Look for signs that say "nomihodai" (all you can drink), you will not be disappointed.
I have absolutely no idea if they have those in Tokyo, but in Sapporo there were tons of these places. Most places imposed a time limit - so $15-20 for all you can drink for 90 minutes, but there were some places with no limits (a club I was at had $25 on NYE for unlimited drinks).
I will also say that the expensiveness of Japan is overstated. Maybe 20 years ago when the exchange rate was so poor, but Canada is probably one of the most expensive places in the world to live right now.
Look for signs that say "nomihodai" (all you can drink), you will not be disappointed.
I have absolutely no idea if they have those in Tokyo, but in Sapporo there were tons of these places. Most places imposed a time limit - so $15-20 for all you can drink for 90 minutes, but there were some places with no limits (a club I was at had $25 on NYE for unlimited drinks).
I will also say that the expensiveness of Japan is overstated. Maybe 20 years ago when the exchange rate was so poor, but Canada is probably one of the most expensive places in the world to live right now.
The all you can drink for $20 deal is very common in Tokyo. Usually a 1.5-2 hr time limit.
I did all you can drink /all you can eat Lamb for $35 in Sapporo . . . It lasted 3 hours. One of the best deals I came across in Japan, and one of the most drunken nights I ever had there.
I did all you can drink /all you can eat Lamb for $35 in Sapporo . . . It lasted 3 hours. One of the best deals I came across in Japan, and one of the most drunken nights I ever had there.
Damn I want to go back.
The far, far better server buzzer system they have going for most places in Japan makes the whole process much more efficient than in North America for getting your worth out of the deal too. I quite enjoy the service industry there as opposed here.
The far, far better server buzzer system they have going for most places in Japan makes the whole process much more efficient than in North America for getting your worth out of the deal too. I quite enjoy the service industry there as opposed here.
Agreed. Although weird upon using them your first time, the buzzer and vending machine ticket methods are great for cutting through mistaken orders. And because they're Japanese, they're never late with their orders, and usually come in record speed.
I always thought it would be cool to try something like that here in Canada, but I think drunken idiots would probably ruin it for everybody.
Agreed. Although weird upon using them your first time, the buzzer and vending machine ticket methods are great for cutting through mistaken orders. And because they're Japanese, they're never late with their orders, and usually come in record speed.
I always thought it would be cool to try something like that here in Canada, but I think drunken idiots would probably ruin it for everybody.
Vending Machine / Buzzer or Nomihodai?
I know that most provinces ban (if not all) all you can drink / time limits. I would love a place that lets you use buzzers though.
We will probably skip Himeji since its under construction. And a friend who lived in Nagasaki for many years suggested that it may not be worth the 4-5 hour train ride to go there.
I do agree about the pride thing. You'll never see a happier group of McDonald's employees when you order. All smiles and sincere politeness in every they do. A simple microcosm of the larger Japanese population really.
I got the same experience at a Subway in Japan.
Though it got annoying after a while because for Every topping they asked to put on your sub, they would say "ok, thank you very much". it got stale the 8th time
you start to feel bad for the people working retail and these jobs. It almost feels like someone is holding a gun to their head and they have to provide the best service possible or else
Agreed. Although weird upon using them your first time, the buzzer and vending machine ticket methods are great for cutting through mistaken orders. And because they're Japanese, they're never late with their orders, and usually come in record speed.
I always thought it would be cool to try something like that here in Canada, but I think drunken idiots would probably ruin it for everybody.
Nanta's (that asian karaoke bar on 6th) tried that and yeah... the first time we saw the "door bell buzzer", sure enough the drunkest guy in our group had to abuse the system.
I just came back yesterday from Thailand, and spent possibly the worst 18 hours of my vacation life on the streets of Tokyo. The people are fantastic, so it's not a hit on them, but there were so many things wrong with the place:
1) I arrived Shinjuku Tokyo about 6pm where all the banks and exchange places were closed. I only had USD's and no place accepted them. I tried to withdraw money from about a dozen bank ABM's including the 7-11 ABM's, which none were configured for North American cards. Finally I tried a Chase bank and got some money out.
2) Almost no places accept credit cards despite ads all over for them. These places include McDonalds and KFC. Cash only - Yen only. Took me about 2 hours to find it place and it turned out to be Sbarro's which did accept credit.
3) Wifi access at Starbucks and other establishments is only configured for Japanese phones, so you won't be able to connect. Hotels I'm unsure about.
