Planning Your Dream Japan Trip on Any Budget

Ever thought Japan was out of reach for your family? Think again! In this episode of All Things Travel, hosts Ryan and Julie break down how to experience the magic of Japan across three different budget levels—and the prices might surprise you.

Whether you're a budget-conscious traveler or ready to splurge on luxury experiences, this episode shows you exactly how to make Japan happen for a family of four in summer 2026.

Budget Level ($120/person/day): Discover how to spend seven nights exploring Tokyo and Kyoto with simple but comfortable stays, iconic sites, and incredible cultural immersion. Walk through Tokyo's historic Asakusa district, experience the famous Shibuya pedestrian crossing, visit the mesmerizing Team Lab Planets digital art museum, and wander through Kyoto's stunning Arashiyama Bamboo Forest—all without breaking the bank.

Moderate Level ($240/person/day): Step it up with more comfortable hotels, guided city tours, and special experiences like Tokyo Disney Sea (rated the world's top theme park!), a traditional tea ceremony, and a day trip to Nara's famous Deer Park. This level balances group tours with curated experiences perfect for families.

Luxury Level ($350-450/person/day): Go all out with private tours, five-star accommodations including a traditional ryokan near Mount Fuji, insider access to sumo wrestler training, a private sushi-making workshop, geisha cultural walks, samurai sword lessons, and hot spring experiences. This is Japan at its finest with seamless transportation and unforgettable moments.

Ryan and Julie also share their mix-and-match philosophy—you don't have to stick to one budget level! Combine elements from each to create your perfect trip.

Bonus: Ryan shares an incredible client story about a life-changing two-week African safari, complete with hippos at dinner, a one-day-old baby elephant, and the elephant with the longest tusks on record!

Ready to start planning your Japanese adventure? This episode proves that with the right guidance, Japan is more accessible than you ever imagined.

Transcript

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 0:00

Hello and welcome to all Things Travel. Japan is certainly a must do destination for many travelers. Today we're continuing our three budget series by giving you options to see Japan your Way.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 0:13

listen in with travel advisors and destination experts, Ryan and Julie. is your travel professor teaching you everything you need to know to have a magical vacation. And I am a Disney loving Maryland mom of three and a specialist in family travel. we're discussing incredible destinations, top vacation tips, or sharing personal stories, it's always all things travel.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 0:37

So Julie, we're catching each other in the midst of comings and goings with vacations. You just returned from a Royal Caribbean seminar at The Seas, which is a travel advisor training session, and I'm getting ready to leave for my honeymoon in a few days to the Dominican Republic.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 0:56

Yep. And here we are stuck in the middle and we totally missed this Ryan, but like, I don't know, three weeks ago now was our six months of wonder and beyond travel being open.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 1:08

that's awesome.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 1:10

You know, I had it on my calendar and I guess I just didn't actually

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 1:13

It just, you know, I'm a newlywed so I have those anniversaries drilled into my brain, so, you know, um, well that's awesome. it's been a really, really fun six months and it's been really great to, to grow this with you.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 1:28

So this is this really fun series. The

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 1:30

Yes.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 1:32

we did for this was Italy. So now we're gonna go a little more exotic over to Japan because think Japan specifically is something that a lot of people think that they can't do purely because of the cost of it and having a family So I'm excited to share this with our listeners.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 1:51

But before we do that, If you did not listen to last week's episode, we talked all about what to do and not to do when planning a multi-generational trip. Well, it's interesting that you say that, Julie, because I was shocked with these numbers as I put this together. this makes me so excited about a trip like this, like you did with Italy. I broke down Japan into three different styles. budget, moderate and luxury. This is for a family of four. Summer of 2026. All of these trips are gonna be a one week trip. I think maybe the luxury one expands it a little bit. I think you're really gonna be surprised and and excited about these trips. So I wanna focus on the budget one first. seven nights, Tokyo and Kyoto. the vibe of this level of trip is simple stays, iconic sites, inexpensive meals. You're gonna be kind of walking the city and experiencing that way, but we also wanna make sure that you have great cultural immersion because you're taking the time to visit Japan. Right? So we are in Tokyo for four nights. We're staying at the Sakura Hotel, Jim Bauchi, which is very friendly for families. It's central in a safe neighborhood. Very, very good price point as a budget accommodation, what are the types of activities you're gonna be doing during your time in Tokyo? You're gonna take an asur walking tour and a temple tour that's gonna be a low cost group, tour. You are going to go to Asura, which is Tokyo's historic district. You're gonna be going to Tokyo's, oldest Buddhist temple, and you're also going to be close to a lot of great street foods. You're gonna be able to have some yummy things along the way.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 3:46

That's,

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 3:46

also. Yep. There you go. You are also going to be doing the Shaba and Harra Juki walk, and this is self-guided. Now, why would you want to do this? Because when you think of Tokyo, if you close your eyes right now, Julian, and think of Tokyo, what are you seeing in your brain?

