Best Day Trips from Tokyo

Compare the Trips

Times are by the fastest ordinary route. A figure in the cost column is the transport or pass cost for one adult, not entry fees. Tours are listed with their exact price from the listing.

1. Mt Fuji and Kawaguchiko

A popular day trip from Tokyo, with the highest payoff if the weather plays along. The Fujikyu highway bus from Busta Shinjuku takes about 1 hour 45 minutes with fares from 2,200 yen, or 2,000 yen booked online, and from Tokyo Station the bus takes about two hours for 2,300 yen. By train, the Fuji Excursion limited express from Shinjuku runs direct in about two hours with all seats reserved. At the lake, the red loop bus runs every 15 minutes, the Panoramic Ropeway costs 1,000 yen round trip, and Chureito Pagoda is free, up nearly 400 steps. The season rule is simple: the mountain shows more often in the colder winter months than in summer. Go early, because cloud builds through the day. Full detail lives in the Mt Fuji day trip guide.

On a tour: Mount Fuji Full-Day Highlights Day Trip from Tokyo at $80 includes entry fees at every stop, with lunch not included.

2. Hakone

Hakone packs a ropeway, a volcanic valley, a cruise across Lake Ashi and onsen into one loop, about 80 minutes from Shinjuku by Romancecar. The 2-day Hakone Freepass costs 7,100 yen from Shinjuku and covers the Tozan train, cable car, ropeway, cruise and designated buses, so a DIY day is simple. The ropeway fare alone is 3,000 yen round trip and the cruise 3,000 yen round trip without a pass. Two honest warnings: the ropeway stops in high wind and scheduled maintenance, and Hakone has lower odds of a clear Fuji view than the Fuji Five Lakes because both skies must cooperate. It also holds up in rainy-season weather. The pass structure is explained in the Hakone Free Pass guide and the train options in Tokyo to Hakone by train.

On a tour: Mt Fuji and Hakone Day Tour from Tokyo, Return by Bullet Train at $159.54 includes the ropeway fee, the Lake Ashi cruise and the bullet train back, with lunch only as a paid option.

3. Nikko

Toshogu Shrine is the reason for the long ride to Nikko. The Tobu limited express from Asakusa takes about 2 hours and costs 2,850 to 3,540 yen one way, and the earliest Spacia X leaves at 7:50 and arrives at 9:39. The JR route via Utsunomiya takes about 2 hours for about 5,500 yen and is covered by the Japan Rail Pass. Toshogu admission is 1,600 yen for adults, opens 9:00 to 17:00 from April to October, has no closing days, and its ticket includes the Sleeping Cat and the inner shrine. A local bus from the station takes about 10 minutes for 350 yen. The NIKKO PASS World Heritage Area costs 3,000 yen for two days and covers the round trip by express or local train, but not shrine entry. Route detail is in the Nikko day trip guide.

On a tour: Nikko Toshogu Shrine and Kegon Waterfall Day Tour from Tokyo at $110 includes the Toshogu ticket, with lunch not included.

4. Kamakura and Enoshima

The easiest first day trip from Tokyo: the JR Yokosuka Line reaches Kamakura from Tokyo Station in just under an hour for 1,040 yen. Kamakura gives you the Great Buddha at Kotoku-in, 300 yen for adults, and Tsurugaoka Hachimangu, open 6:00 to 20:00 and a 10 to 15 minute walk from the station. The Enoden to Enoshima takes 25 minutes for 260 yen with trains about every ten minutes, and Noriorikun day passes cost 800 yen with discounts at the Sea Candle and Hasedera. On Enoshima, a 1,100 yen combined ticket covers the garden, observation tower and caves, and the Sea Candle observation room sits 101.5 m above sea level with views to Mt Fuji on clear days. The Odakyu Enoshima-Kamakura Freepass from Shinjuku costs 1,640 yen and covers the round trip plus unlimited Enoden rides. Everything else is in the Kamakura day trip guide.

On a tour: Kamakura and Enoshima Day Trip from Tokyo with Enoden Train Ride at $78 includes the Enoden ride, with the 300 yen Great Buddha admission paid separately.

5. Kyoto

Yes, it is technically a day trip from Tokyo, and the numbers are real: the Nozomi takes about 2 hours 15 minutes to 2 hours 20 minutes and a reserved seat costs about 14,000 yen. Nozomi trains run about four an hour in each direction on a standard timetable. On the ground, Fushimi Inari is free, always open and just outside JR Inari Station, 5 minutes and 150 yen from Kyoto Station, and the summit hike takes 2 to 3 hours round trip. Kinkaku-ji and Kiyomizu-dera both have no closing days. The honest verdict: one day gives you two or three sights, not Kyoto, and the Nozomi alone takes about 2 hours 15 minutes each way. If you have rail passes or limited days it can still be worth it. The train detail is in Tokyo to Kyoto by bullet train and the plan in the Kyoto day trip guide.

On a tour: Kyoto 1-Day English-Guided Tour from Tokyo by Bullet Train at $443.95 includes the round-trip bullet train, lunch and a licensed guide.

