12 TIPS FOR TRIP TO JAPAN
How much and how Japan Cheap travel to Japan.
We wanted to go to Japan for years the culture has really fascinated us, and the idea of visiting the home of Ninjas and Samurais, explore the mecca of technology, feasting on delicious food, hiking in the Alps Japanese see many temples and castles and stroll the streets of Tokyo urban cool and had a magical pull on us.
But the rumor that Japan is very expensive, has led us to put our latest visit to Japan so far during our one year trip through Asia we decided that Japan should be on list this time, I've never heard anyone say a bad word about Japan and their experiences in the country, with the exception of costs.
Ok, I'll be honest with you, Japan is not cheap, not compared to other Asian countries, but it is not the people of the prohibitive countries may think it is that we have found to Japan be comparable to that of Western European countries, and in some cases, cheaper Tokyo is cheaper than London and New York, and not to mention Oslo So let us break it down and see how much it costs to visit Japan.
Let's start with the food, because it is obvious that we all need food everywhere we go here the good news to our surprise, the food was actually pretty just cheap enough, you will find super fancy restaurants and expensive to Japan also especially in Tokyo, but it's easy to find cheap food.
Eating cheap was actually the thing that helped keep our total cost per day down Japan has not a food street culture like Thailand and China, but there is always a delicious noodle restaurant and cheap nearby There is no tipping in Japan, as it is considered rude, so you will save a few dollars.
You will also find good and cheap food options in the same convenient stores 7-Eleven and Family Mart, which are both healthy and tasty compared to other countries near shopping, we were really surprised by the great choice of meals in the convenience stores.
For example will a lunch bento box with rice, fish, meat and vegetables cost about 4 You will also find a variety of rice husks options with different meat or fish filling for 1 cost us a tray 4 of sushi around us.
If you want to level a bit and sit while you eat, there are good fast food market serving a bowl of rice with meat or fried fish and vegetables for about 5.
There are essentially noodle bars on every street corner in Japan, where you can get a big bowl of ramen, udon or soba us about 7 These restaurants also serve free hot tea or cold.
If you are a lover of sushi and form Sushi restaurants around sushi made on a tape and you just take the ones you want are a great option Allow about 2 us per plate.
Have a delicious meal in a traditional Japanese restaurant in Takayama.
Many restaurants have food that can be easily shared, like tempura, sushi and sashimi where you can dine with friends and probably pay around us 17 each.
The all-you-can-eat buffet or Vikings Baikin many restaurants, he asks their menu, hehe However, the ultimate dinner option, where you can stuff you about 20 us there are however very expensive too.
If you wonder why the Vikings buffet is called in Japan, here is an excellent article that explains.
Most restaurants in Japan offer deals for lunch, which are essentially their dishes for dinner, but prices reduces an option can be lunch as the main big meal of the day and eat a small meal like noodles for dinner evening.
If you, however, want to eat Western food a few days, expect to pay more for Japanese food Also if you are a fresh fruit and vegetable lover like me, forget to eat much of that, while in Japan if you want to save money fruit and vegetables are very expensive.
The next thing that everyone needs so when traveling in a foreign country is an accommodation unless you have a friend or family in Japan that you can stay with, it will be one of your major expenses.
The Yamakyu Ryokan Takayama where we spent one night.
If you are on a backpacker budget and don t mind sleeping in the dorms, then you can find hostels for about 20 us a night for a dorm bed.
One step from the dormitories, and unique to Japan, are capsule hotels where you sleep in a closed private box instead of dormitories You will share the bathroom and common areas with other customers Each capsule has a reading lamp , outputs and sometimes a small TV Expect to pay around us 35 capsule per night.
However these hotels are in big cities in Japan Traditionally, capsule hotels are just for men, but the new recently hip capsule hotels have opened and are supported to travelers, and also include women.
If you are really on a tight budget then a Manga Kissa may be an option if you don t find anything else last outing, I'd These are Internet cafes comic book 24 hours contain private booths where it is possible to sleep.
