How To Plough High-Cost Japan Into A Inexpensive House To Visit
Updated: 11/20/2018 | Nov 20th, 2018
For years, I set off traveling to Japan because I was afraid of how expensive it would be. The rumors I’d heard close the country’s high prices made me hesitant to go. I’ve ever loved Japanese culture, as well as I knew whatever view would involve gorging on sushi as well as ramen, visits to lots of temples, as well as heavy develop move through the countryside. And the idea of how much that would cost ever made me think, “I’ll await until I receive got to a greater extent than money.”
When I finally visited Nippon years agone inwards 2011, I was shocked to uncovering that, piece it isn’t cheap, Nippon isn’t the prohibitively expensive terra firma many people intend it is. In fact, I truly flora Nippon to live really affordable as well as on par alongside (and sometimes cheaper than) countries inwards Western Europe. In subsequent visits, I’ve learned to farther main the terra firma as well as plow high-cost Nippon into an affordable identify to visit.
Travel to Nippon doesn’t take away to cost a lot of money. Here’s a detailed breakdown on how yous tin cutting your expenses to view Nippon on a budget as well as salvage coin inwards Japan!
Note: 112 JPY = $1 USD
How to Save on Transportation inwards Japan
Trains
The bullet train, piece awesome, comfortable, as well as fast, is non cheap. Individual tickets tin cost hundreds of dollars. Yet I intend develop move is the best means to run into the country, as well as thence inwards fellowship to trim down your develop costs, acquire a Japan Rail (JR) pass. The transcend is indispensable for move inwards Japan.
These passes cost 28,300 JPY for 7 days, 45,100 JPY for fourteen days, as well as 57,700 JPY for 21 days. All transcend times are for consecutive travel. Even if yous exactly acquire the seven-day pass, it’s the same toll every bit a round-trip develop ticket from Osaka to Tokyo (14,250 JPY each way!). Moreover, these JR trains also serve local metropolis areas as well as and thence tin live used intra-city. I used my transcend to acquire around Kyoto as well as Tokyo instead of buying underground tickets. So fifty-fifty if yous aren’t going to create much move around Japan, buying a transcend is improve than buying private tickets. While the high toll of the transcend tin stimulate sticker shock, the alternative is fifty-fifty worse.
Though the transcend tin live upward to 20% cheaper to purchase online earlier yous arrive, yous tin forthwith purchase a Nippon Rail Pass inwards Japan. Passes are available inwards the next terra firma locations: Sapporo, Sendai, Niigata, Tokyo, Shinjuku, Yokohama, Nagoya, Osaka, Hiroshima, Takamatsu, Hakata, New Chitose Airport, Narita Airport, Haneda Airport, as well as Kansai Airport.
Metro
Most of the metropolis underground tickets cost 100–200 JPY for a unmarried journey. (The toll varies past times distance as well as may often live higher.) Fares were commonly around 220 JPY to move across Tokyo but less for shorter distances. In most major cities, yous tin purchase a solar daytime pass, which gives yous unlimited move for 24 hours for around 800 JPY.
Buses
Buses are a less expensive alternative to the bullet develop organisation inwards Japan, but they receive got to a greater extent than time. For example, the two-hour bullet develop ride from Tokyo to Osaka becomes a ten-hour motorcoach ride. The toll for that spot is 4,500 JPY, but at some point, yous take away to intend close how much your fourth dimension is worth. For me, saving some 10,000 JPY was non worth the extra vii hours of travel, since I had such limited fourth dimension during my visit. If I’d had to a greater extent than time, I’d receive got exactly taken the bus. There are also bus passes available that offering unlimited move as well as laid out at 10,000 JPY for 3 non-consecutive days of travel.
Flights
Flying has acquire improve selection these days. There are many budget carriers forthwith serving Japan, as well as a flying search on sites similar Momondo or Skyscanner volition bring out them. In general, their prices are on par alongside bullet develop tickets. ANA also offers a special last-minute $100 fares via a hidden page on their website. It’s exclusively available to foreigners as well as tin sometimes live cheaper than the flights yous detect on Skyscanner, specially for longer routes around the country.
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How to Save on Food inwards Japan
Surprisingly, I flora nutrient to live inexpensive inwards Japan. True, I receive got a sushi addiction that dramitcally increased the cost of my trip but, overall, I flora that I was spending far less on nutrient than I’d anticipated.
