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Japan to reopen to independent travelers and lift daily arrival cap

japantimes.co.jp

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Re: Japan to reopen to independent travelers and lift daily arrival cap

#71

Post by elcamino44 »

kaycebasques wrote: post #4

Road trip across Japan is quickly moving to the top of my bucket list? Has anyone done it? How was it? Must see stops?

I think Japan is my favourite country for road trips. So many stunning mountain and costal roads. And hotels and restaurants in rural areas often have amazing food. However, gasoline and toll roads are both quite expensive so that might be a consideration. I mostly avoid cities (if I want to go a city, I’ll go by train) so if you want to do that beware that parking can be a pain (and expensive).

Re: Japan to reopen to independent travelers and lift daily arrival cap

#72

Post by rippercushions »

drderidder wrote: post #63
suggestion wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Any advice or resources for someone seriously considering this?

SevenEleven ATMs generally take foreign interac debit cards if you need cash (yen). Most places accept credit cards. When given the option on the debit card machine to pay in yen or convert to USD / CAD etc always choose yen, to avoid high conversion rates charged by the processor. Allow your credit card company to convert to your home currency at a much better rate. Get a Japan Rail pass. Pack lightly and hit a Uniq…

A lot of this advice is out of date.

- Most bank ATMs in Japan now accept foreign cards.

- Credit card acceptance remains low by international standards, although things have improved a bit with the "cashless" drive. Carry cash (yen), you'll need it at many restaurants and even some hotels.

- Most rail companies now sell discounted advance fares and LCC airlines are competitive as well, so a Japan Rail Pass is no longer the no-brainer it used to be, although it's still a good deal if you plan to travel a lot by train (say, Tokyo-Hiroshima and back).

- Instead of calling hotels, which will be a struggle because they often won't speak much English, use Japanese booking sites like Rakuten or Jalan.net, which have thorough coverage, the best rates and functional English interfaces.

Have a read through https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Japan, it goes into too much detail at times but is a pretty good primer for all the things in Japan.

Re: Japan to reopen to independent travelers and lift daily arrival cap

#73

Post by b4je7d7wb »

linguae wrote: post #65
outworlder wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Shinkansen all the time must get expensive! Nothing wrong with the normal train lines though.

The Japan Rail Pass for those on tourist visas/entry stamps is a sweet deal that I take advantage of whenever I travel to Japan and visit different regions. It allows you virtually unlimited access to the Shinkansen and other routes operated by the various Japan Railways companies (such as Tokyo's Yamanote Line and the Narita Express) for 7, 14, or 21 days, beginning on the date that the pass is activated. I say "vir…

I heard they lifted a lot of the restrictions on the pass

Re: Japan to reopen to independent travelers and lift daily arrival cap

#74

Post by drderidder »

suggestion wrote: post #66
drderidder wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

SevenEleven ATMs generally take foreign interac debit cards if you need cash (yen). Most places accept credit cards. When given the option on the debit card machine to pay in yen or convert to USD / CAD etc always choose yen, to avoid high conversion rates charged by the processor. Allow your credit card company to convert to your home currency at a much better rate. Get a Japan Rail pass. Pack lightly and hit a Uniq…

This is all great and relevant advice! I have actually considering moving there, any tips with respect to that? For example could I, as a US citizen, work remotely for a US company while living in Japan indefinitely (not necessarily permanently, but at least as an option)?

Basically no. But if your company has a Japanese branch and is willing to transfer you there, then maybe. But be aware that visiting Japan as a tourist vs living and working there are very different experiences, and plenty of expats burn out within a year. Visit first, maybe do the digital nomad thing for a bit.

Re: Japan to reopen to independent travelers and lift daily arrival cap

#75

Post by drderidder »

rippercushions wrote: post #72
drderidder wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

SevenEleven ATMs generally take foreign interac debit cards if you need cash (yen). Most places accept credit cards. When given the option on the debit card machine to pay in yen or convert to USD / CAD etc always choose yen, to avoid high conversion rates charged by the processor. Allow your credit card company to convert to your home currency at a much better rate. Get a Japan Rail pass. Pack lightly and hit a Uniq…

A lot of this advice is out of date. - Most bank ATMs in Japan now accept foreign cards. - Credit card acceptance remains low by international standards, although things have improved a bit with the "cashless" drive. Carry cash (yen), you'll need it at many restaurants and even some hotels. - Most rail companies now sell discounted advance fares and LCC airlines are competitive as well, so a Japan Rail Pass is no lon…

Sorry, but it’s not out of date. Based on very recent extensive travel and living there. But yes of course there are additional places to get cash (yubinkyoku etc) and various rail passes. The JR pass really is a nobrainer though.

Re: Japan to reopen to independent travelers and lift daily arrival cap

#76

Post by jinto36 »

lemoncookiechip wrote: post #8
kaycebasques wrote: post #4

Road trip across Japan is quickly moving to the top of my bucket list? Has anyone done it? How was it? Must see stops?

