Wednesday, 2 July 2008
My Japan Travels
This year I've decided to really travel and see more of Japan and just do more "Japanese things" that I should have done years ago.
It's so easy to get stuck doing the same thing again and again, especially if you're working for a Japanese company that you could easily find yourself (like me) having lived in the country for four and a half years and only really been to Tokyo (where I live), Kyoto (only a day trip), Mt Fuji and Tokyo Disneyland and Disney Sea (in Chiba).
When I first came to Japan I was planning to do a big trip every three months or so to another major Japanese city or location but saving the money and getting significant time off (was at NOVA at the time) was really difficult and when I did get time off, I needed it to re-energise myself from teaching like a machine all week.
Hopefully I'll be able to break that pattern this year. With three weeks off in August (it pays to negotiate in your contract negotiation each year, trust me) and Betty, a friend of mine who I used to work with at Starbucks in Sydney coming to visit, I'm going to buy some cheap airline tickets (I don't have the patience for overnight bus trips when a one hour flight can get you to the other side of the country) and head down to Osaka, Fukuoka and possibly Sendai (where I wanted to live when I first came to Japan but have yet to actually go there!).
It'll be great to see these other cities (especially Fukuoka which I've heard so much about) and continue my Pokemon Journey and complete my Japanese Starbucks Mug Collection.
I've used several different travel websites before to make my bookings and have posted about them (it's always good to be informed of better options). A rather unique site I just found was LowFares.com which lets you type your trip into it's search engine and when you click search it opens up three different agencies of your choice in different windows at the same time so you can compare straight away! Pretty convenient, though when I searched for a trip from Tokyo to Fukuoka most of the windows only gave me one response. Hmmm... Ah, my bad, I clicked on hotels and flight combination. Haha.
Searching again this time for a flight from Narita to Osaka I'm really surprised how cheap a flight can be! About US$200! I still can't wrap my head around how much cheaper a domestic flight is in Japan compared to rail.
Are you planning any trips this year in Japan? What do you recommend? Personally I love Nikko and would love to go there again but really want to see some places I haven't been to yet first.
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Labels: japan
posted by Brad at
10:50 AM
8 Comments:
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Tokyo 2016 Olympic Candidate City
Cheap Hotel Bookings and Reservations
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2008 New Years Resolutions (Finally!)
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Pokemon Theme Backwards!
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Half Arsed English Translations
Starbucks Mug Japan 2008
Working in Japan
Welcome. My name's Brad and I'm about to start my fifth year in Tokyo, Japan though lately I've found that that defines me as badly as saying I'm from Sydney, Australia.
I'd recommend Hiroshima, Nagasaki, and if you like "onsen", you can stop by in Hakone or Beppu. I've been to all of those places so I reckon you'll have fun.
Personally, I just went to Hiroshima this summer and it was just like any other modern city (but much less interesting than Tokyo etc). Only 1-2 days there was enough. HOWEVER, there is a small island near Hiroshima called Miyajima which was absolutely beautiful ;)
Oh and Nara is really cute too:) So basically you could do the south of Japan (from Kyoto, go to Nara and then go to Himeji castle(worth it!) and then stay in Hiroshima so that you can go to Miyajima:D
And yeah Hakone is cute but you can go there from Tokyo (takes around 1h or 2 with the train, don't remember exactly lol but it didn't take a long time). That's what I did:)
Happy Sightseeing :D
I second the need to go to Hiroshima, but two days is enough. I just think everyone should visit the memorial in their lifetime.
An easy day trip from Tokyo on the Tsukuba Express is Mt. Tsukuba. It has two peaks and you can hike between them (also up and down, but there's a cable car and a ropeway too). Easiest to visit if you have a vehicle, but accessible with public transit. I think it's best during the plum blossoms in March and when the leaves change colour in Novemeber.
Further afield, I highly recommend the Kagoshima area. A fantastic fruit/vegetable growing area, the food is fantastic. There's the active volcano Sakura-jima, you can be buried in hot therapeutic sands (just your head sticks out), there are onsen everywhere, and it's tropical!
Happy travels!
I'm in Sendai and am dying to get out for a vacation. I'd like to get down to Osaka. Thank you for the information.
I second Kagoshima. You've got to try a sand onsen (sunaburo).
Sorry, no advice because I'm going to stalk your page for advice for my holiday. Thanks for the Cheap Flights link. Going to check it out now.
Hi Brad,
Since you have such a long vacation, I suggest you look into JR's 青春１８切符 (seishun 18 kippu).
You've probably already heard of it, but if not it basically allows you 5 days of unlimited travel through Japan using any of JR's non-express, non-shinkansen trains. The total price is 11,500 yen, which boils down to just 2,300 yen per a day.
Considering that if you plan well enough you can get from Tokyo to Fukuoka in one day, it can pretty a pretty great deal.
The downside of course is that because you're using nothing but local trains, it will take you absolutely forever to travel long distances. On the other hand, it also gives you a good opportunity to see a lot of places you'd normally never get to go to.
Also, since you can use the days non-consecutively, you can use the ticket for several trips. There are also some ticket shops around major stations where you can buy partially used tickets good for just a day or two.
The ticket is on sale now, but you won't be able to use it until the 21st.
As far as reservations, Jalan.net is a good place to research places to stay and find some good deals. If you're thinking about traveling to some more rural areas, it can really be invaluable.
Hope you enjoy your vacation.
Sounds good.
Where you you have room for the Starbucks Mug Collection?
I don't. Almost two shelves full in my kitchen. Haha