Manga Kissas have a bathroom with shower, but it can be very strong donation if you expect to get a lot of quality sleep for about 20 us, you can get night hours in a Manga Kissa We spent a few hours Kissa a manga in Tokyo during the day, but never tried to sleep.
We prefer our own room, so the option that suited us best were supposedly hotels Business In Japan, it is very common that people especially businessmen spend the night at a hotel rather than return at home if they have worked or been late with the guys at work.
Major cities in Japan have so many small business hotels with reasonable prices just do not expect these rooms were big, they are actually quite small, but clean, come with private bathroom and all the amenities you need and could ever think of.
You can get a business hotel room for about 70 us for a double or twin t These hotels usually have a restaurant and gift breakfast don t offer, so no food is included in this price, but all rooms have a kettle and some even have a microwave, which can be used to make simple dishes like noodles.
You can just pop in such hotels without conditions, make an online reservation typical search sites There are several hotel chains cheap business in Japan we stayed at MyStays Asakusabashi in Tokyo, a good chain business hotel and it was great highly recommend it.
If you want more advice on accommodation options for all budgets in Tokyo, check out our complete guide to stay in Tokyo.
Sleeping in a traditional Japanese inn ryokan for a night or two is an absolute must when you visit Japan ryokans are, however, quite expensive and cost between 140 and us 230 per night per person This price includes a delicious traditional Japanese dinner in the evening and breakfast the next day, and no source of onsen hot water if they have an onsen.
Having delicious traditional Japanese dinner at Yamakyu Ryokan.
We stayed at Yamakyu Ryokan Takayama for a night and we paid 150 per night for two people we 75 per person Ryokan was the cheapest we could find in Japan and included a delicious traditional Japanese dinner, breakfast and onsen He was very nice and we loved would recommend it if you want to try a ryokan but do not want to fail.
Of course, there are also many international hotel chains in Japan, but they are quite expensive, between 100 and 200 per night per room.
Then there is transportation, which, of course, you should use if you want to see the city you are traveling by carriage is expensive in Japan in general, but there are some tricks to use so that you do not have necessarily rob a bank.
The rail system in Japan is the best in the world there are trains everywhere, they are always on time, they go fast and are very clean and easy to use, I would say that trains are transport and number you must use while traveling in Japan.
The super fast Shinkansen and ultramodern Japan looks a bit like a spaceship, don t you think.
To save money, my best advice is to buy a pass JR Japan Rail Pass A Japan Rail is a prepaid ticket that gives you almost unlimited use of the extensive rail system Japans The pass is available for periods 7, 14 or 21 days.
The cost of a Japan Rail Pass is 425 for 14 days we usually pass JR Green is first class and costs 600 This seems rather expensive, but it is only 30 us a day and you can ride unlimited.
Here's why Japan Rail Pass prepaid will save you money A train ticket, for example, Tokyo and Kyoto costs about 120 us a way, and the ticket between Kyoto and Hiroshima costs about 100 trains to go by means Tokyo-Kyoto-Hiroshima-Tokyo will total 120 120 100 100 440 us, which makes JR pass sentence, and is only three cities.
So if you plan to travel in Japan, a JR Pass is a must This pass is however available for foreign tourists We bought ours in Bangkok, a travel agency in one of the large shopping centers.
The easiest and cheapest way to buy a JR Pass is to order it online from an official rail pass provider in Japan and before leaving the house, they will send you a voucher that you exchange for passage a ticket office in Japan You must, within three months of purchase of the voucher.
Depending on when you go to Japan, you might be able to buy the pass Seishun ju-Hachi allowing rail travel at about half the cost of the Japan Rail Pass.
There is a seasonal railway tickets available, which gives you five days of unlimited travel, nationally Japan on JR trains local and rapid Railways for us 108 for five days, or 22 us per day the five days need not be consecutive days is however available only three times a year during the season of holidays.
