School me on Japan

[neggo]

I never experienced any rudeness while I was there and many locals I had contact with were very polite and friendly. Basically, don't be a dick and the locals will be more than accommodating. Many of the foreigners and American GI's there can act like real assholes.

In terms of Naha, Kokusaidori, the main road is a nice stretch of lots of shops and restaurants that makes a nice stroll during the evening. Quite touristy but had some good fun there!

Aside from the aquarium, Shuri castle is also a nice place to visit and easy to get to by the monorail.

Food wise, the cuisine is very different from standard Japanese cuisine but is also very delicious - quite pork and meat heavy. Try out their soba! So good.

During my visit I also went to American village only because I hadn't eaten any good North American food in a while. They had A&W, Red Lobster, etc...but I'm guessing you'll be fine if you don't go there

There were quite a few foreigner assholes there but I didn't care, haha. I was happy enough to finally eat a good burger. Hope you have a blast!
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[SkinnyPupp]

What kind of interactions did you have with "foreigner assholes" while eating a burger at A&W?

[neggo]

^ Not to me, but to the server the GI's (I presume) were ordering from.

Basically, dudes were ordering in English, Japanese girl taking orders seemed a bit flustered and didn't understand and asked them to repeat the order. One foreigner asshole gets agitated, raises his voice and orders again like a dick. 'NO KETCHUP, OK?! DO YOU UNDERSTAND? DO YOU NEED ME TO SAY IT AGAIN?!" His posse laughs, and asks his friends why he can't get any good service "around here". I honestly felt bad for the girl as she was on the verge of tears...

Obviously ruined the night of the entire staff working there and made my burger less delicious but still delicious nonetheless

During my living here in Japan, the majority of foreigners have been cool and easy to get along with. Okinawa was the only place I saw any of that douchebaggery going on.

[dbaz]

stupid gi's. they have raped so many people and even beat a young boy to death last year. figure they would learn from mistakes eventually..

[Eff-1]

My best piece of advice for anyone going to Japan is buy this book and bring it with you. It makes life much much easier. In the back is both english to japanese AND japanese to english dictionary, whcih means the japanese person can also easily look up whatever word they are trying to say to you. Even if you get the phrase wrong or pronounce it incorrectly, the locals almost always show their appreciation that you are making an effort by returning extra effort to help you with whatever you are asking for. Best $10 I ever spent.


http://www.amazon.ca/Lonely-Planet-J.../dp/1742201865

[Chronix]

Originally Posted by Jer3

i stayed at the same place on airbnb lol. muse is like a 2 minute walk from there literally. vanity is only about a 15 minute walk as well. the area is pretty convenient and nishi-azabu is also one of the wealthiest neighbourhoods in tokyo so you'll probably see a lot of random ferrari's, lambo's and bentley's.

I just got back from the trip. I think we stayed at the same place lol. Muse was close by. But that place seems pretty dead when I went on a Saturday night.

I did a lot of cool stuff this time. Ate kobe beef in Kobe, tried whale sashimi, etc etc.

[cdizzle]

Has anybody bought traveler's cheques and exchanged them at the currency exchange located at the airport?
Have heard that the exchange rates there are better than what you get here.

[bcedhk]

people still use traveler's cheque? I usually just bring my cash over..

[Jer3]

Originally Posted by cdizzle

Has anybody bought traveler's cheques and exchanged them at the currency exchange located at the airport?
Have heard that the exchange rates there are better than what you get here.

i didn't find the exchange rates to be better. its best to just exchange at vbce before leaving.

[v_tec]

Originally Posted by cdizzle

Has anybody bought traveler's cheques and exchanged them at the currency exchange located at the airport?
Have heard that the exchange rates there are better than what you get here.

Yes, the rates are slightly better locally.

But unless you're exchanging such a huge sum, why bother? You're looking at a very tiny difference. When arriving at a foreign country, I rather spend my time focusing on other things such as getting on the right train / bus to my hotel / finding my way around the airport.

Just have it exchanged in Van before you leave, and it will be one less thing for you to worry about after you land.

