Communication
In the world that we live in, Wifi is as important as water. Surprisingly public Wifi availability isn't that great and an unreliable source. Good news is you can either buy a prepaid sim card OR if you travel in a small group and would never split up; you can hire a pocket wifi (a device that has hotspot capabilities for multiple handhead/laptop device to join). Please get either one of the options because you would need access to Google Maps and Hyperdia for directions, platform information as well as cost.A snapshot of SIM Card options and cost from 7-eleven:
I got my pocket wifi from Global Advanced Communications. Go on to their website and select the plan that would suit you. Once you make the reservation they will post the device either to the hotel or you can pick it up from the post office at the airport.
I got mine via post at Kansai Airport. When I opened up the pack it had the pocket wifi, charger, mini usb charging cable and a return envelope for you to drop off at any post box when you leave the country. I chose the Premium Wifi plan because it had unlimited data usage, since there was 7 of us the cost was still manage-able. We were in Japan for 16 days and we used up to 35GB of data. We were watching Netflix, a lot of Google searches and I updated all my apps.
JR Pass
We bought a 14-day JR pass for our 16 day tour of Japan. Please plan ahead and work out your inter-city travel arrangement before making a decision. You can check how much each leg cost on Hyperdia and excel them up.JR Passes are only available for tourist; the pricing in ¥ for JR pass doesn't change however due to currency conversion rates your travel agent might quote you differently on a daily/weekly basis. You get a receipt from your travel agent upon purchase; you then have to swap your receipt at the JR office for the pass below.
I purchase mine from JTB travel however do shop around your local travel agents for better pricing. Please also be aware of online scams!
JR passes only allows boarding to shinkansen but NOT Nozomi services you can check timetable and platform information on Hyperdia. There are 2 cabin types Green and Ordinary; Green is considered their business class and Ordinary is the cheaper option. In my opinion there is no reason to get Green, however I do insist to always opt for a non-smoking cabin.
Please bear in mind that JR pass is only a pass which entitles you to claim your train tickets operated by Japan Rail. IT IS NOT AN ACTUAL TRAIN TICKET. Tickets are redeemable from JR offices at the train station.
There are two ordinary cabins, reserved and non-reserved. You will want to get tickets in the reserved cabin to guarantee yourself a seat if you happen to travel from Osaka to Hiroshima which is a 3 hour journey (unless you don't mind standing all the way in the non-reserve cabins). When we decided to visit Himeji castle from Osaka which wasn't planned we didn't had time to get reserved tickets therefore we just boarded the next Shinkansen and hope that they were seats.
Convenience Stores
There are 3 major convenience chain in Japan. 7-eleven, Family Mart and Lawson. I have just taken a google map snapshot of the Suidobashi area which we stayed in Tokyo to show you many of them you can find within 3 block radius.
All the BLUE pins are 7-eleven, ORANGE pins are Family Mart and GREEN pins are Lawson. I always bring an empty water bottle when I go traveling, at the end of each day I will buy a 2 litre mineral water from Family Mart for only ¥100. I will only buy the ones from Suntory group, don't ask me why maybe because Yamazaki is part of the Suntory group.
Cash out
Unless you are very desperate, do not attempt to change currency in JAPAN! The rate is so bad that checking rates is a waste of effort. I discovered that I could cash out at any of 7-eleven ATMs with my Bankwest debit card. I change my ¥ in Singapore at the rate of 1:82. At the end of the trip when cash was running low my cash out conversion at 7-eleven was 1:80 including all charges; I was pretty happy with that. If I remember correctly I walk pass a shop and the rate was 1:67. As per above you can easily find 7-eleven EVERYWHERE.REMINDER: Always keep lose change with you, especially ¥100. Ensure that you spend all your ¥1 and ¥5 (a lot of vending machines don't take them).
Buying the right subway ticket to your destination
This is the subway system of just TOKYO! When I saw this at the self ticketing counter I was like...WTF!
There are two ways to pay for subway fares you can opt to buy a PASMO or SUICA card or just pay cash at any station. In essence you just have to top up money on the card and swipe your way in/out from any train or bus stops without worrying if you have purchased the right fare or not. Tripadvisor has a post that explains the difference between the two.
I didn't buy either the PASMO or SUICA card, therefore I had to pay cash at the ticket counter before boarding the train. I have always relied on Google Maps to get information how to get to places, Google Maps even tells you which platform and how much the fare cost.
However as much faith as I have with Google Map I still double check if the pricing is right from the map of 1000 Japanese train stops which was quite dumb. I can tell you that if you are taking the subway Google Map is bulletproof. If you are running behind and haven't got your ticket yet, you can just buy any ticket and jump on the train first.
There are fare adjustment machines at every train station therefore if you have purchased the wrong ticket or change your mind half way and decide to go somewhere else instead you can just make the amendments before exiting your new destination without coping a fine.
Bus
We used the bus system only in Hiroshima, Kyoto and Kawaguchiko to get around. The sightseeing loop bus route in Hiroshima is included with JR pass (this is a special tourist bus that loops around places of interest, not a local city bus). The sightseeing bus route in Kawaguchiko is not included with JR pass. There is no sightseeing bus in Kyoto, all places of interest are reachable via local city buses.You can buy day ticket which allows you unlimited travel on sightseeing buses in Hiroshima (¥400) and Kawaguchiko (¥1200). We didn't buy the day ticket in Kawaguchiko but we hire a bike instead. The day ticket for local city bus in Kyoto cost ¥500 and please do remember to get this!
Lockers
I stayed with Airbnb for my entire trip except Miyajima Island and Kawaguchiko; therefore we didn't have the privilege of leaving our luggage with any concierge service. Lockers are available at every train station. I remembered spending almost 20 minutes trying to figure out how to use or even find out if the lockers are available. (Actually I spent 20 minutes trying to figure out how to open the door of the locker LOL. Wasn't sure if the doors unlock after you pay or you need some magical ritual in the end we were educated by an old Japanese uncle. KEYS! If you don't see any keys hanging from the locker doors then start looking for others.
You can only lock the locker and release the key once you have paid the requested amount. The price paid allows you to store your baggage for the day. Failure to retrieve your baggage will incur penalties and you would need to pay the penalties before you can unlock the locker.
No comments:
Post a Comment