We returned to Japan in 5-15 March 2018, mainly because Qantas was opening a route to Osaka and was offering a sale. Once again, the trip was organised by Dan Campbell of InsideJapan Tours. This time, we asked Dan to create an itinerary for us starting from Osaka, but then travelling south to Kyushu visiting Nagasaki, then returning back to Osaka with a day trip to Himeji.
The weather on this trip was a lot colder than on our previous trip because we visited slightly earlier before the cherry blossom season, but we still managed to see a few buds and on the last few days the weather warmed up a bit.
| Day | Date | Location | Hotel | Itinerary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | Mon 5 Mar | Sydney to Osaka | Cross Hotel Osaka | - Qantas QF33 SYD-KIX - Train from Kansai Airport to Osaka (Nanba Nankai) |
| 1 | Tue 6 Mar | Osaka | Cross Hotel Osaka | - Amerikamura - Shinsaibashi - LEGO Piece of Peace Exhibition - Dotonbori |
| 2 | Wed 7 Mar | Osaka | Cross Hotel Osaka | - Namba Walk - Namba Parks |
| 3 | Thu 8 Mar | Osaka to Nagasaki | Richmond Hotel | - Subway Midosuji Line Namba to Shin Osaka - Shinkansen from Shin Osaka to Hakata - Limited Express from Hakata to Nagasaki - Nagasaki |
| 4 | Fri 9 Mar | Nagasaki | Richmond Hotel | - Gunkanjima - Dejima Harbour - Nagasaki Peace Park - Atomic Bomb Hypocentre - Peace Museum |
| 5 | Sat 10 Mar | Nagasaki | Richmond Hotel | - Glover Garden - Dutch Slope - Historic Quarter - Dejima - Spectacles Bridge - Teramachi - Shianbashi |
| 6 | Sun 11 Mar | Nagasaki to Huis Ten Bosch | Hotel Nikko Huis Ten Bosch | - Seaside Express from Nagasaki to Huis Ten Bosch - Huis Ten Bosch |
| 7 | Mon 12 Mar | Huis Ten Bosch | Hotel Nikko Huis Ten Bosch | Huis Ten Bosch |
| 8 | Tue 13 Mar | Huis Ten Bosch to Osaka | The Ritz-Carlton Osaka | - Seaside Express from Huis Ten Bosch to Nagasaki - Limited Express from Nagasaki to Hakata - Shinkansen from Hakata to Shin-Osaka - JR train from Shin-Osaka to Osaka - Osaka |
| 9 | Wed 14 Mar | Himeji | The Ritz-Carlton Osaka | - JR train from Osaka to Shin-Osaka - Shinkansen from Shin-Osaka to Himeji - Himeji |
| 10 | Thu 15 Mar | Osaka to Sydney | Home | Qantas QF34 from Kansai International Airport to Sydney |
Day 1 in Osaka. We walked around the Shinsaibashi area, starting from Midosuji towards Amerikamura, then Europe-dori and the shopping street.
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We attended the LEGO Piece of Peace World Heritage Exhibition at Daimaru. It showcases LEGO models of World Heritage sites and buildings.
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The Dotonbori (道頓堀) area is a popular nightlife and entertainment area with an eccentric atmosphere and large illuminated signboards.
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Namba Walk is an underground mall that looks like it has seen better days. They have a Hello Kitty spring promotion so we took photos.
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We visited Namba City, next to Namba Station, and then walked to Namba Parks, another huge shopping centre with an interesting architecture.
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Today is a rainy day, which is perfect for travelling from Osaka to Nagasaki. We arrived at 3pm and checked in to the Richmond Hotel.
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Gunkanjima (Battleship Island) was originally called Hashima with a seabed coalmine. After the mine was closed, the island fell into ruin.
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We walked through the Nagasaki Seaside Park. This offers views of Dejima Harbour and incoming boats, plus open space.
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Nagasaki Peace Park is built on a low hill to the north of the hypocentre of the atomic bomb blast, and features the Peace Sculpture.
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The Atomic Bomb Hypocentre has concentric circles marked around it like a bullseye target, next to the nearby remains of the Urakami church.
