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Subway & JR Fares (Help!) -
01-16-2009, 01:44 PM
Good morning, everyone!
I am new to the forum and this seems to be a very neat site so far. I live in Boston and I am traveling to Japan for the first time. I leave January 23 and arrive the 24th at 3:30PM at Narita Airport (I am staying until February 1). I am staying at the Sheraton Miyako Hotel which is near the Meguro subway stop. My question is that I really have no clue what to do yet in Japan (I have some ideas notated below). There is so much I want to do but I heard the train fares are expensive. I have $1,500 I'm bringing for spending money and it is just myself. What kind of train pass do I need? Is there a pass that I can get that will allow me on every train with just one pass? I understand that there is the JR train, the Toei and the Tokyo Metro. What is the best plan of action? I know I want to go to Tokyo Disney Land for a day -- is this reasonable? I also want to go to Kyoto for a day. At the same time I want to go to Akihabara, Shinjuku, Shibuya Crossing, Tokyo Tower, etc... So I guess my overall question is...What kind of train pass do I need? Can anyone please help me? Also, what is the cost of such passes? I'll need a 7 day pass. Lastly, I heard about 100 yen shops...Are these cool places to get cool little trinkets? If so, can anyone please let me know what is a good one? Thanks! -MAJ 
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01-16-2009, 04:27 PM
As far as I know, you can get a one DAY pass for the various transit systems but you won't find a one week pass unless you get a JR Rail Pass, which obviously limits you to JR transit.
Here's a one day pass which allows you to use JR and Tokyo Metro : JR-EAST:Special Tickets - Tokyo Round Tour Ticket (Tokyo Furii Kippu) As for the dollar shops, there are quite a few but the most popular franchise is probably Daiso. There's one in Harajuku if you decide to go there... Oh yeah, another good shop for cheap goods is Don Quixote. Donki Kingdom | Don Quijote Co., Ltd.
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01-16-2009, 06:26 PM
All the other places besides Kyoto are in or near Tokyo, you probably don't really need a pass for those, unless you'll be riding the subways a lot that day. Kyoto is a long way away though, and it will either be expensive or slow to get there. You might try a night train or night bus, so you can sleep on the way there and arrive in the morning, but you'll miss the scenery on the way. The bullet train will get you there and back quickly, but cost a ton of money.
You may want to just skip Kyoto and visit the temple at Nikko instead.
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01-16-2009, 07:29 PM
Subways and trains are different and require different passes. Unless you know exactly what you are doing and where you are going when, I'd just buy the tickets you need then, instead of buying a pass which may end up costing you more in the end. Kyoto is far and round trip to Tokyo is probably close to 500 dollars on the bullet train. There are plenty of temples and shrines in and around Tokyo you can see on your limited budget.
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01-17-2009, 01:26 AM
Fares for regular train, bus, and subway systems are not expensive. However, tickets for the Shinkansen (bullet train), and express trains can be very expensive.
