Haley R
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 3, 2017
That looks like a good one! I wish it wasn’t so far from Tokyo. A lot of the good ones are at least an hour away. I’m pretty sick of trains and stations at this point and ds has been struggling with all of it
Japan Trip Report-May 2024
- Thread starter Haley R
- Start date
The indoor playgrounds are amazing. Our daughter could have spent all day at Asobono (if they had "day" passes available). She did spend pretty much all day at Kid O Kid (since we could exit and re-enter with a day pass).
Her other favourite one at Tokyo Tower has shut down.
She also loved TeamLabs Planets. From memory, there was another (newly opened) indoor playground at Skytree which we never made it to.
We're also hoping to do Kidzania on our next trip. Apparently every Wednesday is "English Wednesday", but I'm not sure if the English is much more than: hello, goodbye, etc.
The Tokyo Chapter Blog has a lot of good articles about the indoor playgrounds.
Haley R
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 3, 2017
I think we’re planning to try Asobono later this week. We’re gonna do that and the Tokyo dome rides instead of Kawagoe.
Haley R
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 3, 2017
Rest Day
We didn’t really do a whole lot this day. We tried to build in days where we could just hang out and not have to be anywhere at a certain time. We spent a good chunk of the morning at the playground.
Then we went over near Shinjuku Station to try some claw machines. The store we went to was really hard to win anything from. We’ve found some stores have been better than others. Ds really liked playing the Taiko drumming game though. After that it was around 11:30 and we were going to get Ichiran but the line was down the stairs and ds was getting hangry. Instead we ended up eating at a place called Lotteria which is a fast food place. It was okay. I ordered a normal burger but it came with a thick white queso like cheese on top. It was actually pretty good. Ds didn’t like their version of chicken nuggets (they were deep fat fried and mostly breading). We headed back for a nap after lunch.
After we all took a nap we walked over to Yoyogi Park for a bit. It was too late to rent bikes but we’ve been meaning to do that this whole trip and we keep doing other things so I think one morning before we head to Disney we’re gonna do it. It was really nice weather out. We walked through some kind of festival across from Yoyogi that had food booths and live music. It was interesting but super crowded so we didn’t stay long.
For dinner we decided to order pizza from pizza hut lol. Dh and I were both craving pizza. His pizza was divided into 4 different flavors which is apparently common here. I thought it was way better than the Pizza Hut at home. We think it’s fun trying American restaurants here to see how they differ. That’s basically it for this day. It was nice to have a day to just hang out and take things a bit slower.
We didn’t really do a whole lot this day. We tried to build in days where we could just hang out and not have to be anywhere at a certain time. We spent a good chunk of the morning at the playground.
Then we went over near Shinjuku Station to try some claw machines. The store we went to was really hard to win anything from. We’ve found some stores have been better than others. Ds really liked playing the Taiko drumming game though. After that it was around 11:30 and we were going to get Ichiran but the line was down the stairs and ds was getting hangry. Instead we ended up eating at a place called Lotteria which is a fast food place. It was okay. I ordered a normal burger but it came with a thick white queso like cheese on top. It was actually pretty good. Ds didn’t like their version of chicken nuggets (they were deep fat fried and mostly breading). We headed back for a nap after lunch.
After we all took a nap we walked over to Yoyogi Park for a bit. It was too late to rent bikes but we’ve been meaning to do that this whole trip and we keep doing other things so I think one morning before we head to Disney we’re gonna do it. It was really nice weather out. We walked through some kind of festival across from Yoyogi that had food booths and live music. It was interesting but super crowded so we didn’t stay long.
For dinner we decided to order pizza from pizza hut lol. Dh and I were both craving pizza. His pizza was divided into 4 different flavors which is apparently common here. I thought it was way better than the Pizza Hut at home. We think it’s fun trying American restaurants here to see how they differ. That’s basically it for this day. It was nice to have a day to just hang out and take things a bit slower.
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Haley R
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 3, 2017
I forgot to put this on our Enoshima day, but when we were getting on the romance car to go back to Shinjuku my phone fell off the stroller into the crack between the train and platform. Luckily a very nice man who spoke English next to me helped me flag someone down to get it. They brought a grabber on a stick and were able to get my phone from the track. They did all of this so quickly that the train still left on time. I felt awful and was fully prepared to leave my phone there.
soniam
Wooden leg named Smith...
- Joined
- Jun 22, 2012
Oh no! I never think of "minding the gap" for my stuff, but I could easily drop stuff in that crack. So glad you got it back!
