Self-Launched Japan Family Journey: Tokyo, Nagano & Kyoto
11 days · Japan
G Adventures charges £4,990
No-markup version: ~£3,770 per person
Estimate only, not a guaranteed price. Always verify costs independently before booking.
An 11-day self-launched version of G Adventures' National Geographic Family Journey from Tokyo to Kyoto, rebuilt for independent travellers on a mid-range budget. You'll still hit the taiko drums, sumo practice, Okinawan and ramen cooking classes, a night in a Shibu Onsen ryokan, the snow monkeys, Matsumoto Castle, a miso brewery, Nishiki Market, Gion, Fushimi Inari, deer-filled Nara and Kiyomizu-dera — but you'll book each experience yourself through GetYourGuide, Klook or directly with the operators, and travel by Shinkansen, local trains and public buses exactly as the group tour does. Costs are per person and approximate; figures below assume shared twin rooms (two adults + one child splitting a triple or two rooms) and a child traveller aged 7-11, where many attractions and rail fares are cheaper. Note that Japan's accommodation and transport are not cheap — this itinerary saves the group-tour margin and leader costs rather than gutting quality.
Day-by-day
Arrive Tokyo — shake off the jetlag in Asakusa
Tokyo
Land at Narita or Haneda and take the airport train into the city yourself — the Keisei Skyliner from Narita to Ueno runs about £14 and takes 45 minutes, or the Airport Limousine bus to Asakusa is around £8-10. Check into a family-friendly budget hotel or hostel private room in Asakusa or Ueno, where tatami-style family rooms are common. Spend the late afternoon wandering the Nakamise shopping street toward Sensoji Temple as the lanterns come on, and grab an early dinner of tempura or monjayaki nearby. Sort your Suica/Pasmo IC card at any station machine (£10 load to start) — you'll use it every day.
🚌Keisei Skyliner or Airport Limousine bus from airport (~£8-14 per person)
🛏Budget hotel or hostel private family room, Asakusa/Ueno (approx £45-65 per room per night)
- →Sensoji Temple and Nakamise street at dusk
- →Buy and load a Suica/Pasmo IC card
Taiko drums, Meiji Jingu and Harajuku
Tokyo
Book a taiko drumming workshop in advance — several Tokyo studios (including ones near Asakusa and Shinjuku) run 60-90 minute family sessions for around £25-35 per person via GetYourGuide or direct. Afterwards ride the JR Yamanote line to Harajuku, walk the forested approach to Meiji Jingu shrine (free), then dive into Takeshita Street for crepes, candy-coloured accessories and people-watching. Finish with a wander through Cat Street toward Shibuya to see the scramble crossing at night — utterly free and a hit with kids.
🚌JR Yamanote line and metro with IC card (~£4 per person for the day)
🛏Same Asakusa/Ueno hotel
- →Taiko drumming workshop (~£30 per person)
- →Meiji Jingu shrine (free)
- →Harajuku Takeshita Street and Shibuya Crossing
Okinawan cooking class and free Tokyo afternoon
Tokyo
Take a half-day Okinawan cooking class — several small Tokyo cooking studios (AirKitchen, Eat Osaka-style operators, or via Klook) offer family-friendly sessions making dishes like goya champuru and rafute for roughly £35-45 per person including lunch. Spend the afternoon at leisure: Ueno Park and its free museums, the Tokyo National Museum (£5), or the Tokyo Tower observatory (£7-17). This is a good day to do laundry and repack for the mountains.
🚌Metro with IC card (~£4 per person)
🛏Same Asakusa/Ueno hotel
- →Okinawan cooking class with lunch (~£40 per person)
- →Optional: Tokyo National Museum (£5) or Tokyo Tower (£7-17)
Sumo practice, then train to Shibu Onsen
Yudanaka / Shibu Onsen
Morning sumo experience — Tokyo stables and experience operators (e.g. via GetYourGuide/Klook) run 1-2 hour introductions with a former wrestler for around £45-60 per person, covering the ritual, stance and basic technique. Afterwards take the Shinkansen from Tokyo to Nagano (Hokuriku Shinkansen, ~1h20, about £45 per person, or use a JR Pass if you've bought one) and then the Nagano Dentetsu express train 45 minutes to Yudanaka, the gateway to Shibu Onsen (~£7). Check into a traditional ryokan in Shibu Onsen for the night — book direct or via Booking.com; expect £110-160 per room including a kaiseki-style dinner and breakfast. Bath in the onsen and note that tattoos may need covering.
