Trip Planning Megathread! – Trains, Planes, and Automobiles!

17 comments

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2. I love taking the Shinkansen to get around within Japan. Picking up some [snacks](https://www.japan-guide.com/ad/ekiben/) and a few [alcoholic beverages](https://www.gltjp.com/en/directory/item/10976/), putting on some headphones with some music, and watching the Japanese countryside speed by from a window seat on the way to the next city in your itinerary is one of my favorite things about traveling in Japan.

3. After tourism reopens, riding the Shimanami Kaido is one of my dreams. I’ve read before that you can rent regular bikes, “Giant” brand bikes, or e-bikes. E-bikes certainly are easier to ride up hills, but I’ve also heard that they’ll often run out of battery mid-route.

4. How easy is it to get from Kyoto to Osaka, specifically Osaka’s airport? Planning on starting my trip in Tokyo, taking the shinkansen to Kyoto and then flying home via Osaka (I would still have a layover in Tokyo). Alternatively was thinking of taking the shinkansen back to Tokyo and flying home from there.

5. I’d really like to try the overnight ferry and overnight sleeper train one day. Three years ago, I had a ticket for a Nobi Nobi seat in the Sunrise Seto to Tokyo, but I decided to just take a regular shinkansen to get to Tokyo quicker and book a hostel for the night. Even though this was more convenient or comfortable than taking the sleeper train, I regret doing it because I traded a unique experience for comfort. That extra night I had in Tokyo got lost with the other nights I spent in Tokyo and I barely remember it, but I surely would have remembered riding a sleeper train for the first time.

6. It’s really easy to rent a car with Toyota Rent A Car. Obviously most places are easy to get to with public transportation, but driving gives you an opportunity to really see some areas that you’d otherwise breeze right through.

   A few years ago I rented a car in Tokyo, went to a few places there that I planned for, and then met a friend in takasaki. I got to stop at a SA (service area, like a rest stop with food court and stuff), drive through very residential neighborhoods in the countryside, etc. Then we both drove our cars through some forests and up a mountain to a lake, where it unexpectedly began to snow.

   Downsides are that you need to be good at driving (in order to not get freaked out if you get lost especially if you’re not used to RHD, since IME the GPS in the car sucks), you need to be ok with tolls (they’re everywhere and since you’re not a local you won’t know the cheaper short cuts).

   If you can get past that though and want to do an overnighter into the countryside that is definitely a really fun way to do it.

7. I thought I could walk/bike around Miyakojima but I was wrong. It’s also because the big companies were charging over 10000 a day for rental.
   What’s interesting is that I was able to find small businesses that rented cars and they weren’t the newest cars but they were super affordable.
   I was only able to get a car cos of COVID and it was October so learn from me and book in advance and rent a car.

   Renting a car also allowed me to explore all of the island and the connected islands. 10/10 don’t cheap out!

8. While the main goal of any transportation method is obviously to move from one point to the other, I know that many people are also really looking forward the experience in itself. While the most common is probably people wanting to try the shinkansen, but once in a while, there is someone that will bring up the Sunrise Seto/Izumo, but for me, there is some much more unique experiences that are unfortunately rarely mentioned (even in this page).

   If you want a unique experience, check out the [scenic railways](https://www.japan.travel/en/scenic-railways/), that JR Est call [Joyful Trains](https://www.jreast.co.jp/e/joyful/). Among them, I think that the only one that is relatively often mentioned is the Sagano Scenic Railway and sometimes the Hello Kitty Shinkansen.

   ​

   I personally did two of them, the [Ban’etsu Monogarari](https://en.japantravel.com/niigata/ban-etsu-monogatari/58646), link to my own report using it, that is a lovely retro train. Unfortunately, it was a diesel locomotive when I rode it as the steam locomotive was under maintenance, but it is still a lovely trains, with a retro vibe. I would absolutely recommend if you think about going to Aizuwakamatsu and Kitakata (for some good ramen). The train is just super fun and there is even a playroom for kids.

