I went to Japan for around 24 days, basically through entire August 2019. This was my 2nd trip, so it's missing some classic spots like the Tokyo Skytree and all sorts of temples. I absolutely loved it. The costs came out to be around $4500 for the entire trip, including the flights ($700), accommodation ($1300), and spending money ($2500).
Day 0
Landed in Narita in the evening, took a train to #Akihabara, where I had a capsule hotel booked. Ate some gyukatsu (¥2000) and enjoyed the sights in central Akihabara before going to the hotel to sleep.
Day 1
Planned to eat some good food that day, went to Michelin-starred Tsuta (near Sugamo, they moved to Yoyogi Uehara near the end of 2019) and got a ticket to come back later, I was there around 8:30 AM. My ticket was for 11 AM, so I decided to see what's around that area, had some time to kill.
I saw Rikugien Gardens on Google Maps and it seemed interesting, so I went there. I got there just before 9 AM, which was the opening time, there were only two other people with me ready at the entrance and it was beautiful, very peaceful and quiet, even though it's right in the middle of a city. After that I went back to Tsuta to get the noodles (¥2500). I ordered them with truffles, it wasn't really a standout meal compared to other ramen/soba places I ate at in Japan so I wouldn't really recommend going out of the way for it, but maybe it was the truffles that affected it negatively.
My next planned stop was Narikura in Takadanobaba. They serve amazing tonkatsu, I had the snow pork (¥2000) and it was the most tender piece of meat I've ever had, I would recommend it wholeheartedly. They also had a ticket system, but I did not have to wait as long, only around 30 minutes from getting a ticket to sitting down.
Day 2
Tsukiji fish market - great fish, worth a sight and taste for sure, there are a lot of small stalls with various types of seafood.
TeamLab exhibitions - Planets(¥2500) and Borderless(¥3200), they were both amazing experiences, one does not replace the other, they were incredible.
Day 3
Ghibli museum(¥3100) - Was fun to walk around and see the process for creating some of the amazing Ghibli movies. The museum itself feels like it's straight out of a Ghibli movie. The only negative (for some, myself included) is that there are a lot of children, but that's to be expected in a place like that.
Nakano Broadway - Some pretty interesting stores, also had a great bowl of ramen at Aoba Nakano Honten(¥700). I found that restaurant using Tabelog, it was close to Nakano Broadway and it also had some really high ratings, it did not disappoint!
Day 4
DisneySea(¥7400) - Great theme park, definitely use the fast pass system if you go. I'm not a huge Disney fan but the rides and atmosphere were super fun!
Day 5
Shinjuku - Had some gram pancakes(¥1500) in the morning, they were really fluffy and tasty. Then I headed to Shinjuku Gyoen Garden, it was beautiful, the only problem was that it was in August, so the sun was quite intense. Despite that though it was still quite relaxing walking around and enjoying the nature.
In the evening I went to Luke's Lobster to get a lobster roll(¥1500), it was not very good. After that I headed to Golden Gai to get some drinks. While walking around I found a group of some American guys, so I struck up a conversation and joined them for some barhopping, was quite fun. After that I got some gyudon and headed to a train station to get back to my hotel.
Day 15
Came back to Tokyo from Osaka, this time around stayed in Shibuya. I went shopping and got some conveyor bely sushi pretty much every night in Shibuya.
Day 16
More shopping and walking around Shibuya.
Day 18
Came back to Tokyo from Kusatsu, had some blue ramen(¥900) at Kipposhi Shibuya, it was actually pretty nice. Spent the evening at the Starbucks overlooking the Shibuya Crossing.
Day 19
Shopping and playing at arcades in Akihabara.
Day 20
Day 1 of the Koenji Awa Odori festival - a lot of traditional dancing and music, very fun to experience.
Day 21
Day 2 of the Koenji Awa Odori festival - this time I got there earlier, so I could get a better spot in the front of the crowd.
Day 22
Gift shopping for family and friends, also got some amazing tsukemen(¥1200) at Menya Musashi Bujin in Akihabara, I wholeheartedly recommend that place, it's delicious.
Day 23
Final day, wrapping things up and getting ready to fly out.
Loved reading about this trip and your pics are mostly making me hungry and jealous! :)