1
Before you go
When to go, my real budget, cash vs cards, the eSIM I use, and what to book first.
18 pages
10+ trips to Japan, one guide
Japan, done right.
My itineraries, my favorite spots and my real budget, in one guide. Every mistake already made for you.
My itineraries, my spots and my real budget, in one guide.
my eSIM · KYLIE5 = 5% off
47.6K on TikTok · 1M likes
10+ tripsto Japan, in every season
7.7Mviews on my most-watched post
47.6Kfollowers on TikTok
Oct ’26every price in the guide checked
TikTok @kylie.nbt, October 16, 2026.
What’s inside
Everything I wish I’d known before trip one.
107 pages, made to read on your phone in Japan. Here’s a real page from each part.
2
Getting around
Airports, Suica on your phone, the bullet train, and why I stopped buying the JR Pass.
9 pages
3
My itineraries
7, 14 and 21 days, day by day: where to sleep, what to book, how much the trains cost.
21 pages
4
City guides
Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Nara, Hakone, Hiroshima, Kanazawa: where I sleep, eat, and what I’d skip.
30 pages
5
Food, shopping & fun
What to eat, my konbini order, the new tax-free rules, and my theme park ranking.
9 pages
6
My lists
Things to never do, overrated vs worth it, and the cities everyone skips.
7 pages
7
Before you fly
Survival phrases, emergencies, and the checklist I run before every trip.
3 pages
8
Book it all
Every hotel, train pass and tour I book, city by city, each with its booking button.
6 pagesall in one guide
107 pages for $29
Get my guideMy itineraries
7, 14 or 21 days, planned for you.
Three bases a week, max, then day trips. That’s the rule I learned the hard way on trip one (5 cities in 10 days, all on trains).
2h15 · bullet train
1h20 · airport train
- Day 1Land in Tokyo
Fly into Haneda, check in near Ueno, ramen, early night.
- Day 2Classic Tokyo
Meiji Jingu, Harajuku, Shibuya, then sunset from the free observatory.
- Day 3Kamakura
The Great Buddha and the seaside train, back for dinner.
- Day 4Bullet train to Kyoto
Sit on the right for Fuji. Fushimi Inari in the afternoon.
- Days 5-7Kyoto, Nara & OsakaIn the guide
My 7am Kyoto route, the deer, Dotonbori, and the flight home from Kansai.
Where to sleep, what to book and the train costs for every day are in the guide.
80 min · Romancecar
2h05 · bullet train
1h40 · bullet train
1h25 · bullet train
- Days 1-4Tokyo
Four nights, with a day trip to Nikko.
- Day 5Hakone
One ryokan night, the onsen and Fuji if the sky is clear.
- Days 6-9Kyoto & NaraIn the guide
Four nights in Kyoto, mornings before the tour groups.
- Days 10-14Hiroshima, Miyajima, OsakaIn the guide
The island at low tide, then Osaka and the flight home.
Every day, the ryokan night, and the pass that beats the JR Pass are in the guide.
~4h · via Nagoya
50 min · bus
1h15 · bus
~2h · express
1h40 · bullet train
1h06 · bullet train
- Days 1-5Tokyo
Five nights to do it slowly, day trips included.
- Days 6-10The Alps
Takayama, a night in a Shirakawa-go farmhouse, Kanazawa.
- Days 11-14KyotoIn the guide
Four nights, and a suitcase sent ahead.
- Days 15-21Hiroshima & KyushuIn the guide
Miyajima, then Fukuoka's food stalls for week three.
The gassho house night, the Alps buses to book and week three in Kyushu are in the guide.
Book my trip
The sites I book with.
Same sites, same order, every trip. Ad Affiliate links: I earn a commission if you book through them, you pay the same.
Hotels
Business hotels by a big station. My picks, city by city, are in the guide.
Airport train
Skyliner, Narita to Ueno in 44 min, cheaper booked ahead.
Timed tickets
teamLab, Universal Studios, Shibuya Sky: they sell out.
Tours & food
A tea ceremony in Kyoto, a food tour in Osaka.
One ryokan night
My splurge: Hakone, a hot-spring bath, dinner and breakfast.
Luggage
Station lockers full? Book a spot by the hour.
Flip through it
A few real pages, the rest is yours.
An A5 PDF, made for your phone: big type, one idea per page, every address one tap from Google Maps.
Free from the guide
Three spots I’d send my best friend to.
Straight from my Tokyo pages: what to order, what it costs, when to go.
Kylie’spick
My breakfast before a train
Rokurinsha
Tokyo Station · Ramen Street
Morning tsukemenunder ¥1,000 · $6
- 7:30 to 9:45am
- Suica works, cards don’t
Kylie’spick
My favorite night in Asakusa
Shochan
Asakusa · Hoppy Street
Beef stew and a Hoppy¥1,000–2,000 · $6–13
- Cash only
- Closed Mon and Tue
- Then Senso-ji after dark
Kylie’spick
The spicy bowl I miss at home
Kikanbo
Kanda · next to Akihabara
Spicy miso ramen¥1,000–2,000 · $6–13
- Meal ticket first
- Pick your chili and numbing levels
And 118 more, like these
Sushi breakfastName in the guideTokyo · Toyosu Market
After the tuna auction. Closed Sundays, holidays and market days.
