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  • In this video I'm going to share with you my tips and hacks to get around Japan

  • So a lot of you might think that the only way to get around Japan is at taking trains or cars

  • But there's just so many different options and there's so many different tips and hacks

  • But I definitely needed to share with all of you

  • So many things I've learned along the way living here in Japan

  • but before I start if you guys want to help support the channel then check out the Japan merch and if you want to see

  • What I'm doing on the daily check out my Instagram account

  • And if you have any questions about Japan or your Japan travels then check out my discord community

  • The links will be in the description finally before I start I got to pay for my clothes new shoes

  • I wanted to say thank you to our sponsor luggage at free travel which brings me to our first tip of the video

  • So one of the biggest issues I have especially when traveling is carrying around a lot of luggage

  • especially in Japan when you take a lot of trains to get where you're going you have to haul all that luggage with you and

  • if you have a big family or if you just have a lot of baggage you have a lot of souvenirs you bought along the

  • Way, it just makes this super difficult to travel with all of that luggage

  • so a service like luggage free travel is the perfect solution you can use it right when you arrive in Japan from the airport and

  • Ship your stuff directly to your hotel and you can use it from hotel to hotel

  • So if you're traveling in Tokyo or outside of Tokyo

  • If this luggage and free travel is just a super convenient sending luggage is super easy

  • all you need to do is go to the luggage free travel website and schedule a drop-off from an airport or hotel in Japan you'll

  • Receive a QR code and then simply show the QR code at the luggage center of your specified drop-off spot if you don't speak Japanese

  • No worries. They have a multiple language support and then a few quick taps and your luggage free

  • When you pick up your luggage, say at the next hotel

  • Simply show you receipt or confirmation number at the luggage counter

  • The counter will get your luggage and then you're good to go easy like miso soup in the morning

  • So what's also convenient is if you're in the Kanto area you can get the same day delivery

  • So for example if you ship out your luggage before 10:00 a.m

  • In the morning, you'll get it the same day between a 6 and 9 p.m

  • And if you ship out your luggage from your hotel before 4 p.m. It'll arrive the next day from 2 to 6 p.m

  • so if you guys are interested in this luggage for me travel then check out the link in the description and if you guys use

  • The coupon code paulo you get an extra 20% off that all said that let's move on to my next tip now

  • Let's talk about trains now

  • If you've seen my other videos, you know

  • I've already done a video on Shinkansen trains and just writing a trains in general here in Japan

  • but in this video I wanted to talk about the jr pass which probably a lot of you will be considering so if you're coming

  • To japan and you're just staying in tokyo, then you don't really need a junior pass

  • In fact, all you really need is an IC card like a Sukkah or a paas

  • No, but I've covered in some previous videos

  • So I'll definitely leave links to that if you're interested, but if you're planning to travel throughout, Japan

  • Then junior pass is probably most convenient and cost-effective

  • method of traveling

  • So for those of you who are not familiar and junior pass is a pass that allows you to ride all the trains all

  • Throughout Japan it comes in several different packages

  • You can get a 7-day a 14-day and a 21-day and also it comes in two different levels

  • You can get an ordinary pass or you can get a green pass which allows you to have the nicer seats in the Shinkansen trains

  • And if you look at the chart, you can see there's quite a difference in prices. So be very selective when choosing

  • Especially considering how long you're gonna be in Japan and what type of seats you want when riding the train and here's how the green

  • Seats looks like and you can tell there's a little bit of the difference. The green seats are a little nicer

  • They're kind of more like a business or a first-class seat

  • There's a lot more space

  • But something to consider is that the ordinary seats actually get booked up a lot quicker than the green seats

  • So you might want to consider that when planning a lot of your travel

  • But you don't really need to worry because if you get the ordinary seats

  • Then you can always upgrade later at the ticket counter if you need to so in general if you're gonna be traveling all throughout

  • Japan and you're gonna be making multiple stops, then definitely in junior pass is something to consider

  • But if you're only gonna take one trip from Tokyo to Osaka and back then may and jr

  • Pass is not the way to go. So let me show you the cost from Tokyo - in Osaka

  • So if you're taking the Hikari Shinkansen, it's gonna take about 14 or 400 yen to get there one way

  • That's twenty thousand eight hundred yen

  • Roundtrip while using jr past seven day ordinary ticket costs just under thirty thousand yen. So the costs are very similar

  • So if you take multiple trips within those seven days then jr pass is definitely worth it

  • So for example if you're going from Tokyo to Osaka

  • - then Kyoto you've already paid for your 7-day ordinary pass

  • In fact, there's several websites out there where you can actually calculate whether or not jr

