Just have them deliver it to your hotel and it'll be there when you check in. Or pick it up at the airport. I find the hotel delivery more convenient as then the only thing I need to do at the airport is find the bus to the hotel or the train.
As you check out on your last day, put it into the envelope they supply and ask the front desk to throw it in the mail for you. Or throw it in the mail yourself...always a nearby post office.
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Just have them deliver it to your hotel and it'll be there when you check in. Or pick it up at the airport. I find the hotel delivery more convenient as then the only thing I need to do at the airport is find the bus to the hotel or the train.
As you check out on your last day, put it into the envelope they supply and ask the front desk to throw it in the mail for you. Or throw it in the mail yourself...always a nearby post office.
I used this site as well. Pocket wifi is great if you have a larger group. Personally, I opted for the sim card on that website as it was significantly cheaper @ 15 days/2GB (whichever comes first) for $33 vs $103 for 15 days unlimited data on pocket wifi and a 20,000 Yen charge if you lose the pocket wifi module. I can tether another individual or two if needed.
2GB should be enough, I would use the data mostly just for looking up travel information as well as maps. The only annoying part of this sim card is that I have to set up an APN then delete it when I get back. But for $70 savings, it's not bad.
I'll need to keep my battery pack charged. I find my phone discharges far faster when not in Calgary. I have no idea why that is the case. Random, but I really liked this cable for my battery pack.
I lost it with my original battery pack and I realize that other similar cables aren't as good. They don't charge as fast (especially flat cables) and aren't as durable. Sure you can't data transfer with these multi cables, but it's always nice to have a cable capable of helping almost anyone out.
EDIT: I've determine looking for Hakushu, Hibiki or Yamazaki on a quick trip in Japan to be equivalent to chasing a unicorn. I'll consider it a game in my life to see if I can acquire a bottle for a good price. Most of what I've researched mentions I need to go to areas more rarely traveled by travelers.
EDIT: I've determine looking for Hakushu, Hibiki or Yamazaki on a quick trip in Japan to be equivalent to chasing a unicorn. I'll consider it a game in my life to see if I can acquire a bottle for a good price. Most of what I've researched mentions I need to go to areas more rarely traveled by travelers.
There is a whiskey store tucked away in the mall at the main Tokyo station. Good place to go. Took me forever to find it the first time.
And shockingly when at a hockey tournament in Wichita this summer I found some Hibiki!
There is a whiskey store tucked away in the mall at the main Tokyo station. Good place to go. Took me forever to find it the first time.
And shockingly when at a hockey tournament in Wichita this summer I found some Hibiki!
Name?
I've also noticed on a few searches that apparently Japan has a minor bourbon selection flying under the radar. I guess I'll set a limit and consider acquiring random bottles of interesting.
I'm guessing most of these locations will be cleaned up when I arrive. I'm going to have to see if I find something that many others have missed.
On a far more random note, has anyone ever wandered into a pawn shop in Japan? I don't know why but I've had this crazy idea lately thinking it might be interesting to visit one and see if there are interesting unique things to acquire at a pawn shop.
In Wichita...Jacob Liquor Exchange. They only have the Japanese Harmony so you won't find the 12 or 15 year old but it's still damn good. I believe it was about $70 which isn't much different than what I paid in Tokyo.
In the link below (if it works) look just left of center at the photo, second shelf from the bottom. When I saw it I was shocked but they said they typically have it in stock.
In Wichita...Jacob Liquor Exchange. They only have the Japanese Harmony so you won't find the 12 or 15 year old but it's still damn good. I believe it was about $70 which isn't much different than what I paid in Tokyo.
In the link below (if it works) look just left of center at the photo, second shelf from the bottom. When I saw it I was shocked but they said they typically have it in stock.
Last trip my tokyo co-workers and I had dinner at the Hibiki restaurant right by Shinagawa station. I had some of the 21 year old. Tasty.
I wouldn't buy Hibiki Harmony. I can acquire those at liquor stores here. I have it on regular rotation. The bottle alone is just straight up beautiful.
Sumo season is unfortunately in Februrary/March so unfortunately it can't be.
Try and get on a flight via Vancouver or direct from Calgary, no sense in saving 20 bucks to fly through the States. More trouble than it's worth. Usually the YYC Travel Junkie thread has a deal to Japan that comes up once every 4-6 months or so but it's been absent lately. However, you can get good prices if going in October, as it's between tourist seasons.
You'll likely fly into Narita, but if you can, fly to Haneda. Basically a downtown airport and way faster. Narita you need to take the "Narita Express" line to major stations in Tokyo, or have to take a slower train or cab. It's about $26 if I remember but you get to Tokyo in 30 minutes as opposed to two hours.
Have you done any searching about where you'd like to stay in Tokyo? I recommend Shibuya, Shinjuku, Roppongi, Ginza, or Asakusa for good balances between being central and seeing alot.
You would be amiss if you didn't take a train to Kyoto and see that too for a day or two. Beautiful place and has alot of Edo-era Japan, the kind of things you'd see in a historical documentary.