I would recommend you give https://www.youtube.com/c/AbroadinJapan a watch. Chris has been all over every Japanese prefecture multiple times, and he usually records places that aren't the kind of places you'd see on a quick Google Search or trip advisor. He has biked across Japan in his season 1 of Journey Across Japan, he showcases all kinds of hotels, capsule hotels, Ryokans (Japanese inns), etc, in every video. It…

Kind of like a more modern Alan Booth? I read both The Roads to Sata and Looking for the Lost and they both really resonated with me. They're both travelog(ue)s. The Roads to Sata chronicled a complete 2000 mile north-south walk across the country. Looking for the Lost was more focused on specific regions. I enjoyed both books.

One thing that's strange to me, having been all over the country myself (including Hokkaido, Shikoku, and Okinawa) and living in Aichi for a year, is that I only saw a wild small mammal once. Even that one time, I wasn't sure if I actually saw it, because it vanished before I got a good glimpse of it. I know there are squirrels somewhere- there's a native word for squirrel- but I've never seen them. Being from the northeast US, the concept that a location with a temperate climate lacking in abundant squirrels could exist seemed absurd. On my next trip to Japan, I will dedicate some portion to seeking out native squirrels.

Of course in Japan there are also a few places known for wild monkeys that like to hang out hot springs, but I haven't seen them in person either.

I did see a guy with his girlfriend hanging out on a mountain pass in a wrecked "panda trueno" that was being loaded on a flatbed when I was hiking once. I hadn't brought my real camera that day, and I deeply regretted it since my flip phone only had a VGA camera.

Re: Japan to reopen to independent travelers and lift daily arrival cap

#77

Post by rippercushions »

drderidder wrote: post #75
rippercushions wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A lot of this advice is out of date. - Most bank ATMs in Japan now accept foreign cards. - Credit card acceptance remains low by international standards, although things have improved a bit with the "cashless" drive. Carry cash (yen), you'll need it at many restaurants and even some hotels. - Most rail companies now sell discounted advance fares and LCC airlines are competitive as well, so a Japan Rail Pass is no lon…

Sorry, but it’s not out of date. Based on very recent extensive travel and living there. But yes of course there are additional places to get cash (yubinkyoku etc) and various rail passes. The JR pass really is a nobrainer though.

Mizuho, SMBC, Aeon, MUFJ ATMs all accept foreign cards these days. Inaka Ginko still probably won't though.

I've been to Japan tens of times for work, family and holiday reasons, and I've never found a use case where the JR pass would have paid off for me. Then again, I tend to fly in and stick with a single region; if you're doing the tourist trail thing where you're going (eg.) Tokyo-Kyoto-Himeji-Hiroshima-Tokyo in a straight line in one week, than sure, it makes sense.

Re: Japan to reopen to independent travelers and lift daily arrival cap

#78

Post by cjsplat »

suggestion wrote: post #46
warabe wrote: post #39

To fellow American HN people. Right now USD/JPY is around 145, and it was about 100 in 2020, which means almost 30% discount for everything! (Please note that CPI of Japan is not so high) Come to Japan, and enjoy!

Any advice or resources for someone seriously considering this?

The airlines frequently have extreme discounts on tourist flights - similar to rail passes you need to buy these before you arrive in Japan.

As everyone has mentioned, the trains in Japan are wonderful, but if you get a tourist rail pass you might consider taking a long flight for your first leg (eg. Haneda to Hokkaido or Kyushu), then firing up the rail pass when you finish there and meander your way back on the train.

As a footnote, the rail pass is also good for a large number of bus lines, ferries, etc, so don't assume that you will have to stay in city centers.

Re: Japan to reopen to independent travelers and lift daily arrival cap

#79

Post by hunterb123 »

midoridensha wrote: post #64
outworlder wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's probably some pretentious kid that think they are special just because they are wasting their parent's money with an iPhone 14 Pro. They will soon learn that nobody cares. Doubtful they were even considered going to Japan, they just wanted to brag about a piece of hardware.

Not sure what kind of "special visa" they thought they could get... To come here right now (before this change takes effect) you need to be a permanent resident, have a work visa, or be a close family member (i.e. parent/child, not sibling) of someone who lives here. Or be a tourist with one of those tourist groups of course. Americans coming here with iPhone 14 Pro phones aren't going to have a good time: the easy a…

Generally a mobile wifi hotspot will do.

Airbnb's usually provide one.

Re: Japan to reopen to independent travelers and lift daily arrival cap

#80

Post by nikau »

midoridensha wrote: post #64
outworlder wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's probably some pretentious kid that think they are special just because they are wasting their parent's money with an iPhone 14 Pro. They will soon learn that nobody cares. Doubtful they were even considered going to Japan, they just wanted to brag about a piece of hardware.

Not sure what kind of "special visa" they thought they could get... To come here right now (before this change takes effect) you need to be a permanent resident, have a work visa, or be a close family member (i.e. parent/child, not sibling) of someone who lives here. Or be a tourist with one of those tourist groups of course. Americans coming here with iPhone 14 Pro phones aren't going to have a good time: the easy a…

I've always bought grey market Samsung phones for that reason - they are the same spec as the local variants but with dual physical SIM enabled.
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