• Ever wanted an RSS feed of all your favorite gaming news sites? Go check out our new Gaming Headlines feed! Read more about it here.

Worthintendo

Member
Oct 25, 2017
943
So there is a good chance I'll be made redundant from my job in November.

So the question is, November/December or January/February for my trip. Thinking 4 to 5 weeks, def going to Hokkaido this time.
 

Stuart444

Member
Oct 25, 2017
9,068
So there is a good chance I'll be made redundant from my job in November.

So the question is, November/December or January/February for my trip. Thinking 4 to 5 weeks, def going to Hokkaido this time.

Jans nice but if going to Hokkaido.


^ consider going around this time.

The site of Sapporo Snow Festival 2020 is divided in 3, Odori Site, Susukino Site and Tsu Dome Site.
The Odori Site takes the main part of the festival which is held in the 1.5km long main street of Sapporo city. There will be over 100 snow/ice made sculptures including over 10 m tall large scale ones. Along the street, there will be shops and food/beverage stalls, light-up of the sculptures at night and an ice skate rink in front of the Sapporo Tower.
Susukino Site, is located in Hokkaido's biggest red-light district Susukino area. There will be a number of ice made sculptures where visitors can enjoy the fine curving art of ice blocks along the street.
The 71st Sapporo Snow Festival will be held at Odori Site and Susukino Site from 4th to 11th February in 2020.
 

Worthintendo

Member
Oct 25, 2017
943
The main reason I'm thinking November/December/January is if I get made redundant I'll have enough money to get by for 6 months, plus a holiday to Japan, so kinda want to get the Japan trip out of the way ASAP and then focus on getting a new job so the whole paying off my Mortgage thing can continue.

Current soft plan at this stage is looking like the below
5 days in Osaka
2 days in Nagasaki
2 days in Fukuoka
2 days in Hiroshima
6 days in Nagoya
3 days in Asahikawa (gonna fly from Nagoya to Sapporo and then train to Asahikawa)
5 days in Sapporo
2 days in Noboribetsu
1 day in Hakodate
9 days in Tokyo

Might cut out Nagasaki and drop a few days at some places depending on how pricing all comes out (want to try and keep the whole trip including spending money under $10,000 Australian so we'll see.
 

show me your skeleton

#1 Bugsnax Fan
Member
Oct 28, 2017
15,603
skeleton land
'ello all, apologies for what is probably an oft-repeated topic but i was wondering if there's any good apps/websites/videos etc. that can help someone pick up some useful 'tourist' japanese? i appreciate tokyo can be a pretty good city for an english-speaker but i'd love to know as much as possible, whilst knowing full well i'll never practice enough to really consider learning learning the language, if that makes sense? partly the reason i'm putting this here rather than the japanese language thread, though happy to pester them instead if you think that'd work better.
 

Mendrox

Banned
Oct 26, 2017
9,439
'ello all, apologies for what is probably an oft-repeated topic but i was wondering if there's any good apps/websites/videos etc. that can help someone pick up some useful 'tourist' japanese? i appreciate tokyo can be a pretty good city for an english-speaker but i'd love to know as much as possible, whilst knowing full well i'll never practice enough to really consider learning learning the language, if that makes sense? partly the reason i'm putting this here rather than the japanese language thread, though happy to pester them instead if you think that'd work better.



Guess something like that can help, but no apps will give you exactly what you want so just watch some videos and write everything down.

Saying Good Morning, Hello, Good evening
Excuse me aka "Sumimasen" for everything
What do you recommend?
What is the price?
I want [times] of [product]
I want this and I want that
Fish, vegetables, meat

And I would also recommend learning to read Hiragana and Katakana (it's really easy).

You will be fine with English, but...not every time. Try to at least learn a bit to make everything easier for both of you (speaker and listener). They will try to speak English too :) Katakana will also help you to well translate English words with Katakana so that they can still maybe know what you mean e.g. if you tell them you want ice cream most people will understand you, but Aisukurīmu is easier for them :)
 

show me your skeleton

#1 Bugsnax Fan
Member
Oct 28, 2017
15,603
skeleton land


Guess something like that can help, but no apps will give you exactly what you want so just watch some videos and write everything down.

Saying Good Morning, Hello, Good evening
Excuse me aka "Sumimasen" for everything
What do you recommend?
What is the price?
I want [times] of [product]
I want this and I want that
Fish, vegetables, meat

And I would also recommend learning to read Hiragana and Katakana (it's really easy).