I could write more but I recommend looking at TripAdvisor.
Sumo in Feb/Mar? Not quite, there is a grand sumo tourney on every odd month of the year!
Jan = Tokyo ' Winter'
Mar = Osaka
May = Tokyo 'Summer'
Jul = Nagoya
Sep = Tokyo 'Autumn'
Nov = Kyushu (in Fukuoka, my home town )
I saw this thread a while back and meant to post a bunch of stuff but have been busy. Don't have too much time but some initial thoughts after 4 trips in last several years:
- Yes, get the portable wifi. Send it to the hotel, not airport. Much easier and if there are any delays, it'll be easier to deal with there than wasting time at the airport.
- If you want to visit Ghibli Museum, get the tickets early. You can hit websites like Govoyagin as well but you'll pay a premium for the convenience. They also have other experiences that might be of interest.
- Hit the robot restaurant. Pricey and tourist trap but you'll never see anything like it in Canada.
- Cash is indeed great for food and smaller things. It'll just make easier than credit frankly unless you're buying bigger items (electronics) at department stores.
- Whiskey: We helped grab a Hibiki 21 and a Suntory 25 for a friend a few years back. Took a bit of searching but we ended up finding in the basement of a Yodobashi Camera department store.
- Hotel, have you picked an area to search yet? We've always stayed in Ikebukuro. It's a decent central rail hub and along the circle main line. Also great connections to food, close to the crazy Seibu and Tobu food areas. Just go there as the end of the day to pick out whatever food you want or do restaurants. Go near the end of the evening when the clear out food for cheap too.
- Akihabara is a must. Hell, I'd spend my entire trip there if I could but then again, I'm a nerd/geek. You'll find arcades as well, I loved trying these full sized pod things:
- They took down this Gundam from Odiba island but apparently a different one will be up shortly? Decent mall as well behind it.
- Luggage weight, buy a small portable scale thing from any of those ####ty mall places. Make sure you are sub 50lbs like a pro.
- Don't tip, don't leave cash on the table, pay directly.
- Don't bother with taxis, public transit is good unlike in Calgary. Suica/Pasmo card is a must.
- Don't hesitate to buy food from convenience stores, they are not like their counterparts in North America. Hell you can buy fresh soup/broth at them.
- Eat. Eat. And eat some more. Food is great and tasty. You won't gain too much weight with all the walking that you'll do. You'll marvel at how tiny everybody is and then be horrified at how fat everybody is in Calgary when you return.
- Oh and Tsukiji Fish Market. If you haul ass up early you can line up to see the Tuna auction. Or just go later and wander the area to eat the freshest and yummiest seafood ever.
Lots more thoughts I am sure later but here's my initial dump of thoughts in a short time.
Last edited by chemgear; 08-09-2017 at 10:10 PM.
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- Oh and Tsukiji Fish Market. If you haul ass up early you can line up to see the Tuna auction. Or just go later and wander the area to eat the freshest and yummiest seafood ever.
The Tsukiji tuna auction is neat to watch, but definitely not a must see. Even though it's free it's also a little bit of tourist trap
Three+ hours of being crammed in a room with dozens of other people like a can of sardines for 10 minutes of action. If you're not into photography or have no interest in tuna auctions, skip it and head down later in the morning for the sushi.
I saw this thread a while back and meant to post a bunch of stuff but have been busy. Don't have too much time but some initial thoughts after 4 trips in last several years:
- Yes, get the portable wifi. Send it to the hotel, not airport. Much easier and if there are any delays, it'll be easier to deal with there than wasting time at the airport.
- If you want to visit Ghibli Museum, get the tickets early. You can hit websites like Govoyagin as well but you'll pay a premium for the convenience. They also have other experiences that might be of interest.
- Hit the robot restaurant. Pricey and tourist trap but you'll never see anything like it in Canada.
- Cash is indeed great for food and smaller things. It'll just make easier than credit frankly unless you're buying bigger items (electronics) at department stores.
- Whiskey: We helped grab a Hibiki 21 and a Suntory 25 for a friend a few years back. Took a bit of searching but we ended up finding in the basement of a Yodobashi Camera department store.
- Hotel, have you picked an area to search yet? We've always stayed in Ikebukuro. It's a decent central rail hub and along the circle main line. Also great connections to food, close to the crazy Seibu and Tobu food areas. Just go there as the end of the day to pick out whatever food you want or do restaurants. Go near the end of the evening when the clear out food for cheap too.
- Akihabara is a must. Hell, I'd spend my entire trip there if I could but then again, I'm a nerd/geek. You'll find arcades as well, I loved trying these full sized pod things:
- They took down this Gundam from Odiba island but apparently a different one will be up shortly? Decent mall as well behind it.
- Luggage weight, buy a small portable scale thing from any of those ####ty mall places. Make sure you are sub 50lbs like a pro.
- Don't tip, don't leave cash on the table, pay directly.
