Presenting my next Japan travel video! This covers the activity on October 11.
I’ve landed at Narita, and am making my way towards Tokyo as the weather gets worse. I’ve planned to visit Tokyo SkyTree tonight, and I read that the clouds will eventually break up later in the evening. Will the reports hold true? Watch the video to find out! I’ll also stroll a bit around the SkyTree, finding one of my favorite drinks in a vending machine along the way.
Thanks for waiting… here is the first Japan travel video! In this video I focus on my travel experience flying to Tokyo Narita airport.
As this video focuses ONLY on flying, those who want to see what happens after I actually set foot in Japan should wait for the next video…
OTHERWISE, please enjoy this first video, which runs over 20 minutes. You’ll see how I traveled in a premium class of service, thanks to redeeming my American Airlines frequent flyer miles. This cost 60,000 miles to travel in international business class. My connecting flight, from Dallas to Tokyo, was in Japan Airlines’ 787 Dreamliner.
Hello! It’s already been almost two weeks since I returned from Japan, and I miss it already!
I’m sorry to have been silent here on the blog as I’ve focused my posts on my Facebook page, and a little bit on Instagram too. Now that I am starting to review all of my photos and videos I hope to share all of the experiences of my trip with you here!
The first video is available, and that’s the teaser video! I used software called Quik from GoPro, which is free to download, to automatically assemble photos and videos set to music. This gives you a first glimpse at what I saw in Japan. Enjoy!
This week I will go to Japan for the fourth time.
It’s wonderful to be able to go across the Pacific horizons again and visit a culture that I’ve appreciated for almost all my life.
I am still lacking in my Japanese after all these years, but I’ll manage.
The preparation is over. The luggage is packed… almost.
I’ll try to share some updates here, but during the trip I’ll most likely be sharing updates on my Facebook page (facebook.com/myjapantips), on Twitter/Periscope (@myjapantips) and on Instagram (jrsideproject).
I look forward to sharing my progress with everyone.
間もなく, 日本… Here I come!
It’s less than 15 days until I start my fourth trip to Japan. In today’s video update I introduce you to the different types of Japanese currency.
As my next trip to Japan is approaching sooner than I think, I have an update concerning shinkansen ticketing using IC cards.
IC cards go by many monikers in Japan (Suica and PASMO in Tokyo, Toica in central Japan, Icoca in western Japan, etc), but no matter the name, the IC card is an indispensable piece of hardware that make traveling on trains easy. No need to figure out how much a train or a bus costs between point A and point B… just tap your IC card when getting on and getting off, and the correct fare will be deducted from the stored balance on the card. Cards can easily be topped up at train stations and convenience stores, and can be used to pay for items at shops and a growing number of vending machines.
As reported on this blog in February 2016, JR Central and JR West, operators of the Tokaido and San’yo Shinkansen – arguably the two most important bullet train lines in the country – were said to be making plans to introduce some sort of mobile ticketing system for their bullet trains that would be tied to IC cards.
These plans have now been confirmed in a Japanese-language press release from both companies. Starting September 30, 2017, a new service called SMART EX will begin operation, allowing passengers to purchase bullet train tickets on the Tokaido and San’yo Shinkansen using a major credit card and then “store” the details onto a linked IC card. The IC card would then be used to enter through the ticket barriers.
Earlier indications were that the new system would be foreigner-friendly. Following the recent JR press release, the travel site Japan-Guide.com has reported that a dedicated, bilingual website will be created. Passengers would need to create an account, register a credit card, and register a valid IC card.
Of course, if you don’t have an IC card in your possession, you will need to obtain one in Japan before you register for the service. When you use SMART EX to make a shinkansen reservation, you will get a small discount of 200 yen off of the normal fare.
The following brands of IC cards can be used with the new service: Kitaca, Pasmo, Suica, Manaca, Toica, Pitapa, Icoca, Hayakaken, Nimoca and Sugoca.
The following credit cards can be used to purchase tickets: Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Diner’s Club and JCB. J-West credit cards, exclusive to Japan, are also eligible.
