SOLO TRAVEL JAPAN | My Trip to Kyoto

This week’s travel guide is to Kyoto, Japan! From enchanting temples to relaxing onsen, Kyoto offers a treasure of cultural experiences waiting to be discovered. In this video I share must-visit attractions, budget-friendly accommodations, delicious vegetarian options, and essential travel tips for a seamless journey for first time travelers. Get ready to immerse yourself in the beauty and tradition of Kyoto like never before!

00:00 Intro
00:20 Skyscanner
2:20 Incheon Airport
3:40 Budget Hostels
5:25 Smart Toilets
6:37 Pocket Wifi
7:35 Things to do
10:10 Onsen
15:00 Japan Rail Pass
15:55 Shinkansen
17:50 Bowing culture
19:15 Japanese Yen
19:50 Japanese food
21:20 Green Tea
23:45 Traveling while black
25:00 Is Solo Travel scary?

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#japantravel #kyoto #solotravel #japaneseculture #japantrip #travelguide #beautifuldestinations #solofemaletravel #budgettravel #kyototrip

hi friends welcome back to the channel
in today’s video I’m going to be giving
you tips to one of my favorite countries
All the Way East Japan we’re going to
the city of Kyoto let’s go ahead and
begin now I did this a bit differently I
was already in Korea at the time and I
had purchased a flight to Japan to get
to Kyoto well let me show you how I did
that I’m going to go ahead and pull up
Skys scanner for you Skys scanner you
can always match it with Google flights
but this is a way to fun cheap flights
I’ve said before flying from the US to a
lot of these overseas countries is going
to be mad expensive but there are ways
to do it I already was in Korea I went
to enin and then I flew to saga’s
airport once you pull up
skyscanner.com you’re going to need to
type in your destinations for engin that
is the airport code ICN or you can just
type out engine i n c h e o n and that
would be the from then for year two
you’re going into Saga Japan s a g a hrn
then you’re going to want to put in your
departure dates I did the month out
right now this is April upload so I put
in dates for May you can filter it by
the whole month and it can find cheaper
dates for you to Google Flights does
this also once your dates are put in you
want to select cabin class economy this
is for the cheaper options hit search
and then notice what comes up T air this
is a Korean low Budget Airline and this
is not one way it’s round trip from
Korea to Japan it’s about an hour and a
half there are no stops it’s a direct
flight so this is a good deal you have
some third party sites kiwi and trip.com
you also have the actual Airline t-way
air since the price difference isn’t
that much I would recommend that you go
ahead and select T air they’re going to
bring you to their homepage where you
can select the flights it is going to be
in South Korean Juan once you have done
that it will take you to the
payment that’s how I booked this flight
y’all less than $100 I got to Japan from
Korea but this is a good tip use
Skyscanner to help you select the
cheaper flights you can even do it
months out a lot of times my flights are
last minute and that’s how I was able to
snag this deal real quick a review of
ancient airport according to Sky tracks
it’s the fourth best airport in the
world it is very large it’s modern it’s
clean design and you are really going to
be able to navigate through it easily
they have traditional tourist places
where you can you know try on
traditional Korean clothes I know this
is Japan video but that airport engine
it is fantastic you guys they have
people playing the piano you guys know I
like to hear pianos in airports there’s
showers gaming Zone there’s kids zones
there’s computer zones with workstations
for you to get your work done before
your flight they have dance shows this
airport is it y’all from there I went to
Saga Saga airp Port is very small it was
my entry point into Japan I flew from
seou to Saga then I went from Saga to
fukoka and then fukoka overnight to
Kyoto it was roundabout but I got there
if you’re like Janelle I’m not doing all
that I completely get it I understand
you get to supply for the states all the
way to Kyoto Kyoto Osaka and Tokyo those
are going to be the most popular CI so
even if you don’t start with Tokyo I’ve
never been to Tokyo myself you can
definitely start with Kyoto it’s
beautiful y’all bear with me I’m testing
out lighting now sometimes my eyes go
they get really big let me adjust to
this Japan is known to be one of the
most expensive places that you can visit
especially for solo Travelers I am going
to give you some budget options for
accommodation and that’s going to be