[Eff-1]

Originally Posted by cdizzle

Has anybody bought traveler's cheques and exchanged them at the currency exchange located at the airport?
Have heard that the exchange rates there are better than what you get here.

yes that's what i did. I saved a bit of money but nothing i'd call significant. you can lookup the airport rates and VCBE rates online and do the math to figure out how much you'll save.

it's not that difficult, at NRT the currency exchange is located in the arrivals meet and greet area. there are several places so if one has a long lineup, just keep walking until you come across another one.

it's worth doing if you're exchanging a large sum AND you can get travellers cheques here for no charge. if your bank charges you a fee for the TCs or you're not planning to exchange very much, then just do the exchange here before you leave.

[trip]

Originally Posted by Eff-1

http://www.amazon.ca/Lonely-Planet-J.../dp/1742201865

thanks, i bought this book. going to japan in june

anyone know of tattoo friendly onsens?

[SkinnyPupp]

Originally Posted by trip

thanks, i bought this book. going to japan in june

anyone know of tattoo friendly onsens?

The older and more ghetto, the more 'friendly' they are to tattoos. At the very least, try to cover up as much as you can, at least you're making the effort. Once you're in, they will probably leave you alone even if they notice it. But if they see you with clothes on and can see the tattoos, they won't let you in at all.

[Mr.Money]

whats everyone's set budget to get around tokyo for 2 weeks from vancouver?? ..I'm debating with my cousin & shes says 10 grand isn't enough....Hmmm

[dbaz]

10grand for 2 weeks in tokyo isnt enough? wtf are you gonna do?

[SkinnyPupp]

Travel itself is going to be anywhere from $5 if you only stay within a few stations of your hotel, to $20-30 a day if you go to different districts. This is one thing most people don't realize about Tokyo. It is ridiculously expensive to travel.

Then you have food. If you want to eat decent food with, say, a cheap breakfast, that's $5 a day for breakfast, $10 for lunch, $10-20 for dinner. This is bottom line eating out food. Obviously if you're there, you want to eat good food. In that case double or triple these amounts.

Hotel, you can go to a cheap ryokan or capsule of AirBNB for like $30 a night. If you want a normal hotel where you share a room, that's $100 a night.

So without buying anything, that is anywhere from $1000-4000 for the basics. This is if you do nothing but sleep, walk around, travel somewhere on a train or bus, and eat something three times a day. Anything else you do or buy will cost a lot more.

Then you have the flight, I have no idea how much that costs now. $1000?

For two people, multiply everything X2. So yeah I can see a trip for 2 costing up to $10K, especially if you aren't careful with your eating or shopping budgets.

Costs add up ridiculously fast in Tokyo. You won't believe it until you witness it for yourself (for most people this is when they get home ) A rail pass helps, but then you're confined to JR lines (you will need to use Metro and other subways a lot)

[dbaz]

trains can be cheaper if you are smart about it

Spoiler!

Tokyo Free Kippu (aka Tokyo Tour Ticket) (1590 yen)
Unlimited use of all subway lines (Toei and Tokyo Metro) and JR trains in the central Tokyo area on one calendar day. It is also valid on buses and streetcars operated by Toei. The pass is overpriced and will unlikely provide any savings over regular tickets or prepaid cards.
Tokyo Subway Ticket (1-day: 800 yen, 2-day: 1200 yen, 3-day: 1500 yen)
Unlimited use of all subway lines (Toei and Tokyo Metro) on one calendar day. Not valid on JR trains. The pass is only sold at Tokyo's Narita Airport and Haneda Airport and at travel agencies outside of the Kanto Region.
Toei and Tokyo Metro One-Day Economy Pass (1000 yen)
Unlimited use of all subway lines (Toei and Tokyo Metro) on one calendar day. The pass only pays off if you use the subways excessively. The pass is not valid on JR trains. Unlike the lower priced Tokyo Subway Ticket (see above), this pass can be purchased at the subway stations in central Tokyo.
Tokyo Metro Open Ticket (1-day: 600 or 710 yen; 2-day: 980 yen)
Unlimited use of the nine Tokyo Metro subway lines, but not the four Toei subway lines and JR trains. A regular one day pass costs 710 yen, while a tourist version is available for 600 yen (one day) and 980 yen (two consecutive days). The tourist version is only available to foreign tourists at Narita Airport and Haneda Airport, while the regular version is available at ticket machines at Tokyo Metro stations.
Toei One-Day Economy Pass (700 yen)
Unlimited use of the four Toei subway lines, buses and streetcars on one calendar day. It is not valid on the nine Tokyo Metro subway lines and JR trains. The pass is available at ticket machines at Toei stations.
Tokunai Pass (750 yen)
Unlimited use of JR trains in the central Tokyo area on one calendar day. The pass is available at vending machines at JR stations.

hotels arent as bad when you have someone else with you can share a twin room. most larger hotels offer 30% off if you stay longer than 3 days, works out to about 70 each. capsule hotels are about 20 each, 15if student. business hotels 40-45 per night, 35-40 if student.

