1 month trip to Japan : First trip; Rough itinerary idea, any advice welcome

28 comments

1. Pokémon & Nintendo center can both be tackled in a few hours..

   Try looking up the wards of Tokyo and what they have to offer. I highly recommend: Naka-Meguro, Shibuya, & Asakusa.

2. > What are your estimate for the food budget, with info already provided or that you can ask me?

   This really depends on your preferences. But if you’re able to buy and cook food where you’re staying, you can probably get by in the neighborhood of 10 euro/person/day as a low end if you cook for 5 at once.

   > Could i easily use my debit card if i warn my bank of my trip in advance?

   Yes.

   > Is converting money easy in Airports ATMs ?

   Yes, and also 7-11 ATMs around the country.

   > Are there any dangers we need to know about?

   Not really, not beyond the standard travel issues.

   > Is the idea of using bases a good idea

   Yes, though the 4 cities you mention are not of equal weight. There will be far more stuff to do in the last two than there are in the first two.

   > prolly dumb question, but , are the prices in airbnbs as shown per night, mean just per night, or per night per person?

   Depends on the listing. Read the listing, read the pricing.

   > Is a two baggage plane ticket a good idea? One of 15kg with us, and one in the plane of until 23kg.

   Depends on your plans and how you pack, there’s no correct answer here.

   > Quantity of clothes to take?

   Depends on your travel style and where you plan on staying. For a month long trip, though, my suggestion would be to pack for a week or two and then plan on doing laundry. Most hostels will have laundry options, and there are laundromats in most cities. Just do your homework when you’re picking places to stay.

   > Have not calculated yet for the lodging, would guess for around a good 700 euros.

   Per person? Or for the group? Per person, that’s about right though on the lower end if you plan on staying in hostels the whole time. For the whole group? Probably not possible.

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4. In terms of clothing I would recommend packing light. I prefer to pack a minimal amount of clothing and fill my suitcase with souvenirs on the way home. Many hotels have washing machines you can use with cash/coins (and laundromats are also common in most areas) so maybe pack 1 weeks worth of clothes that you can rotate and wash weekly. For types of clothes, I recommend light, breathable layers (think cotton or linen). I’m not sure what Belgium is light but Japan summers (especially in Tokyo) can be get quite hot (and very humid, especially in July/August). You can always also buy clothes when you get there.

   For restaurants, on days when you’re just looking for a cheap meal, I recommend supermarket premade meals (which are also discounted in the evenings before closing time) and convenience stores. I prefer both over fast food personally, and the quality of food in convenience stores is quite good and varied, especially in cities where lots of people buy convenience store lunches

5. >What are your estimate for the food budget, with info already provided or that you can ask me?

   easy to go around pretty cheap. lots of good food at local stores and even something like ramen is not that expensive. I would guess you shouldn’t need more than 20€ on a normal day.

   >Could i easily use my debit card if i warn my bank of my trip in advance?

   yes. just makre sure its not region locked by your bank

   > Is converting money easy in Airports ATMs ?

   yes. or at every other ATM around the country. (I usually go for the 7/11 ATMs)

   > Is the idea of using bases a good idea

   yes. unless you want to carry around all your stuff every single day.

   > Are there any dangers we need to know about?

   not really no. I would recommend to get a travel insurance regardless, cause you never know. You also might want to take a look at the “Japan Official Travel App”.

   > Is a two baggage plane ticket a good idea

   Totally depends on you. I for myself go either with just carry on, or with one check in suitcase and carry one to get back all the stuff I buy.

   > Quantity of clothes to take

   Again. Totally depends on you. Ask yourself what you need and what you want to carry around everytime you switch places. I see two options: Enough for the whole trip or stuff for 1-2 weeks with occasional laundry.

   ​

   A few more things I always do:
   get a suica/pasmo card for local travel.
   get a JR Pass for long distance travel with the shinkansen (reserve seats on the day of the arrival).
   get a mobile internet hotspot or sim card so that I don’t need to rely on public wifi.
   book, buy, reserve everything that might be sold out or is cheaper/easier online and in advance.

6. > Could i easily use my debit card if i warn my bank of my trip in advance?
   > Is converting money easy in Airports ATMs ?

