Winding Roads & Never Ending TalesFamily trips, wrong turns and the places we still talk about.
Tokyo, Kamakura and Hakone: Our First Four Days in Japan
The Japan in our plan had Harry Potter, teamLab, temples, trains and hopefully a view of Fuji. Quite a beginning to a holiday with our eleven-year-old! Tokyo would be our first base, with Kamakura and Hakone giving us two very different days outside the city. Before any of that, though, came the practical part that every grand itinerary quietly leaves out: three travellers at Haneda trying to sort out internet, Suica and the way to the hotel. Chalo, Japan ki shuruaat yahin se.
The first four days took us around Tokyo, then out to Kamakura and Hakone. Let me start from the airport, because even getting those cards had a little story of its own.
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Travelled in May 2026. Part 1 of our Japan family travelogue. Prices, menus and ticket rules can change.
Days 1–2: Tokyo, from airport queues to Hogwarts
Day 1: Haneda, Skytree and an urgent shoe purchase
We landed at Haneda around 8 am. The arrival forms were already filled online, so that part was sorted. And well, immigration and customs together took us only about half an hour! After the flight, this was a very welcome start.
So far so good. Now we needed two things before heading to the hotel: internet on our phones and Suica cards for getting around. We followed the airport map towards the Welcome Suica machines, though figuring out that map was taking some effort.
On the way we spotted Bic Camera. Might as well get the internet sorted first, we thought. There were plan cards hanging outside the shop; we picked one, joined the queue and took it to the cashier to get the eSIM.
The important bit turned out to be the paper they handed over with it. I was expecting the connection to more or less take care of itself after installation. Not on our phones. We had to follow the instructions and add the APN settings before it would work. Thank God we had kept that slip!
So a small word of advice from our airport experience: do not throw the instructions away, and check that the internet actually works before moving on. The setup depends on your phone and provider, but that paper mattered for us.
Chalo, internet toh chal gaya. Now we went looking for the Welcome Suica machines again. And there was the queue. A big one. We stood there wondering how much of our first morning was going to be spent waiting for a card.
While looking around, we noticed the JR East Help Center a few minutes away. Worth a try, right? We went over and bingo, it was empty! Arre wah, yahan toh koi tha hi nahi. Such a queue at the machines and nobody here. It felt as if all of us had read the same blogs and come straight to the same spot.
The staff were smiling, polite and spoke English, which made things much easier. We got our cards sorted and loaded, and could finally head for the train. That small discovery made us quite pleased with ourselves. Of course, this was the situation that morning, not a promise that you will find an empty counter too. official Welcome Suica information
Our first stay was Richmond Hotel in Oshiage, near the Skytree. Now, hotel descriptions use the word near quite freely, but this one really meant it. The tower was right in front of us.
We were too early for the 2 pm check-in, so we left our bags and went out to look around. There was a big mall next door with a Life supermarket, and our immediate interest was finding 7-Eleven and FamilyMart. Breakfast was needed before any serious sightseeing.
Egg sandwiches helped us through those first few hours. We also tried instant ramen, though the ingredients need checking rather than assuming every cup is vegetarian. The convenience stores were going to become a regular part of this holiday.
Once we could check in, the room gave us a proper view of Skytree, from floor to ceiling. Lovely! Then we discovered the complimentary rice face masks. After the flight, these felt very good indeed. We had picked up some Vitamin C drink pouches too and spent a little time just relaxing.
Later we visited Sumida Aquarium. Honestly, I found it a fairly basic setup, although seeing Skytree lit up at night was another matter. For dinner we found Amara inside the mall. An Indian meal nearby on the first day was very welcome; we were not complaining about familiarity by then.
One thing had already become clear: our shoes were not going to work for all this walking. So off we went to Ginza, specifically to buy Hoka Bondis. Yes, shoe shopping had made it into Day 1 before many of the places on my list.
