I’ll be moving from the Kansai area for a new job in Tokyo but I’ll be coming back weekly. I’m looking to make it as cheap and easy as possible without it taking 7+ hours to get there.
Are there frequent passes or a way to make the shinkansen cheaper similar to a commuter pass? Or maybe a reliable website that brokers cheaper tickets?
I’d rather use the shinkansen than fly domestically weekly but flying is almost half the cost and would take about the same time door to door. Of course it’s way more annoying navigating airports frequently lol
Busses take too long and are marginally cheaper than flying so I’d rather avoid them if possible.
Anyone have experience or tips regularly going from Tokyo to Osaka?
Thanks!
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You may also want to try asking in /r/Osaka.
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Almost all Shinkansen 回数券 product are being discontinued this coming March so most 金券ショップ won’t have cheaper Shinkansen ticket either
On top of my head I can think of EXæ—©å¾— https://smart-ex.jp/product/hayatoku/ex_21/ and the Platt Kodama.
The Shinkansen is the easiest, but unfortunately there’s no way to make it cheaper, or even take advantage of frequent use. You can save all of 1,000 by getting a free seat instead of an assigned one, but you’re better off spending the money and getting the seat. The only sort of value is that you can get a seat in a green car for cheap(er) if you buy more than 3 days in advance.
The bus is definitely the cheapest option, but requires more travel time. The night bus is actually probably the best cost-friendly option, and sort of saves time as you travel at night and don’t burn time during the day. There are however daytime buses that get you there late afternoon/early evening. Cheapest you can find is around 2,500, average 4-5,000 one way. With travel resuming in Japan though seats will become very expensive on the weekend, and seat availability will also plummet. If the bus ticket gets up to 9,000, might as well just take the train. I’m not sure about the other companies, but JR has a point system that discounts the price depending on ride frequency.
The plane is actually not nearly as convenient as you’d think. The LCC run from Narita/Kansai, which are inconvenient in terms of where you would like to be for most locations in Tokyo/Osaka. Depending on where you want to go, it can take an extra 2-3,000 yen to travel to and from airports. Also tack on an extra hour of travel time on each end as well. And while domestic air travel is pretty smooth, you do have to go through the gate at least 30 minutes before take-off, not to mention the time it takes for the plane to land, taxi to the gate, go through the airport, etc. Planes offer the least flexibility as well, if you miss your train or bus there can be options (train better than bus in this regard) but if you miss your plane, you’re SOL. However if you pick a carrier and stick with it you can accumulate miles and use those towards future trips. Depending on where in Osaka, the LCC Skymark does have a Haneda – Kobe route which could be much better than the NRT/KIX run.
Might be a nice way to earn mileage points to get frequent-flyer status.