Japan Trip

Akihabara isnt what it once was, there used to be lots of good shops and arcades there but many have closed down.

Also RIP ASIMO the robot you could see for free in the Honda building but hes retired. It was amazing in real life.
 
Been there 2 times. First time I city hopped a bunch of places over 10 days (Tokyo, Kyoto, Hiroshima, Kanazawa). Second time I stayed in Osaka and just visited nearby cities (Nara, Kyoto).
  • Recommend a JR pass as others have said, especially if going long distances.
  • Hire a pocket wifi. They cost is (or was) between £40-60 depending on your plan. Very useful for keeping on top of Google Maps and itinerary etc, as well as keeping occupied on the train journeys.
  • Hyperdia app is very useful. It pretty much suggests the exact train/line you should take to reach whichever destination you want, including times and such. Great if you're doing a lot of exploring.
  • Budget-wise, obviously it depends on your eating habits and whether or not you like to dine a bit fancier, but I mostly just got quick, hearty meals in and spent the rest of the time exploring. With that in mind, I would budget for about ¥3000 (minimum) for your daily meals, then another ¥500-1000 for drinks (it's hot! Use the many many vending machines and stay hydrated!) as a bare minimum. Then your entry fees and travel fees and souvenirs etc. on top of that. This is just for 1 person. I would spend anywhere between ¥3000 on a good day, to ¥8000-9000 including a few goodies or presents and splurging a bit on sushi etc.
Kyoto is quite quaint and "traditional" feeling. I liked it a lot. There's Arashiyama/Bamboo Forest here, as well as other tourist places like the Golden Temple. Nara is nearby, where deer roam about freely everywhere, so that's a bit of a quirky half-day trip.

I enjoyed Hiroshima. It seemed a bit more Westernised and more English-friendly compared to the other cities (even Tokyo/Osaka). The memorial/museum is a must-see. There's also a little island nearby called Miyajima which you can reach by a ~40min ferry trip. I went there thinking it would be a nice quiet afternoon to wander about, but there happened to be some festival going on that exact day and it was absolutely chock-a-block with young couples wearing yukata/jinbeis and street food and a big fireworks show. It was quite the thing to stumble into!

Kanazawa I also enjoyed. It's a bit out of the way (about 3hrs away from Tokyo), but again it's a bit more of a traditional feeling city, somewhat similar to Kyoto.

Reminiscing now makes me want to go back :o
 
Definitely stay (and eat) in a ryokan. I can recommend the below one in Kyoto.
Drink lots of cocktails, they have the best cocktail bartenders in the world.

旅館元奈古

京都の旅館元奈古。京都の祇園や東山散策に適した旅館。はんなりとした京都の風情が漂う祇園高台寺「ねねの道」に、日本旅館『元奈古』があります。
motonago.com motonago.com
 
Smeghead said:
  • Hire a pocket wifi. They cost is (or was) between £40-60 depending on your plan. Very useful for keeping on top of Google Maps and itinerary etc, as well as keeping occupied on the train journeys.
Click to expand...

I wouldn't bother with this - just get a Japanese SIM at the airport. Can order them in advance for pickup.

Mobal do unlimited data for 16 days (next shortest is 8 days) for ~£37.
 
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MichaelAwkward said:
I wouldn't bother with this - just get a Japanese SIM at the airport. Can order them in advance for pickup.

Mobal do unlimited data for 16 days (next shortest is 8 days) for ~£37.
Click to expand...

I've tried both routes, even the hardcore one, which is going into BIC camera in Fukuoka, without knowing any Japanese I just had to buy one that had a limited data cap for quite a lot of money.

The sim at the airport one is the easiest one for me, don't have to worry about returning the wifi pocket and also one less thing to carry around.
 
This has some great advice in the thread. I visited before back 8 years ago for 3 weeks it was awesome!
I'm finally getting to go in a couple of weeks. Also getting to attend Tokyo Game Market, can't wait!
I am still looking at whether i'll do the rail pass again. But i have managed to book the Ghibli museum this time which is great.
 
Try to stay a night in a Ryokan. Completely different experience and (subject to the one you go to) a tremendous time.

My advice- don’t try and do too much. You’ve had lots of great suggestions but Raymond’s itinerary looks splendid but knackering and one which needs a few days more to do.
 
Got it all booked, we've skipped the rail pass as not enough time really. Stopping in Tokyo for a couple of days and staying in Akihabara; spend some time shopping there and the rest of the time in Asakusa and dinner with my partners mates one day then jumping on a flight down to Kyushu. Family stuff in Kitakyushu mostly, but hopefully get a day down in Fukuoka and got a few days planned in Kumamoto and we're trying to get a Ryokan booked for a night.
 
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My partner has had better luck with the mobile hotspots in general, you can prepay and pick them up in the airport, but there's options either way. She hasn't been for a couple of years. but Japan being Japan there was a lot of paperwork last time with SIMS
 
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Last couple times I went in 2017 and 2018 I pre ordered a sim and had them shipped to the UK prior to going. Used this website https://www.mobal.com/ found it fairly easy and all they wanted was ID. Personally I prefer going the SIM route over mobile hotspot because I tend to buy phones with dual SIM slots so I find it easier to whack in a local SIM for data when I travel to various countries
 
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Trip to Kumamoto is in a car, cousins are driving us and mum down, so basically only getting a few 15 minute train rides. We've rented a nice Ryokan for one night for family which was expensive. Once in a lifetime in a trip. Next time we're back packing
 
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