Japan in a year
 

Myself and a few close friends of mine (All adults, 18-21 range), are seriously considering a trip to Japan next year. Our main concern is lodging. We're not actually sure where to stay, because our plan is to stay a month or two. We're not really the "touristy" types, so we don't need a fancy Ryokan or something, and we won't be dining out at expensive restaurants

. Honestly the cheapest we can get while still having a bed to sleep in and a roof over our heads would be nice, since our stay is pretty long. We're more interested in hanging out and exploring the cities (maybe a bit of nightlife?) , so something in Tokyo is what we're looking for. Another thing we need help with is pricing. How much is a "normal" round trip ticket for a month or two? What kinds of things should we take, and how would cellphones work? Can we rent some cheap ones? We'll most likely have a laptop or two with us, so I guess maps aren't too big of a problem, but how easy is the transit system to understand without actually being able to read any Japanese. Our language skills are pretty weak, but we know enough to get around, I suppose.

Any answers would be much appreciated, I might think of a bit more, but a place to stay is our main concern, other than a general minimum pricetag for the tickets so we know what to shoot for.

Just do a ticket search for price ranges. You'll get anywhere from 2000-6000 USD for round-trip tickets, so it's kind of hard to give an estimate. I recently picked up my tickets for 2,300 from Japan to US and then back to Japan, however they were cheap because I'm getting a layover in Toronto. However, I've seen tickets go much higher than that. You'll just have to check the ticket climate closer to your trip.

Take whatever you'd normally take on a vacation. Your phones won't work, but you can get pay as you go phones. The only thing to worry about with electronics is three-prong plugs won't work.

If you're in Tokyo, the entire transit system is in English except for the occasional offshoot lines that you probably won't be going to anyway. Signs are in Japanese and English and they'll even give train announcements for every stop in English if you're on major train lines. The train system itself is extremely easy to use. The subway system is a bit more challenging to navigate, but you won't really need it save for a few potential spots like Roppongi (nightlife) or Asakusa (traditional stuff).

Thanks, I looked around plenty of ticket sites and found some cheap tickets, we'll probably put aside the ticket price+a few hundred dollars, in case of an increase next year.

I've honestly only flown once (Twice if you count the trip back XP) before, before the airport crackdown at that. Will I be able to take my shampoo, deoderant, etc with me, or is that something I'll need to buy once I get there? And what about outlets on the plane for charging the laptop, and free/paid wifi on the flight Or does it all depend on airport? And before I forget, transportation! Is there some kind of train/bus pass we can get, or is it just cheaper to pay for each ride?

You shouldn't have a problem with shampoo and such as long as it's in your luggage and not your carry-on, like all other planes. Specifications for outlets/wifi etc. depends on the airport/plane.

As for transportation, as far as I know there aren't any bus passes. You can get a train pass good for all Tokyo trains and subways for one business day for about 1600 yen (around 20 dollars), but if you're soaking in the sights and sounds, you probably won't be bouncing between stations enough in one day to warrant that price, especially since most popular districts are within walking distance and are quite easy to get to even for newcomers/tourists because of all of the English signs if you ever get bored with one area. Cabs can cost around 800 yen (around 10 dollars) just to sit in, so your best bet will be the trains.
To make your life easier, you can get a Suica card (a hard plastic train pass card) that doesn't offer any kind of discount, but can be preloaded at any stop. That way, you can just place money on it and pass through all of the train stations without having to worry about buying tickets/transfer tickets all the time.

those prices sound pretty high. i got round trip tickets and lodging for 9 days in tokyo for about $2000 on orbitz.

They were directly from the Airline's websites, direct flight. There are a few factors. It's good that you were able to find cheaper ones though. Who are you flying with?

american airlines from tx to chicago o'hare, and then JAP from there to narita

Take a look at Delta as well.

Yeah, the tickets I found were in the 1300-1500 range. Now the only major problem we have is lodging, which just happens to be the most important. I did a bit of searching, and hostels seem to be a good choice, but most don't offer stays that long. Are there any cheaper ones anyone can suggest? Maybe a longer month or two stay is just something I need to email them directly about. If not, then staying at multiple ones over the course of one or two months is always an option.