We called them souvenirs, but this was mostly about keeping our feet happy for the remaining trip. They turned out to be among our most useful purchases. Sometimes those Instagram recommendations do help!
We finally got back and crashed. Needed the sleep too, because I had booked Harry Potter for 9 am the next morning and teamLab for 3 pm. Both had sounded quite manageable when I was planning them from home.
Day 2: A very full day of magic
One small habit helped with these early starts: we bought the next morning's breakfast on our way back the previous night and kept the day bags ready. Otherwise, first find breakfast, then eat, then leave... aadha morning toh wahin chala jaata. We kept chilled food refrigerated overnight. It also meant we were not waiting for the hotel breakfast before getting to a place while it was still quiet.
By 7 am we were up and getting the day bags ready. Thankfully we had bought breakfast from FamilyMart the night before, including egg sandwiches. Looking for a sit-down vegetarian breakfast now would have made the morning harder.
Oshiage to Toshimaen meant crossing the city. We tapped our Suica cards, made the transfers and reached the Studio Tour for our 9 am slot. This was one booking my daughter and I had been looking forward to for a long time.
The early slot was a good choice for us; it was still fairly quiet when we entered. First came the big shop, and my daughter was soon choosing her wand and Ravenclaw robes. There was a name-stencilling option for the robe, but the wait was already about twenty minutes on our visit.
We decided to skip that and get inside while the sets were less crowded. The name on the robe could wait; Hogwarts could not, apparently. Then the Great Hall doors opened and there we were, actually walking into a place we had seen so many times on screen.
There was plenty for us to join in with, not just stand and look at. We posed for the moving portraits and became spectators in the Quidditch sequence. All three of us were happily getting involved. So much for this being mainly for the kid.
In the Forbidden Forest we bowed to Buckbeak and tried the Patronus experience. We also paid for the broomstick video and got the three of us into it. Watching ourselves flying around Hogwarts was quite silly and very enjoyable.
There were more sets after the cafe break: the Hogwarts Express, the Ministry of Magic, Diagon Alley, and finally the huge model of Hogwarts. We spent a good amount of time looking around. Follow the photo and video rules at each experience; the permitted souvenir options can change.
At the backlot cafe we found a vegan sandwich, so food was sorted for the moment. We had Butterbeer too, and there was a place to wash the mugs before taking them home. Another souvenir for the bags!
Just do check the drink and topping ingredients if you are vegan. Our family had eggs and dairy on this trip, so what we ate will not automatically work for everyone.
Next was teamLab Planets at 3 pm, which meant travelling back across the city. Once inside, off came the shoes and we were walking through water and mirrored rooms. Wear something that can roll up comfortably; it is an actual water section, not just a display to look at.
I felt a few rooms were a little overhyped, but the mirrored lights in Infinite Crystal Universe were something else. My daughter liked the room with the big spheres changing colour. We had gone from Harry Potter sets to this in the same day, quite a change.
By the time we came out, around 5:30, we were running low on energy. Luckily Vegan Uzu Tokyo was right outside in the plaza. We sat down and had some really good, rich ramen. Exactly what we needed at that point.
And then, instead of calling it a day, we carried on to Odaiba. The bay, the lights and the little Statue of Liberty made it a lovely place to spend the evening. We also watched fireworks from the waterfront.
There was still one place I wanted to see: the Unicorn Gundam at DiverCity. It was another walk from where we were. We had been out since morning, and by now my daughter had had quite enough walking. Honestly, so had we.
The fireworks were part of our evening, but check actual event dates before planning around them. My earlier draft also mentioned the Gundam being retired; I could not verify that, so do not use it as a reason to rush a visit.
This is where the dessert deal came in. We promised Japanese desserts if she would manage the last stretch to the Gundam. Haan, thodi bribery hui. By then we were all tired, so a dessert stop sounded good to the adults too. The robot lit up, the promised desserts were bought, and then we dragged ourselves back to the train.
