m)
④Oku-senbon(奥千本）=top part of Mt.Yoshino(altitude:600～750m)
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*Access to Mt.Yoshino from Kyoto or Osaka or Nara(city) is very easy by "Kintetu" railway so one day return trip from Kyoto( or Osaka) is possible, buti reccommend you to stay at Nara ＜+ a day＞ for going to Mt.Yoshino, if possible .
■"Kintetsu" Kyoto St.(or Nara St.) >> Kasihara Jingu-mae >> Yoshino St. (Approx. 1h40 mins by Express trains from Kyoto)
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*walking from ① to ④---3～4 hrs(slow pace)/ ④ to ①---2 hrs by foot
*"by bus" is possible from "Kintetsu" Yoshino St.(近鉄・吉野駅）to/from(=back) ③Kami-senbon(上千本)
*at the lowest part from Yoshino St., you can use a cable car(=rope way) though it's not long.
If you can see beautiful cherry blossoms somewhere in your main destinations, there is no need to go to Mt.Yoshino overdo in your schedule but SAKURA in Mt.Yoshino is really beautiful and geogious so if you are interested in going to Mt.Yoshino, it's worthwhile spending full one day and iit's not difficult and hard for your child to walk at Mt.Yoshino because the way from ① to ④ is a paved road all the way though it's partly a bit steep.

(by jp_geckozy)

Thank you very much guys!!! Very useful information. I guess we will divide our time between Tokyo and Kyoto and make day trips from there.
Many thanks for the cherry blossom information. We will arrive on the 6th of April so I think going to Mt.Yoshino is an excellent idea.
I have one more question: as we are travelling with an 8-year old we also like to make a stop over in a more "relaxing" region, preferable at the coast. I'm not looking for a beach packed with resorts but a nice relaxing place. As we will be spending time in Tokyo and Kyoto, where could we go. Is Izu Peninsula a good place to go?

Cheers,
Katrien

You want to stay at the sea,go to the beach etc? Or just stop for a couple of hours?

Weather that time of year is not going to be warm enough to get in the sea,for me anyway ;-)

The Izu Peninsula has some gorgeous beaches and really nice coastal scenery, but the best is generally only accessible by car. And as luca points out, it's not beach season in Japan in April!

Perhaps look at the Sea of Japan coast near Kyoto? Places like Amanohashidate, or Obama. It's really, really beautiful up there. Amanohashidate is best set up for tourism, and there are a range of interesting places accessible by public transport. Much of what there is to do there involves walking though. So I wouldn't go there unless your 8-year old likes to walk...