You will be fine with English, but...not every time. Try to at least learn a bit to make everything easier for both of you (speaker and listener). They will try to speak English too :) Katakana will also help you to well translate English words with Katakana so that they can still maybe know what you mean e.g. if you tell them you want ice cream most people will understand you, but Aisukurīmu is easier for them :)

thank you for all of this!
i last visited in 2009 and was kinda' taken aback by how little english people spoke, which is stupidly ignorant of me (i blame me being from the UK and naively assuming english is spoken everywhere) but i had the benefit of two friends who had been in the country for almost a year by that point who handled 99% of the interactions. i shan't have this crutch this time and i don't want to be a hassle to anyone, nor do i want to be impolite, so i the info. you give is super useful, thank you!
 

Mendrox

Banned
Oct 26, 2017
9,439
thank you for all of this!
i last visited in 2009 and was kinda' taken aback by how little english people spoke, which is stupidly ignorant of me (i blame me being from the UK and naively assuming english is spoken everywhere) but i had the benefit of two friends who had been in the country for almost a year by that point who handled 99% of the interactions. i shan't have this crutch this time and i don't want to be a hassle to anyone, nor do i want to be impolite, so i the info. you give is super useful, thank you!

I dont think much has changed compared to 2009 but you will be fine with those few things :) back in May when I was able to speak and understand a little bit (after a month of learning) i was already able to do order medicine in Japanese for a friend (her head hurt) which was great. She didnt understand us at all but I was able to tell her that her 頭 hurts (I said itaiii lol) and then we got what we needed. Learning Hiragana and Katakana is fun too :-)
 

show me your skeleton

#1 Bugsnax Fan
Member
Oct 28, 2017
15,603
skeleton land
I dont think much has changed compared to 2009 but you will be fine with those few things :) back in May when I was able to speak and understand a little bit (after a month of learning) i was already able to do order medicine in Japanese for a friend (her head hurt) which was great. She didnt understand us at all but I was able to tell her that her 頭 hurts (I said itaiii lol) and then we got what we needed. Learning Hiragana and Katakana is fun too :-)
oh yeah i'm absolutely aware nothing will change in that regard, my 2009-visit assumption was pure nonsense and pretty gross to be honest. there will be five of us pointing at things and fumbling through some preschool japanese, i'm sure we'll manage.

all i care about is being able to order moss burger once again.
 

Neo0mj

Member
Oct 26, 2017
3,273
Sorry for repeating a question that was probably asked a billion times, but other than Mandarake is there a favorite toy store in Akihabara?
 
OP
OP
MikeHattsu

MikeHattsu

Member
Oct 25, 2017
8,916

Passengers on the Tokaido, Sanyo or Kyushu Shinkansen will soon have the option of reserving space for cumbersome luggage in advance.

The luggage area will be situated behind the rearmost seats in reserved-seat cars. Passengers who reserve seats in the backmost row can use the oversize luggage space.

No additional fee is necessary for the service. Passengers can reserve luggage space online or through ticketing machines or offices when purchasing their train tickets.

The service will start in mid-May 2020.


The sum of the length, width and height of the oversized luggage targeted for the service will be between 160 centimeters and 250 cm.

After the service starts, passengers who bring such luggage into cars without reserving a space in advance will be charged 1,000 yen ($9.40) and asked to move it to a designated area.
 

MrKlaw

Member
Oct 25, 2017
33,034
I hadn't realised suica support was universal on recent iPhones (8 onwards). Just added a card to my iPhone X - can top up using existing English debit card (Apple Pay).
for those more educated and already using this - any caveats to be aware of or is it great?
 

ryan299

Member
Oct 25, 2017
4,423
Going to Tokyo for the firs time tomorrow with my gf who has to work in Shingawa. Anything near there I should see? Looking to find some arcades to check out when she's working. We're going into Shinjuku one day and Disney Sea another.

Thanks.
 
OP
OP
MikeHattsu

MikeHattsu

Member
Oct 25, 2017
8,916

Seven countries including China, Russia and Australia have won 26 of the 50 new international slots created at Tokyo's Haneda airport in the run-up to next year's Olympic and Paralympic Games, transport ministry officials said Monday.

Finland, India, Italy and Turkey have also been handed slots, alongside one region, Scandinavia. Sweden or Denmark is likely to get that regional opening.

Flights to and from China will receive eight slots, those to and from Russia and Australia will get four each, and the others will get two each, the officials said, adding that -- except for China -- the slots will go into service for the first time during the airport's daytime from 6 a.m. to 10:55 p.m.

