A Japan Rail Pass can pay off if you cover long distances in a short window, but with recent price rises it’s worth pricing individual tickets first. Reserve seats on busy routes, and use local trains and subways within each city.
A simple first route
Tokyo, then Kyoto for temples and Nara as a day trip, then Osaka for food, all on the same shinkansen line, so bags and timings stay easy.
Is the rail pass worth it?
It depends on mileage. A Tokyo–Kyoto–Hiroshima loop can justify a 7-day pass; a Tokyo–Kyoto–Osaka trip alone often works out cheaper on point-to-point tickets since the 2023 price increase.