Hey.
My 20th birthday is close (wednesday) and I asked as a present a trip to Japan. I never though my mom would acept, but she did!

So, I'll go to Tokyo from 23 January (+-) to 17 february (+-).

But, please help me!

Where should I stay? The cheapest the better.
How much money should I take with me? (in euros preferably)
What places should I visit? Can only remember of Akihabara now, lol. I'm still going to do some research on this, of course.

Please, feel free to suggest anything.

This was so sudden than I feel a little lost.

Awesome! Enjoy your trip!
I'd really recommend the "Sakura Hotels" located around Tokyo. They're cheap, clean and can be found in Ikebukuro, Shinjuku etc.
I've stayed at the one in Ikebukuro and I loved it!

Thanks! How long did you stay? How much did you pay for?

Lucky you : )

This is a lovely (Japanese modern) ryokan in Ikebukuro.
http://www.kimiryokan.jp/

You can read some reviews by satisfied guests here. here

I like Kimi because it is very clean and relaxing, the staff are very friendly, and it feels very Japanese. It's also quite cheap (for Tokyo).

I am not sure what to suggest you do in Tokyo as I am not sure what would interest you. If you like the countryside, then going up to Nikko to see the temples there is wonderful. The hot springs at Oku-Kinugawa are also wonderful, they would be set in the snow in January, which is fantastic. but you would have to stay the night. They are within train distance from Tokyo or you can go by bus.

This is another fabulous onsen in Oku-Kinugawa which wasn't featured in the first link.

Thanks, thanks!

The only thing I'm afraid is money. I really have no idea. Let's say, hmm, 2000€ or 3000€ would be enough to live there for 3/4 weeks?

My inicial idea was to go to Fukuoka, but it would be hard because its quite far from tokyo and would probably end up spending more money than if I stay in tokyo.

I'm going alone, by the way.

@CarolinaCG: 羨ましい～ T_T

If you live on 500 yen ramen, and if you couchsurf (or sleep in internet cafe like some people do), even a 1000 € could do. I don't know how many things you can sightsee with 500-700 € though.
Have a nice trip anyway!

My first advice is go for as long as possible (visa/money wise). If you go for intensive 2 weeks you'll spend as much as for a slower 1 month, see/experience less (you're rushing everywhere) and generally get less time in Japan. Your biggest investment is the plane ticket anyway so its just smart not to let that investment go to waste.

I'm currently on a trip (writing this from a hostel in Hiroshima) away from Tokyo and I'm spending way more than back "home" and because of my tight schedule (Rail Pass is a must if you want to travel around Japan) I don't have the time to properly appreciate everything I see: "Oh what a nice view... ok gotta go, must also see X today"...

My second advice is, if you can afford it go with hostels and their dorm rooms (around 2.5k per night). You'll meet more people, get more travel tips about that place and generally have more intense fun. Another huge plus I've found, there are lots of Japanese people at hostels so you get tons of learning opportunities. In Tokyo I'm staying at a guesthouse (long term) and its a completely different experience, we just live there There are no Japanese people, tenants don't change that often, those that are there usually have their own circle of friends and if it doesn't "click" with somebody you might not get another chance and will end up doing everything alone (fortunately that wasn't my case but I can easily imagine worst case scenario happening).

In my first weeks in Tokyo I've spent around 1k a day but I walked a lot back then and didn't eat much since it was hot as hell and I had 0 appetite (just drank like crazy). Now I'm spending more but still not a significant amount and if I weren't lazy and did some cooking I'd probably go even less than 1k. But you also have to take into account fees for tourist traps etc. each one easily costs 0.5k-1k yen and if you go fast and visit a couple of them in a day your wallet will scream. But there are soooooooooo many attractions that are free (at least in summer time there were) you can see almost everything there is to see in Tokyo and not spend a fortune on it.

I am dreaming of going to japan, I have been there but for one day... so can't tell you much I am afraid.

However, if I were you, I would not spend that much money on lodging. Can be pretty expensive I have heard. If you do not mind, one could take the opportunity and try and sleep in a capsule hotel. Or the hostel type of thing. Just beware of too many gaijin... xD
Another option is to sleep in a ラブホ. I don't think everyone would really do that, but I know someone who has and well, it's cheaper than other places.

Depends on the situation, but I think 1500 should be alright. If you want to buy stuff or participate in exquisite excursions, maybe you should take some more.

My personal advice, if you like music, do not miss the chance to see 代々木公園...

thurd Wrote:My first advice is go for as long as possible (visa/money wise). If you go for intensive 2 weeks you'll spend as much as for a slower 1 month, see/experience less (you're rushing everywhere) and generally get less time in Japan. Your biggest investment is the plane ticket anyway so its just smart not to let that investment go to waste.