   You’ll also need to check with your bank to make sure your card works. There are also some cases where you’re card may only work at certain ATMs from one bank but not the other. While compatibility has improved over the years just be aware that you may need to try a couple different ATMs to get money out. 7-11 generally has the best compatibility.

   > Are there any dangers we need to know about?

   Not really, if you’ve ever been to any large city in Europe you should be fine. If you’re out in some of the larger nightlife districts Shinjuku, Roppongi, etc. just use common sense. Don’t follow promoters to weird establishments that seem sketchy to you. Generally Japan is a pretty safe country to travel in.

   > Is the idea of using bases a good idea, (one in Sapporo, then one in Sendai if week in Tohoku, then one in Tokyo, then one in Kyoto/Osaka?

   Yeah bases are a good idea, if you’re planning a lot of day trips. You’ll also want to factor in travel time, if it takes more than 3 hours to get somewhere you might want to consider making it an overnight stay. In those cases case try and chain together that overnight trip with heading to your next base so you can minimize backtracking.

   > Is a two baggage plane ticket a good idea? One of 15kg with us, and one in the plane of until 23kg.
   > Quantity of clothes to take?

   These two are kinda dependent on each other. If you’re willing to take time out of your trip to do laundry then you can cut down on the amount of clothes you’ll need. Also since it’s summer and you’ll most likely be sweating a lot it is probably a good idea. If you’re doing laundry you can cut down on the amount of luggage you’ll need. If you’re planning on buying a lot of souvenirs you may want to get the flight with the higher luggage limits, bring a smaller bag on your inbound flight and then buy a cheap piece of luggage in japan and fill it up with the stuff you bought.

7. If that 3500-4000 euros is per person, that’s definitely doable.

   Something I’d like to point out (as someone who’s tried to plan a Japan trip with friends), your friends are 17 and this is a trip planned more than 1 year ahead, there’s a **high** chance one or multiple of your friends will change their minds.

   I’ve had a friend of mine save 2k for a Japan trip we’ve been planning for years and then spend it all on building a new PC on Black Friday.

   ​

   EDITs:

   – You can do small business hotels for 30-40 euros a night per person (in 2-person rooms), airbnb you can most definitely find cheaper.

   – Food:

   Coffee: 100-200 yen (1000 yens = 7.7 euros) at convenience stores, if you want fancier coffee, it’ll be expensive (Starbucks or coffee shops)

   Breakfast: you can get a decent breakfast in the 250-500 yen range at a convenience store, (250 being the cheaper 7-eleven sandwiches or 2 onigiris), again, if you want fancier things or eat breakfast at a cafe, it’ll be more expensive.

   Lunch: 100-300 yen range (sandwiches, instant ramen, onigiris, melon bread, pieces of fried chicken), 300-500 range (rice and chicken, dumplings), there’s no real limit for upwards but I’ll mention ramen in a ramen place i’d say 700-1000, more expensive if it’s a well known place), there’s also chains like Matsuya and Yoshinoya where you can eat lunch for 500-1000 yen.

   Dinner is pretty much the same as the Lunch.

   So given 3 meals, 2 coffees and some water/tea, you *can* (altho you will probably die if you eat that for 1 whole month) survive off of convenience store items with roughly 10 euros per day.

   **However, you’re in Japan, you should splurge a little bit and try everything you like. There’s thousands, if not millions, of amazing foods and drinks specific to Japan.** 22-30 euros per day is more realistic as far as food goes.

   ​

   My trip got cancelled last March by Covid, so I haven’t ended up going yet, but I’ve probably put upwards of 1000 hours researching and planning it, so if you have any questions (mainly about Tokyo/Kyoto/Osaka), feel free to DM me and I’ll try my best to be helpful.

8. Here’s what I learned from when I visited Tokyo. 1 About 150 U.S dollars. I got most of my meals from convenience stores and fast food restaurants.2. I notified my bank and all the credit card companies I hard cards with about a month in advance and didn’t have any trouble using my debit or cards. I was able to use my cards fairly easily around Akihabara, and when I needed cash, I could withdraw it at the international ATM’s at 7-11 and at bank ATMs. The bank atm was for a bank named Mizuho. 3. At Haneda Airport, they had a currency exchange counter. Tokyo Airports like Haneda and Narita most likely have fairly easy to use ATM’s for currency exchange. There are also some places in some of the shops where you can do currency exchange. I was able to exchange currency at ATMs in some of the shops in Akihabara. 4. For the most part Japan is pretty safe. Some concerns are women being groped on trains and rip off bars in Kabukicho.Some train lines have women-only cars. Also definitely learn a little bit of Japanese. Even in an international city like Tokyo, not everyone spoke English, and knowing the words for “Excuse me” and “Where is this place” definitely came in handy. I wish you and your friends good luck on your trip!

