19 April 2014

What I mean when I say 'budget traveling in Japan'. part 2 ~ wherever you go

Articles like this always recommend you a lot of convenient things and give wise tips, but they're always for those ready to pay for their comfort. With money, I mean. We, the poor travellers, prefer to pay with our brains.
4. Transportation
Transportation is the thing that takes a lot of money in Japan, since the price varies greatly depending on the length of the trip. The shortest trip on JR would cost 130 yen, but this is a rare case (I've ever saw this only once, going from Minamisenju to Kitasenju in Tokyo) and even one station away is often not 130 but 150 yen. I know that recently the prices have went up so probably this info is no longer valid.
The farther you go, the more you pay. The way to save money is, therefore, to plan the sightseeing activities so that the places you're going to visit are not too far from each other. Visiting several faraway places in one day is not money-friendly. However, visiting several places near each other - by means of public transportation, I mean - is not profitable either. Travelling each 1-3 stations costs, say, 150 yen, but 6 stations do not cost the same as twice per 3 stations, and going 10 stations away is cheaper than getting on a train 10 times.
I would recommend walking the distances up to 30 minutes on foot in case you're not too tired, which would kill two birds with one stone. On one hand, you'd save 150-250 yen (or even more) each time, on the other hand, you'd get the chance to have a look at the area which I consider essential for understanding, well, where you actually are.
Travelling to other cities is expensive, too. My dream is to get on Shinkansen one day. If you're not obsessed with it, like me, give up this idea. Like, 13000 for a one-way trip from Tokyo to Osaka? No way.
Buying a JR Pass is only justified in case you really need to go by Shinkansen, and you need it at least twice. I mean 27000 yen. My expenses on buses and trains during my last trip of 8 days were 3 times less than that. four? I don't remember. Even if I add the Tokyo-Osaka segment of my plane tickets price which would be approximately 6000 yen, it'll still make no more than a half of the price of JR Pass.
In case you're not extremely limited in time when you come to and before your departure from Japan, take local trains rather than expresses. Compare 1000 yen for a limited express from and to Narita that goes 1 hour 20 minutes and stops on nearly all stations, and Keisei Skyliner which is twice as fast and twice as expensive. 2400, to be more precise. The Narita Express they recommend is better, only 1500, but this option is only one way, so you'd spend 4500 in total, while Keisei main line limited express is only 2000. Yeah, 40 minutes there and 40 back for the price of almost 3000 yen.
By the way, the next tip is extremely useful. If possible, not only use Haneda instead of Narita, but check the airports nearest to the place where you need to get to (i. e. the hotel in most cases, I guess). For example, the same way as Haneda is closer to the heart of Tokyo than Narita, Itami is closer to the centre of Osaka than Kansai. I guess, there are other cities like that, too. If the time (of the plane departure or arrival) is convenient enough for you, going to and from airports close to the city centre will save you money, to say nothing of time. While the cheapest ticket from Narita to big stations on Yamanote line, which is the loop line in Tokyo, is 1000 yen, getting there from Haneda is no more than 600 yen. Probably an express from Narita is speedy enough, but if we speak of Osaka, a bus will take you to Umeda or Namba in only half an hour, while going from Kansai must be no quicker than 50 minutes, I think.
By the way, sometimes buses are more expensive than trains, but not in Osaka. The Limousine bus to and from Itami is only 620 yen, while going by underground is more expensive and requires changes.
It sounds pretty fair that the less you pay the more changes you need to make on your way, right? This bothers me a lot. Usually, when you go straight to your destination by one kind of transport - for example, only JR or only underground, you pay less than when you change from one to another. But sometimes it's impossible. Moreover, to get from Haneda to my station - Minamisenju - I had to change twice which is not a proper way of conduct for a fragile girl tired with the trip from Osaka to Tokyo! ^.^
