Originally Posted By jeznbel Does anybody have any ideas about others sights that might interest a young family within say a 1 hour travel of the Resort? We are staying at the Palm & Fountain Hotel for 7 days and I am not really sure of what else is around. We are travelling with a 2,4 & 6 year old. My 6 year old is really into Volcanoes and I was wandering if Mt Fuji was "dooable" from where we are staying. All advise is greatly appreciated.
Originally Posted By trekkeruss I really enjoyed the Transportation Museum, which is nearby the the Akibahara electronics district. The emphasis of the museum is on trains... there are interactive displays where you can 'drive' trains, and there is also a very large model railroad that is operated every hour. I saw many, many school children there on field trips. You could 'see' Mt. Fuji from the surrounding countryside, but you won't be able to go up to the caldera unless you planned to climb it, which is definitely NOT for children... never mind that April is well outside the official climbing months of July and August. If the weather is clear, you could go up to the observation floors of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Offices, where you can see Mt. Fuji in the distance. If you do this you might ask beforehand which of the two towers is better for viewing Mt. Fuji... I don't recall if one tower obstructs the view from the other. You could also go up Tokyo Tower for the same view, but that costs money; to go up the government towers is free.
Originally Posted By Roger55 Best way to see Mt Fuji is to sign up for a day tour. That usually includes rail and bus transportation to Mt Fuji. From the Tokyo area, a trip to Mt Fuji will take up pretty much a full day... several hours of travel there, time spent at Fuji, and several hours back. Also, it is and "outdoor adventure", so you need to take into consideration weather conditions. Winter time is very cold and snowy, summer time is very hot and muggy. Are you planning any time to see Tokyo? Tokyo is around a 30-50 minute train ride depending which part of the city you are going to. There are many many sights to see in Tokyo. If you want any info or suggestions, just ask and I can try to list some of them for you. There is also the giant statue of the Buddha at Kamakura. It is a few hours away from the resort and may make a nice day trip. If you are looking for things to see or do around the resort that you can do on the same day you plan to also visit the parks, my suggestions would be... - The Ikspiari shopping area in the resort - Check out the Ambassador Hotel (maybe character dining at Chef Mickey in the hotel) - Check out the Mira Costa Hotel (fine dining also available, but no character dining) - There is another amusement park called Kasai Rinkai Koen near the resort. I have never been there so I have no idea how good it is. I'm sure others here on the board can give you more info. Well, I could go on and on... I guess it would be best if you can provide more specific information such as if you are looking for someplace to go on the same day you will go to the parks. What time of the year are you traveling? Are you planning on using the public rail system on your own, or would you rather take organized bus tours? I probably just confused you more, but maybe there is some useful information burried within.
Originally Posted By Mr X Where to begin!? About Fuji, on a clear day it is much larger and more impressive to see it from Yokohama (that is assuming that you don't want to go all the way to the mountain itself...there's a fairly cool amusement park called Fuji-Q with great coasters if you wanted to make the trek), and I would recommend Yokohama as a great side trip anyway (cool Chinatown, nice waterfront park with TGIFridays and Hard Rock Cafe etc., and a very different, more mellow vibe compared to Tokyo). How many days are you planning to devote to Disney? I could offer you tons of things to see and do, all an hour or so from your hotels (and mostly in Tokyo) but it's hard to prioritize without knowing just how many days/half days/evenings you have free.