  • Pass is gonna be worth it. Depending on where you're going. I'll leave a link in the description

  • So you guys can check that out

  • But there is something to consider when taking the jr pass you don't have access to the fastest Shinkansen trains

  • But that's not that big of a deal

  • So for example, if you're going from Tokyo - in Osaka, there's a three different types of speeds. You have Nozomi Hikari and Kodama

  • I was only being the fastest but you don't have access to that. So here's a time from Tokyo to shin-osaka

  • You can see that there's a little bit of a difference in time

  • But you be the judge to see whether or not it's worth it for you

  • So finally a lot of people that get the TAS asked me can I use this in Tokyo quick and short answer is yes

  • But you can use it only on junior lines

  • So a lot of the junior lines run throughout Tokyo, but it doesn't work on the Metro

  • You can actually use it for the nutty to Express because it's run by j.r

  • So if you're arriving at Narita Airport, and you're going into Tokyo, then definitely you can use the jr. Pass

  • Oh and one final note you can use the junior pass on buses and ferries

  • But you're definitely gonna need to look on the website to see if it's available

  • For the location that you're traveling to but personally for the junior pass for me

  • I would definitely get it because it's rates that you would never get as a local. I can't even get the junior pass

  • So if I was a traveler, I would get it

  • I would probably stick to the ordinary pass because I don't really need to use the green seats

  • The seats are nicer, but I don't think it's worth paying the premium for it

  • and

  • If I do want to upgrade and I want to get a nicer seat so that I can just pay for it at that time

  • So we're back in the airport and now it's time to talk about

  • LCC flights also known as low-cost carrier flights if you're trying to save money on your travel in Japan then this is

  • Actually a very very valid way to travel. So in fact that Japan has a lot of different LCC flights available

  • They have Sky mark solo seed air Jets RPG aviation vanilla air AirAsia and spring Japan. There's so many carriers

  • So basically if you're trying to just go to one spot like if you're going from Tokyo to Osaka

  • It probably makes sense in terms of cost wise to take LCC flight, but if you're going to multiple locations

  • Then the j.r pass and may be a better choice. It really depends on your travel plans

  • So I recommend to do a bit of research to save yourself some time and money

  • So let me quickly compare the cost from Tokyo to Osaka

  • one-way so taking in the Shinkansen at Nozomi is about fourteen thousand yen while if you take an

  • LCC like jet star and you go by their lowest rates on Monday?

  • You can actually get a ticket for five thousand eight hundred thirty yen

  • That's eight thousand eight hundred and ninety yen cheaper even if you include a transportation from Tokyo to not eat the airport

  • That's about 15 to three thousand yen. So it's still cheaper

  • So if you are looking to travel and want to save some money, then definitely look into the different LCCs

  • So let me show you how easy it is to get on and LCC

  • So if you're flying from Narita, most of the LCC is fly out of Terminal three

  • There are exceptions to check beforehand. You'll need to walk or get on a bus at Terminal two

  • I usually walk as it only takes about 10 to 12 minutes

  • Terminal 3 is small but it does have convenience or drugstore and a food court just before the security gates

  • There are a few shops and kiosks after the gates

  • But if you're gonna eat I recommend eating at the food cart as it has the most options LCCs are cheap

  • So expect the minimum service no full meals and standard seating the flights though

  • Do have some limited snacks on board but since the flights are short

  • I recommend saving your money and eating before or after the flight

  • So a lot of Japanese actually prefer to take LCC flights because it is cheaper

  • But personally for me I kind of like riding the Shinkansen

  • So I prefer paying a little bit more to ride the Shinkansen and I don't actually like all of the travel from tray

  • Getting on a flight and then back on a train to go wherever I'm going

  • I'd rather just be on the train the entire time but it's usually personal preference and some people want to fly

  • So definitely consider LCC flights if you want to save some money and you would just want to go a different route

  • Let's move on to the next tip. Let's talk about

  • overnight buses now to be honest with you

  • I don't take overnight buses so much these days and just because I prefer taking the Shinkansen

  • It's a lot faster

  • But for those of you who have actually a lot more time than money

  • Then this is a very viable way to travel one being it's a lot cheaper

  • And two you actually save on hotel costs because the time you're traveling at night. You don't have to pay for a hotel night

  • So first of all when taking an overnight bus, there's several different levels

  • You can take you can take the really really inexpensive route. The buses are not as nice

  • You can probably get from Tokyo Dutch in Osaka for several thousand yen

  • But there are some luxury style buses that I'm going to show you right now

  • So we're about to board the night bus right now, and this is actually kind of a little waiting room