9. You really do not need to buy a 21 day Jr pass and a 7 day Jr pass. The passes are financially worth it if you plan on doing lots of shinkansen trips between cities; for inner-city subway travel then a passmo or suica card is what you’ll need. It would be a waste of money to buy the passes solely for a few shinkansen trips and mostly for inner city travel since you’ll be using a mix of private and public subway lines to get to sightseeing spots.

   If you’re going Tokyo>Osaka>Kyoto>Hiroshima and other places like this then a 7 day JR pass might be worth it, but it’ll be easier to tell when you have an actual itinerary planned out.

10. Just a note, you need to be 20 to drink in Japan

    JR Pass, most likely a bad idea to get 28 days worth of JR Pass for that. You need to use the train enough to make it make sense. Withing Sapporo it will be useless, so depend on the day
    trips you want to do and might make sense to reach Tokyo JR Pass is also a waste while in Tokyo. It might make sense to use it when you go out of Tokyo all the way to Nagasaki. There is also regional pass that might make more sense to use than the full JR Pass.

    So as a starting point, I would detail how much every train ride over 1500 yen want to do and when to evaluate if it make sense to use rail pass and what rail pass would make sense.

    ​

    1. konbini breakfast and 2 meal in cheap restaurant, you can do it for 2500 yen a day, obviously more if you want to have fancier meal. I would rather go to restaurant to experience real Japanese food rather than save a buck and buy grocery.
    2. Debit… maybe not, credit, kind of. There is still a lot of stores, especially small stores that are cash only. So while it is more common now than 10 years ago, you should have cash on you at all time.
    3. You can withdraw cash at ATM using credit card, the most popular is at 7Eleven or at the post office (I say popular because it’s the known place where it work). Would not especially recommend to bring money to change.
    4. Danger such as ? Japan is not known for being especially dangerous, but maybe just don’t follow people you do not know, especially in red light district as some people run scam or could try to recruit you in their religion. But it’s not as it’s so common.
    5. Yes, it’s a good idea in general, but if you are to do 3-4 hours of train to visit the places you want to see around those bases, you might consider changing accommodation more frequently, it depend on travel style too. I personally like to change often rather than do long day trip.
    6. Depend, best way to know is to check, when you book and say it’S for 4, it should be the total amount. I’ve seen place where the price is fix, some increase by person.
    7. Bad idea if you ask me. I personally only travel with backpack for my cloth and smaller bag for my camera and daily items. Having two luggage will be a pain to move in the train, there is not luggage rack for big luggage in train and on some lines, you have to make special reservation if you bring a big luggage. So try to travel as light as possible.
    8. The least you can. I personally go for 3-4 change of cloth and do my laundry when needed, can often be done at hotel/hostel and worst case, coin laundry.

11. I see “two will be 18” but all five of you need to be 18 in order to book hotels. They do check ID on check-in and some hotels require 21+ for some reason.

12. 1. Plan a chill (no walking) day every three days. Most people are not able to walk all day everyday for 30 days in a row.
    2. Do a lot of research of what to do within each destination.
    3. Hard to do but try to find out about events that are happening at your planned destinations which can make your visit even more fun.

13. In regards to question number 6, when you’re looking for Airbnb’s you should narrow it down by beds/rooms to make sure they allow 6 people, or you could always find 2 Airbnb’s that allow 3 people each, or whatever your group is most comfortable with/whatever is most convenient at the time you get it. The prices shown are **per night** and each Airbnb allows a different amount of people maximum, so you would need an Airbnb that allows 6 people!

    No such thing as a dumb question especially when you’re gonna spend a lot of your hard earned money! Some people were commenting below this, and I have to agree, that some people in your group might change their mind or not save up properly, so just keep that in mind. You know them better than I do, and you’d know their personality and dedication for this trip, but keep it in mind just in case!

