Summer Holidays - Mt Fuji and Kyoto

Following on from the previous blog and our summer trip to Japan, I now move on to Mt Fuji and Kyoto.  Here are my top tips

1.  Mt Fuji - we had Mount Fuji on our list from the moment we started discussing a holiday to Japan.  The issue with seeing Fuji is the time of year you go and where do you stay?  Well, given we were there in summer, we decided to find a hotel that had views directly to the mountain and only stay one day/night.  We stayed at the Prince Hakone Lake Ashinoko hotel and we were very impressed - comfortable, large family rooms and good food.  Unfortunately, due to the low cloud and showers we only got to see Fuji for a couple of hours in the morning.  The cable car was also being serviced, so we spent our time in the lovely grounds and going for a local walk to one of the nearby shrines.  There isn't much to do out this way, so unless you are up for some relaxation (which we were) then maybe stay closer to Odawara.  Seeing Mt Fuji was absolutely worth the visit and the extra cost to stay the night, so it's a must do from us. just to see that view !

2.  Bullet Train - the famous bullet trains in Japan are simply fabulous.  We used them from Tokyo to Odawara, to Kyoto, to Hiroshama, to Osaka and were amazed every time.  Admittedly, they are expensive to travel on (especially when you are a family of 4) but well worth it if you use your Japan Rail Pass for the bulk of the trips between cities.  They are always on time, clean, easy to navigate and, of course, fast !!!  Simply the best way to travel around Japan.  Our trip from Mt Fuji (Odawara) to Kyoto would have been 5 hours in a car but we did it in just over 2 hours using the bullet train!

3.  Kyoto Temples -  Kyoto is known for it's history and it's many shrines and temples.  We were always going to struggle with taking the boys to too many of them but the Fushimi Inari-taisha Shrine was very impressive and we were very happy to visit.  We also visited the Rengeoin Sanjusangendo buddhist shrine where there are 1001 life size wooden statues of the goddess Kannon.  I would have loved to do a few more but there are only so many in a limited time with children.  Kyoto has such a rich history and is an easy city to walk around, so I would recommend spending some time seeing some temples and would advise going early in the day to beat the crowds.

4.  Hire a Bike - Kyoto is a very flat city and is, therefore, very easy to cycle around.  We thought this would be a great way to see the city like the locals do.  We used a great company called Kyoto Cycling Tour Project located centrally near the train station and they have a great range of bikes.  We just used our phones and google maps to find our way around and that seemed to work ok, as the city is in a grid pattern which really helps with getting your bearings.  It was SERIOUSLY hot and humid in late June so we definitely needed to keep hydrated.

5.  Bamboo Forest - The bamboo forest area just outside Kyoto was on my list of things to do - not so much Mike and the boys.  To get there, you need to take the train out to Arashiyama, and then it is short walk to get to the forest itself.  It was quite busy when we were there but still lovely to see and we then continued on to the river and wandered around the local area for an hour or so.  The monkey park is also there but we chose not to do that one.  The river was very low when we visited and only today I saw photos on the news of the flooding currently in Japan - check it out below.

the river when we visited on the 27th June 

and during this weeks floods:  https://goo.gl/images/vSSD9q

6.  Geishas - It is by no way a given that you will see a Geisha while visiting Kyoto in 2018, as there are not that many left.  However, we were very privileged to see one perform.  They are very young, petite, beautiful and they take their art very seriously.  I was honoured to watch her perform.

7.  Onsen - while in Japan it is definitely worth visiting an Onsen (a bath or hot water spring) at least once.  We visited the one at our hotel near Mt Fuji and we all really enjoyed it.  The onsen spas are seperate for men and women and have strict rules that must be followed.  No footwear is allowed within the onsen area, and you must shower and wash with soap/shampoo thoroughly before entering the water, and no clothing is allowed at all.  There are often an outside and inside bath/spa and you can switch between them as you wish.  I really enjoyed my time alone but never quite got the answer to how long is a 'good' amount of time in the spa - I didn't want to leave but everyone else came and went and I was still relaxing !!

8.  Nishiki Market - the large downtown market in Kyoto is Nishiki Market and it has loads of different things to see and buy under a long roofed mall-like strip. If you are in Kyoto, I highly recommend visiting this part of town - loads of fun and fabulous sites to see.

  

We all really enjoyed both Mt Fuji and Kyoto and would have probably enjoyed another day in Kyoto to relax and enjoy it a bit more.  Next stop: Hiroshama and Osaka......