So 3 of us will be visiting the big 3 (Tokyo, Osaka, and Kyoto) during cherry blossom season, around the end of March until the end of April 2020. Before I post the first draft of our itinerary, I wanted to get some input on several of these questions.

• How hard is it to get 3 Ghibli Museum tickets if we're flexible for around 8 days? I've read some horror stories on here while researching but I wonder how it is if we're flexible with dates.

• What does "tax in" mean? Does that just mean that the tax is included in the price? Searching for this on Google is painful as most of the keywords end up boiling down to "tax in Japan".

• Is Pontocho in Kyoto really worth going to at night? We'll be staying in Osaka and I'm not sure if our group wants to stay out for over 12 hours (we'll probably be in Kyoto at 7:30am most days). So if it's worth it we'll probably end up going back to Osaka in the afternoon and coming back at night.

• Are there any ways to get to Adashino Nenbutsuji Temple that don't take 30 minutes? The research I've done says that it'll be around 40 minutes walking or by bus but I'm not completely sure.

• Would you recommend the bamboo grove near Adashino Nenbutsuji Temple over the Arashiyama bamboo grove? I've also heard some horror stories about Arashiyama that if you don't get there at the break of dawn then it becomes a true hellscape of tourists.

• In the same vein, are there any alternative options for bamboo groves in Kyoto besides the mentioned two?

• Can I get some opinions on Chidorigafuchi Park during cherry blossom season? I'm contemplating this one because we're already hitting a bunch of parks/areas for cherry blossoms - Inokashira Onshi Park, Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden, Ueno Park, Nakameguro, and potentially Yasukuni Shrine - and that's just in Tokyo.

• Any recommendations for anime/manga fans that aren't super interested in buying most merch (blu-rays, manga, figurines, etc.)? The last time I went to Japan was when I realized that since I'm not fluent in Japanese and aren't really interested in figurines, a lot of the stores aren't very exciting besides just looking at everything. The Ghibli Museum is a perfect example of what I'm looking for, but it doesn't necessarily have to be a museum or something. I'm just looking for a cool experience that anime/manga fans can appreciate.

• Are there any cool Marvel stores/places? We're all big Marvel fans and while we don't expect anything crazy while we're in Japan, it'll be a nice surprise to stop at a cool Marvel related place.

• Any fighting game fan recommendations that aren't arcades? One of us plays a lot of fighting games, especially Guilty Gear. So far what I've found is a Capcom VR place in Ikebukuro and a Capcom cafe.