Japan - My 1st time to Japan, Please Advise me and Help

Dear All,

I would like to go to Japan end of the year. End dec 2009 to early Jan 2010. And i would like you to advise me on the transport and cost:

(1) How to go to tokyo from NRT airport? Can this be used by the 7 days JR pass? How long will it take fro NRT airport to Tokyo?

(2) I would be spending 10 days at Japan and i would like to visit tokyo and other cities like kyoto and osaka? can you pls suggest which other cities are not to be missed?

(3) How to travel from Tokyo to Osaka? Can the 7 days JR pass be used? I am super confused by the Japan trains.. there are so many.

(4) what is your advise on the ordinary seats and green seats on the train? Is there big difference?

(5) Can the ordinary seat be able for me to put my big luggage approx 30kg?

(6) Is it going to be very cold in Japan end dec?

(7)Within the cities of tokyo and other cities, can i still use the 7 days JR pass? where can i buy the 7 days JR pass?

(8) Where is a must go place in Japan?

(9) What do you think about disney world? How much is it?

(9) which hotel do you recommend in Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka?

(10) Will Japan snow during end dec? What is the estimate temperature during the time?

(11) Does anyone know what is the luggage weight limit for Japan Airline and ANA?

I appreciate all your sharing to make my trip a more memorable one.

Many Thanks,
Bunbi. / Singapore

Welcome to Flyer Talk.

You already posted this same request in the thread on JR Rail Passes and received a response that gave you some good advice. You should read the first thread at the top of this page - the Japan Forum Master Thread. You should also obtain and look through a good guidebook for Japan to get some idea of what you want to see and do when you get to Japan. One more thing - in order for us to give you our best advice, we need to know more about you and your travel plans. For example, we cannot give hotel advice unless you give us some idea of your budget. We cannot give advice on what to see and do without knowing something about what you want out of your trip.

I'll start with some general ideas:

The trip into Tokyo from Narita Airport can be done several ways. Probably the best is either the train or the limousine bus. If you are staying at one of the hotels that is served by the limo-bus and have a lot of luggage, the bus is probably most convenient. The JR Rail Pass does not cover the bus.

Otherwise, one of the trains is probably best. The "Narita Express" airport train is the most expensive option but can be covered by the JR Rail Pass. It goes from both NRT terminals to Tokyo Station in downtown Tokyo in about an hour. Some Narita Express trains will continue on to other stations in Tokyo - Shinagawa, Shinjuku and others.

Less expensive than the Narita Express are the Keisei Line trains. The Skyliner is their deluxe airport train. Keisei also operates an even less expensive Rapid Service train. The Keisei Line trains deliver you from either of the terminals at Narita Airport to Nippori and Ueno Stations in north-central Tokyo. The JR Rail Pass does NOT cover Keisei trains.

The JR Rail Pass can be used to "pay for" transportation to and from Tokyo and Narita Airport. It also will cover shinkansen (bullet train) travel between cities and local Japan Rail trains in Tokyo and other cities. It does not cover subways and some local train company lines. You can obtain a Suica Pass for Tokyo subways and many local train lines. It is a prepaid card that can be "refilled" or added to if necessary.

You say you are going to Japan for 10 days but asked about the 7-day JR Rail Pass. The 7 days is any 7 "consecutive" days. If you activate your Pass upon arrival and use it for the trip into Tokyo, your 7 days start then and the Pass will expire before the end of your trip. You need to consider how and when to best make use of the 7 days. If you intend to stay in Tokyo for the first few days and do your more long-distance travel during the last 7 days, you might want to "activate" your Pass for the last 7 days, including the trip back to the airport when you leave. If you do that, you would need to pay for the first trip into Tokyo after arriving. In that case, you might want to use one of the less expensive means to get to Tokyo and use the Narita Express for the return to NRT when you leave. Or - you could activate the Pass immediately, use the Pass to get into Tokyo via the Narita Express, do all of your travel outside Tokyo in the first 7 days and then visit Tokyo for the last few days of your stay and pay for one of the less expensive trains back to NRT on the way home. In either case, the 7-day Rail Pass will not cover your airport transportation at both ends of a 10 day visit. It will be one or the other.