The switch can be used by people of all ages and is available for foreign tourists, as well as Japanese nationals and foreign residents in Japan, however, there is no tariff kids Seishun ju-Hachi Kippu can be purchased most JR stations across Japan is not a personal ticket, transferable, meaning it can be used by a person in five days or be shared up to five different people.
However, this passage is not valid for fast trains Shinkansen travels will be much slower and require more planning to find connected routes.
If you will stay in Japan for a short period and only be staying in a city, for example, Tokyo and use as a base to see the city and its surroundings, the JR Pass will not be necessary.
Some subway in Tokyo is 2-3 rounds us, and the local train takes much longer than the Shinkansen is cheap cost of slow local train we averaged 5 per hour ride.
If you plan to stay in Osaka, Kansai Thru Pass is good value This cost about 50 three days and is excellent if you plan to go to Kyoto one day, after Nara and Himeji the third day let this -passer also includes bus.
There are also several other special price packages like this in some cities, for example, if you want to go on a day trip to Nikko Tokyo, as we did, there are special tickets for the train to Nikko Tokyo and back, which also includes the bus in the Nara region.
The bus is also an option when traveling in Japan, especially for small rural It is day- and night buses between most places in Japan, we took a bus in the Takayama area, because there there were no gear options for small remote villages we wanted to visit Our impression was that the buses are not particularly cheap either, and they take much more time.
For example, a bus journey between Tokyo and Osaka takes about 10 hours, while the train uses two hours is better to go with the train if possible and much more comfortable and perfect to see a country in our opinion.
There are also bus passes available A pass 3 days costs us 92 in 5 days cost us 138.
In big cities like Tokyo and Kyoto, there is a metro system very easy and accessible If you know that you will travel around the city a lot, day passes can save you money However there has several subway lines , operated by different companies, so that may be a bit confusing, you should know that the subway lines you want to take, and buy the day pass on the right foot to match those lines.
Tokyo Metro 1 open day tickets cost $ 7 and covers only the Tokyo Metro subway lines.
Joint ticket 1 day costs us 10 and covers both the Tokyo Metro subway lines and Toei subway lines.
Tokyo combined ticket is $ 15 and we cover all the lines in the Tokyo JR lines, all Tokyo Metro subway lines and Toei subway lines.
Special ticket for visitors from abroad If you bring your passport, you can buy Tokyo Metro 1-Day Open Ticket for us instead of us 5 7, or you can buy a 2-day Tokyo Metro ticket for 8 us We bought two days Tokyo ticket twice the only hassle with these tourist tickets they have sold some Narita International airport places Haneda airport or Bic Camera store in Yurakucho, Shinjuku is out and Akasaka-Mitsuke station so unless you be near any of these places, it is not worth it.
If you can t understand how much to pay to get from A to B, just buy cheaper tickets and use one of the tariff adjustment machines that are on exit doors once you get to B, then you pay the difference to the end of your trip and you will get the correct ticket We did a lot in Tokyo.
Taxis are very expensive in Japan Well maybe not compared to Scandinavia and some cities in Europe and the US, but much more expensive than other Asian cities.
Watch our taxi driver with white gloves, a hat and uniform.
We took a taxi on certain occasions, when the train and subway had stopped for the night, or we ran out of time and had to jump in a taxi to get to a site before it closes Take a taxi in Japan is something everyone should try we never experienced such courtesy, cleanliness and professionalism as Japanese taxis we felt like we were driving a limousine with chauffeur.
When you go to Japan, you probably want to see temples, shrines, gardens and museums Each has an entrance fee and although each of them usually cost about JPY 500 1000 10 May we all adds to a pretty decent amount at the end.
There are however a few parks, temples and shrines that are free parts In general, only the park, temple or sanctuary are free while some parts you have to pay to enter.
3rd of November is culture Bunka no hi Day and a national holiday in Japan, famous throughout Japan with exhibits and free parades this day there is a free entry to most museums in Japan So if you are Japan that day, enjoy and visit many museums, exhibitions, concerts and craft workshops you can for free.