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 4:03

The city and the lights and a lot, a lot of people.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 4:06

A lot of people crossing that street, right? This is that pedestrian crossing where thousands of people are crossing the street at the same time. very cool. On this self-guided tour, you're also checking out. Fashion district with cute snacks, little souvenir shops, high-end shops, and you're also going to the me shrine, a peaceful forest right next to that hustle and bustle neighborhood. And then for a very affordable ticket, you're going to the team lab planets. And this is a fully immersive digital art museum with water floors, mirrors, interactive light rooms. Your kids are gonna love this type of thing.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 4:47

I have a Japan itinerary I'm working on with furry family with a young kid, and Team Lab is a must do on their list.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 4:56

Very cool. Well, and then as part of this trip, you're taking the train to Kyoto and you're in Kyoto for three nights. when I say seven nights, I'm talking about outside of travel. keep that in mind when I'm talking about the total amount of time you're gonna stay at the guest house soy. Which is known for welcoming families. It has that really traditional Japanese style, very affordable, but centrally located close to some major sites. The activities you're gonna be doing here is you're gonna go on a group tour of the Ami Bamboo Forest, one of Kyoto's most iconic sites. With tall bamboo paths and temples, you're gonna take a group tour to learn about the history and hidden corners of this area. You're going to take a self-guided tour, through a famous shrine. So those gates, you know, the red gates that we're used to maybe seeing at Epcot, but overlooking the mountains. And you'll notice with this budget level, there's a lot of group things, but also self-guided things. I think that's a good way to Mix and match, And then because we are in Kyoto, which is known as one of Japan's culinary hotspots, you are going to do a market food walk. you can add this as a group tour or you can do the self-guided, it's known as Kyoto's Kitchen, where you get tons of samples of food. as I break down this budget trip, we're talking about the lodging with these two places, the local transportation and the train ride, the food. Over the course of these seven days and the tour and activities, I've talked about$120 a person per day,

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 6:41

That's insane.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 6:43

I had to double check that, but as I broke everything down you're staying in really good, but economical places, you tend to have more grab and go type of food and you're really maximizing those walking tours that you can do on your own. Boom, you've done it.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 7:02

I think my favorite thing about this itinerary that we just went over is, it feels really immersive.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 7:10

Yes.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 7:11

without seeing the other itineraries, I'm not looking at this and thinking, oh, I'm missing out on thing. it feels really inclusive and it feels really immersive. another thing I would mention about the self-guided type tours is. very family friendly.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 7:28

Yeah.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 7:29

in a group where you're feeling pressure to corral children and those kinds of things.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 7:34

Yes, making sure they're quieting down so the guide can talk or they're keeping up with everybody. you can really go at your own pace.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 7:41

This is amazing.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 7:43

So let's bump it up a little bit. Let's still say seven nights. Let's still do, uh, Tokyo and Kyoto, but let's do a moderate range with this type of trip. Julie, talk to us about that.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 7:54

So when we bump up the budget a little bit, we are gonna keep those group tours. but we're gonna add in a couple of curated experiences. You're gonna be staying in more comfortable hotels and the pace is gonna be a little bit more balanced throughout your trip. In Tokyo, you're gonna stay four nights and we're gonna recommend the hotel niwa Tokyo, which is a more modern and comfortable hotel with a very calm design. It's really great for families who want a little more comfort in their space. Plus it's close to two major subway lines, which is really convenient for your travel. a couple of the activities we're gonna be doing are a full day Tokyo highlights tour. This is a group tour, but you're gonna see all the key sites including the Shrine Ryan mentioned in our previous itinerary, the Tokyo Tower or Skytree, the Imperial Palace Gardens. this is a really great orientation day for first timers who are visiting Tokyo. next you can go to either Disney Sea or Ghibli Park. so this would be a day trip over to Disney Sea, which, let's be serious. That's the one we are going to choose.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 9:06

Disney Sea has been rated the top theme park in the world multiple years.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 9:12

Yeah, it's an amazing park and it's very unique. Or over to Ghibli Park, which is anime based. There's replicas films.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 9:20