14. When you say you want to use Kyoto/Osaka as a base and see Nagasaki, you don’t mean as a day trip, right? Nagasaki is much too far from Kansai to do that, you’ll need to stay in a hotel. I wouldn’t go to Kyushu unless you were willing to give it at least a couple days, personally.

15. Other people already commented in detail, but I want to leave my 2 cents regarding food and luggage.

    A decent standard meal in a restaurant is around 1300/1500 yen (10/12 euros). If you eat ramen or some other speciality food you can dine with ~ 900 yen. Just keep in mind that japanese serving size is smaller then in europe, so you might need to buy more food in some places. In general, if you walk a lot you need calories at low prices. Here are some recommendations.
    Ramen is quite filling and cheap, but i wouldn’t rely exclusively on that. Other chain restaurants like Matsuya are very cheap and have english information, but not the best quality.
    Combinis are a good place for breakfast, and you could also buy some sandwiches or onigiri. If you are running out of money you can buy cup ramen and eat that. You can eat with 100 yen, but i recommend the 200 yen cups for better flavor.
    Sushi is quite expansive and low calorie. I would keep that for dinner. If you want cheap but relative good sushi look for kaitenzushi restaurants, the restaurants that serve sushi via a conveyor belt.
    Lastly, if you or any of your friends don’t eat meat/fish you might have trouble finding restaurants in japan. Indian places usually have halal/ vegetarian options, but you better look into this beforehand if it is a problem for you.

    Regarding the luggage, you don’t want to pack too much. Hotels in japan will have the check in starting from 15:00, so you might end up carrying around your stuff for half a day. As others suggested, look into doing your laundry.

    Finally, have fun!

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17. >We plan on buying 1 21 day JR pass and 1 7 day JR pass, per person. As of now , we only have really only begun being precise for the Hokkaido Part.

    Plan your trip first and then decide what, if any passes you will need. While it is very possible that one of the JR Passes will be a good idea for this trip, buying 28 days worth of pass without a fairly clear plan is a good way to end up wasting money–especially if you end up spending an extended amount of time in any one particular area or decide that other modes of transportation (e.g., flying) might better suit your destinations.

    >Hokkaido, Sapporo

    My honest opinion about Sapporo is that it’s one of the more boring cities in the country. That’s not to say there’s nothing to do there, but I think hanging around Sapporo for a week is about the worst way to spend a week in Hokkaido, and certainly not the introduction to Japan that I would choose for anyone. In fact, I wouldn’t recommend going to Hokkaido at all on a first trip to the country unless you have very specific reasons for wanting to go. Most of what makes Hokkaido worth visiting is its natural attractions, and most of those are well outside of the city and require driving to really appreciate. Hokkaido on the whole also feels much less Japanese than the rest of Japan since it was largely settled and developed much later than the rest of the country and incorporates a lot of western influences. The one good thing about Hokkaido is that its temperatures in summer are much more bearable than elsewhere in Japan, but I don’t think that fact alone justifies its addition.

    >Then, for the Second week, either we go to Sendai or something in that general area, as a base, or we take this week and the third, for Tokyo and general Kanto.

    And this is why you shouldn’t just blindly buy passes. It would be much faster and cheaper to just fly from Sapporo to Tokyo if that’s your next destination, and if you’re just sticking around Kanto for the next week or two, you absolutely don’t need a JR Pass during that time. You could be spending 40,000 yen extra per person on passes you do not need.

    >Tokyo, And Kanto/Chubu General Area

    You could easily spend 1-2 weeks in the Kanto area, but your plans are very vague and need a lot more development.

    >For the final week , we plan on staying in an Airbnb in either Osaka, or Kyoto and travelling to Hiroshima and Nagasaki and return home

    Hiroshima is well outside the Kansai (Kyoto/Osaka) area and Nagasaki is even further (a lot further). To me this is way more than a week’s worth of stuff to do. I ordinarily recommend about a full week just for a quick run-through of the main highlights of Kansai area alone. Also, if you’re there in mid-late July, there are a ton of large festivals in Kansai. This includes the Gion Festival (especially July 15th-17th and 22nd-24th), Tenjin Festival (July 24th-25th), Motomiya Festival (July 21st-22nd), and Mitarashi Festival (last 10 or so days of July). The Gion and Tenjin Fesitvals are two of Japan’s three largest festivals, and are absolutely a blast. August has some major fireworks festivals, Gozan-no-Okuribi, and Toro Nagashi. If you’re there around these times, I would probably give Kansai a minimum of more like 10 days to accommodate for both the festivals and standard sightseeing.