Although there are many ATMs throughout Japan, most of them don t accept cards issued abroad, only the Japanese credit cards The best place to find ATMs that accept international cards VISA is 7-Eleven's in all major cities of Japan If you go to remote areas of Japan, be sure to withdraw money in one of the major cities before leaving.
Thus, Japan to visit dear Yes, Japan is expensive compared to other Asian countries, but not compared to Western European countries, USA, Australia and certainly not compared to Scandinavia As all the trips you should expect to spend money, but you do need to spend more money in Japan on holiday to say Norway, New York, in the United Kingdom or Australia.
Japan has a rich and Culture is a wonderful country to visit, you should not miss just because you think it is too expensive if you make an effort, plan carefully when you go to avoid the high season when the flowers of trees cherry in April may and fall from September October, make your reservations in advance and you can travel to Japan quite cheap.
If you want more tips on what to see and where to go to Japan, visit our recommended route 2 weeks for Japan.
We used the Lonely Planet Japan guide on our trip it was very good, you can buy and that other great books on Japan Amazon by clicking on the book cover below.
Have you been to Japan, and did you find cheap Do you have any tips for saving money for the trip Please leave a comment in the comment box below if you found this helpful, please share it on social media Thanks.
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Excellent article, the only things I disagree with the cost of business hotels, which is 50 00 and I find Japan cheaper than most other Asian countries like Taiwan and incredible South Korea and China for those looking for the way greatness, I highly recommend Tokushima, the 4th largest island of Shikoku best thinking to stay cheap in Japan, there is no bad areas, so you'll never in danger because as your budget, unlike almost all other countries.
Thank you to comment Jerry There are certainly countries in Asia that are more expensive than Japan but also the Asian countries that are much cheaper So it depends on the countries of Asia you compare Japan We don ' were not in Taiwan or South Korea again, would LOVE to visit them one day.
Thank you for the tip on Tokushima hoping to check on our next trip to Japan definitely put it on our list of things that I totally agree, Japan is very safe with very low crime, no matter what field you visit or stay we always felt safe while traveling in Japan.
My teenage son will visit Japan for 2 weeks with her classmates we have prepaid hotel, museums and public transport They just need to take care of lunch and dinner for 9 days and snacks for two weeks, I wonder they should just take all cash or a prepaid card will work for them to take our money they have ever been outside the US and I am glad they have that opportunity, but also all nervous board you can give me will be appreciated Thank you.
lucky boys who have the chance to make a trip to Japan, they must be so excited the US and European credit cards, unfortunately, does not work in most automatic Japanese teller machines or banks But all 7Elevens have international ATMs where at least our Norwegian Visa credit cards worked fine so in large cities, it was no problem prélevons money using our Visa cards because there are lots of 7Elevens in remote areas and small villages, it is better to have money so it depends where in Japan, they will, I suggest you bring some money just in case.
Japan is generally very safe with very little theft, you should not worry about your boys is probably the safest countries to visit in Asia in terms of crime, and there is no problem with money on you pickpockets is not common in Japan, I've never felt safer travel everywhere, even my home country Norway.
I'm sure your boys will have an awesome trip and make memories for life I wish them a great trip We loved Japan, I'm sure they will too.
What Maria has said, be glad they're having this wonderful adventure in Japan rather than Europe or anywhere else in the world just reading them, so they do not inadvertently offend the wonderful Japanese people they should learn a little Japanese, because unlike Paris, the slightest effort to speak the language, is full of praise and encouragement and any help they need, I hope they like and become fans of Japan .
Tips I booked a last minute trip to Japan for 10 days as flights were so cheap, fingers crossed I can eat cheap and budget while watching it after that.
Good for you, Mitch, I wish I could go back there myself, you will have absolutely no problem eating healthy, satisfying and budget relax, enjoy and take while I recommend comfortable walking shoes and walk in each small alley you see, there is always something unique and amazing, nestled in the most unexpected places do not forget to ride the Tokyo Sky Tree I'm obsessed with her, were even before it is built well, if you drink coffee, make sure you go to Starbucks and get a frappuccino coffee jelly.
