Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with travel and Japan

Japan aficionados: help me plan my trip!

idlethink — Wed, 22 May 2013 15:03:55 -0800

I would like to see Tokyo, Kyoto, Miyajima, Hiroshima and Naoshima in the space of 10 days. What should I see? Is this possible? and if not, all advice welcome! Details after the jump. I'm planning a ten-day trip to Japan in June, part of which will be with family (one member of which is very familiar with Japan, so I am less concerned about those parts of the trip) and the rest on my own. I am flying into Kansei (Osaka), and from then will have a 7-day JR pass which will expire on the 20th, by which time I plan to be in Tokyo.

14-17 June: Kyoto with family
17-18 June: Solo - Miyajima
18-19 June: Solo - Hiroshima
19/20-24 June: Tokyo with family

My question is in two parts.

1) The question of the extra day

I potentially have one more night solo (19-20 June) before I head back up to Tokyo to spend the rest of the vacation with family. I'd love some advice regarding this extra day. I am extremely interested in seeing Naoshima/Teshima, but am having trouble deciding if that's logistically feasible. Options presently:

(A) Just spend another night in Hiroshima and take it easy
(B) Train up to Naoshima and Teshima, staying overnight on one of those islands
(C) See Naoshima, then stay overnight in a relatively nearby city (Okoyama? Kobe? Osaka?)
(D) Skip Naoshima entirely and spend the second night in a major city between Hiroshima and Tokyo, which would make getting back to Tokyo on the 20th easier

If (A), is two nights in Hiroshima too much? If not, I would love recommendations. Obviously, I am going to spend a good deal of time in the Peace Museum.

If (B) or (C), am I severely underestimating the amount of time it would take me to get from place to place? For example, if I left Hiroshima early on the 19th, by what time could I reasonably expect to actually be on Naoshima - and would there be enough time on the island before museums close or the ferry stops running? If (B), is it in fact worth staying the night? I have been told by many people that Naoshima is actually not quite even a day trip.

If (D), which city?

2) The question of what to see

I would love recommendations on anything I should see or do while in Japan, given where I'm going! My interests tend somewhat away from sightseeing as such (i.e. seeing for the sake of having seen), and more towards experiences unique to the place I'm visiting: seeing interesting exhibitions and museums (I am a historian), wandering around quirky & interesting places, people-watching, eating good food in interesting environments, watching interesting food or objects being made, visiting funky bookstores or shops, etc. I am not a huge shopper and not very much into souvenirs, but I'd happily buy edible things or crafted goods that are really unique to the place, if such things were available.

Any help would be enormously appreciated, and my apologies for the very long post. Thanks in advance!

Travelfilter: How to get the cheapest flight from Vancouver - Tokyo?

abbagoochie — Wed, 22 May 2013 15:02:04 -0800

I've wanted to go to Tokyo all my life, and have a few weeks off soon. I've been looking for flights and the cheapest I can find are $1450 all in... but I suspect if I the trip was broken up a bit by not flying there directly, it'd be a lot cheaper. Are there any resources you know of to help with this/have you done this before/do you know a good route that would shave off the $$$? Time isn't overly important as I have three weeks between jobs for exploring. But I don't want to be paying this off till next year. Help!

Is this itinerary for a trip to Japan reasonable?

Heliochrome85 — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 20:23:44 -0800

I am traveling to Tokyo next week and have not been there before. Is this itinerary reasonable? I will be traveling alone to Tokyo for the first time. After doing a ton of research, I have been able to put together an itinerary, but am not sure if it is a reasonable one. My plan is as follows:

SA - March 23rd - TOKYO
- Arrive Narita 4pm
- Take train to hotel/check in
- Explore area around hotel
- Akihabara?
SU - March 24th - TOKYO
- Asakusa Shrine– Tokyo SGG club
- Nakamise Shopping District
- Shibuya
- Meiji Shrine/Harajuku(best on Sundays/Shibuya
M - March 25th - TOKYO
- Tokyo
- Tsukiji Fish Mkt./Ginza/Sony/Imperial Palace – Gardens East/Nissan Gallery
- Tokyo Sky Tree
Tu- March 26th - KYOTO
- Kiyomizudera Temple – Higashiyama District – Ginkakuji
- Kinkakuji Temple – Fushimi Inari Shrine
- Philosophers Walk?
Wed- March 27th - TOKYO
- UENO PARK TOUR – Tokyo SGG Club
- Akihabara/Asakusa(Sensoji Temple)
Thrs- March 28th - TOKYO?Hiroshima?
-
Fri- March 29th - TOKYO
- Kamakura to see Daibatsu (Great Buddha)
- Antique Mall Ginza
- Oedo Antique Market
- Shinjuku – Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building Observation Deck (Closes at 11pm)
Sa- March 30th - TOKYO
- Depart for Narita at 130pm
- Depart Narita at 555pm
- Land in LAX at 1130AM