As long every bit I didn’t feed my sushi addiction, I flora I could consume for less than 1,500 JPY per day. Some typical prices were:
- Sushi dejeuner sets (sushi, soup, salad): 1,600+ JPY
- Traditional Japanese prepare lunches: 1,200+ JPY
- Sushi trains: 100–500 JPY per meal
- Small pasta: 399 JPY
- Western prepare carte du jour (sandwiches, burger, pizza, etc): 1,200 JPY
- McDonald’s Value Menu: 600 JPY
- Ramen: 700 JPY
- Tempura dishes: 80–120 JPY
There’s an array of inexpensive nutrient options inwards the country, as well as yous don’t truly take away to pass much coin on food. You tin salvage coin on nutrient inwards Nippon past times doing the following:
- Eat at “100-yen” shops – There are many 100-yen shops inwards Japan, where prepare meals, groceries, water, toiletries, identify items, as well as to a greater extent than are exactly 100 JPY. I did all my shopping at these stores. Their names vary past times region, as well as thence inquire your hotel/hostel reception where the nearest 100-yen store is located.
- Use sushi trains – Sushi inwards Nippon is delicious at all levels. While I had a few fancy, sit-down meals, yous can’t musical rhythm out the sushi trains for value. At 100–170 JPY per plate, I could materials my aspect upward for less than 1,500 JPY most of the time. I commonly exactly ate at sushi trains.
- Eat at 7-11 – 7-11, Family Mart, as well as other corner stores receive got a lot of pre-set meals for 100–300 JPY that construct for inexpensive lunches. Additionally, supermarkets receive got many prepare meals at similar prices. I noticed this was a pop selection for many Japanese people.
- Cook your food – Hostels receive got kitchens, where yous tin create as well as cutting your nutrient expenses to less than 800 JPY per day, specially past times shopping at the 100-yen stores.
- Avoid fresh fruit – The 1 rumor close Nippon that turned out to live truthful was that fresh fruit as well as vegetables were expensive. Outside of shopping for an apple tree or banana at the market, I to a greater extent than often than non avoided fresh fruits as well as vegetables. They were every bit good expensive.
- Eat curry, ramen, as well as donburi – I essentially lived off these 3 foods during my 3 weeks inwards Japan. Curry bowls are every bit inexpensive every bit 280 JPY per plate. Donburi, bowls of meat as well as rice, are around 400–500. Ramen is never to a greater extent than than 700. These are the best ways to consume inexpensive as well as filling meals inwards Japan.
How to Save on Accommodation inwards Japan
Living costs inwards Nippon are incredibly high, alongside limited space, lots of people, as well as high housing prices. And those high costs transfer over into the tourism industry, making finding inexpensive accommodation a existent pain. Hostel dorms typically cost 1,900 JPY per nighttime (sometimes every bit depression every bit 1,500 JPY or every bit high every bit 2,700 JPY inwards Tokyo) as well as hotel rooms get-go at 5,000 JPY per nighttime or more. Here are some ways to salvage on accommodation:
- Work for your room – Hostels inwards Nippon allow yous remain for gratis if yous construct clean for a few hours a day.
- Couchsurfing – Hospitality exchanges are non every bit widespread inwards Nippon every bit elsewhere inwards the world, but in that place is a small, active Couchsurfing community here. Make certain yous asking rooms good ahead of fourth dimension to increment your odds of success. Read to a greater extent than close Couchsurfing here!
- Use credit card points – It’s times similar these that those credit points I utter about come upward inwards handy. Frequent flier miles as well as regular hotel points tin live redeemed for lots of gratis nights. I used my gratis accumulated nights from hotels.com for ii gratis nights inwards Tokyo, but alongside the large sign-up bonuses correct forthwith for hotel cards, yous tin acquire upward to a week’s gratis accommodation!
- Capsule hotels – Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 measuring upward from hostels as well as a measuring downwardly from hotels, capsule hotels (pictured above) are tiny capsules yous slumber in. You part bathrooms as well as mutual areas, as well as your capsule has a light, outlet, as well as sometimes a pocket-size television. They are ofttimes used past times businessmen who operate late. These capsules laid out at around 2,700 JPY per night.
Note: Airbnb is banned inwards the country.