  • You can see they have an information desk. They have some vending machines. You can buy some souvenirs

  • They even have some computers over there where you can get on internet and it's just kind of like a lounge area

  • Before you get on it's actually quite a comfortable process to get on the bus

  • So I traveled on the Willard reborn overnight bus from Osaka to Tokyo it costs eleven thousand five hundred yen per person

  • It is pricey for a night bus, but it's super clean and it's still cheaper than a shrink onsen train ticket

  • You get your own pod with all the lux features

  • Folding table electric outlet reading light and amenities like blanket and high masks and best of all it has an almost flat reclining seat

  • almost

  • So I'm fully reclined all the way down and I'm pretty straight

  • So it's quite comfortable on this bus

  • So for those of you that are looking for a decent night's sleep

  • Then this might not be that bad of a solution

  • I mean you have the shake me of the bus but aside from that you can lay straight

  • But you can't get in a lot of other buses

  • So all I have to do is just take a nap and see how the morning goes

  • That was probably the most comfortable bus ride I've ever had but being me I still a bit tired

  • But then you get the best sleep in the world and also you don't need to go overnight

  • You can actually travel on a bus during the day

  • There's different types of buses you can get and depending on your price range. You can get different classes

  • So for me, I think overnight buses are great

  • If you really want to save that money

  • But I think at my age I prefer to just travel a little bit nicer and just like sleep at a real hotel

  • But it really depends on you

  • if you're trying to save money on hotels and

  • You want to like get from city to city then overnight buses are a really good way to do it now

  • Let's talk about car rentals

  • So the first thing I should mention

  • Especially because a lot of people ask me about car rentals if you're going to a big city like Tokyo

  • Then you definitely don't need to rent a car train access is pretty much everywhere and you can get to wherever you need to go

  • Via train and then walking to that location

  • So I think cars make the most sense if you're traveling outside of Tokyo and you want to explore some places that trains and buses

  • can't normally get to

  • also some really nice feel cons are really difficult to get to so taking a car makes a lot of sense another way cars make

  • Sense is if you're with a large family or a large

  • And car transit allows the entire group to stay together and go to these remote spots

  • But before you drive you need to make sure that you meet the requirements to be able to drive in Japan

  • So generally either need a Japanese driver's license or you need to get an international driver's license

  • There are a few countries where you can get your license translated, but that's only a few countries

  • So more than likely you're gonna need to get an international driver's license

  • Also when you're in a major city like Tokyo parking is limited

  • So even if you get a car and you rent it for more than one day you're gonna have to park it somewhere

  • And if you park it's quite expensive, sometimes it'll get to like 4,000 5,000 6,000 yen per day

  • So you have to be really careful of the costs and you might want to remember this. Kanji

  • It's pronounced Aki meaning there's an opening

  • So renting a car in general could cost between five thousand to ten thousand yen on average

  • It really depends on the car rental place that you go to a lot of them these days

  • Actually are translated into English. I'll leave some of the links in the description. So you guys can check that out

  • So let me briefly show you what it's like to rent a car

  • Renting a car in Japan is just as easy as any other country

  • It's easiest to book online then go to the rental car shop choose your insurance and sign the documents and you're ready to go

  • I used to go to rent a car a bit since it's close to my house and the prices are competitive

  • also

  • Most of the shops in Tokyo have English support and manuals even English

  • Navigation systems, if you're not used to driving on the left-hand side of the street

  • I recommend getting a new driver magnet to warn other drivers that you're new to the road

  • You can usually ask the car rental shop for it or buy it at the hundred yen shop streets in Tokyo are smaller

  • Especially compared to say the streets in the US and there are many one-way streets

  • So be ultra cautious with signs when you drive also in the u.s

  • You have free writes on red lights

  • But in Japan free left's and red lights are usually prohibited since we just talked about car rentals. Let's now talk about taxis

  • So the first thing I should mention is that if you're coming to Tokyo or any of the large cities to be honest with you

  • Not a lot of people use ride hailing services

  • Like uber the reason being is that there's just so many

  • Taxis on the road that it's really easy to hail down a taxi without even calling them

  • In fact, if you're trying to hail a taxi using one of the apps

  • What you'll find is that a taxi will come quicker than if you were trying to call one on an app

  • So that's why a lot of people don't use it

  • In fact uber in Japan is a little bit different than other countries uber is not run by private drivers

  • It's actually run by a company so they don't actually save you any money compared to the regular taxis

  • In fact, a lot of the times that are more expensive than regular taxis. So I personally never use them

