Top Japan hotels
from / to the Airport Tokyo
61 Reviews On arriving at Narita Airport we took the Limo bus into town to avoid the trains at rush hour...and we're glad we did, the bus took just 45 minutes to our hotel. It dropped us literally at the door....
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City Buses Kyoto
40 Reviews Kyoto City Bus is quite convinient for most of the touristic sites. 220 Yen, longer distances are more (these longer distance buses have black numbers). Ypu can get a One Day Pass for 500 Yen (for...
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train Osaka
25 Reviews Kansai Thru Pass (Suruttu Kansai magnetic card) is a exzellent Pass if you travel between Osaka, Kyoto, Nara, Koyasan, Kobe, Himeji... 2 or 3 day's (don't have to Be consecutive), 3800 and 5000 Yen,...
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Travel Within Hiroshima Hiroshima
14 Reviews In Hiroshima there are plenty of trains to move around in Hiroshima. The trains don't go everywhere, but they get you closer to a number of destinations. We paid 150 yen each one way to get to our...
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Getting To Okayama Okayama
6 Reviews Many people use the Shinkansen to get to Okayama. It's certain fast and convenient, and for many travellers, the Shinkansen itself is on their list of things to experience in Japan. If however, you...
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Getting Around the City : General Info Tokyo
34 Reviews The Toden Arakawa line doesn't really connect any notable places, but it is the only tram line in Tokyo, and so makes for an interesting trip if you get the chance, meandering through areas of Tokyo...
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Shinkansen Kyoto
25 Reviews When booking a Shinkansen to/from Kyoto and Tokyo, might be good if you can specify which side seats you would prefer when making seats reservation at any JR station. When I boarded the Shinkansen...
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subway & busses Osaka
36 Reviews These vending mashines let you select you ticket only after you put your money in, subway allows you to switch to english, Train only in japanese, but you need only to put in the fare price (somewhere...
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Getting To Hiroshima Hiroshima
11 Reviews Hiroshima is an important port with ferry connections to other cities and even to South Korea (where we came from). We also took the ferry to Matsuyama on Shikoku which costs Y 2600 and takes 2 3/4...
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Travel Within Okayama Okayama
5 Reviews The trams in Okayama start just outside of Okayama Station (across the street at the start of Momotaro Odori, the main street). There are two lines, one which ends at Higashiyama and the other ends at...
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Waterbus & Ferry Tokyo
11 Reviews The famous tokyo waterbus that takes you to Asakusa and back. The Assorted cruising boats owned by a company called suijobus takes persons on a 40 minute ride from Hinode Pier (its a 7 minute walk...
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Trains Kyoto
23 Reviews There are a couple of ways to go to Kyoto from KIX. There's the Limousine Bus, the taxi and our recommended choice --- Haruka airport express which is 75 mins and costs normally at 2980 for unreserved...
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taxi / car Osaka
6 Reviews I found the Cartrafic in Osaka and other places of Japan not extremely bad and I also dont remember any trafic-jam. Something that is quite confusing for any tourists are the inscriptions mostly...
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Flying into / out of Tokyo Tokyo
31 Reviews this is the main gateway to the tokyo and the kanto plain area of japan, the other one is the haneda airport but it caters mostly domestic flights and flights to korea and china. The Arrival Area of...
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Taxis Kyoto
8 Reviews * Since May 17, 2002 the Shinpuhkan is also operating the new Velo Taxi - bicycle taxis imported from and based on those running in Berlin. No Velo taxis run during February and March otherwise they...
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airport to city Osaka
6 Reviews The Haruka is an express train that will take you to Kansai international airport in 50 minutes. It's fast, comfortable and relatively inexpensive. It departs from Shin Osaka station. There are other...
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Rail > Metro / Subway Tokyo
68 Reviews Ok, the first thing that freaks you out about Tokyo is it size and the confusing maps of all the trains... but once you do it, you realize it's a simple as any other train system around the world......
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Subway Kyoto
15 Reviews The subway is very modern and convenient. Having a sightseeing day pass let you go all over town very quickly and visit the different landmarks scatered around town. Otherwise, you will always have to...
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public transport maps Osaka
3 Reviews MAP OF OSAKA SUBWAY: Click Here MAP OF OSAKA PUBLIC TRANSPORT: Click Here OSAKA KANSAI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT Click Here JAPAN SHINKANSEN MAP: <A HREF='http://jin.jcic.
