Holiday in Japan

[Zugara]

Booked 17 nights in Japan next May. Tokyo Hilton hotel. Who has any been there that can give an honest appraisal of this country.

Booked a couple of trips on the bullet train and a visit to the snow monkeys!

 

 

[Dblock]

I am proper jealous. Sorry I cant be a help though

[LRF4N]

You will love it. Stopped there 2 nights on the way back from Australia and as much as we liked oz we wish we spent more time in Tokyo

 

The people are so friendly and helpful. Even thought they couldn't speak English they went out their way to help us find our way around. Can't think of anywhere Iv been where everyone has been so friendly

 

Only thing I would say is do your research- it's a big city! We only saw a tiny part of it cos we didn't really know where we were going so look into it properly before hand so your prepared

[maxi-glasgow]

I have stayed at the Tokyo Hilton and also the Conrad in Tokyo, the Conrad is out of this world but would be too expensive to stay in if on holiday.

 

I worked for Hilton so I was twice in Tokyo working and was therefore staying in the hotels free of charge.

 

I have been in cities all over the world and I have to say that Tokyo is the best City I have ever been to, it is out of this world.

 

As Irfan states, do your research as the size of Tokyo is unbelievable. It's the cleanest city you will ever have visited.

 

I was lucky during my second visit when I stayed at the Tokyo Hilton that one of the Japanese guys took me and one of his mates to Daikoku Futo, which on a Friday and Saturday night is where all the guys take their modified vehicles to show them off.

 

It's just a big car park next to a McDonalds and a couple of other outlets under a massive interchange of motorways, was a real eye opener for me and I could have spent forever there.

 

I managed to get some photos though which I still have on my photobucket page:-

 

http://s596.beta.photobucket.com/user/maxiglasgow/library/Daikoku%20Futo

 

I read on forums that later on at night some of the guys go out drifting and it's possible to get a passenger ride, but the night I was there the police came into the car park around 10pm to move everyone on. I think it was to clamp down on the street racing...

 

The big eye opener for me was their train service, if your going down to the station and your cutting it fine timewise, forget it, you've missed that train you were going for as they are always bang on the button. I think I heard it mentioned that if a train is something like ridiculous like 30 seconds late then they are classed as late and fines are issued to the company. So trains run like clockwork.

 

Where are you flying into? Our first visit we foolishly jumped in a cab from the airport and cost us something like the equivalent of £140!!! But you can get the bus for something like £15...I just blamed our HR manager who had mentioned to me when she had went that she just jumped in a taxi.

 

One thing I did notice is that taxi drivers tend to be older gentleman who speak absolutely no English, and even having the address written down is no use.

[Zugara]

Cheers guys, we are flying into Haneda, holiday includes transfers ! Really looking forward to going now, always loved the contrast of ultramodern to traditional style.

 

All the excursions are pre booked with an overnight stay where the snow monkeys live. Mt Fuji trip and down to Hiroshima for a few days. No doubt we will get on some other trips. Looking forward to seeing all the new gen electronics, no doubt I will need a new bag!

 

Comparative prices for food and drinks seem similar to here. Had heard horror stories of mega expensive meals etc, guess its a case of eating where the local eat?

[Wasso]

Very jealous 17 days that's a proper holiday

 

That must have cost a complete and utter fortune!!

 

I watched that bushy haired comedy bloke can't think of his name, do a tv series on Japan and their crazy life style. I wouldn't say no if I was single to hang out the bars where women pay to date blokes

 

Have a good one matey

[Zugara]

Very jealous 17 days that's a proper holiday

 

That must have cost a complete and utter fortune!!

 

I watched that bushy haired comedy bloke can't think of his name, do a tv series on Japan and their crazy life style. I wouldn't say no if I was single to hang out the bars where women pay to date blokes

 

Have a good one matey

 

Wasn't the cheapest thing on the planet! But it's a one time trip, something never afforded to me before, so now it's affordable to me, why not?

Flights are not that expensive tbh, it's all the other stuff that adds up. Still, life is too short to worry about money, although it comes in handy........lol.