Most large, international travel agencies can sell you a Japan Rail Pass. They actually sell you a "voucher" which you must present at a Japan Rail office along with your passport after you arrive in Japan. The voucher will be exchanged for your actual Rail Pass at that time. You will have to tell the Japan Rail agent what dates to make the Rail Pass cover. You should have this figured out before you come to Japan. You MUST purchase the JR Rail Pass voucher before you come to Japan. There are some on-line sites to purchase the Rail Pass from home (I use one) but I don't know which might be available to you from Singapore. Try Google or just find a travel agency in your city.

There is a Japan Rail Pass Exchange office at Narita Airport after you finish with Customs and Immigration. I suggest you use it to activate the Pass, even if you aren't going to use the Pass immediately.

For a 10 day visit using the JR Rail Pass, you will need to stay in Tokyo for at least 3 days. Most first-time visitors also want to visit Kyoto for a few days, along with Nara and Osaka. Kyoto is very historic and scenic, with lots of temples, shrines, parks and gardens and the old Imperial Palace. Nara is even older, quieter and slower-paced. Osaka is a big, modern city with great nightlife and dining opportunities and has a different "vibe" or feel from Tokyo. You might also enjoy a daytrip visit to the historic city of Kamakura a short daytrip distance from Tokyo. For Tokyo, it is a huge collection of smaller sub-cities and areas that are all a little different from each other. A day in each of several of these can be very enjoyable. Study the guides for decriptions of the various towns within Tokyo.

Tokyo Disneyland is pretty much like Disneyland in any other country. If you have been to one someplace else, you know what to expect. If not, it might be worth a day of your visit. Disneyland is not really conveniently located to central Tokyo so some planning would be in order if you want to go.

Virtually all of the major tourist destination cities like Kyoto, Osaka, Kobe, Okayama, Hiroshima and such are served by either the shinkansen bullet train or other deluxe express trains on which you can use the JR Rail Pass. I personally see no reason to spend the extra money for "green car" access. The regular seats are very comfortable. On the shinkansen and most deluxe express trains, there is space behind the last row of seats in each car for luggage. Try to board early to be sure of getting part of that space. The airport special trains all have luggage racks.

Ok, that my contribution. Hopefully someone else will address some of your other questions.

Dear Abmj,

Appreciate your time and effort to share with me so much info. :D

I heard from my travel agencies that we need to buy the JR pass before entering into Japan, wasn't sure if it is acurrate. Based on what you said, i will buy the 7 days JR pass before entering into Japan.

I do not have any hotel at the moment so will need to take the train. Since i am planning to buy the 7 days pass, i might take the "Narita Express" train.

May i know how frequent does that train come? I should be reaching NRT airport on a Sunday in DEC at 7am. Do they have a fixed schedule? By knowing the time, this will allow me to know how much time i can spend in NRT airport.

So "Narita Express" will goes all the way to Tokyo Station and may i know which hotel do you recommend near the station? I am hoping to get a decent clean hotel at probably 9600 Yen. My friend recommended me to stay in Ueno. Not sure about it.

Thank you for your advice about my period of 10 days usage.

My original plan was

27th Dec to 29th Dec - Tokyo
29th Dec to 31st Dec - Kyoto
1st to 3rd Jan - Osaka
3rd Jan to 5th Jan - Tokyo
5th - NRT Airport

Based on the plan, i believed that i need to pay seperately to come from tokyo to NRT airport since my 7 days pass should have ended.

Can anyone share how can make my plan of the above better?

I will be carrying my luggage with me from 1 cities to another. My concern is I am afraid that there is no space to put my luggage in the bullet train. Thank you for your advice of not needing to take the green car. I read on some forum, some said is more worth to take the green car. As i am travelling from 1 cities to another, i am just afraid that there might not be seat in the regular car. Can we reserved seat? How can i go about doing it?

May i Know from Tokyo to Kyoto, which station will they stop at kyoto? The reason for asking is to find some hotel nearby.

And from Kyoto to Osaka, which station will they stop at Osaka?

As I will be counting down to 1st Jan 2010 in Japan... do you advise me to be at osaka on 31st Dec as you mentioned that it is a very vibrant cities? Will there be count down party?

Looks like i will give disneyland a missed.

Many thanks for all your advice:p

Timing of the train can be easily found from the JR website. Efficiency of Japan is well noted and thus trains do leave and arrive as stated in their timetable.

