Hello Bloggers!
My family and I just came back from the land of sushi and matcha and boy, how we love Japan so much that we are looking forward for another trip back to the country. Our next city should be Hokkaido and just Hokkaido alone. My boss also shared her recent trip to Kyoto and we both agree that Hokkaido seems to be ideal as the next place to go in Japan.
This post is intended to help first timers visiting Japan and by helping, it is the basic information and also some guidelines or introduction to Japan, its people, culture and its transportation system based on what I have learnt during my 10 days trip there in March 2016. During the trip, we did not get to use Shinkansen at all but just their local and regular speed trains. But that itself took us to many places across Kansai region already.
Our trip was 20th March to 29th March 2016, altogether 10D9N and we covered the following cities:
(a) Kansai Perfecture - Osaka, Kyoto, Uji and Nara
(b) Ishikawa Perfecture - Kanazawa and Shirakawa-go
1. Language
A lot of people had the impression that one should know the Japanese language before going to Japan. Well, they are right! But good news is, you only need to know the basic of its language as the Japanese has "kanji" or to some of us, Chinese characters. So, for those who know how to read Chinese, it is really useful. Nevertheless, you also need to know the Chinese names to the Japanese places as well.
I know how to speak basic Japanese such as how are you, how much is it, the numbers in Japanese, saying thanks and as well as asking for water, or where the toilets are. My cousin who also joined us in the trip knew how to read basic hiragana, katagana and kanji. She also could speak Japanese in intermediate level. So, we are all set for this trip. Haha..
Similar to Koreans, everything is written in pure Japanese but the Japanese proved to be far better in communication in that they could read romaji (or romanized) Japanese. So, if you could spell the things you want in romaji (using the western alphabets), they could read and understand what you wrote. Where as it is not the case in Korea where the locals can only read Hangul.
So, you do need a good translator (Google's translation app is very useful for this) and I recommend the use of the following phrases: -
(a) how are you? - ogenki desuka?
(i) i am fine - genki desu
(b) thank you - arigato gozaimashita (formal, or just arigato gozaimasu in short)
(c) how much is this? - ikura desuka?
(d) what meat is this? - nani niku desuka?
(i) beef - gyu
(ii) pork - buta
(iii) chicken - tori
(iv) seafood - shifudo
(e) where is the toilet? - toire wa doko desuka?
(f) yes - hai
(g) no - iie
(h) 2 persons - futari
(i) 4 persons - yon nin
(j) please - onegai shimasu
(k) water - mizu (so if "can I have some water please?" - mizu onegai shimasu..)
(l) sweet - amai (for taste)
(m) delicious - oishii / umai
(n) cool/awesome - sugoi
(o) I can't speak Japanese - Nihongo wa arimasen
(p) English - eigo
Otherwise, body language is very useful too. The head nod is the most used gesture or action in Japan. You get nods every time you get a favour done or you need a favour done. You also get nods when you cross the roads or when you buy something or pay for something or even greet the cashier or sales person. Similarly, you will also get nods from the Japanese in return. I got so used to nodding that when I arrived back in KL from Osaka, I got a little offended when the airport staffs did not nod back. Haha.. Nods are acknowledgement of respect that the Japanese offer to its visitors and even locals. They are very polite and I would say over-polite and a very respectful race in the world.
In summary, if you read and speak basic Japanese and Chinese then you are good to go. But if you don't, don't worry. The Japanese would try their level best to understand English or better, they will guide your personally to the place that you want to go.
2. Money (or okane in Japanese)
Their value "hyaku" is hundred (100), "sen" is thousand (1000) and "man" is ten thousand (10,000). Best to learn the numbers as well which is quite easy: -
ichi - 1 (ju yen - 10 yen; hyaku yen - 100 yen; sen yen - 1000 yen; man yen - 10,000 yen)
ni - 2 (ni ju yen - 20 yen; ni hyaku yen - 200 yen; ni sen yen - 2000 yen; ni man yen - 20,000 yen and so on..)
san - 3
yon - 4
go - 5
roku - 6
nana - 7
hatchi - 8
kyu - 9
ju - 10
10 days in Japan, we spent the most on transportation (because we visited 3 main cities and 3 smaller cities across Kansai and Ishikawa perfectures). Our flights and accommodation came up to around RM2,000.00 (I will expand further later in flights and transportation, and accommodation topics). Then for meals, ground transportation and shopping, another RM3,000.00. Bearing in mind that I did not shop for clothes or shoes or even make-up stuffs, we spent a total close to RM5,000.00 per person.