Just curious, why such the long stay? It sounds like you are on a limited budget, so why not go for three weeks and be able to spurge a little, rather than live like a poor person. There are lots of things to explore in Tokyo, but especially for non-speakers, you are likely to run out of things to do after a week or two.

Also keep in mind that people are considered adults at 20,not 18, so there are going to be some places the young members may not be able to get into.

i highly recommend looking on one of those sites that lets you bundle airfare and lodging (orbitz, priceline, etc.)

usually when you bundle everything you get a pretty big discount. plus you can search for the cheapest hotel options.

admittedly, the way i mentioned is the only way i've ever booked flights and such, but if you're like me and you don't want to have to pick through tons of listings, then hit up orbitz or something like that. you gotta love easy :D

For the accommodation part of your question, I believe one of the cheapest, if not cheapest place to stay in Tokyo is a chain of backpackers hostels called 'Khaosan Tokyo.'

The rooms are the tiniest things you can imagine, literally the bed, a space to put your suitcase, and that's it. All facilities including toilets and showers are shared.

But it does have many good points, like free internet access, free baggage keeping etc. And of course, the price.

Rooms vary from shared dorms if you don't mind being in a room with strangers, or private rooms (I think you only have the options of 'double' or 'twin' bed rooms though, but I'm not sure) if you prefer privacy.

Price example: For a private, twin bed room (it's a bunk bed), it only costs 2500 Yen per person per night

To look up specific Khaosan branch options, and prices for other types of rooms that may suit you better, this is their website:

khaosan Tokyo Guest House ::Backpackers Hostel in Tokyo, Kyoto, Fukuoka, Beppu::

:)

I was just going to point this out myself. 18 is not an adult in Japan. 18 is something like 15 or 16 in the US in terms of how people are treated. If you`re unlucky, you might not even be able to get a room without a guardian. A family friend couldn`t get a long-stay room (3 weeks) at 19 without me co-signing for them.

Nightlife might let you slide because you`re not Japanese, but chances are it will be 20+ so those below 20 will have to do something else.

As for room recommendations - for a long term stay in one area I always recommend LeoPalace21. It is basically like renting a small apartment, and they will rent you extra beds so you can usually have 4 people per room... At 50,000/month for a room, it comes out to a very low price per person.

But limiting yourself to Tokyo seems like such a waste. If you want to see non-touristy things off the beaten track (and spend a lot less money...) try another city.

Whoops, I took into account our ages now, not in a year. Depending on what month we go, I think everyone should be 20 by then, but that does help in case we get another who wants to go, but is only 18 or 19.
No real reason, it's just that none of us have ever been out of the country before, and this might be the one time we get to so we just wanted to make it count, but when you put it like that, maybe just one month is a better idea. The reason for the frugal living is just because we'd like to save as much money as we can lol, at least to spend on having fun, since a decent amount will end up going towards the ticket and lodging.

@Nyororin Thanks, I'm checking out the LeoPalace21 website, and it looks right up our alley, except I'm noooot quite sure on how getting a room for just a month or two works, this seems to be for longer stays. Over the course of this next year, we'll probably think of more things we'd like to see, but we'd like our "home base" for the trip to be Tokyo.

I'm not sure on the price of real hotels in Tokyo, but if it's anything like the hotels here, I don't think we'd have near enough to spend on a month's worth of hotel rooms.

I have seen people here, and in my own personal experience go through this. The thing is, without a language base and a pretty full schedule bad things can start to happen after a couple weeks. That tiny room you are sharing can get REALLY damn small, especially if your roomie snores, farts, etc. in his sleep. Easy to put up with for a week or two, but nerves start to get frayed after that. I know two inseparable friends that thought spending two months touring Japan together was the best idea in the world. They have not spoken since that trip. Every annoying habit, from playing drums with chopsticks to whistling as they walk is magnified 100 times when in such a foreign situation. "What do you wanna do today?" is going to become a mantra of frustrations, and compound that with the hot and humid summers, which I assume is the time you would go.

Time your trip so you leave Japan wanting more, not wanting to get out.

I can somewhat understand this, I've had one of the guys going with me live with my parents and I for a couple months after some family problems he was having, and it definitely wasn't what we had in mind during our middle school talks about all moving in together when we got older lol. We're a fairly tight knit group, but those are still some things I'll keep in mind. We'll plan some things, but for now we're just getting the necessities out of the way.