Okay.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 9:20

immersive, just depending on what your interests are. And we're also gonna be having an evening food tour to visit the alleyway street foods. things like ramen and Japanese comfort foods with a local guide. So you have a really great mix between, this theme park experience or an anime experience, sampling a lot of foods and seeing all the important sites for your first visit to Tokyo. Next, you're gonna go over to Kyoto for three nights, and we're gonna recommend the Kyoto Century Hotel, which is right next to Kyoto Station, great for families with easy access for day trips around Japan. We're gonna do a highlights tour in Kyoto this time with stops at the Ky Miera temple, the golden Pavilion, and nijo castle, a Samurai era palace. We're gonna do a traditional tea ceremony where you can learn how matcha is prepared. It's really family friend friendly. It's very calm and it's really culturally immersive. And then you're also gonna do A day trip over to Nara where you can go to the home of the Great Buddha. And the Deer Park where kids can feed the deer crackers. And I've researched the Deer Park before. It is a very cool place for kids.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 10:34

Very cool.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 10:34

easy train ride So once we broke this down, this price point we're gonna talk about reflects the comfortable hotel stay, The guided city tours and. Either Disney Sea or Ghibli Park, and then one or two of those family experiences, and this comes out to about$240 per person per day. That's just so, so great, especially to include something like Disney Sea. I would

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 11:00

Yeah.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 11:01

I had to take a little pause there and say, Ryan, are you sure?

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 11:04

you're doing a theme park for one day, and you're choosing one, you're not choosing multiple ones. I think a lot of this has to do with, versus our discussion of Italy, the amount of transfers that we're doing here.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 11:16

Mm-hmm.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 11:17

It is much lower. We're relying on public transportation because we're in cities, we're walking because we're in cities. I think that's cutting a lot of this down. I'm really excited and I think I'm gonna blow you away with our luxury option here, but first I wanna talk about where in the world is Wonder and beyond travel. Julie, I'm gonna take this one. Friday afternoon, I had a coffee with one of my clients that just returned from Africa. she could not stop gushing about the trip that her and her sister went on. and it just sounded absolutely amazing. They worked with one of our favorite partners, live Life safaris, who we've worked with multiple times, and I just, love them. They do such a good job. this traveler. Went from, because of health situations being the add-on to people who had been to Africa multiple times to now being the lead guest. there was a lot of nervousness with that. Clint's team at Live Life Safari held their hand from the very moment they got there. She's like, we are very nervous, we are wanting to be taken care of. And she said, as soon as we landed in Johannesburg. they were there, we had a WhatsApp group with people that were always there with signs. We knew their names. We knew what to expect, and it was absolutely fabulous.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 12:39

What a relief.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 12:41

Oh, and it just, I think it just, for her, it just made the trip that started kind of uncertain. just absolutely amazing. Let me give you some of the highlights. this was an interesting thing because, one of the women that was originally gonna go on the trip actually won a resort stay in Africa, through a silent. Auction. And so that's what started the whole conversation. they went over to Johannesburg and had a few days there and then spent time at this private resort. after that we picked up with the trip that I helped plan. some of the highlights, they're at a camp where they're basically walking to dinner. And hippos are actually eating right next to them as they're sitting on the balcony eating dinner. they saw a one day old baby elephant they fed.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 13:29

what.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 13:30

They fed the elephant named Rambo who has the longest tusks on record. he has security with him 24 hours a day because they want to keep his tusks intact. they saw. Every type of animal imaginable. multiple safaris, went to the Indian Ocean Coast. just amazing, amazing things. you know, the pictures that she was showing me. Just zebras and elephants and tigers and spring box and wildebeests and warthogs and painted dogs and hyenas. she was just glowing as she was talking about this experience.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 14:13

Wow.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 14:15

and they were in anything from five star accommodations to what I would call glamping. in fact, her and her sister were at a safari camp where they were in kind of these glamping huts and they were The only guests because they were kind of at the end of the season, she's like, it was us and 14 guys that worked there. they just gushed over us the entire time. taking care of this and that. it was funny because she's showing me pictures and she's like, this is Soandso. He was our safari guide and bartender.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 14:44

Oh,

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 14:46

So it was unbelievable. As she talked about this trip.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 14:49

I feel blown away just by some of your descriptions and her descriptions. I am thrilled to hear such awesome feedback. And I think Ryan, and I'm sure that you had this feeling, when you can be a part of creating

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 15:05

Oh yeah.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 15:06

somebody,

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 15:07

it is a really, it's an honor, it's a privilege. It just makes me so happy, to live vicariously with my clients as they're having this and spending time with them afterwards and learning about it. that makes me better, but it also helps me appreciate what I'm doing and why. So, I am so excited to be part of this. I've had multiple safaris with this company. I look forward to working with them again. just an unbelievable time.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 15:33