hosts if you are going to want to stay
in a hostel you’re going to realize all
throughout Japan accommodation that they
want you to remove the shoes they’re
going to have shelves for you where you
can put the shoes in as soon as you walk
in some people like to switch into their
you know house slippers you just leave
your shoes by the front door it’s okay
this is typical tradition in Japan keep
the shoes off when you are looking for
hosts on hostelworld.com these are rated
by location of course you want to have
the central location to the city center
for Kyoto friendly staff you’re looking
to see reviews how the staff treats
foreigners especially and cleanly
cleanest their hosts are typically clean
they’re more than just once a day like
some I’ve been to here are a few hosts
that I would recommend I have Lynn Kyoto
which was 36 a night and you’re going to
be in a dorm there’s also peace hostile
Koto that one’s going to be 51 if you
want privat that’s good because you get
your own space what are rans they are
the traditional Japanese ends these are
not hostiles but some of them will rent
out hostile rooms one of those named is
going to be gon Gian roken you can find
all of these on hosw world.com always
match it up on Google read the reviews
on both and see which one fits your
fancy and gon they have it about 26 a
night when you are looking at the
reviews you want to look at the location
the staff and of course the cleanliness
speaking of cleanliness I might as well
use this as a time to talk about the
smart toilets in Japan the spa
experience for when you’re doing your
business the toilets in Japan are modern
they’re so Hightech depending on the
model of the toilet it’s really going to
enhance your time in the bathroom from
heated seats some of them offer massages
they play music Imagine the lid just
automatically Lifting for you you don’t
have to touch nothing it selfclean what
more could you ask from a toilet they
have air dryers too one tip would be
when you first experience the smart
toilet you’re going to see the panel
with all the buttons just don’t go off
willy-nilly pressing everything cuz you
might get surprised if you seeing the
water just shoot up and have never
experienced bedet before don’t push all
the buttons the ways these are designed
so that you don’t have to use toilet
papers and actually using these modern
smart toilets it’s more environmentally
friendly because they are reducing the
use of toilet paper like everything you
need is on that panel the toilets are a
delight I’m not sure that all hostiles
have these depending on where you are
staying the toilet can get better or you
could just have a basic one some might
even have the traditional squat toilets
a lot of these Asian countries they
offer the pocket Wi-Fi and one time when
I was before I got to Kyoto I was
staying in fukoka I rented an Airbnb and
he automatically the owner automatically
just said oh you know just take this
pocket Wi-Fi with you while you travel
around the city and it made everything
so easier back then I really wasn’t
using my GPS on my phone and I had the
Wi-Fi turned off I didn’t even have have
a phone plan for Japan you probably like
what but I didn’t need it because I had
the pocket Wi-Fi it really really made
things easier if you’re looking for
where to stay in Japan you can
definitely try the hostels go to hostle
world or you can try the traditional
roken both of these should offer the
fancy smart toilets for you to
experience if you’re enjoying this video
go ahead and like it so that I know I
really enjoy when I can engage with you
guys and again thank you for 500 we’re
at 500 for real now so I can truly say
it the activities in Kyoto are going to
be amazing for tourists yes they are
touristy but they’re so fantastic you
have to experience them as a firsttime
traveler the first one is going to be
Fushimi Inari for this you want to be
prepared I would either drink before
make sure that you bring water bottle if
you so choose with you you want to have
comfortable walking shoes because this
is a hike if you choose all the way to
go up some people who have done the hike
you might be pausing to take photos just
enjoying the scenery around you can take
from 1 to two hours I was at fukoka went
to fukoka station and then I took the
overnight bus to Kyoto station from
Kyoto station you are very very close to
Fushimi anari in fact going on the train
station it’s only going to take you five
minutes to get to Fushimi from the
station arrive there early I’m talking
about maybe 6:00 a.m. 7 a.m. I think I
arrived about 8:00 a.m. you want it to