Transportation alone is around RM1,700.00 (subways, day pass for bus, intercity regular express train and local JR train, Seishun 18 Kippu non-express train tickets) out of RM5,000.00. A meal is around RM20.00 to RM30.00 per person and this too is if you go to fast food outlets such as Yoshinoya (across Japan) or Nakau (Kyoto) or Sukiya. It can go up to RM50.00 if you eat at restaurants.
So, it is really subjective as each person have difference preference or spending habits. However, you must always ensure before you use your credit card from home, that the shops accept your credit card. You will be surprised to know that their local supermarkets do not accept foreign credit cards. Only when you see Visa or Mastercard that you could use your home credit cards. Most places take cash mainly so do keep your cash handy. You can only use your home debit/ATM cards in 7-11 convenience store (also known as konbini in Japanese) as their local banks ATM do not accept foreign ATM cards. So, when you do found or saw any 7-11 and running low in cash, do your withdrawals there. The rest of the convenience stores in Japan such as Family Mart or Lawson do not have ATMs for foreign debit cards.
3. Flights to Japan
We booked with AirAsia for a flight from Kuala Lumpur (KLIA2) to Osaka (Kansai International Airport or KIX) on 20th March 2016 at 8.15am and returning on 29th March 2016 at 4.55pm. My family and I are from Penang so we drove down to KL the day before and drove back to Penang a day after we arrived in KL.
Our flight tickets were RM720 return including taxes and fuel surcharges but excluding meals, baggage and seats. So, I am excluding the add-ons as it is different for each of us but you get the idea just for flight ticket alone. We booked our flight tickets in June 2015 which is about 8 months in advance. A tip for AA flyers, do book your meals, seats and baggage on the same time as you book your flight tickets because it is way cheaper than you book the latter separately later. I only found out when AA announced the increase in their baggage fees in January 2016.
I have been flying with AA since 2011 and they still offer the cheapest air tickets to anywhere in their routes. But from this trip, I realised it costs only a little bit more if I fly with other commercial airlines which include meals, seats and baggage and are more comfortable. I didn't mind as much for comfort but as I am travelling with my parents, I feel AA is getting more and more expensive and not as value for money as I thought it would be after the price hike in add-ons. It is up to you guys and you may agree or disagree but if you can fly to Japan at the same price but with a bigger commercial airline then by all means go ahead ya. Not everyone can fly if AA keep increasing their fees.
4. Accommodation
If you are travelling during peak season such as my family (we went during spring for sakura viewing or hanami), you need to book or make reservation immediately or just after you have booked your flight tickets. You have to book ahead to avoid tears and rains as cheap and good location accommodation run out very fast that you will be shocked that only 60% accommodation are left on the dates that you are looking at. I booked our accommodations for 9 nights back in June 2015 and I always check regularly every 3 months for better deals or better locations as time goes.
My friend who have been to Japan in 2015 told me that if you can get RM100 per person per night then it is cheap. So, I kept it that way and found our 9 nights for RM1038.00 per person (calculation is based on the current exchange rate and can be different at different time or later). It costed only an average of RM116 per person per night. Decent right? Planning ahead is really important to secure such affordable price range for accommodation. Note: All are without breakfast included.
Our dates are actually a week before the prime time for sakura to be in full bloom. So, it was a partial bloom week for sakuras when we are there. The accommodation we found are decent and for location wise, not too bad as it is reachable either by bus or train or on foot. We get to experience different accommodations from tatami mat rooms to guesthouse or minshuku to posh quad room with facilities to apartment like those you see in Japanese dramas.
We stayed at: -
(a) Osaka (4 nights - first night and last three nights of our trip - 2 ensuite twin sharing tatami mat rooms with futons without breakfast). Credit card accepted.
- Shin Imamiya Hotel (Shin Imamiya JR station in JR Osaka Loop)
(b) Kanazawa (2 nights after Osaka)
(i) Minshuku Ginmatsu (Higashichaiya district. Use Kanazawa Loop Bus (Right Loop) and get off at 5th stop just before the river) - 2 twin sharing rooms with futons and kotatsu. Cash only.; and
(ii) Hotel Mystays Kanazawa (west exit Kanazawa Station then 5 minutes walk north) - ensuite quad room without breakfast. Credit card accepted.
(c) Kyoto (3 nights after Kanazawa)
- Daily Apartment Gojyo Ivy (10 minutes walk from Kyoto Station towards Nishi Honganji temple) - 2 small apartments for 2 occupants. I had to sign a tenancy agreement for these 2 rooms. Cash only.
You will be surprised to know that staying at a minshuku, a homestyle guesthouse with sharing toilets and bathroom and no breakfast proved to be more slightly more expensive than the ensuite and fully equiped quad bedroom hotel we stayed at Mystays which was the best accommodation out of the rest.
