We're finding that Japan is not nearly as expensive as everyone says. We heard all kinds of crazy things before leaving on our trip but we've found it to be pretty similar to the US. The exception is the transportation which is prohibitively expensive. Foreigners can get around this buy buying a Japan Rail Pass before arriving in Japan and even though you may balk at the price, it's totally worth it. Here's a breakdown of what things cost:
Hotel: $50 per night
We have a shared bathroom and we're not staying in the touristy part of town but we're able to get anywhere in the city with our trusty JR pass so it's not a big deal.
Food: $5 - $20 per meal per person
This totally depends on where you eat. You can get a tasty bowl of Ramen for $5 or a sushi meal for $20. There are also lots and lots of pricier places but I'm just saying that there are definitely lots of other options.
Entertainment: depends
We've been going to lots of typical tourist places- temples, shrines, etc as well as seeing a lot of things that are free like the shopping districts, Mt. Fuji, etc. These charge the expected admission prices, something like $5 - $20pp. If you were to go clubbing you could easily spend a lot.
We've been going to lots of typical tourist places- temples, shrines, etc as well as seeing a lot of things that are free like the shopping districts, Mt. Fuji, etc. These charge the expected admission prices, something like $5 - $20pp. If you were to go clubbing you could easily spend a lot.
Transportation: $400 each for 2 weeks
This is because we bought the Japan Rail (JR) pass. We can use the JR lines to get almost everywhere but we do usually spend about $10/day on the subway which isn't included in the pass. We also spent a whopping $25 for the two of us on a 20 minute bus ride (check out the Mt. Fuji post for details)! This is definitely the most expensive part of Japan. The up side is that there aren't any bums riding around on the trains with you :)
So, don't let the rumors deter you- visit Japan!
This is because we bought the Japan Rail (JR) pass. We can use the JR lines to get almost everywhere but we do usually spend about $10/day on the subway which isn't included in the pass. We also spent a whopping $25 for the two of us on a 20 minute bus ride (check out the Mt. Fuji post for details)! This is definitely the most expensive part of Japan. The up side is that there aren't any bums riding around on the trains with you :)
So, don't let the rumors deter you- visit Japan!
No comments:
Post a Comment