Just got back from our trip and wanted to share my tips that I haven’t seen mentioned here as a first-timer in Japan! (two travelers, early 40s, not traveling on a strict budget)
1. If possible, give yourself an extra recovery day upon landing in Japan to acclimate.
I mistakenly assumed I’d be rested and ready to go after flying out on a Monday afternoon and landing Tuesday night (direct flight from West Coast USA) WRONG, I didn’t sleep on the plane and also didn’t sleep at all at our hotel the night we landed. Got up Wednesday morning an absolute zombie after 48 hours with no sleep, and had to track down OTC Japanese sleeping pills (https://metropolisjapan.com/?p=240659) They were easy to find at a local drugstore, just showed the pic to the pharmacy worker. I wasn’t myself until midday Thursday and basically lost 2 days I’d planned on adventuring in Tokyo.
2. Take advantage of luggage forwarding, and put Airtags in your bags!
I knew about luggage forwarding from this sub but didn’t think I’d need it. WRONG, it saved our asses from having to haul 3 rolling bags from Tokyo to Osaka and back again. Very easy to arrange with your hotel, and still possible to use if staying elsewhere (airbnb, etc) that doesn’t handle forwarding. Went to a local Yamato office in Osaka to send our bags back north, the clerk spoke no English but was still very helpful with both of us using Google Translate. Having airtags in all bags gave us peace of mind knowing where they were at all times. Do know that you need to allow 2 full days for bag forwarding if going to a Yamato office directly. Our hotel only needed 24 hours, YMMV. And don’t be like my partner who accidentally packed all his clothes in the forwarded bag, he had to borrow a shirt of mine to wear in the meantime.
That being said, you don’t need luggage forwarding if you’re able-bodied and trying to save money. The Shinkansen has a ton of space at each seat to put your bags in front of you, plus overhead racks. We absolutely could’ve fit all our rolling bags with us on the train and would not have needed an oversized bag seat.
3. Reserving Shinkansen tickets in advance isn’t necessary, BUT might be worth it if you’re traveling in a group and want to sit together.
This sub tells everyone not to book Shinkansen tickets in advance, and that there are plenty of trains all the time. This is technically true, but the only seats left might be single middle seats, and trains do sell out. We ended up having to book Green Car (1st class) tickets from Nagoya to Tokyo on a slower Shinkansen (Hikari) because the only seats left were single middle seats when trying to book a train 90 mins in advance. The faster train (Nozomi) was fully sold out in advance. For context this was on a Wednesday evening.
Also recommend using one of the ticket machines vs standing in line at the counter to buy tickets, MUCH faster! And triple-check which platform your train is leaving from, we mixed it up on the first Shinkansen ride and almost missed our train.
4. Google Maps is far superior to Apple Maps
Google was fantastic for navigating the subways and trains, including specifying which car to enter in order to make connections in a timely manner. Apple Maps repeatedly got the train platforms wrong, and if we hadn’t double-checked with station signage, we’d have been screwed.
5. Have a backup communication method planned, especially if traveling alone
We both got Ubigi e-sims for our iphones prior to the trip, and mine broke my iMessages/SMS the entire trip. iMessage/SMS didn’t function again until I was back in the US. Had to scramble and use Instagram to DM anyone I wanted to text back home. The rest of my phone’s internet worked fine but iMessage/SMS never did and no amount of resetting or restarting the phone would fix it. Ubigi also claimed my phone was carrier-locked and it definitely was not (confirmed by the carrier) Apparently this is a known iphone issue that happens to some phones. My partner had zero issues though and I had to rely on him to text our pet sitter back home.
If I had been traveling alone it would’ve been a much bigger issue! If I could do it again, I’d rent a pocket wifi device instead of using an e-sim.
6. If you’ll be checking an extra bag on the flight home, find out in advance how much it will be!
I checked a 3rd bag on the way home and it was expensive! My ticket included 2 free checked bags and my dumb ass didn’t check beforehand how much a 3rd bag would be…it was 20k yen 😱 I would’ve planned better and rearranged my bags better had I known that (fully my own fault, don’t be dumb like me)
edit, forgot a tip:
7. Taxis will not take toll roads/highways unless you specifically ask them to!
I did not know this and a taxi ride that I thought would take ~30 mins based on google maps predictions took more than an hour since he took surface streets the whole way. Make sure to tell them at the start of the trip that toll roads are ok, otherwise the trip could be a lot longer/pricier due to time. Also none of the taxis we took spoke English which was totally fine, but have your destination ready in Google Translate to show the driver/and inform them that toll roads are ok. Every taxi we took in Tokyo, Osaka, Narita, or Nagoya accepted credit cards so that was never a problem. Uber was even easier for paying and you can book cabs that way too. There was no “regular” Uber like in the US where it’s someone’s personal car. It was either a taxi or a fancy premier van and both were super clean and nice every time. This sub seems to hate taxis but they were great because sometimes you just want to sit down for 20 mins with your bags instead of fighting your way through a crowded subway and walking a bunch 🤷♀️
Ultimately we had a fantastic time and can’t wait to go back!!
by lesandroid