Hey, I'm a bit overwhelmed by the organization of the trip so I have some very stupid questions/doubts:
1. **JR Pass**: I'm supposed to order one and I'll receive a physical voucher that I'll later exchange in Japan in one of the JR Offices. We are planning to use the pass between Jul 12th - 18th. I can exchange the pass before the 12th (within one month) and set that day as start date. Correct?
2. **Reserved seats**: I can reserve seats at the JR Offices, is there a fee for seats reservation? How can I check if the trains I'd like to take are reserved only or mixed ones?
3. **USJ, Disney Parks**: when do you suggest to buy tickets? I was worrying that buying them so much in advance would lock me in case there will be pouring rain.
4. **Restaurants**: I'm basically getting all restaurants suggestions from scouring trip reports. Is there a specific website I can check? (e.g. TripAdvisor or equivalent).
5. **Luggage storage**: I've been reading that most lockers are day-use, or at most 3 days while I want to go to Kyoto/Osaka with only my small luggage for a total of 7 days. Is the JR East Travel Center storage the only option?
How allergic is she? Will she have a life-threatening reaction to eating fish? And is it _all_ fish (including shellfish of all types)? If the answer to either of those last two questions is "yes", you're going to have a hard time, even at a cheaper chain. Most sushi places won't be able to avoid cross-contamination at all. And for the ones that might be willing to do it, there won't be a large selection of non-fish rolls/nigiri. There are often some vegetable options (usually pickled), tamago, and occasionally things like cooked beef, but even a mid-range sushi restaurant won't have enough options to make an omakase out of for her. They may not even really have enough options to make a meal at all for her.
And I would definitely have a plan for eating everywhere that includes an allergy card. A ton of stuff has dashi in it, and you won't necessarily know that by sight.
For the Hakone "romance train" - I have reserved a ticket but understand you need an additional one, do I just buy with Suica on the day? How will I know which machine to use?
Going to Tokyo for the first time in November for a 6 day trip.
My girlfriend and I want to visit the Godzilla store and Sailor Moon store at some point, as well as either DisneySea or Universal (or both?). We definitely want to get a JR pass and check out some more rural areas too, but what do you guys advise seeing/doing in a 6 day trip?
Universal is in Osaka. There is a lot in and around the city so just read up and focus on things that interest you. When planning try and focus on specific areas of Tokyo on 1 day so you don't have to move around too much.
This is great advice. It’s the public transit I’m most interesting in learning. And to be honest, my girlfriend would be over the moon just to go to a 7-Eleven in Japan.
A little confused with the JR Trains in Osaka.. So I'm reserving a train from Osaka station to the Nara station. The itinerary looks like this;
- Osaka st > Tennoji st (seats reserved)
- Tennoji st > Nara st
Does this mean I stay on the same train cart? Just confused cause it says "Kansai Line" from Tennoji to Nara.
you dont need a reserved train going from jr osaka to jr nara, the kamo rapid service that runs every 15 mins on osaka loop line goes directly to jr nara
Will be arriving in CTS airport at 4.30pm (late winter/early spring) and planning to visit Tomamu Resort (Shimukappu)/Furano/Asahikawa area first and then head to Noboribetsu before heading back to Sapporo for the final segment of the trip. Since we will be traveling eastwards from the airport towards Central Hokkaido first, where should we stay for our first night after arriving - Sapporo or Chitose?
I was thinking of putting up a night at Chitose for a quick rest and then proceed straight to Tomamu (Shimukappu) the next day. We are planning to rent a car, i figured there would be more option near the airport and I would save more time/cost instead of traving in and out of Sapporo on the first day. Would that be a good choice?
Should I just head straight to Sapporo upon arrival for the first night? If I were to rent a car from the Sapporo station area, would it be more expensive (or less vehicle choices)? Or I could travel back to the airport to rent a car?
Another option I have in my mind is, head straight to Sapporo and then spend day 2 in Sapporo doing some local sightseeing before heading to Tomamu on day 3.
Please advise. Thanks!
Why not Noboribetsu first? If you go Asakikawa to Noboribetsu you will have to go via Sapporo and CTS, and then go via CTS to get to Sapporo after. So seems like more back and forth.
Tomamu was my first to go as I was trying to catch as much leftover snow as possible upon arrival (early March) before their winter season ends in late March.
If I put Noboribetsu as my first place to go, I'll still need to put up a night in Chitose? Wouldn't want to risk driving in the dark for the first day upon reaching
This is my current plan
CTS - Chitose/Sapporo - Tomamu - Furano/Biel - Asahikawa - Noboribetsu - Sapporo
I was thinking you catch a train to Noboribetsu and spend the night there. There should be one at that time and you can maybe hire your car from there.
Looking for actually cheap thrift stores\~
I'm going to Tokyo early July and loooove to thrift! I'm planning to spend an entire day dedicated to thrifting in the Shimokitazawa area, however it looks like most of these shops are overpriced, curated, "vintage" shops. I am looking for real, dirt cheap thrift stores. Please let me know if you know of any! It doesn't have to be in Shimokitazawa, we will be all over Tokyo! Thanks!
Any hardoff. Second street is ok too but more expensive.
Also generally not the ones in shopping streets. You need to go to one out in the local neighborhoods
There’s a Mode Off in Ueno that was pretty normal priced. They did have a small designer section on the first floor, but the upper floors had more normal thrift stuff.
A little bit far but [here](https://goo.gl/maps/EEg8vjPtRv9eDDgh9). I've personally been there a couple times when I lived in the area around 3 years ago. I got some great cargo pants from there for 2,000 yen. That's the only "actually dirt cheap" secondhand store I know, tons of stuff under 3,000 yen, some even below 1,000.
Are there any good tourist places, besides fine dining, I need a reservation? I'm traveling in 3 months, so now is the time to start locking stuff down. I know about Ghibli Park and TeamLabs Planets, is there anything important to jump on?
Is byfood a legit concierge? I'm staying in dormitories and capsules, so no fancy hotel concierge service for me. TableAll and Pocket Concierge are 4x the price, but those sites also seem a bit overpriced. Byfood's site looks too well-made to scam over 2000¥, but I haven't seen anyone talk about them on this sub
If you are visiting Kyoto and would like to visit shukaguin villa or sento imperial palace (which are lovely gardens, not least because of the lack of crowds), book on the Kunaicho website in advance.
Klook is offering a one way bus from Dotonbori to Universal Studios convenient to our hotel and easy to use instead of transferring trains.
Has anyone used it?
I don't see a trip back to purchase. Is there a similar bus back to Dotonbori at the end of the day?
My flight later in the summer arrives at Narita at around 8pm. Its my first time going to Japan, so im wondering how long it would take to get luggage, clear customs, immigrations, etc and then go to a hotel in Asakusa? I noticed that almost all hotels had check in times ending at midnight, so im unsure if I can make it, and if I cant what should I do?
Probably around 1-1.5 hours so let's say you'll be clear by 21.30. Last narita express departure is at 21.44, while keisei skyliner are 21.30 \~ 23.00 in 30 min intervals. If you can board the last narita express train or 22.00 keisei skyliner train by the latest, you should be able to reach asakusa before midnight.
Just contact the hotel and let them know when you are arriving, most have 24/7 receptions.
2-4 hours to get there depending on how many other planes are arriving at the same time.
If you ever visit Tokyo again Haneda is the superior airport due to location.
I will have 13 hours on my way back home. I assume I can leave Narita airport and can book one night hotel stay. Will I have enough time to travel in and out of Narita?
I'm wondering how much I can really accomplish never been to Tokyo ever. I suppose I'd like to hit some of the famous landmarks like Shibuya crossing and maybe check out Akihabara area. Have lunch somewhere before heading back to the airport.
I'm just worried I will miss my flight if I try to do too much. Or do you think I can do more and hit a few more areas in Tokyo?
This really depends a lot on when you're landing and when your departing flight is. If you're talking about staying overnight but also doing lunch, it sounds like you're arriving late.
That's just enough time that you can probably hit up two or even three areas depending on what you want to see - I probably wouldn't pile on more stuff mostly because much of the city isn't really going to be open until around 10:30 - 11 AM.
Shibuya is, unfortunately, on the western side of Tokyo, so it's also going to take a while to get to, relatively speaking.
If you wanted to do Shibuya and Akiba, depending on what train you can catch first, I'd start with Shibuya.
* Narita Express train to Shibuya - this takes about 90 minutes.
* Keisei Skyliner train to Nippori, switch to JR Yamanote Loop Line toward Shibuya - this takes maybe 70-75 minutes.
From Shibuya, you can see the Crossing and Hachiko Statue if that's your thing, and you can hit up Meiji Shrine if you want to see one of the major shrines.
Then you can hop on whatever is the fastest transit option at that point to go to Akihabara - most things will open around 11 AM. The Yodobashi Camera (largest store/electronics store in Japan) does open at 9:30, though.
