Japan from India: cost, days, visa and when to go

What does a 10-day Japan trip cost from India for a couple and for a family of four?

A private 10-day Japan trip from India costs about ₹9.2 lakh to ₹18 lakh or more for two, land only, and about ₹16 lakh to ₹60 lakh or more for a family of four. That covers nine nights in five-star hotels in Tokyo and Kyoto, one ryokan night with a kaiseki dinner, Green Car rail and private guiding on the days that need it. Business-class flights add roughly ₹2.5 lakh to ₹4 lakh per person.

• Cherry blossom and autumn-leaf weeks add 30 to 40 percent and sell out six to nine months ahead.
• Most families of four land between ₹16 lakh and ₹38 lakh; the higher figure is for Aman-level hotels and a private chef.
• International flights are quoted separately, at cost.

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How many days are enough for a first trip to Japan from India?

Nine to ten nights is enough for a first Japan trip: four nights in Tokyo, one in a Hakone or Kawaguchiko ryokan, three in Kyoto and one or two in Osaka or Kanazawa. With only seven nights, keep Tokyo and Kyoto and drop the rest instead of shortening every stop. Twelve to fourteen nights adds Hiroshima and Miyajima, the Japan Alps or Hokkaido without rushing.

• Tokyo to Kyoto takes a little over two hours by Shinkansen, so one rail day links the two halves.
• Send suitcases ahead by luggage forwarding and travel with a day bag.

Is Japan visa free for Indians, and how does the Japan eVisa work?

Japan is not visa free for Indian passport holders: a visa is needed before travel, and for tourism it is an eVisa. Residents of India apply through a VFS Global Japan Visa Application Centre and receive a single-entry visa, issued in electronic form, for a stay of up to 90 days. Check the current visa fee and VFS service charge when you book the appointment. Allow about ten working days and apply four weeks ahead.

• At the airport you show the visa issuance notice live on your phone; a screenshot, PDF or printout is not accepted.
• Apply earlier for cherry blossom and autumn travel, when the centres are busiest.
• There is no visa on arrival in Japan for Indian passport holders.

Source: Embassy of Japan in India: the JAPAN eVISA system

What is the best time to visit Japan from India: spring or autumn?

Autumn is the easier choice and spring the more famous one. Cherry blossom peaks for about ten days between late March and early April, with the highest rates of the year and rooms sold six to nine months ahead. Autumn colour lasts longer, from mid-November to early December in Kyoto and Tokyo, under drier skies and with better ryokan availability. May and October are the calm months in between.

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Is Japan worth visiting in December and January, and where do we go for snow?

Yes. December and January bring cold, dry, clear days to Tokyo and Kyoto, often between about 2 and 12 degrees in Tokyo, with fewer visitors than spring. For snow, go north or up: Hokkaido for Niseko's powder and Sapporo, the Japan Alps for Shirakawa-go and Takayama, or Nagano for the snow monkeys and Hakuba. The ski season runs from December to March and is at its best in January and February.

• Many museums, markets and restaurants close from about 29 December to 3 January, so plan those days around hotels and shrines.
• Niseko suits first-time skiers, with English-speaking ski schools and ski-in hotels.
• Christmas and New Year weeks in Niseko sell out six to nine months ahead.
• Mount Fuji is at its clearest on winter mornings.

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Which ryokans in Japan have a private onsen, and how are they priced?

Hakone Ginyu, where every room has a private open-air bath, Gora Kadan in Hakone, Gora Kadan Fuji near Lake Kawaguchi and Zaborin in Niseko, where each of the 15 villas has its own indoor and outdoor onsen, are the reference choices. Rates are set per person, include a kaiseki dinner and breakfast, and sit among the highest in Japan, so check the current rate with each ryokan. One or two nights is the right amount.

• Gora Kadan has suites with their own baths and a private bath that can be reserved; ask which rooms have one.
• A private bath avoids the tattoo rules and shared bathing that make public onsen awkward for families.
• Kaiseki is built on fish stock, so vegetarian and Jain menus must be requested in writing when booking.
• Kyoto charges an accommodation tax of ¥10,000 (about ₹5,900) per person per night where the room costs ¥100,000 or more per person.

Source: Zaborin: the ryokanSource: Kyoto City Tourism Association: accommodation tax from 1 March 2026

Tokyo or Osaka: which is the better base for a first trip to Japan?

Tokyo is the better base for a first trip, and Kyoto, not Osaka, is the better base for the Kansai half. Give Tokyo four or five nights for the city, Hakone, Nikko and Mount Fuji. Osaka is about 15 minutes from Kyoto by Shinkansen, so stay in Kyoto for quiet mornings at the temples and visit Osaka for an evening of food, or for one night before flying home.

• Air India starts nonstop Delhi to Osaka (Kansai) flights on 2 February 2027, four times a week.
• That allows an open-jaw ticket: arrive in Tokyo and leave from Osaka, with no journey back across the country.
• Choose Osaka as a base only for Universal Studios Japan or a food-led trip.

Source: Air India newsroom: nonstop Delhi to Osaka from February 2027

Is Hokkaido or Okinawa worth adding to a Japan trip?

Hokkaido is worth adding in winter or on a second trip; Okinawa rarely is on a first. Each needs a domestic flight from Tokyo and three or four nights, so on a 10-day first trip either one costs you Kyoto. Add Hokkaido from December to March for powder snow at Niseko, or in July for the lavender fields of Furano. Okinawa is Japan's beach chapter, best from April to October.

• Sapporo's Snow Festival is held in early February; confirm the dates before booking.
• Typhoon risk in Okinawa is highest in August and September.
• Travellers from India have closer beaches, so Okinawa suits trips of 14 nights or more.

What should we know before a first trip to Japan in 2026 and 2027?

Three rules changed in 2026. Japan's departure tax rose to ¥3,000 (about ₹1,770) per person for departures from 1 July 2026, collected with the air fare. Kyoto's accommodation tax rose on 1 March 2026 to as much as ¥10,000 per person per night. Tax-free shopping changed on 1 November 2026: you pay the full price in the shop and the consumption tax is refunded after Customs confirms at departure that the goods are leaving Japan.

• Some tickets bought before 1 July 2026 still carry the old ¥1,000 departure tax.
• Keep tax-free purchases with you until Customs has checked them at departure.
• Book ryokans and dinner counters weeks ahead; the best do not take walk-ins.
• Carry some cash and a rechargeable IC card for trains and small shops.

Source: National Tax Agency of Japan: international tourist tax (Japanese)Source: Japan National Tourism Organization: Japan's Tax Exemption

Is vegetarian and Jain food easy to find in Japan?

Vegetarian and Jain food in Japan is workable with planning, not by chance. Most broths, sauces and even vegetable dishes use dashi, a fish stock, so a dish that looks vegetarian often is not. The reliable answers are shojin ryori, the Buddhist temple cuisine of Kyoto, Indian restaurants in Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka, and hotel kitchens briefed in writing two to three weeks before arrival.

• Jain needs, with no onion, garlic or root vegetables, must be spelled out dish by dish.
• Ryokans can prepare a vegetarian kaiseki only with notice at the time of booking, and some cannot.
• Carry a printed card in Japanese that says no meat, fish, dashi or egg.

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