be where there’s not a lot of people
because is such a popular tourist site
like those crowds can really mess up
y’all’s experience this is where you can
see the temple they have all of the red
Tory Gates and it’s so beautiful
experiencing that for the first time I
had seen pictures before there’s nothing
like standing in front of it it is kind
of hard when you’re trying to get your
photos and you’re traveling solo you
really don’t have anybody to take them
for you on that trip I really wasn’t
feeling like asking people I was kind of
groggy from the bus ride and I’m trying
to soak it all in I probably should have
taken better pictures I’m going to show
you what I have here and I don’t
remember going to the top for real for
real I think I wanted to go to
arashiyama too I went through a lot of
the gates I took the pictures there are
1,00 stairs you guys most Travelers are
saying if you take the time to go all
the way to the top you’re going to
notice that the crowds are going to
start dwindling and that is what you
want because you have more opportunities
for photos videos imagine going there
during cherry blossom season or when
it’s snowing Japan is so beautiful and
picturesque you come down from the top
of the mountain you’re going to see all
of these food stalls you can try and
taste the street food you’re going to
see people walking around in their
traditional Japanese clothing it is such
a delight I will never forget going to
Fushimi andari the next place is going
to be the arashiyama bamboo forest some
people say this is played out for me I
enjoyed it yes there were a lot of
people walking around but just seeing
the bamboo I like nature anyway so I
thought it was spectacular going at a
different time of the year to see the
Fall Foliage would make this even more
spectacular last activity you have to
try
onon this is a hot spring but we’re not
talking about Hot Springs like it was in
Iceland y’all remember my Iceland video
this is traditional Japanese Anan
experiencing that solo out in the forest
in the mountains with no clothes on come
on for the onon there are going to be
some rules and regulations that you have
to follow one if you’re tatted up
Japanese don’t really allow you to come
in with tattoos so either you’re going
to have to cover it with a bandage or
you can try to reserve ahead of time
your own private onson typically you’re
not going to be able to get in with just
tattoos and really just think of no no
phones no clothes that means no
swimsuits no underwear you can bring a
towel but that would just be on the edge
for you to lie your head back on some
people like to just lay it on their
foreheads me mine was tied up I didn’t
want that on me you never put your head
in this is not a swimming pool Anan is
not for swimming for me at that time I
had braids so you know I had to twist it
up I had it in a bandana I should have
had a cuter get up but I was like uhuh
this hair is not going in there even
before you go into the baths they’re
going to say that you have to wash your
body they have these little low stools
where you sit on and you shower you’re
going to use obviously soap and water
and they do recommend that you wash your
hair hone I had those fresh braids I was
not wetting it cuz you know when you wet
braids it starts to get a little fuzzy
frizzy while you are in the locker rooms
you know the steam rooms the saunas with
the showers you do have your robe on so
I had that on um but when it was time to
enter the baths you put all that up you
put all that stuff away in your locker
another difference with the onsong in
Japan than the hot springs in Iceland is
this is more supposed to be for
relaxation and meditation so it’s quiet
I do remember a lot I didn’t go to the
Blue Lagoon or Sky Lagoon but a lot of
those places you know it’s friendly
people are talking there’s lots of
chatter the Japanese tend to be more
quiet with all the different countries
I’ve experienced you’re not coming in
there with a speaker see you could have
loud music and turning up uhuh even now
how I’m talking I did yoga before this
video to remind me of the calmness when
you are going into that anant it is
absolutely amazing for you to just be in
that Stillness with the beautiful nature
backdrop there are certain Peaks on each
trip where I’m like I’m not going to
beat this moment this was the top moment
for me being at the onon and to this day
I’ve been to the Korean Spas I’ve been
to the hot springs in Iceland Japan
surpassed those you would have to be
comfortable being completely nude um
that can be awkward to some but really
nobody cares like nobody’s looking at