    For all of the above reasons, I would cut Hokkaido entirely and focus entirely on Honshu and maybe Kyushu. There is easily enough between Kanto and Kansai alone to fill a month, not to mention Hiroshima, Nagasaki, and all of the countless places in between.

    >What are your estimate for the food budget, with info already provided or that you can ask me?

    [Answered in the FAQ](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/wiki/advice/budget/budgeting)

    >Could i easily use my debit card if i warn my bank of my trip in advance?

    Probably, but it depends on your specific bank/card. Ask your bank and inform them ahead of time when you’re going to be out of the country.

    >Is converting money easy in Airports ATMs ?

    Airport’s got nothing to do with it–just go to the Post Office or 7-11 ATMs.

    >Is the idea of using bases a good idea, (one in Sapporo, then one in Sendai if week in Tohoku, then one in Tokyo, then one in Kyoto/Osaka?

    If you’re traveling light, don’t stay in just one place only to waste a lot of time running back and forth if you don’t have to. And don’t end up staying somewhere inconvenient just to save a buck–think about where you’re going to want to go and make sure your accommodation has reasonable access.

    As to your specific proposed destinations:

    * I wouldn’t stay in Sapporo at all for the reasons I’ve already discussed.
    * Sendai is a major city in Tohoku, but Tohoku (like Hokkaido) is a massive region that isn’t really accessible from any single city. Where you should stay if you choose to spend time Tohoku is entirely dependent on what specifically you want to do in the region.
    * For Tokyo I recommend somewhere on or just off of the Yamanote Loop. Somewhere with direct access to three or more lines would be ideal. Near Shinjuku or Ueno would be my personal preferences. However, if you’re traveling to places in Kanto outside of Tokyo like Fuji Five Lakes, Hakone, or Kamakura, I think it can also be very worthwhile to stay in change accommodations and stay closer by.
    * For Kansai if you’re just looking for one place to make base, I would make it Kyoto. It has decent access to Osaka, Nara, and Shiga, and most visitors are likely to spend the majority of their time in Kansai in Kyoto itself. As for where specifically in Kyoto, I recommend the Kawaramachi/Gion-Shijo area, or failing that, some other area between the Imperial Palace and Kyoto Station–preferably near a station with access to two lines (e.g., Karasuma, Sanjo, Kyoto). If you stay in Osaka for part or all of your visit, my first choice would be Namba, but there are a number of other decent choices between Tennoji and Umeda (especially along the Midosuji Line), and Kyobashi is also very convenient.

    >prolly dumb question, but , are the prices in airbnbs as shown per night, mean just per night, or per night per person?

    Per night per person unless otherwise specified.

    >Is a two baggage plane ticket a good idea? One of 15kg with us, and one in the plane of until 23kg.

    Every long-distance international flight I’ve ever taken has allowed up to 2 checked bags (23kg) in addition to carry-on and personal item for no additional charge. That said, if you’re planning to move around a lot, you’ll want to travel light–especially with 5 people. Keep in mind that everything you bring is just stuff you’ll have to carry around, and doing so on crowded transit and through busy stations can be a real hassle for both yourself and others.

    >Quantity of clothes to take?

    Pack for a week, plan to do laundry.

18. Since others have commented really well already, just two advices/tips whatever you would call it.

    A)
    You plan to stay one month in few places like Sapporo, Tokyo and maybe Osaka/Kyoto, the JR-pass might not be worth the money. I visited three places and calculated beforehand, also for one month, that one way tickets were cheaper for me. But i don’t know if there are group tickets which might be cheaper.

    B)
    Dont plan to much before your trip, apart from where you want to stay and which places to visit. You want to stay one month, so why not let it surprise you. I mean dont just skip the things which are between the tourist spots by metro or train, because you might miss things which are intresting to you.

    Which brings me to
    C)
    I know,I said two things. This is just a little extra for B). Try to walk as much as possible. Apart from being healthy its cheaper? and you might see things which you would not have seen, when using the metro or train. Well this worked for me, because i like walking.

