Japan Tour
 

Hi All,

Just need some advice :) I have been to tokyo before but only for 4 nights. I am planning to go again sometime this year, probably late this year at this stage. This time will be for my honeymoon. Now basically this is my plan:

I will fly from SYD-HKG-SYD. I will have 1 month off. So I was thinking maybe 5 days in HKG and the rest for Japan. So leaves me around 3 weeks for Japan. Should I get a tour package from HKG to Japan and back to HKG or should I buy my own return tickets for HKG-NRT-HKG and purchase some tours in tokyo? I prefer the free and easy method while having some guided tours outside of tokyo. I wanted to visit hot springs, hokkaido, kyoto, osaka, mt fuji if time permits. Should I leave anything out of the list or are these nice places ot get a feel of japan.

Are any of those doable for 1 night or I need 2 nights for each one?

Also I will need to make it as affordable as possible :) Accomodation and travel.

I would prefer to have 4-5 days in tokyo, I will be stayin gat ANA IC most probably as I had a fantastic 4 night stay before.

Hotels don't need to be 5 star, Holiday Inn type will be good enough I think. Say 3-4 stars.

Cheers,
Kenn.

It's impossible to reply to your question as to whether it's better to get a tour from Hong Kong than make your own bespoke holiday from scratch. Sometimes tours can offer unbeatable value for money and can be tweaked to taste.

When friends of ours from Tokyo came to the UK for our wedding they were able to get package deals that included a week's accommodation in London, airport transfers between the airport and the hotel as well as the flight itself for about £500 inclusive (about 100,000yen at the time). This was less than the cost of most of the flights.

I just don't know what is available from Hong Kong. As the yen is very strong at the moment there might be schemes and discounts to encourage visitors to Japan available right now.
I'd look for consolidator tips in the Hong Kong forum and make enquiries there:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/searc...archid=4142270 (this should get you started)

Alternatively, you might be able to book a flight to Tokyo with a carrier that uses Hong Kong as a hub and stay in Hong Kong as a 'stopover' enroute to, or back from, Japan. This would be my first approach.

As to whether you'd want to actually go to Mount Fuji rather than go somewhere nice with a hot spring from where you can see it (and Mount Fuji can, weather permitting, be seen from Tokyo - ask for a Fuji facing room at the ANA) here's a recent thread:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/japan...ji-hakone.html
I've never been to Mount Fuji and have no current inclination to, I honestly don't believe I'm missing out on much.

There is a japan air pass for both oneworld and *A, with information here, if you fly into japan using JL/ANA/CX from HK or QF/NZ from down under, you can grab a ticket for 10K yen. cheaper than shinkansen in most cases- if you want a SKS experience then you can get it for one of your shorter/unflyable trips.
Also, i would suggest you to fly into Osaka/KIX rather than Tokyo if you have been there before, then work your way north. You can try some travel agents who does open jaws in japan as well. Although the price MAY be higher than using the air passes. One note: air passes need to be sorted out before your trip!

Hi,

Thanks for the replies. With the airpass for 10k yen, what can I do with it? 1 return flight e.g. NRT->KIX->NRT?

Welcome to Hong Kong! (As I am from HK) and hope you have fun planning your Japan trip

Few notes first:

As you mention "Tour" to Japan, can you clarify if you are interested in joining Hong Kong-ese tour group to Japan or you intend to do the tour on yourself? It does make a big difference in the whole planning. Most if not all tour operator from HK is Cantonese based.

As OP did not mention when was his intended travel period, I assume the OP is planning for post summer holiday and pre-Christmas, aka low season.

A random check on Sep origin date shows the following

A$1,173.30 SYD --> HKG --> NRT --> xHKG --> SYD (stopover can be on return)
A$939.00 SYD --> HKG --> HKG

HK$1,457 difference

While in low season we saw HKG --> HND --> HKG ticket for 2K HKD, 0/7 day ticket, which is too little for OP required 3 week Japan stay. Should consider purchase CX based NRT ticket for the value run.

For the Japan Air pass, what you exactly looking for is Yokoso Japan Pass, which each coupon worth JPY 10K (+ tax), however, as OP will be in Japan for 3 weeks, you should consider a combination of JR all pass / JR area pass / Metro Pass / Yokoso Japan pass. It will be the best if you can provide a rough plan for your travel.

If you will be flying CX, you can purchase hotel from cxholidays.com (definitely not the best rate), do shop around with your travel agent / local online hotel site / Japanese hotel site like http://travel.rakuten.co.jp/en/ . If you want to go cheap you can try Toyoko-inn / Super Hotel

In addition, if you plan to go Furano you will more interest to go for home-stay at the area

Cheers!