you like that for real these are
separated by gender so you don’t have to
worry about men or anybody being creepy
or anything like that and the women
they’re there of all ages yes they are
naturally curious you’re a foreigner you
know I was a black woman so you know
they’re looking at the curs you might
think that they are but not for real
they might be like oh your hair is so
interesting but mine was tied up so they
couldn’t even really see that in fact
when I was at the enson it was with I
think another lady she was from Europe
and you know Europe gets down what they
get down they don’t have no problem
being new once you get over that and you
go in those baths and enjoy it you
forget about all of your fears how long
it took you to get there it is so
relaxing with the water temperature can
be kind of hot so you don’t want to be
in there for too long okay you want to
get back out to where it’s cool go back
in and you kind of just go back and
forth when you are done at the Onan you
definitely want to hydrate the one that
I went to was cama and when I looked
online you guys I’m so sorry it said
that it has been temporarily closed I
hope that it will open in the future
because it was very easy for me to get
there so this one was located 30 minutes
north by the train you will take that
all the way to Kurama Kurama has a train
that takes you directly to Kurama Anan
and then there is a bus shuttle that is
free that takes you back and forth again
y’all it’s closed right now I don’t know
what’s going on over there but you can
look up other onson too A lot of them
offer access if you are staying at the
rokin 2o so that could be an option for
a day trip I just walked around in my RO
robe for the rest of the time no I
didn’t have no clothes on under it but I
was so relaxed when you come out of the
bass out of the onon you’re just like in
such a peaceful mindset I was like what
else is there to do here so I went in
they have the low tables where you can
sit and have a meal the Japanese they
just have this down packed they even put
the little cute origami on my plate with
my food wrapping it up you definitely
want to go to Fushimi anari you want to
go to arashi iama go see the bamboo
forest and relax after all of the
walking and activity that you’ve done
throughout the day by soaking in the
Onan I want to talk about how to get
around Japan Japan’s transportation is
very efficient and modern you guys you
want to try the bullet train known as
the shin Consin you can do this by
getting the Jr pass they offer three
types that you can get if you’re going
to be there for 7 Days 14 days or 21
days that’s going to be a little price I
never used the Jr pass unfortunately I
was not there long in Kyoto I might have
been there what a day and I turned
around and went back to fukoka because I
needed to get down to Saga now the only
thing with the Jr pass it does not
include Subways or bus transport all
right so this is only for the bullet
trains but it is a great way for you to
experience the MLV I think Japan has the
best bullet trains in the world sorry
China
y’all go head-to-head with the best and
the fastest but Japan started it first
they have a stunning safety record also
these trains can go up to 200 milph and
you’re going to be able to get from City
to City very quickly looking into the Jr
pass also the buses I told you that I
took the overnight bus to get to Kyoto
from fukoka um you can do this from the
fukoka station I know I’m confusing you
a little bit on their third floor that
is where you can get the bus tickets the
bus offers blankets which is a nice
touch it comes with your ticket and I
mean usually I’m so tired by the end of
the day I’m just going to sleep I do
remember the buses were kind of cold so
it’s nice that they have those blankets
for you I feel like everything in Japan
is luxury high-tech even the buses this
is not no Greyhound
situation another thing that I liked
about Japan was the etiquette for lining
up with the transport the Metro the bus
the train Like It Is So Posh and
reserved there’s no loud yelling running
there’s no cutting in line I know the
British they call it in the queue the
way that they queue up is really
impressive you guys I like to observe
you know how the locals are doing it I’m
like oh okay this is very classy I feel
like Japan is just so classy there’s a
lot that we as Americans can learn from
them once you get your ticket you go in
the line and you wait like it’s straight
line
you don’t cut in front of people I can
think of some stations in the US where
it’s just loud chaotic and that really
brings on it can bring on anxiety to
