The Navigatio

08/11/2024

Osaka may not be as popular as Kyoto or Tokyo, but it's one of my favourite spots. This seaside city is mainly known for its fresh fish, delicious street food and amazing nightlife scene.

With so much to see and do in Osaka, you could easily fill a few days. Having visited the city multiple times, I’m still finding new places to explore and enjoy. The atmosphere is very welcoming and the food is fantastic.

But since there is so much to see and do in Japan, you have to make choices when it comes to your itinerary. And more often than not, it’s not possible to spend more than one day in Osaka. That’s why we’ve put this efficient one-day Osaka itinerary together. Here is how to see the best of Osaka in under 24 hours:

https://thenavigatio.com/one-day-in-osaka-itinerary-japan/

08/11/2024

For those in Tokyo: the Christmas markets at Tokyo Skytree have opened yesterday! They’ll be on until December 25th 🎅

08/11/2024

Hello from Tokyo 🥰🇯🇵🍙

Firstly, thank you all so much for the lovely comments 😍 The flight with China Eastern was totally fine – definitely not the best airline I’ve ever flown with but for £450 return, I really can’t complain! I’ve made lots of notes so will write the full review soon ✈️

In the meantime, here’s a little Tokyo update. Went out for ramen with friends yesterday which was wonderful - so so so good to be back! Bur sadly, I woke up not feeling the best (mix of jet lag and not having slept well the last few days and during the flights), so we decided to take it a bit easier today.

Walked around Asakusa (where we’re staying), visited Takagi Shrine (which celebrates onigiri!), headed over to the Skytree for some shopping and a little stroll over the newly opened Christmas Markets 🥰

Off somewhere new tomorrow… very excited! 👀 🚄

07/11/2024

On our last trip to Tokyo, we were invited to check out the newest Artist Room at Park Hotel Tokyo (ad/press stay).

The hotel has 40+ Artist Rooms, whee professional artists have painted directly onto the walls, creating some of the most unique hotel rooms I’ve ever seen! The rooms are very large, especially for Tokyo standards, and they come with all the things you need for a comfortable stay.

With beautiful views of Tokyo Tower, two on-site restaurants and a cocktail bar, Park Hotel Tokyo makes for a great, unique place to stay in Tokyo.

Here is my full review in case you're considering staying here too:

https://thenavigatio.com/park-hotel-tokyo-review/

06/11/2024

Trying a traditional hot spring in Japan is high on a lot of traveller's bucket lists. And with so many great onsen (hot spring) towns, it can be hard to choose where to go.

If you're visiting Osaka on your trip to Japan, you could take a day trip to Arima Onsen. This famous hot spring town has two types of onsen water. The Kinsen (gold water) and Ginsen (silver water) can be enjoyed by day guests as well as those who are staying overnight.

If you're planning a day trip from Osaka, you can follow my itinerary below:

https://thenavigatio.com/arima-onsen-day-trip-itinerary/

06/11/2024

Off for another 6-week adventure in Japan 🥰🇯🇵

First time flying with Eastern China. As it’s the cheapest way to get to Japan from the UK (less than £500 return with two checked bags!) I’m very interested to see what the service will be like – planning to review it fully as soon as we’re back home.

Not spending a lot of time in Tokyo this time, as Richard and I are heading quite a bit off the famous Golden Route. Super excited to share everything on here in the upcoming weeks!

05/11/2024

Really enjoyed visiting Matsumoto for the first time earlier this year – excited to head back in a couple of weeks!

Have you been yet?

04/11/2024

If you're looking for a good affordable hotel in Kyoto, check out EN Hotel Kyoto. We stayed here for five nights during our last trip to Kyoto and it pleasantly surprised us!

The rooms were big enough, with a modern bathroom. There are lots of restaurants and shops nearby, and only a 5-minute walk to the nearest station.

The hotel also has a lounge area where you can sit and chill in the evening, plus a room where you can wash and dry your clothes. I managed to write the majority of my Kinosaki Onsen guide here while waiting for my washing to finish.

For five nights, we paid ¥52,761 (£264 at the time)! You can check out the hotel here:

https://thenavigatio.com/en-hotel-kyoto

04/11/2024

I can’t believe I’m typing this but I WON THE 12 MONTH ACHIEVEMENT AWARD at the Traverse Creator Awards last night 😭❤️

Seeing the incredible creators who were nominated alongside me – people who I look up to so much – I was already shocked to see my name alongside them, let alone win!