🚌Shinkansen Tokyo–Nagano (~£45) + Nagano Dentetsu to Yudanaka (~£7)
🛏Traditional ryokan in Shibu Onsen, tatami family room with dinner and breakfast (~£120-160 per room)
- →Sumo experience with former wrestler (~£50 per person)
- →Onsen bathing and yukata evening at the ryokan
Snow monkeys at Jigokudani
Yudanaka / Nagano
Walk or take the local bus from Shibu Onsen to the Jigokudani Monkey Park trailhead (bus ~£2, or a 30-minute walk), then hike 25-30 minutes through cedar forest to the park. Entry is around £4 per adult, less for children — go early (opens 9am) to beat the crowds and see the macaques soaking in the hot spring pool. Afterwards head into Nagano city (Dentetsu line ~£7) to visit Zenkoji Temple, the 7th-century Buddhist temple housing Japan's first Buddha statue — the main hall is free, the inner sanctuary costs about £3. Overnight in Nagano city in a business hotel or guesthouse, which is much cheaper than the ryokan.
🚌Local bus (~£2) + Nagano Dentetsu train to Nagano (~£7)
🛏Business hotel or guesthouse in Nagano city (~£60-80 per room)
- →Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park (~£4 entry)
- →Zenkoji Temple and inner sanctuary (~£3)
Matsumoto Castle and a miso brewery
Matsumoto / Nagano
Take the JR Shinonoi line or the Matsumoto Dentetsu from Nagano to Matsumoto (about 1h15, roughly £12 one way). Visit Matsumoto Castle, the black 'crow castle' — entry around £4 for adults and less for kids, and the steep wooden interior stairs are a highlight. In the afternoon head to a miso producer in the region; Ishii Miso in Matsumoto offers short brewery tours by reservation (small fee, often free with a purchase) where you'll see cedar barrels and taste miso soup and miso ice cream. Alternatively the miso experience is easily replicated at a Matsumoto food tour via Klook for about £25. Return to Nagano for the night.
🚌JR train Nagano–Matsumoto return (~£24 per person)
🛏Same Nagano business hotel
- →Matsumoto Castle entry (~£4)
- →Miso brewery visit and tasting (~£5-25)
- →Optional: Matsumoto food tour via Klook
Bullet train to Kyoto, Nishiki Market and Gion
Kyoto
Take the Shinkansen from Nagano to Tokyo (or change at Kanazawa–Tsuruga–Kyoto) and on to Kyoto — simplest is Nagano to Tokyo (~1h20) then Tokyo to Kyoto (~2h15), roughly £95-110 per person in total. Check into a budget hotel or machiya guesthouse in central or Gion-adjacent Kyoto. In the afternoon graze your way down Nishiki Market — grilled quail, tamagoyaki, soy milk donuts, sesame ice cream, around £10-15 per person for a decent sampling. After dark, walk the lantern-lit lanes of Gion and Hanamikoji; a geisha spotting is pure luck, so don't stalk. If you want guaranteed insight, an evening Gion walking tour via GetYourGuide costs around £20 per person.
🚌Shinkansen Nagano–Tokyo–Kyoto (~£100 per person)
🛏Budget hotel or machiya guesthouse in central Kyoto (~£60-85 per room)
- →Nishiki Market food grazing (~£12)
- →Gion and Hanamikoji evening walk (free; optional guided tour ~£20)
Fushimi Inari at dawn and a ramen making class
Kyoto
Beat the crowds to Fushimi Inari Taisha — the JR Nara line from Kyoto Station takes 5 minutes to Inari station (~£1). The shrine itself is free and the torii gate tunnels are magical before 8:30am; the full loop to the summit takes 2-3 hours, but a 45-minute climb to the Yotsutsuji viewpoint is enough for kids. Back in the city, book a ramen making class in the afternoon — several Kyoto kitchens offer 90-minute sessions for around £35-45 per person, teaching you to make broth, noodles and chashu. Free evening; consider the free Nishiki Tenmangu or a stroll down Pontocho alley.
🚌JR Nara line and city bus with IC card (~£4 per person)
🛏Same Kyoto hotel
- →Fushimi Inari Taisha at dawn (free)
- →Ramen making class (~£40 per person)
Nara: giant Buddha and free-roaming deer
Nara / Kyoto
Take the Kintetsu Kyoto line to Nara (about 45 minutes, roughly £6 one way) — on a family budget the Kintetsu Nara station is closer to the park than JR. Entry to Todaiji Temple's Great Buddha Hall is about £3.50 per adult, and the 15-metre bronze Buddha is genuinely jaw-dropping. Walk to Kasuga Taisha (free outer grounds, £3 inner sanctuary) past hundreds of stone lanterns, then wander Nara Park feeding the semi-tame deer (deer crackers £1). Browse the old merchant houses of Naramachi before heading back to Kyoto for the evening.