4) Japanese entertainment consists of Karaoke, old man strictly drinking bars, and eating. Clubs and bars aren't the same as over here (plus, much smaller). I never go to Hooters, but I did end up going there just because it seemed like the liviest place in Tokyo and that was so much fun to people watch. Japanese men were like little school boys and the girls were so nice to them. It was like watching grown up children with crushes.
5) Hotel prices are crazy high. I went to 3 hotels at about 2am to get one for the night and they were all $250+ USD, which these places only accepted Yen for anyway (no credit cards). I pretty much slept on the street a couple nights ago alongside the drunk Japanese business men waiting for the train stations to open up again. Met some really interesting Japanese characters on the street, but man that was a messed up night.
Hunt for coupons. At the door of every place, look for the coupon book and the watch for the people handing out the coupons on the streets, take the free tissues and the coupon sheets! Just avoid the ones that are handing out sleazy material, unless you are looking for that sort of thing .
I collect the Yoshinoya and Sukiya coupons, I can eat 3 meals every day for less than 1500 yen, or about 17-18 CDN total. I have always been able to eat cheaper in Japan than in Calgary. I don't think I can get a big bowl of pork ramen anywhere in Calgary for $5.
Mcdonalds is cheap with coupons to if you want to stick to North American tastes, Freshness burger does coupons offerings, like free fries, drinks whatever.
For the hotels, it takes some digging, good deals can be had.
I've never had trouble using my Canadian phone in Japan on Wifi, or cell over there, guess it depends what phone you have.
Credit card tip: Hopefully this common knowledge but--->phone your card issuer before you go to tell them you are going, or it will get declined everywhere, with the language barrier it can be a total PITA. As usual most places are M/C and Visa. Not much American Express support.
Last edited by GaiJin; 06-22-2014 at 02:18 PM.
Reason: adding
Heading to Japan in a few weeks and looking for some tips
- We're doing a couple nights in Tokyo, any suggestions on what area to look at to stay in?
- The rest of the trip will be in Niseko / Sapporo (north island). Lot's of places I'm reading say take cash as it's all cash based. Are ATMs that take a CDN debit card that hard to find? I really don't want to get stuck without cash, and don't want to take a ton out here and get dinged both times on exchange.
Re-reading this re-surrected thread from the beginning. Is it weird that I'm fascinated by how the Japanese share the same NEMA connector and general power standards except they don't have ground plugs?
Heading to Japan in a few weeks and looking for some tips
- We're doing a couple nights in Tokyo, any suggestions on what area to look at to stay in?
We went for a week over Christmas last year, miss the hell out of it and can't wait to head back.
We stayed in Shinjuku, which was great as Shinjuku station is one of the largest in the Tokyo and connected to everything, lots of restaurants/shopping, and very close to Shibuya & Harajuku areas.
The Yamanote Line (Green line loop) will take you pretty much everywhere major you'd want to go, with the exception of the Tsukiji fish market which required a transfer in Roppongi Hills.
We also really enjoyed the Shiba-koen area (Where the tokyo tower is) and would consider staying there next time, lots of shops/restaurants and felt pretty relaxed when we were there.
In terms of cash... it's a crap shoot. You just have to get over the mental block of carrying a ton of cash in Japan, I did use my visa a few times, without issue, but there weren't a ton of merchants that accepted credit cards. We purchased YEN at the exchanges here in Calgary before we left.
Have fun! It's awesome. On your flight home (assuming your flying out of Narita) spend all your remaining yen at Sushi Kyotatsu. Even if your wife says "we've had enough, we don't need any take out" you ignore her and get some to go. You'll regret it imnensly if you don't.
The Following User Says Thank You to Regular_John For This Useful Post:
Seven 11 and Japan Post Offices have ATM-usable machines for cash. But it is true, after having been to Sapporo/Hokkaido/all of Japan, cash is king. You'll be please to know there is no tipping though.
The Following User Says Thank You to Ozy_Flame For This Useful Post:
You just have to get over the mental block of carrying a ton of cash in Japan
Carrying it doesn't bother me. It's getting railed exchanging the unused cash back to CDN when I get back that bothers me.
If I can pull it out from ATMs as I need it, I'll be happy (and I'll carry a bit on the way over in case). Looks like the Hilton at Niseko has an ATM too so that's nice and close.
Quote:
Originally Posted by jaydorn
Have fun! It's awesome. On your flight home (assuming your flying out of Narita) spend all your remaining yen at Sushi Kyotatsu. Even if your wife says "we've had enough, we don't need any take out" you ignore her and get some to go. You'll regret it imnensly if you don't.
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