Hi! My friends and I are planning a relatively packed trip to Japan early next year. We’re going to be quite a lot of moving around, and I’m a bit overwhelmed our options re: travel cards. We’re definitely getting a JR national pass, but I’m not sure what would be the most logical/cost-effective for the more local aspects of our trip, given we also have the JR Pass, and could really do with some advice.
We’re first going to be traveling around the Kansai region for a while (Osaka, Kyoto, Himeji) and also spending awhile checking out Hiroshima and Miyajima (Itsukushima). We’re then going to spend some time around Tokyo, and also take a day or so to visit Hakone. Finally, we’re going to Nagano (Yamanochi).
We’re definitely going to have to travel using the Osaka Metro – the most convenient IC card for that would probably be the Icoca, right? I was considering the Kansai One Pass, for the tourist perks, but it seems like it can’t be used outside of Kansai while the regular Icoca can, which would mean we wouldn’t need a new card for Tokyo.
Alternatively, do you guys rate the 3-day Tokyo Subway Pass? Could that be a cost-effective supplement to the JR pass for getting around Tokyo, compared to an IC card? I know Tokyo also has the Welcome Suica/Pasmo Passport for tourists, too; do you think they’re worth it? Any benefits of one over the other?
Finally, it seems like Nagano has its own rail line (Nagaden) which doesn’t accept IC cards. Do you have any advice for managing travel in Nagano?
Sorry, I know this is a lot – it’s just a bit overwhelming, and I’d really appreciate any advice or other insights you might have! Thank you!
4 comments
As far as I know, Kansai one pass is just a icoca with a different design, you should be able to use it in the same places as a normal icoca, for sure would take that one if you land in Kansai.
For the tourist version of the suica/pasmo, if I had to take one it would be suica to save the 500yen deposit as the pasmo rebate does not seem to be that interesting, however, I think the Kansai One Pass is more interesting and you can reuse it if you go to Japan again in the futur.
The 24-48-72 hours Tokyo Metro tickets can be nice, but you need to take the metro enough time, it’s any pass, it might save you money and it can cost more than what you will use it for. Considering that you might want to mix JR and subway, then it might be harder to use the ticket enough to make it worth (also depend how much you move).
Actually, the train in Nagano does accept IC card, but only the kururu card. So just for a couple of days, not worth getting it. If you want to go to the monkey park, I think there is a pass for that, otherwise, just bring money and buy individual tickets for the train (or carry coins if you want to ride the bus).
Icoca, PASMO, Suica etc are all the same. Just get 1 and use that everywhere for trains buses and subways.
Whether you need a rail pass for intercity long distance travel depends on your travel plans and how economical it will be. There are lots of different discount passes for visitors. A total country Japan rail pass may not be the best thing if you’re only going to visit certain areas.
https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2357.html
Check the [JR Pass Calculator](https://www.japan-guide.com/railpass/) to find out if the JR Pass is actually a good idea for your trip. If you find yourself having to buy a ton of extra tickets and cards for other cities, you’re not likely to be getting a good deal by using the Pass at all and you might be better off just using one or two cards, and paying cash for the train trips.
For example, on my recent trip, the JR Pass would have been just about useless in Kyoto. Having it active for those days we were there would not have made it convenient to get around, as the trains it can be used on were still a decent walk away from the attractions we wanted to see. If our pass was active for those days of our trip, and we still paid cash out of pocket or bought another IC card/bus card to get around, it would have been a waste of money to have paid extra (technically) for the pass, as we didn’t use it for those 3-4 days we were there. Instead, we arranged our trip for the places we’d use the Pass so that we got the most use out of it possible for the cost we paid, and only used Suica cards everywhere else that took them.
The 72-hour subway comes comes out to $3.50 a day. Best deal under the Sun.