[LRF4N]

I forgot about how accurate the trains were- amazing. Scotrail should take notes

 

A few people scared us with the food prices before we went but we found it very reasonable. We were on the outskirts though so that could be why it was cheap

 

[maxi-glasgow]

Eating out I didn't find it any more expensive than other cities.

 

Don't expect to get your electronics cheap though. I had bought one of the first HD Sony camcorders a few months before going and the exact same camera in Tokyo was either the same price or slightly dearer.

 

But what you will see are electronics which are next generation which we won't have seen yet.

 

The day after I went to see those cars I was up in all the electronics shops and I bought a new Sony camera which had a new lens which takes in more light than any other digital camera. You can take a picture in near complete darkness and the photo shows up more than you can see with your eyes...sods law it would have been perfect to have FOR that visit to see the cars.

 

Your right regards the flights. The first time I went I flew KLM and paid for a flight so my missus could go with me. Think I got the flight for £350 as we went about this time of year, Tokyo was her favourite place as well. On my photo bucket you will see other libraries from our Tokyo visits.

 

Beautiful, beautiful city.

 

[Wasso]

Thing is for me if I went to Japan my customs bill would be horendous, especially if you have a container full of parts

[Beavis]

May be worth having a word with Choptop (Rich), he's been to Japan several times before. :smile:

[coldel]

I used to live in Tokyo...I am always trying to convince people to go visit as its not normally on most peoples 'to go to' list despite it being fantastic. A top three tips:

 

1. Your mobile phone wont work there, but you can hire phones from the airports

2. Your cashcard will only work at post office machines and citibank machines in general

3. Learn the word pronounced sumi-ma-sen, if you bump into someone or want to get past them (will happen a lot its a busy place) use that word, it effectively means 'excuse me' and is very polite

 

You will have a great time, lots of shopping (I remember you were after a camera lens a while back, prices are half there what they are here) - be wary of buying digital cameras or the like though as they generally do not have an English language option. Money wise dont be afraid of carrying large wads of cash, its quite common in Tokyo as crime is pretty much zero. Also, remember to look up. Sounds bizarre but due to the compact nature of the city lots of bars and restaurants are on the 2nd floor or above in buildings.

 

Saw you have pre booked excursions, are you heading to Nara by any chance? I would recommend it if you like culture, temples etc. Snow Monkeys will be good fun, crazy little fellas, look so cool reclining in the hot water and there is somewhere a 'snow monkey webcam' on the internet if you can find it.

 

I also went to Hiroshima and it was AMAZING it really was, you can't help but get caught up in the emotion of it all.

 

Do you have any tattoos? If not you can use whats called On-sen which are in effect public baths (gender separate though!) where you scrub yourself down in a cleaning area first then relax, in the buff, in the mineral enriched hot tubs. Takes some courage but you will get a lot of Japanese respect you for it!

 

Can you get up early? If so then you should also visit the fish market, its a big industry there and you will see all manner of stuff and get to try fish straight out the sea. Only thing is you need to get there for about 5am.

 

Make sure to go to Harajuku (station of the same name) in Tokyo, come out the station, turn right and head for the bridge you will see young Japanese 'expressing themselves' by dressing up as dolls and various other weird outfits. Its very famous, basically as Japan has strict cultural rules, the youngsters (tend to be goth types) go here and openly go against those rules. You should get your photo taken with them they dont mind. Also just across the bridge and to the right is the Meiji Shrine, a huge park area with an amazing temple in the middle. Great for getting away from the hustle and bustle. If you go on a Saturday/Sunday you might even see a wedding there.

 

I am not sure, but you might be able to walk up Mount Fuji in May, you should check, I did it in August. No mountaineering skill required, a few places you have to clamber up but its doable in a day (or you can stop at night for a few hours in a hut halfway up) and the view from the top is breathtaking and will stay with you for the rest of your life.

 

I could go on and on...

 

I would just say mate, trust people. They really are amazing people, they are so kind and always trying to help. I asked for directions once of a young couple whilst in Shibuya square (famous one with the multiple directional crossing) and they took me to the place themselves, ten minute walk out of their way. So just smile a lot, make eye contact, smile again, a little bow of the head as you speak to people etc and you will get multiples of gratitude back.