Haley R
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 3, 2017
We’ve had it happen at Disney on the monorail more than once. It’s always stuff that falls off the stroller. You’d think we would’ve learned by now
Haley R
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 3, 2017
Teamlab Borderless
Today we had tickets for Teamlab Borderless. I booked tickets ahead of time and chose the earliest time which was 10 am. It was raining all morning so we just hung out at the hotel until it was time to head to the museum. It took us about an hour to get there. We had to get off the train once because it was super packed and ds was having a hard time.
We went to Teamlab Borderless in 2019 when it used to be at Odaiba. It was just as great this time but even cooler to see it through ds’s eyes! The first thing we did was walk down some stairs that had black lights and ds said “this is so cool” lol. They had some new exhibits that we didn’t see last time. Ds said his favorite was the mist room and mine was the bubble room. There is no map so you have to walk around and explore on your own. Some of the rooms are hidden with black curtains so you have to look real closely. The only thing I didn’t like at this one was they took away a lot of the fun things specifically for kids. The old location had 3 other rooms built with kids in mind and one was a climbing forest that ds would’ve loved. He still had a fantastic time without it though.
The rest of the day we just napped and hung out.
Today we had tickets for Teamlab Borderless. I booked tickets ahead of time and chose the earliest time which was 10 am. It was raining all morning so we just hung out at the hotel until it was time to head to the museum. It took us about an hour to get there. We had to get off the train once because it was super packed and ds was having a hard time.
We went to Teamlab Borderless in 2019 when it used to be at Odaiba. It was just as great this time but even cooler to see it through ds’s eyes! The first thing we did was walk down some stairs that had black lights and ds said “this is so cool” lol. They had some new exhibits that we didn’t see last time. Ds said his favorite was the mist room and mine was the bubble room. There is no map so you have to walk around and explore on your own. Some of the rooms are hidden with black curtains so you have to look real closely. The only thing I didn’t like at this one was they took away a lot of the fun things specifically for kids. The old location had 3 other rooms built with kids in mind and one was a climbing forest that ds would’ve loved. He still had a fantastic time without it though.
The rest of the day we just napped and hung out.
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Haley R
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 3, 2017
Hakone
Dh and I were worried about how today would go because it was a longer train ride and we knew we couldn’t check into our hotel until 3 pm. It actually went surprisingly well! We bought the Hakone free pass and booked our seats on the romance car from Shinjuku station. We did all of this the day before and used a machine at Shinjuku station. It gave assigned seats for dh and I and then I went on my phone and bought DS a seat next to us. He doesn’t need a ticket for the train but we have to pay for the seat for him. We took the 7:30 am train and it went really well. Ds watched a movie the whole way and I mainly looked out the window.
We decided to do the Hakone circle route clockwise because I read most people do it counterclockwise. There were some school groups and tour groups that did it the same as us so I don’t think it really made a difference but it was never too crowded. When we first got off the train we planned to take the bus down to Lake Ashi but there was a huge line so we ended up paying for a taxi and it was worth it. It was about $35 but we didn’t have to wait in line and I think we would’ve had to wait for more than one bus to come. It was about a 25 minute drive up some really winding roads.
We then took the big ship across the lake. This was my favorite part of the circle route. I loved being on the water and seeing the shrine. We chose to stand on the top of the ship for the whole ride. We were able to see a tiny bit of Mt Fuji but most of it was covered by clouds. I’m glad we were able to see it in Enoshima because we really didn’t see it much in Hakone.
When we got off the ship we decided to stop for a snack and walked through the gift shop before getting on the ropeway. This actually worked out really well because it made getting on the ropeway a lot less crowded. The ropeway was really cool. We took it up to the Owakudani station and got off. It was around 11:30 or 12 so we ate in the restaurant right at the station. The food was pretty decent. I ordered the pork cutlet with rice and soup, dh got the pork with curry, and ds just got a bowl of white rice.
I mentioned the black eggs to ds before coming on the trip and he had been asking every day if we were going to the black eggs lol. So he was really happy when we finally bought some. He ate quite a few and shared the rest with dh. We bought more stuff in the gift shop here and also tried some black ice cream. There was a lot of people at this stop but it never felt overwhelmingly busy. Everyone was pretty spread out.