    But apart from all that just take your time, dont rush things, you want to stay one month which give more time and opportunities in comparison to just two week powervisiting 10 citys.

    I hope i wrote it clear( not main language)

    And I wish you good luck that you will be able to visit Japan this year.

    Edit: Typo

19. On the budget: 4000 is totally doable. My girlfriend and I did 5 weeks for €5000 per person, and that included some really fancy meals and ryokan stays, sumo tickets, and other splurges. I wrote a bit about it in my trip report from two years ago:

    https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/comments/duaxxw/trip_report_5_weeks_in_junejuly/

20. Don’t quote me on this, but as far as my knowledge goes, in order to travel with minors, you’d have to act as a guardian of sorts, which means you’re responsible for them. Looking back to when I was 18, taking responsibility of 4 underaged friends of mine, in a different country would be a big red flag. Might be a better idea to wait 1 more year until they all turn 18.

    You might also run into problems with the parents of the underaged kids (or even yours) not trusting the kids to be on their own for that long and that far away. My mom would’ve freaked out if I went to a foreign country for a month with my friends at 17 and no experienced adult.

21. I’m Dutch so if you are are a Dutch/Vlaams speaking Belgium you can send me a PM if you like. Easier to answer a lot of questions in Dutch and I’m happy to help!

    I did a 28 day trip at 2750€ per person. Also I would get 3 weeks of JR pass. The time spend in your first city and last city you won’t need one. So only get one for the time spend in between that you are actually traveling from city to city.

22. 1. You don’t need a full suitcase of clothes since you need to save space to bring home souvenirs, I’d pack some non-perishable food (like cereal, oats) for breakfast. And then supplement it with grocery shopping in Japan. Can save some money for this. Spend the money for lunch and occasional dinner. Can also save some money by visiting department store food basement courts and even grocery/supermarkets when they have cooked food/bentos at discount. I think they start slashing prices after 6pm. Of course, there are cheap eats at conbinis and Japan’s fast food restaurants aren’t your typical western style. But definitely splurge on some meals.
    2. Of course. Debit card to withdraw money. Use credit cards for bigger purchases. Just need to make sure your card is able to be used internationally.
    3. Of course you won’t have good rates at Airports. I’m lucky that I live in an area that has a high volume of Japanese tourists (pre-covid days) and there are money changers in areas that Japanese exchange their yen for dollars at close to the same rates you see online. Us locals use these same money exchangers to change dollars to yens before going to Japan. Use Japan Post ATMS and 7-11 ATMS…these are common for ATMS for foreigners to withdraw money.
    4. Japan is a relatively safe place compared to the rest of the world. But that doesn’t mean you slack off on your personal safety. Worry more on scammers in really touristy areas. And don’t indulge and overdo it on drinking alcohol. I know you guys/gals will be underage but it is kind of easy to get your hands on some alcohol – beer vending machines, and like what someone already mentioned they don’t really check id in convenience stores (pressing button/screen acknowledging you’re of age).
    5. Yes. Sometimes it is a hassle moving around constantly. But sometimes it’s a hassle to travel back and forth for day long trips. It’s a personal decision. But I prefer bases.
    6. Should be the total cost if you plug in all info correctly. Dates, the total amount of people, etc. Should show total cost and breakdown by day and any cleaning/fees. Just read the fine print.

    7 & 8: 15 kg for carryon. Wow, that’s a lot. But you shouldn’t be filling up the whole baggage to max weight going since you need space for purchases to bring home. For 1 month, I’m sure light travelers will say bring 1 week’s worth of clothes. If you’ll be using AirBnB check if it has laundry in house/apt/building. A lot of hotels (especially budget/business hotels) have laundry facilities to use. If none, start practicing sink laundry. LOL. I skimmed thru the comments but not sure if I saw anyone mentioned takyubin service (luggage forwarding). You forward your luggage to the next place of stay and just carry a small bag during travel day so no need to roll/carry luggage. To me, this works best if you are staying in hotels since the front desk can help you and hotels can receive it if you are not there (they may call the next hotel to verify you are staying there). Might be a bit complicated if staying in AirBnB because someone needs to be there. You can pick a time frame but that means someone has to stick around during that expected time slot. The cost of takyubin varies depending on size and sometimes weight and distance (city to city). I think large suitcases average 2000 to 2500 yen from Tokyo to/fr Osaka. Smaller ones around 1500y. Takyubin service is one thing I splurge on if I have checkin luggage. Read up on the service and when it’s best to use it interested so you can budget it in. I usually pack a smaller suitcase or duffle inside my big suitcase and have a decent size carryon backpack and avg size purse/messenger bag as personal. If I forward my suitcase ahead to the next hotel, I just pack overnight clothes into my backpack for travel day. Also, take note that you are now required to make reservations on Shinkansen if you have big suitcases that cannot go on overhead space, if not I think you will need to pay a fee on board of 1000yen (if made reservations, no fee)