The airpass is segment based, for Osaka / Tokyo v.v., you will need 2 pass (20K yen + tax) for ITM -> HND -> ITM

For the best travel plan you should plan single direction travel, HKG have flight to the following major ports in Japan

Served by CX: Fukuoka / Osaka / Nagano / Tokyo / Sapporo
Not Served by CX : Okinawa

If you plan to go to Okinawa, most likely you will need to detour to Fukuoka

There is a few NRT-ITM-NRT which is more convenient. If the time of arrival doesn't match, then a Limo transfer to HND plus HND-ITM-HND which has about one flight per hour each from ANA and JAL. Early morning flights are the cheapest.

One possibility is HKG-TPE-OKA on China Airline.

If you're an experienced traveler and have been to Tokyo before, why do you need a guided tour? Japan is incredibly easy to get around in.

Since you're coming from outside the country, just read a guidebook (supplemented by the PDFs from the Japan National Tourist Organization website), figure out where you want to go, buy a JR Pass, and have fun.

If you need economical accommodations, there are clean, safe, and reasonable (if someone lacking in amenities) business hotels in every city. In some locations, there's a tourist information office in the local train or bus station that will find accommodations for you if you don't have a reservation. For food, just wander around until you find something that looks appealing.

Don't worry about traveling solo. I and other visitors to Japan have had the delightful experience of being "adopted" by groups or families. It's easier if you speak the language, but I know people who speak no Japanese who have met up with a Japanese family at some famous site or other and have ended up with an invitation to join the family's next excursion.

The Air Pass can be handy if you have little time and want to visit far-flung locations on the same trip, but on the whole, I prefer the up close and personal view of Japan that you get from the train. It's also easier to meet people on the train, both Japanese and foreign.

Thanks for the replies guys.

Basically I will be travelling with my wife on honeymoon. I will redeem my tickets with VS for our SYD-HKG-SYD using miles.

So that leaves us with NRT on a separate ticket. I looked up on CX and NH and they were pretty much the same price to fly from HKG-NRT-HKG. Worked out to be A$1200 approx.

I was thinking to do the tours ourselves but at the same time worried it might be difficult and inconvinient for places like Hokkaido, Osaka, Hot springs (Hakone)?, Mount fuji , Kyoto. I can do Tokyo ourselves no problem as I was there 2 years ago and got around pretty much trouble free.

Travel to Japan would be around late December, maybe 29th Dec arrival. And probably need to leave NRT for HKG at around 15 January. Will this be too rushed for the places I want to go, or should I leave out a city of 2 in my list? Or do I need to increase my stay :) I wonder how much budget I need to set back for this amount of days in Japan? Can anyone give me a guide? :) So I can get an idea.

I was thinking 5 nights in Tokyo? Didn't really want to rush, although 5 might not be enough. I have been there 2 years ago for 4 nights and didin't find it was enough time I will probably go to disneyland again.

Another option, not sure if I can do this from Australia, basically book the land tours? i.e. make my own way to NRT and then I can join tours to go to all those places I wanted to go to?

Chris Li: You mentioend most tours if I join from HKG to go to Japan are in cantonese? None of them will be in english? My cantonese is very limited so I would require an english guide.

Cheers,
Kenn.

December 29th arrival? That means being in Tokyo for New Year's. By all means go to a shrine at midnight on New Year's Eve. Your hotel will tell you where the nearest large shrine is.

You may have trouble finding things open during the first few days of the New Year. Just about everything except hotels and convenience stores will be closed on New Year's Day.

Hi,

Thanks for that. Yeah would love to visit a shrine for new years.

Cheers,
Kenn.

Your best bet for such case will be fly CX as they fly the most to Japan and you can do openjaw. Suggested routing will be HKG --> FUK // CTS --> HKG or vice versa if you are traveling in one direction. Do note that if you involve CTS in your travel your ticket price will jump up a bit. Alternatively you can fly JAL / ANA redeye by HKG --> xHND --> Any Destination

JAL / ANA provide even cheaper add on sector if you fly them into Japan. As I remember it is 500 HKD per sector + tax

In addition, HK people are famous for "last minute" travel where discounted ticket / package won't be available 2 months before departure. If you want to secure your package you probably want to use cxholidays.com / http://www.anaskyholiday.com.hk / http://www.jalselect.com.hk/

Actually it may worth you to check if it is cheaper to redeem the HKG NRT segment instead of redeem SYD HKG segment. as HKG NRT vv will be in super peak season, and any ticket beyond valid beyond 17 days prices like fraud. at the time you travel and as you probably will fly domestic in Japan, depend on your miles program, it may earn you 2 free domestic flight (they are super expensive)

Current Price
HKG NRT out 29/12/2009 in 15/01/2009
CI T-class via TPE 5920 0/1Y
KE S-class via SEL 6850 0/1Y
CX H-class 6950 1D/1M


I randomly checked some upper class travel service company (http://www.skytravel.com.hk/) and they have some 11 days Japan tour, that's one of the longest tour group available in terms of Japan travel (Their price is 20K HKD per head all-in for summer, not sure about winter)
I think most land tour in Japan are of Japanese .... good luck searching ....
Basically all tour group from HK are Cantonese based .....