Oh, and Pasmo-Suica-Icoca-other-cards. Really good when you don't want to buy tickets each time before you board on train and you don't want to look for the price and buy tickets each time you transfer to a different kind of transport. Of course that's convenient, especially considering the cards can be easily charged on all stations, and even if you don't have money on the card and are in a hurry for a train, you can charge it when you've already come to your destination before passing the exit gate. Moreover, most of those cards are interchangeable. The list of interchangeable cards is easily googled. However, the card itself costs 500 yen, and remember about the money you leave unspent on the card when you go back home, in case you don't give it back and take your refund.
Going by plane is, of course, the most expensive way. Choose this option only if you have some method to get cheap tickets - if you plan to visit several locations in Japan it's best to buy one ticket with all flights planned in advance than buying tickets to Japan and back and then buying tickets for travelling within Japan. There are some discounts for foreigners who want to travel within Japan, like they mention in the article, but such tickets are still expensive. Compare a round trip to Osaka from Tokyo for approx. 30000 yen and two segments for approx. 10000 yen each with the discount. 2/3 of the price is better, of course, than 100%, but there must be a way to make it even cheaper, I believe in it!
Undemanding travellers may try to use the services of Willer bus. This website offers a pass for 3 or 5 non-consecutive days during a certain period of time (1 month, if I am not mistaken). The 3 days one is only 10000 yen. The only inconvenient thing about travelling by bus is that you'd have to sleep in it in case you choose an overnight one (those going long distances, like Tokyo-Osaka, etc. are all overnight), so you'd have to do without a shower and bath, and sleep right in the bus chair. In case there's no toilet in the bus you'd also have to get up during the night when the bus makes short stops. The convenient thing about it is the same. I mean, you wouldn't have to book a room in a hotel. Or you may, just so that you check in and take your rest, breakfast and shower as soon as you get to your destination point.
And though I'm not experienced in this kind of travelling, I can say that my friend from Osaka sometimes goes to Tokyo by bus and she is not that unhappy about it.
And. No taxi unless you're completely lost in the concrete jungle in the middle of the night. Though they're considered the best in Asia (world?), they're as much expensive as good.
5. Communications
Let me start with that wireless router everybody recommends. Of course, being able to browse anywhere anytime, find some places on Google maps which are still unavailable in the offline version for Japan, is great. The price of a one week rental is at least 4200 yen plus 500 yen shipping fee, as they mention. 4700 yen... That's a whole world, you know! says a person who spends 30000 yen in Quatre Reves every time.
Just kidding. Of course 4700 for a week is not that much, only 700 yen per day, to be precise. However, why not save 4700, especially if you speak Japanese or English (or body language) on a level enough for an easy conversation. All you need is some time before your trip to find all intersting places on the map in advance. One option is to make screenshots and use them the same way as paper maps. The other is to open a map application on your phone or tablet in the morning when in the hotel, and then not to touch it. Just don't close the app, and don't change the scale. It (at least Google maps app) works perfectly fine even when you switch to other apps and then back, and even if you turn on GPS. The only problem is, you won't be able to see other places, if you didn't download that part of the map previously.
And nobody will bite you if you ask passer-bies or any other person around you for directions. Well, maybe some people occasionally can bite you slightly, but that's not common and the risk is very low.
Even the cheapest hotels - rather, hostels - provide wireless internet for all guests. Some of them still don't, but have at least a LAN cable socket. To my surprise, a pretty good hotel in Toyama city, the capital of Toyama prefecture, had no WiFi and the socket was hidden behind the table, but most ho(s)tels I have viewed on booking sites had WiFi. Like, maybe 95%. And computers for free use in some or other kind of lobby. Which is enough for you to do anything you could want in the internet whe you come back to the hotel.
6. Sightseeing
Of course, you can go to Disneyland and spend all your time and money there, but there are plenty of places that you can visit for free or for a moderate price.
However, that's quite another story