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Rail > Rail Passes / Reduced Fare Tickets Tokyo
14 Reviews JR Pass is a special arrangement for tourists visiting Japan. With JR Pass you will be able to use Japan Rail ordinary trains as well as Shinkansen. Shinkansen also known as bullet trains provide...
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Highway Bus Kyoto
4 Reviews Most short-stay visitors will use the trains, but those looking to save money, especially on long-distance travel, can do so by taking a highway bus! Because it is such a popular destination, buses...
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airplanes & airports Osaka
17 Reviews the "West" region of Japan known as Kansai is the alta-ego of its Eastern counterpart : Tokyo . and a Japan being an isLand w/ Limited LandMass they have conjured the technology 2 build artificiaL...
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Rail > Getting into / out of Tokyo by Train Tokyo
41 Reviews A great deal is available if you take the NEX from Narita airport into Tokyo. You get a Suica card preloaded with Y1500 (almost free) when you buy your NEX ticket at the JR office in the airport...
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Rickshaws Kyoto
6 Reviews Riksha's are available in some places but not that common, maybe more in the torist area's temples and small streets I saw those which can be somehow nice adventure for a short ride. However, it was...
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Road > Taxi & Bus Tokyo
34 Reviews There are no street addresses in Japan, so if you are traveling by taxi, you have to describe to the cabbie more or less where you want to go. (Our apartment, for example, might be described as...
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Whether by bus, metro or train, if you are going to use the same mode of transport more than 2 trips/day, it might be worth the while to buy the day pass.Example, the shortest subway is about 170Yen per trip while the day pass is about 600Yen. If you going to travel from JR Train Station to hotel and from hotel to sightseeing spots and dinner and subsequently back to the hotel, it might be worthwhile to get the day pass.
Flying domestic airline can be fairly easy and can also encounter flight delays.Our internal domestic flight from Tokyo to New Chitose Airport was hassle free and the check-in was done via the automated check-in machines (assisted by the staff) located at the airline's counters at the airport. Within 15 minutes, everything was done and we were off wandering around the terminal building and sampling the fine cuisine within the terminal building.However, the next domestic flight from New Chitose Airport to Kansai Airport wasn't as smooth. For some reason, the automated check-in machines would print the boarding passes and the queues at the airline's counters were 100-200m long.Even after getting our boarding pass and getting to the gate well ahead of time, we found that the flight was to be delayed by almost 2 hours, presumably, for the rest of the passengers in the queue to get their...
Exchanging your JR Pass voucher that you had bought in your home country into JR Rail Pass at Narita International Airport can be challenging.We touch down at Narita Airport at 7:30am and didn't get onto the Express Train until 9:45am. Fortunately, I had given myself 3 hours for this task and did not encounter any delays to my planned schedule.Getting to the JR Rail Pass exchange office isn't difficult, just ask the information counter and the english speaking staff would direct you.However, the queue at the exchange office can be long and is a very manual and slow process. The front of the queues may not fully understand the procedure and can result in slow processing for themselves, thereby, holding up your turn.First of all, each passenger has to fill out a form ((available at the side of the office) and sign off.When you are being served, please point out your name on the voucher and...
If you're spending more than a couple days in Japan and plan on visiting different cities, then the railpass is almost a must. It is so expensive to take the train from one city to another, that the pass (although fairly pricey) pays for itself after you use it at least twice.It costs about $350 USD for the pass, and it is valid on all trains and subway lines in the country. Its NOT valid on buses, taxis or streetcars however.It's a little complicated to obtain - you need to find an office in your home country where they sell "exchange orders" for the pass. You pay for the pass in full there and receive the order, and then when you get to Japan and locate a JR office (which should be right in the airport) they will take your exchange order and give you your pass. I found the website very helpful. Check it out for more info on types of passes, prices, exchange order office locations, etc.
I have always looked at the All- JR Pass this way:28000 for the one week17000 to add another week12000 to add a third weekIf you are going to be here for three weeks ...will you get your monies worth out of that last 12000?Or, if you are going to be spending about 20000 a week, its worth it (remember it includes those local JR trains and the Narita Express.)But if you are doing one long ride to Grandmas house, and then returning to Narita 3 weeks later, you probably are better off getting a connecting flight if it is far away, or otherwise forgetting this pass.Your trip* 4700 Narita to kamakura, (yah you could save yen with the NEX Suica deal) 900 Kamakura to tokyo15000 tokyo to osaka 1400 osaka to koyasan 1400 koyasan to osaka 540 osaka and onto kyoto, (JR Special Rapid) 2000 kyoto to kobe *RETURN*(JR Special Rapid)11000 kyoto to himeji *RETURN*22000 kyoto to Hiroshima *RETURN*, and...
