Visiting Japan

[ainin]

Originally Posted by Zelath

I hope to someday move to Japan, I love the language and the culture seems very interesting. I have recently just plain gotten sick of this country that I live in, I hate our government, and people here are way too racist (at least where I live)

where are you living???

Yeah!!! I love Japanese language and culture too!!!!! It's just too wonderful!!!

[zeeke]

meow.. i'v been to japan twice ^^ i live at my uncles place (no hes not japanese, but he married a japanese woman, and i dont know japanese) its really cool. im gonna go there soon again (in half a month) its really cool there, but when u get lost u have to go to mc'donalds for directions >.>' (the babes there have to know english, part of the job) anyway, if u havent been there, and have a chance, USE IT!

[Toxic]

He lives in Mansfield, Ohio. I'd like to move to Japan too, but first I'd have to gather up money, learn Japanese and last but not least... turn 18.

[Veritas]

If you want really cheap (sometimes even free) air travel, but you're willing to wait for an oppurtunity try becoming an Air Courier.

[Dhomochevsky]

Another way to get a cheap flight is to wait until there`s a soccer world worldcup tournament being held in your country and fly while everyone else watches tv.
The prices really drop during that time!

[Tommy]

So I'm going to Japan with a friend next month sept 19 to Oct 3 and I am a little overwhelmed by all the planing I have to do. My friend was really gungho about going but now he's put 80% of the planing in my lap.

Some suggestions on things to do would be great!
Just for starters let me kickoff what I have planned and what we wanna do. We are most likely going to stay 6 to 7 days in Tokyo and then go around Japan for the rest.

-Tokyo Game Show, Really this is the only thing about the trip that is planned out and where we have a hotel booked.

- The Zoo, My friend wants to go here but I really don't know how many zoo's there are in Tokyo or where we should go.

- Shopping! I pretty much wanna check out everything from electronics, anime, clothing, nic nacs and other cool stuff.

-Museums? Really have no idea of where to start here.

-Although I don't really listen to Jpop or Jrock I think it would be cool to go to like a small rock bands show or something, so any advice on where to go would be awesome.

-Bars, Clubs and nightlife, Suggestions from anyone on where to go and what places are "poppin" would be cool.

Any generally cool places that are must sees in Tokyo. I also have a big interest in cars so something car related would be cool.

Then it's out to see Japan for the rest of the trip! The book I purchased has been Extrememly helpful on this part it's The Fodor's Exploring Japan book.

- Mt Fuji, my friend wants to go hiking there so I Guess a day or two there for that...

- Hot springs, I know theres a bunch of places I could go for this but, any suggestions from you guys?

- Kyoto, I really wanna go here to check out some shrines and soak up some culture and I don't really think planning should be to hard here. Anything else to do besides check out shrines though.

- We also wanna go to a good beach, I hear the best places are in Okinawa but you have to get a plane ticket and I would rather go somewhere where we can get to by train. Any suggestions? Somewhere in Kyushu maybe?

My friend also said he'd like to see Northern Japan but really hasn't said gone into it more then that, so I don't really know wheres cool to see in the Northern part.

So I guess the most stressful part of the planning is where I should book hotels and getting around. I've read about the Rail Pass and I don't know if its worth getting the 2 week pass over the one week since I'm gonna be in Tokyo for about a week or so and won't be traveling long distances. As for hotels if I can stay keep it at about 100 bucks a day (us dollars) I'll be happy.

[Gaiarth]

I can answer a few of these for you.

The Zoo: Ueno Zoo is right there in Tokyo, and it's an ok place to visit. They have a fairly successful panda breeding program, and it's nicely laid out for strolling. Also, Ueno Park has a couple of museums in it (including the Tokyo National Museum, Japans largest) and a few temples/shrines. So you could make a day out of a trip there. I would suggest getting the Lonely Planet guide to Tokyo (or even the main book on Japan). They have a huge list of museums, including quirky ones.

For cars, if you go to Ikebukuro (a good area for general shopping), you could try Toyota Amlux. It's basically a huge showroom, but they have special exhibitions. It's next to Sunshine City, which is also worth dropping into if you are in the area. We wandered through there last time I was in Japan and caught the last day of an anime art exhibition.

For shopping: Well, Akihabara is the obvious place for your electronic and anime needs. For clothes, Harajuku is the place the trendy things. From loligoth outfits to the boutiques down Omote-sando. Also, further down is the Oriental Bazaar, a handy place for getting gifts for the family. And there is also Meiji-jingu. Best time to go there is at the weekend, when the cosplayers are out on the bridge.

