Japan

Traveled to Japan 3 years ago, beautiful!

Dont miss the Shrine Island in Miyajima in Hiroshima and the Todai-ji Temple in Nara.

Thanks Lucyrt, for such a useful information about Japan. I think one of the most exciting facts about Japan is that it's a very safe country. Japans' rich cultural traditions have trickled from one generation to the next and there really is so much more on offer. Also the food is excellent and one of the healthiest in the world.

Japan is one of the prominent countries in Asia with plenty of attractions where you will be enjoying every moment. It has the most famous temples, shrines, garden and castle where number of tourist visit every year in a huge numbers especially Tokyo, Osaka, Sapporo and Kyoto are the main places for visitors.

Moreover, Japanese cuisine is one of the greatest attractions. It's also famous for shopping, supermarkets and departmental stores etc.

Thank you for your interest in traveling to Japan! You will have a great time there in October.

Kyoto is a great place to spend in Japan because many attractions are within walking distance. When you're there, buy a map and map out yourself, or ask someone to help you map out the routes between the places you want to visit. That way, you'll be able to get everywhere efficiently. The public transportation in Japan is a dream. The system is extremely easy to figure out. The JR line is the most common, and is color coordinated so its easy to understand. Almost everything is in English as well.

If you're going to be traveling all around Japan, consider buying a Japan Rail Pass for one of the weeks, which will let you tour around a larger area of Japan. Go to Japanforyou dot com for more info on that.

Here are a couple of places in Kyoto I would recommend seeing:

Gosho-The old imperial palace.
Ginkakuji and Kinkakuji- The golden pavilion and silver pavilion are both beautiful.
Arashiyama or "monkey mountain" is a really fun experience. You hike to the top of a hill where hundreds of monkeys run around you, and you can feed them.
The Fushimi Inari Shring - You walk through a maze of 10,000 torri gates
Osaka Castle is really interesting but its a while outside of Kyoto

Tokyo is also an amazing place. Shibuya, Roppongi, and Shinjuku are the most exciting party prefectures to visit and have an amazing night life.
When you're in Tokyo, think about making a trip to Kamakura to see Daibutsu, the famous bronze buddha statue. It's well worth the train ride.
The Tokyo Imperial palace is also amazing.

Also, make sure you visit an onsen or ofuro while you're in Japan. They are the public baths, and you won't want to miss that cultural experience.

Sadly, I have never had the experience of climbing Mt. Fuji, but I hear you take a bus or train to camp 4 or 5 up the mountain a ways, and then start your trek. A lot of people like to start in the middle of the night, and then reach the summit at sunrise. Make sure you bring a lot of water and food.

The food in Japan is delicious. There is a lot of American food there if you're squeamish, but if not, try these foods:

tacoyaki- octopus balls
sukiyaki- raw meat boiled in special sauces and then dipped in raw egg and eaten with rice (my all-time favorite Japanese dish)
sushi, of course
okonomiyaki- a kind of pancake with fish flakes on top

As far as people go, they are extremely polite and humble.

Please don't hesitate to ask anymore questions. I have more sites I can recommend. Honestly, most of my favorite Japan sites are not in Tokyo, Kyoto, or near Mt. Fuji. Some of these include Miyajima, Amanohashidate, Kamakura, Hiroshima. Please post again if you want more info on these.

Happy travels!