6. Yokohama

The shortest and easiest entry on this list, about 20 to 30 minutes from Tokyo Station, Shinagawa, Shibuya or Shinjuku, and it needs no pass and no planning. Chinatown is reached from Motomachi-Chukagai or Ishikawacho stations, 7 to 8 minutes from Yokohama Station for 200 to 230 yen. The CupNoodles Museum costs 500 yen for adults and free for high school age and younger, open 10:00 to 18:00 and closed Tuesdays, with the My Cup Noodles Factory costing 500 yen more and needing a reservation. The Minato Mirai waterfront adds the Red Brick Warehouses, free to enter, and the Osanbashi rooftop, open around the clock and free. Sankeien Garden costs 900 yen and is 30 to 35 minutes from Yokohama Station by bus for 220 yen. It is the best low-effort day in this ranking. More in the Yokohama day trip guide.

No tour needed: Yokohama is fully DIY, see free day trips from Tokyo.

7. Kawagoe

Little Edo, 30 minutes from Ikebukuro by Tobu Tojo express for 490 yen, or 55 minutes from Shinjuku by JR for 810 yen. Kawagoe's warehouse district is a 10 to 15 minute walk from Hon-Kawagoe Station, and the Toki no Kane bell tower chimes four times a day at 6:00, 12:00, 15:00 and 18:00, so time your walk for the noon chime. Kashiya Yokocho, the candy alley, is a 15 to 20 minute walk from the same station, and Kitain temple costs 400 yen and opens 9:00 to 16:30. Foreign tourists can use the Tobu Kawagoe Discount Pass at 710 yen round trip from Ikebukuro, or 1,050 yen with buses, and the Koedo Loop Bus day pass costs 400 yen. It is the best half-day trip from Tokyo if your time is short, and it pairs badly with nothing because it needs so little of your day.

No tour needed: Kawagoe is plain DIY, see free day trips from Tokyo.

8. Mount Takao

The best nature day trip from Tokyo by a wide margin, because the Keio limited express leaves Shinjuku about every 20 minutes and reaches Takaosanguchi in about 50 minutes for 430 yen. Mount Takao stands 599 m, draws over 2.5 million visitors a year, and Trail 1 is 3.8 km with about 110 minutes up and 90 down on foot, or roughly half that using the cable car or chair lift, both 490 yen one way. The cable car runs every 15 minutes on Japan's steepest rail slope at 31.18 degrees. The summit shows Mt Fuji on clear days, Yakuoin temple sits near the top, and the free Takao 599 Museum is 4 minutes from the station. The season rule: it is especially busy in the second half of November for leaves, so go early on a weekday then. At the foot of the mountain, Keio Takaosan Onsen Gokurakuyu costs 1,100 yen on weekdays. Full trail detail in Mount Takao from Tokyo.

No tour needed: Takao is a straight train ride, see free day trips from Tokyo.

9. Chichibu

Chichibu is the quiet counterweight to Takao's crowds, reached from Ikebukuro by the Seibu Laview or Red Arrow limited express, which needs a reserved seat with a 900 yen adult charge on top of the fare. The headline sight is Hitsujiyama Park, a 15 to 20 minute walk from Seibu-Chichibu Station, where about 400,000 moss phlox plants cover a hillside, with the usual best viewing from mid-April to early May and a park entrance fee of 300 yen during the festival period. Chichibu works alone and needs no tour, but it rewards planning. It ranks here rather than higher because its single big seasonal event carries most of the appeal.

No tour needed: Chichibu is a DIY train day, see free day trips from Tokyo.

10. Karuizawa

A mountain resort town 65 to 80 minutes from Tokyo by Hokuriku Shinkansen, at about 6,000 yen one way, with a highway bus alternative at about three hours for 2,300 to 2,900 yen. The Kyu-Karuizawa Ginza shopping street is a 5 minute bus ride from the station for 160 yen, and rental bicycles near the station cost from about 500 yen an hour or 1,500 yen a day, which is the right way to see the spread-out town. Shiraito Falls is free, 3 m high and 70 m wide, open 8:00 to 17:00. Summer is the classic season and autumn colour draws its own crowd. Karuizawa ranks mid-list because the sights are pleasant rather than spectacular.

No tour needed: go by Shinkansen and rent a bike, see free day trips from Tokyo.

11. Izu and Atami

The Odoriko limited express from Tokyo reaches Atami in about 1 hour 20 minutes for around 3,500 yen, and the Shinkansen does it in 40 to 50 minutes for around 4,000 yen, with local trains at about 100 minutes for 1,980 yen. Atami itself delivers an onsen town, Atami Castle at 1,000 yen, the MOA Museum of Art at 1,600 yen, closed Thursdays, and Kinomiya Shrine, free and open around the clock. Further into the peninsula, the Kawazu cherry blossoms bloom over about a month from early February along about 4 km of river, and the Jogasaki Coast has a 48 m suspension bridge 23 m above the sea. Izu ranks mid-list because the best parts sit beyond Atami and eat extra train time, but as a winter onsen-and-early-blossom escape it is hard to beat. The full plan is in Izu Peninsula from Tokyo.