I used Maybank (Gold) credit card to pay for my accommodation in Osaka and Kanazawa and I was surprised to know that not only there were no additional charges (as opposed to what the bank officer told me when I called to inform of my trip) and the rate is pretty good. Another tip to share with you guys is that you need to constantly revise your accommodation prices as your trip draws nearer. This is to prepare for the amount to be paid for accommodation on the day you arrive at your hotel. I kept a spreadsheet of all the accommodation and revised it every 3 months. Yen got stronger against MYR and I was devasted when our accommodation price increased (in MYR) during Chinese New Year. Then after our trip, our MYR became STRONGER than Yen. WTF.
5. Ground Transportation in Osaka, Kanazawa and Kyoto
(a) Osaka
We used a lot of JR trains (local city train) as our hotel is only 1 minute walk from Shin Imamiya station and 2 stops away is Namba which is the station to go for Dotonbori and Shinshaibashi area. Sinsekai is only 5 minutes walk away from our hotel. So, we did not get the chance to use the bus. Subway only from Osaka station to Umeda station to catch the Hankyu train to Ikeda station where the Ando Instant Ramen Museum is. Every train ticket has its range from 150 yen (from Shin Imamiya to Namba) at the minimum to 1080 yen (Kansai Airport to Shin-Imamiya on JR Loop) at the most we have paid in Osaka for train rides.
(b) Kanazawa
Use the loop bus for easy travel. 200 yen per ride or 500 yen for day pass. You need the map which you get just outside the train station (East exit) at the Loop Bus ticketing counter where you can get the day pass.
From Osaka, we used a ticket called Seishun 18 Kippu (Youth 18) ticket. It is the cheapest train ticket at 11,850 yen and it can be used by up to 5 adults per ticket. Or up to 5 days travel for one person. The catch? It is a non-express train, which means it will take longer than the usual express or bullet trains to get to your destination. E.g.
Osaka to Kanazawa - you can use the Hokuriku Shinkansen or Thunderbird limited express train (cheaper a bit than shinkansen) but costed a bomb at least 20k yen for the former and about 6.7k yen for the latter per way (read, one way only!) but, you save a lot of time. It takes only 2 hours tops. But with the Seishun 18 Kippu ticket, it took us 5.5 hours. But, we did not complain much because we get to stop at Tsuruga and Fukui and saw so many gorgeous and beautiful fishing villages by the Sea of Japan along the way which the express trains will not give you. Or even show you. All trains in Japan are comfortable nevertheless.
(c) Shirakawa-go
This is the trickiest. I had to get Nohi bus company to help me book the highway express shuttle bus tickets via email. According to the village's travel guide, the bus tickets had to be booked or reservation needed in advance from Japan. How am I supposed to book from Japan right? I will not have a Japanese number (but your hotel can help you I think if you ask in this case I did not) when I am in Japan and then it will be too late to book as as I planned to visit this village just 2 days after I have landed. So, from plenty of research and blog readings, I found out that I can actually asked the tourist information centre to help me book the bus tickets by email. It was a disappointing reply from them as they could not do so but directed me to contact Nohi Bus Company instead which is the only service that caters to Kanazawa - Shirakawa-go - Takayama route. So, I sent an email to the bus company and a very nice lady, Yuko, helped me to book it under a special arrangement only as they usually cater to rsvp via telephone in Japan. Tada! I got my tickets booked. Hehe.. It costed 3,290 yen per round trip per person. The timings and all, you can see from Nohi bus company's website. Google it.
(d) Kyoto
USE THE BUS. The bus network is so extensive that by bus, you can get to NSEW (north, south, east and west) of Kyoto or greater Kyoto. Would you believe it if I told you that I got myself and my family from Kyoto station all the way to Arashiyama by bus only? We need not change or get down at all. Well, it took us about 40 minutes and 28 stops. Haha..
And the day pass is only 500 yen! You can do a return trip from Kyoto to Arashiyama many times in a day. You can also connect one attraction to another attraction by bus. It is very convenient. Get the bus map from the train station before you go. You really need it. The map also shows you the bus routes as well and you can plan property.
TRANSPORTATION TIP: Download this app on Android or IOS called HYPERDIA (by Hitachi Japan) through their website ONLY WHEN YOU ARE IN JAPAN. You cannot download this in advance from your home country as it is only available Japan. It is our saviour and helped us so much in planning the ground transportation. Precise timings and even tells you how much is your trip going to cost by bus or train. The app also suggests the best timings and price for you too and you can click your preference whether you want express or regular or avoid tolls highways etc, too. I am very happy with the app. Of course, you need to have internet on your phone too when you are in Japan. This, I will expand in my next post.