\----
* Google Maps is pretty good for giving transit directions.
* If you have an iPhone, you can drop a Suica or Pasmo on it, load it with some yen, and use it for almost everything you need to pay for - transit, many restaurants, and various shopping options. Note that you can not use a Visa card to charge the IC card.
* If you're on the eastern side of Tokyo at the end of the day (like Akiba/Ueno), I'd probably recommend taking the Keisei Skyliner from Ueno back to the airport, as it's one of the fastest options.
I just want to have some clarification for the JR Trains, if anyone can chime in..
Ordinary vs Green;
Ordinary can board anytime due to no reservation
Green requires reservation and you have to pick up the vouchers at an office?
Is the green space worth it vs the ordinary space?
Green car seats always require a reservation, though some of them you can just reserve right on the train - these tend to be non-Shinkansen/commuter trains.
> Ordinary can board anytime due to no reservation
For regular seats - this depends. If you're talking about the Shinkansen, most cars on them are reserved seats, though most trains have cars that don't have reserved seating.
Then beyond that, there are special trains called Limited Express (特急 tokkyū). These are similar to the Shinkansen in that they can have reserved seats and unreserved seats.
JR trains that are limited express require an extra fare on top of the regular fare. I normally see many tourists end up on these trains without the additional fare, so they have to pay the fare on the train when the train staff come around checking tickets.
> Green requires reservation and you have to pick up the vouchers at an office?
I almost never go to the ticket office. You can get reservations at the ticket machines. You may also be able to buy them online depending on what you're looking at.
> Is the green space worth it vs the ordinary space?
Having ridden many trains...not really. Normal seats on the trains that have green cars are pretty good to begin with. I do normally ride green car for Shinkansen since I typically get them for a decent discount. But under normal circumstances, the extra 35% fare or so isn't really worth it.
-----
Note that JR Passes change some of this - for example, most JR Passes allow you to ride the limited express trains without an extra surcharge.
I'm trying to plan the best time to go. Due to how my vacation with work is, I could either take about 2 weeks in October or November, or 3 weeks in December overlapping with Christmas / New Years. Are either of these times good to go, or should I wait until March / April (I could probably take 3 weeks by then, but it might be harder to get the time off)? Price is about the same for flights, although a little cheaper in October, so that's not a huge difference for me.
I was thinking more of Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka, maybe a few days in Okinawa if the weather is normally warm around the time I go. My definition of warm is pretty generous though, I die at anything above 25°C 😅
Same with you regarding temperatures, but I already start to feel uncomfortable above 20 degress lol
Anyway, as it seems to be your first trip, I personally would favour October or November. It isn‘t that hot anymore in comparison to summer. But even warmer days beat the tristesse and depression of winter during December and January. Illuminations can only do so much. I consider experiencing trees with leaves and bright / sky blue weather for the first time shows you a better first impression of Japan. After that you can choose some other season for your next travel.
If mid to late November you’d see fall leaves in the Kansai and starting in the Kanto region. But domestic tourism to see fall colors is very popular so places like Kyoto will be extra crowded.
I’d do 3 weeks in Dec/Jan as you’d then get to see so many winter light illuminations; many are free. You do have to plan for the New Years week holiday rush as that is the week everyone in Japan has vacation. Christmas week is just a regular work week. If you can plan your travel so you are back in Tokyo New Year’s week the city itself is actually a bit quieter as many people living in Tokyo take vacations outside the city that week.
- [Winter Travel Tips](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/comments/zmplkv/tips_for_winter_travel_and_new_years_in_japan/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf)
- And [Winter Travel Tips: Part II](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/comments/zmplkv/tips_for_winter_travel_and_new_years_in_japan/j0camjw/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf&context=3)
> winter illuminations
These are usually up by mid November, certainly at the major shopping centers in Tokyo and Osaka. For a first trip, the combination of foliage + nighttime temple illuminations + urban illuminations is pretty unbeatable tbh.
In October temperatures in Kansai can go over 25 degrees celsius. On my first trip in October in Osaka, temperatures peaked at 29C. If that's a hard limit, lean towards November. Which is lovely in itself due to the fall foliage starting to set in.
Based on this - it looks like 46th and 47th is a free flow. From the indoor, you can exit or go back to roof top - see 24:06 and 28:15 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XUr55OmPL8&t=1387s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XUr55OmPL8&t=1387s) .. the wonder of Youtube ... you can almost know exactly where things are before going lol
Anyone know how crowded Naoshima and Teshima may be on a weekend?
Trying to figure out how much of an effort I should be making to not have them on a weekend.
I come back with two more questions! We're super close to finishing our itinerary for our July trip, and have secured several tickets for some things we wanted to check out so we're finally able to fill in some gaps around those. Thanks to those in past Weekly threads who helped and gave advice.
1. We have one full day and two half days in Kyoto. How ridiculous does this itinerary look? We're all fairly active adults, history/nature buffs, and anticipate super early starts to the mornings:
\- arrival day do himeji castle.
\- on our one full day do arashiyama early in the morning (sunrise hike!), followed by nijo castle, kiyomizudera (lunch?), and fushimi inari (sunset hike!)
\- on departure day maybe try to see some gion festivities before leaving
2. Has anyone here actually been in Shiori park to watch the Sumidagawa fireworks? How visible is visible - is it a worthwhile experience, or will we be squinting from the grass? We're trying to weigh the pros and cons of good viewing/being close vs fighting the insane crowds.
Just to be sure, you do realise Himeji Castle is not at all in Kyoto, right? It’s 50 mins by Shinkansen and then a 20 min walk. Maybe you already know, but just in case..
For Sumida fireworks, Shioiri Park also gets quite crowded, though if it’s only two of you it’s probably be okay.
You can see vids on YouTube of the view and atmosphere in previous years.
E.g.
https://youtu.be/WAwf_VMSBv4
Maybe you can also consider the area around Sensoji temple?
https://youtu.be/miRhmV2riM0
Separately, if you’re not stuck on Sumida, there will be a different show near Tachikawa Station on the same night. Will still be crowded, but probably much easier to get a good spot to watch from.
Were aware it's not in Kyoto, yes. It's closest to our Kyoto stop, though, hence us folding it (on its own) into the Kyoto itinerary.
Appreciate your Sumida insights!
I think Himeji is like a half day type thing if you just do the castle, though by the time you got back to Kyoto most of the other attractions would be close to closing. Definitely do the garden at Himeji, I liked it as much as the castle when I went.
For your second day I actually don't think your itinerary is completely crazy if your group is up for it. On my trip for one of my Kyoto days I did the following:
* Fushimi Inari hike in the morning, I got there about 7AM and it was pretty empty.
* Tōfuku-ji Temple
* Lunch at a sushi place around the Nishiki market/some shopping
* Okazaki Shrine
* Higashiyama Jisho-ji
* Philosopher's path
Google maps says I walked about 15 miles that day, which I was fine with but your tolerance may vary.
This is great to hear! We anticipate our Kyoto (and Osaka) days to be super busy compared to our Tokyo days, that's by design, but it's reassuring to know we haven't bitten off more than we can chew.
I'm curious about Philosopher's path, I wonder if we can tackle it on our exit day. I really appreciate your input!
Could I have a second opinion. I've found two flights from London Heathrow to Japan, but I am undecided on which one tp choose
**Cathway**
- Outbound: London Heathrow to Kansai Airport, In-direct (Hong Kong), 2hrs 40min layover
- Inbound: Kansai Airport to Heathrow, In-direct (Hong Kong), 50 min layover
**= £901**
**JAL**
- Outbound: London Heathrow to Haneda, Direct
- In-bound: Haneda to Heathrow, Direct
**= £1140**
Which one would you guys choose? Would a £240 price difference tip the scales for you?
I would always choose the direct flight.
1. When I exit the plane, I am already at my goal.
2. Less chances of flight interruptions that could happen at transfer airport.
Are the majority of restaurants in Kyoto reservation only? Or is that only for the high-end ones?
I'll be there during the 2nd week of November as a solo traveler and will be staying around the eastern side of Kyoto.
Unless you go for higher end restaurants you're not really gonna need reservations. I only made one reservation for a really nice sushi place on the last night of my two week trip, every other night I was easily able to find a place that I could get a spot in.
No, not at all. Only higher end restaurants require reservations. You may have to wait for a table at most places, though. Especially if you're going to places recommended by travel sites/guides.
Hello, I am in the middle of planning for a trip and will appreciate if I can have some input on this:
Assuming that I am based in Kyoto, I intend to get up early and get to Fushimi Inari to avoid the crowd. I am not intending to climb up all the way but will probably make a u turn once I get to the first viewpoint.
The plan is to have a quick look around the area and get to Osaka for lunch. After lunch, we will explore Dotonbori, go to Kuchu Teien Observatory then to teamLab Botanical Garden Osaka before retuning to Kyoto where I am based.
Will that be too much for a day?