Is this plan unreasonable? Are there things that I absolutely should not miss? Is hiroshima from Tokyo, a reasonable day trip? I have already purchased a rail pass and would like to use it as much as possible.

Help me travel to Japan!

Bebo — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 17:06:34 -0800

My sibling, mother, and I want to go to Japan (Tokyo, Mt. Fuji, and Kyoto) in late July. I am getting overwhelmed by trying to book tickets. Help! 1. We are all coming from different locations (St. Paul, Chicago, and Boston), but obviously would like to fly the majority of the time together. It seems like it would be cheapest for us all to meet on the West Coast (L.A.?) and fly from there to Narita? Or am I mistaken?

2. I have been thinking that it may be worth paying more $$ to fly a non-American airline -- is this true? Any particular recommendations? We will not be flying first/business class and cost is of some concern, but we are willing to pay a few hundred more if the experience is going to be much more pleasant on one airline versus another.

Spending 10 days in Tokyo

sp160n — Sat, 27 Oct 2012 16:10:04 -0800

What are some good things to do in Tokyo next week? I'll be staying in Shinjuku, and would appreciate a bit of guidance as far as stuff to do. I'm a 28 year old LA native, looking to get a good sense of what the city has to offer, esp. interested in art. I'll be traveling alone, so it'd be good to know about social meeting places in Tokyo.

Summer in Japan. How can I make this happen?

Marinara — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 12:23:10 -0800

Traveling to Japan this summer with my sister. Help me make this the best trip ever and not lose my mind. My younger sister is graduating from high school this coming year and, to celebrate, we want to take a long vacation to Japan before she leaves for college. As it stands right now, we plan on leaving mid-June and staying 30-40 days. My sister is proficient in Japanese while I have a basic grasp of numbers and simple phrases. I'm working on learning more but it's slow going.

The thing is, I've been pouring over tourism books and internet travel guides way too late into the night. There is just SO much to do. We've also been debating flying into Cambodia/Laos and spending some time there before taking a ferry over from China. Or should we just spend the entire time in Japan? Food is a big focus of the trip for me. My sister is very interested in more traditional aspects of Japanese life. We love hiking/camping. This question helped some but I'm still looking for more ideas.

We would like to travel on as tight of a budget as possible. We're interesting in WWOOFing for a week or two so if anyone has any location specific farms that would be appreciated. Where should we stay? Is the railroad pass worth it? What airline is the best/cheapest to fly with? We'll be coming from Seattle if that changes things. What should we budget? We were thinking $2-3000 but that seems like it won't be enough the more I read about Japan. I just need some suggestions and a place to get started from. Thanks for saving my sanity in advance.

Kyoto via iPod/smartphone/tablet

mdonley — Sun, 07 Oct 2012 21:14:54 -0800

I'm going to Kyoto for a two-day visit in November, but with only an iPod Touch 4 in my jacket pocket as I'd like to avoid bringing a heavy guidebook/backpack as I walk around exploring all day. What PDFs/docs/apps/downloads can help make my visit amazing, or at least easier? I've never been to Japan before, I don't speak Japanese, and I'll be on my own. I'm thinking about getting...

- the Lonely Planet "Kyoto" guidebook as a pdf download (are there better ones out there?)
- a Japanese-language app - there seem to be a lot out there; any recommendations for such a short visit?
- descriptions of historical/cultural sites in more detail from...Wikipedia? other sites?
- a list of cafes/places with wifi?
- ???

Ideally, I'd like to show up at Ryōan-ji, for example, and be able to read extensively about it while I'm there, see what's nearby, and possibly ask someone for tips/directions/help if need be. Can my little iPod do all this?

Thank you!