For small bands, you want to check out the various Live Houses. I can't really recommend anything there; again the Lonely Planet book lists a few. It's a shame that they stopped closing the road to let the bands play at Yoyogi Koen. It was great just to walk down and see all the various styles trying to grab their piece of the crowd and sell a few CDs.



I really like Kyoto, although to do it justice you really need at least a week there. The temples and shrines are the main thing, of course, but I would suggest doing the Johnny Hillwalker tour. (Assuming he's still going.) You get to see a few things you probably wouldn't just going around yourself with a guidebook.

The 'new' Kyoto station is worth seeing in itself. Head up to the top in early evening, avoid tripping over all the young couples, and you can get a nice view over Kyoto lightes up. Plus, there is a huge selection of restaurants at the top.

Again, I would recommend the Lonely Planet guide.




As for the Rail Pass, it's certainly convenient in Tokyo, as you can ride the Yamanote and other JR lines without the bother of lining up at the ticket machine. If you were maybe going to do a few day trips from Tokyo (say to Kamakura or Yokohama) it might be worth having. Otherwise, the convenience probably wouldn't out-weigh the cost.


THis is getting a bit long, so I'll wrap up by once again recommending the Lonely Planet guides. And no, I'm not on commission

[Tommy]

Thanks a lot Gaiarth you are awesome!

[horsdhaleine]

Originally Posted by Mr_Paper

You probably won't need those Japanese lessons if you're going to be staying in major metropolitan areas. Most people in Japan can speak enough English to help you should you be in need of it and you'd be suprised by the number of signs with Enlish on them. If you're desperate, get a phrase book, they're infinitely more valuable then people give them credit for.

well, actually you can get by in the city without knowing too much Japanese, not because they can speak it, but because most things are self-explanatory and user-friendly so there's no need for too much communication. i study japanese but i rarely use it to "get by" to the city life. i usually just nod my head. i use japanese more when i'm with my friends...

[sedukshun]

oh damn i wanna go japan and perhaps live there for awhile one day O.O"
perhaps wen i am older with free time and money...
england is **** LOL

love the culture/language/anime/kawaiiness/hot springs....

[Sankari]

Originally Posted by Zelath

I hope to someday move to Japan, I love the language and the culture seems very interesting. I have recently just plain gotten sick of this country that I live in, I hate our government, and people here are way too racist (at least where I live)

I am too sorry to burst your bubble but if you are going to move to japan because your goverment is too racist, don't expect any better from the japanese goverment or people out there. Japan probably is one of the biggest racists out there (in secrecy naturally, but ask anyone who has been to japan and they can tell you that its not all that pretty in there.) However, the language and culture are interesting and I'm most likely going to do the same or go for exchange program, but its gona take few years before I want to do this and who knows where I am in that time.

[diabolistic]

If you want to go bar/club hopping, the best place to do it is in the Dotonbori in Osaka.

Great food, friendly people, and a killer red-light district ;P

[sorvani]

Originally Posted by Tommy

I've read about the Rail Pass and I don't know if its worth getting the 2 week pass over the one week since I'm gonna be in Tokyo for about a week or so and won't be traveling long distances.

Depending on exactly how much traveling you are doing the rail pass is really not worth it except for the convienience of not having to purchase tickets. I spent the last week of June in Tokyo, and decided against the rail pass before i went, because after checking fares, i found that i would not actually use the Rail pass enough to actually pay for it. I stayed in a hotel in Shibuya 2-3 blocks from the station. The most expensive single fare i had was the NEX(Narita Express) between Narita and Shinigawa station for ¥3,100 each way. The next largest fare i had was from Shibuya to Omiya for ¥590. I took at least 4 trains a day all around Tokyo. When i stopped and added up all my fares for the week, including the subways that would not have been o the pass anyway i spent around ¥18,400 on train fares. The rail pass costs ¥28,300. The only real hard part is determining your fare at the ticket machines. They only have the big fare map above the machines in english at the major stations. But i printed out the english map from their website and kept it in my bag/pocket so if the fare map wasn't in english i could jsut reference mine and play match up.

Originally Posted by Tommy

As for hotels if I can stay keep it at about 100 bucks a day (us dollars) I'll be happy.

I used Rakuten Travel to find my hotel. I stayed at the Sakura Fleur Aoyama and it cost me ¥8,400 a night except for saturday which was ¥9,800. Single occupancy, 1 bed. To save you the time a double room at the same hotel costs ¥14,800.

Good luck and have fun!