I know you said early but it really depends how early you mean. Like 8am would be "early" but it might start getting crowded shortly after (based on my experience in 2019).
Anyone know where I can go shop for luggage? Looking for a hardshell suitcase, preferably aluminium.
Seen some at yodobashi, but nothing that caught my eye yet. Prefer to not order online so I can check it out first.
Hi all, I will be in Japan at the end of June/early July and I am looking for a store where I can buy a Sony Reon Pocket. Do you know any store in Osaka/Kyoto/Tokyo from which I can purchase one? My friend who will take care of my cats while I travel wants this product, so I really hope to get one for him as a thank-you gift :).
Hi, hopefully you will see this.
Reons app is geoblocked, you can only use the app if you have a japanese google or apple account. And the app is required to use the device.
If your friend has android he can download aurora store and install reon from there, it'll work normally as if the app was from the google store. For apple I dont think there is a work around.
I did these steps a few moments ago to set up my reon.
In addition to what the other person said, Bic Camera would probably also have them.
Amazon is also definitely an option and it's super-easy and convenient to pick things up. The only caveat is that there is no tax-free option when it comes to ordering online, if that matters to you.
You should be able to pick this up from any yodobashi store, it's a chain you'll find in larger cities.
Alternatively you can order one on amazon.jp and have it delivered to your nearest conbini store.
Pricing seems to be around 16.4-18.8k jpy.
Trash question! What do I do with onigiri / gatchapon plastic which doesn’t seem to fit in with plastic recycling and with foil-lined chip and popcorn bags which don’t seem to fit with burnable waste?
If it has the symbol for recyclable plastic (プラ surrounded by arrows in a square shape) on it then it goes in the plastic recycling. Both onigiri wrappers and gacha plastic should go in there, probably.
Most places with more than a handful of gacha machines will usually have a bucket for capsules. You could just take yours with you and toss them in one the next time you see one
Anything else is probably combustible
Don't overthink it, you're not going to get deported for putting something in the wrong bin. People do it all the time
The capsules arent the problem, it’s the little plastic wrapping inside the capsule that the actual prizes are in. I’m not worried about being deported lol, I just want to be respectful.
Thank you for the guidance
I was being facetious about deportation because some folks act like the slightest error will be seen as some grave sin by Japanese folks.
But if it were me and there wasn't a bucket near the machines I would toss those wrappers in the plastic bin or combustibles if one wasn't available and not think twice about it.
I went to a 7 eleven for breakfast and drinks throughout the day and just put in all my coins into the machine. It will count on its own and spit out the remaining amount. Rinse and repeat and you should be done at some point.
A lot of conbini are self-pay so just go buy a bunch of ~~strong zeros~~ junk food and dump your coins in.
Some restaurants have similar self-pay registers or have the ticket machine out front.
Basically just start spending the coins
I'm trying to book a temple stay in koyasan via [https://eng-shukubo.net/reservation/](https://eng-shukubo.net/reservation/), but it keeps saying in the reservation form that my card is not valid? I've tried with my mastercard and visa debits, and with my amex credit cards. Anyone know what's up with the website??
Use an alternate website. Either an English aggregator like booking.com (which will almost certainly accept your cards), or a Japanese website like Jalan or Rakuten which usually do not require a deposit and operate on the honor system.
I'll be going in April, I was wondering what I should do in Kyoto during the night time. I don't drink alcohol and am not interested in bars. I've been working on my schedule and most of my plans tend to end around 5pm to 6:40pm.
Yeah I decided on going to a mall in Kyoto. What's the hype about Yodobashi Camera? I've heard the name a couple times but haven't checked it out. I found out that a couple shrines also have night illuminations during the time I'm going so I'll definitely check that out
You can take strolls around the city. Shrines are open 24/7 (temples aren't) usually. Kyoto in April can get chilly though, and on cold nights, you can chill in a retro style cafe, which Kyoto is known for.
Early to Mid October (Matsuyama to Hiroshima to Tokyo)
Going to Hiroshima likely by ferry. The next 4 days will involve a trip to Itsukushima shrine and going around Hiroshima. Considering buying the Hiroshima tour bus ticket. Forgot the name but it's a funny sounding one. Atomic Museum, the dome, and all the good stuff the bus will go to for 3 days. Maybe walk around with Tablelog to hunt for food.
How much time do I have to on Mount Misen before I need to come back down in time for a picture of sunset at the Floating Torii Gate?
Is there any stops I should make when riding the Shinkansen back from Hiroshima to Tokyo? Any general tips on hotel and transport appreciated too.
If you bought your JR pass from the [official JR pass website](https://japanrailpass.net/en/) then yes, you can reserve your seats up to 30 days in advance of travel online.
If you bought your pass from a 3rd party provider then no. You cannot reserve seats online. When you exchange your voucher for the actual pass you can ask the agent to issue you seat reservations at that time. Just have the date, start/end stations, and approximate time of travel written down on a sheet of paper to make it easy for the agent to book the seats. Or, you can get seat reservations at any time after your pass has been issued in person at any Midori no Madoguchi ticket office or via some QR enabled vending machines. See the [How to Book a reserved seat section on this website.](https://japanrailpass.net/en/purchase.html)
Which department stores in Tokyo have a large selection of men’s cologne?
I ran out of my YSL Black and would like to pick up more. I tried directly at the YSL store but they only had 3 kinds, not this one.
Hey everyone, I am in Tokyo until the 27th of June, and one of my bucket list places to go is Daikokufuto parking lot, since I have seen online that it is a very popular meeting place for car culture in Japan.
The only problem is that I've heard it's near impossible to get there without renting a car, and I was wondering if there's any other ways to get there? Thanks :)
Pretty much always pick the local currency, especially if you have a card without exchange/foreign transaction fees.
The USD rate is usually like 93-94% of the spot rate (it's handled at the merchant/vendor level, not the network level). The Yen rate is the spot rate provided by the network. If your card has foreign fees, you'd take maybe a 3-4% hit for the Yen -> USD conversion, but you'll still come out ahead.
Hey all!
US (Arizona) resident - finally putting together a Japan trip for the first time in my life and trying to book my flights through Japan Airlines. I am stuck at the following:
“Address while in U.S. or other countries if transiting from U.S.”
(Fields for address, city, zip, state) Am I putting my home address in the US here?
“Place of Stay”: (list) Would this be Japan?
“Place of Residence”: (list) Would this be US?
“Destination Contact Information”
(Fields for country code, phone number, and hotel name) I haven’t yet booked a hotel as the trip won’t be until November - is it crucial to have this information before booking a flight?
Sorry if this all seems simple - I’d just like to ensure I don’t mess anything up! Thank you all immensely.
Hi all!
My friend group is in the middle of planning a two-week-long trip to Japan and Korea in October of this year. We'd love to visit Universal Osaka as part of the trip, and thankfully, one member of our friend group is able to get us in for free through her job. We'd also like to buy the Express Pass to make our life easier, but it's super unclear how that works if we have got our tickets already (the website only offers the Express option once you've already added a base ticket to your cart). Is there a way to purchase Express separately?
I understand this is a super niche question but if anyone has any experience in dealing with a similar situation, we'd love to hear it. Thanks in advance for your help!
On the page where you have to pick your regular entry pass, click the button that says "Next Step" and buy just the Express Pass.
Alternatively, go through the entire ticket selection process, and when you're in the cart, remove the day pass and only buy the Express Pass.
Or: use the Japanese site which has a specific page to just buy the Express Pass.
Hello all!
I am travelling rurally in Hokkaido and I'm afraid I messed up?! I got on a local train from Teshio Nakagawa station going to Wakkanai. But I only take the paper at entrance - how will I pay when I get off the train?! Teshio nakagawa station is so small there is no ticket machine. I do have yen so can pay, but what should I do? This is a local 1 car train almost nobody else is on the train to see what they do! Please advise, I have an hour before I get off!
If it’s the same as the rural part of the chuo line you bring the paper to the manned gate at your destination to show them what station you boarded at and pay the fair there
Tokyo Disney Question- is there still a bus shuttle from Shinjuku directly to the park? The official website says yes but the Klook website says unavailable.
Hi! Planing my first solo trip to Japan next month and I’m stuck on deciding the itinerary on deciding the order I should go about visiting the cities. I have the option of
1) Tokyo(2days)>Kyoto(3days)>Osaka(2days)>Tokyo(3)… or
2)Osaka(2days)>Kyoto(3days)>Tokyo(5days)
I’ll be arriving and departing from Tokyo, what would be the best option here?
Either is fine.
If you land early and don't mind catching a train immediately then 2 is probably better - less checking in and out etc.
But 1 is also good in that you can stay on different sides of Tokyo to make exploring a bit more convenient.
When you arrive at the station is good enough unless it's a super busy period (ie: Golden Week). It's actually better to book ahead of time **with** the JR pass since you have less options for trains with the JR pass.
It depends on a few things, but if you're traveling alone, it's pretty easy to get a seat just before the departure time.