- Don't bother with taxis, public transit is good unlike in Calgary. Suica/Pasmo card is a must.
- Don't hesitate to buy food from convenience stores, they are not like their counterparts in North America. Hell you can buy fresh soup/broth at them.
- Eat. Eat. And eat some more. Food is great and tasty. You won't gain too much weight with all the walking that you'll do. You'll marvel at how tiny everybody is and then be horrified at how fat everybody is in Calgary when you return.
- Oh and Tsukiji Fish Market. If you haul ass up early you can line up to see the Tuna auction. Or just go later and wander the area to eat the freshest and yummiest seafood ever.
Lots more thoughts I am sure later but here's my initial dump of thoughts in a short time.
That robot restaurant looks both hilariously over the top and amazing, definitely going to try to hit that up. My wife's not an early riser, so I might have to check out the tuna auction myself.
Thanks again for all the information everyone's provided, helping a ton.
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The Tsukiji tuna auction is neat to watch, but definitely not a must see. Even though it's free it's also a little bit of tourist trap
Three+ hours of being crammed in a room with dozens of other people like a can of sardines for 10 minutes of action. If you're not into photography or have no interest in tuna auctions, skip it and head down later in the morning for the sushi.
Also, there's certain sushi restaurants in Tsukiji Market that everyone loves going to, so there are lines. Honestly, all the restaurants there all good. Skip the line on the popular ones and go to any of the other ones. I had the most amazing salmon and tuna poke bowl (where the fish was caught literally a couple hours before) at a restaurant that had no line and zero people in it.
Let's be honest, any place there is lightyears ahead of what we have here in Calgary.
Not to mention Sumo tickets these days are really hard to to get, and sell out in minutes due to there being a new Japanese Yokozuna.
I blame Endo, the ticket craze started when he was gaining popularity. Then came Kotoshogiku winning the first Japan-born yusho in 10 years, followed by Goeido and finally Kisenosato. Add in young up and comers like Mitakeumi, Shoudai and Hokotofuji and demand is very high.
Lucky for us in Fukuoka, you can still get seats on weekdays for the Nov tourney, particularly the first week.
Hey everyone, I've got another question that hopefully some of you can answer! A friend of ours recommended going through AirBNB. Are there areas in Tokyo that you would recommend being better for this?
Also, any recommended ramen or soba shops? We've also been told tempura in Tokyo is world's better than anything we can get here. My plan is basically to eat everything, so if you've got any food/restaurant recommendations I'd love those!
Hey everyone, I've got another question that hopefully some of you can answer! A friend of ours recommended going through AirBNB. Are there areas in Tokyo that you would recommend being better for this?
Also, any recommended ramen or soba shops? We've also been told tempura in Tokyo is world's better than anything we can get here. My plan is basically to eat everything, so if you've got any food/restaurant recommendations I'd love those!
Thanks again for all the advice so far!
Frankly, food in general is way better than anything here so you can't go too wrong. But for ramen you can certainly hit Tokyo Ramen Street. If noodle in general is your thing, there is the Cup Noodle Museum and the Ramen Museum in Yokohama (not far away at all) The cup noodle place also takes appointment for you to decorate your own bowl and they fill it with the soup/items you want so you can bring an instant bowl back home that you made. They also have a noodle making session that you do from scratch as well. It's pretty fun.
It can be a bit expensive but I'd try some kobe/wagyu beef as well.
I haven't done an AirBNB ourselves (generally like a hotel where people just take care of everything for us). But personally, I'd try to be close to a subway station - preferably along the Yamanote Loop Line. You can certainly be along another line but I find the Yamanote line better tourist wise given the large circular route it takes to hit many major spots or to quickly do a hop off and on to another line.
If you haven't saved this to your phone already, you should. Note the station numbers so you can tell your direction as you go. Stations that are grouped together can be accessed (mostly) underground by just walking.
There are good AirBNB's close to Ikebukuro, Shinjuku and Ueno, all on the Yamanote loop. I second the idea of staying on this loop because it has access to all the major areas you're going to want to see. I stayed in an AirBNB about two blocks from Ikebukuro station last time and while the quarters were cramped and I wouldn't do it again, the location and price were awesome.
One thing to keep in mind that, as a Westerner, don't just look at the pictures of the AirBNB you're interested in. Look and see if the square footage is sufficient; it can be hard to operate in these rentals if you are a tall/big person. Try and avoid long, narrow rooms and try for square layouts; you'll thank yourself later.
I stayed in an AirBNB about two blocks from Ikebukuro station last time and while the quarters were cramped and I wouldn't do it again, the location and price were awesome.
If you don't go the AirBNB route and just do a hotel, I can recommend Tokyu Stay Ikebukuro from personal experience. Just like 2 blocks from the station entrance and a 7-11 as well. Easy to get to the massive food place I linked earlier.
It'll be small like everything in Tokyo but the rooms have a washer/dryer, fridge and microwave.
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You'll find arcades as well, I loved trying these full sized pod things:
