Weekly Japan Travel Information and Discussion Thread – August 25, 2023

19 comments

1. What is the coin locker situation in Japan at the moment and what are the chances of me finding an empty one?

   When I went to japan last November, I never had any issues finding one, but someone I know who went to Japan recently said that everywhere is crawling with foreigners, which has caused a locker shortage.Is this true?

2. I bought a puffs 9000 “RandM Tornado” Cherry (18mg, 2% Nicotine)
   I wanted it instead of bringing my vape or cigarettes.
   Can I bring it and use it in Japan?

   Thank you.

   (It’s a throweable vape)

3. I have an Icoca card from 2018 and a Pasmo card from 2016. Both have a bit of money in there (one at around 300 yen and one at 11 yen).

   If I’m going to Hokkaido I want to take either one (or both) for my non JR Hokkaido pass covered transits, are they still going to work after so long? I assume most transits would accept these IC cards? Thanks.

4. Is Aoiike in Biei (Hokkaido) frozen over in late January?

5. If I’m arriving at Nikko around 11, and planning to stay overnight, how realistic is half a day for Chuzenji, Kegon falls and hiking Senjogahara between Ryuzu and Yutaki?

   I’ve checked and buses seems to depart from Yumoto to Tobu Nikko as late as 7.30pm. Would the 7-8 hours be enough?

   I’d be arriving on a Friday and I want to do Okunikko then instead of the weekend because I’ve read about how crowded the roads up to Chuzenjiko are on weekends. Then get a head start on the daytrippers on Saturday for the world heritage area from Nikko station.

6. [removed]

7. Hi, I’m visiting in mid-October for 16 days, and had a few questions:

   * If we put too much money on our Suica/Pasmo cards, is it possible to refund unused money back to our debit/credit cards?

   * I can’t seem to download the Suica app from the Google Play Store in Canada beforehand, and a VPN isn’t working to get around it. Is this something I can only setup once I land? Is it better to get the mobile app or physical card? (I’m on Android / Google Wallet)

   * I’ve looked at the national and regional passes, and it seems like I don’t see any benefit to getting a JR Pass for my itinerary, unless I’m missing something? I wasn’t sure if the [Tokyo Wide Pass](https://www.jreast.co.jp/multi/en/pass/tokyowidepass.html) was worth grabbing since I’ll be there the longest. Would it make sense to just stick to an IC Card for simplicity/flexibility? Here’s my itinerary:

   > * Tokyo (4 nights, *Flight from Narita*)
   > * Yubatake (1 night, *Direct Bus Reservation*)
   > * Sendai (3 nights, *Loople Bus Pass*)
   > * Sapporo (3 nights, *Flight from Sendai*)
   > * Nagoya (3 nights, *Flight from Sapporo*)
   > * Back to Tokyo (2 nights)

   * Regarding my trip to Yubatake, I’m planning to use the [Japan Expressway Bus Net](https://www.kousokubus.net/JpnBus/en), but it lists Gunma as Gumma. Is this simply a spelling error? I picked this because it’s the direct route, but should I be looking at JR lines with some connections instead?

   * If there are any Canadians here, how was your experience using the EQ Bank Card, Wise, and Wealthsimple Cash Card? What do you recommend most out of the three? I’m planning to use my HSBC World Elite MasterCard as my default payment while there, and using of those 3 to withdraw cash from ATMs.

   Thank you!

8. Arriving in KIX at 12:40 on a Thursday in September from Beijing (stopover from Germany) how much time till I can catch the train on average? Immigration, Customs, Luggage, Cash withdrawal, ICOCA + Haruka.. I have reserved a nice Shinkansen.. based on roughly 2 hours – shouldn’t probably take longer – or?

   QR codes for customs and immigration ready.
   Probably I don’t save much time if any, when reserving icoca+haruka online as I can only pay the haruka part and still gotta do the whole passport+cash stuff at the counter?

9. Can you still swim in the sea around Kyoto (Amanohashidate e.g.) mid September? Temperatures should be fine, but it seems uncommon? Amanohashidate in general seems a little uncommon here.. at least I didn’t found it in many Itineraries.. Not cool anymore? Wasn’t ever aka not worth the daytrip?

10. Can someone show/tell me how their registered Park Passes look like in the official USJ App? It somehow doesn’t look correct and there is NO support Mail or anything for the app..
    It just shows the name I entered when registering the pass in the App and a “-” as well as Close and Delete buttons.. I somehow expected the QR code, validity, tariff oder at least anything besides a “-“

11. I’m gonna be in Japan in two weeks and I’m still concerned about being unable to navigate the train stations since I don’t speak the language well. Would it be enough to show someone a picture of the exit or line I’m trying to get to if I can’t figure out where it is on my own

12. Thinking of using Japan experience sim cards, any reviewers want to chime in?

    How long would i need to reserve ahead of time for the shinkansen line?

    How far in advance for pokemon cafe? Is it easy to reserve in english?

13. I’ll be travelling to Japan 3 times in 1 calendar year. I did a 2.5 week trip in March 2023, got a 1 week trip upcoming mid September 2023 and then a 3 weeks trip in October 2023. I have an Australian passport and I’m wondering would this be an issue at immigration? As I understand it the visa-exemption 90 day tourism is per entry. Thanks in advance!

14. How hard will it be to get a taxi from my hotel in Kyoto around 6AM using Didi or Uber to get to Kyoto station? I am not staying near a major train station so cannot just go grab one there but am staying on the border of what’s considered downtown/central Kyoto. Hotel help is not an option, they will not set up taxis for you.

15. As I was planning my trip to Japan, I hadn’t actually considered how difficult it would be to get all my luggage from the airport to where I’m staying, and vice versa when I leave. I’m arriving from Kansai International and staying at a friend’s apartment. I was stupidly under the assumption that his place would be right around the corner, but it’s about 50 minutes to 1 hour and 30 minutes away. I’m not sure what I’m gonna do with my bags. I know that there is a luggage forwarding service, but will they deliver to apartments? Is it possible for me to carry my luggage on the local trains or is that only possible with shinkansen? And taxi services seem pretty expensive, at least according to Google Maps’ options.

16. My friends are looking to take a cooking lessons during our trip in october. Do you have any affordable place recommendations? We are staying at Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka and Hiroshima. If you also know affordable ryokans in these cities it would be nice.

    Also, do anyone’s knows if I will be okay, if I bring my citaloprams in Japan? The last answer I found date from 7 years ago.

17. I the website Japan Rail Pass . com (i saw one with a .net) legit for me to purchase my Suica card? I know Klook has limited options, but I like the idea of it being shipped to me home in the US prior to my trip.

    I already have apple wallet topped up for 1500 yen but I prefer having a physical card with me in case my phone wont work.

18. Hi! I have a question about Naoshima art island!

    In October, I am staying in Osaka then travelling to Hiroshima by train. I’m wondering if it’s possible to realistically stop in and spend a day at Naoshima Island on the way to Hiroshima?

    It looks like it takes 60-90 minutes to get to Okayama from both Osaka and Hiroshima, and that the train/ferry to Naoshima from there is about 90 minutes both ways. So if we left Osaka early at 7am and travelled to the island, arriving around 10am and spending 6-7 hours before heading on to Hiroshima, would it be worth it? Or too much bother to potentially not experience the full island? Thank you for any advice!

19. Hello,

    I am looking for recommendations for clubs or music scenes that will play Japanese city pop/vaporwave/funk between September 26 through October 8 in Tokyo, Kyoto or Osaka.

    Thanks!