The only express train you might need to take is the Narita express, which takes you to and from Tokyo station and Narita airport. I don't recommend the Narita express, it's not convenient if you are traveling with heavy luggage, and, depending on your arrival time, a seat might be hard to get. You should take the airport limousine bus instead, it is as fast (or faster) than the train, as well as being more comfortable and less expensive. The ticket counter for the bus is to your left after you clear immigration and customs. The cost for a ticket is 3000 yen, and there are porters who will take care of your luggage for you. Take the bus to Tokyo Station, it will drop you off outside the station, just across the street. You'll find a taxi stand in front of the station, you should take a taxi to your hotel from there. Meguro is not that far from Tokyo station, so the taxi fare will not be expensive. Once you are set up in your hotel, then you can venture out onto the train system. Meguro station is on the Yamanote line, which will take you to most of the places you have on your list. It runs in a circle around the city, with stops at Shibuya, Harajuku, Ikebukuro, Ueno, Akihabara, and Tokyo Station. To use the train, first find the ticket machines. Above the ticket machines is usually a large map, showing the various stations where the train stops. Next to each station on the map will be the train (or subway) fare in yen. Put that amount into the machine, and press the single fare button (which is pictogram of a single person), and the machine will give you a ticket. Put the ticket in the slot at the entrance to the train gate, and pick it up on the other end after you pass through. If you don't have exact change, insert a bill into the ticket machine, the display will then show various fare amounts. Touch the screen on the fare which matches your destination, the machine will give you your ticket and change. Here is a map of the JR train system for greater Tokyo http://japanrail.com/pdf/railpass/greater_tokyo.pdf This map is similar to the ones you'll see in the train stations, except that they will have the fare amount listed next to each station name. To get to Disney, you take the Yamanote line to Tokyo Station, and then follow the signs in the station to the Keio line. It's a long walk (Tokyo Station is huge), but all signs are bilingual in English/Japanese, so getting around is fairly easy. You can take the Keio line to Maihama station, which is where Disney is located. Don't bother with the 100 yen shops, they sell mostly household/kitchen items. If you want souvenirs you should go to Asakusa, which is an old part of Tokyo, and home to the Sensoji Temple (a must see). To get to Asakusa, take the Yamanote train to Shimbashi, then you can transfer to the Asakusa Subway. Get off at Asakusa station, the station exits near the entrance of the Sensoji Temple, and the thousands of shops which surround it. You don't need to buy a one-week train pass for your stay. As I said at the beginning of my reply, train, bus, and subway fares are cheap. You'll probably spend less than 1000 yen in train fare on your busiest day. Have fun during your stay, you can pm me if you have any questions.
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01-17-2009, 03:19 AM
Good info above.
The only thing I'd add is the option to take the Keisei Skyline train from Narita airport. It stops at Ueno station as opposed to Tokyo but it should be faster than a bus and costs 1920 yen. That's what I normally use. FWIW, the Narita Express isn't cheap but it'll stop at Shibuya station for just 1000 yen more and Shibuya would be much closer to Meguro than Tokyo or Ueno. Just some other options to consider. 
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01-17-2009, 04:30 AM
Quote:
Example, to use the train, you have to get a ticket, find the platform, and then the particular car and seat which is listed on your ticket. There are no porters for your luggage, so you must leave it in the racks at the end of the cars. Once you arrive at Tokyo Station or Shibuya station (which are huge places where many trains and subway lines converge), you have to fight your way through often shoulder-to-shoulder crowds to get to the platform for your next train. You then need to buy another train ticket, and then find the correct platform (there are 2 for each train, one for each direction of travel). Once arriving at Meguro, you have to determine which exit to leave the station from, and then, unless the hotel is very close, and you know how to get there, you'll probably end up taking a taxi anyway. This is why I recommend the limousine bus and then a taxi. It's fast, and most important, very simple. You only need to buy one ticket, and the farthest you need to walk is from the airport terminal to the curb outside, and then from the bus stop at Tokyo Station to the taxi stand across the street. Less walking (particularly inside the train stations) means much less chance of getting confused and/or lost.
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01-17-2009, 05:45 AM
I guess it depends on how comfortable the OP is when it comes to getting around. I first went to Japan by myself as a teenager and found my way to Ebina station with no problems. After all, there were plenty of English speaking personnel at Narita along with tons of signs.
Either way, he'll have to face the crowds and learn the transit system at some time during his visit. Might as well do it in Narita with an English speaking transit worker showing you the procedures. Just my opinion of course. 
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01-17-2009, 12:36 PM
Yes, the transit workers are nice, they helped me when I bought my first Shinkansen ticket after one of my Narita flights was diverted to Osaka due to bad weather.
But transit workers are few and far between at Tokyo and Shibuya stations. Arriving at Narita at 3:30 means that after deplaning, immigration, picking up bags, customs, and then transportation to Tokyo, he should arrive at Tokyo or Shibuya station at the heart of rush hour. No doubt it will be an interesting experience, but it will make finding his way around the stations far more difficult. The only thing I like about the Narita express is that they have a snack cart from which you can get drinks, obento, and ice cream.
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