8 days in Japan in Oct (Tokyo-Hakone-Kyoto-Kiso-Tokyo)

A friend and I are visiting Japan for a very short duration of 8 days in end of Oct. We arrive at Haneda airport on 23rd night and leave from Haneda on 31st night. We are mostly interested in sampling all kinds of food, maybe catch some sumo action at a heya, see some fall colors, try out some onsen and stay at some ryokan/minshuku.

Apart from Tokyo and Kyoto, where we plan to spend 2-3 days each, we have a couple of places in mind. Please suggest if the below is a feasible itinerary:

23rd Oct, Tue - Reach Tokyo
24th Oct, Wed - roam around Tokyo
25th Oct, Thu - leave for Hakone (see Fuji etc.), stay overnight at Hakone
26th Oct, Fri - leave for Kyoto in the morning, stay overnight at Kyoto
27th Oct, Sat - Kyoto
28th Oct, Sun - leave for Kiso valley in the morning, do the Tsumago-Magome walk
29th Oct, Mon - leave for Takayama/Ainokura in the morning, stay overnight
30th Oct, Tue - leave for Tokyo in the morning
31st Oct, Wed - leave from Haneda at night.

A few questions:
1. Would 2 days be good enough for Kyoto or should we budget for another day and cut down on either Hakone/Kiso/Takayama?
2. Between Hakone and Fuji Five Lakes, which one should we include?
3. If we have to choose between Kiso Valley and Takayama and Ainokura which one should we pick?
4. We plan to use the 7 day JR Pass starting day 3 (Tokyo to Hakone) - is the route above mostly doable on JR Pass?

Thanks!

You will only see Mt. Fuji if the weather's good. Which it usually isn't! :-)

I think you're trying to fit way too much in. With only 8 days, Tokyo, Kyoto, and maybe one other destination is more than enough. You're also trying to visit places that are time-consuming to get to, like the Kiso Valley post towns, and Ainokura (which isn't all that easy to reach on public transport).

There is a ton to see in Kyoto. The day and half that you have there isn't enough, even just to scratch the surface. There's excellent hiking around Kyoto - better hiking than the post towns, in my opinion, with trailheads in the city itself, and easy to access.

Hakone has more to do than the Fuji Five lakes. Both are also easily visited as a day-trip from Tokyo, without spending the night.

I wouldn't go to Ainokura, just because it's difficult to get to, and you don't have time. I'm not a big fan of Takayama personally. If you really want to do the Kiso Valley hike, perhaps combine it with Matsumoto (to see a castle), on the way between Kyoto and Tokyo (or vice versa). You could also drop it all. There's more than enough stuff to see just in Tokyo and Kyoto.

Many of the places on your current itinerary - like Ainokura - are not accessible using a JR Pass. A 7-day JR Pass is a bit more than the return Tokyo-Kyoto Shinkansen fare. You might get value out of it, with the odd side trip, or day-trip where it's useful. Or you might not. You'll have to check details yourself, after you decide your itinerary a bit more clearly.

Pretty much agree with all above.

I'd have more time in Tokyo for sure,and in Kyoto too.In fact I'd probably only stay in those two in such a short timeframe.

Do a day trip to Hakone from Tokyo.No need for a JR railpass either.

If you really want a stop between,then I'd maybe go with the Kiso Valley.

You don't really have the time even for that though.Takayama and Ainokura are even further out of your way.

Thank you! Makes sense to limit ourselves to Tokyo and Kyoto then. Any suggestion on onsens that we can try around Kyoto?

Thanks Giora. This is very helpful. Will limit ourselves to Tokyo and Kyoto then. Any recommendations on onsens, ryokans etc. around Kyoto?

There are one or two very near Kyoto and many more further outside the city.

Kurama is very close to the city.Its pretty good,even if crowded with tourists.Kinosaki is further away,maybe a couple of train.

There are onsen near Kurama-dera temple, just to the north of Kyoto city, as lucapal says.

Kinosaki is quite a long (and expensive) way from Kyoto, and I certainly wouldn't go there as a day-trip. Much closer to the city is Arima Onsen, in Kobe, which is one of the oldest onsen towns in Japan. I think there might be direct buses there from Kyoto, otherwise there's an excellent hike to get there from Ashiya, which is served by regular express trains from Kyoto, taking roughly 45 minutes.

Hakone also has onsens.

"Ryokan" is just a term for a traditional Japanese hotel. There are tons of them in Kyoto.

Yes,that should have been ''a couple of hours by train'' not a couple of trains ;-)

Its quite far for a day trip.But nicer than Kurama IMHO.Don't know about Arima,I've never been there.

I've never been to Kurama before, though may well go there next week. Though I'd be going for the temple and the hiking, rather than visiting the onsens.

For me, the region around Kinosaki Onsen is one of the loveliest in the country, but you really need a car to explore it. The onsen town itself doesn't really do it for me, but I guess I'm not really into touristy onsen towns - it's certainly a worthwhile stop if you happen to be in the area, but I wouldn't go all the way there especially.

Arima Onsen is remarkably similar to Kinosaki, really, except that it's a lot closer to the big cities of Kansai. There's also a ropeway there, and it's buried in between a few steep hills, so that it feels like a small, isolated place. The atmosphere and set-up is certainly not dissimilar to Kinosaki, though it probably sees more visitors.

If you like to hike, then the Ashiya-Arima Onsen hike, followed by a wander around the onsen town and a dip in one of the baths, is one of the best day-trips in Kansai, in my opinion. It's a bit of a demanding hike - at least 5 hours, with an altitude gain of about 800 meters (so considerably more strenuous than Tsumago-Magome). But the joys are numerous: there's an excellent chance of spotting boar, there are some nice forests to walk through, and if the day is clear, the views from the top of the Rokko Mountains are superb: you can basically see the whole of Osaka, and the plains and mountains which surround it. You can also see the numerous hills (and golf courses!) of northern Settsu.

Sounds good:I'll have a look at that possibility next time I'm in the country....

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