🚌Kintetsu line Kyoto–Nara return (~£12 per person)
🛏Same Kyoto hotel
- →Todaiji Temple (~£3.50)
- →Kasuga Taisha lantern walk
- →Nara Park deer and Naramachi district
Samurai swordplay and Kiyomizu-dera
Kyoto
Morning kembu (sword dance) or samurai swordplay experience — Kyoto operators run 1-2 hour sessions for around £45-60 per person, with a demonstration by a master and time to try the sword yourself; book via GetYourGuide or Klook. In the afternoon head to Kiyomizu-dera (£3.50 entry), the hillside temple with its wooden stage and Otowa waterfall — queue for the wish-granting water and, for the brave, the pitch-black Tainai Meguri tunnel beneath the main hall. Wander the Sannenzaka and Ninenzaka slopes back down for souvenirs. Celebrate with a final dinner — an okonomiyaki or yakitori spot in Gion is around £15-20 per person.
🚌City bus (~£2 per person)
🛏Same Kyoto hotel
- →Samurai swordplay/kembu session (~£50 per person)
- →Kiyomizu-dera temple including Tainai Meguri (~£3.50)
- →Farewell dinner (~£18)
Depart Kyoto
Kyoto
Depart at your leisure. Kansai International Airport is about 75-90 minutes away via the Haruka limited express (~£20 per person) or the cheaper JR special rapid plus airport shuttle. If you have a late flight, luggage lockers at Kyoto Station cost a few pounds and let you squeeze in a last visit to Kinkaku-ji (the Golden Pavilion, £3) or the Fushimi sake district.
🚌Haruka limited express to Kansai Airport (~£20 per person)
🛏N/A — departure day
- →Optional: Kinkaku-ji Golden Pavilion (£3) if time allows
Self-launched vs. G Adventures
| This itinerary (self-launched) | G Adventures | |
|---|---|---|
| Price per person | ~£3,770 | £4,990 |
| Duration | 11 days | 11 days |
| Who books it | You and your group, direct | Tour operator, guided group |
| Savings | £1,220 per person (24%) | |
Estimate only, not a guaranteed price. Always verify costs independently before booking.
Want to see more G Adventures-style trips? Check them out here.~£3,770
estimated per person
You never pay Travel Crew for this — you pay hostels, transport, and activity providers directly, the same as if you'd booked it all yourself.
This publishes your dates so other travellers can find and join you — no tour operator needed.
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Frequently asked questions
How much does Self-Launched Japan Family Journey: Tokyo, Nagano & Kyoto cost?+
Doing it yourself with this self-launched itinerary costs an estimated £3,770 per person for 11 days in Japan. This is an AI-generated estimate based on typical budget-traveller prices — actual costs will vary by season and how you book.
Is this cheaper than booking with G Adventures?+
Yes — G Adventures charges around £4,990 per person for a similar tour. Doing the same route independently, using the same standard of accommodation and activities, costs an estimated £3,770 — a saving of roughly £1,220 (24%) per person.
How long is the Japan trip?+
This itinerary runs 11 days, covering 11 day-by-day stops through Japan.
How do I join this trip?+
You can join an existing open departure using this itinerary if one is scheduled, or launch your own departure with your own dates and invite other travellers to join you — no tour operator required.
Isn't it easier to just use a tour operator?+
Well, yes, a tour operator will book all the individual parts of your travel for you and provide a guide. That's obvious, but doing this has the potential to save the group thousands, which can in turn improve your itinerary substantially or save you huge amounts of money. Also, when you launch a departure, Travel Crew has tools in place to help you book the individual sections of the trip or make it easier for you to do this as a group. Really, you do not need a middle man. If you are more comfortable paying more and using a middle man, then you should certainly do this.
Is it safer to book through a tour operator?+
Arguably, there isn't much difference. A self-launched trip runs on the same principle as a group travel crew: collective responsibility, everyone looking out for each other, the same way it would if a group of friends organised the trip themselves — because that's exactly what's happening. You should always take out travel insurance before you go, self-launched or not; that doesn't change either way. Every open departure is published publicly with real dates and a real trip organiser, so it's never an anonymous arrangement, and our support team is reachable any time you need help, including in an emergency while you're away. Longer-term, we're building direct relationships with ground DMCs in popular destinations, offered as an optional paid add-on for extra on-the-ground support. Ultimately, though, the group is responsible for its own conduct and safety on a self-launched trip, same as on any trip you plan yourself.
What kind of trip is this?+
This is a culture, foodie, family trip through Japan, self-launched rather than run by a tour operator — you organise it with a group you find or bring yourself.
Would you like to name the operator, name the trip, or have any suggestions about how to improve this itinerary?
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