people it can make it more stressful I
think throughout Japan just moving
around the category is Zen it’s calm
it’s quiet I really enjoyed that in
Japan noticing the etiquette I remember
at the bus station there was some
confusion I didn’t really know where I
was supposed to go and I was asking the
guy at the ticket counter you know can
you help me he was like a young kid but
I was like he’s so nice with the balance
owing I kind of had to get used to that
too I think he had made a mistake or
something and he was so apologetic like
his face was flushed and he was bowing
so I bow back then he bowed again and
I’m like how long does this keep going
on I don’t know the customer service is
100% the way that they are trained to
make the customer feel good and happy
even going to the Starbucks I love Japan
it’s one of my top five countries period
in all of the East make sure that you
are reciprocating back to them I’m not
going to come to the counter being loud
yelling at them being a king they don’t
really respond to that well make sure
that your interactions are as positive
as possible say thank you and you kind
of just match their energy with the
Bowing I kind of didn’t know when to
stop y’all tell me in the comments
because he was bowing to apologize I’m
like no it’s okay so I don’t worry about
it so I bow back he’s bowing again like
it just kept on going I was like okay
bye and then I just walked off cuz I’m
awkward definitely want to try the
Nagasaki Shen conin if you can you can
extend your stay to more days if you are
going to be there a couple weeks in
Japan definitely get the Japan Rail Pass
and try out the buses or the Subways if
you’re doing that make sure that you are
following the Q etiquette let’s talk
about the Japanese currency the Japanese
Yen it is frowned upon to fold the money
there so when you get the bills they’re
going to be crisp and clean that’s a fun
fact for you they don’t have any rips or
tears in the bills you know the us we’ll
have these crumpled up dollar bills some
of them might smell and look all dingy
Japan again has outperformed us it’s not
a competition I’m just telling you that
their mddy is not folded and people
actually follow it they’re not crumling
it up in their pocket when you get
change back lastly the food Japanese
Cuisine you’re going to have a lot of
options as a vegetarian I wish I would
have explored this more from the sushi
the noodles the rice dishes they can be
pricey just the food in Japan so first
tip would be to stick to local Japanese
food if you’re going to go eat foreign
food it’s going to be expensive you guys
so I would say stick to Japanese food
they have what is known as Tes Shoku
these are set meals and they’re going to
be reasonably priced I would always ask
for the vegetarian T Shoku it’s going to
come usually obviously with a protein
but if I’m getting vegetables it would
just be vegetable
um you can get a drink if you want and
it’s on like a platter when I first got
the Shoku I was like where’s the rest of
the food it was brightly beautifully
colored but the portions are so small I
know in America we overeat in the US I
know I know but still I think that was a
carrot I’m like y’all just gave me one
dice of a carrot like you couldn’t dice
up the whole carrot sometimes these
places I think for vegetarians they just
skimp on the ingredients like if you
were going to give me fish or meat I
feel like this whole thing would have
more food in the Japanese restaurants
you are not going to tip okay it is
frowned upon to tip they kind of take it
as an insult that you did not appreciate
the meal or that you think that they’re
not being paid well just don’t tip green
tea is a popular drink there and I think
a lot of times it is free I do remember
them giving me green tea after I had
left the ensan and I went to sit down
for my meal you start out with green tea
green tea is calming too relaxing in ons
Sun you are able to be around nature
which is already naturally calming and
then you have your green tea there is
your spa experience if you want to try
fine dining instead of going there for
dinner where it’s going to be the most
expensive look to go during lunch you
still would experience the Ambiance of
the fancy restaurant and you would get a
cheaper meal when I was at the Onan and
Kama Anan the lady she gave me a menu
they had different types of vegetables
that I could get I ended up getting the
silk and tofu and it just the way that
she brought it out on the tray it had a
nice little piece of origami I used to
love folding origami seeing that on my
tray was nice I think I had the whole