Right on the money. Obviously it depends on your independence and travel style, but much of my second trip to Japan was planned with a visit to the JNTO office in New York, where I grabbed the papers that you can print on your own from the JNTO web site. They are free and as good, if not better, then the info you would find from many travel guides. I used a combination of those sheets, some internet research, and a strategic stop at the JTB booth in Narita on my way out of the airport to book all my hotels through the Welcome Inn system. Combine that with buying your Rail Pass purchase order before you leave, and you are basically set.

As an example: I planned a 5-day trip through Kyushu by collecting JNTO papers for all the cities I could find, and narrowing my choices to five cities. After figuring out the order of the cities, I picked hotels mentioned on each sheet for convenience to public transport and/or proximity to the train station. For fun, I picked mostly (lower-end) ryokans, but business hotels were the same price. From that point on, I only needed to figure out what I would see each day.

I have a basic conversational knowledge of Japanese, which helped me find a few places and make a few friends, but I would have been okay knowing none.

If you've only been to Tokyo, you have yet to witness the incredible friendliness and kindness of Japanese strangers around the country. Over my two trips, I've hitched a ride on a truck to a suburban museum in Kumamoto, escorted to my hostel by a bunch of curious teenagers in Hiroshima, guided on a subway across town in Kyushu by a gorgeous lady... mostly just by asking basic directions in limited Japanese.

Thanks all for the info.

It looks like I am better off skip on the tour guides and go solo with my wife :)

Just thinking are those places that I listed doable in the timeframe I was suggesting? If I was in NRT first, which city should I visit first out of the whole lot? I was thinking leaving tokyo my last destination before going back to HKG. Say leave around 4-5 days for tokyo.

Also I was thinking flying into NRT, spend a night in Tokyo. Then either fly to Hokkaido, spend say 2-3 nights then fly back to Tokyo. Then go to Osaka, Kyoto via Shinkansen for say 3 nights. Then go back to Tokyo and spend4-5 nights and then back to HKG. Is this a good option? Or I was thinking just pass on Hokkaido and just go to Osaka,Kyoto,Mount fuji, Hot springs.

How do I obtain the visit japan pass for the flight?

Cheers,
Kenn.

You should consider flying the JAL / ANA redeye then go straight ahead to Hokkaido if you can sleep on plane
HKG --> xHND
HND --> CTS / AKJ (If you heading Furano)

Alternatively, via NRT
HKG --> xNRT --> CTS

CTS --> ITM (Osaka, it seems strange to fly to Tokyo in order to transit to train)
ITM --> HND (or do it on Shinkensen if time fits)
HND / NRT --> HKG

However, I just found out that Japan air pass is not valid between 22 December 2009 and 05 January 2010 due to their domestic super peak season. Your best bet is to book the HKG Japan ticket with JAL / ANA and see if they can do anything for you on that

As listed, I suggest you to fly direct to ITM instead of passing via Tokyo and save time ($ also) unless you want to pass the 2010 year line at Tokyo
You can buy 3 day JR West + Kyoto Pass (on regular train) for 5000 Yen JR West Pass

I think for 18 days it's completely do-able
Buy it when you buy your HKG TYO ticket.

A tour doesn't have to have a guide involved and can let you travel and stay more cheaply than a bespoke itinerary.

For instance, one of the cheapest ways of travelling between Tokyo and Kyoto is as part of a package deal
http://www.jtb-sunrisetours.jp/JTB.S...e=TYOOVJH2KAKE

This costs from 19,000yen each and includes return tickets on the Hikari bullet train as well as a night's modest accommodation in Kyoto.
What you can do is only avail yourself of the one night's lodging and choose to return on a later date so that you can spend 3 nights in Kyoto/Osaka (the other two nights at the hotel of your choice).

Osaka is only 30 minutes or so from Kyoto and costs about 500yen to get to by train.

This seems more sensible to me (and more cost effective) than getting an air pass between Tokyo and Kyoto/Osaka. It's also what I had in mind when I said that tours could be 'tweaked' to suit your needs.