I started The Navigatio over 7 years ago and this “overnight success” has truly been 7 years in the making. Seeing how many people we help with their trips to Japan fuels me to keep making better and better content 🇯🇵

The last 12 months have been incredible, and I’ve got even bigger plans for the next 12 months! With a huge focus on content away from Japan’s Golden Route, a better experience reading and navigating the website and giving back to the amazing community that’s grown around The Navigatio 🫶🏻🇯🇵

THANK YOU ALL! ❤️

(Also yes, the award is coming to Japan cause Richard and I are flying back on Wednesday morning!)

03/11/2024

Tokyo is my favourite city in the world. Most of my trips to Japan end or start with some time in Tokyo, and despite having visited so many times (including living there for over a month during one of my extended Japan trips), there is still so much left to explore.

I completely re-wrote this 6 day itinerary from SCRATCH after our 3-month Japan trip earlier this year - including day-to-day breakdowns of what to do and where to go. Plus, some of my favourite day trip recommendations.

I'm not spending a ton of time in Tokyo on our next trip, but I am trying out a couple of new hotels at the start and end of our trip (we fly to and from Tokyo, plus we wanna catch up with some friends in the city!). And, as always, I'll be updating any guides accordingly afterwards!

https://thenavigatio.com/what-to-do-in-tokyo-6-day-itinerary/

03/11/2024

En route to London today for the Traverse Creator Awards 🥇

Still over the moon to be nominated for the 12-month achievement category and super excited to catch up with lots of friends in the blogging industry.

The last couple of years have been a rollercoaster for sure, but I'm so proud of how much The Navigatio has grown. Cannot wait to see where we will be next year - lots of plans!

02/11/2024

Looking for accommodation with Mount Fuji views? I've listed some of the best hotels and ryokans that look out over Mount Fuji (all with onsen!)

Looking for the best Mount Fuji ryokans with onsens? We’ve handpicked the best options for you, so you don’t have to spend hours endlessly searching!

01/11/2024

Known for its high-quality green tea, Uji is a lovely city not far from Kyoto. It makes for a great day trip destination if you're looking to go outside the main tourist destinations.

Uji also has a lot of history too, as part of it was featured in the great Japanese novel "Tale of Genji". On top of that, you can find the Phoenix Hall of Byōdō-in here, which is depicted on the 10 Yen coin.

If you're looking to take a day trip here, check out our latest article on the best things to do in Uji:

https://thenavigatio.com/things-to-do-in-uji-kyoto/

01/11/2024

If you're looking for an itinerary away from the Golden Route (Tokyo-Kyoto-Osaka-Hiroshima), you may want to consider spending some time in Kyushu.

Kyushu island is home to seven of the 47 prefectures in Japan and has SO much to offer. Plus, not many tourists travel here yet, so you can avoid the big crowds compared to Kyoto or Tokyo.

The Navigatio contributor ShaSha Sonoda has been living in Kyushu for over six years and put this ultimate 7-day Kyushu itinerary together for first-time visitors - including the main cities, hot springs, national parks and some amazing hidden spots. This itinerary takes you to:

⛩️ Fukuoka
⛩️ Saga
⛩️ Nagasaki
⛩️ Kumamoto
⛩️ Kagoshima
⛩️ Miyazaki
⛩️ Beppu

https://thenavigatio.com/7-day-kyushu-itinerary/

31/10/2024

My favourite month to visit Japan is nearly here!

Who else is heading to Japan in November? I've got a few more sleeps left before another 6-week adventure in Japan - this time exploring a ton of new spots, including the island of Shikoku!

Here is my updated November guide with info on the temperatures, how busy it gets, what to wear and some of the main events and festivals :)

Are you planning to visit Japan in November? We’ve put together the ultimate guide to visiting Japan during this month, including information about the

31/10/2024

If you're heading to Japan this autumn, you should definitely consider adding Nikko to your itinerary - it's one of the best spots for autumn leaves and generally a lovely area to explore.

While Nikko is worth visiting for a few days and staying overnight, I'm aware that's not always possible if you have a limited time in Japan. That's why I've put together this one day Nikko itinerary (after we did a one day trip ourselves!)

The route takes you to some of the highlights in Nikko which you can visit in one day, including a return journey from Tokyo.

https://thenavigatio.com/nikko-day-trip-itinerary/

30/10/2024

No snow on Mount Fuji yet... Since they started tracking in 1894, this is the LATEST Mount Fuji has been without snow.

It's almost November and Mount Fuji is still snowless. It's the latest the active volcano has been without snow since records began in 1894.

30/10/2024

The latest fall foliage forecast has been released earlier today!

https://n-kishou.com/corp/news-contents/autumn/?lang=en