[choptop]

I used to live in Tokyo...I am always trying to convince people to go visit as its not normally on most peoples 'to go to' list despite it being fantastic. A top three tips:

 

1. Your mobile phone wont work there, but you can hire phones from the airports

2. Your cashcard will only work at post office machines and citibank machines in general

3. Learn the word pronounced sumi-ma-sen, if you bump into someone or want to get past them (will happen a lot its a busy place) use that word, it effectively means 'excuse me' and is very polite

 

You will have a great time, lots of shopping (I remember you were after a camera lens a while back, prices are half there what they are here) - be wary of buying digital cameras or the like though as they generally do not have an English language option. Money wise dont be afraid of carrying large wads of cash, its quite common in Tokyo as crime is pretty much zero. Also, remember to look up. Sounds bizarre but due to the compact nature of the city lots of bars and restaurants are on the 2nd floor or above in buildings.

 

Saw you have pre booked excursions, are you heading to Nara by any chance? I would recommend it if you like culture, temples etc. Snow Monkeys will be good fun, crazy little fellas, look so cool reclining in the hot water and there is somewhere a 'snow monkey webcam' on the internet if you can find it.

 

I also went to Hiroshima and it was AMAZING it really was, you can't help but get caught up in the emotion of it all.

 

Do you have any tattoos? If not you can use whats called On-sen which are in effect public baths (gender separate though!) where you scrub yourself down in a cleaning area first then relax, in the buff, in the mineral enriched hot tubs. Takes some courage but you will get a lot of Japanese respect you for it!

 

Can you get up early? If so then you should also visit the fish market, its a big industry there and you will see all manner of stuff and get to try fish straight out the sea. Only thing is you need to get there for about 5am.

 

Make sure to go to Harajuku (station of the same name) in Tokyo, come out the station, turn right and head for the bridge you will see young Japanese 'expressing themselves' by dressing up as dolls and various other weird outfits. Its very famous, basically as Japan has strict cultural rules, the youngsters (tend to be goth types) go here and openly go against those rules. You should get your photo taken with them they dont mind. Also just across the bridge and to the right is the Meiji Shrine, a huge park area with an amazing temple in the middle. Great for getting away from the hustle and bustle. If you go on a Saturday/Sunday you might even see a wedding there.

 

I am not sure, but you might be able to walk up Mount Fuji in May, you should check, I did it in August. No mountaineering skill required, a few places you have to clamber up but its doable in a day (or you can stop at night for a few hours in a hut halfway up) and the view from the top is breathtaking and will stay with you for the rest of your life.

 

I could go on and on...

 

I would just say mate, trust people. They really are amazing people, they are so kind and always trying to help. I asked for directions once of a young couple whilst in Shibuya square (famous one with the multiple directional crossing) and they took me to the place themselves, ten minute walk out of their way. So just smile a lot, make eye contact, smile again, a little bow of the head as you speak to people etc and you will get multiples of gratitude back.

 

 

Some good advice there.........

 

Your mobile phone, as long as it is 3G and you are with a mainstream network, will work but the connection/data costs will cost you a fortune. I would take a small netbook with you so you can connect to the internet and use Skype. Most higher class hotels will not charge you for internet connection. If you forget any leads you can soon pick them up at the 100 Yen shop (similar to Poundland). Tokyo is a fantastic place, if very different to the UK. The train stations are vast. Get yourself a Pasmo or Suica card and load it with cash and it will help you get about on the underground or JR Railway Lines. Please PM me if I can be of further help

[coldel]

I would advise you check with your service provider before you leave regarding the phone. I have seen the looks of terror on tourists faces when landing in Japan and coming around to the realisation that their phones will not work. Otherwise Skype is the way forwards as choptop says, so much cheaper.

[maxi-glasgow]

Pretty sure it was a blackberry I had during my two visits to Tokyo and never had any issues.

[choptop]

One thing I think worth mentioning is that the internet in the hotel is usually connected to your device by a cable or lead not by WiFi. There is no such thing as 'free WiFi spots' like you get in the UK. They are very security minded. So if you plan on connecting to the internet you will need a netbook, PC with a cable connection. You can hire laptop's in some hotel's but they do not come cheap or you can use an internet cafe like Grand Cyber but you now need to register with them and you will need your passport. Look out for off peak deals which will give you 3hours usage for about 900 yen. ( About 8 Pounds Sterling ).