Hi,

Yeah I wanted to spend New years in Tokyo.......So I was thinking to fly into NRT first....If I don't go to Hokkaido am I missing out a lot? If I skip hokkaido, I would just go to Osaka,Kyoto,Tokyo,Mt Fuji Hakone.Hmm if I wanted to go to hiroshima, how do I get there from Tokyo?

As you want to spend new Year @ Tokyo and Last 4 or 5 days @ Tokyo, I have been to Japan twice only so my rough planning as below.... (actually quiet a crazy packed schedule)

29 Dec Land @ Tokyo on NRT / HND flight, Straight to Hakone
Note: You may not able to catch the dinner provided by the onsen place if you fly NRT as first HKG --> NRT flight arrives at 1400 JPT, + train = arrive at 18:00

30 / 31 Dec AM Hakone / Mt Fuji
31 Dec --> 1 Jan Tokyo

2 Jan --> 8 Jan West Japan (Just fit the max time for JR pass, not opt flying cuz blackout period of Japan Air Pass)
2 Days Kyoto (Note to double check opening hours @ holiday)
1 Day Nara
1 Day Himeji + Kobe
1.5 Day Hiroshima
1.5 Day Osaka

Depends on your choice, few selections here

1. Overnight Sleeper train to Hokkaido
If you want to really experience Japan Rail Travel, Jump on Twilight Express (トワイライトエクスプレス) depart from Osaka mid-day, with your JR pass you should only need to pay for the room and heading Hokkaido

2. Shortcut to Hokkaido
If you want something quick and / or the sleeper train is not available that day, jump on a ITM --> CTS flight and travel to Sapporo, use the JR pass for your last leg of CTS to Sapporo Downtown

3. Spend more time @ West Japan and Skip Hokkaido
If you want to skip Hokkaido with more time @ West Japan, Book ITM --> HND on your preferred day

4. Spend more time @ Tokyo and Skip Hokkaido
If you want to skip Hokkaido with more time @ Tokyo, travel shikensen back to Tokyo on 8 Jan

9 Jan --> 12 Jan Hokkaido
13 Jan --> 15 Jan Tokyo

Thanks for that :) I will analyse the below and decide :) Also am I missing much if I don't go to Hokkaido and/or hiroshima?

I traveled to neither Hokkaido / Hiroshima, however http://www.japan-guide.com/ may be a good site for you to start

(Disclaim: http://www.japan-guide.com/ is my company's business partner)

Hi Chris,

Thanks. I will have a look.

Hokkaido's attractions are natural rather than historical, and I wouldn't recommend going there in midwinter unless you really like cold and snow or hope to visit one of the ski resorts or were able to time your visit for the Sapporo Snow Festival in February.

Hokkaido is at the same latitude as Minneapolis or Milwaukee and has winters to match. Save it for a summertime trip, when it will feel like a great refuge from the steamy summers of the other islands.

Hiroshima would take a lot less time to visit, and in addition to the atomic bomb-related sites, it has Miyajima and the Shukkeien to recommend it.

Thanks. Is Osaka, Kyoto a natural feel as well instead of historical?

Also which hot spring in near tokyo would you recommend? Hakone? Is there a private hot spring, i.e. only for a couple? Sorry new to this :)

Kyoto is all historical and cultural. But you can also see a lot of nature all around. There are a lot of hills/mini mountains all around Kyoto. In the 2nd World War, the American scholars was actually able to convince the military not to bomb the city. There many temples and shrines in the city. More than any other city in Japan.

Osaka is more a food place. There isnt really much "tourist" attraction there except the castle (not the best), kaiyukan (big aquarium - quite nice) and shopping. Lots and lots of shopping..Umeda and Dotombori area.

If you go to Hiroshima, you should definitely go to Miyajima.

Thanks guys for the info.

Will kyoto,tokyo,osaka,hiroshima,hokkaido have snow around Late dec to mid jan?

Hokkaido yes. The rest of the places, the snow dont usually stay on the ground long. Unless it is unseasonably cold..

When I lived in Tokyo, there was occasional winter snow, but it melted within a day or two. Daytime highs were almost always above freezing. The lowest temperature I ever experienced there was -4°C (about 25°C) at night.

The same is true in the rest of Japan south and west of Tokyo. I once took a student group to Japan in January, and we had highs of 5°C or more (about 40°F), except when we went to Takayama, which is in the foothills of the Japan Alps. In Takayama there was ankle-deep snow on the ground. Later, we had flurries in Kyoto, but the snow melted as soon as it hit the ground.