We took the ropeway the rest of the way to get on the cable car. The hotel we stayed at was about 8 minutes from the cable car station in Gora. I’ll write a separate post about the hotel because I think it needs its own post. We had again planned on taking the bus but we sat around waiting in the hot sun and ds was so tired so we took another taxi. It was like $6 so not too bad.
Overall, we had a great time in Hakone and I’m glad we made the trip over. I’m also super glad we didn’t try making it a day trip. Having a hotel to go to for a midday nap was so nice.
Dh and I were worried about how today would go because it was a longer train ride and we knew we couldn’t check into our hotel until 3 pm. It actually went surprisingly well! We bought the Hakone free pass and booked our seats on the romance car from Shinjuku station. We did all of this the day before and used a machine at Shinjuku station. It gave assigned seats for dh and I and then I went on my phone and bought DS a seat next to us. He doesn’t need a ticket for the train but we have to pay for the seat for him. We took the 7:30 am train and it went really well. Ds watched a movie the whole way and I mainly looked out the window.
We decided to do the Hakone circle route clockwise because I read most people do it counterclockwise. There were some school groups and tour groups that did it the same as us so I don’t think it really made a difference but it was never too crowded. When we first got off the train we planned to take the bus down to Lake Ashi but there was a huge line so we ended up paying for a taxi and it was worth it. It was about $35 but we didn’t have to wait in line and I think we would’ve had to wait for more than one bus to come. It was about a 25 minute drive up some really winding roads.
We then took the big ship across the lake. This was my favorite part of the circle route. I loved being on the water and seeing the shrine. We chose to stand on the top of the ship for the whole ride. We were able to see a tiny bit of Mt Fuji but most of it was covered by clouds. I’m glad we were able to see it in Enoshima because we really didn’t see it much in Hakone.
When we got off the ship we decided to stop for a snack and walked through the gift shop before getting on the ropeway. This actually worked out really well because it made getting on the ropeway a lot less crowded. The ropeway was really cool. We took it up to the Owakudani station and got off. It was around 11:30 or 12 so we ate in the restaurant right at the station. The food was pretty decent. I ordered the pork cutlet with rice and soup, dh got the pork with curry, and ds just got a bowl of white rice.
I mentioned the black eggs to ds before coming on the trip and he had been asking every day if we were going to the black eggs lol. So he was really happy when we finally bought some. He ate quite a few and shared the rest with dh. We bought more stuff in the gift shop here and also tried some black ice cream. There was a lot of people at this stop but it never felt overwhelmingly busy. Everyone was pretty spread out.
We took the ropeway the rest of the way to get on the cable car. The hotel we stayed at was about 8 minutes from the cable car station in Gora. I’ll write a separate post about the hotel because I think it needs its own post. We had again planned on taking the bus but we sat around waiting in the hot sun and ds was so tired so we took another taxi. It was like $6 so not too bad.
Overall, we had a great time in Hakone and I’m glad we made the trip over. I’m also super glad we didn’t try making it a day trip. Having a hotel to go to for a midday nap was so nice.
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Haley R
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 3, 2017
Hakone Suishoen Hotel
Since we were only staying the one night in Hakone we thought we would splurge a little on the hotel. We wanted a hotel where we could have our own private onsen so I googled ones in the area and read reviews. I looked kind of late and some of the best ones were already full. We ended up deciding on the Hakone Suishoen. Our room was called the Luxury Suite Maisonette Twin. They have options for Japanese or Western accommodations and we chose to go with the Western to get a normal bed. We booked it through the Chase portal using points. It was 65,542 URs but the cash value was $983 so it wasn’t cheap but we thought it was worth it for one night.
We showed up to the hotel a little after 2 pm and the check in time was 3. They went through the check in procedure with us and had us pick times for our dinner and breakfast that was included. They told us we could sit in the lobby until 3 but we asked if we could get an early check in. We had to pay for it but they were able to get us in the room then. Ds was so tired and really struggling by this time so we didn’t mind paying.
This hotel was much fancier than we’re used to so I felt bad at times when ds was a little loud or too silly but no one seemed to mind. It’s different from most hotels in that it’s separate buildings and there aren’t very many rooms in each building so you really don’t see other people while you’re staying there except for at meals or if you choose to use the public onsen.