What to do in an 18-hour layover in Tokyo?

picarosado — Sun, 16 Sep 2012 04:22:09 -0800

Hi! On Xmas day this year, we'll be en route to Vietnam for two weeks... But before that, we'll be spending an 18 hour layover in Tokyo. Any recs on what we can do/see in that little time? Any tips on what the weather will be like? Vietnam is supposed to be in the 50s and above, so I'm not sure if we need to bring a jacket just for Tokyo... We're also not sure how much we'll get to see since I haven't yet looked up how far the airport in Tokyo is from everything... We know we don't have too much time but thought it might be nice to grab some good sushi and maybe take a drive? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated, thank you!

Where to go? What to do?

kjs4 — Wed, 01 Aug 2012 22:43:19 -0800

My planned holiday to Europe in Sept/Oct has been postponed, and now I have three weeks to go..... somewhere. I'm female, early thirties and will be flying out of Sydney. I enjoy my own company and love to travel. Please suggest places to go and things to do that I will enjoy by myself. Preferences after the jump. - The original trip was London/France/Barcelona, so not those. Not Germany, Austria, Switzerland, UK, Poland, New York, San Francisco Western Canada or Malaysia as I've done those.
- I'm not a massive fan of "14 countries in 14 days" tours. Would maybe consider a week long tour that goes to places I couldn't get to easily on public transport, but not for the whole time. Also, they seem like they'd be a bit weird to do by myself, as I find small talk exhausting.
- I have no interest in sitting on a beach doing nothing. Terribly dull and I sunburn easily.
- I enjoy urban centres, civilisation, museums, history, architecture and novelty. I like swing dancing, crafts and exploring by bike, on foot and by public transport.
- I'd prefer to keep the flights to less than 30hrs. I was considering Southern Spain/Morocco, but the flight lengths are terrible.
- I'd strongly prefer places I can explore by myself safely. I'm happy to wander the streets of Manhattan or Sydney at 2am, to give a comfort level approximation.
- If at all possible, I'd like to keep the amount of planning I have to do to a minimum. So, not too many moves. (I find chosing accomodation incredibly stressful. I also don't have much time and have found in the past that my month long jaunts through Europe have resulted in me achieving little other than planning in the weeks leading up to it.) This means that I probably need some sort of activity to do, as there aren't that many places that can keep a solo traveller happy for more than a few days.
- I don't mind a language gap, and will probably spend the time until leaving learning at least the basics if there is one. I speak German and was learning basic Spanish in preparation for Barcelona.

Places I have considered:

- Southern Spain/Morocco. It was getting very complicated (7 separate cities with train trips in between), and flights didn't work. I might do a similar trip with my parents in a few years.
- South America, maybe Colombia or Guatamala. I am considering doing a couple of weeks learning Spanish somewhere, and then a week doing something else. Bogota looked cool because of its cycling culture and (apparently) pleasant accent, but the safety aspect makes me hesitant. Also, I couldn't find anything I particularly wanted to do for the third week.
- Japan. Kyoto plus something? I've also got a friend who might be in South Korea around that time, but it's not confirmed yet.
- Istanbul. There's a Lindy swing dance exchange around that time, but the follows are waitlisted, so I might not be able to get in. Would be cool though, and I assume I could use up a week exploring the city. Need some other places to add on though.
- Trans-Siberian. I've always wanted to do this, but the visas look complicated, and I'm not sure I want to do it by myself.

So, any suggestions for itineraries or activities? YANMTA (you are not my travel agent), but the more details the better.

Will I get stuck in Tokyo?

jcrbuzz — Mon, 09 Jul 2012 04:38:18 -0800

Please help me determine if this flight plan through Narita (Tokyo) airport is plausible or insane. I have a flight booked that will take me directly from Boston (BOS) to Nartia (NRT) and land at 3:50pm. I want to then catch a plane from NRT to Komatsu (KMQ) that leaves at 5:55pm. I will not be checking any bags. Will I have enough time to clear customs and security to get on this flight?

Bonus question: My flight home leaves at 11:30am, and no flights from KMQ get in that early (that I know of), so I was planning on flying back to Toyko the day before. Can anyone recommend a good hotel near NRT airport that I can stay in for one night?

Help a Kanto gaijin have a good one night trip in Osaka

Ghidorah — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 06:25:25 -0800

Looking for places to go, eat, and stay in a very, very short trip to Osaka. By random chance, the Mrs. and I finally have two consecutive days off together (which has happened only once this year up til now), and we're going to Osaka. We're flying (she's got miles she needs to use) out of Haneda in Tokyo on the morning of Sunday, June 24, and flying back to Tokyo on Monday, June 25. The plan is to go to Universal Studios on Sunday (yes, Monday would be less absurd, but we've got to be back at the airport by 6pm, so Sunday gives us more time to play).