Edited December 13, 2012 by choptop

[coldel]

If you ever happen to find yourself at Yotsuya station (where my apartment was) there is a side road with some great eating places just across the road from it. Come out the station, there will be a crossroads just to your left, you need to get to the opposite corner so cross to your left then cross again to the right, go straight ahead and first left you will see an archway, go down there and there are tonnes of great little restaurants tucked away. About 1/3rd of the way down on the left is 'Barbies' which is a soup kitchen type place, you have a machine you put yen into, there are buttons with pictures of food on, select one and give the ticket to the person serving. Also down on the right are some Mexican restaurants, a curry house, and a few Japanese places as well. The Imperial Palace is about 20 minutes walk up Shinjuku-dori from there also.

 

Eating wise though dont be afraid to follow a small sign, up some stairs, round a corner in what looks like an office block, often the best places to eat are tucked away there. In the bigger parts of Tokyo like Shinjuku and Shibuya are KFCs and McDonalds etc if you can't be bothered with the hassle. Great thing is, although I know you hate football, is that to hold the 2002 World Cup there Tokyo had to really change its attitude to foreign visitors so lots of English language signs, menus, etc were introduced! See, football good for something!

 

What I might also recommend, Tokyo DisneySea. Its half an hour on the train and is bloody awesome. There is Disneyland as well which is next door, but its not a patch on DisneySea which has a replica of Venice inside it along with loads of rides etc. Go during a working day and you have the run of the place.

 

You should also get the metro across to Odaiba, a huge man made island, it will go across the Rainbow Bridge which gives you amazing views of the city and bay area. If you like cars there is an enormous museum by Toyota where you can go around, has all the latest tech etc and past decades of cars. Another way to get there is to start your day in Asakusa which is very old school Japan and worth a visit and getting the boat to Odaiba, you get to see a lot enroute.

 

Roppongi is a well known place for ex-pats, it gets a bit sleazy in the evening with a lot of pished people about but a good time can be had if you want as its open 24hrs in general. Rebecca and I plus another couple (sounds dodgy already but I promise it isnt!) went on an all nighter there, met up at 7pm, went to a few bars, loads of night clubs, some with no one but us and the staff in there, was great fun, we found one place where the DJ let us DJ, see how cool he was...

 

 

...we ended up having pepperoni pizza in an American themed bar at 5am watching the sun come up, odd, but it kinda worked.

 

For the best views of Tokyo I would go up the Government Metropolitan building, something like 60 floors up, restaurant at the top, and a 360 degree view from the centre of Tokyo.

 

See there I go again...I could rattle on for hours!

[rayhoop]

Wife and I were in Tokyo in September this year. Flew over on BA (approx 12 hours non-stop) We did:

 

3 (or was it 4?) nights in Tokyo, 2 nights in Hiroshima (trip out to Miyajima/Mt Misen), 4 nights in Kyoto, 2 nights in Koyasan (stayed at a Buddhist Temple called Eko-In), 2 nights in Takayama (with a day trip out to the Japanese Alps), 2 Nights in Tokyo with a day trip to Mt Fuji/Lake Kawaguchi.

 

Tokyo -

Lots to see. I wont reinvent the wheel - Lonely Planet has a lot of useful info. Different things appeal to different people. I do recommend the Edo Tokyo museum though.

 

Hiroshima

Defo spend a day in the memorial museum.

Spend some time walking around the memorial gardens

Get someone to tell you the story about Sadako Sasaki whilst you are there - they may even teach you how to fold a paper crane - we were lucky enough to meet someone who took the time to teach us! ... even though it was dark and approx 10pm lol).

Spend some time reflecting at the mound where remains are buried...

Head over to the epi centre of the blast...

you MUST go take a look at the Fukuromachi Elementary School Peace Museum. It is small but powerful.

 

If you do the day trip to Mt Misen - take the cable car up and down... it takes ages to hike! We hiked down the mountain, and even though it was downhill it was still a killer.