Let's sum up and try to calculate the lowest possible total costs for a one week trip to Tokyo and Osaka.
7 nights in hostels are, say, 16000 yen. Transporation within the cities is 6000 yen. Transportation between the cities by bus or by plane with a profitable tariff is 10000 yen. Food, including both meals in the hotel and outside, is 12000 yen. Sightseeing is 10000 yen. Souvenirs for your dear family, friends and colleagues - 5000 yen. Then, only very small purchases for yourself for 5000 again.
That's only 64 thousand yen.
My own expenses during my last trip were much higher, but almost a half of my money was eaten by my obsessions. The best way of saving money is not to be a fan of anything ^o^

17 April 2014

What I mean when I say 'budget traveling in Japan'. part 1 ~ daily bread

Meseems, some people believe that if they spend less than $100 per night in a hotel and refrain from additional excursions, they are having a 'budget trip' in Japan.
Now this is how one could travel if he is as poor as me wants an extremely cheap trip.
1. Staying
First of all, one may want to have a place to sleep during the night, or at least to write in the 'intended address in Japan' field of the foreigner embarkation card when entering Japan.
If that's really all one needs from his hotel, why bother with those luxury palaces? Two friends of mine were staying in a mixed dorm in Beijing with a farting guy sleeping just next to them, and they're still alive and well.
I prefer single rooms, because I simply love to create a mess of my belongings using all the space available don't like being together with unknown people, lack of private space to relax, get changed or leave my bag without worrying about its contents, nor I want to make friends with those who live in the same hotel very much.
Ok, my perfect room is a single, with common amenities on the floor. And that would cost me some 2000-3000 yen per day, or even cheaper.
One may check hostelworld or any other website to get acquainted with cheap hostels. Many of them have fridges in the rooms which makes it even easier to have breakfast/lunch/supper, which I consider essential. Shower rooms are usually 24 hours, and those hotels where they weren't 24 hours tend to change that policy. They, and toilets, are pretty clean, though there may be exceptions, but again there's the whole community for you to leave ratings and comments when they spot a dirty spot (I'm a bit of a poet huh).
Guests are also given a yukata or some kind of it, a towel or two, sometimes toothbrush, toothpaste and tissues, and can lend irons and hairdryers to keep themselves neat, borrow phone chargers and use the PCs in the main hall to keep in touch, and Gundam mecha to conquer the world. Or free tea and hot water in the common kitchen in case they don't need the latter.
Sometimes one can even get a free breakfast, but that's not a widespread tradition, and here we come to...
2. Eating
A friendly guy at the reception said to me - 'do you know the Shimadaya? It's not far away from here. They offer a discount every evening, so you can buy some products cheaper if you come late at, say, 10'. And that's what many supermarkets do to maintain the circulation of their goods. Common knowledge, but important enough to be mentioned once again.
Also, one would not buy a new drink from the nearest vending machine every time one gets thirsty. Yeah I know they are all so cute and they are on every corner...  But it's enough to buy a big pack of juice or big bottle of water and carry some drink in a smaller bottle or even some tea in a stainless bottle (luckily there are plenty of them everywhere now), especially if one is going to return to the hotel before going somewhere else, and can refill it.
When I first came to Japan almost 3 years ago, I was buying everything I wanted but gradually I learned to save money and could live on less than 1000 yen per day. Those who have and can use kitchen spend even less, but I can't don't usually feel like cooking anything. By the way, one could bring something small and light from home as well - for example I was bringing bread with me, since only white toast bread is available in usual supermarkets in Japan.
3. Sightseeing
I should have started with this because this is the best way to solve all of your problems - make friends. Make friends and you'll have home-stay, family meals, free guides and many more.
If one doesn't have this opportunity, he isn't to worry. There are plenty of places to go for free or for quite a small price.
A list of free observation desks is available on RocketNews. Websites like Countdown Tokyo are always at hand to help you compare prices. Many local administration-controlled websites promote the area by sharing info about festivals, celebrations, exhibitions, interesting places and all possible cultural events.
Most shrines and temples are open for public access and not only provide interesting sights themselves but also host markets and fairs. Big museums are rarely very expensive, but even private showrooms and halls have reasonable prices. The biggest profit I think is made from merchandise, so one would have to resist the temptation to buy a souvenir, since most items are not really necessary unless one needs exactly that particular thing or wants to present a local souvenir to someone at home.
A more detailed overview of my experience will be provided in a new blog post very soon, but one is to remember that the more time he spends on searching for tips about how to save money, the more he saves. Well, try not to overexert yourself =)