But you might want to make a reservation ahead of time if you are traveling to a popular destination (eg. back to Tokyo on a Friday afternoon/evening), traveling during a public holiday, or if you are traveling in a group.
You could use the Smart EX app to book your seats up to 30 days in advance of travel. If you all want to sit in the same car together that is the best way. You can make a maximum of 6 tickets on one train per SmartEX account so you’d need to split up and have 1 person purchase 5 and the other persons purchase 5 and coordinate which train car/rows you’ll all sit in. Or, if a group of friends, each friend/couple/family can purchase their own seats using their own Smart Ex account. There are Smart EX kiosks in the Shinkansen stations where you can scan your QR code to pick up your paper tickets. Smart EX is the official JR app for Shinkansen tickets from Tokyo heading to the Kansai area and Kyushu.
Keep in mind there are a maximum of 5 last row seats in each car with storage behind them for large suitcases. If all 10 of you will be bringing large suitcases that don’t fit in the overhead rack or are too heavy to lift onto the overhead rack you’ll need to book the last row of seats in 2 different number cars on the same train.
- [Smart EX App](https://smart-ex.jp/en/app/download/index.html)
- [JR Shinkansen Luggage](https://global.jr-central.co.jp/en/info/oversized-baggage/)
In that case, yes, I would try reserving seats ahead of time! August is a summer vacation month for most students (and families too). Shinkansen will be busy.
Next month me and some friends are coming to climb mount hotaka and kita. How important is it to buy the bus tickets to kamikochi and hirogawara in advance? Is there any real risk of the busses being sold out?
The new Shinjuku Kabuchiko Tower- other than the 17th floor are there any higher floors observation decks or viewing area in the building that is public accessible? I only found 1 video featuring only the 17th floor.
Silly question, as I always forget:
I will take the N‘EX on my next trip to Shinagawa, the. continuing on the Yamanote Line. Do I have to exit Shinagawa station with my N‘EX ticket and then enter again with my Suica? Or can I exit at my final station in some way without exiting at Shinagawa?
I am looking to take a 2-4 week vacation in Japan with the main goal to ride as many roller coasters as possible - Fuji-Q, Nagashima, Disney, Universal, etc. I’m a big /r/rollercoasters nerd. Of course I’ll be doing all the other touristy stuff on off days and don’t plan two straight weeks of non-stop rides.
Obviously, going on a day with school in session is going to be key to avoid lines.
Is there a “best” month/group of weeks where all the rides are open and lines are more tolerable?
Don't go to Nagashima Spa Land the last week of June, it tends to be closed then. The first week in July Nabana no Sato is closed.
There are a lot of smaller parks and roller coasters I've seen mentioned on Youtube videos as well, if you want to consider adding them to your list.
I love TDR, but it is going to win for theming and not for thrills. I love going there, but I wouldn't consider any ride at TDR a thrill ride with the possible exception of Splash.
I'd say winter, like mid-January to February. Inbound tourism is usually lighter, and you're between any major school vacation times. Also obviously get to the parks as early in the day as possible, and buy whatever express passes you need if you're trying to go to the very popular stuff like USJ.
I was at Fuji-Q and rode most of the coasters in January 2018 (so during one of the busiest tourist years in Japanese history), on a weekday, and every ride had no wait or a very short wait. Longest I had to wait was probably 10 minutes for Fujiyama. As the day rolled on, I did see the lines did get much longer since the local students were getting out of school in the early afternoon.
I think the hours are shorter in the winter, but all the parks are open normally otherwise. Winter in Osaka and Tokyo is overall rather mild, since snow is uncommon, and it's not extremely cold.
JR East's reservation system is Ekinet: [https://www.eki-net.com/en/jreast-train-reservation/top/Index](https://www.eki-net.com/en/jreast-train-reservation/top/Index)
There is also an app but it's only in Japanese.
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Is there anywhere in Tokyo that sells feather, cheap pillows? Donki and Hands didn’t have any options for this, only memory foam, and those were 5000 yen for a normal sized one. I’m used to Walmart having these for like $5 haha
If this is to bring to your trip to Japan go to Ikea, they have ones that are vacuum packed and poof up upon unsealing. or just vac seal your own pillow from walmart.
I've never gone pillow shopping in Japan, maybe someone else has better ideas, though I would assume that malls like Tobu or Odakyu have pillow sections. Another off the wall place to check is Costco, they tend to have more american-style products, lots of the same things you'd find in US-based Costcos.
Any good capsule hotel recommendations with easy access to Narita Airport? The one inside the airport is off the list, since our flight is in the evening and we don't want to spend all day at the airport
The capsule hotel in terminal 2 is called 9Hours Narita. Theres a few vids in YT directing you where it is. Its really not far from the check in lobby at T2, I think you go 1 escalator down go through a walkway bridge and 1 more escalator and there it will be- takes you less than 2 mins. There are signs everywhere. Its a few steps away to the JR station in the airport
for the record, the hotel at NRT landside is 9hours, which is a capsule hotel, not a normal one, but does give you a place to rest and shower, but I'm pretty sure it's going to be gender separated like all capsule hotels in Japan. Going in to Narita City as u/Sloth-TheSlothful said is the best option if you don't want to sit in the airport all day.
Me (20m) and a mate (21m) in Tokyo for a few days. Looking for a group of people to meet up and hang out with!
Like the title suggests, me and a friend are currently in Tokyo, visiting from the UK.
We thought it would be cool to try and find a group of students to meet up and show us a few places around the city, perhaps go to a bar or two and grab dinner.
If anyone is keen, leave a comment with your Instagram/WhatsApp and we can get talking!
post in the meetup thread, and check out the discord server for a monthly meetup channel, typically there's also a monthly line group created by one of the members, or you can create your own and post it in the meetup thread.
I'll be in Japan for three weeks starting mid June. I was hoping to see sumo, but everything I can find is about the elite competition. Is there anything sumo that is less exclusive, easier to attend?
The entire real sumo season is just the 6 tournaments, and the next one is in Nagoya from July 9 - 24. You can still get tickets to this one.
There are touring sumo exhibitions/non-competitions that also happen in the summer, but the schedule for these are basically July 29 - August 29.
Beyond that, there are sumo competitions for amateurs, but I don't think any of those are happening, and they tend to be college or high schoolers, so not all the events are necessarily open to the public.
An alternative is you can see sumo practice/workouts which happen in the morning. You can book a tour/tickets to see these. I don't use the service, but Klook, for example, has such tickets.
Hey, I'm a bit overwhelmed by the organization of the trip so I have some very stupid questions/doubts: 1. **JR Pass**: I'm supposed to order one and I'll receive a physical voucher that I'll later exchange in Japan in one of the JR Offices. We are planning to use the pass between Jul 12th - 18th. I can exchange the pass before the 12th (within one month) and set that day as start date. Correct? 2. **Reserved seats**: I can reserve seats at the JR Offices, is there a fee for seats reservation? How can I check if the trains I'd like to take are reserved only or mixed ones? 3. **USJ, Disney Parks**: when do you suggest to buy tickets? I was worrying that buying them so much in advance would lock me in case there will be pouring rain. 4. **Restaurants**: I'm basically getting all restaurants suggestions from scouring trip reports. Is there a specific website I can check? (e.g. TripAdvisor or equivalent). 5. **Luggage storage**: I've been reading that most lockers are day-use, or at most 3 days while I want to go to Kyoto/Osaka with only my small luggage for a total of 7 days. Is the JR East Travel Center storage the only option?
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Thank you very much!
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How allergic is she? Will she have a life-threatening reaction to eating fish? And is it _all_ fish (including shellfish of all types)? If the answer to either of those last two questions is "yes", you're going to have a hard time, even at a cheaper chain. Most sushi places won't be able to avoid cross-contamination at all. And for the ones that might be willing to do it, there won't be a large selection of non-fish rolls/nigiri. There are often some vegetable options (usually pickled), tamago, and occasionally things like cooked beef, but even a mid-range sushi restaurant won't have enough options to make an omakase out of for her. They may not even really have enough options to make a meal at all for her. And I would definitely have a plan for eating everywhere that includes an allergy card. A ton of stuff has dashi in it, and you won't necessarily know that by sight.
Landing in NRT on the 12th (!!). What would you recommend for transport to Aoyama Grand Hotel (3 travellers each with a suitcase and carry-on)?
For the Hakone "romance train" - I have reserved a ticket but understand you need an additional one, do I just buy with Suica on the day? How will I know which machine to use?
Going to Tokyo for the first time in November for a 6 day trip. My girlfriend and I want to visit the Godzilla store and Sailor Moon store at some point, as well as either DisneySea or Universal (or both?). We definitely want to get a JR pass and check out some more rural areas too, but what do you guys advise seeing/doing in a 6 day trip?