Wow.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 15:34

Alright, let's head back over to Japan, Julie.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 15:38

All righty.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 15:39

All right, so for our luxury Japan trip, this is gonna be an eight, nine night trip. So a few more nights, we are going to be in Tokyo, we're gonna be at the foot of Mount Fuji, and in Kyoto. how is this going to be different than the other two Private access and activities, incredible food, seamless transportation. real cultural immersion. We're starting with four days in Tokyo, four nights rather. We're gonna stay at the Palace Hotel Tokyo, which is a luxury five star hotel. It's right on the Imperial Palace Gardens and has very large rooms, Which in Tokyo is not that common. So what are the types of things we're gonna be doing in our time with Tokyo? we are going to, have a private Tokyo cultural tour. Now, with this, it's based on what your family wants to do. So you can choose things like. Sushi tasting, a shrine, private walk, shopping, tours, cruises on the Sumita River. You're also gonna be doing a private sumo stable visit. So you're gonna watch sumo wrestlers train, have a q and a with the coaches and the, and the athletes. And you're gonna have a rare insider access as you're not watching a competition, but you're actually watching them get ready and talking to them one-on-one.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 17:04

Wow.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 17:05

You're gonna have a private sushi making workshop, with a sushi chef, which will include lunch, hopefully not the ones that you stumble over the first couple times. You make it and you know, something like this. It's focused on a, as a family activity, so it's very interactive and fun for the kids. then you're going to be taking a private transfer to the hae, which is near. Mount Fuji and you're gonna be staying here for one or two nights. you're gonna be staying at the Gora Kaan, which is a luxury Ryokan Ryokans. Julie, are those traditional Japanese, Accommodations, with the paper walls and, bamboo, frames it's one of Japan's top ROK can inns. They have a private hot spring bath on site, which we'll get back to in a second. And it will also include a incredible multi-course Japanese meal. So what are we gonna be doing here? we're going to be doing a private. tour around the area where we're gonna be doing a cable car tour, a pirate ship, lake cruise, and also exploring the volcanic valley around that location. We're gonna have a private driver. We're not gonna wait in line, so they're gonna take care of everything. We're then going to be experiencing the hot springs there at that hotel, which will be nice and relaxing for the whole family, or maybe just mom and dad, depending on the timing. Then we're taking our private transfer over to Kyoto for three nights. We're gonna be staying at the Four Seasons Hotel, Kyoto, which is a top luxury property, has Serene Gardens, has a in-store pool, and again, those large room and suites that we're not used to seeing in Japan. What are the activities that we're doing in Kyoto? We are going to have a private geisha cultural walk, so we're gonna learn about. the traditions of the geisha and the makos. We're gonna have an evening walking, with photography, and tea with a Mako. And a Mako, is basically a geisha apprentice. what a unique cultural experience.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 19:13

Really.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 19:14

This next one has kids written all over it. We're gonna have a samurai sword lesson, so we are going to learn the kata forms with a trained sword master. And it, it says here in the notes, it will be a safe educational and also memorable. So, you know how, how did, how did, how did your brother lose a toe on vacation? We are going to have a day where we have a tour guide and driver take us wherever we want to go. So this may be temples, this may be tea fields, shrines, forest walks, all that type of stuff. for this luxury eight to nine night trip, we're looking at three 50 to four 50 per person per day.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 19:56

Wow.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 19:56

And so now you see the upgrades. We've got, first class train accommodations. We have private drivers taking us around on tours. We have more luxurious, hotels, private experiences, but still$400 per person per day.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 20:15

that's great.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 20:16

Yes. I think, to be honest. you can really mix and match all of this to fit your style. pick some of the luxury, pick some of the moderate, pick some of the budget, and you have such a, a budget friendly way to see Japan. yeah, I'm going for it.

j_1_11-17-2025_120156: 20:34

I think as we've done this episode, my brain is going over when can I take my kids to Japan and on a safari, how old do I want them to be? How soon can I get there? Because both of these, talking about Japan and then you sharing about the safari trip are just, very awe inspiring. And I hope that our listeners. get that same feeling as well, The world is full of wonder and your next great adventure is waiting at Wonder and Beyond Travel. We work with you to create a one of a kind journey, taking the stress off your plate so you can focus on the joy of exploring and the memories that will stay with you forever. ready to start planning or just want to dream a little bigger, head over to Wonder and beyond travel.com. We'd love to help you get started.

ryan_1_11-17-2025_120156: 21:29

We look forward to talking to you next week on All Things Travel. When we wrap up this three budget series by heading to Hawaii,