Originally Posted By Mr X Kasai park is a very nice side trip, though I'm not sure you'd want to check it out given limited time. Nice Ferris Wheel, but that's pretty much it as far as amusements. VERY pretty area though, and seeing the resort from across the bay is cool too. Also there's an aquarium there which I thought was quite a bit nicer than I expected. Again, maybe something with more appeal for locals I'd imagine. If you want a sky view ferris wheel experience though, I'd recommend an evening in Odaiba (about 30-40 minutes from your hotel, it's an easy train trip)...Odaiba is essentially a night spot for couples but there's plenty for familes to do including a giant ferris wheel, some other amusements, bowling, awsome restaurants and shopping, and a great view of the rainbow bridge across the bay. Another great nightspot is Roppongi, lots of clubs etc...but it's very foreigner friendly and the new Roppongi Hills zone is amazing. On your days in Tokyo, do not miss Ueno, Akihabara, Ginza (exit at Tokyo or Yurakucho stations), Harajuku, Shibuya, Harajuku, Shin-Juku, and Asakusa. Great thing is, aside from Asakusa (which is fairly close to Ueno and Ginza) ALL the places I just mentioned are easily found by taking the Yamanote train line (which circles downtown Tokyo). In fact, the order written above is the order in which you'll find these places riding the train around the circle (from Tokyo station, you could "backtrack" 4 stops to Ueno and start there, and just make your way around the circle and see all these places in one day.
Originally Posted By Mr X Oops, Harajuku (think Greenwich village in New York, VERY fun place to check out) is AFTER Shibuya on the Yamanote, not before (and not twice either ).
Originally Posted By Roger55 On my last trip in November, I was pleasantly surprised how nice Tokyo Tower was after refurbishment. Tokyo Tower used to be a run-down tourist trap that I would not recommend to others. But the recent refurbishment has cleaned up the place. New store area, food court, and a generally "cleaner" feeling. As far as the tower itself, it provides an excellent view of the metro Tokyo area if the weather is clear. If you like high places, the Mori Building in Roppongi Hills also provides an awesome view of the city. I would also like to second X's recommendation of Odaiba at night. It is not that far from the resort area and has a comfortable environment for walking around, dining, shopping, and a few play areas like arcades.
Originally Posted By Mr X I recall passing up the Mori building because of the high cost of going up to the top...has that changed? If not, just be aware that it can be pricy to go up to the observatory, if you have the family in tow (BUT, that's no reason not to visit Roppongi Hills, which is free to walk around and a very interesting place to see!).
Originally Posted By jeznbel Hi again, I know I initially stated I wanted sights within an hours travel, but does anybody know how far away Osaka is from the Chiba area?
Originally Posted By SuperDry It's about 2.5 hours by Shinkansen (bullet train) from Tokyo Station. So, call it at least 3.5 hours each way by the time you add getting to Tokyo from Chiba, transferring platforms, and so on. Also, it will set you back about $125 each way. Check out: <a href="http://www.japanhomesearch.com/travelexpert/te_main.asp" target="_blank">http://www.japanhomesearch.com /travelexpert/te_main.asp</a> You can put in any two train station or airport names in Japan, and it will show you rail and air transportation options, including travel time, connections, and cost.
Originally Posted By Roger55 Osaka IMO is not a day trip. Like stated above, travel time and cost make a trip to Osaka to be at least a two day trip. And if you are going to pay the money to ride the shinkansen(bullet train) to Osaka, I would highly recommend that you spend some time at Kyoto(the ancient capital of Japan) and Nara. It is on the way to Osaka. Another piece of advice... If you do plan to take a trip down towards Osaka on the shinkansen, I would highly recommend getting a Japan Rail Pass. These passes are only available to foriegn visitors to Japan and must be purchased in the US prior to your visit. Japan Rail passes give you unlimited travel on the trains operated by the JR company. You can buy either a 7 day or 14 day pass. There are restrictions such as reserved(green) cars and express trains, but are a great bargain if you are going to ride the shinkansen because the same pass will allow you to ride many of the other JR operated trains in the Tokyo area. Rail passes aren't for everyone, but certainly worth looking into. <a href="http://www.japanrailpass.net/eng/en001.html" target="_blank">http://www.japanrailpass.net/e ng/en001.html</a>
Originally Posted By SuperDry To add a bit to the JR rail pass, one rule of thumb that I've heard is that the breakeven price for a 7-day pass is a Tokyo-Osaka roundtrip. If you think you're going to do at least that, then the pass is a good deal, as the pass will also include travel from Narita Airport to Tokyo on the Narita Express, and even the Keiyo Line from Tokyo Station out to Maihama Station where TDR is. Most travel around the Tokyo area can be done on the JR system (which is completely separate from the "Tokyo Metro" consolidated subway system). Although travel just in the greater Tokyo area would never justify a full JR pass, if you're going to get one anyway for travel down to Osaka, you might as well also use it for the Narita Express and general Tokyo area travel.