The service can only be used to make seat reservations for Tokaido Shinkansen and San’yo Shinkansen services, as well as through services between the two lines. Tokaido Shinkansen trains run from Tokyo to Nagoya, Kyoto and Osaka, while the San’yo Shinkansen runs from Osaka to Kobe, Okayama, Hiroshima, Kita-Kyushu (Kokura station) and Fukuoka (Hakata station).
You cannot make reservations for Kyushu Shinkansen trains (those that run from Fukuoka to Kumamoto or Kagoshima), and you can’t reserve any bullet train services operated by JR East… in fact, JR East already has a website where you can make train reservations.
If you don’t have a Japan Rail Pass, the SMART EX can be a good way to make bullet train reservations without having to stop at a ticket machine or a ticket counter beforehand. The downside is that you need an IC card in your possession before you can register for the service.
If the reports are true and there indeed is an English option for SMART EX, I may give it a shot on my next trip and report my results!
HT: Japan Guide
Wednesday, June 2, 2004 was my first full day as a tourist in Japan. The day was spent in Tokyo, with stops at the Imperial Palace, Asakusa and Odaiba. Here I posed with some school kids that were interviewing foreign tourists in English outside of Sensoji Temple, the oldest buddhist temple in the city. They gave out small gifts, which included the mailing address of their school. I regret that I never sent them a thank you gift in return. Nevertheless, meeting these young children speaking my language on my first day in another country – a day filled with anticipation and apprehension – made me feel very welcome, and helped deepen my appreciation for Japan even more.
I enjoy reminiscing about the first trip… and I can’t wait for the fourth trip, now less than two months away!
A video update on my upcoming trip has been posted on my Facebook page.
In the video I talk about brushing up on my Japanese, rebooking hotels, conjuring a travel budget, and more! Please visit my page on Facebook to view the video: facebook.com/myjapantips
See you there!
Today I’d officially like to share on my blog news that was posted earlier in the week.
I felt like I was due for a fourth trip to my favorite country outside of North America, having visited Japan in 2004, 2008 and 2013. A couple of weeks ago, at the end of my quick trip to Boston, I was able to secure an award ticket through frequent flier points from American Airlines. In other words… barring any circumstances that might come up, my fourth trip to Japan is booked for the fall of this year!
As I think I’ve stated on this blog before, my hope is to travel at a leisurely pace from Tokyo to Kyoto. Sure, you could do it in around 2 hours and change on the fastest bullet train, but what I’d like to do this time is follow the route, more or less, of the OLD Tokaido Road… the road established centuries ago during the Edo period as a means of connecting the cities of Edo (Tokyo) and Kyoto. In this way, I hope to experience many facets of Japan that many tourists would likely overlook.
Now that the airfare is out of the way and I’ve purchased my travel insurance, I’ve been starting to map out my plans for where to stay, keeping my travel goals in mind. I’ve got a few hotels lined up in some places, and all I need to do is reserve them.
My view is that since it will be a fairly popular time to visit and travel Japan (autumn) I will want to look into reserving places as soon as I can.
I also look for places that I can pay for later. More and more properties in Japan are offering cheaper, non-refundable rates, which you need to pay for right away; unfortunately you would lose that money should your plans change and need to cancel. In my instance I need to be flexible… I’ll make bookings now and then check other hotels later to see if any better deals show up. I am keeping location and prices in mind, but also the exchange rate (the prices I am quoted in US dollars now may not necessarily be the same in a few months). If something better were to surface closer to the trip, I’ll cancel and rebook as necessary… which I have done multiple times before my previous Japan trips.
At the same time I’ll also want to look into my travel plans within Japan to see the best way to get myself around. Right now it doesn’t seem like a long Japan Rail Pass will be in my best interests; I might look into some day or regional passes instead.
This, my friends, is is what I think about before these sorts of trips. I also think it’s important that all travelers be prepared for what they want to do, then be a little flexible in case things happen once the journey has begun.
It’s going to be an exciting trip, and I am looking forward to it! I’ll do my best to share more updates here, in addition to my Facebook page (facebook.com/myjapantips).
Jose's Japan Tips 