Exactly one year ago, Adam and I embarked on a two-week adventure to Japan, splitting our time between the energetic sprawl of Tokyo and the more laid-back charm and history of Kyoto. I shared some quick snapshots on Instagram at the time, but since I didn’t have this blog then, here’s a proper recap with all the details, stories, and tips we wish we’d known before hopping on that long flight from Boise.

Starting Off in Ikebukuro

We kicked off our trip with four nights in Ikebukuro, a part of Tokyo that’s definitely less frantic than the famous Shinjuku or Shibuya. After traveling halfway around the world and landing at 2pm local time, our main goal was to stay awake and fight off jet lag. Japan is 15 hours ahead of Boise and neither of us slept on the flight. Ikebukuro was the perfect place for this, still busy but nowhere near the sensory overload of the other areas of Tokyo.

Once checked in, our first mission was food. We walked by a ramen shop with a line of locals out front, so we figured it was the perfect place to stop. I’m still dreaming about that delicious bowl — nothing I’ve found back home comes close. We ordered from a vending machine that had zero English on it. Pro tip: if you’re unsure what to order from a place with vending machine ordering, choose the option in the top left corner because it’s typically their specialty or their best seller. We followed that with a visit to the Sunshine 60 observatory to take in the city views from 60 stories in the air!

We ended the evening with our very first konbini experience (Japanese convenience stores, for the uninitiated), which lived up to every expectation we had. Our nightly routine quickly became hitting the konbini for coffee and breakfast essentials, prepping for days when shops and restaurants don’t open until 10 or 11am. We’d pick an area to explore, grab breakfast from our stash, and just wander — finding shrines, coffee shops, random stores, and lunch spots as the mood struck. By evening, we’d usually be so far from home that hopping back on the train was a welcome break.

Some highlights from our early Tokyo days included:

• TeamLab Planets: Amazing but go early — it gets crowded and sweaty barefoot. This is one of the only things we purchased tickets for ahead of time and it was absolutely worth it to get the first spot of the morning.

• Tsukiji Fish Market: Fun but pricey and packed, so get there early.

• A classic Tokyo rainstorm: Forced us to duck into a flea market in Ueno, which turned out to be a blast exploring all the stalls.

• Yakitori night: Adam bravely tried chicken hearts — I stuck to the safer options.

• Bar Panorama: Giant glasses of wine for just $3 on the top floor of a movie theater. Yes, please.

• Lemon sours: I tried one and immediately became obsessed, ordering them everywhere else on the trip.

On to Kyoto: Slowing Down and Loving It

Day five, we took the bullet train to Kyoto, swapping the hyper pace of Tokyo for something much more relaxing. We stayed near Kyoto-Nijo station, which was perfect since it was close enough to the action without being in the thick of tourist chaos. Our hotel was right next to Sanjo-Dori shopping street. We walked down this street to get basically anywhere, so we ended up stumbling on some of the best meals of the entire trip (hello dim sum)!

Highlights:

• Dim sum: Our first ever, and honestly the best meal we had — so good we forgot to snap pictures.

• E-bikes: We rented them and rode all the way to the bamboo forest, which was as stunning as you’d imagine. We also rented them a second day to go to Fushimi Inari. This was the best way to explore all of Kyoto in my opinion – it was cost effective and allowed us to cover a lot of ground each day!

• Japanese whiskey bar: A nice way to unwind before dinner at Pizzeria Brown Blossom, where we had arguably the best pizza ever — and tiny restaurant vibes meant sitting next to a lovely French couple.

Kyoto was filled with gorgeous sights too — we toured the Imperial Palace, checked out Nishiki Market, and hiked up Fushimi Inari. We also explored the Gion district and visited Kenninji temple.

Back to Tokyo, This Time in Shinjuku

By day nine, we returned to Tokyo and stayed in Shinjuku, feeling a lot more comfortable navigating the city and with our abilities to order food and interact with locals.

This leg included:

• Kabukicho and Golden Gai: Tiny, cozy bars perfect for people-watching and soaking in local nightlife.

• Thrifting in Shimokitazawa: A treasure trove of quirky shops and vintage finds.

• A day trip to Yokohama: Home to the largest Chinatown in all of Japan.

Then came Adam’s birthday — a day worthy of its own chapter.

We started by walking from Shinjuku to Shibuya, crossing the famous Shibuya crossing and stopping by Takeshita Street in Harajuku. The real fun began when we accidentally stumbled upon the launch party for a new drink — the Future Lemon Sour by Asahi Brewing. This drink can completely opens and there’s an entire fresh lemon slice inside the can!

The setup was hilarious: no one else was there yet, and the staff literally walked us from check-in to ordering to pick-up stations, where a robot handed us our drinks. There was a two-drink maximum, but when Adam tried sneaking a third, the staff had completely switched — so he got us two more.

Long story short, we both got pretty drunk for $12. The funniest part was when Adam tried to go back for a final drink and the original staff had returned but still let him get another drink.

We finished the night buying way too many Yoshi plushes at the Nintendo store, visited a hookah bar that felt like it was someone’s living room, and saw the iconic Godzilla and the giant 3D cat in Shinjuku. We ended the night with some late night ramen.

Last Days & Farewell

Our last full day was spent exploring Kappabashi Kitchen Street and going to Tokyo Skytree. These are both absolute musts for first-timers. We then had to figure out how we were going to get home with all of the things we purchased during the last two weeks. Spoiler alert: we took our happy asses back to Don Quijote (aka. Donki) and bought ourselves an extra large suitcase to fit everything!

The last day was mostly packing and soaking in the last moments before our flight back home.

Our Top Japan Travel Tips

Having the beauty of hindsight, here are some tips based on what worked well for us and a few things we learned on our own:

• Fill out your immigration form online via VisitJapanWeb before you fly. It saved us tons of time on arrival.

• Add your Suica card to Apple Wallet. You’ll use it on every train, plus some konbinis and vending machines. (Don’t forget the vending machines!)

• Pack light and stay somewhere with laundry access. We bought an extra-large suitcase to haul home all our souvenirs — it’s basically a Japan trip rite of passage.

• Use Papago for translation. It worked great for us. That being said, there are several phrases you should learn before you go to make communicating much easier!

• Google Maps is your best friend. It helped us figure out train platforms, station entrances, and the best routes — no guesswork required.

• Rent pocket WiFi. We used Ninja WiFi, picked it up at the airport, dropped it off on the way home — super reliable and affordable for both our phones. You can also do an eSIM, but that wasn’t an option for us.

• Skip bringing most toiletries. Japanese hotels supply everything from toothbrushes to shampoo. Bring only specialty items or hair styling products. Plus, you’ll want to try their amazing skincare products while you’re there.

• Cash is king. We withdrew cash at 7/11 on day one (there’s a small fee but better exchange rates). Also, not all places accept Visa, but our Mastercard from Capital One was widely accepted and has no foreign transaction fees so that’s what we used anywhere we could while using our cash more sparingly at places that only accept cash.

Japan was everything we hoped for and more. We both still talk about it constantly and I even have Google flight alerts set up on my phone so if tickets get below a certain price, I’ll waste no time booking another trip. I feel like I could easily spend another 2+ weeks in Japan doing things we either didn’t get to see or didn’t have time for. The people of Japan were so kind and welcoming and I was just blown away by how clean and organized everything was. We could not have had a better first trip and I just know we’ll be back someday!