place to myself not a lot of people were
there when I visited I’m still nude
under this
robe and you have to sit I guess it’s
good for your posture I’m not sure with
the low table and you dine and have your
tofu of course it had the little pieces
of Ginger with the green onion and the
soy sauce with the tofu it was cooked
well it was just tofu but I enjoyed it
one thing with the tesus if you want to
ask them for the daily special this is
the hiwari Tash hiwari tesu that can be
the daily special and then you can see
what they have to offer and maybe they
can make it vegan or make it veggie also
you can go if you’re at a one of their
big department stores go to the lower
floor the basement those usually have
food floors where you can eat besides
the typical Japanese sushi Ramen and
other noodle dishes you can try Indian I
did Note carala Restaurant that they had
in Kyoto where you can get Indian food I
love Indian food all around the world in
any country I will stop to eat at an
Indian restaurant try the lunch menu you
can get a fraction of the price at fancy
restaurants also you definitely want to
get the Tes Shoku set meals get the
veggie Tes Shoku and eat the local
Japanese food of course you know there’s
street food like I mentioned they had
that at arashiyama all the food stands
and stalls those are great too I do not
recall any negative experiences as a
black woman sometimes the elderly women
were looking at my hair the way that the
culture is they’re not necessarily going
to reach out and touch it like
China woo China is something else y’all
China’s coming up it is on the roster
we’ll see what I’m ready to do my China
videos Japan they are typically more
respectful and polite most of them do
not speak English as you might think you
are in Japan especially the further out
you get from the main cities so you want
to learn some typical Japanese phrases I
don’t know if I remember people taking
out their photos as much to film me
which was a relief but if you are at
these touristy sites you’re going to be
there with other tourists from around
the world anyway so that’s not going to
be much of a difference and then like in
the mall like I said with the guy who
was helping me with the bus ticket or
the girl at the Starbucks these are
younger people and they typically are
going to know English and they will be
friendly and talk to you anyways they
are a bit shy so that’s why I said you
can’t come loud and abrasive in their
faces because they might be a bit taken
aack a little embarrassed we don’t want
to do that we’re just trying to you know
exchange some conversation and culture
if you don’t speak Japanese I still
think it is fine I know a lot of you
sometimes get anxious and worried about
traveling solo Japan is one of the best
countries in the world it’s one of the
safest countries for solo female
Travelers so I definitely you think that
you should put this on your list if
there are any fears that you have you
know while you’re traveling I don’t know
those of you who are Christian you do
want to maybe say a small prayer before
you get on your flight while you are
packing while you are doing your
research it’s okay to feel nervous but
you want to let those thoughts pass
because you don’t want that to hold you
back from enjoying yourself while you
are on the trip traveling solo is not
for everyone that’s what I’m starting to
realize this is a solo Travel Channel
but there are families who watch my
content I’m grateful for you guys too
because all of us collectively are
trying to travel on a budget and I’m
going to do that every country for those
who are traveling with a little bit of
fear it is okay you don’t have to
document like I’m doing on YouTube every
country like I’m bearing it all out you
can just you know write down little
notes on a journal if you want to do
that some people really like to do it
through photos that’s why they have
their social media accounts and really
it’s up to you you have saved up for
this trip you’ve taken the time off you
might as well enjoy it if you did not
enjoy it that’s okay too I know a lot of
people are like well what if I didn’t
enjoy you know my first solo trip and I
just can’t do it I’d rather go with the
group that is okay I do think that at
least once you should try it try to
learn how to enjoy your own company to
me there’s nothing better thank you so
much for being here today I appreciate
you taking the time out to watch my
Japan video if you are interested in
More Travel go ahead and look at this
one
here so that you can get more
inspiration on where to go next thanks
again and I’m going see you next week