As a Japanese, I agree with your sammary and totaly impressed by the volume of information such a fantastic job.
One reason why ppl feel like it is expensive for the trip to Japan, I suppose, that you need a long vacation if you come from Europe or somewhere far away, which increases the total cost during the trip maybe the other, eating- food except fruit and publications are probably the cheapest among the developed counties.
No I have traveled in Norway but it is depressing, I know you have lots of fresh seafood and beautiful nature.
Thank you for comment We love Japan Your country is so beautiful.
Yes, I agree, to a European or American to travel to Japan, it is best if you have a long stay then you get to fully see Japan and its culture eating out is not that expensive if you avoid chic restaurants and a great Japanese food is well worth the money eat Japanese food in restaurants instead of your own.
You should definitely come and visit Norway Many Japanese come here in summer and winter to see the northern lights and midnight sun I think you will love it.
Maria thank you for this incredible summary of Japan My boyfriend and I are planning here in August 2016, since my son lives in a military base in Iwakuni What would you advise to Tokyo for 3 days also, in your experience, what are the recommend places to visit in Japan for 2 weeks again, thank you for this excellent report detailed in Martha.
Wow, how exciting that you go to Japan next year to visit your son, I actually works on a guide-to-do-in-Tokyo and a travel guide to Japan, I will send you an email when it is published on our blog.
I just published our itinerary in Japan two weeks Hopefully this will help you and give you some ideas of what to see and do during your trip to Japan to visit your son Check it out here.
Hai, if you travel whit few people like us, two adults and two children there a Idee rent a house for exaple on airbnb you wil find many private homes for about 100 us one day, it is cheep compared to a hotel and you can cook your food in renting a car or camper is verry nice, with a motorhome you have a place to sleep and you Whit 4 people, you can manage for us around 150 per day be aware of the roads it expensive If you park outside of town for the night is normally not a problem if you are a fruit lover, go to the big supermarkets, they mostly have a point of sale Smal ripe fruit, fruit is difficult to sell if it is not perfect, so the price wil rapid decline and taste is at its best Greatings and happy travels, Henny.
Thank you for this great tips on renting an apartment and a motorhome car we rented an apartment by AirBnB in other countries, but in Japan, it was actually not cheaper for us in a hotel business because we are only two people to more people, I agree, renting an apartment is a good idea that we have never rented an RV I'm not sure I conduct myself in Japan as most signs are in Japanese I, unfortunately, don t speak or read at all.
Impressive end to get ripe fruit in the sale We will definitely check that I love fruit.
Cheapest months to travel to Tokyo and Japan is in winter, from January to March about.
Avoid spring late March, April and May when the season of cherry blossom is also super popular, avoid the fall, from September to November, as the autumn leaves change color is very popular sheets fall is in November in Tokyo and Kyoto New Year is also expensive in Tokyo These months are expensive, especially regarding accommodation.
We visited Tokyo and Japan in July and August, which is the rainy season and not too expensive.
What are the useful information you provided I am planning a trip to Japan next April in May 2017 yes I know, a busy first season, but I wanted to see the cherry blossoms since I was 9 and there is a very long time traveling with my husband, you have guided me and gave me great ideas for my vacation 2 weeks I might have to stretch for 3 weeks now, I'll use this information as a guide and recommend Thank you.
Awww, thank you very much I'm so glad this could be useful for you and your husband when planning your trip to Japan.
We also wrote a best-of-Japan route two weeks you might find useful.
So cute that you wanted to see the Cherry Blossoms since you were 9 then it is definitely something you should do, even if it is a little more expensive than I'm not sure it's really worth I really want to see myself cherry blossoms a day.
Have a wonderful trip to Japan and enjoy the beautiful flowers Thank you for comment.
How much and how Japan Cheap travel to Japan, dear, Japan, Travel.