Japan with kids
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Anonymous
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What places/things to do would you suggest in Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto with a 4 and 8 year old (in April 2025, not golden week).
We will definitely visit DisneySea and Universal. |
Anonymous
| Robot cafe |
Anonymous
| Teamlab Planets |
Anonymous
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In Tokyo: Miyazaki museum, run around in inokashira koen before or after. There’s Lego museum I think on odaiba and you get to ride the monorail there which my kids would love.
If you want a day trip from Tokyo or a stop on the way to Kyoto, Hakone is tourist and kid friendly. Nara near Kyoto/Osaka has not scared of humans deer (they’re not exactly tame though — use your judgment as to whether this would be great or terrible with your kids). |
Anonymous
I'd go for non-American things. |
Anonymous
The deer tried to eat my lunch and stole my map. |
Anonymous
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I was in Tokyo with 6 and 8 year olds over Christmas.
Inokashira Park (koen =park) has a zoo, aquarium and gardens to walk through. Eat in/look around Kichijoji afterward. Koganei Park has an outdoor architectural museum (old buildings you can walk through and explore) that was a lot of fun. Also be prepared to spend a lot of time at playgrounds because they are everywhere and so tempting for kids. We went to a family karaoke place that had a playground built in to amuse the kids while the parents drink and sing! I would suggest renting bikes. Strap the 4 year old in back and maybe even the 8 year old depending on his/her stamina. There is a chain of family restaurants called "Gusto" with a robot waiter that my kids LOVED. They weren't great about unfamiliar food so this was a good find. We also went to a chain onsen called Osama no Ofuro (King of Baths) that was full of families with kids and had ice cream for afterwards. They got over being embarrassed quickly. The kids will have to go with the same-sex parent. We went to Chofu which is an old-fashioned town/temple themed on yokai (traditional Japanese monsters.) Trips are very different with children but can be just as much fun. |
Anonymous
| Have you been to Japan before? Are you aware of how long it takes to recover from the 12 hour shift? I absolutely would not to US amusement parks. Might as well not fly that far for that. |
Anonymous
| One of my favorite things about Japan is the restaurants with the replicas of their food in the windows. My kid got much more adventurous in ordering when he got to see it first! |
Anonymous
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Just back from two weeks with 5 and 10 year olds. We had a blast. The kids dealt with jet lag better than the adults.
Highlights: --Sumo tournament in Osaka --Ghibli Museum --Anime/toy shopping in Tokyo --Pinball in Osaka --Deer and temple in Nara --Climbing to the top of Mt. Inari --Teamlab Borderless --Hakone loop --Conveyor belt sushi and yakiniku --karaoke --Pokemon cafe in Osaka |
Anonymous
| Why do the theme parks? So many better things to do. |
Anonymous
| I have read that Kyoto is extremely crowded. Would you recommend skipping with young children (save for when they are older and might appreciate it more)? |
Anonymous
| I do not mean to sound judgy, but why do American theme parks halfway across the world? I’m curious, we took kids to Europe at those ages and never considered it |
Anonymous
I agree with bypassing theme parks but can I just say that Japanese theme parks are on another level 
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Anonymous
| I would skip universal but I have heard such great thinks about disney sea that I would be tempted to do that! |