Cheap travel tips for japan

Japan is a notoriously expensive country to visit, and this reputation is not totally unwarranted. Everyone has heard horror tales about the $50 glass of beer and the $100 steak. However, you can avoid these and other pitfalls and at the same time see more of Japan “on the cheap” than you would if you spent a small fortune. How to accomplish this may vary depending on whether your sojourn will be brief or extended. (It may also depend on how good your memory is, and your sense of adventure, if you don’t read Japanese. The better you are able to keep track of where you are, the less you’ll have to pay for someone else to do it for you.) Here are some tips for an inexpensive appreciation of the Land of the Rising Sun, whether you stay for a couple of sunrises or quite a few:

1. TRANSPORTATION: For a short stay, rent a JITENSHA (bicycle) for $10-30 a day (given the very shaky, approximate and ever-changing but convenient-to-work-with rate of 100 yen to the U.S. dollar); most train stations will be able to accommodate you. For a longer one, purchase one used for as much under $100 as you can wangle, register it at the local police station and resell it when you leave. (Ask for help at the local tourist office or International Center.) This will save you a lot of subway, bus and (heaven forbid) taxi fare. If you need to take public transportation on occasion, use the ubiquitous station bicycle parking lot — and a good lock. Remember: subways are cheaper than trains, and buses are cheaper than subways, but any town sophisticated enough to have a subway system probably has signs in ROMAJI (our alphabet) and buses rarely do. Thus even resident foreigners tend not to take buses, which is unfortunate for them, because buses go to a lot of places that subways don’t (and outside of large metro areas, there simply aren’t any subways). Naturally, a bike will get you where even the buses don’t go, and you’ll never run out of gas.

If you do rely on public transportation, the larger metro areas will usually offer passes and multi-trip tickets. Be sure to inquire at the station. (Bring student I.D. if appropriate; it may afford you some discounts.) Most stations house tourist information facilities whose staff can help you figure out what you want and how to ask for it. If you end up in a taxi, try to share a ride in order to share the cost, and remember: there is NO TIPPING in Japan!

NOTE: For long-distance travel, the SHINKANSEN (Bullet Train) is the fast and pricey. The whole of Japan is about the size of California — not huge as nations go but it’s also not one island but several; it’s hard to cycle over all that water.

Keep in mind that the Japanese drive on the left, so your bus stop is across the street from where you think it is! Ride your bike in the street, unless everyone else on wheels is using the sidewalk. Don’t be surprised if you encounter a subway employee whose job it is to shoehorn folks into crowded trains. Regardless of how you go, you might want to write down the KANJI (Chinese pictograph character, used in Japanese alongside native KANA, or syllables) for your destination.

2. ACCOMMODATIONS: For a long stay in one area, consider a homestay, arranged before you arrive. Contact the International Center of the city or town of your choice; failing that, even small towns usually have a tourist office. For a short stay or series of short stays, don’t pay for a western-style hotel (expensive), RYOKAN (Japanese-style inn — a better experience but only slightly cheaper) or a business hotel (cheap but nasty — a bit like sleeping in a locker). Instead, check out a youth hostel (you can join on site if you’re not a member) or a MINSHUKU.

Each will probably include a Japanese-style breakfast (often green or brown tea, fish, soup, rice and a raw egg to mix with the rice, along with some thin wafers of seaweed in which to wrap the mixture), require you to put away your own bedding each morning, and provide communal toilet and bath facilities. About baths: conservation-minded Japanese families share their bath water, and MINSHUKU guests are, at least to that extent, considered part of the family; you bathe in private, but the water isn’t discarded or refilled. Locals have done this their whole lives and built up their immunity to each other’s normal bodily bacteria, etc., but that same innocent effluvia may knock you for a loop. Determine that your facility has a shower as well as a bath.

3. SIGHTSEEING: Guided tours are fun within a city you can find the highlights yourself with the help of the local tourist office, and with the aid of a map and a bit of courage, you can see the off-the-beaten-path Japan as well. Find out in advance when local festivals are. They are usual outdoor affairs, often on temple, shrine or park sites, usually open to the public.

If you are especially adventurous, take the following day trip: buying the cheapest ticket, hop a local train and get off at the next small stop that looks lovely, paying the fare difference (if any) as you exit. There may be a bus stop at the station; you may wish to explore on foot or go where the bus goes (often up a mountain — Japan is mostly mountain!) Be sure to ask where to stand to catch the return bus (and whether there even IS a return bus!) Wear a backpack or at least a waistpack to keep all the maps, schedules and souvenirs you collect.