    Other notes:

    May need to make a rough daily itinerary with train rides (main, long distance ones or any JR trains that you will use) to price out the need for the multiple JR Pass you are looking at. It’s the only way to make sure you will make use of it and not waste money. You can price compare if it’s cheaper to purchase a 1 way air ticket from Sapporo to Tokyo (if skipping Tohoku/Sendai area). And purchase JR Pass for rest of trip (also still need to price it out if worth it). You can get the JR Pass several weeks before trip so you can plan out if you guys think it’s worth it. May want to check domestic one way flights several months before trip to compare prices. I was able to snag a one way ticket from KIX to Fukuoka for only $35 (final cost with fees) and use a 7 day JR Pass.

    Also, by making a rough daily itinerary you can group things so no need to jump around. And this helps when doing some research so you find out what places close on certain days and know when to avoid some spots (holidays, weekends). You can also purchase some tickets in advance (Ghibli needs to be purchased 1 month in advance, it’s a hot ticket). The downside on this is that you’ll be locked in on dates picked. May also need to make advance shinkansen reservations once you arrive if you arrive during the peak travel season.

    Do include down days after several days of packed days. Down days = easy, chill, cruise, no planned out itinerary day, do as you please day. Just a day to take it easy and let your body recoup.

    May also want to make a list of costs for your trip. Separate the need cost from extra spending costs. Price out your hotel/airbnb/capsule/wherever staying for whole trip. Price out your air ticket. Price out train tickets (JR Pass and non-JR). Any entrance tickets you plan on purchasing in advance or pretty much set on (Museum, Parks, etc). These should be all set costs. Then work on daily food costs. Breakfast can be had from 150y to 500y (unless splurging). Both lunch and dinner I alternated budgeting and little splurge with one or two times big splurge. You can get decent meals starting 500y and can go up to 2000y and more if you really splurge. When staying in AirBnB, cook breakfast, lunch will most likely be eaten out since you guys will be out site seeing. Dinner can be either cooked in or dine out or purchase cheap discounted food and eat at AirBnB. Hotels, avoid getting a room with breakfast (unless it’s free). Cheaper to get food at convenience store. Try to do most of your souvenir shopping at the end of the trip (or last city) to avoid lugging it around. Of course, do buy some regional stuff but major souvenirs you can get anywhere get it at the end. When booking a hotel room, make sure to reserve one with free cancellation (most couple days before checkin date). This way you can cancel and rebook if price drops or find another place. AirBnB is trickier so need to read fine print on payment and cancellations before making it final.

    Since this is a group of friends vacationing…make sure to agree and stuff beforehand. Communicate with one another. Consider doing things separately if you all have different interests and then meet up later. It’s not necessary for you all to do everything together just because you all decide to go to Japan together. Agree on costs beforehand also. Have the costs for hotel/airbnb/etc all taken care of between you all prior to trip. This is important since you all may have different incomes by the time you guys embark on your trip for extra expenditures. My coworkers 2 neighbors went to Japan several years ago. One couple splurged on food every single meal…with expensive dinners in the 5000+yen per person type of meal. The other couple wanted to control their budget more (with few splurge on dinners). But this couple felt either guilty or trapped or pressured to eat with the spenders. They finally told the big spenders they’ll try something else on day 8 (it was a 12 day trip). Money issues can always ruin trips and friendships. Also, money issues can make one decide on not going forward on this trip and pull out. This will leave others to cover the balance on AirBnB/hotel rooms.

