Three nights in the largest city on earth, three in the old imperial capital, and a bullet train between them. Built self-guided, because Japan runs on rails so good that a guide would mostly be someone to follow.
FromUS$520per person, twin share — six nights' hotel across Tokyo and Kyoto. Budget separately for flights, the Shinkansen, meals and the handful of temples that charge. See what's included
Fly into Haneda (HND) if you can and Narita (NRT) if you cannot — Haneda is far closer to the city. Depart from Kansai (KIX), about 75 minutes from Kyoto by the Haruka express. Tell us your departure city and we will price the flights with the tour.
Confirmation
Tell us your dates and a hotel tier → we confirm both hotels within 24 hours → a deposit holds them → vouchers and your written city plan by email before you fly. Departs any day.
Two honest notes. First, this is self-guided by design. Japan's trains are the most legible on earth, signage is bilingual, and most of what you have come to see is free to walk into. You get a written plan with the lines and fares instead; ask if you would rather have a guide and we will arrange one. Second, the hotel rates behind this price are room-only. Breakfast is rarely included in Japan, and we would rather show you a true room rate than a padded one.
The trip at a glance
Tokyo
Days 1–3
01
Tokyo
Show route
Arrive Tokyo AT LEISURE
Into Haneda or Narita, then the train in. Transfers are not included — from Haneda the monorail or Keikyu line takes about 30 minutes; from Narita allow an hour and a half.
Settle around Shinjuku — the busiest railway station on earth, and the most useful address in Tokyo.
In the evening, Shibuya Crossing: watch it once from the walkway above, then walk through it at street level.
Get an IC card (Suica or Pasmo) at any station on day one. It works on every train, bus and convenience store in the country.
Overnight in Tokyo.
02
Tokyo
Show route
Asakusa, Harajuku & Tsukiji AT LEISURE
Start early at Tsukiji Outer Market — tamagoyaki, sea urchin, and knives sharp enough to worry customs. Go before ten.
Senso-ji in Asakusa, Tokyo's oldest temple, founded in 628. Free, with the Nakamise stalls running 250 metres to its gate.
Across town to Meiji Jingu — a Shinto shrine in 170 acres of donated forest, and the quietest place in central Tokyo. Also free.
Harajuku and Omotesando are next door when you want noise again.
Overnight in Tokyo.
Add to this day — approximate gate prices
Senso-ji, AsakusaFreeTokyo's oldest temple, and no ticket at any hour.
Meiji JinguFree170 acres of donated forest beside Harajuku. The quietest place in central Tokyo.
Tsukiji Outer MarketFree to walkYou will spend on breakfast, not on entry. Go before ten.
We can book any of these with your tour. Tell us which you want when you confirm and the tickets travel with your documents.
03
Tokyo
Show route
Tokyo — your choice AT LEISURE
teamLab — room-scale interactive light installations, and one of the few things in Tokyo you must book ahead. Tell us and we will hold tickets.
Or take the day out to Hakone: hot springs, a pirate ship on Lake Ashi, and on a clear winter day Mount Fuji standing behind it. Ninety minutes from Shinjuku.
January is statistically the clearest month for seeing Fuji — cold, dry air and little haze. If Fuji matters to you, this is the season for it.
Overnight in Tokyo.
Add to this day — approximate gate prices
teamLab Borderless¥3,600–5,600Book aheadPriced by date, and the single thing in Tokyo you cannot turn up for. Worth every yen.
Hakone Free Pass, 2 days¥7,100 from ShinjukuCovers eight transport lines, the pirate ship and the ropeway. Cheaper at ¥6,000 if you start from Odawara.
We can book any of these with your tour. Tell us which you want when you confirm and the tickets travel with your documents.
Kyoto
Days 4–7
04
Kyoto
Show route
Tokyo → Kyoto AT LEISURE
The Shinkansen takes about 2 hours 15 minutes on the Nozomi. Not included — we quote it with your booking, and we will tell you whether a rail pass is worth it for your dates, because for this itinerary it usually is not.
Into Kyoto, capital for a thousand years and spared the wartime bombing — which is exactly why 1,600 temples are still standing.
Late afternoon at Fushimi Inari Taisha, thousands of vermilion torii winding up the mountain. Free, and open all night — go at dusk and most of the crowd has gone.
Overnight in Kyoto.
05
Kyoto
Show route
Kinkaku-ji, Arashiyama & Gion AT LEISURE
Kinkaku-ji, the Golden Pavilion, standing over its own reflection. Small admission, and worth being there at opening. With snow on the roof it is the best sight in Japan.
West to the Arashiyama bamboo grove — free, and genuinely empty if you arrive before eight.
Evening in Gion, the geisha district, as the lanterns come on. Do not photograph geiko or maiko without asking — there are fines for harassment on the private lanes, and they are enforced.
Overnight in Kyoto.
Add to this day — approximate gate prices
Kinkaku-ji, the Golden Pavilion¥500The cheapest great sight in Japan. Be there at opening.
Arashiyama bamboo groveFreeFree, and genuinely empty before eight. Both facts matter.