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We also visited the Nagasaki Peace Museum, which was similar to the one in Hiroshima but on a smaller scale.
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Glover Garden is situated on the southern slope of the Minamiyamate hillside and offers a superb and extensive view of Nagasaki Harbour.
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The strangely named "Dutch Slope" is a sloping road leading up to a hill where there are historical Western style houses.
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We also explored various places around the Nagasaki historic quarter including Oura Machi and Minami Yamate-Machi.
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Dejima was used to quarantine foreign traders (Portuguese, then Dutch) during the Edo period of the Tokugawa Shogunate.
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Spectacles Bridge is Japan's first Chinese-style stone bridge and one of Japan's Top 3 most well known bridges.
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In the late afternoon, we caught a streetcar to Suwajinjamae and crossed the Nakashima River to visit Teramachi. The name literally means "Temple town" and it is a street full of ... temples. Each temple is different, and the experience visiting all of them is almost overwhelming.
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Shianbashi is Nagasaki's nightlife area (and former red light district). At night, it comes alive with little restaurants and snack bars.
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Today we are travelling on the Seaside Liner from Nagasaki to Huis Ten Bosch. Took a few photos at Nagasaki Station.
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We arrived at the tiny but very, very cute JR Huis Ten Bosch station, walked across a bridge to the Huis Ten Bosch theme park.
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We visited a recreation of Kasteel Nijenrode containing the Teddy Bear Kingdom, an extensive collection of teddy bears from around the world.
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We boarded a cruiser at Canaltown that took us on a canal cruise all the way to Tower City where a replica of the Domtoren is.
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The replica of Domtoren (the famous church tower in Utrecht) at Huis Ten Bosch has an observation deck with great 360 degree views.
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The Stadhuis replica in "Amsterdam Square" in Huis Ten Bosch has a magnificent crystal and glass museum called "Gyaman Gallery".
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The Amsterdam Square in Huis Ten Bosch evokes the famous Dam Square with a European village adjacent to it.
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Thriller and Attraction Cities in Huis Ten Bosch contain a variety of theme park attractions surrounded by a fountain.
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The Night Lights in Huis Ten Bosch are very colourful with a lot of the buildings lit up, with "light" flowing from the Domtoren.
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The Flower Road at Huis Ten Bosch features windmills, tulips, the Delftsebrug bridge, and a cheese shop called Cheese Waag.
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Harbor Town in Huis Ten Bosch has theme park attractions, the Huis Ten Bosch castle, and a replica of a Dutch ship called De Liefde.
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The Porcelain Museum at Huis Ten Bosch is full of rooms of porcelain displays, a second hall with upholsteries and a third hall with pottery.
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The Game Museum at Huis Ten Bosch contains a display of various gaming consoles past to present as well as various arcade machines.
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TSuper Trick Art is yet another of those 3D art places that you pose in front of. The lighting is a bit dark in places.
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We wandered around Huis Ten Bosch in the afternoon to catch any final sights or attractions that we missed on the first day.
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On our last night at Huis Ten Bosch we stayed back to watch the evening parade and soak up the atmosphere.
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We are travelling from Huis Ten Bosch to Osaka. We checked out of the hotel, made our way back to the Huis Ten Bosch station.
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We visited the Umeda Sky Building for dinner, and then afterwards go to the rooftop to experience cityscapes of Osaka at Night.
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Himeji is the second largest city in Hyogo and is famous for Himeji Castle and Kokoen garden. There are many statues on Otemaedori.
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Himeji Castle (姫路城) is the largest and most visited castle in Japan, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was fully restored in 2015.
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Koko-en (好古園) is a Japanese garden next to Himeji Castle. It was constructed in 1992 at the site of the lord's west residence.
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On our return back to the station, we couldn't resist stopping by at a Hello Kitty themed cafe called Cafe de Miki.
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On our last night in Japan, we visited the Umeda area for a quick dinner.
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On our last day in Osaka, we wandered around the block from the hotel and ended up in Osaka Station City, a large shopping mall.
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