This is -NOT- about the JR Pass, which is for a set period of time, all over Japan. That all-JR pass -can- now be purchased citizens who have resident status in another country, or are married to a foreign national, and -of course- anyone else with Temporary Visitor stamped in their passport.This -IS- about the JR East Pass. More specifically the JR East 4 day flex pass. You have to be a visitor.This is about the best website Ive found that straightens out the confusion. JR must have finally hired a native English speaker to clean up their website:http://www.japanrail.com/index.php?page=JR-regional-rail-passThe Regional passes cannot be purchased by Japanese citizens, even if they live outside, or have always lived outside, of Japan.Normally, if you are in Japan to travel all over, this JR East pass is not for you. Look at the map of what JR East is and is not. It is not the Shinkansen...
The Puratto Kodama Economy Plan deal is available only from JTB offices at Tokaido Shinkansen stations. It can be purchased in Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto and other cities But only from JTB offices at Tokaido Shinkansen stations. I bought mine at the JTB office in the Tokyo Central Station for the Tokyo-Kyoto trip. MUST be bought at least 1 day in advance of the trip.You cannot buy it at regular ticket counters. But you can buy it through travel agents such as JTB or JR Tokai Tours. The latter has branches at Tokyo and Shinagawa Stations. You can also purchase for travel between several other cities on the Tokaido Shinkansen Line.Remember it has to be JR Tokai/JR TOURS/JR CENTRAL ( orange coloured JR) not JR East (green colored JR), ticket offices in Tokyo/Shinagawa Stations).It includes a one way trip from the departure station to the destination station by reserved seat on a Kodama...
Prior to leaving Canada, I purchased a two-week JR Rail pass (about $600 CDN). The train provided unlimited travel throughout Japan on JR Rail trains, JR subway lines in Tokyo and travel to/from the airport (Narita Express). It was much cheaper to buy this pass than to pay for train/subway travel separately. I also pre-booked seating on non-smoking trains at JR offices in train stations before traveling to my next city. There are a number of bento box kiosks at train stations and on platforms and vending machines to purchases beverages for train travel. There is a small cart service on trains for coffee, tea and snacks. Most trains have a Western-style toilet if you dislike the Japanese-style trough toilet. Make sure you go to the correct platform and confirm the train ticket characters to match the coloured train destination and number on the platform ground where you board the train....
Wow! thank you for all your responses, some really handy information there. My journey is actually 2 and a half weeks and I think it's good to to see each place well, so an itinery of Tokyo, Kyoto, Mount Koya and Nara I think is good. In addition I will make a day trip to see Fuji five lakes.I will stick to buying tickets indvidually as first considered as most of my journeys will be on the smaller branch lines. I will check out the links included and your pages to give me a good overview before leaving. Am really looking forward to it and you've all just whetted the appetite more!Thanks again,Kyle
Here's what happens with a Japan Rail Pass. You first need to know how many days you want your pass valid for. Go to the japanrail.com website and click on JR Passes. Note that the pass is good for consecutive days; once you validate it, it's good for the amount of days you bought it for and then it ends (this is unlike Europe Rail Passes where some of them you can select which days you want to use it for, in any given month etc). Contact your travel agent and tell them which pass you want. They should be able to order it for you. If they say they can't, contact another agent. Someone will be able to do this for you, don't worry. A few days later, the travel agent will call you and tell you your pass is in. It looks like a voucher, or a plane ticket from long ago. Don't lose it! Once you arrive in Japan, you have to decide when you want to validate it, since you'll only have a limited...
Park Hyatt Tokyo Tokyo
7 Reviews and 526 Opinions Most memorable
Hotel Granvia Kyoto Kyoto
6 Reviews and 743 Opinions We stayed 3 nights at Kyoto Granvia Hotel from Feb. 27 to Mar 1, 2008. We paid Yen 17,600 per night,...
The Ritz-Carlton Osaka Osaka
1 Review and 353 Opinions
Reviews and photos of Japan attractions posted by real travelers and locals. The best tips for Japan sightseeing.
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Q: Hi there, Will arrive in Tokyo, Narit Airport for a layover and wanted to take advantage of seeing something. I will arrive at...
A: youre lucky to be arriving so early, so you will likely pass through immigration fairly quickly. lets still count with an hour just in case. you can either take the...
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