Trip to Japan

Kiwi on 21/11/2014 - 15:38
Last edited 21/11/2014 - 15:59

So, the story has it, that I booked two return trips to Japan yesterday as part of the Jetstar 2 for 1 sale, and now we are having a month over there in may.

I have been to Hiroshima before, but nowhere else.

I am thinking of getting a 21 day JR rail pass (~$600) and then doing a trip around the country, would that be recommended? I'm not too fussed by cost, as I love the Shinkansen, and the buses seem pretty dodgy anyway, and having the freedom to use mos tof the JR services appeals, without having to consider the cost of individual trips.

So, what is there to do in Tokyo for a week? What towns, serviced by JR rail, would you recommend? Cheap places to eat?

I'm planning on using AirBNB for places to stay ,so will save a few $$ that way, but any cheap hotel chains that are alright?

Cheers.

General Discussion Japan

Comments

  • A3Australia on 23/11/2014 - 15:34

    Here ya go….

    www.airbnb.co.nz/rooms/4344252

    • Kiwi on 23/11/2014 - 15:46

      Cheers mate, thanks, will add it to my list.

  • moocher on 24/11/2014 - 16:25

    I am thinking of getting a 21 day JR rail pass (~$600) and then doing a trip around the country, would that be recommended?

    The JR pass is generally one of those must-get things before you leave for Japan, but the duration of the pass depends on how much time you are spending in each city. As Japan rail is not the only rail company in Japan, sometimes travel within a city itself is more convenient (and cheaper) with a non JR subway pass (e.g. in Kyoto).

    The JR pass is not cheap, so it's probably better to have an itinerary in mind. What we usually do is structure our trip so that most of the long distance travel is crammed into part of the duration of the entire trip so that we only get the JR pass to cover that part of the trip, and then for the rest of it, we'd get local passes depending on where we are.

    Hope that makes sense.

    Edit: The JR pass days are continuous, hence the cramming….

  • moocher on 24/11/2014 - 16:31

    As for places to go, it really depends on what you're into. Our preference is for nature, gardens, good food, and for those I'd recommend Osaka, Kyoto, Takayama, Kanazawa, Kamikochi. I found this site gave me all the information I needed to plan all my trips.

    And hyperdia is indispensable in figuring out all the ticket prices, timetables, down to the platform number for each leg of the train journey.

  • Kiwi on 24/11/2014 - 18:55

    Thanks moocher, I have been looking into that stuff, just wanted other opinions. I want this trip to be more about seeing as much as we can, kind of getting a feel for what it's like to go from place to place alot, so maybe 2 - 3 days in each city (And a week in Tokyo to start). 2 - 3 days would obviously have train time factored into it, but including more cities means less train time between cities.

    I do plan to go back after this trip, one day, and would like to have an idea of places I'd want to really focus a trip on, hence the plan to travel around a bit.

    For example, Over roughly a month, this is (Not exactly, but this kind of idea) what I'm thinking:

    Tokyo -> Niigata -> Sendai -> Nagoya -> Kyoto -> Osaka -> Hiroshima -> Nagasaki -> Tokyo

    I really just picked the places off the map, some I am going to goto, some I'm not sure, but that's the kind of direction I'm thinking. Obviously Kyoto and Osaka aren't far apart, so that could even just be tied into one, over 4 or 5 days. I'm not sure if I'm trying to jam too much into the trip or not, but I spent one day in Hiroshima a few years ago, and that was enough time to see 3 or 4 sites, so 3 days should be plenty to see what we want to see there.

    • moocher on 24/11/2014 - 19:24

      I haven't actually been to that many cities myself as we have been travelling between Tokyo (furthest north) and Himeji (furthest south). Brief comments on the cities from your list that I have been to:

      • Tokyo - Big city, fast paced, fun, but also overwhelming! Fish market is a must. Recommend that you stay around Shinjuku, but away from the red light district. I would probably allocate 4-5 days but that is a personal preference. If this is your departure point, leave a day or two to do your final shopping, you don't want to carry that all around Japan…
      • Osaka - Also big, great street food, more centralised than Tokyo especially if you stay around the Namba area. I prefer Osaka to Tokyo as food is good and cheap, and shopping is still great. 3 days should be ok, unless you plan to make it your base for Kyoto and other day trips. Accomodation in Osaka is generally cheaper than Kyoto.
      • Kyoto - You can make day trips to Kyoto very easily from Osaka if you have your JR pass during this time. From memory it is about 20 mins on the shinkansen. Once you get there, you'll need some other form of transport as the JR trains don't go to many places in Kyoto. Be warned that the buses in Kyoto can get quite full, I find the subway much easier, but for some tourist destinations, the buses are more direct. If you like temples and gardens, allocate 3 days.

      If you plan to be in Osaka, there are a few places you can get to quite easily from there.

      • Day trip to Himeji is less than an hour from memory on shinkansen. There's a cool castle there and a very beautiful garden called Ko-koen next to it.
      • Nara - famous for temples and also free-roaming deers all over the place. Be prepared to be head butted/attacked when they want your food. You'll need to take a non JR train line.

      The Kansai Thru pass is an alternative to JR in the Kansai area. Again it depends on what you want to do.

      • Kiwi on 24/11/2014 - 19:27

        Awesome, thank you! I'll bookmark this page now.

        • moocher on 24/11/2014 - 19:35

          No worries. I forgot to mention that for the JR pass, not all JR train stations can process the exchange order that you purchase overseas, only the major JR train stations (airports generally process them too). You will need to fill in a form, where you specify the start date of the pass. You can future-date this pass, but the days need to be consecutive.

          Say, for example, if you are planning to start your trip with 5 days in Tokyo, you don't want to waste 5 days of your JR pass to cover Tokyo. You can future date your JR pass to the day when you leave Tokyo.

  • jenkingston08 on 12/11/2018 - 16:58

    I would recommend going to Hakone, Osaka, Kyoto and Hiroshima. You can use the rail pass for all of these places. There are tons of cheap hostels where you can get your own room. But I do think that there are nice airbnbs. I think that the APA Hotel chain is also known to be pretty cheap as well. Here you go

    https://www.apahotel.com/c/brand/ja_en/index.html

    For a Kyoto Itinerary you could read the following

    https://www.genkimobile.com/blog/one/

    And then for the Hiroshima itinerary you can read the following

    http://www.hellokalina.com/single-post/2018/02/25/A-DAY-IN-H…

    I would try to spend about 3 days in Tokyo and then three days in Kyoto and one day in Hiroshima. If you have time for Osaka or you feel like you are interested in spending time there then that would be great to as it is located close to Kyoto.

  • Senior Mouse on 12/11/2018 - 20:32
    +1

    Shaw probably had a good time 4 years ago (at least I hope he did!) Very hospital place to visit.

    • draf on 12/11/2018 - 21:40

      I'm sure the hospital is very hospitable

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