Self-Launched 10-Day Japan Family Adventure: Tokyo, Mt Fuji, Hakone & Osaka

Fly into Haneda or Narita and make your own way in: the Keikyu Line runs Haneda to Shimbashi in ~25 min (~£3), or the Keisei Skyliner/Access Express from Narita (~£12). Buy a Suica/Pasmo IC card at the airport machine (¥500 deposit + top-up) — it works on almost every train, subway and bus on this trip. Pick up a data eSIM before you fly (from ~£6 for 10 days) or a cheap SIM at the airport. Check into a hostel private room or budget hotel near Shimbashi/Shiodome or Asakusa, then take a gentle evening wander and grab konbini dinner or ramen. Book your Disney and Universal tickets online tonight so your park days are locked in.

🚌Airport train ~£3–12; IC card top-up ~£10

🛏Private twin/family room in a Tokyo hostel or 2–3* business hotel (Shimbashi, Asakusa or Ueno), ~£35–55/room

• →Airport train transfer
• →Buy Suica/Pasmo IC card
• →Evening neighbourhood walk
• →Konbini dinner or ramen

Ride the JR Yamanote Line to Harajuku (a full loop ride is ~£1.20). Start at Meiji Shrine and Yoyogi Park — free, forested and lovely in the morning before crowds. Wander Takeshita Street for crepes and character shops, then head west to Mitaka for the Ghibli Museum. Tickets are the tricky bit: they release on the 10th of each month at 10am JST via Lawson Ticket (l-tike.com) and sell out fast — book exactly then, or use a Klook Ghibli Museum ticket/reservation assist. The museum is genuinely magical for kids (the Cat Bus room), and Totoro's booth out front is free. Evening back in Shibuya for a cheap conveyor-belt sushi dinner.

🚌JR Yamanote + Chuo lines, ~£4 total

🛏Same Tokyo hotel/hostel

• →Meiji Shrine & Yoyogi Park (free)
• →Takeshita Street & Harajuku backstreets
• →Ghibli Museum admission (~£7 adult, ~£3 child; book via Lawson Ticket or Klook)
• →Shibuya evening & conveyor sushi

A kid-pleaser day on the cheap. Akihabara's multi-floor arcades and gachapon halls are free to browse; the Pokémon Center and Nintendo Tokyo are both free entry (Nintendo Tokyo is in Shibuya PARCO — save it for the afternoon). Book Shibuya Sky online in advance via Klook (~£14 adult, ~£9 child) for a late-afternoon slot so you get daylight and sunset in one ticket — much better value than a guide taking you up. Skip the operator's guided transport: the subway does it all for a few pounds.

🚌Tokyo Metro day pass ~£5

🛏Same Tokyo hotel/hostel

• →Akihabara arcades & gachapon shops
• →Pokémon Center Tokyo (free)
• →Nintendo Tokyo at Shibuya PARCO (free)
• →Shibuya Sky observation deck (~£14 adult / ~£9 child, book on Klook)

Buy a 1-day pass direct from the official Tokyo Disney Resort site or via Klook (~£45–52 adult, ~£30–36 child depending on date). Take the JR Keiyo Line from Tokyo Station to Maihama (~£2.50, 15 min) — no private driver needed. Arrive at opening, use the free standby pass/priority systems in the app, and pack snacks from a konbini to keep food costs down. Older kids and teens will want DisneySea; younger ones often prefer Disneyland.

🚌JR Keiyo Line to Maihama, ~£5 return

🛏Same Tokyo hotel/hostel

• →Tokyo Disneyland or DisneySea full day (~£45–52 adult / ~£30–36 child)
• →Evening parade / fireworks

Take the Keio/Fuji Kyuko highway bus from Shinjuku Expressway Bus Terminal to Kawaguchiko (~2 hrs, ~£14 one way; book on the Keio or Willer Express site a few days ahead — 9:30am departures are ideal). Drop bags at a lakeside guesthouse or hostel. Spend the afternoon at Oshino Hakkai's spring ponds (free) and, weather permitting, ride the Fuji Panoramic Ropeway or a local bus to Arakurayama Sengen Park for the five-storey pagoda framed by Fuji (~£1–2). The Narusawa Ice Cave is reachable by local bus (~£4) if you have time. Hire bikes at the hostel for lake views at sunset — far cheaper and more fun than a private car. Note: any guided guide hire here would add £100+; self-navigating is easy with English signage.

