How Much Do You Walk in Japan? Our Real Step Counts From 14 Days With a 5-Year-Old
Everyone told us we'd walk a lot in Japan. They weren't kidding. We tracked our steps every day of our trip through Tokyo, Hakone, Kyoto, Hiroshima, Miyajima, Nara, and Osaka.
Here's exactly how much we walked, day by day, why Japan adds up so fast, and what helped our 5-year-old keep up.
Traveled: Late May / Early June 2026
This post contains affiliate links. If you buy through them, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.
The quick answer: Yes, Japan is a lot of walking. We walked 237,543 steps in 13 days, an average of about 18,300 steps a day. Five days topped 20,000 steps, and our biggest day hit 23,676. That's somewhere around 100 to 120 miles, depending on stride.
Our Day-by-Day Step Counts
These are adult steps from Mom’s Garmin watch, starting with our first full day.
May 25 (Tokyo): 22,490
May 26 (Tokyo): 21,166
May 27 (Tokyo): 18,419
May 28 (Tokyo to Hakone): 12,546
May 29 (Hakone to Kyoto): 11,394
May 30 (Kyoto): 18,792
May 31 (Kyoto): 23,348
June 1 (Kyoto to Hiroshima and Miyajima): 19,906
June 2 (Miyajima to Osaka): 11,988
June 3 (Osaka): 23,676
June 4 (Nara day trip from Osaka): 20,078
June 5 (Osaka to Tokyo): 18,595
June 6 (Tokyo, flying home): 15,145
Total: 237,543 steps in 13 days.
Our biggest day: 23,676 steps in Osaka.
Our Biggest and Lightest Days
Our three biggest days were all full sightseeing days, with no hotel change:
June 3 in Osaka: 23,676 steps. Our first full day in Osaka, exploring retro Shinsekai and then Dotonbori's canal, lights, and food scene into the evening.
May 31 in Kyoto: 23,348 steps. Fushimi Inari's thousands of torii gates in the morning, then downtown Kyoto and Nishiki Market in the afternoon.
May 25 in Tokyo: 22,490 steps. Our very first full day: Asakusa, plus the sumo show.
Those torii gates at Fushimi Inari climb up a mountain, so that Kyoto day was as much stairs as steps.
Our lightest days were the travel days, when we spent more time sitting on trains: 11,394 steps the day we got to Kyoto, 11,988 the day we got to Osaka, and 12,546 the day we went to Hakone.
And Those Are Adult Steps
Every number in this post is from an adult’s watch. Jackson's little legs had to take a lot more steps to cover the same ground. We don't know his exact count, but our best guess is close to double. He was a champ.
Quick naps on the train between destinations helped him keep going.
Why You Walk So Much in Japan
Train stations are huge. Big stations have long transfers, multiple levels, and lots of stairs. Just getting from one train line to another can take a while.
The train gets you close, not to the door. Most sights are still a walk from the nearest station.
Temples and shrines are big. Many have large grounds, long paths, and plenty of steps to climb.
Walking is the best part. Some of our favorite moments were just wandering neighborhoods, shopping streets, and markets.
How We Made All That Walking Work With a 5-Year-Old
We forwarded our luggage. Sending our bags ahead meant we weren't dragging suitcases through stations on top of everything else.
Read More: Luggage Forwarding in Japan With Kids: How We Sent Our Bags Between Cities
We started early. Mornings were cooler and less crowded, so we walked the most before everyone got tired.
We built in breaks. A rest at the hotel before dinner, a snack stop, or a sit-down treat made a big difference on long days.
We packed snacks. Convenience stores were everywhere, so a quick snack was never far away.
We each brought two pairs of comfortable shoes. With this much walking, and a few drizzly days, a dry second pair was a lifesaver.
We skipped the stroller. We didn't bring one, and when we rented one from one of our hotels for a bit, it was more hassle than help with all the stairs, crowds, and train stations. We returned it and just carried Jackson now and then when his legs were done.
Read More: What We Packed for Japan (Family of 3, 14 Days, Carry-On Only)
Tips for Planning Your Own Japan Walking Days
Expect 15,000 to 20,000 steps on sightseeing days, and plan fewer stops if your kids are younger or tire easily.
Use travel days as rest days. Ours were naturally lighter, so we didn't pack them full.
Group sights by area. Fewer train transfers means less walking through stations.
Break in your shoes before you go. Japan is not the place to wear brand-new shoes for the first time.
Was It Too Much Walking?
It was a lot, but it was part of the fun, and we saw so much more on foot. With the right shoes, early starts, and breaks built in, our 5-year-old handled it better than we expected. We were so excited to be in Japan that we didn’t even notice how much we were walking! Plus, it helped us sleep soundly, even in some of the smaller Japan hotel beds LOL.
Read More: Is Japan Good for Families? What We Actually Thought of Our Trip