    EDIT: I’ve travelled to Japan 5x, solo (female) to Japan 4 times and one time meet up with family for part of that trip/remaining part solo. I’ve done so much research (read soooo many different itineraries, articles, etc). Learned as I go during my trips. Got some tips from other friends and coworkers. Each trip I had at least 10 different itineraries and not one did I follow closely (my itineraries are just there so I know when the best time to visit somewhere, know opening/closing times, group places together). I learned what to pack and what not to pack. Found new places to eat or try.

    I had my 6th trip to Japan (solo) planned out for late fall 2020 which of course didn’t happen. So 2020 was spent planning out my Japan trip for Fall 2021. I have like 100s of itinerary of different time frame (10 days, 14 days, 17 days, 20+, etc) with different locations. It’s something to look forward to. I’m not sure if I’ll follow through with Fall 2021 since Japan hasn’t opened up yet (talks of Fall to be reopened) but may push it to 2022. More time to save up and spend more. LOL.

23. Think about drinking age! It’s 20 in Japan.. Same for smoking. 😉

24. I assume 3500 is for each person and includes airfare.

    As with a lot of such plans for group travel, when the time comes to actually commit with the money the entire group rarely comes through.

    All the airbnbs where I stayed in Tokyo/Osaka/Kyoto/Hiroshima were studios suitable for 2 people at most. Places for 6 will be a problem.

    I rented an airbnb with a washing machine every week and traveled with one bag.

    ATMs in 7-11 stores are best for obtaining yen. I like to travel with at least two ways to get cash in case a card is lost.

    It’s possible to eat fairly cheaply in Japan, although doing so means missing a lot of what I’d consider a big reason to go. Ramen and conbini food for example.

25. You probably dont have that much time left towards the end so I recommend staying in Kyoto and not Osaka. (If u want to visit osaka its about an hr train ride from kyoto), rent bicycles and explore the most beautiful city in the world, hang out kamogawa river and def check out the bar called Muraya. And tetsugako no michi (philosophers path) nd make sure to climb my daimonji. Its a 45 mins hike from ginkakuji, you will see the whole city. Especially recommended at sunset time. It will blow your mind. And its 100% free.

    Another thing I would REALLY recommend is visoting an old style Ryokan. 1-2 nights, wearing Yukata, eating local, sleeping in tatami rooms and relaxing in the onsen. (I recommend shirahone or kinosaki) enjoy your trip!

26. I wanted to add something that hasn’t been said: The dangers to worry about are foreigners “supporting” foreigners. Though there can be a couple domestic. I am writing this to be overly cautious, you should not generally feel the need to worry. When I say I am being overly cautious, not one person in a group of 60 had anything happen, but you can see where some of it would be concerning.

    Tell everyone in your group these things:

    – You do not pay for service before arriving. You can find “tour assistants” who may try to “help” you go to a place. They will ask for money before you head “in”, this is a scam, you pay inside shops, ALWAYS.

    – “The Nigerians”. I do not know where they are actually from, but this is how I was warned. Especially in the Kabukicho (Shinjuku) area, you will find people who speak English and offer “free drinks” and more. These are scams. Do not follow people to an establishment. Note that they will generally not be overly pushy, so if you need information (like where train station is), you can generally ask these things. They are usually not too hard to dismiss, but you will see them an most sidewalk intersections.

    – Following someone that is not a maid in Akihabara is “at your own risk”. I have not had a bad result from this, but it is to be acknowledged you are trusting someone. If you are going down a dark alley, you are free to excuse yourself and leave.

    I did many things solo and never had an issues, but I also erred away from things that could be potential concerns.

    If you have any questions, I am open here or PM’s. There is a lot to do in Japan, like… a LOT. You will not be wanting for things to do!

    EDIT: Post edited to remove non PG-13 content.

27. Some tips on your Hokkaido leg:
    – the clock tower is a disappointment on the inside, just take a picture out front
    -nijo fish market is pretty overpriced and you can get quality local seafood stuff at most supermarkets here. That said, there’s some good restaurants around there.
    -Maruyama park is worth a visit, there’s the big shrine there and you can hike up and down the mountain in about an hour or so and the view is pretty neat
    -Hokkaido University campus is quite nice and just north of Sapporo station. The cafeteria is cheap and popular with tourists and the university museum is free

28. During my trip (Late 2019) i was not asked once for any ID entering, booking or buying something and tbh I looked like I was 12!
    And booking should be possible if your parents help you out🤷🏻‍♂️