[Gaiarth]

On the subject of hotels, I should have mentioned the Japanese Inn Group.

http://www.jpinn.com/

I've stayed in a lot of their places, and they have all been good. You get to try out sleeping on a futon in a tatami room, the staff are very helpful and used to dealing with foreigners, and they are relatively cheap. In Kyoto I generally stay at the Hiraiwa. It's in a nice quiet location not too far from the station. There is neighbourhood sento on the corner, a couple of nice little restaurants near-by. And, best of all, an office just round the corner is used by the local Yakuza. (Or at least, it still was a couple of years ago.)



(As an aside, in two seperate instances [one in Kyoto, one in Tokyo] I have been interviewed by TV crews while staying at JIG places. I think they know that they cater to Westerners...)

[sorvani]

Originally Posted by Gaiarth

On the subject of hotels, I should have mentioned the Japanese Inn Group.

http://www.jpinn.com/

One of the hotels listed there, Ryokan Asakusa Shigetsu was my initial hotel choice for my trip, until after speaking with the person i was there to see, and she suggested Shibuya for other reasons.

One other thing. Visit the websites, and CALL the hotels and JR if you got any questions for them. SkypeOut is extremely cheap and works wonderfully. Just remember to call during their business day(generally after 8pm in the US is safe). You never know if the night shift can speak english or not. Until daylight savings time ends, Tokyo is 13 hours ahead of the east coast and 16 hours ahead of the west coast.

[icf20405]

Japan is the safe place
If you exclude the crime of the Chinese and the Korean
Foreign distinction it is difficult

When you come to Japan, it comes to akihabara&shinjuku-nityoume regardless,

andAs for one day please stay in the ryokan

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Of3terOcg4U

[Urzu 7]

I would like to hear some people's input on something I've been working towards, maybe somebody has some good advice.

In the past spring semester, I became friends with a woman from Japan who was in an English class of mine. By the end of the semester, I expressed to her an idea I was playing around with for some years, about the possibility of going to live in Japan for at least a while, or possibly starting a life there (of course, going to visit the country first to assure if I want to stay there for an extended amount of time or start a life there), and she was really positive and supportive of this aspiration I shared with her, and it quickly inspired me to start working towards these things.

One thing I should mention is that I probably won't have the money and time to go and give a long visit to Japan until summer 2007, after graduating college. However, I am fortunate to have a relative on my father's side of the family who lives there (he recently married a woman from Japan and had their first child last winter ). So, there is family over there, so this would help ease myself into this society if I decided to go live over there for a few years or decide to establish a life there.

The other thing to mention: My Japanese frined introduced me to the JET program; she gave me the rundown and said such a program would compliment my aspirations nicely. So, I am on my way to graduating college, which my friend says really helps in landing in the JET program. Also, in my last two semesters, I will be taking a two semester long Japanese language course. Lastly, I have started to teach the language to myself. I just started, but I am using the aid of some interactive software to help learn basics, and may even be able to learn the language at the intermediate by the time I would enlist in the JET program.

So, any advice or opinions you guys want to share on this? Oh yes, also, I want to do some more research on Kyoto and the region around Kyoto, I have developed an inclination to locate there or around there.

[sorvani]

Right out of college is the best time to do something like JET. Go and check the place out. It is a great country, I'm back in school at 33 myself with the eventual goal of getting a internal transfer within my company to the asia/pacific region.

[makeyourself]

After finishing Uni (Marketing course, finish in 2010 :'( ), I had picked three countries for career opportunities: Back to Thailand, Singapore and Japan. My choice for Japan was a rather old decision I had, and then again I thought of really going to Japan through pre-conceieved impressions, anime and the news/documentaries on TV.
After reading through this thread, Japan might only be worth a visit. Shame.

[DingoEnderZOE2]

I've now seriously decided that I would like to go to Japan at least once before I hit my mid Twenties. However theres the problem of the seemingly insane prices for tickets that seem to plague the ears of an average American citizen. I already had a plan to get me two jobs(yes I have that much energy) to buy me fun things,food,clothes, while at the same time saving up money to get me a plane ticket(preferably two.....but I dunno.)to visit Japan.

What I would like to know is how likely is it to get a plane ticket for Japan with two jobs but with no rent of my own(Gotta make the most of that now while I can!) to pay yet? I heard there was a travel agency somewhere on the net that could send you tickets for cheaper than the average price.

I would also like to know the best places to stay for a 3 day long period of time should I manage to get the tickets and arrive there. I wouldn't wanna finally get to japan only to encounter a HUGE problem known as "WHERE CAN I SLEEP!?".

Finally if my plan doesn't sound reliable, whats the best way to get to Japan and back while still having enough money to stay for 3 days to a week(maybe.)and to shop?