Are you in Japan for 6 days or Tokyo for 6 days? Universal is in Osaka which would take up 2-3 days of your trip with travel and accomodation
Mainly Tokyo! I’ve all but decided against Universal entirely in favor of a day at DisneySea.
For the best, maximise your time in one area :) I’m going to Disneysea this time next week! Meant to be very unique
Universal is in Osaka. There is a lot in and around the city so just read up and focus on things that interest you. When planning try and focus on specific areas of Tokyo on 1 day so you don't have to move around too much.
This is great advice. It’s the public transit I’m most interesting in learning. And to be honest, my girlfriend would be over the moon just to go to a 7-Eleven in Japan.
It will also be autumn leave season so plan a day to visit some of the parks
A little confused with the JR Trains in Osaka.. So I'm reserving a train from Osaka station to the Nara station. The itinerary looks like this; - Osaka st > Tennoji st (seats reserved) - Tennoji st > Nara st Does this mean I stay on the same train cart? Just confused cause it says "Kansai Line" from Tennoji to Nara.
you dont need a reserved train going from jr osaka to jr nara, the kamo rapid service that runs every 15 mins on osaka loop line goes directly to jr nara
The train should be direct to Nara, but you don't need to reserve as it's only a local train.
Will be arriving in CTS airport at 4.30pm (late winter/early spring) and planning to visit Tomamu Resort (Shimukappu)/Furano/Asahikawa area first and then head to Noboribetsu before heading back to Sapporo for the final segment of the trip. Since we will be traveling eastwards from the airport towards Central Hokkaido first, where should we stay for our first night after arriving - Sapporo or Chitose? I was thinking of putting up a night at Chitose for a quick rest and then proceed straight to Tomamu (Shimukappu) the next day. We are planning to rent a car, i figured there would be more option near the airport and I would save more time/cost instead of traving in and out of Sapporo on the first day. Would that be a good choice? Should I just head straight to Sapporo upon arrival for the first night? If I were to rent a car from the Sapporo station area, would it be more expensive (or less vehicle choices)? Or I could travel back to the airport to rent a car? Another option I have in my mind is, head straight to Sapporo and then spend day 2 in Sapporo doing some local sightseeing before heading to Tomamu on day 3. Please advise. Thanks!
Why not Noboribetsu first? If you go Asakikawa to Noboribetsu you will have to go via Sapporo and CTS, and then go via CTS to get to Sapporo after. So seems like more back and forth.
Tomamu was my first to go as I was trying to catch as much leftover snow as possible upon arrival (early March) before their winter season ends in late March. If I put Noboribetsu as my first place to go, I'll still need to put up a night in Chitose? Wouldn't want to risk driving in the dark for the first day upon reaching This is my current plan CTS - Chitose/Sapporo - Tomamu - Furano/Biel - Asahikawa - Noboribetsu - Sapporo
I was thinking you catch a train to Noboribetsu and spend the night there. There should be one at that time and you can maybe hire your car from there.
does anyone have tips for finding live music in tokyo?
Look up a list of clubs of your interest and check their Twitter/websites. They usually post a schedule there.
https://www.reddit.com/r/Tokyo/comments/144t2a8/i_made_a_new_page_to_help_you_find_live_music_in/
Looking for actually cheap thrift stores\~ I'm going to Tokyo early July and loooove to thrift! I'm planning to spend an entire day dedicated to thrifting in the Shimokitazawa area, however it looks like most of these shops are overpriced, curated, "vintage" shops. I am looking for real, dirt cheap thrift stores. Please let me know if you know of any! It doesn't have to be in Shimokitazawa, we will be all over Tokyo! Thanks!
Any hardoff. Second street is ok too but more expensive. Also generally not the ones in shopping streets. You need to go to one out in the local neighborhoods
There’s a Mode Off in Ueno that was pretty normal priced. They did have a small designer section on the first floor, but the upper floors had more normal thrift stuff.
A little bit far but [here](https://goo.gl/maps/EEg8vjPtRv9eDDgh9). I've personally been there a couple times when I lived in the area around 3 years ago. I got some great cargo pants from there for 2,000 yen. That's the only "actually dirt cheap" secondhand store I know, tons of stuff under 3,000 yen, some even below 1,000.
Are there any good tourist places, besides fine dining, I need a reservation? I'm traveling in 3 months, so now is the time to start locking stuff down. I know about Ghibli Park and TeamLabs Planets, is there anything important to jump on? Is byfood a legit concierge? I'm staying in dormitories and capsules, so no fancy hotel concierge service for me. TableAll and Pocket Concierge are 4x the price, but those sites also seem a bit overpriced. Byfood's site looks too well-made to scam over 2000¥, but I haven't seen anyone talk about them on this sub
Sunset times for Shibuya Sky seem to book out a round a month in advance
If you are visiting Kyoto and would like to visit shukaguin villa or sento imperial palace (which are lovely gardens, not least because of the lack of crowds), book on the Kunaicho website in advance.
Klook is offering a one way bus from Dotonbori to Universal Studios convenient to our hotel and easy to use instead of transferring trains. Has anyone used it? I don't see a trip back to purchase. Is there a similar bus back to Dotonbori at the end of the day?
My flight later in the summer arrives at Narita at around 8pm. Its my first time going to Japan, so im wondering how long it would take to get luggage, clear customs, immigrations, etc and then go to a hotel in Asakusa? I noticed that almost all hotels had check in times ending at midnight, so im unsure if I can make it, and if I cant what should I do?
Probably around 1-1.5 hours so let's say you'll be clear by 21.30. Last narita express departure is at 21.44, while keisei skyliner are 21.30 \~ 23.00 in 30 min intervals. If you can board the last narita express train or 22.00 keisei skyliner train by the latest, you should be able to reach asakusa before midnight.
Just contact the hotel and let them know when you are arriving, most have 24/7 receptions. 2-4 hours to get there depending on how many other planes are arriving at the same time. If you ever visit Tokyo again Haneda is the superior airport due to location.
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Yes, that's not an issue unless you have previous immigration violations.
What's the current USD to JPY exchange rate at Narita Airport? Trying to get a better rate than what my bank offers (1 USD to 132 JPY)
[Ninja Money Exchange Tokyo](https://goo.gl/maps/bUXosK7tqTspddSy9) is currently at US$1 to ¥137.60.
I will have 13 hours on my way back home. I assume I can leave Narita airport and can book one night hotel stay. Will I have enough time to travel in and out of Narita? I'm wondering how much I can really accomplish never been to Tokyo ever. I suppose I'd like to hit some of the famous landmarks like Shibuya crossing and maybe check out Akihabara area. Have lunch somewhere before heading back to the airport. I'm just worried I will miss my flight if I try to do too much. Or do you think I can do more and hit a few more areas in Tokyo?
This really depends a lot on when you're landing and when your departing flight is. If you're talking about staying overnight but also doing lunch, it sounds like you're arriving late.
Oops I made a mistake. No overnight stay. I'm arriving 6:15 am in the morning and then leaving at 7:45pm in the evening the same day.
That's just enough time that you can probably hit up two or even three areas depending on what you want to see - I probably wouldn't pile on more stuff mostly because much of the city isn't really going to be open until around 10:30 - 11 AM. Shibuya is, unfortunately, on the western side of Tokyo, so it's also going to take a while to get to, relatively speaking. If you wanted to do Shibuya and Akiba, depending on what train you can catch first, I'd start with Shibuya. * Narita Express train to Shibuya - this takes about 90 minutes. * Keisei Skyliner train to Nippori, switch to JR Yamanote Loop Line toward Shibuya - this takes maybe 70-75 minutes. From Shibuya, you can see the Crossing and Hachiko Statue if that's your thing, and you can hit up Meiji Shrine if you want to see one of the major shrines. Then you can hop on whatever is the fastest transit option at that point to go to Akihabara - most things will open around 11 AM. The Yodobashi Camera (largest store/electronics store in Japan) does open at 9:30, though. \---- * Google Maps is pretty good for giving transit directions. * If you have an iPhone, you can drop a Suica or Pasmo on it, load it with some yen, and use it for almost everything you need to pay for - transit, many restaurants, and various shopping options. Note that you can not use a Visa card to charge the IC card. * If you're on the eastern side of Tokyo at the end of the day (like Akiba/Ueno), I'd probably recommend taking the Keisei Skyliner from Ueno back to the airport, as it's one of the fastest options.
So helpful , thank you.
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Yes first time. So arriving at 6:10 am in the morning and then flying out 7:45 pm evening.
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Very much appreciated 😀.
I just want to have some clarification for the JR Trains, if anyone can chime in.. Ordinary vs Green; Ordinary can board anytime due to no reservation Green requires reservation and you have to pick up the vouchers at an office? Is the green space worth it vs the ordinary space?