How to Save on Attractions inwards Japan
Most of the attractions were really cheap. I didn’t pass to a greater extent than than 500 JPY per museum or temple. In Kyoto, there’s a temple transcend that gives yous unlimited transportation as well as access to the temples for 1,200 JPY. It’s a practiced deal, considering you’re in all likelihood going to run into a lot of museums inwards Kyoto. Osaka as well as Tokyo had similar passes for their attractions.
Overall, I flora these passes to live the best means to salvage coin on temples, museums, as well as other attractions. Additionally, in that place are many gratis gardens, temples, as well as parks! I hardly spent whatever coin on attractions piece I was inwards Japan.
How much coin create yous take away to view Japan?
Japan has an prototype of beingness 1 of the most expensive countries inwards the world, as well as if you’re staying inwards hotels, eating out, as well as traveling around a lot, it tin be. You tin easily pass over $200 USD per solar daytime past times traveling that way. However, I don’t intend a trip to Nippon needs to live that expensive.
Traveling around Nippon tin live affordable if yous know what to create as well as maintain an oculus on your costs. You can salvage coin inwards Nippon past times living similar a local.
Staying inwards a hostel, buying a rail pass, eating relatively inexpensive food, as well as visiting a few attractions volition cost around $100 USD per day. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 21-day trip would cost at to the lowest degree $2,100 USD (plus flight). For that much money, yous tin dice to Southeast Asia for months!
However, past times utilizing the tips above, I intend yous tin move Nippon on betwixt $70–75 USD per day. Nippon shouldn’t cost yous to a greater extent than than that per solar daytime if yous don’t splurge. This would hateful to a greater extent than motorcoach travel, a (very) limited total of sushi, exclusively inexpensive restaurants, as well as the occasional nighttime Couchsurfing (or other gratis accommodation).
On a bare-bones budget, a trip to Nippon volition cost yous $50 USD per solar daytime if yous stick to Couchsurfing, inexpensive food, motorcoach move (trains would live far every bit good expensive), as well as exclusively gratis attractions. I saw lots of travelers inwards Nippon traveling on the cheap. They did it, as well as it’s possible — but you’ll never feed your sushi addiction if yous move this way.
To me, budget move is value travel. Nippon is never going to live every bit inexpensive a goal every bit Cambodia, Ukraine, or Peru, but in that place are ways to salvage coin inwards every identify inwards the world, as well as Nippon has enough of ways to view on a budget. Nippon volition never cost $20 USD per day, but it also doesn’t take away to cost hundreds.
Whenever people dice to Nippon as well as come upward back, they ever state “It wasn’t every bit expensive every bit I thought” because it doesn’t receive got to be! Cheap Nippon move is possible as well as I promise this article taught yous that! Stick to the discount transit, local food, as well as local accommodation as well as you’ll maintain your costs low!
Enjoy!
Book Your Trip to Japan: Logistical Tips as well as Tricks
Book Your Flight
Find a inexpensive flying past times using Skyscanner or Momondo. They are my ii favorite search engines because they search websites as well as airlines around the globe as well as thence yous ever know no rock is left unturned.
Book Your Accommodation
You tin mass your hostel alongside Hostelworld every bit they receive got the most comprehensive inventory as well as thence they are best for booking a hostel. If yous desire to remain inwards a hotel or guesthouse inwards Japan, role Booking.com every bit they consistently furnish the cheapest rates for guesthouses as well as inexpensive hotels. They’re the best booking site out there.
Don’t Forget Travel Insurance
Travel insurance volition protect yous against illness, injury, theft, as well as cancellations. It’s comprehensive protection inwards instance anything goes wrong. I never dice along a trip without it every bit I’ve had to role it many times inwards the past. I’ve been using World Nomads for 10 years. My favorite companies that offering the best service as well as value are:
- World Nomads (for everyone below 70)
- Insure My Trip (for those over 70)
Looking for the best companies to salvage coin with?
Check out my resource page for the best companies to role when yous travel! I listing all the ones I role to salvage coin when I move – as well as I intend volition assist yous too!
Looking for to a greater extent than move tips for Japan
Check out my in-depth Japan move guide for to a greater extent than ways to salvage money, costs, tips on what to run into as well as do, suggested itineraries, reading, packing lists, as well as much, much more!
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