Japan Discovery: Tokyo to Kyoto

Arrive at Narita or Haneda airport and take the Narita Express (N'EX) or Keikyu Line to central Tokyo. Check into your hotel in Shinjuku or Shibuya and walk immediately to Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden — 58 acres of manicured lawns, French formal gardens, and Japanese tea garden ponds — a perfect decompression after a long flight.

Explore Harajuku's Takeshita Street, a teenager's fever dream of pastel fashion, crêpe stands, and street-food novelties. Walk through the zelkova-tree avenue to Meiji Jingu Shrine — a forested Shinto shrine complex honouring Emperor Meiji, quiet and contemplative despite being in central Tokyo. Then wander Omotesandō (Tokyo's Champs-Élysées) for architecture and high-end boutiques.

Head to Shibuya Crossing at dusk — stand on the pedestrian island as hundreds of people surge past in every direction simultaneously, one of the world's great urban spectacles. Dinner in Memory Lane (Omoide Yokocho), Shinjuku — a narrow alley of tiny yakitori stalls where skewers of chicken sizzle over charcoal and the smoke fills the lantern-lit lane.

Wake early and take the subway to Asakusa — arrive at Senso-ji Temple (Tokyo's oldest, built 645 AD) before 8 AM while the incense smoke drifts through lantern-lit gates and the morning light is golden. Walk Nakamise-dori shopping street for traditional sweets, folding fans, and kokeshi dolls. Climb nearby Tokyo Skytree (634m, world's tallest tower) for a cloudless city panorama.

Visit Akihabara — the electric town crammed with multi-storey gaming arcades, anime figurine shops, and electronics emporiums that seem to stock every component ever made. Then cross town to Ueno for the Tokyo National Museum — Japan's oldest and largest museum with samurai armour, ukiyo-e prints, and Buddhist sculpture.

Dinner in Ginza at an izakaya (Japanese pub) — order edamame, karaage (fried chicken), tamagoyaki (rolled omelette), and cold Sapporo beer. Walk to Tsukiji Outer Market (the outer section is still open at night) for fresh sushi snacks. End at the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building observation floor (free, open until 10:30 PM) for a night skyline panorama.

Arrive at Tsukiji Outer Market by 7 AM for the ultimate sushi breakfast — plates of tuna, sea urchin, and salmon roe pulled from the morning deliveries at counter stools where chefs work inches from you. Browse the market's cookware stalls for Japanese knives and cast-iron tea pots.

Book teamLab Borderless (or Planets) digital art museum in Odaiba — immersive rooms where floor and ceiling become an endless sea of light, flowers, and moving calligraphy; utterly unlike anything else on earth. Explore Odaiba's waterfront promenade with views of Rainbow Bridge and a life-size 18-metre Gundam statue.

Dinner at a ramen shop in Shibuya: thick tonkotsu broth with chashu pork belly, soft-boiled egg, and bamboo shoots. Walk back through Daikanyama and Nakameguro — Tokyo's stylish village neighbourhoods — where canal-side boutiques and jazz bars light up after dark. Pack for tomorrow's Hakone day trip.

Take the Romance Car (limited-express) from Shinjuku to Hakone-Yumoto (85 min). Use the Hakone Free Pass for the day. Board the cog railway up to Gora, then the ropeway over the Owakudani volcanic valley where sulphur vents hiss and you can eat kuro tamago (black eggs hard-boiled in volcanic hot springs — legend says each adds 7 years to your life).

Descend to Lake Ashi by ropeway and board a pirate ship cruise across the lake for the classic Mt Fuji reflection shot (visible on clear days). Visit Hakone Open-Air Museum, a remarkable sculpture park with Picasso pavilion and Henry Moore bronzes set against mountain scenery. Soak in a ryokan onsen (hot spring bath) at your accommodation or a public bathhouse.

Settle into a traditional ryokan for a kaiseki multi-course dinner served in your tatami room: seasonal sashimi, miso soup, pickled vegetables, wagyu beef, and rice — a procession of small perfect dishes. Sleep on a futon with the sound of the mountain stream outside. Take the shinkansen to Kyoto tomorrow morning.

Arrive Kyoto on the shinkansen (Shin-Osaka transfer or direct). Head immediately to Arashiyama bamboo grove — the 500-metre path through towering green bamboo is magical before 8 AM when the light filters through and tour buses haven't arrived. Tenryu-ji temple garden (UNESCO) borders the grove — spend 30 minutes in its strolled pond garden before the rush.

Rent a bicycle (¥1,000/day) to reach Kinkaku-ji (Golden Pavilion), covered in gold leaf and reflected in Mirror Pond — arrive just before noon. Cycle to Ryoan-ji for Japan's most famous dry rock garden: 15 stones in white gravel, no two visible from the same angle. Then on to Ninnaji temple's five-storey pagoda for a quieter end to the afternoon.

Walk through Gion district at dusk — the preserved ochaya teahouse streets are at their most photogenic when the paper lanterns glow and the occasional maiko (apprentice geisha) rustles past in silk kimono. Dinner at Nishiki Market neighbourhood — try yudofu (tofu hot pot) at a centuries-old Kyoto tofu restaurant.

Arrive at Fushimi Inari Taisha at 6:30 AM — the torii gate tunnel that winds 4 km up the sacred mountain is transformative in early morning mist. Climb past the lower gates to the mountain summit (2 hrs round trip, moderate gradient) where smaller shrines and fox statues are wrapped in offerings. The atmosphere is other-worldly and deeply peaceful before tourist crowds arrive.

Return to central Kyoto for Nishiki Market — a 400-metre covered arcade called 'Kyoto's Kitchen,' packed with 100 stalls of pickled vegetables, fresh tofu, matcha sweets, grilled fish, and street snacks. Sample as you walk. Visit Nijo Castle — the shogun's Kyoto residence with nightingale floors that squeak when walked on, an anti-assassin design measure.

Visit Kiyomizudera Temple on the hillside at sunset — the massive wooden stage jutting from the cliffside over cherry and maple trees is the defining image of Kyoto. Walk the ancient Sannenzaka and Ninenzaka stone-paved lanes below the temple, lined with traditional shops selling matcha soft serve and Kyoto ceramics. Farewell dinner at a kaiseki restaurant in Nakagyo-ku.

Take the 15-min shinkansen from Kyoto to Osaka. Drop bags at the station and head to Dotonbori — the neon-lit canal district where giant mechanical crabs and blowfish signs advertise restaurants. Eat takoyaki (octopus balls) from a street stand as Osakans have done for a century. Cross to Kuromon Ichiba Market ('Osaka's Kitchen') for fresh seafood and tamagoyaki.

Visit Osaka Castle and its surrounding park — the castle is a 20th-century rebuild but houses a fine museum of the Tokugawa period inside, and the park moat is stunning. Climb Tsutenkaku Tower in Shinsekai for views over the old working-class neighbourhood where kushikatsu (deep-fried skewers) were invented — eat them in the Shinsekai restaurants at lunch.

Final meal in Japan at a proper okonomiyaki (savoury pancake) restaurant in Shinsaibashi, where you cook your own on a hotplate built into the table. Head to Kansai International Airport (KIX) via Haruka Express. Board your flight home carrying a suitcase of instant ramen, matcha Kit-Kats, and memories that will take months to fully process.