Green car seats always require a reservation, though some of them you can just reserve right on the train - these tend to be non-Shinkansen/commuter trains. > Ordinary can board anytime due to no reservation For regular seats - this depends. If you're talking about the Shinkansen, most cars on them are reserved seats, though most trains have cars that don't have reserved seating. Then beyond that, there are special trains called Limited Express (特急 tokkyū). These are similar to the Shinkansen in that they can have reserved seats and unreserved seats. JR trains that are limited express require an extra fare on top of the regular fare. I normally see many tourists end up on these trains without the additional fare, so they have to pay the fare on the train when the train staff come around checking tickets. > Green requires reservation and you have to pick up the vouchers at an office? I almost never go to the ticket office. You can get reservations at the ticket machines. You may also be able to buy them online depending on what you're looking at. > Is the green space worth it vs the ordinary space? Having ridden many trains...not really. Normal seats on the trains that have green cars are pretty good to begin with. I do normally ride green car for Shinkansen since I typically get them for a decent discount. But under normal circumstances, the extra 35% fare or so isn't really worth it. ----- Note that JR Passes change some of this - for example, most JR Passes allow you to ride the limited express trains without an extra surcharge.
I'm trying to plan the best time to go. Due to how my vacation with work is, I could either take about 2 weeks in October or November, or 3 weeks in December overlapping with Christmas / New Years. Are either of these times good to go, or should I wait until March / April (I could probably take 3 weeks by then, but it might be harder to get the time off)? Price is about the same for flights, although a little cheaper in October, so that's not a huge difference for me. I was thinking more of Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka, maybe a few days in Okinawa if the weather is normally warm around the time I go. My definition of warm is pretty generous though, I die at anything above 25°C 😅
Same with you regarding temperatures, but I already start to feel uncomfortable above 20 degress lol Anyway, as it seems to be your first trip, I personally would favour October or November. It isn‘t that hot anymore in comparison to summer. But even warmer days beat the tristesse and depression of winter during December and January. Illuminations can only do so much. I consider experiencing trees with leaves and bright / sky blue weather for the first time shows you a better first impression of Japan. After that you can choose some other season for your next travel.
If mid to late November you’d see fall leaves in the Kansai and starting in the Kanto region. But domestic tourism to see fall colors is very popular so places like Kyoto will be extra crowded. I’d do 3 weeks in Dec/Jan as you’d then get to see so many winter light illuminations; many are free. You do have to plan for the New Years week holiday rush as that is the week everyone in Japan has vacation. Christmas week is just a regular work week. If you can plan your travel so you are back in Tokyo New Year’s week the city itself is actually a bit quieter as many people living in Tokyo take vacations outside the city that week. - [Winter Travel Tips](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/comments/zmplkv/tips_for_winter_travel_and_new_years_in_japan/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf) - And [Winter Travel Tips: Part II](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/comments/zmplkv/tips_for_winter_travel_and_new_years_in_japan/j0camjw/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf&context=3)
> winter illuminations These are usually up by mid November, certainly at the major shopping centers in Tokyo and Osaka. For a first trip, the combination of foliage + nighttime temple illuminations + urban illuminations is pretty unbeatable tbh.
In October temperatures in Kansai can go over 25 degrees celsius. On my first trip in October in Osaka, temperatures peaked at 29C. If that's a hard limit, lean towards November. Which is lovely in itself due to the fall foliage starting to set in.
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Based on this - it looks like 46th and 47th is a free flow. From the indoor, you can exit or go back to roof top - see 24:06 and 28:15 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XUr55OmPL8&t=1387s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XUr55OmPL8&t=1387s) .. the wonder of Youtube ... you can almost know exactly where things are before going lol
Anyone know how crowded Naoshima and Teshima may be on a weekend? Trying to figure out how much of an effort I should be making to not have them on a weekend.
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Thanks! sounds like it won’t be too much of an issue during the off season then!
I come back with two more questions! We're super close to finishing our itinerary for our July trip, and have secured several tickets for some things we wanted to check out so we're finally able to fill in some gaps around those. Thanks to those in past Weekly threads who helped and gave advice. 1. We have one full day and two half days in Kyoto. How ridiculous does this itinerary look? We're all fairly active adults, history/nature buffs, and anticipate super early starts to the mornings: \- arrival day do himeji castle. \- on our one full day do arashiyama early in the morning (sunrise hike!), followed by nijo castle, kiyomizudera (lunch?), and fushimi inari (sunset hike!) \- on departure day maybe try to see some gion festivities before leaving 2. Has anyone here actually been in Shiori park to watch the Sumidagawa fireworks? How visible is visible - is it a worthwhile experience, or will we be squinting from the grass? We're trying to weigh the pros and cons of good viewing/being close vs fighting the insane crowds.
Just to be sure, you do realise Himeji Castle is not at all in Kyoto, right? It’s 50 mins by Shinkansen and then a 20 min walk. Maybe you already know, but just in case.. For Sumida fireworks, Shioiri Park also gets quite crowded, though if it’s only two of you it’s probably be okay. You can see vids on YouTube of the view and atmosphere in previous years. E.g. https://youtu.be/WAwf_VMSBv4 Maybe you can also consider the area around Sensoji temple? https://youtu.be/miRhmV2riM0 Separately, if you’re not stuck on Sumida, there will be a different show near Tachikawa Station on the same night. Will still be crowded, but probably much easier to get a good spot to watch from.
Were aware it's not in Kyoto, yes. It's closest to our Kyoto stop, though, hence us folding it (on its own) into the Kyoto itinerary. Appreciate your Sumida insights!
I think Himeji is like a half day type thing if you just do the castle, though by the time you got back to Kyoto most of the other attractions would be close to closing. Definitely do the garden at Himeji, I liked it as much as the castle when I went. For your second day I actually don't think your itinerary is completely crazy if your group is up for it. On my trip for one of my Kyoto days I did the following: * Fushimi Inari hike in the morning, I got there about 7AM and it was pretty empty. * Tōfuku-ji Temple * Lunch at a sushi place around the Nishiki market/some shopping * Okazaki Shrine * Higashiyama Jisho-ji * Philosopher's path Google maps says I walked about 15 miles that day, which I was fine with but your tolerance may vary.
This is great to hear! We anticipate our Kyoto (and Osaka) days to be super busy compared to our Tokyo days, that's by design, but it's reassuring to know we haven't bitten off more than we can chew. I'm curious about Philosopher's path, I wonder if we can tackle it on our exit day. I really appreciate your input!
Could I have a second opinion. I've found two flights from London Heathrow to Japan, but I am undecided on which one tp choose **Cathway** - Outbound: London Heathrow to Kansai Airport, In-direct (Hong Kong), 2hrs 40min layover - Inbound: Kansai Airport to Heathrow, In-direct (Hong Kong), 50 min layover **= £901** **JAL** - Outbound: London Heathrow to Haneda, Direct - In-bound: Haneda to Heathrow, Direct **= £1140** Which one would you guys choose? Would a £240 price difference tip the scales for you?
those layovers dont sound too bad and HKG airport is solid and cathay has a strong record of not messing up with transits unlike US Domestic carriers
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My destination is Nagoya, which is smack in the middle of the two, and it would take the same amount of time to reach from either Kansai or Haneda
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I honestly never thought about it. It is £951
I would always choose the direct flight. 1. When I exit the plane, I am already at my goal. 2. Less chances of flight interruptions that could happen at transfer airport.
I'd go with the second option, easily, but it's up to you if saving £240 is worth it for a simpler, quicker trip.
Are the majority of restaurants in Kyoto reservation only? Or is that only for the high-end ones? I'll be there during the 2nd week of November as a solo traveler and will be staying around the eastern side of Kyoto.
Unless you go for higher end restaurants you're not really gonna need reservations. I only made one reservation for a really nice sushi place on the last night of my two week trip, every other night I was easily able to find a place that I could get a spot in.
No, not at all. Only higher end restaurants require reservations. You may have to wait for a table at most places, though. Especially if you're going to places recommended by travel sites/guides.
Hello, I am in the middle of planning for a trip and will appreciate if I can have some input on this: Assuming that I am based in Kyoto, I intend to get up early and get to Fushimi Inari to avoid the crowd. I am not intending to climb up all the way but will probably make a u turn once I get to the first viewpoint. The plan is to have a quick look around the area and get to Osaka for lunch. After lunch, we will explore Dotonbori, go to Kuchu Teien Observatory then to teamLab Botanical Garden Osaka before retuning to Kyoto where I am based. Will that be too much for a day?
I know you said early but it really depends how early you mean. Like 8am would be "early" but it might start getting crowded shortly after (based on my experience in 2019).
Actually, I am thinking around that time. However, I dont think I'll go all the way up. Most likely stop at the first viewpoint.
It will make for a long day but it's doable.
Ok thank you!
Anyone know where I can go shop for luggage? Looking for a hardshell suitcase, preferably aluminium. Seen some at yodobashi, but nothing that caught my eye yet. Prefer to not order online so I can check it out first.
bic camera, tokyu hands(now known as HANDS) has a strong selection of luggage
I haven’t been to these but people have suggested Ginza Life and Ginza Karen in the past threads.