The remaining 24 slots had already been allocated to flights to and from the United States, as the government tries to attract 40 million foreign visitors to Japan in 2020.
 

Blackquill

Attempted to circumvent ban with alt account
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
783
Hello, I will land in Narita in a few days and would like to know, once I arrive in Tokyo, how do you I get ticket to where I am going next ? Can I get it inside the stations or somewhere else ?

Also just need one confirmation : you can't buy NEX ticket online right ?
 
Last edited:
OP
OP
MikeHattsu

MikeHattsu

Member
Oct 25, 2017
8,916
I plan to take the N'EX to Shinjuku Station and then take the Shinjuku line from toei transportation if google map is right

You have to transfer at Shinjuku station from the JR part of the station to the Toei subway line. You exit at one of the JR gates and then either use a Suica/Pasmo card (best option), or buy a single ticket at the Toei subway ticket machines (worst option).


Also just need one confirmation : you can't buy NEX ticket online right ?

You can reserve a ticket online, but what if your flight is delayed? :P
 
Last edited:

Blackquill

Attempted to circumvent ban with alt account
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
783
You have to transfer at Shinjuku station from the JR part of the station to the Toei subway line. You exit at one of the JR gates and then either use a Suica/Pasmo card (best option), or buy a single ticket at the Toei subway ticket machines (worst option).




You can reserve a ticket online, but what if your flight is delayed? :P

The Suica / Pasmo card is the thing where you can put money for the next travels right ?
 

MrKlaw

Member
Oct 25, 2017
33,034
MikeHattsu dobyou think it's worth updating the OP with the info that you can use recent iPhones (not sure about android) to get a suica card before you travel which can save time when you get there, and use your domestic card to top up?
 

Danielsan

Member
Oct 26, 2017
5,626
The Netherlands
I've booked tickets for my first trip to Japan! We'll be going from the 8th of March till the 22nd. In the end we decided to go just before the Sakura season because both the plane tickets (KLM direct flight) and the hotels are significantly cheaper.

Now it's time to finalize an itinerary and book our hotels. We want to hit up Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka. Any recommendation for how many days to spend in each city?
 
OP
OP
MikeHattsu

MikeHattsu

Member
Oct 25, 2017
8,916
MikeHattsu dobyou think it's worth updating the OP with the info that you can use recent iPhones (not sure about android) to get a suica card before you travel which can save time when you get there, and use your domestic card to top up?

Don't you need an existing (physical) card first, or use the suica app which is only in Japanese to set up a card?
 

MrKlaw

Member
Oct 25, 2017
33,034
Don't you need an existing (physical) card first, or use the suica app which is only in Japanese to set up a card?

Totally just the app - I did it at the weekend. App is in English too - 'SuicaEng'. Puts the suica card in your apple wallet and tops up using your registered apple pay card. Also works as a 'rapid transit' card so you don't need to double click - it just works passively without face/touch ID (I guess because its prepaid so less risk). *and* works even if your phone runs out of battery

App store link https://apps.apple.com/app/suicaeng/id1304852119


Limitation is you need iphone 8/watch 3 or later, (or an iphone 7 bought in Japan). Iphone 8 is when they put the universal NFC chip in all phones
 

JoelStinty

Member
Aug 15, 2019
1,278
I've booked tickets for my first trip to Japan! We'll be going from the 8th of March till the 22nd. In the end we decided to go just before the Sakura season because both the plane tickets (KLM direct flight) and the hotels are significantly cheaper.

Now it's time to finalize an itinerary and book our hotels. We want to hit up Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka. Any recommendation for how many days to spend in each city?

Nice one! Close to booking mine as well. Just taking a few days/couple of weeks to decide if I want to actually go ( I want to, but also kind of looking for a new job and change of living too).

I can't really say how much time to spend in each place as I haven't been, but just through research I would say spend more time in Tokyo and Kyoto easily. Osaka seems cool, but not as much to do but there seems plenty of day trips to take, but other people might have better informed opinions!
 

Deleted member 2802

Community Resetter
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
33,729
Planning a trip for Tokyo - want to see some temples and parks, but mostly Akihabara and Shibuya
What should I be taking into consideration for accommodations?
Is location important or does nearness to a subway line negate location.
I'm trying to weigh price of hotel versus convenience

I really want to try these. Can I buy these at a store or can a concierge help me to order these?
 