 

Kyoto - again, TripAdvisor/Lonely Planet is your friend!

Some really nice walks and Temples, the food market was interesting.

The Bambo Groves were not all that to be honest.

 

Koya San is very peaceful. It is a Buddhist place of pilgrimage as Kobe Dashi is there meditating (has been for hundreds of years). We stayed at the Eko-In which was a lovely Buddhist temple, albeit slightly commercialised... but lovely all the same. Be prepared for taking Onsen though!! (shared baths). Go on a night time guided walk through the cemetary - it is really peaceful.

 

Takayama was ok. I wouldnt go there again, unless I was having it as a stop off before heading further up for skiing. We did a day trip out to Kamikotchi which was pretty. Nice walk along the river... with mountain climbing if you are adventurous.

 

Mt Fuji - you should get a nice clear view in Winter. Lake Kawaguchi

 

Do try an Onsen! It is an odd experience, but a good laugh. When in Rome...

 

We booked out hotels independently and made damn good use of the train network using our Japan Rail Passes (have to be bought in advance outside of Japan). The JR Rail Pass worked out VERY well for us. We hardly needed to touch the metro in Tokyo, as where possible we used the JR lines for 'free'.

 

We did not use any taxis due to cost - however I was amazed at how clean and 'swirl free' the taxi paint jobs were!

 

Buses and trams are reasonable (used in Hiroshima and Kyoto)

 

From what I observed, Tokyo has 3 rush hours... morning commute, 4-5pm ish commute... and then 11pm commute (before the last trains).

 

The Japanese are SUPER polite, honest and helpful. Even to someone as ugly as me!

Crime is low as mentioned before in this thread.

 

Toilets are generally super clean - although I did have an odd experience at Narita airport... I did my #2... came out of the cubicle... in front of me was a gent doing a #1 in a urinal (perfectly normal), while the urinal next to him was being cleaned by a female cleaner (not normal).... hmm. Ok.

 

Learning to say good morning, evening, thank you, please etc... does wonders for putting smiles on the faces of people who are helping you.

Remember when you take or give anything e.g. cash, offer it up/take it with both your hands. It is considered rude to just hold/take it with one hand.

 

My phone (Samsung Galaxy S2 on T-mobile) worked fine. Some hotels have free wi-fi, which worked ok on my phone. Some other hotels require you to plug a laptop/netbook into a cable. All varies depending on the hotel.

 

Food is roughly the same, if not more expensive. Fruit is stupidly expensive! £5 for 4 bananas! £5 for an apple... it was a huge apple though!

 

NOTE: Many reataurants have early 'last order' times.... a few places we went to would not take orders past 2030hrs.

 

If you are vegetarian - make sure you plan your restaurant visits before you get there - look up vegetarian restaurants near the sights you will be visiting using the happycow website and lonely planet etc.

 

Electronics - laptops are a touch cheaper, but have the Japanese characters on the keyboards. I couldnt find much that I found 'appealing' to buy price and spec wise.

 

Car stuff - the Toyota MegaWeb is so so. But you can go there and test drive a GT86. The classic car garage at Megaweb is worth a visit. The Nissan Garage in Ginza is a let down. Mazda have a museum in Hiroshima (did not get time to visit). Nissan have an engine museum in Yokohama which is only a short train ride out from Tokyo (did not get time to visit). Honda/Suzuka etc is a bit further out north - I didnt have time to head out that far. Looks like a bit of a trek (trains + bus journey).

 

I found my Nationwide Building Society Credit Card gave very favourable exchange rates (no built in commission) on credit card payments - I think you may need a current account and pay in a minimum amount each month tho?

 

If buying currency in advance - if you are in London, it is worth trying a place like this: www.bestforeignexchange.com

We got our currency from them, as my wife works near their Strand office. Got better rate than our bank/post office etc.

 

If you are planning to drive out there, you will need your International Driving Permit (£5.50?) - which is basically a booklet that translates your drivers license into x number of languages.

 

FCO.gov.uk has some handy advice. I might be a little OTT, but I always register my details and trip itinerary with them before I go anywhere... so if I loose my passport, or get caught up in an earthquake etc... they have my info and know roughly where I was planning to be.