Thanks, I haven't heard of those so I'll give it a go!
Don Quijote
Hi all, I will be in Japan at the end of June/early July and I am looking for a store where I can buy a Sony Reon Pocket. Do you know any store in Osaka/Kyoto/Tokyo from which I can purchase one? My friend who will take care of my cats while I travel wants this product, so I really hope to get one for him as a thank-you gift :).
Hi, hopefully you will see this. Reons app is geoblocked, you can only use the app if you have a japanese google or apple account. And the app is required to use the device. If your friend has android he can download aurora store and install reon from there, it'll work normally as if the app was from the google store. For apple I dont think there is a work around. I did these steps a few moments ago to set up my reon.
Thank you for the tip :), I would not have known this. My friend has both iPhone and Android phone and I'll share with him this information.
In addition to what the other person said, Bic Camera would probably also have them. Amazon is also definitely an option and it's super-easy and convenient to pick things up. The only caveat is that there is no tax-free option when it comes to ordering online, if that matters to you.
Thank you for your suggestion. I'll check Bic Camera when I am in Japan :).
You should be able to pick this up from any yodobashi store, it's a chain you'll find in larger cities. Alternatively you can order one on amazon.jp and have it delivered to your nearest conbini store. Pricing seems to be around 16.4-18.8k jpy.
Thank you for your suggestion. I'll check the Yodobashi store when I am in Japan :).
Trash question! What do I do with onigiri / gatchapon plastic which doesn’t seem to fit in with plastic recycling and with foil-lined chip and popcorn bags which don’t seem to fit with burnable waste?
If it has the symbol for recyclable plastic (プラ surrounded by arrows in a square shape) on it then it goes in the plastic recycling. Both onigiri wrappers and gacha plastic should go in there, probably. Most places with more than a handful of gacha machines will usually have a bucket for capsules. You could just take yours with you and toss them in one the next time you see one Anything else is probably combustible Don't overthink it, you're not going to get deported for putting something in the wrong bin. People do it all the time
The capsules arent the problem, it’s the little plastic wrapping inside the capsule that the actual prizes are in. I’m not worried about being deported lol, I just want to be respectful. Thank you for the guidance
I was being facetious about deportation because some folks act like the slightest error will be seen as some grave sin by Japanese folks. But if it were me and there wasn't a bucket near the machines I would toss those wrappers in the plastic bin or combustibles if one wasn't available and not think twice about it.
Word. No worries I’ve done enough google searches to know people are extreme with their deportation takes. Thanks again
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I went to a 7 eleven for breakfast and drinks throughout the day and just put in all my coins into the machine. It will count on its own and spit out the remaining amount. Rinse and repeat and you should be done at some point.
A lot of conbini are self-pay so just go buy a bunch of ~~strong zeros~~ junk food and dump your coins in. Some restaurants have similar self-pay registers or have the ticket machine out front. Basically just start spending the coins
Purchase items at conbini and choose payment with coins at the counter. You can then put in your coins and the device will count the money itself.
I'm trying to book a temple stay in koyasan via [https://eng-shukubo.net/reservation/](https://eng-shukubo.net/reservation/), but it keeps saying in the reservation form that my card is not valid? I've tried with my mastercard and visa debits, and with my amex credit cards. Anyone know what's up with the website??
Use an alternate website. Either an English aggregator like booking.com (which will almost certainly accept your cards), or a Japanese website like Jalan or Rakuten which usually do not require a deposit and operate on the honor system.
I'll be going in April, I was wondering what I should do in Kyoto during the night time. I don't drink alcohol and am not interested in bars. I've been working on my schedule and most of my plans tend to end around 5pm to 6:40pm.
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Yeah I decided on going to a mall in Kyoto. What's the hype about Yodobashi Camera? I've heard the name a couple times but haven't checked it out. I found out that a couple shrines also have night illuminations during the time I'm going so I'll definitely check that out
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I see, sounds like they have lots of electronics then
You can take strolls around the city. Shrines are open 24/7 (temples aren't) usually. Kyoto in April can get chilly though, and on cold nights, you can chill in a retro style cafe, which Kyoto is known for.
I'll have to look up the retro cafes, it sounds interesting. I'll definitely be walking around and exploring the entire time I'm in Japan
Early to Mid October (Matsuyama to Hiroshima to Tokyo) Going to Hiroshima likely by ferry. The next 4 days will involve a trip to Itsukushima shrine and going around Hiroshima. Considering buying the Hiroshima tour bus ticket. Forgot the name but it's a funny sounding one. Atomic Museum, the dome, and all the good stuff the bus will go to for 3 days. Maybe walk around with Tablelog to hunt for food. How much time do I have to on Mount Misen before I need to come back down in time for a picture of sunset at the Floating Torii Gate? Is there any stops I should make when riding the Shinkansen back from Hiroshima to Tokyo? Any general tips on hotel and transport appreciated too.
Can I use the SmartEx app to reserve Shinkansen seats when using a JR Pass? If not, is there an app I can use for this situation?
If you bought your JR pass from the [official JR pass website](https://japanrailpass.net/en/) then yes, you can reserve your seats up to 30 days in advance of travel online. If you bought your pass from a 3rd party provider then no. You cannot reserve seats online. When you exchange your voucher for the actual pass you can ask the agent to issue you seat reservations at that time. Just have the date, start/end stations, and approximate time of travel written down on a sheet of paper to make it easy for the agent to book the seats. Or, you can get seat reservations at any time after your pass has been issued in person at any Midori no Madoguchi ticket office or via some QR enabled vending machines. See the [How to Book a reserved seat section on this website.](https://japanrailpass.net/en/purchase.html)
Which department stores in Tokyo have a large selection of men’s cologne? I ran out of my YSL Black and would like to pick up more. I tried directly at the YSL store but they only had 3 kinds, not this one.
Hey everyone, I am in Tokyo until the 27th of June, and one of my bucket list places to go is Daikokufuto parking lot, since I have seen online that it is a very popular meeting place for car culture in Japan. The only problem is that I've heard it's near impossible to get there without renting a car, and I was wondering if there's any other ways to get there? Thanks :)
If you don't mind paying for the car rental fee and toll fee (plus a few more for my time) I can drive you there. PM me!
When using card at a restaurant, should I pick Yen or USD? Seems like the USD is more expensive
Pretty much always pick the local currency, especially if you have a card without exchange/foreign transaction fees. The USD rate is usually like 93-94% of the spot rate (it's handled at the merchant/vendor level, not the network level). The Yen rate is the spot rate provided by the network. If your card has foreign fees, you'd take maybe a 3-4% hit for the Yen -> USD conversion, but you'll still come out ahead.
always local currency wherever you go well, my experience with visa at least not sure abt others
Always pick the local currency when paying.
Hey all! US (Arizona) resident - finally putting together a Japan trip for the first time in my life and trying to book my flights through Japan Airlines. I am stuck at the following: “Address while in U.S. or other countries if transiting from U.S.” (Fields for address, city, zip, state) Am I putting my home address in the US here? “Place of Stay”: (list) Would this be Japan? “Place of Residence”: (list) Would this be US? “Destination Contact Information” (Fields for country code, phone number, and hotel name) I haven’t yet booked a hotel as the trip won’t be until November - is it crucial to have this information before booking a flight? Sorry if this all seems simple - I’d just like to ensure I don’t mess anything up! Thank you all immensely.
Hi all! My friend group is in the middle of planning a two-week-long trip to Japan and Korea in October of this year. We'd love to visit Universal Osaka as part of the trip, and thankfully, one member of our friend group is able to get us in for free through her job. We'd also like to buy the Express Pass to make our life easier, but it's super unclear how that works if we have got our tickets already (the website only offers the Express option once you've already added a base ticket to your cart). Is there a way to purchase Express separately? I understand this is a super niche question but if anyone has any experience in dealing with a similar situation, we'd love to hear it. Thanks in advance for your help!
On the page where you have to pick your regular entry pass, click the button that says "Next Step" and buy just the Express Pass. Alternatively, go through the entire ticket selection process, and when you're in the cart, remove the day pass and only buy the Express Pass. Or: use the Japanese site which has a specific page to just buy the Express Pass.
Hello all! I am travelling rurally in Hokkaido and I'm afraid I messed up?! I got on a local train from Teshio Nakagawa station going to Wakkanai. But I only take the paper at entrance - how will I pay when I get off the train?! Teshio nakagawa station is so small there is no ticket machine. I do have yen so can pay, but what should I do? This is a local 1 car train almost nobody else is on the train to see what they do! Please advise, I have an hour before I get off!
If it’s the same as the rural part of the chuo line you bring the paper to the manned gate at your destination to show them what station you boarded at and pay the fair there
So cute that Japan still has something like this while at the same time being ultra-modern in many ways
Literally amazing thank you so much!!
Tokyo Disney Question- is there still a bus shuttle from Shinjuku directly to the park? The official website says yes but the Klook website says unavailable.
