I thought after a recent two-week stint travelling around Japan (see my post about the 31 reasons you should be booking the next flights) that I would compile a couple of tips, or travel hacks if you please, for anyone heading or thinking of heading to this fabulous country. Firstly, to give credit where credit is due, these tips mainly stem from my wonderful other half. Josh deals a lot more with the logistical/practical side of trips and I deal with the more (in my opinion) interesting elements: accommodation, food and bucket lists.

Be aware that a few of these can be booked/ordered before you jump on the plane! Believe me, they will make your trip a lot easier!

Fly in/out of different airports

As we had a relatively short amount of time in Japan, we wanted to make sure we squeezed in as much as possible. Hence flying in/out of different airports. This didn’t really increase the cost of our flights too much and really helped with time saving. Opting for different airports meant we didn’t have to cut short any time in Osaka, to head back to Tokyo for our flight home. We flew round-trip with AirChina from London Heathrow – Beijing – Tokyo Haneda and then Osaka Kansai – Beijing and back to Heathrow for approx. £600.00 each.

Top tip: don’t hang around if you see a great deal – our flights were as low as £430.00 return in August 2017, but we dithered about and by the time we got around to booking (October 2017) there had been a significant increase! Although, AirChina still worked out far cheaper than other airlines at a very popular time of year.

JR Rail Pass

If you’re going to be travelling around Japan and fancy making the most of your trip, then I cannot recommend a JR Pass enough! You can opt for a 7, 14 or 21-day pass and although it may seem a little pricey (the 7 day starts at £193pp) the pass quickly pays for itself – taking a roundtrip from Kyoto to Tokyo is enough to make up for the hit on the credit card! We got ours through Japan Experience.

FYI you must purchase the JR Pass before entering Japan! Make sure you allow a week for the pass to be shipped to you. Though ours arrived within 2 days of purchase. Once you have arrived in Japan, the pass will need activating at a JR desk in a train station. It it absolutely worth it to experience the best train transport in the world! Seriously, the Japanese rail network puts all our British rail companies to shame. The trains are ridiculously punctual, spotlessly clean, overly spacious and super quiet.

One last tip (which saved us from buying the 14 day pass) if you work out your route before you go, you might be able to opt for a cheaper pass. For instance, we were in Japan for thirteen days in total, and with spending 4 of the first week in Tokyo and the last two days in Osaka meant that we would only need to use the pass for the seven days in between.

Download the HyperDia app

We found this app incredibly helpful and it is a must for anyone travelling in and around Japan. It’s a timetable and route search app which is invaluable when it comes to planning individual train/subway journeys (there’s also a website). The app is very easy to use! It will give you the time of train and the different options dependent on route you want to take. It will highlight whether the journey is included with your pass and how much the ticket will cost in ¥ if you cant use your JR Pass. Ooh and FYI if you don’t want to pay for the app then avoid downloading it before your trip as it is free for the first 30 days.

Pasmo Cards

There are different types of rechargeable cards that you can use on most forms of public transport in Japan. Suica and Pasmo (as far as I am aware there’s little to no difference and they’re both compatible with each other). We each got a Pasmo card whilst in Tokyo airport. A lovely lady kindly helped us at the information desk, as we managed to screw up using the machine (we had just got off a 16.5 hour flight). The Pasmo card required a 500¥ deposit which you can get back by returning the card at the airport or train station.

There are benefits to having a Pasmo card: it saves time – as long as you have topped up enough money on your card. It’s super easy as you can jump on the metro/subway/bus without the hassle of getting individual paper tickets. If your like me and enjoy walking as opposed to constantly taking public transport, having a Pasmo makes life that bit easier when you start to get those blisters on your blisters at the end of a 30,000+ step day. They can also be used at vending machines for those grape fanta/peach coke cravings. Finally, any leftover money on your Pasmo can be refunded at the airport when you leave Japan.

