| View previous topic :: View next topic |
| Author |
Message |
cornishmuppet
Joined: 27 Mar 2004
Posts: 642
Location: Nagano, Japan
|
 Posted: Tue Oct 03, 2006 6:04 am Post subject: Car ferry prices to Sado Island |
 |
|
Anyone know the cost of the car ferry from Naoetsu to Sado ga Shima? I'm thinking of going this weekend and wanted to take my car. Its about 2000 for a passenger, but I can't find the car rates anywhere. My friend reckons its 30,000 return, which seems absurd. I can't imagine anyone, even the Japanese, would pay that much considering its only a two hour journey.
Any help appreciated please. I can't find it on the net. |
|
| Back to top |
|
 |
Sweetsee
Joined: 11 Jun 2004
Posts: 2302
Location: ) is everything
|
| Posted: Tue Oct 03, 2006 6:11 am Post subject: |
|
|
Pretty sure that is about what it is. Hard to justify for the weekend but we did it summer before last, for three weeks. Could check later for you.
Have you been there before? |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
cornishmuppet
Joined: 27 Mar 2004
Posts: 642
Location: Nagano, Japan
|
| Posted: Tue Oct 03, 2006 7:06 am Post subject: |
|
|
Yeah, I was worried that my friend's info was accurate! I imagine they want to keep more business for the car hire firms on the island!
I went to the Earth Celebration in 2004, my first weekend in Japan. Pretty good. Just wanted to go there and chill out for a couple of days this time though.
cheers,
Chris |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
ironopolis
Joined: 01 Apr 2004
Posts: 379
|
| Posted: Tue Oct 03, 2006 8:38 am Post subject: |
|
|
Sorry, muppet, but your friend is correct. It's just under 30,000 for car and driver plus extra for any other passengers. It's about 24,000 if your car is under 4m long. I was driving in Hokuriku last year and had considered going to Sado, but didn't for this reason.
From a British perspective the prices of car ferries in Japan are insanely astronomical. Often from the UK to Europe there's an all in price for car and up to 5 occupants, whereas here the passengers must all pay separately.
If you get a Japanese road atlas, usually there are ferry fare tables inside the back cover just after the expressway toll tables. You'll see it's the same ridiculous prices across the country, especially where the ferry has no competition from other ways of getting there.
I guess there's little pressure for this to change as the Japanese generally don't seem to take their cars very long distances. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Gordon
Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Posts: 5309
Location: Japan
|
| Posted: Tue Oct 03, 2006 1:07 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| The tolls on the bridges are also ridiculously high. I think it is about 10,000 yen to drive your car off Shikoku on the Seto-Ohashi bridge. It takes about 10 minutes. I always take a train or bus when i cross. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Sweetsee
Joined: 11 Jun 2004
Posts: 2302
Location: ) is everything
|
| Posted: Tue Oct 03, 2006 11:19 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Sounds good Chris. Did you meet Marcus and his family at the tennis courts there?
Enjoy,
s |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
ironopolis
Joined: 01 Apr 2004
Posts: 379
|
| Posted: Wed Oct 04, 2006 12:48 am Post subject: |
|
|
| Gordon wrote: |
| The tolls on the bridges are also ridiculously high. I think it is about 10,000 yen to drive your car off Shikoku on the Seto-Ohashi bridge. It takes about 10 minutes. I always take a train or bus when i cross. |
Absolutely. I think if you want to take a car to/from Shikoku and Honshu or Kyushu, there aren't many ways around getting ripped off. I have an ETC card for expressway tolls, which gets me a pretty good 30% off for the whole distance if part of your journey is at night, or an even better 50% off up to 100km during rush hour times. But guess what - all the bridges to Shikoku are excluded from these discounts!
It's a fair bit shorter, but it's crazy that in comparison you can drive across the bridge from Honshu to Kyushu for as little as 300 yen. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
David W
Joined: 17 Jan 2003
Posts: 457
Location: Japan
|
| Posted: Wed Oct 04, 2006 3:40 am Post subject: |
|
|
| ironopolis wrote: |
| Gordon wrote: |
| The tolls on the bridges are also ridiculously high. I think it is about 10,000 yen to drive your car off Shikoku on the Seto-Ohashi bridge. It takes about 10 minutes. I always take a train or bus when i cross. |
Absolutely. I think if you want to take a car to/from Shikoku and Honshu or Kyushu, there aren't many ways around getting ripped off. I have an ETC card for expressway tolls, which gets me a pretty good 30% off for the whole distance if part of your journey is at night, or an even better 50% off up to 100km during rush hour times. But guess what - all the bridges to Shikoku are excluded from these discounts!
It's a fair bit shorter, but it's crazy that in comparison you can drive across the bridge from Honshu to Kyushu for as little as 300 yen. |
The bridge network near me is the newest of the three. I've walked on that bridge and you could have shot a cannon in both directions numerous times and not hit anyone. The Einsteins that run the show can't seem to work out that if you halve the cost there's a good chance twice as many people will use it. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
FAQ
Search
Memberlist
Usergroups
Register
Profile
Log in to check your private messages
Log in