The thing is, that weekend pretty much marks 12 years in Japan for me, and I've never been to Osaka. I know nothing about the city, and my wife has never been either. We're looking for a good district to stay in on Sunday night, and possible hotel recommendations, though pretty much anywhere will be okay, as it's only one night. After that, or even before, is food, since that's what Osaka is famous for. Where to go, what to eat, any possible recommendations for things to see or do on Monday would be greatly appreciated. Obviously Sunday night isn't a big night out for most people, but we'd like to try to get something of a feel for the city. The closest I've been to the city is living vicariously through No Reservations, and we're both big into street food. If anyone can help us out, we'd appreciate it.

What should I know about visiting Naoshima, Japan?

MoonOrb — Wed, 30 May 2012 19:51:22 -0800

Please tell me what you think I should know about visiting Naoshima, Japan. My wife and I intend to visit Japan in late December/early January. We'd like to visit Naoshima. Our tentative plan is to spend two days there. Is this a reasonable amount of time?

Also, we do not speak Japanese, so we're concerned a bit about accommodation. Because it is so close to the New Year (our preliminary plan puts us in Naoshima the 27th and 28th of December), we place a high value on booking accommodations early so we're ensured of having them. But of the places I've found, even those that say they speak English have only Japanese contact pages on their websites (even if other parts of the site are in English) or indicate they may be closed at that time of year. We would prefer accommodations where some English is spoken since that is a big help in getting directions and recommendations on where to eat and so on. From our initial look, it appears a viable option is very, very expensive. Any suggestions that the guide books and standard net searches may have missed?

Recommendations on where vegetarians might eat would be hugely appreciated as well.

Also, I'd love to hear what you think we absolutely should not miss while we're there.

Thanks.

Where can we stash our luggage while going around on day trips?

gchucky — Tue, 29 May 2012 19:42:30 -0800

TravelLogisticFilter: We're planning a trip to Japan in October and need help with the logistics of where to leave our luggage as we get around. We're having a hard time coming up with where we can leave our luggage during the days. Most of our time is going to be in Kyoto, but we want to do an overnight in Hiroshima. The plan right now is to get to Hiroshima midday, stay overnight, see the Genbaku Dome, Miyajima, etc. and then get back on the Shinkansen to Kyoto. The problem, though, is that we'd check out of the hotel in the morning and then have to lug our bags all around Hiroshima. Paying for an extra night in a Kyoto hotel just to leave our bags there seems ridiculous (and pricey).

Does anyone have experience with this sort of thing? Can we check out of a hotel and then leave our luggage there for a day? Is it possible to drop our bags at the next hotel we're staying at and have them hold it for us for a night? Is there some other option I can't think of right now? (Bonus points: how would this work in other countries? I can't imagine doing it here in America, but then I've never tried...)

(And for what it's worth, our Japanese is pretty good. Not fluent, but we can get by just fine.)

How do I carry my yen?

hoyland — Wed, 16 May 2012 18:13:51 -0800

What's the best way to handle getting/carrying foreign currency? (For travel to Japan, in particular.) In addition to the ninety thousand other bizarre anxieties I'm having about this trip to Japan, I've realised that I don't actually know how 'normal' people handle money while travelling. For past trips, I've simply changed money before I left and taken cash and that was all the money I've spent. But that's never been more than €150. (The one time I haven't stayed with friends/relatives, my friend was drawing money out of a local account and I paid him my share in dollars.)

The options I can see are

Change enough cash for the whole trip before I leave. I have qualms about carrying that much cash. I don't know if it's simply psychological because the numbers are so big for JPY.
Traveller's checks. Yes, they've gone super out of fashion. They may be hard to cash in Japan.
Credit card. As I understand it, Japan's a cash economy. I need to pay for the hostels in cash. Maybe good for train tickets, though there's an irritating 3% surcharge on foreign transactions. Oh, plus Japan has chip-and-pin it seems.
ATM. My bank charges an outrageous $5 plus 3%. To be honest, I want to avoid this option out of principle, though it's probably the best option if my aversion to carrying large sums of cash makes sense.