Book accommodation in advance

This is especially important if you’re thinking of going to Japan during sakura season to join in with Hanami. To be honest we left booking our accommodation a little bit late. I now know why people advise 5-6 months in advance during spring. We still managed to find some brilliant little places, but just bare this in mind. I’m a bit of a perfectionist when it comes to booking hotels and things, as I read, reread and triple check reviews and facilities before I’ll settle for booking anything.

These are my go to sites: booking.com, hostelworld and trip advisor. During the two-week period, we found very little difference between the price of a mid-range hotel and hostels so we went for a combination of the two. I couldn’t fault any of the places we stayed. Particular favourites would have to be Citan Hostel in Tokyo and Café Len in Kyoto. We found out upon check-in that these are in fact sister hostels.

Stay in a Ryokan

Staying in a traditional Japanese Ryokan is not necessarily cheap, but is a lovely way to learn more about Japanese culture and home life. After scouring the internet for tips we decided that Kyoto would be the best place and we opted for the Ryokan Ryokufuso. The price was pretty reasonable, compared to others, at approx. £125 a night. We only stayed one night, but would have definitely stayed longer if our budget allowed. It is a beautiful little place, with the most accommodating staff and a top floor onsen that looks out over the rooftops of Kyoto. NB at the majority of onsen pools it is necessary to go butt naked – no swimwear, no swimshorts – nada.

Pocket WIFI

Free public WIFI is just not widely available. If you want to avoid extortionate roaming data charges then you might want to order of these small mobile routers. Order one before you fly out and then you’re ready to connect up to 5 devices on the go. Josh read up a lot on the best device to get and we went for the Ninja Wifi device – it cost us 10,000¥ so £67.00ish for two weeks of unlimited internet. Pocket WIFI is definitely worth the money. Before arriving we arranged to collect the device up from Tokyo Haneda airport and drop it off on our departure from Osaka. The device was super easy to use and came with a charger and pouch to keep it in. If you’re planning on downloading the Hyperdia app, using google maps and sporadically scrolling social media then book out a pocket WIFI device.

Exchange currency before you go

Although Japan is incredibly technologically advanced. I was surprised to read that cash is still used a lot more than card in most restaurants/hotels and on some public transport. Therefore, we made sure we exchanged enough currency prior to our departure. We often get currency online through Sainsburys a) often a good online exchange rate and b) nectar points – lol adulting.

Caxton FX Currency Card

Cash points are not as readily available as high street banks in the UK. However,the majority (if not all) 7/11s and other convenience stores had a cash point. So we applied for an update of my my Caxton FX Currency card. I first got one of these when I went on my year abroad. It was super helpful and I already knew how it worked. Simply add your debit card, choose an amount to transfer from your existing bank account and you’re ready to go. You can either lock in the exchange rate or view live exchange rates. Additionally you can withdraw money from international ATMs for free. Oooh and you can view your balance and spending in an easy to use App.

Note: the Caxton FX card can be used for Japanese Yen and various other different currencies including: Euro, Canadian dollar, Hong Kong dollar, South African rand, Hungarian forint, US dollar and the New Zealand dollar – check out the rest of the list here.

Learn a few key Japanese phrases

Now I am a huge advocate of learning languages! It’s a truly awesome skill to have and a vital way to learn more about a country and its culture. Although I found that locals speak a lot of English, I think knowing a few words is polite and very useful. Josh got the Lonely Planet phrasebook for his birthday – which is small enough to carry in your pocket, helps with key phrases and vocabulary and the user-friendly format makes it a lot easier to work out the pronunciation. These key phrases were super helpful! I have studied Japanese very briefly. But I am not at all qualified to confirm the 100% accuracy of the following:

おはようございます	ohayou gozaimasu	Good morning
こんにちは	konnichiwa	Hello / Good afternoon
はい。	hai	Yes
いいえ。	Iie	No
ありがとう。	arigatō	Thank you
どういたしまして。	dōitashimashite	You’re welcome
すみません。	sumimasen	Excuse me