Kyoto.. oui, c'est ne pas la France, mais...

Flights from west coast

What is 'the west coast'?

Indeed, pretty broad questions there.

Before you get too deep in the planning, I assume you aware that Japan is still completely closed to independent foreign travelers, and may remain so for some time, no? They've only just recently (a few days ago) begun to open up, but only to organized, escorted tours (with non-trivial restrictions -- masking, COVID insurance required, and more). It's nothing like the current situation in Europe and most other places where you are pretty much free to go where you want.

It's quite possible that "next year" Japan may be open for anyone to just go about as they please, but it's not right now, and it's anybody's guess when they actually will be. I hope they relax the restrictions soon, but there's no guarantee they will. Don't book anything that's not 100% refundable.

We visited Japan in 2015 for a week prior to a cruise from Tokyo to Hong Kong.

We did a great tour of Kyoto and Nara from Tokyo for three days that involved taking the high speed train to Kyoto. We stayed in a hotel across the street from the rail station.
The tour included guided tours of Nara with it temples and tame deer park the first day and the second day six sites of Kyoto. The third day we were on our own and did several more sites.

I suggest that you research the sites (most are temples) to determine what you wish to see. If you stayed 4-5 days you could do them all, but you can see a lot in 3 days.

We loved Japan, because the people were very friendly and helpful. Also, it was the cleanest country we have visited, even more than Switzerland. The people don't dress grungy like elsewhere. Japanese dining was an unexpected pleasure.

Pick up guidebooks from Fodors and Frommers and have fun planning your trip. Or take a tour. There's no more or less information for planning a Japanese trip than for anywhere else. The one wrinkle is the language, you should try to memorize a word or phrase or two but forget about reading signs and comprehending conversation. Then again, Japan has been highly touristed for a very long time and wherever a tourist is likely to go, signs will be in Japanese and English. Start watching travel videos and notice the signage in the train stations and on the Shinkansen.

If you travel only between Osaka and Kyoto it will not pay off, but for multiple day travel by train a Japan Rail Pass can be a really good bargain. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japan_Rail_Pass

If you only stay in the Kansai region between Osaka, Kyoto, Nara..., the Kansai Thru Pass can be good value. Covers all private railways (more extensive than JR in that region), and also city buses and subways. Does not cover the direct train from Kyoto to Kansai airport, but that can be paid for separately.

What time of year were you planning to go? Kyoto is usually very busy but if you want to go during cherry blossom time you need to book months in advance.

Assuming that Japan will be fully open by then.

Japan is a very safe country. Crime is very low so you don't have to worry too much about that. It is, however, to learn about everyday customs so you don't stick out. Things we take for granted in every day life may be discouraged in Japan.

I stayed at the hotel inside the main rail station. Very nice hotel and perfectly located to get just about anywhere. There are literally dozens of shops and restaurants inside the rail station and especially under it.

You will find more choices of flights to and from Tokyo than Osaka and from there it's just a short bullet train ride to Kyoto. If you've never been to Japan, I would suggest a few days in Tokyo. When I visited, I flew into Tokyo and out of Osaka. I also visited a few other place in between.

Unfortunately, my return trip in 2020 had to be cancelled and I'm waiting for the country to open so I can return.