So what to real adults do? Are there options I haven't thought about?

Where should we go in Japan (~ central Honshu) to get out of the city and do some hiking?

copacetic — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 12:22:27 -0800

Where do you recommend to get out of the cities and see some nature/countryside in Japan? We'd love to hike, and spend some time soaking in outdoor hot springs. We've looked at the Japanese Alps as well as the area around Hakone, but we're having trouble sorting through the options, and a bit nervous about the guidebook references to "hoards of day-trippers." Help us focus? Any recommendations for towns, specific hiking trails or hotels? 2 adults traveling as a couple. We have 10 days in Japan in late May/early June. We're planning on spending the bulk of our time in Tokyo and Kyoto (with a day trip to Nara), but we'd love recommendations for spots to visit outside of the cities. We're looking for areas that could be the "relaxing" portion of our vacation, but still provide something fun/interesting to do every day.

Happy to consider places outside of the ones I mentioned, but areas that won't take forever (6+ hours) to get to from either Tokyo or Kyoto are ideal. Although sleeper trains do sound like a great adventure so we can be swayed.

We'll have up to 3 days and 3 nights, which don't have to be spent in the same place, JR passes, and a pretty flexible budget. Also no Japanese but a strong desire not to let that stop us.

Thanks in advance for helping us uncover more of this wonderful country!

Babysteps into the land of Japan...

Arethusa — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 00:40:34 -0800

Travelfilter: Things to do in Japan that are good for someone who finds traveling stressful, and are welcoming to tourists and non-Japanese speakers. I live in Japan, which is pretty awesome! I am here with my spouse on a U.S. military base nearish to Tokyo. The problem is that the base is basically a little-America. Everyone speaks English, and it's very self-sustained, so you pretty much never have to leave. It doesn't look or feel like Japan at all. There are people who boast of never leaving the base the whole time they are stationed here! I don't want to be that person!

However, I have extreme social anxiety, and I feel like a huge boob for not knowing much Japanese. Pretty much not knowing any Japanese. But with being a grad student thing and having a job (both English-speaking) I haven't had much time to remedy that.

So I was hoping for suggestions in the Tokyo area for things to do or places to visit that would be very accessible and "safe" for someone who has social anxiety and doesn't speak much Japanese. Basically, a gentle starting point so that we can gradually start exploring this neat country. Just being in public here stresses me out, and I think I'd feel better if I knew I was in an area where tourists are expected, and possibly even welcomed. I do want to do less touristy things eventually, but I think even just doing touristy things would be a good first step. We do already go out to restaurants in the base area, though I am a vegetarian which somewhat complicates food-tourism.

We're going to be here for another few years so there's plenty of time. We can handle the trains alright, and my spouse doesn't have social anxiety, but he does get kind of stressed out when I start getting stressed out in a public area. He doesn't mind traveling but he's a real home-body so between the two of us we rarely leave the base.

The next two weeks or so are relatively free for us, so that is the time frame we're looking at in the near future, but we also have free days at other times throughout the year.

Thank you Metafilter!

Help me not re-enact Top Gear in Japan

hoyland — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 16:38:41 -0800

Help! I'm going to Japan (well, hopefully). What do I need to know? Assuming the money works out, I'll be going to Nagoya this summer. I know next to nothing about Japan. Seriously, I watched Big Bird in Japan a bunch as a kid and that one Top Gear episode and that's about all I know.*

I know my initial question is hopelessly broad, but I feel very intimidated by the idea of this trip. My primary concerns are as follows:

-I don't speak a word of Japanese. It's been a long time since I've gone somewhere with absolutely zero knowledge of the language (and even then it was Italy, where I can guess at some things since it's a Romance language). Every time I think about this, I think about Richard Hammond and James May trying to change trains and getting lost. Assuming I'm a bit more competent than them, am I likely to have issues with basic navigation? How adrift should I be bracing myself to be? (Right now, I suspect I'm catastrophising.) Getting to Nagoya looks like it'll involve changing planes in Seoul, but I somehow don't doubt that I can get through an airport with no knowledge of Korean.

-I'm a vegetarian. I realise I'm probably going to get 'fished' inadvertently, but I'd rather be not eating around things that are obviously meat. What sort of things should I be looking to eat? Where might I find them?

