Originally Posted by
Flier74
I totally fell in love with Tokyo and Japan on my travels last year and yes train travel is easy and fast, consider purchasing the JR rail pass before departure as it can be extremely cost effective on the Shinkansen,
The train pass is more expensive than it was, and even the JAL explorer plane fares are not as cheap as a few years ago.
If you will be island hopping the plane fare option is the one to go for, but if you will be staying on Honshu a train pass is almost certainly a better option.