No tour needed: the Odoriko and Shinkansen make this a DIY trip, see free day trips from Tokyo.

12. Kusatsu Onsen

A well-known hot spring town, and the longest trip in this ranking that is still doable in a day. The Kusatsu-Shima limited express from Ueno takes about 2.5 hours to Naganohara-Kusatsuguchi at 5,480 yen, then a 30 minute JR bus for 780 yen, and only about three round trips a day run, so the timetable sets your schedule. The highway bus from Busta Shinjuku takes about 4 hours for 3,500 to 4,000 yen, which is slower but simpler. In town, the Sainokawara open-air bath opens 7:00 to 20:00, from 9:00 December to March, and the yubatake hot water field at the center is free to walk around at any hour. Winter is atmospheric with steam rising off snow, and the town works fine alone if you accept fixed train times. It ranks twelfth only because of the journey, not the destination.

No tour needed: Kusatsu is a train and bus DIY day, see free day trips from Tokyo.

13. Odawara

Odawara works as a castle stop bolted onto a Hakone day rather than a destination in its own right, which is exactly why it ranks here. The Shinkansen from Tokyo takes about 27 minutes by Hikari for about 3,370 yen unreserved, or the Odakyu Romancecar stops at Odawara with a 1,000 yen surcharge from Shinjuku. The castle keep costs 510 yen for adults and 200 yen for elementary and junior high school students, opens 9:00 to 17:00 with last entry at 16:30, and closes on the second Wednesday of December and at New Year. From Odawara the Hakone Freepass costs 6,000 yen for 2 days, cheaper than the Shinjuku version because it leaves out the Odakyu round trip. The sensible play is castle in the morning, then straight up the Hakone Tozan line.

No tour needed: pair it with Hakone using the Hakone Free Pass guide.

14. Nokogiriyama

The oddest trip in the ranking and the reason it sits at the bottom of the list rather than off it: about 2 hours by train from Tokyo to Hamakanaya Station for around 1,980 yen one way, then a 10 minute walk to the ropeway. Mount Nokogiri's Nihon-ji temple grounds hold a 31 m seated Daibutsu, about 1,500 carved statues of Buddha's disciples and a 30 m Kannon, plus the Jigoku Nozoki, a cliff lookout that juts over a sheer drop with Tokyo Bay below. The Tokyo Bay Ferry from Kurihama to Kanaya takes about 40 minutes for 1,000 yen, which lets you loop the trip by sea from the Kanagawa side. Check the ropeway and temple fees on the day. Go on a clear day, because the lookout is the entire point. It is fully DIY and needs no tour.

No tour needed: Nokogiriyama is a DIY train and ropeway day, see free day trips from Tokyo.

Distance Against Time on Site

Travel time is not the same as usable time. Kamakura at just under an hour leaves you almost the whole day on the ground, while Nikko at about 2 hours each way and Kyoto at about 2 hours 15 minutes each way take about 2 hours and 2 hours 15 minutes each way. A 10-hour Mt Fuji tour such as the Mt Fuji, Chureito Pagoda, Lake Kawaguchi and Oshino Hakkai Day Tour at $82 buys back that time at the price of a fixed schedule.

Rule of thumb: under 90 minutes each way, go alone. Over two hours each way, a tour or an overnight starts making sense, and the 2 day trip from Tokyo guide covers the overnight side.

Season and Fuji Visibility

Mt Fuji shows more often in winter than in summer, and early morning from sunrise to about 8:30 gives the best chance before cloud builds. Hakone needs clear skies in two places at once, so its odds are lower. Chichibu's moss phlox peaks mid-April to early May, Takao's leaves turn from mid-November, and Kawazu's early cherries run from February.

Match the trip to the month using the best time to see Mt Fuji guide before you lock anything in.

Closing Days and Short Hours

Several sights on this list close weekly, which can wreck a DIY day. The CupNoodles Museum closes Tuesdays, the MOA Museum closes Thursdays, Edo Wonderland closes Wednesdays, the Itchiku Kubota Art Museum closes Tuesdays, and the Tamozawa Imperial Villa closes Tuesdays. Winter hours are shorter almost everywhere: Toshogu closes at 16:00 from November to March against 17:00 the rest of the year, and the Hakone Checkpoint closes at 16:30 from December to February.

Check the destination hub page the day before you travel.

Budget

The cheap end is Kamakura, Kawagoe and Takao, with train fares of 1,040, 490 and 430 yen one way. The middle is Hakone, where the 2-day Freepass costs 7,100 yen from Shinjuku and a tour runs $76 to $159.54, and Mt Fuji, where buses start at 2,200 yen. The expensive end is Kyoto, at about 14,000 yen reserved each way by Nozomi, and private Mt Fuji days priced per vehicle, such as the Private Day Tour from Tokyo to Mt Fuji or Hakone at $508.76.

If you are riding JR trains on several trips, the Tokyo Wide Pass comparison at 16,000 yen for three days may pay off.