🚌Highway bus Shinjuku–Kawaguchiko ~£14 one way; local buses ~£5

🛏Lakeside hostel private room or budget guesthouse in Kawaguchiko, ~£30–45/room

• →Oshino Hakkai springs (free)
• →Arakurayama Sengen Park & Chureito Pagoda (~£2 bus)
• →Optional Narusawa Ice Cave (~£2.50 entry)
• →Optional Fuji Panoramic Ropeway (~£5)

Bus or train to Gotemba/Hakone-Yumoto (local bus ~£6–8), then buy the Hakone Free Pass (2-day, ~£40 from Odawara or ~£45 from Shinjuku) which covers the whole circuit: the sightseeing pirate ship across Lake Ashi (~included), the Hakone Ropeway up to Owakudani's sulphur vents (included) and the black eggs (~£3 for five). It's a brilliant, self-guided loop with kids. Afterwards take the local train to Odawara and board the Shinkansen to Shin-Osaka (~2.5 hrs, ~£65 reserved; unreserved seats are cheaper and fine) — or use the slower JR Tokaido line for half the price if you're not time-pressed. Check into a budget hotel near Hommachi/Shin-Osaka and eat at a standing soba bar.

🚌Local bus/train to Hakone ~£7 + Hakone Free Pass ~£40 + Shinkansen Odawara–Shin-Osaka ~£65

🛏Budget hotel or hostel private room in Osaka (Hommachi, Namba or Shin-Osaka), ~£35–55/room

• →Lake Ashi pirate ship cruise (included in Hakone Free Pass)
• →Hakone Ropeway to Owakudani
• →Owakudani volcanic zone & black eggs (~£3)
• →Shinkansen experience

An early start pays off. Take the Keihan line from Osaka to Fushimi Inari (~£4, free entry — walk the lower torii tunnels before 9am to dodge crowds). Continue by JR Nara Line to Uji (~£2.50) for matcha ice cream and a riverside stroll, then on to Nara (~£2.50). Nara Park's deer are free; Todai-ji's Great Buddha Hall is ~£4 adult / ~£2 child. Feed the deer (¥200 crackers), then head back to Osaka by Kintetsu line (~£5). A local guide here would cost £100+; the route is easy and well signposted in English.

🚌Keihan + JR + Kintetsu trains, ~£14 total

🛏Same Osaka hotel

• →Fushimi Inari Taisha (free)
• →Uji matcha & riverside walk
• →Nara Park deer (free)
• →Todai-ji Temple (~£4 adult / £2 child)

Buy a 1-day Studio Pass online in advance via Klook or the official USJ site (~£50–65 adult, ~£35–44 child, varies by date) — weekends and holidays are pricier, so midweek is best. Take the JR Yumesaki Line to Universal City (~£2). Super Nintendo World needs a timed entry ticket (free, claim it on the USJ app the moment you enter) and the Mario Kart ride has the longest queues — go straight there. Express Passes are an optional ~£60+ splurge; instead ride single-rider or hit popular rides at rope drop. Bring a packed lunch or budget ~£12 for park food.

🚌JR Yumesaki Line ~£4 return

🛏Same Osaka hotel

• →Universal Studios Japan 1-day pass (~£50–65 adult)
• →Super Nintendo World (timed entry, free)
• →The Wizarding World of Harry Potter
• →Evening parade

Buy an Osaka Amazing Pass (~£18, covers 40+ attractions and all subway travel for a day) if you're doing more than two paid sights — otherwise pay as you go. Osaka Castle's main keep is ~£4 (or free with the pass); the park outside is free. Book a ninja experience or ninja-dress photo session via Klook (~£20–30/person) — a big hit with kids and much cheaper than a private guide arrangement. Ride the Tempozan Ferris Wheel (~£5, or included on the pass) and finish with Dotonbori: takoyaki (~£3), okonomiyaki (~£7) and kushikatsu (~£8) for a proper Osaka food night. The famous Kani Doraku crab sign is free to see.

🚌Osaka Metro day pass or Amazing Pass ~£18

🛏Same Osaka hotel

• →Osaka Castle (~£4, free with Amazing Pass)
• →Ninja experience via Klook (~£20–30)
• →Tempozan Ferris Wheel (~£5)
• →Dotonbori street-food crawl (~£18)

Easy morning: konbini breakfast, then take the Nankai Rapi:t or airport express from Namba to Kansai Airport (~£8–9, 40 min) or the JR Haruka from Tennoji/Shin-Osaka (~£12). If your flight is late, leave bags in a coin locker at Namba station and do a last Dotonbori or Kuromon Market wander. No private see-off driver needed — the airport trains run every few minutes and are simple with rolling luggage.

🚌Nankai Rapi:t or JR Haruka to KIX, ~£8–12

🛏N/A (departure day)

• →Konbini breakfast
• →Optional last shopping at Kuromon Market or Don Quijote