Guideline for planning your own Japan trip

Just completed my 12 days free and easy Japan trip more than a month ago. Well “free and easy” is not as easy as it seems, especially when you want to get as much as you can from the limited amount of time. In the 12 days journey, I covered around 4 places – Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka and Hokkaido.

Today’s topic would be on getting around Japan. One of the commonly asked question is “do I need to get a JR Pass?”. I would say it depends. Japan Railway (JR) is a major train operator in Japan. JR Pass is a pass that enables unlimited rides for almost all JR trains and buses within a given period of time, and can only be purchased by foreigners in overseas. JR Pass comes in 7-day, 14-day and 21-day (see http://www.japanrailpass.net/eng/en003.html ). A 7-day ordinary JR pass costs 28,300 yen. Generally if you are not travelling between cities, it’s not worth buying JR pass:

-          JR pass can only be used for JR trains and buses. However not all trains and buses in Japan are operated by JR.

-          Travelling within the city e.g. Tokyo normally cost less than 1,000 yen per day. Cities like Kyoto have one-day pass for buses which costs only 800 yen.

Would recommend that you plan your trip in advance and check out the fares for your route first, before deciding whether to get a JR pass. 

Note: In Japan there are many types of trains – normal, semi-express, express, shinkansen etc. If you are travelling to location X to Y, there can be many options which consists of different combinations of train, route, number of changes required, travel time and fare. Sometimes the fastest option may also be the cheapest option. You can use tools like Jorudan (http://www.jorudan.co.jp/english/norikae/e-norikeyin.html) to plan your trip.

Getting around Japan is quite convenient by train. However the train system in Tokyo city can be very complex as there are many lines and operators. There are two major types of train within the city – train (by JR) and subway/metro (by other companies). Yamanote Line, the loop within Tokyo city centre which covers popular locations like Shibuya, Harajuku and Shinjuku, is operated by JR and normally very crowded. It will be crazy taking that line during peak hours.

For locations such as Shinjuku there are multiple operators. Changing to a line operated by a different company, means that you may need to walk as far as more than 1km, or walking to a different station (sometimes you may need to walk out) to change line. A very good experience is Tokyo Station – walking for more than 1km just to change line to go to Disneyland.

For Kyoto, bus is more convenient comparing to train. Many buses depart from Kyoto Station – the transportation hub in Kyoto. Do some homework on the bus # and destinations before departure. You can purchase the one-day pass for bus at 800 yen via the ticketing machines or counter. Ticketing machines are available just beside the “bus stop” at Kyoto Station. If you see many buses and huge crowd queuing up – yes, the machines are somewhere nearby.