   The other one I tried is the Hello Kitty Shinkansen, even if I am not a Hello Kitty fan, I woke up in time to catch it just for the fun of riding a unique train. It might be counterintuitive, but you do not want to make a seat reservation if you ride this train, you want to get in the Car 2, that is the special “Kawaii room, that is fully decorated with Hello Kitty in the inside. (also there is a big luggage rack in car 2, so no idea if this could beat the new requirement to book seat when traveling with big luggage on that line). I did not know and made the mistake to get a reserved seat and was in Car 4 (all the car beside 1 and 2 are just normal inside). This mean that I had to walk across the whole car 2 and 3 to get into the car 1, the Hello Plaza, that is a special car that is mostly a store that sell Hello Kitty Shinkansen exclusive items and to take picture. When I was there, they had a multiple choice question quiz about one of the prefecture and if you get all good answers, you get a prize (postcard). While some questions were easy, like for Hiroshima prefecture, what is the traditional sweet of Miyajima (momiji manju) some where really hard, like what is the name of the art installation in Kosan-ji temple in Onomichi, the answer being [The Hill of Hope](https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-pFpe-1mZDP4/TsXhfOGmCGI/AAAAAAAAAcA/D7gRoFoTsAM/s0/hauteurs%252520eterelles%252520360.jpg), (link to a 360 picture I took there), that I already knew about because I love Onomichi.

9. u/amyranthlovely would you consider adding links about the new oversized baggage rules on the Tokaido, Sanyo and Kyushu shinkansen (basically between Tokyo and Kagoshima). I suggest that as it’s a new rule that was implemented after Japan closed because of COVID, so I think it would be nice to highlight it (I know, it is mentioned in the Shinkansen page already linked). I also posted a link to [Scenic Railways](https://www.japan.travel/en/scenic-railways/) in a different comment, that might also be valid to add.

   Here are the official JR links of the 3 branches concerned.

   [https://global.jr-central.co.jp/en/info/oversized-baggage/](https://global.jr-central.co.jp/en/info/oversized-baggage/)

   [https://www.westjr.co.jp/global/en/howto/baggage/](https://www.westjr.co.jp/global/en/howto/baggage/)

   [https://www.jrkyushu.co.jp/english/](https://www.jrkyushu.co.jp/english/) > “Bringing Large Baggage” link in the page lead to [this PDF](https://www.jrkyushu.co.jp/english/pdf/oversized_baggage.pdf).

10. Is flying on budget airplanes like Peach airlines reliable? Or do they reschedule/cancel a lot of flights because they’re budget?

11. While trains are usually my go to when in Japan, don’t ignore planes when planning a trip. Whether you are transiting out of Tokyo or travelling halfway across Japan, planes tend to be quicker and cheaper. Pre Covid, both ANA and JAL would have 10,000 yen flights for tourists. There are also a lot of small airports that they will fly into, so you may be surprised where you can go on a flight!

12. I had planned to make a new post every year but for some reason, my first one from [2019](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/comments/bidu2y/july_2019_toyama_backpacking_tohoku_fuji_rock_how/) has been the only one I’ve written. Boooo. It covers going to (and how to plan for) some of the lesser-traveled places in Japan, as well as a multi-day hiking trip in the Japanese Alps (Tateyama in Toyama Prefecture, not Chiba). Some of the links are broken, sorry.

    My biggest advice is to look at the excel spreadsheet I made. If you’re not an experienced trip planner, it’s a good skeleton to work from. Even if you are experienced at planning but don’t incorporate something like this, I strongly suggest you use it to help you plan your train rides if you’re at all unsure about whether or not to get a JR pass (of which there are many – check the OP). I find really useful to be able to move days or cities around so I can try to maximize the value of my JR pass.

13. I just viewed a YT video about the Dream Sleeper 1st class overnight bus between Osaka and Tokyo.

    [https://www.kanto-bus.co.jp/english/nightway/dream-sleeper/](https://www.kanto-bus.co.jp/english/nightway/dream-sleeper/)

    It’s somewhat more expensive that Shinkansen but does save one night’s lodging. Seems as if sleeping is actually possible.

14. Night trains are some of my favorite ways to try and save money. Instead of paying separately for a hotel and transit, you can pay for both in one package, often at a cheaper price then both separately.

    Of course, this all depends entirely on what class you book, and where you planned on staying.

15. Hello! How do people travel around Okinawa on public transport, particularly from Naha to Cape Maeda? Is it doable as a day trip if I want to go swimming/snorkelling, or is it worth looking at staying overnight?

    Also wondering about any experiences of going from KIX to Naha one-way – I don’t want to book anything until things are more certain, but how are the low-cost airlines?

16. Really hope their tourism industry survives this long, they have already missed the tokyo 2020 influx. Hope there are still things left on my list to visit, some have already permanently closed. Oh well, gotta hope I guess.

    ​

    Anyone got some spots (otaku and anime related)? preferably in the north and relatively easy to get to with public transport. We are already looking at sapporo because beer but wan’t more experiences, would be a waste to only visit sapporo after a whole day of traveling.

17. I’m planning to solo travel to Osaka – Tokyo for Halloween from Oct 25th to Nov, does the Halloween ornaments gone right after October or it stays to early November? And I can’t decide should I celebrate Halloween in Osaka or Tokyo?