$38–50
Counter dinner, the splurgeName in the guideKyoto · Pontocho
Kyoto cooking at the counter. Book ahead, closed Sundays. Cash.
$63–95
TakoyakiName in the guideOsaka · Sennichimae
A boat of takoyaki, eaten standing. Open all year. Cash only.
under $6.30Who it’s for
Made for you if…
…it’s your first trip
You want the classic route without the classic mistakes.
…you want it slower
Fewer cities, better days: the Alps, onsens and the places tour buses skip.
…you’re on a budget
Business hotels, konbini breakfasts, Suica instead of the JR Pass: my real numbers, in dollars.
You asked
You kept asking, so I wrote it all down.
Real comments under my post that hit 7.7M views. Here’s the page of the guide that answers each one.
Where are you finding flights for that price?
How I hunt flights, the months I fly, and why I fly into Tokyo and out of Osaka.
Before you go
How much did it all cost?
My real budgets for 10 days, 2 weeks and a month, flights included.
Before you go
I’m not good at planning things.
Three itineraries, already planned day by day, with what to book.
My itineraries
Which eSIM do you use?
What to check before you buy one, and the one I use.
Phone & data
Any good local restaurants?
The places I go back to, by city, with prices and the cash-only ones flagged.
City guidesPlanJapan · Ad
The eSIM I use, and why.
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About me
Hi, I’m Kylie. 10+ trips later…
Tokyo is my favorite city in the world.
My first trip to Japan was exciting, but looking back I made so many mistakes. Five cities in ten days, a tiny hotel room on Shibuya Crossing, $12 a day of roaming on my US plan, and half my meals I couldn’t pay for.
My second trip cost less, felt slower, and I remember every single day of it. By the fifth, I’d stopped spotting tourists in the crowd and started copying locals. I’ve lost count since: more than ten trips, every season.
This guide is everything I wish someone had handed me before trip one. None of it means traveling cheap. It means spending your money on the stuff you’ll actually remember.
10+trips to Japan
7ammy Kyoto alarm
3bases max per trip
what my first trips taught me
I lost $337 on my first trip.
Airport taxis, roaming, a hotel in the wrong area. The money pages are my refund.
In the guide, p. 14
Jet lag ate two days of my first week.
Now: land, check in, ramen, sleep. Big plans start on day two.
In the guide, p. 33Kyoto at 7am is a different city.
Kiyomizu and Ninenzaka before the tour groups. My itineraries are built around it.
In the guide, p. 65The guide
Everything, for less than one airport taxi.
107 pages, $29 once, yours forever. Here’s what’s inside, straight from its pages.
Narita to Shinjuku by taxi, plus tolls¥31,500 ($199)
My whole guide, forever$29
$29One-time · instant download
Get my guide · $29Instant downloadMade for your phone2026 prices
3 itineraries
7, 14 and 21 days, night by night, with the cost of every train.
Every train, priced
Airport trains, the Shinkansen, passes: which ticket, how long, how much.
Where I sleep
My hotel in each city, from business hotels to one ryokan night, with real prices.
121 places
Where I eat in Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka and more: what to order and what it costs.
Real budgets
10 days, 2 weeks and a month, flights included, line by line, in dollars.
Book it all
Every booking link in one place, city by city, in the order I book.
Questions
Before you ask me.
What exactly do I get?
A PDF guide of 107 pages, A5 format, made to read on your phone: my 7, 14 and 21-day itineraries, city guides with the places I go back to, my real budgets, and my lists. You download it right after paying.
Is it for a first trip?
Yes, that’s who I wrote it for. If it’s your second trip, the 21-day itinerary and the cities everyone skips are for you.
Are the prices up to date?
Every price was checked in October 2026, in dollars with the yen next to it. Prices in Japan move, so treat them as real examples, not quotes.
Does it work offline?
Yes. It’s a PDF: save it to your phone before you fly. The Google Maps links need data, the rest works anywhere.
Does it include hotels and restaurants?
Yes: where I’d stay in each city, from business hotels to one ryokan night, with real prices for real dates, and the restaurants I go back to, with what they cost.
Is anything in it sponsored?
No hotel, restaurant or attraction paid to be in the guide. Some booking buttons are affiliate links: I earn a commission if you book through them, and they’re marked Ad. PlanJapan, the eSIM I recommend, is run by the same team as this site, and it’s marked Ad too.
What if I change my mind?
The guide is a digital download that opens right after payment, so the sale is final once it’s delivered: you agree to this at checkout. If the file is faulty or you can’t access it, we fix it, or refund you if we can’t. Details in the Refund policy.
Can I print it?
Yes, A5 prints nicely, two pages per sheet on US Letter or A4.