Oct 25, 2017
308
I won a Mobal data sim card in a competition. Has anyone else used them in Japan? And if so are they any good? Online reviews I've seen seem a bit mixed.
 

ryan299

Member
Oct 25, 2017
4,423
Take a JR Yamanote or JR Keihin-Tohoku Line train to Tokyo station and then switch to JR Keiyo to Maihama (which is a looong walk away from the rest of the lines). Then take the Disney monorail from there.
Thanks for the answer.

Never seen a city this dense before. Just exploring on google maps it's insane.
 
OP
OP
MikeHattsu

MikeHattsu

Member
Oct 25, 2017
8,916

Summer temperatures have yet to cool off, and meteorologists believe that this year's scorching heat may have pushed back the arrival of autumn foliage season — predicting its start will likely be later than usual across almost all regions of Japan.

Experts believe Sapporo will be the first area to enjoy the autumn foliage season. They predict the best date to enjoy yellow ginkgo leaves will be Nov. 6, and for viewing maple leaves, Nov. 7. Hokkaido's mountain maple trees usually turn red by around Oct. 25, meaning this year's foliage in the prefecture will peak 13 days later than usual.

In its first forecast for this year's autumn foliage season, released Tuesday, Osaka-based Japan Meteorological Corp. sees the earliest anticipated time for both yellow and red foliage to arrive as around usual, but believes it's more likely the season will arrive later than usual since September and October temperatures are expected to be higher than average.


Yellow leaves [are predicted to] be at their most impressive in the cities of Nagano on Nov. 13, Nagoya on Nov. 18, Osaka on Nov. 23 and Fukuoka on Nov. 24, where the foliage normally peaks 12 days earlier.

Meanwhile, red foliage [are predicted to] look the most impressive in the cities of Sendai on Nov. 26, Nagoya on Nov. 30 and Osaka on Dec. 1.

Those in Tokyo will need to wait a little longer than usual for autumn foliage to come alive, with ginkgo leaves [predicted] to look the most attractive on Nov. 27 and the peak for maple tree leaves expected on Dec. 3.

Tourists planning to visit Kyoto to observe the changing autumn leaves should also take note that this year's red foliage is [predicted] to peak Dec. 8.
 

ryan299

Member
Oct 25, 2017
4,423
Anybody hear of a place named access tickets that sells tickets for a whole bunch of things including Disney?
Disney's site keeps rejecting all our credit cards but that store is near the Shinagawa train station. They do money exchange there but it's cash only. Don't want to get scammed
 

Rahvar

Weight Loss Champion 2018: Most Lost
Member
Oct 25, 2017
2,151
Sweden
Anybody hear of a place named access tickets that sells tickets for a whole bunch of things including Disney?
Disney's site keeps rejecting all our credit cards but that store is near the Shinagawa train station. They do money exchange there but it's cash only. Don't want to get scammed

From what I know, buying second-hand Disney ticket is very risky. You might get rejected at the gate. Paulo from Tokyo made a video about it earlier this year I believe.
 

ryan299

Member
Oct 25, 2017
4,423
From what I know, buying second-hand Disney ticket is very risky. You might get rejected at the gate. Paulo from Tokyo made a video about it earlier this year I believe.
Thanks for letting me know. Going to hit up a family mart. Every thing I read online says it's easy to buy from there.
 

ryan299

Member
Oct 25, 2017
4,423
Yeah just use Family Mart it's very easy. You buy the voucher at the machine and then pay at the cashier and receive your tickets.
Just did it but all my gf's card and mine were declined. Good thing they had an atm there. Not sure why all our cards keep getting rejected. Maybe it's the chips but both our debit cards have worked at atms and my gf's credit card worked at the hotel. Odd situation.
 

Mendrox

Banned
Oct 26, 2017
9,439
Just did it but all my gf's card and mine were declined. Good thing they had an atm there. Not sure why all our cards keep getting rejected. Maybe it's the chips but both our debit cards have worked at atms and my gf's credit card worked at the hotel. Odd situation.

I never had to use a card. I got a printed voucher which I just took to the cashier where I was able to pay with cash like normal (including my ocha :P) I think I never tried paying by card directly at the machine though.
 
Oct 26, 2017
7,285
JR Pass ordered along with SIM card. Goddamn these are expensive (14 days) but we will break even just on the major trips, and I'm assuming it's really convenient to not have to book every trip separately.

My Samsung Galaxy S10e wasn't listed but the site didn't seem to be quite up to date. I'm assuming it should work and it has dual SIM spots.