The plan?

The plan is to arrive in Tokyo - stay a couple of nights then move to the Mt Fuji area (Kawaguchiko).

From there we travel to Matsumoto and Kurashiki, then onwards to Ena for the start of a 6-day walk: the ancient Nakasendō Trail via shukuba post towns that once provided accommodation for weary travellers back in the 7th century. 

Then back to Tokyo for a couple of nights before heading off to the Nikkō National Park to the north for a few days: Nikkō is famous for its shrines and temples, forests and waterfalls.

Next on our itinerary are Kanazawa and Kurobe before returning to Tokyo for another couple of nights. From here we start a 11-day tour doing all the main tourist stuff, And back to ... Tokyo: to return home.

Hopefully by 'dipping' in and out of Tokyo, this will give us a 'taster' of the place given it is likely (at least for me) to be incredibly overwhelming with its population of over 14 million.