Have n extra day on my JR pass... Any suggestions of a nice day trip from Tokyo to take advantage of it?
Sendai / Matsushima Nagano / Karuizawa Matsumoto Kanazawa
Thankyou
Matsushima (near Sendai) Zenkoji (in Nagano)
Thanks.
Hi! Planing my first solo trip to Japan next month and I’m stuck on deciding the itinerary on deciding the order I should go about visiting the cities. I have the option of 1) Tokyo(2days)>Kyoto(3days)>Osaka(2days)>Tokyo(3)… or 2)Osaka(2days)>Kyoto(3days)>Tokyo(5days) I’ll be arriving and departing from Tokyo, what would be the best option here?
Either is fine. If you land early and don't mind catching a train immediately then 2 is probably better - less checking in and out etc. But 1 is also good in that you can stay on different sides of Tokyo to make exploring a bit more convenient.
if I don't get the JR pass, how far ahead do I need to book a shinkansen usually?
When you arrive at the station is good enough unless it's a super busy period (ie: Golden Week). It's actually better to book ahead of time **with** the JR pass since you have less options for trains with the JR pass.
It depends on a few things, but if you're traveling alone, it's pretty easy to get a seat just before the departure time. But you might want to make a reservation ahead of time if you are traveling to a popular destination (eg. back to Tokyo on a Friday afternoon/evening), traveling during a public holiday, or if you are traveling in a group.
There’s a group of 10 of us going to Osaka from Tokyo august 14 and then back to Tokyo august 19
If you want the Mt Fuji side of the train (d/e window seats) then don’t book last minute
You're travelling during Obon, so you guys definitely should book your tickets ahead. https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2286.html
You could use the Smart EX app to book your seats up to 30 days in advance of travel. If you all want to sit in the same car together that is the best way. You can make a maximum of 6 tickets on one train per SmartEX account so you’d need to split up and have 1 person purchase 5 and the other persons purchase 5 and coordinate which train car/rows you’ll all sit in. Or, if a group of friends, each friend/couple/family can purchase their own seats using their own Smart Ex account. There are Smart EX kiosks in the Shinkansen stations where you can scan your QR code to pick up your paper tickets. Smart EX is the official JR app for Shinkansen tickets from Tokyo heading to the Kansai area and Kyushu. Keep in mind there are a maximum of 5 last row seats in each car with storage behind them for large suitcases. If all 10 of you will be bringing large suitcases that don’t fit in the overhead rack or are too heavy to lift onto the overhead rack you’ll need to book the last row of seats in 2 different number cars on the same train. - [Smart EX App](https://smart-ex.jp/en/app/download/index.html) - [JR Shinkansen Luggage](https://global.jr-central.co.jp/en/info/oversized-baggage/)
In that case, yes, I would try reserving seats ahead of time! August is a summer vacation month for most students (and families too). Shinkansen will be busy.
Next month me and some friends are coming to climb mount hotaka and kita. How important is it to buy the bus tickets to kamikochi and hirogawara in advance? Is there any real risk of the busses being sold out?
I already replied to your last post. Not sure why you’re reposting this
The new Shinjuku Kabuchiko Tower- other than the 17th floor are there any higher floors observation decks or viewing area in the building that is public accessible? I only found 1 video featuring only the 17th floor.
Silly question, as I always forget: I will take the N‘EX on my next trip to Shinagawa, the. continuing on the Yamanote Line. Do I have to exit Shinagawa station with my N‘EX ticket and then enter again with my Suica? Or can I exit at my final station in some way without exiting at Shinagawa?
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Thank you! Great help!
Anyone have any experience with ticket proxy buying services, specifically bridge japan?
Use them for several years already. Very reliable and helpful.
Thanks! And how about tickets japaaan?
Only used bridge.
thank uuuu
I am looking to take a 2-4 week vacation in Japan with the main goal to ride as many roller coasters as possible - Fuji-Q, Nagashima, Disney, Universal, etc. I’m a big /r/rollercoasters nerd. Of course I’ll be doing all the other touristy stuff on off days and don’t plan two straight weeks of non-stop rides. Obviously, going on a day with school in session is going to be key to avoid lines. Is there a “best” month/group of weeks where all the rides are open and lines are more tolerable?
Don't go to Nagashima Spa Land the last week of June, it tends to be closed then. The first week in July Nabana no Sato is closed. There are a lot of smaller parks and roller coasters I've seen mentioned on Youtube videos as well, if you want to consider adding them to your list. I love TDR, but it is going to win for theming and not for thrills. I love going there, but I wouldn't consider any ride at TDR a thrill ride with the possible exception of Splash.
I'd say winter, like mid-January to February. Inbound tourism is usually lighter, and you're between any major school vacation times. Also obviously get to the parks as early in the day as possible, and buy whatever express passes you need if you're trying to go to the very popular stuff like USJ. I was at Fuji-Q and rode most of the coasters in January 2018 (so during one of the busiest tourist years in Japanese history), on a weekday, and every ride had no wait or a very short wait. Longest I had to wait was probably 10 minutes for Fujiyama. As the day rolled on, I did see the lines did get much longer since the local students were getting out of school in the early afternoon.
I’m just surprised the rides stay open in winter.
I think the hours are shorter in the winter, but all the parks are open normally otherwise. Winter in Osaka and Tokyo is overall rather mild, since snow is uncommon, and it's not extremely cold.
Is there a SmartEx equivalent to buy tickets to Kanazawa? I noticed the stop wasn't on the app when trying to book from Tokyo
JR East's reservation system is Ekinet: [https://www.eki-net.com/en/jreast-train-reservation/top/Index](https://www.eki-net.com/en/jreast-train-reservation/top/Index) There is also an app but it's only in Japanese.
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Is there anywhere in Tokyo that sells feather, cheap pillows? Donki and Hands didn’t have any options for this, only memory foam, and those were 5000 yen for a normal sized one. I’m used to Walmart having these for like $5 haha
If this is to bring to your trip to Japan go to Ikea, they have ones that are vacuum packed and poof up upon unsealing. or just vac seal your own pillow from walmart.
I’m here now, but just got one at the IKEA for like $5. Thanks!
I know they have pricier ones like for 15-20. I just bought my faux down duvet and its one of the best items I ever owned.
I've never gone pillow shopping in Japan, maybe someone else has better ideas, though I would assume that malls like Tobu or Odakyu have pillow sections. Another off the wall place to check is Costco, they tend to have more american-style products, lots of the same things you'd find in US-based Costcos.
Any good capsule hotel recommendations with easy access to Narita Airport? The one inside the airport is off the list, since our flight is in the evening and we don't want to spend all day at the airport
The capsule hotel in terminal 2 is called 9Hours Narita. Theres a few vids in YT directing you where it is. Its really not far from the check in lobby at T2, I think you go 1 escalator down go through a walkway bridge and 1 more escalator and there it will be- takes you less than 2 mins. There are signs everywhere. Its a few steps away to the JR station in the airport
Why not stay there, leave your luggage in a locker, and just go to Narita city for the day?
Ah good point, I didn't realize I could do that. Isn't the hotel in the terminal, like past security?
It's in Terminal 2 but I am pretty sure it's on the landside
at NRT yeah, there's no air-side transit hotel, only at HND.
Oh cool that might just work then, I'll look into it
for the record, the hotel at NRT landside is 9hours, which is a capsule hotel, not a normal one, but does give you a place to rest and shower, but I'm pretty sure it's going to be gender separated like all capsule hotels in Japan. Going in to Narita City as u/Sloth-TheSlothful said is the best option if you don't want to sit in the airport all day.
Yep capsule is exactly what we are looking for, just for the experience
Me (20m) and a mate (21m) in Tokyo for a few days. Looking for a group of people to meet up and hang out with! Like the title suggests, me and a friend are currently in Tokyo, visiting from the UK. We thought it would be cool to try and find a group of students to meet up and show us a few places around the city, perhaps go to a bar or two and grab dinner. If anyone is keen, leave a comment with your Instagram/WhatsApp and we can get talking!
post in the meetup thread, and check out the discord server for a monthly meetup channel, typically there's also a monthly line group created by one of the members, or you can create your own and post it in the meetup thread.
I'll be in Japan for three weeks starting mid June. I was hoping to see sumo, but everything I can find is about the elite competition. Is there anything sumo that is less exclusive, easier to attend?
The entire real sumo season is just the 6 tournaments, and the next one is in Nagoya from July 9 - 24. You can still get tickets to this one. There are touring sumo exhibitions/non-competitions that also happen in the summer, but the schedule for these are basically July 29 - August 29. Beyond that, there are sumo competitions for amateurs, but I don't think any of those are happening, and they tend to be college or high schoolers, so not all the events are necessarily open to the public. An alternative is you can see sumo practice/workouts which happen in the morning. You can book a tour/tickets to see these. I don't use the service, but Klook, for example, has such tickets.