I'm currently on a trip (writing this from a hostel in Hiroshima) away from Tokyo and I'm spending way more than back "home" and because of my tight schedule (Rail Pass is a must if you want to travel around Japan) I don't have the time to properly appreciate everything I see: "Oh what a nice view... ok gotta go, must also see X today"...

i dunno, for me, everything's an experience.
two years ago i got food poisoning for the first time. and it just so happened it was on my first trip to japan. and yeah it was kinda terrible since i spent all my time cooped in my room and in the bathroom. but in retrospect it was a bit of a cool experience because it was so unique. (yes, i'm weird like that.)

last year i did a week and a half and i was pretty loose with the scheduling, throwing in some rest days. i had a blast, it was really relaxing; the pace is really just in your head and you don't need to rush but to appreciate the experience for what it is. some of my best memories are actually simple things: the neighbor saying hi to my family and i, climbing mt. misen the day after i flew in despite a lack of fitness and hearing the encouragement of other hikers, then watching kids run past me while i walk sideways because my feet were so sore; trolling the people in the trolley ride by smiling and waving; the yatai people talking to us in chinese for some reason; asking the lady at the ice cream store what her favorite flavor was; my aunt finally being able to communicate with someone because she spoke tagalog, at a department store in yamaguchi.

i don't think travel is so much about what you and what you do so much as it is about your state of mind and your willingness to explore =)

anyway, if you are traveling alone, hostels are great because you can meet up with people and do things together, and if you are going for 3 weeks solo there's a high chance you could get pretty lonely. the only problem is security and privacy, though you could get $70-$80 rooms at hostels at which point it's not really a *deal.*

and it is up to what you want to do. personally i like to go hiking and eat, and that's pretty much it. =)

I'm going from Nov28 - Dec28, and will be staying a majority of the time at a business hotel. Rates start from 1500円 a night. You sacrifice a lot of what a normal "room" has, but I guess if you want to go cheap...

There are quite a lot of hostels about in the main cities now. The Ks house ones are probably the nicest I've stayed in, but not the cheapest. The Khao san ones I've stayed in have been cheaper but still nice enough. I'd say most hostels are around 2000-3000yen per night (yes there are some cheaper ones about). If you go somewhere where there are no hostels then searching on japanese sites like Rakuten you might be able to get a hotel room for around 4000yen.

Night buses are the cheapest way to travel on a budget as you'll also be able to save on 1 nights accomodation fee. (flying can also sometimes be quite cheap if you book 2 months in advance)

Don't miss out on things because you're worrying too much about money. For example, it's fine eating cheaply some of the time, but be sure to check out some good Japanese restaurants too. (There are actually quite a few cheap noodle shops that are cheaper than buying stuff at a convenience store and eating at the hostel)

As for places to go, depends what sort of things you like so it's quite hard to give advice. I've heard that the sapporo snow festival is supposed to be pretty cool and it should be on while you're in Japan.

Minasan, thank you so much for helping!

I'm now searching for lodging and hopefully will find something soon. Other than rakuten and sakura house, odo you know of any more websites?

I said I was planning to go to Tokyo, however, Tokyo is not my dream city, I would prefer go to somewhere with less people but since It would probably end up being more expensive, I decided Tokyo.
The main purpose of the trip is to experience the japanese life, meet people and make use of my japanese language skills in order to improve them and to grow, to become more independent.

Is there any area in tokyo where the lodging is cheaper? If there's a lot of difference in prices I don't mind staying in other area like gunma or kanagawa/ etc prefecture or Yokohama. Any advices?

I seaching through sakura house and still haven't seen anything even close to 1500, 2000 yen
EDIT: Rakuten has better prices. Now I don't know in what area to stay.

http://travel.rakuten.com/eapp/areaSearc...code=tokyo

Look at this page. It has an hotel for 900yen, is this the final price? Excluding things like breakfast and car parking. That's real cheap! I thought I'd have to spend a lot more money to get some place to sleep.

Is tokyo very cold in winter?

From now on I'm going to start saving money.I spend aroud 15€ per week on eating out. I will start bring food from home to school and let's see how much money I will save in the next weeks/months.

Please, keep advices/suggestions coming.

oh cool!!! You're going for your 20th?!? And you're going in January?!?

Pleeeease don't miss 成人の日！！！　If you can, find some girls who are also 20 and get dressed up and everything, it's a once in a lifetime opportunity!!!

... it's the 2nd monday in January, so you might have to adjust your travel plans a little. But it'd definately be worth it!!!