Back to Skytree and straight to bed. What a day. We had enjoyed it, but none of us needed convincing that it was time to stop.
If I were planning this again, I would not add quite so much after the Studio Tour and teamLab. Odaiba was lovely, but getting all of us through that last walk needed more than enthusiasm.
Day 3: Kamakura and the Rishi Kapoor connection
After that packed Tokyo day, we headed to Kamakura. We took the commuter train and walked through town towards Kotoku-in and the Great Buddha. It was nice to be outside the city for a while, although there was still plenty of walking involved.
Hasedera had gardens, ponds, little Jizo statues and a view towards the sea. We spent time looking around instead of rushing straight to the next place. A welcome change after the previous day.
At Third Rock Cafe the host helped us with a vegan meal. My daughter also tried Ramune, the drink with the glass marble in the bottle. Japanese goli soda was how we explained it to ourselves. That made it immediately familiar!
We took the Enoden along the coast and got off at Kamakurakoko-mae for the crossing from Slam Dunk. We were certainly not the only people with that idea. Quite a crowd for a railway crossing.
A little farther along we got talking to a traffic officer. Once he heard we were from India, out came Rishi Kapoor. He was a fan! Who would have thought Bollywood would be our common subject here?
He was very friendly and pointed us towards a quieter place, away from the traffic, for our family photographs. That helped a lot after the crowd at the crossing. A small conversation, but I still remember it very clearly.
Kamakura was easier-paced than our Tokyo day, but not exactly a day off for the feet. Also, keep clear of the road and railway when taking photos; the crossing is still a working crossing, however famous it has become.
Day 4: The Hakone loop, black eggs and a missing mountain
Hakone was next. Trains, a cable car, ropeway, lake cruise and hopefully Mount Fuji. There was plenty in the plan. The hopefully part turned out to be important.
We had not sorted out the Hakone Freepass in advance and lost time at Shinjuku working that out. This was one bit I should have checked the previous night. The pass version matters for the journey from your starting station, and the Romancecar needs an extra limited-express ticket. It does not mean you can board every service in the area. official Freepass coverage and purchase options
Our Hakone route
- Shinjuku to Hakone-Yumoto on the Odakyu Romancecar.
- Mountain railway to Gora.
- Cable car to Sounzan.
- Ropeway via Owakudani to Togendai.
- Sightseeing cruise across Lake Ashi to Moto-Hakone.
- Bus back towards Hakone-Yumoto, then our return train.
The journey itself was enjoyable: mountain train, cable car, then up in the ropeway over the volcanic scenery. At Owakudani we could see steam coming from the slopes. Very different from where we had been walking around in Tokyo.
We found a vegetable curry labelled without animal products at the station restaurant that day, and tried the black eggs and black ice cream too. The local story says an egg adds seven years to your life. Quite a claim for an egg! But years added or not, the eggs were not enough to fill us up. We were still hungry during that Hakone day.
The place I remember is Gokuraku Chaya in the Owakudani volcanic area. We remember a vegetarian ramen option and needing cash then. Ask the staff which bowl is suitable now, what goes into the broth and how you can pay. And do not assume its famous Hell Ramen is vegetarian just because of the name or a vegetable topping. The useful part of this memory is: keep yen and a backup snack with you. Beautiful views are very nice, but bhookh bhi lagti hai. This was one day when finding enough suitable food took more effort than I had planned for.
But no Fuji. It was sunny around us and still the mountain would not show. We kept looking, but there was nothing to do about it. Good to remember before making the whole Hakone plan depend on that one view.
From Togendai we took the sightseeing cruise across Lake Ashi. At Moto-Hakone we walked by the water and through the trees towards the red lakeside torii at Hakone Shrine. We had missed Fuji, but there was still plenty to enjoy.
By evening it had become colder, and we hurried back for our bus connection. Another long day done. Keep a layer with you and check the return services early; finding food and getting back should not be left until everyone is tired.
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