What other stuff should I know? Past AskMe's have referred to things like buying doohickeys for wi-fi access. Should I be assuming that the university won't have wi-fi a visitor can access? (Whether I care, I don't know. I'm sure my parents can assume I'm not dead when they don't hear about a plane crash.) I don't have a smartphone, nor do I expect to need/want a SIM card for my phone.

*I'm being facetious, but it feels like that might as well be the sum total of my knowledge. Big Bird has taught me about display cases with plastic food. But they have those in Berkeley.

Japan for the Solo Traveler

noted industrialist — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 11:06:39 -0800

Traveling to Japan on my own for 2.5 weeks. Help me avoid the part where I start talking to myself. I have a fair amount of free time before starting a new job, and decided to take advantage of it by making a trip to Japan. Given that most everyone I know stateside has to work, this’ll be a solo trip. I’m cool with wandering around on my own (and have done it before), but I also wouldn’t mind ending up in places or situations where it would be easy to meet people. Could be a great hostel in Kyoto, a particularly social izakaya in Tokyo, or an organized hike into the wilderness. Similarly, it would be great to hear ideas for things that would be easy and enjoyable to do on my own.

A bit more information:
- I’m flying into and departing from Tokyo and will be in country for 17 days, starting in early March.
- I’d likely buy a railpass and would be really interested to hear of any cities I should include in my circuit (beyond Tokyo and Kyoto). Also, any suggestions on how much time to spend where?
- I’m particularly into food, and it’ll be a big focus of the trip. I’d be pretty curious about any ideas you guys might have for food-related activities, classes, tours, destinations, etc...
- Temples, ruins, natural and cultural sights are all good.
- If I was to do an organized tour, I probably wouldn’t want it to be more than a day trip. I’d like to leave things fairly flexible and mostly independent if possible.

I’ll leave off there, but can hop in with more information as needed. Much appreciated!

Pre-paid SIM in Japan

VoteBrian — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 15:36:13 -0800

How can I best get cell data while in Japan? I've got a GSM Galaxy Nexus that I'd like to use while I'm in Japan. Is it possible to purchase a pre-paid SIM? If so, where would these be sold? I'll be in Nagoya, if that helps.

Traditional Print and Paper Visit in Japan?

emilyclaire — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 14:53:53 -0800

I am a printmaker, but I have also been trained in bookbinding and papermaking, including some Japanese papermaking. We are going to Japan in late March/early April, and I would love to visit a printmaking/papermaking studio. We will be in Japan for Cherry Blossom season and we are planning to visit Tokyo, Kyoto & Osaka. We are willing to take a day trip out of one of these cities, but anything too far is a deal-breaker. I have mapped out a few shops that sell traditional paper and prints, but I would love to visit an actual studio to see people making paper and prints. (Also, I would love to see traditional Japanese woodcuts, but if there is a studio that specializes in other sorts of printmaking, I would be very interested.)

I am a woman in my 20s, traveling with my husband. We are trying to learn bits and pieces of Japanese to get us across the country, but we are FAR from conversational. Any suggestions for a studio that would welcome visitors, or suggestions for ways to approach studios to see if they would welcome visitors, or other destinations for the visually-inclined in Japan, would be amazing. Thank you, Hive-Mind!!

Ferries between Japan and South Korea?

reductiondesign — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 06:17:10 -0800

I want to take a ferry from Shimonoseki, Japan to Busan, South Korea, and then later from Busan to Fukuoka—but how do I book tickets? For the first leg (Japan to S.K.) I've found a company called Pukwan Ferry that will take me there, and lots of information about these ferries, but I can't read or translate (images!) the site, much less make a reservation. For the return ferry, I'm looking at Korea Ferry, but I'm running into the language problem again. Would I be safe just showing up and buying a ticket the day of?

Thanks, MeFi!

Save My Honemoon To Japan!

Elminster24 — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 22:09:07 -0800

SAVE MY HONEYMOON HIVEMIND! Is there a definitive (non-biased) answer on whether Japan is safe for travel? I'm desperate. My fiance and I are getting married this August. Our whole relationship we've talked about how we want to go to Japan and this seemed like the perfect time and it was a no-brainer...

Then Fukushima hit.

Her research has been inconclusive and my own Google-fu has failed me for the first time. Everything we find is either unsubstantiated claims by people on forums, comments from incredibly biased sources like Japan's tourism board, the Japanese government who is trying to save face, etc. (I don't even trust the US government's view as they always have an agenda).

So....