Gion at duskFreeWalk it, do not photograph the geiko without asking — the private lanes carry enforced fines.
We can book any of these with your tour. Tell us which you want when you confirm and the tickets travel with your documents.
06
Kyoto
Show route
Nara, or a free day AT LEISURE
Nara is 45 minutes away — Japan's first permanent capital, with 1,200 free-roaming deer that bow for crackers, and the world's largest bronze Buddha inside Todai-ji.
Or stay in Kyoto: Nishiki Market, the Philosopher's Path, Kiyomizu-dera, or the Nijo Castle nightingale floors that squeak by design to betray intruders.
Overnight in Kyoto.
Add to this day — approximate gate prices
Todai-ji, Nara¥800The world's largest bronze Buddha. A ¥1,000 set ticket adds the museum.
Nara Park & the deerFreeTwelve hundred free-roaming deer that bow for crackers. The park costs nothing.
We can book any of these with your tour. Tell us which you want when you confirm and the tickets travel with your documents.
07
Departure
Show route
Kyoto → onward AT LEISURE
Kyoto Station is a piece of architecture in its own right — a 470-metre glass canyon by Hiroshi Hara. Give the roof terrace ten minutes before you go.
The Haruka express runs Kyoto to Kansai Airport in about 75 minutes. Book a reserved seat if you are travelling with luggage.
Your Hotels
Three nights in Tokyo and three in Kyoto, twin share, both near a major station — which in Japan matters more than any other feature of a hotel. Every property is independently rated 8.0 or better by recent guests. These stays are room-only. Japanese hotels rarely include breakfast, and we would rather be straight with you about that than quietly imply otherwise.
Comfort · 4★ near the station
Shinjuku and central Kyoto, minutes from a stationA well-reviewed 4-star in Shinjuku and a central 4-star in Kyoto. Rooms are compact by Western standards and immaculate by anyone's.
Deluxe · the larger city hotels
More space, a restaurant, and a view worth havingThe bigger international and Japanese chain hotels — more space, a restaurant, a proper lobby, and a view worth having in Tokyo. A ryokan or 5-star tier is available on request; we quote it live rather than list a rate here, because ryokan pricing is per person and usually includes dinner.
You will know exactly where you are staying before you pay a balance. We name the property in your confirmation, in writing, as soon as the room is held — and if it is ever unavailable for your dates we substitute at the same tier or better, never below it.
Restaurants worth trying
No meals are in the price on this trip, so all of them are yours to choose. Here is where we would eat. We do not arrange any of these and you would pay for them yourself. They are simply places we rate, near where the trip goes. Tick any you like and they appear on the map.
Suggested, not included. Opening hours and prices are theirs, not ours — and a place that is busy at eight will be busy whether or not you booked through us.
Tour Price
All prices are per person, twin share, in US dollars — the figure below is what you pay us. It covers six nights across Tokyo and Kyoto, room-only. The tiers differ by hotel only. These are website estimates, confirmed against live availability for your actual dates. Two tiers, not our usual three — a ryokan tier is quoted live rather than listed, because ryokan are priced per person with dinner included and a nightly room rate would misrepresent them.
Hotel tier
Per person, twin share
Single supplement
Comfort — 4★ near the station, twin share
from US$520
+US$390
Deluxe — larger city hotels, twin share
from US$690
+US$520
Ryokan / 5★ — traditional inn with dinner
on request
on request
Included
3 nights in Tokyo and 3 nights in Kyoto, twin share · a day-by-day self-guided plan naming the exact lines, stations and fares · our booking help for the two things that genuinely sell out — teamLab and, in season, the Shinkansen
Not included
International flights · the Shinkansen between Tokyo and Kyoto — excluded, and quoted for you at booking · breakfast, which Japanese hotels almost never bundle · airport transfers · meals · temple admissions where they apply · the teamLab ticket · travel insurance
How the flexi tour works. Choose any departure date and a hotel tier → we confirm availability and the exact price within 24 hours → pay a deposit to hold it → your final documents and vouchers arrive by email a week before you fly. There is no group to join and no fixed departure day.
Seasonal pricing.January is the cheapest month in Japan and these rates come from it — cold, dry, bright, and the clearest month of the year for seeing Mount Fuji. Avoid the New Year period itself, when the whole country travels and prices spike. The two genuine peaks are cherry blossom in late March and early April and autumn leaves in November; both cost substantially more and Kyoto sells out months ahead. Golden Week in early May is the one week we would talk you out of entirely.
Budget separately for:the Shinkansen Tokyo to Kyoto, excluded and quoted with your booking · breakfast, since the room rates are room-only — a convenience-store breakfast is a few hundred yen and genuinely good · airport transfers at both ends · the teamLab ticket · temple admissions where they apply, though Senso-ji, Meiji Jingu, Fushimi Inari and the bamboo grove are all free · international flights and travel insurance.
Start your booking
Tell us who you are and when you want to go.
We’ll reply within a business day with the price and what’s available.
A deposit holds it, and comes back in full if we can’t get your dates.
✓
That is with us
If you do not hear from us, email
info@dltravel.net and we will pick it up.