Day 0

I am using Day 0 as an introduction and to mention my logistics (hotels, travel, transportation, etc).

Intro: I visited Japan Oct 2, 2025 > Oct 14, 2025. I broke down the images and ‘diary’ for each day I was there. So there will be 12ish pages for each day. Why 12ish? because the images posted from each day will probably get a quick/fast edit or no edits. The images I really care for a lot will get posted in a collection by themselves (Future Link Here). I also took a lot of pictures of cars so it will get a page by it self. I am also making my first attempt at a digital journal so expect a lot of broken sentence’s and randomness. I am trying not to overthink this so yeah. Sign up to my newsletter and I’ll update you once I finish my ‘favorite images’ (believe me I am not doing weekly or monthly newsletter, I got no time for that). LINK TO NEWSLETTER SUBSCRIPTION.

Logistics: You’ll find that information below. I broke it down into categories. This is part for me (journal) as it is for you too.

If you have any questions about future travel’s or my travels feel free to reach out and I’ll try my best to answer but YouTube is probably better than me.

Sections

Hotels

Hotel #1 - Shinjuku Washington Hotel

  • Pros

    • 10-ish min walk to train station

    • Breakfast

  • Cons

    • Small - but so is Japan

    • A bit of black mold ⚫

  • Takeaway

    • The walk to the station is not far but it adds up after your tired after a long day. 50/50 if I stay here again.

Hotel #2 - Ninnotake Tonosawa

  • Pros

    • Amazing, Relaxing, Hoshi Room

    • Service, Private Onsen

  • Cons

    • Pricey

  • Takeaway

    • Getting to touristy areas is a bit hard but so is the city. Amazing room and service. 100% stay again if budget allows.

Hotel #3 - Noku Kyoto

  • Pros

    • Near all the transit stations, busses & train.

    • Just close and far enough away from areas.

  • Cons

    • A lot less black mold in the bathroom.

  • Takeaway

    • It was near and far at the same time from places. I didn’t mind it as a lot of busses took you here, so it was perfect.

Hotel #4 - Hotel Granvia Osaka

  • Pros

    • Near shopping and train stations

    • Find restaurants easy

  • Cons

    • the train station is a City in a City!

  • Takeaway

    • So many ways to get lost and finding the hotel is a mission easy to get around once you understand it.

I used a travel agency called Enchanting Travels, and they did a really good job securing the hotels and fulfilling the specific requests we had. They arranged private drivers to and from the airport, as well as to certain hotels, which made our trip seamless. When we encountered last-minute technical issues, they assisted us efficiently. Even when we got sick, they checked in on us to make sure we were okay.

I would 100% use them again if my budget allows.

Flights

Going

  • LAX to San Francisco

    • 1 hour Flight

    • 2 hour Layover

    • No Checked in Bags

  • San Francisco to Tokyo

    • 11 hour Flight

Return

  • Osaka to Tokyo

    • 1 hour flight

    • 2 hour layover

    • Luggage was forwarded automatically in Japan which was amazing!

  • Tokyo to LAX

    • 11 hour flight

The agency could also buy your flight tickets but I wanted to use my points and upgrade my self too 😉

Local Transportation

Airport to Hotel (& vice-versa)
We cheated and had a private driver from Airport to Hotel, but at the same time the travel agency had pre-loaded “Welcome Suica” cards for us ready for us upon our arrival with our driver. Japan has several cards but for our stay we only needed the Welcome Suica and it worked everywhere. You could even use it to pay for goods at 7-11 and some vending machines.

TIP: Last day of your trip, to deplete all your Monday. Buy candy at 7-11 and bring them back as gifts.

Getting around the city

  • Google Maps

    • It works, you are just most likely reading the map wrong or not understanding it. It tells you which train to take (color), which platform to stand (very important), it tells you which door to go in but thats optional. It tells you which exit to take with “yellow squares”. It does a good job, you just need to research online how to read Google Maps and Japan transit.

  • Suica card for all buses and trains

    • The ATM’s at 7-11 use to see how much funds you have and load it with more money if needed.

    • Ours came pre-loaded with about $30 and it lasted us a little bit more than halfway the trip so don’t overload it.

  • Taxis and Uber (TaxiGo) -

    • think of TaxiGo as an Uber for Taxis. Mark where you are, where you want to go and pay on the app from your credit card. Note that you might not be able to set it up until you arrive in Japan.

    • Prices, everyone online said it was expensive but coming from Los Angeles it was ‘cheaper’. It does add up so only use it when you're really tired, saving energy or get caught in a storm.