IS IT SAFE?!?!?!

Specifically, our concerns are the following:

1. Are any areas definitely NOT safe (aside from Fukushima)? We would like to go to Tokyo, Osaka, Okinawa, some nice onsen spa in the mountains (not sure where) and maybe elsewhere.

2. What is the food/drink situation? We are both obsessed with Japanese food and want to be able to gorge ourselves, but are scared of some reports of radiation contamination and potential short-term and long-term side effects.

3. Could this cause issues with having kids down the line? I know...probably paranoid, but a question that has come up nonetheless.

4. Is the exposure we'd risk just not worth worrying about? Several things I've read have said we'd get more radiation on the flight over than we would just being there for a couple weeks. And even if food was slightly contaminated, the brief period of time (2.5 weeks) and the amount we'd eat in that time would be negligible from a health perspective.

There is always risk in travel, and we realize there is not going to be a 100% YES ITS SAFE link we can click on, but hit me with your most credible sources so I can show her and convince her and myself that it is indeed safe for us to go.

THANK YOU!

4 day Long weekend in Asia - where to go?

Admira — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 04:10:57 -0800

My wife and I are living in Manila and would like to get away for the long weekend in Late November/Early October. I was thinking of going to Japan but after watching a tv show on Taiwan, it looks amazing. I'm sure Asia has more to offer, so please help us pick a destination! Important Point - my wife is pregnant - and when the long weekend comes she will be just over 3 months pregnant.

We have already been to Thailand and would like to go somewhere else.

If you could give links for where to stay and where to go I would be forever in your debt!

Wi-fi subscription in Japan

reductiondesign — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 14:26:22 -0800

I'd like to subscribe to a wi-fi provider in Japan that I'll be able to use with my laptop or phone. I'd like something that is a monthly fee. I'll be there as a legal resident, not a tourist. When I was in Japan over the summer, there were all sorts of wireless networks in restaurants and stores, but they were all either password protected or behind a paywall. How can I sign up for one, which has the fastest speeds, and which has the best coverage in Okayama?

The care and feeding of boyfriends (in rural Japan)

sunset in snow country — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 19:36:02 -0800

My boyfriend is coming to visit me in Japan. Yay! Help me help him not die of isolation, culture shock and boredom. So, I've been living in Japan for a year and on a recent trip back to the States I managed to hook up with an old friend who I've had feelings for for a long time. Yay! Now we're in a long-distance relationship, and he's planning to visit me in the fall for 4-6 weeks. We'll spend one week in Tokyo when he first arrives (probably the last week of October), and then it's back to my place, where I'll be returning to work. I live in a very rural area and I'll be taking the car to go to work, so he'll be on his own during the day.

He's not terribly concerned about this; he works only a part-time job now, and he says that his days at home consist of job hunting, cooking/eating, exercise, and maybe some TV or video games, so he doesn't see how this will be any different. I'm a little more worried, however--6 weeks is longer than some exchange programs, and I think he'll miss his friends and family, will feel isolated out in the countryside, will maybe even start to resent me for being busy with work all day while he sits around bored. I moved to Los Angeles to be with my last boyfriend (who had a budding career while I was unsuccessfully job hunting) and basically went batshit crazy, and of course I went through the adjustment process when I moved to Japan myself, so I know that of which I speak. I love him a lot and I don't want this to put undue strain on our relationship. Plus I want him to enjoy his time in Japan!

Anyway, I have two questions: Is this a completely stupid idea and should I be changing the parameters of the trip? If not, what can I do to help keep him from feeling isolated?

I'm thinking along the lines of things I can have available for him in the apartment, ways I can help, activities to suggest as well as how to suggest them (I know having something to work on is great for stuff like this but I can't, nor do I want to, say "hey honey, since you're just sitting around all day you should maybe like get a hobby or something").

Some more details: My apartment is pretty spacious, and I don't have roommates. He'll have his laptop, Nintendo DS, camera, and my bike. The following things, in order of distance, are bikable from my place: some convenience stores, a pharmacy, various small shrines and temples, an onsen, a park, a supermarket (6km), train stations (6.5km). From the train stations he can get to some nearby towns for day trips. I also have a pretty good network of expat friends--most of them work the same hours as I do, so they can't keep him company during the day, but at least he'll get to talk to and hang out with people who aren't me.

Your suggestions are appreciated :) Help me make this a fun experience for him!