10grand is too much unless you are eating at expensive restaurants, drinking in roppongi every night and getting hookers

[v_tec]

Originally Posted by Mr.Money

whats everyone's set budget to get around tokyo for 2 weeks from vancouver?? ..I'm debating with my cousin & shes says 10 grand isn't enough....Hmmm

You cousin must be taking your RS username too seriously and think you're a human atm

[SkinnyPupp]

Originally Posted by dbaz

trains can be cheaper if you are smart about it

Spoiler!

Tokyo Free Kippu (aka Tokyo Tour Ticket) (1590 yen)
Unlimited use of all subway lines (Toei and Tokyo Metro) and JR trains in the central Tokyo area on one calendar day. It is also valid on buses and streetcars operated by Toei. The pass is overpriced and will unlikely provide any savings over regular tickets or prepaid cards.
Tokyo Subway Ticket (1-day: 800 yen, 2-day: 1200 yen, 3-day: 1500 yen)
Unlimited use of all subway lines (Toei and Tokyo Metro) on one calendar day. Not valid on JR trains. The pass is only sold at Tokyo's Narita Airport and Haneda Airport and at travel agencies outside of the Kanto Region.
Toei and Tokyo Metro One-Day Economy Pass (1000 yen)
Unlimited use of all subway lines (Toei and Tokyo Metro) on one calendar day. The pass only pays off if you use the subways excessively. The pass is not valid on JR trains. Unlike the lower priced Tokyo Subway Ticket (see above), this pass can be purchased at the subway stations in central Tokyo.
Tokyo Metro Open Ticket (1-day: 600 or 710 yen; 2-day: 980 yen)
Unlimited use of the nine Tokyo Metro subway lines, but not the four Toei subway lines and JR trains. A regular one day pass costs 710 yen, while a tourist version is available for 600 yen (one day) and 980 yen (two consecutive days). The tourist version is only available to foreign tourists at Narita Airport and Haneda Airport, while the regular version is available at ticket machines at Tokyo Metro stations.
Toei One-Day Economy Pass (700 yen)
Unlimited use of the four Toei subway lines, buses and streetcars on one calendar day. It is not valid on the nine Tokyo Metro subway lines and JR trains. The pass is available at ticket machines at Toei stations.
Tokunai Pass (750 yen)
Unlimited use of JR trains in the central Tokyo area on one calendar day. The pass is available at vending machines at JR stations.

hotels arent as bad when you have someone else with you can share a twin room. most larger hotels offer 30% off if you stay longer than 3 days, works out to about 70 each. capsule hotels are about 20 each, 15if student. business hotels 40-45 per night, 35-40 if student.

10grand is too much unless you are eating at expensive restaurants, drinking in roppongi every night and getting hookers

Those tickets all fall within my budget expectations, and only save you a lot if you are traveling on trains all day. Which sometimes people do, I guess

As for hotels, most hotels in Japan charge per person. Even in the same room. Western hotels do not, but those are in the $100+ range anyway for a normal fare.

10G is definitely too much, but it can happen if you let it.

[SkinnyPupp]

Wow, thanked and failed by the same guy for the same advice

[Mr.Money]

my bad....HAHA..... fixed and to be updated.....i think the dumb blonde cousin got JPN Yen & The Euro currency mixed up.

[Neva]

Finally making the journey on Tuesday ^_^

I'll be staying a couple minutes away from shinjuku station for at least Wednesday and Thursday...

Anyone going to be in the Tokyo area around then? Meet up?

I'll be travelling around until July 1 then heading back to party for Canada day lol

[kkttsang]

^Neva how was tokyo, we are going in Oct and we are staying by the shinjuku station too, any advice, where to go and all the typical travel questions.

[dbaz]

shinjuku is mainly a business area. theres a famous park, tokyo metropolitan government building has a lookout area, robot restaurant, and square enix shop. other than that you're gonna be traveling outside of shinjuku for the most part, but its convenient with the yamanote line

[Chronix]

Yea, you need to get inside kabukicho inside shinjuku for the fun stuff