Yup, If I do go It'll be in January.

!!!... ;_;
Unfortunately I will not be able to go before January 20th because my classes only finish on the 18th ;_; ;_; ;_;

I used http://www.hostels.com/ and everything went really well. I also recommend K's House Backpackers, their standard dwarfs some hotels I've been in. J-Hoppers is also nice but offers a different kind of experience, traditional & quiet atmosphere & less parties, but also great.

If you're going just for Tokyo, try Sakura guesthouse for a month (and stay a month) if you decide against Tokyo reserve your first hostel for 3-4 days somewhere and later you can decide what to do next.

CarolinaCG Wrote:Yup, If I do go It'll be in January.

!!!... ;_;
Unfortunately I will not be able to go before January 20th because my classes only finish on the 18th ;_; ;_; ;_;

You should be able to catch some 花見 at that time of year as a consolation.

Javizy Wrote:

CarolinaCG Wrote:Yup, If I do go It'll be in January.

!!!... ;_;
Unfortunately I will not be able to go before January 20th because my classes only finish on the 18th ;_; ;_; ;_;

You should be able to catch some 花見 at that time of year as a consolation.

Hanami is usually mid - late April...

CarolinaCG Wrote:I said I was planning to go to Tokyo, however, Tokyo is not my dream city, I would prefer go to somewhere with less people but since It would probably end up being more expensive, I decided Tokyo.

I don't know this for fact but I would expect Tokyo to be the most expensive place to stay in Japan. Unless you're talking about the plane ticket / travel expenses. The cost of a hotel / hostel in a city outside of Tokyo in Feb should be pretty cheap. Check out hostels.com. You might also wanna check out the JR rail passes for foreigners, they are a really good deal. Also taking night busses can save you some money on hotels.

In late Jan early Feb there will still be snow in the North of Japan so going to Hokkaido would be a good idea if you're into snow, Hokkaido is a really cool place to visit too. If Tokyo is not what you're into I'd def think outside the Tokyo box

Have fun in Japan! And I quote Tori, 羨ましい！

CarolinaCG Wrote:Is there any area in tokyo where the lodging is cheaper? If there's a lot of difference in prices I don't mind staying in other area like gunma or kanagawa/ etc prefecture or Yokohama. Any advices?

You also have to take into account how much are you going to spend in transport. If you're going to travel a lot (and I don't even mean long travels, but taking half an hour / one hour rides on the train) transport can eat up an important part of your resources.

caivano Wrote:

Javizy Wrote:

CarolinaCG Wrote:Yup, If I do go It'll be in January.

!!!... ;_;
Unfortunately I will not be able to go before January 20th because my classes only finish on the 18th ;_; ;_; ;_;

You should be able to catch some 花見 at that time of year as a consolation.

Hanami is usually mid - late April...

I've never actually done 花見, but for some reason I had an image of 桜 in mid-February... Seems like it's usually from ３月下旬～５月上旬 depending where you are on the 桜前線.

In theory things in tokyo are more expensive being such a big city, but actually the amount of competition between hostels etc. means sometimes it isn't actually so bad and may actually be cheaper the many other places.

Jan-Feb in Tokyo will be pretty cold, if you head out towards the mountains it'll be even colder with probably quite a bit of snow. I've been out to lake kawaguchi near mt. fuji around that time and it was pretty nice, you can just head to the onsens and get nice views of Fuji.

i don't think tokyo is that much more expensive than say, iwakuni.

there are a ton of shops so there's competition all over the price spectrum. although japan is pretty dense, tokyo is even more dense so you don't have to travel as much and if you do, it's easy to get around since the trains and subway are really handy. (i often had to walk 30-40+ minutes in iwakuni to even get to the train station).

CarolinaCG Wrote:The main purpose of the trip is to experience the japanese life, meet people and make use of my japanese language skills in order to improve them and to grow, to become more independent.

I'm not sure if you implied that you know people already, but I think that if you know people before you go over there, you'll have a better time. Or you can do a homestay program, which I've heard from a few friends was an awesome experience.
But... being dropped off in the middle of Tokyo with less than fluent Japanese is a scary experience if you're trying to make friends. In my experience, the smaller towns have people who are more polite probably because it's less busy and there's a more relaxed atmosphere.

Javizy Wrote:

caivano Wrote:

Javizy Wrote:You should be able to catch some 花見 at that time of year as a consolation.

Hanami is usually mid - late April...

I've never actually done 花見, but for some reason I had an image of 桜 in mid-February... Seems like it's usually from ３月下旬～５月上旬 depending where you are on the 桜前線.

Maybe you're confusing it with 梅見？ That can start as early as January.