4. FOOD AND DRINK: You don’t have to pay $50 for a beer! They’re a couple bucks at a beer machine (outside many shops) or from the refrigerator case in a convenience store. If you’re not planning to cook (supermarket prices are reasonable) then your best bet is to eat where regular folk eat and avoid tourist traps. Almost all Japanese eateries have wax or plastic representations of their meals in the window, along with prices, so you shouldn’t find yourself unpleasantly surprised. Some of the best and least expensive food in Japan can be found at noodle shops — try a huge bowl of UDON (big noodles in soup) or DONBURI (a meat of your choice atop a bowl of rice) and OKONOIMIYAKI shops. Okonomiyaki is like a cross between a pancake and an omelette (the Japanese will tell you it resembles a pizza) and you get to choose the ingredients. There are also inexpensive sushi mills, such as Atom Boy, where a conveyor belt sends a selection around past your counter seat and you’re charged, at the end, based on a dish-count. (Be sure to look at the pictorial menu to find out which kind of plate costs how much!) Tea is generally included with meals, and so are the condiments (such as pickled ginger). As with taxis, there is no tipping.

There are drink machines all over the place, even out in the boonies, but you’d do better to bring a thermos or canteen and fill it with the liquid of your choice, purchased at a supermarket. Likewise, if you’re going hiking, select portable edibles at the market and prepare them in advance. You can also find ready-made O-BENTO (lunchbox meals) at train stations (expensive) and in the supermarket (less expensive). If you indulge in Japanese snacks, such as dried preserved squid or coated peanuts, bring LOTS to drink, as these things tend to be very salty.

5. You will save lots of money if you don’t have to hire someone to translate or interpret for you at every turn. The more Japanese you learn the better you’ll fare. It takes a long, long time to rise out of functional illiteracy, but you can learn the KANJI for the places you intend to visit. Here is a short starter-list of useful words and phrases (using no especial phonetic rules):

Beautiful — kirei (kee RAY)

Bicycle — jitensha (jee TEN shah)

City — -shi (as in Tokyo-shi, Kyoto-shi, Nagoya-shi)

Cute — kawaii (kah wah EE) (NOTE: don’t call a little boy KAWAII! Call him KAKOII, kah koh EE, which approximately means “tough.”)

English (the language) — Eigo (AY go)

Festival — matsuri (MAH tsoo ree)

Foreigner (that’s YOU, m’dear!) — gaikokujin (guy KOH kuh jeen) or, more casually, gaijin (GUY jeen)

Fun — tanoshii (tah noh SHEE)

Fun (“looks like fun”; imperative “have fun”) — tanoshisoo (tah noh shi SOH)

Good evening — konban wa (kom ban wah)

Goodbye — sayonara (sah YOH nah rah)

Good morning — ohayo gozaimasu (ohio — like the state — goh zai mahs)

Good night — oyasumi nasai (oh YAH soo mee nah SAI)

Hello — konnichiwa (kon NEE chee wah)

Help — taskute (TAHS kuh teh)

Hospital — byooin (BYOH een)

How — doo (DOH)

How many (people) — nannin (NAN neen)

How many (things) — ikutsu (ee KUHTS, rhymes with PUTS)

How much (money) — ikura (EE koo ruh; ee KOO ruh)

I don’t know — shirimasen (shee ree mah SEN)

I don’t understand — wakarimasen (wah kah ree mah SEN)

I forget — wasuremasu (wah soo reh MAHS)

I forgot — wasuremashita (wah soo reh MASH tah)

Japan — Nihon (NEE hon)

Japanese (language) — Nihongo (nee HON go)

Japanese (person) — Nihonjin (nee HON jeen)

Money — okane (oh KAH neh)

Mountain — yama (YAH mah)

Nice to meet you — hajimemashite (hah jee meh MASH teh)

One thousand yen — sen’en (sen en, sen yen)

Post office — yubin kyoku (YOO been kyoh koo)

Prefecture — -ken (as in Aichi-ken, Gifu-ken, Nagano-ken)

Sick — byooki (BYOH kee)

Shrine — jinja (JEEN jah)

Subway — chikatetsu (CHEE kah tets)

Station — eki (EH kee)

Taxi — takushi (TAH ku shee)

Telephone — denwa (DEN wah)

Ten thousand yen — ichi man en (eechee mahn en, eechee mahn yen)

Thank you — arigatoo (ah ree GAH toh)

Train — densha (DEN shah)

Ward (city subdivision) — ku (as in Meito-ku, Nagoya-shi)

What time — nanji (NAHN jee)

When — itsu (EET soo)

Where — doko (DOH ko)

Which way — dochira (doH CHEE ra)

Wow! — sugoi! (suh GOY!)

Yen — en

You’re welcome — doo itashimashite (DOH ee tahsh MAHSH the

If you learn some of these, plus the days of the week, the months of the year and some numbers, you should be on your way to keeping your cash in your pocket while getting the most out of your trip to Japan. TANOSHI-SO!

Gail M Feldman is a muc published freelance writer and former magazine editor.

Written by Gail M Feldman