Our room had an upstairs and a downstairs. On the bottom floor there was a living room, dining table, mini bar area, toilet, and a deck outside that looked out over a waterfall. The upstairs had two beds pushed together to make one big bed, a traditional Japanese room with a table and pillows, and a bathroom with a shower, toilet, and deep whirlpool tub. The biggest draw was outside the bedroom: an outside deck with a lounger chair and private onsen. This was amazing and we went in it many times even though we were only there one night. We used it before dinner and again the next morning. The water was extremely hot but you can control how much comes out and there’s also a spigot with cold water so we just messed with it until the temperature was comfortable.
In our room we were given yukatas for each of us and sandals. They told us we could wear them all over the property and to meals. This was so much fun and we all loved dressing up in them. I wasn’t sure ds would wear it because he’s kind of picky about clothes but he loved it and asked if we could take the pants home lol.
We originally scheduled our dinner for 6 pm but I went to the lobby and asked if it could be changed to 7 pm because ds ended up napping until 6. The dinner was the thing I was most worried about. I was able to find videos on YouTube ahead of time and knew it wasn’t going to be something I’d like but dh really wanted to try it. I don’t eat seafood and almost everything they served was seafood lol. We actually ended up leaving early because it was sooo slow. We were only halfway through their courses by 8 pm and I had to get ds back to the room. The menu showed like 8 different courses they planned to serve us. They brought ds a bowl of white rice and miso soup at the beginning and that was all he got so he ended up sitting there waiting for a really long time while dh and I got each course. I’m going to be honest and say I didn’t try the majority of things they offered. I wanted dh to have the experience but I was not at all interested in the food lol. We were given jellyfish, octopus, duck, eel, tuna, all kinds of things and served in various ways.
We all slept pretty well in the big bed and the next morning they called a taxi for us to get to the Hakone Yumoto station. We were supposed to be at breakfast at 8 am but we didn’t want to chance it because our train was leaving at 9:30 so we told them we would have to skip breakfast.
I really enjoyed our room with the onsen and dressing in the yukatas. I wouldn’t go to dinner again lol. For the one night it was really fun and we enjoyed it.
Since we were only staying the one night in Hakone we thought we would splurge a little on the hotel. We wanted a hotel where we could have our own private onsen so I googled ones in the area and read reviews. I looked kind of late and some of the best ones were already full. We ended up deciding on the Hakone Suishoen. Our room was called the Luxury Suite Maisonette Twin. They have options for Japanese or Western accommodations and we chose to go with the Western to get a normal bed. We booked it through the Chase portal using points. It was 65,542 URs but the cash value was $983 so it wasn’t cheap but we thought it was worth it for one night.
We showed up to the hotel a little after 2 pm and the check in time was 3. They went through the check in procedure with us and had us pick times for our dinner and breakfast that was included. They told us we could sit in the lobby until 3 but we asked if we could get an early check in. We had to pay for it but they were able to get us in the room then. Ds was so tired and really struggling by this time so we didn’t mind paying.
This hotel was much fancier than we’re used to so I felt bad at times when ds was a little loud or too silly but no one seemed to mind. It’s different from most hotels in that it’s separate buildings and there aren’t very many rooms in each building so you really don’t see other people while you’re staying there except for at meals or if you choose to use the public onsen.
Our room had an upstairs and a downstairs. On the bottom floor there was a living room, dining table, mini bar area, toilet, and a deck outside that looked out over a waterfall. The upstairs had two beds pushed together to make one big bed, a traditional Japanese room with a table and pillows, and a bathroom with a shower, toilet, and deep whirlpool tub. The biggest draw was outside the bedroom: an outside deck with a lounger chair and private onsen. This was amazing and we went in it many times even though we were only there one night. We used it before dinner and again the next morning. The water was extremely hot but you can control how much comes out and there’s also a spigot with cold water so we just messed with it until the temperature was comfortable.
In our room we were given yukatas for each of us and sandals. They told us we could wear them all over the property and to meals. This was so much fun and we all loved dressing up in them. I wasn’t sure ds would wear it because he’s kind of picky about clothes but he loved it and asked if we could take the pants home lol.
We originally scheduled our dinner for 6 pm but I went to the lobby and asked if it could be changed to 7 pm because ds ended up napping until 6. The dinner was the thing I was most worried about. I was able to find videos on YouTube ahead of time and knew it wasn’t going to be something I’d like but dh really wanted to try it. I don’t eat seafood and almost everything they served was seafood lol. We actually ended up leaving early because it was sooo slow. We were only halfway through their courses by 8 pm and I had to get ds back to the room. The menu showed like 8 different courses they planned to serve us. They brought ds a bowl of white rice and miso soup at the beginning and that was all he got so he ended up sitting there waiting for a really long time while dh and I got each course. I’m going to be honest and say I didn’t try the majority of things they offered. I wanted dh to have the experience but I was not at all interested in the food lol. We were given jellyfish, octopus, duck, eel, tuna, all kinds of things and served in various ways.