Originally Posted By Roger55 Good points SD. I have always heard the "break-even" point was Nagoya, but I have never actually sat down and calculated it. Thought about mentioning the Narita Express(NEx), but since they are staying at the Palm and Fountain, I wasn't sure if going all the way into Tokyo Station would be a good recommendation. But for others that stay somewhere in the Tokyo area, using the Rail Pass for the NEx is an excellent idea.
Originally Posted By TDLFAN But beware... you can't use the JR pass on all of the Shinkansen trains... the fastest ones with the least amount of stops are blocked off from the JR Pass... But it is still a good deal to buy the pass if you are going as far as Osaka round trip. But I would not go to Osaka for just a day... you need to overnight and enjoy. Universal Studios Japan alone is worth going over there for since it's a much much better version of the Orlando park.
Originally Posted By SuperDry <<< I would highly recommend that you spend some time at Kyoto(the ancient capital of Japan) and Nara. >>> I know that Tokyo has TDR and Osaka has USJ. Doesn't Nara also have its own amusement park?
Originally Posted By Faith >>But beware... you can't use the JR pass on all of the Shinkansen trains... the fastest ones with the least amount of stops are blocked off from the JR Pass... << I think the only ones that you can't use it on are the Nozomi Shinkansen, which are mainly used to go to Kyushu. In any event, reservations are free with the JR Passes so I always made reservations just to be 100% sure there would be no problem. Back to the original post... if I was going to Japan for the first time with little kids and only staying 7 days, I'd pretty much stay in the Tokyo area if TDR was a primary focus. (which, by the choice of hotel, sounds like is the case) 1-2 of the first days will probbaly be filled with at least someone having jet lag. If I really wanted to go to 1 city in addition to Tokyo, it would be Kyoto- but trying to do Tokyo, TDR *and* Kyoto in 7 days would really not end up doing justice to any of them imo.
Originally Posted By trekkeruss I agree with Faith. TDR will take two if not three days to enjoy, leaving you with just enough time to tour Tokyo alone. Tokyo is HUGE... it's rather like a few large cities spread over one big metropoltitan area.
Originally Posted By SuperDry There's no way you could run out of things to do or see in Tokyo. The question is really do you want to do something other than the big city and TDR stuff. Kamakura and Nikko are often mentioned as doable day trips from Tokyo if you want to do something a bit less urban.
Originally Posted By Faith I went to Kamakura and Nikko on my 2nd trip to Japan, but I'm not sure if I'd recommend them in this case. I liked both cities... but I don't think I would have had a good time if I was taking my nieces, for example. Nikko would probably be easier with kids, but it's a bit further away (2 hrs iirc) I guess they both seemed to be places that would work best if you liked being an independent traveler and finding things yourself... they weren't what I'd call "easy" to experience, although they were worthwhile to me. (I went in March, which is probably off season so that may skew my experiences) If there is any possiblity of an English language bus trip, that might be a more viable option for a family looking to see something outside of Tokyo. I've never really looked into that so I am not sure if they exist or not. The most interesting sites I've found in Japan are outside Tokyo (which, though infititely interesting, can also feel a lot like any big city), so it is worth venturing out... just not sure about time in a 7 day trip when TDR itself can easily take 3-4 days. Here's a couple links I just found that could be helpful: Frommers recommendations for kids in Tokyo <a href="http://www.frommers.com/destinations/tokyo/0085021105.html" target="_blank">http://www.frommers.com/destin ations/tokyo/0085021105.html</a> Jalpak day trips from Tokyo <a href="http://www.jalpak.com/e/tours/jp_optional_pkg/day_tokyo.shtml" target="_blank">http://www.jalpak.com/e/tours/ jp_optional_pkg/day_tokyo.shtml</a>