  • So if you are in a larger city in Japan

  • Don't worry about downloading any apps. You can just hail a taxi on the street. No problems

  • Now if you're outside of the city then taxis may vary but the best thing to do if you're at the train station

  • Then they should have a taxi stop and that's where you should get picked up

  • Now if you're at the hotel, you can actually ask your hotel to call a taxi

  • That's basically the easiest way to get a taxi as opposed to using a ride-sharing

  • App and especially if you're outside in the country a lot of them don't use apps my personal favorite

  • Taxis are the new models which are specifically designed for the 2020 Olympics

  • it's a lot more spacious as wheelchair access comes with sea warmers and

  • Charging ports prices will generally be fixed for an area so you don't need to worry about being

  • Overcharged but note that taxis are expensive

  • So most people take the train, for example, it will easily cost you 20 to 30 dollars travelling only several stations away to pay

  • It's still common to use cash, but you can also use icy cards and credit cards these days. Oh, and there's no tipping

  • So taxis are faking when you see this red kanji right as Cuccia and when the taxi isn't taking fares

  • You'll see the kanji Kai's. Oh and one more thing to note about Japanese

  • Taxis the rear passenger door opens automatically controlled by the taxi driver. So no need to open or close personally, though

  • I've got so used to it that sometimes that I'm in another country

  • I stand there like an idiot waiting for the door to open. Anyway, enjoy the service while you're in Japan

  • so one thing that you should be

  • Careful of if you're trying to hail a taxi in Ginza on the weekdays between 10:00 and 1:00

  • They actually won't stop if you're on the side of the street trying to hail them down gonna need to find a taxi stop in

  • Ginza in order for them to come and pick you up strange. I think that's the only place in Japan that's like that

  • So let's talk about bike rentals. It's quite useful

  • If you want to explore a particular part of the city or like neighboring stations

  • And you don't want to take the train to get to each spot or if you don't want to walk because sometimes this

  • Transitions can be pretty far apart and bike rentals are just a great way to get around now

  • There's various services and companies and offer bike rentals or bike sharing but one of the companies I found quite useful is DoCoMo

  • The reason being is that their base in a lot of cities including Tokyo. Not only other in Tokyo

  • But there in Hokkaido Miyagi Kanagawa Osaka Nara and Hiroshima. You can read them on an hourly basis

  • But what's actually nice is that they have a one-day pass in Tokyo. It's about

  • 1650 yen to rent a bike and it's great

  • If you're here with partner or maybe like a group you guys can just all run to bike

  • You can do a quick search for the location and find one near you you apply on the Internet

  • It takes about five minutes to apply and it's pretty easy

  • All you have to do is enter the password and then unlock the bike with one touch and finally have to riding the bike you

  • Don't need to return the bike where you rented it, but you can just drop it off at any other station

  • Which is like pretty easy. Another thing. I like about the bikes. Is that their pedal assist?

  • So if you're going on pills or you just want that extra push you don't need to like use all your effort to bike around

  • So if this particular bike service is not available

  • In the city that you're gonna be in it's quite easy to find another bike rental service

  • All you need to do is search on google bike rental and the city and something it should come up

  • Especially in the major cities, but one thing to be careful of is where you park your bike

  • You just need to look for the science. It says no parking

  • A lot of them are in Japanese so that no parking usually looks like this

  • So don't park there because you have a chance of your bike getting impounded. So now let me talk quickly about lockers

  • So lockers are available in most train stations and airports

  • But traveling around I find that they're usually like three different sizes

  • Usually you can pay by cash

  • But a lot of the newer ones it's really cool because you can use your icy card to pay and then when you come back

  • You can just swipe your icy card again, and it'll open up the locker for you

  • So when you're at airports or train stations, these are kind of the standard size lockers. It gives you that my baggage here

  • Doesn't actually fit into smaller sizes like this is actually the size. And so this is the mid-tier and still

  • Think I'll uh get to a fit in here. It's a little bit too small

  • And this is the largest size locker. It should fit a large suitcase like this one

  • Just know that during busy times like special events lockers get taken quickly. So be prepared personally

  • I'm a huge fan of lockers, especially when I have luggage. I want to explore the station

  • I don't want to carry a lot of stuff. So I use lockers quite a bit

  • It just makes it super easy lockers can be found throughout the city as well

  • Alright that concludes the video if you liked it help me out and hit that like button if you want to help support the channel

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  • That love Japan or you have questions about your Japan travels check out my discord channel and thanks again

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In this video I'm going to share with you my tips and hacks to get around Japan

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