Given that you are arriving from Sin on the redeye, the flight will not be as bad as those from europe of states with the time difference. If you are those that could sleep on the plane, then I would suggest that you take off straight to the kansai region upon arrival. You will probably arrive about noon or so to facilitate your hotel check in. Most on this board will suggest that you set base in either kyoto or osaka and do day trip around the region rather than wasting time moving around.

No idea about count down party in Osaka, but I will be doing mine in Disneyland Tokyo :)

Have fun planning your trip!

There is only one main JR station in Kyoto, so that is where the Shinkansen stops. In Osaka, it stops at Shin-Osaka.

The Narita Express runs all day a couple of times per hour. The exact schedule is here:
http://www.jreast.co.jp/e/nex/index.html

You can reserve a seat at any JR station for any JR train in Japan. The reservations are all computerized.

New Year's Eve in Japan is a family holiday, like Christmas in the West. Most people celebrate it at home. The closest thing to a public celebration is the midnight visit to the nearest Shinto shrine, where people line up to take their turn praying for good luck in the new year. Oddly enough, Christmas Eve is the big party and date night in Japan.

If your luggage is large, your hotel can arrange to ship it to your next hotel. This costs about ¥2000 per bag.

I would spend more time in Kyoto and less in Osaka. The cities are very close together, so you can just stay in one hotel.

Really, you need a guidebook. Also, look at the Japan National Tourist Office website. They have information in several languages (Chinese, Korean, Thai, French, German, Portuguese, and Russian) and PDFs about all the major sites and cities.

http://www.jnto.go.jp

Thanks All for your sharing. Now i am clear that there is only one main JR station in Kyoto, so that is where the Shinkansen stops. In Osaka, it stops at Shin-Osaka.

I look at the timetable for Narita Express but i am quite concern as my plane should reach Narita airport at 7am on Sunday. Looking at the timetable, its seems that the earliest train for Narita express train (from airport to toyko) is at 9.04am. Is this true?

If it is at 9.04am as the earliest train, then i might not take narita express. What is the other train that can leave from airport around 7.30am to tokyo and i can use my 7 days JR pass?

Roughly how long will it take from Kyoto to Osaka, since there is another alternative to just stay 1 hotel. And if i would to stay only 1 hotel, so is Osaka or kyoto better to stay?

Thanks.

:-:

Hi bunbi,
Your "voice" bears an uncanny resemblance to someone who posted some questions many months ago. Have you changed ID?

No. I just plan to go Japan like few days ago.

If you have anything to share for me to take note, do let me know. thanks:p

If you are arriving at 7, I doubt that you will actually be able to be make it out of the airport at 730. This is especially since there is a bank of planes arriving in the morning. While narita is not like what you may experience in the states, this is not exactly changi as well. Journey between osaka and kyoto take at most an hour depending on which area you are staying and what train you are taking.

Staying in osaka or kyoto is personal preference and I think it is a never ending debate on this board. Check out a guide book and decide which you would prefer. Personally, I prefer Osaka for the "bright lights", but you can find as many here who prefer the more "classic" Kyoto.

There are many more experience experts on this board who will give you much better and valuable advise than I could if you have more specific questions to ask.

Bunbi, read a guidebook and consult the JNTO website at the link I gave you. Most of your questions are answered there.

People have already been more than generous with their information. Now go do some of your own research and come back when you have acquired a little basic knowledge.

Don't expect strangers on a message board to plan your trip for you.

No. I just plan to go Japan like few days ago.

If you have anything to share for me to take note, do let me know. thanks:p
There's hardly any need.

Most of your questions were already anticipated by jib71 and he has done an admirable job of sharing links and information for you to take note. I just thought I'd let you know.... :p

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/japan/530019-japan-tokyo-beyond-master-thread.html

I'm all for breastfeeding your own offspring. With adults, it's much more satisfying to give menu suggestions than to actually spoon feed them.

Wirelessly posted (KDDI-HI38 UP.Browser/6.2.0.11.1.3.110 (GUI) MMP/2.0)

One advice on Shinkansen.
I recommend booking your seat in advance.
Shinkansen will be very crowded during your travel, especially on December 26 and January 3 since it is holiday season.

I think there is a count down party at Univesal Studio in Osaka.