We all slept pretty well in the big bed and the next morning they called a taxi for us to get to the Hakone Yumoto station. We were supposed to be at breakfast at 8 am but we didn’t want to chance it because our train was leaving at 9:30 so we told them we would have to skip breakfast.
I really enjoyed our room with the onsen and dressing in the yukatas. I wouldn’t go to dinner again lol. For the one night it was really fun and we enjoyed it.
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Oh no, just when I thought all our hotels are settled, you post this and make me want to go to Hakone somehow. Instead we're spending part of our Tokyo stay at Dormy Inn Onyado Nono, to get a ryokan-like experience, lol! Even there I'm worrying how my kids will behave/cope! 
Haley R
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 3, 2017
Ds had a really hard time at the dinner. He didn’t want to be there and we had a hard time getting him to stay in his seat. He’s not normally a picky kid at home but on this trip it’s been really hard to find things he likes to eat. Last night we ordered Taco Bell and he ate so much lol. We eat tacos a lot at homeOh no, just when I thought all our hotels are settled, you post this and make me want to go to Hakone somehow. Instead we're spending part of our Tokyo stay at Dormy Inn Onyado Nono, to get a ryokan-like experience, lol! Even there I'm worrying how my kids will behave/cope!
soniam
Wooden leg named Smith...
- Joined
- Jun 22, 2012
Parades and nighttime shows can if it's really windy. Some outdoor attractions could too, but I don't think there are a ton of those. Mostly rain is the issue though.
Haley R
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 3, 2017
Rest Day/Travel Back From Hakone
Today was our day to head back to Tokyo from Hakone. The earliest romance car was at 9:30 am. We booked the seats online. We had breakfast scheduled at 8 at our hotel but told them we couldn’t make it. We didn’t want to cut it too close because we still had to get to the train station. They called a taxi for us and had it waiting by 8:30. The taxi ride was pretty quick, only about a 20 minute drive. We got to the station with about 40 minutes to spare. Ds and I looked through all of the souvenirs we bought and got some things to drink from the vending machine.
The train ride was an hour and half and went by really fast. We got back and ate some leftovers before taking a nap. When we woke up we walked to the big playground and played there for about an hour. For dinner we didn’t feel like cooking anything so we ordered Taco Bell from Uber eats and it was absolutely amazing lol. We eat tacos a lot at home and realized we all missed them so much. We bought a set of 10 that came with 5 hard shell and 5 soft shell plus lettuce, cheese, and taco meat so you fill them yourself. Dh tried some burritos and said they were way better than what you get in the US. We got some chips that said tortilla chips but they had some kind of seasoning on them and they were really good too. We had enough left to save in our fridge for lunch the next day.
We didn’t do a whole lot this day but it was really nice to have nothing planned. That was one of the reasons we wanted this trip to be so long. It’s been nice not having to rush around somewhere every day.
Today was our day to head back to Tokyo from Hakone. The earliest romance car was at 9:30 am. We booked the seats online. We had breakfast scheduled at 8 at our hotel but told them we couldn’t make it. We didn’t want to cut it too close because we still had to get to the train station. They called a taxi for us and had it waiting by 8:30. The taxi ride was pretty quick, only about a 20 minute drive. We got to the station with about 40 minutes to spare. Ds and I looked through all of the souvenirs we bought and got some things to drink from the vending machine.
The train ride was an hour and half and went by really fast. We got back and ate some leftovers before taking a nap. When we woke up we walked to the big playground and played there for about an hour. For dinner we didn’t feel like cooking anything so we ordered Taco Bell from Uber eats and it was absolutely amazing lol. We eat tacos a lot at home and realized we all missed them so much. We bought a set of 10 that came with 5 hard shell and 5 soft shell plus lettuce, cheese, and taco meat so you fill them yourself. Dh tried some burritos and said they were way better than what you get in the US. We got some chips that said tortilla chips but they had some kind of seasoning on them and they were really good too. We had enough left to save in our fridge for lunch the next day.
We didn’t do a whole lot this day but it was really nice to have nothing planned. That was one of the reasons we wanted this trip to be so long. It’s been nice not having to rush around somewhere every day.
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