Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Caffeinated]

Consider southern Japan. Try cities such as Fukuoka, Kumamoto and Kagoshima. Better yet, try much smaller tropical paradises such as Yakushima and Ishigaki. Beaches, nature and local culture abound!

[Kissmykimchi]

Okay this is out of left field but what about ktx to busan, busan ferry to fukoka, and then use the Jr pass to do osaka, kyoto, tokyo, then back to Fukoka for the ferry?

wouldnt that be cheaper than the 750,000won gimpo osaka haneda gimpo tickets?

[barneygumbell]

you'll spend too much time on the train i think..if i was you i'd fly to tokyo..then stay a few days and get the overnight bus to kyoto..spend some days in kyoto-nara-osaka..then night bus again to hiroshima..and then spend a day or 2 and then go to fukuoka to fly home..saves backtracking and also you don't have to spend a fortune on jr passes. buses are pretty cheap and save you a night's accommodation.

that was similar to what i did and i had one of my greatest ever vacations.

[Kissmykimchi]

The flights are booked which means cancellation fees if I break them.

I did find hotels in osaka and tokyo, the one in tokyo is next to shinjuku station, but the price tag is 1.1 million won for 11 nights.

Are there better deals out there for hotels?

[ThingsComeAround]

I stayed here in Osaka

they gave breakfast (as far as I remember) and it wasn't too far from the major rail station.

http://www.osaka-yha.com/shin-osaka/

[Kissmykimchi]

[kiwiinkorea]

Try Toyoko-Inn

http://www.toyoko-inn.com/eng/index.html

Single rooms start at about 6500 yen per night for the smallest single room at the Shinjuku branch. They have branches all over the place and the price includes breakfast too. Tiny rooms but they have everything you need.

If you are staying for several days you can get a membership for 1500 yen which gives you discounts of up to 30% per night and the 11th night is free.

[Dan_84]

Whoa, you seem to be getting quoted high rates!

I spent 10 nights in Tokyo last August. I stayed in a nice (but basic) hotel/hostel near JR Ueno station (northeast, near Asakusa) for about $70/night. Great location. Then, in a contemporary ryokan in the south (albeit in a sort of out-of-the-way suburban area) for close to $80/night. Then, at a basic hotel 15 minutes away from JR Shinjuku for about $65/night. I booked everything online, in advance.

There's lots to do in Tokyo and the surrounding areas, but in my humble opinion, you should consider booking a few different hotels, to get a taste of some different areas and neighbourhoods. 10 nights at the same place...

[Kissmykimchi]

[Dan_84]

It was called Hotel Tateshina. It's close to the Shinjuku 3-chome subway station. I found it through hostels.com. The rates are much higher if you book in person, at the hotel...

Anyway, basic but clean hotel, with a good Japanese breakfast availabe for about 850 Yen. The staff were helpful and speak good English. One caveat, as I discovered at an awkward time: the rate is PER PERSON. Which means: "new friends" are not welcome at the hotel, except in the lobby. Otherwise, you have to pay a joiner's fee...

[Kissmykimchi]

Just learned I lose my deal on the hotel if I cut my stay short. Sucks, but I'd rather save a few bucks than switch.

[JBomb]

Capsule hotels are fun. Some are even attached to giant public baths which come in handy. Night sleep and then a nice morning scrub and a soak. Stayed in one in Shinjuku which made for an interesting evening of people watching and conversation with some of the more less than desirable element on the street. I also really liked staying in the Ueno area of Tokyo. It is right on the JR circle line, which if you score yourself a JR Rail Pass (which you are really going to need) you can zip around to all the major neighbourhoods in Tokyo as part of the pass. Naha is also a highly recommended stop and can be done in conjunction with Kyoto which is also achingly beautiful. A walk through some parts of Kyoto is like being in the middle of a Miyazaki film. Naha also has the world's biggest wooden building and some amazing old Buddhist temples, shrines, and burial mounds which were recently mapped with lasers by archeologists. Osaka is a great base for doing this area. You should also check out the castle in near by Himeji. It is jawdropping. Fukuoka also is a great place to check out for a few days. It has an excellent night life district in Oyafukudori, which roughly translates to street of unruly children. It used to be lined with cram schools, but now you can dance, drink, or hang out all night long with Fukuoka's party set. Fukuoka also has some interesting castle ruins that make for a good walk. It also close by to a rather interesting Shinto shrine that is manned by real priests who do an elaborate ceremony every hour complete with drums and fans to bless the shrine. Kyushu is also famous for its numerous hot spring towns. Beppu is pretty cool and a short hop away from Fukuoka. Also be sure to catch some baseball while you are in Japan. I went to a Softbank Hawks and Hiroshima Carp game in Fukuoka and with a sizable away following and all the organized chants and cheers it was quite an experience as well as a good ball game along with it. The Japanese League is a higher level than over here in Korea and just slightly lower than the Majors in North America. If you are heading to Sapporo, it will be much cooler up there during the Summer. My co-teacher backpacked through there last summer and really enjoyed it. She said it had some really nice wide open spaces and was a nice break from the humidity.

[otnemem]

My girlfriend and I are going to Japan the end of July, have our flight, and need to start making reservations for hostels, etc. We have 8 nights and 7 full days (Sat-Sunday; leaving arriving in the afternoon, flying in and out of Osaka). We are debating whether to do something like 4 Tokyo/2 Kyoto/2 Osaka with maybe a day-trip to Nara or 3 Tokyo / 3 Kyoto / 2 Osaka +Nara.

[ciccone_youth]

I live in Japan now and traveled all over. Here are my favourite (and cheapest) places to stay all over:


Tokyo:
Andon Ryokan (a modern, stylish ryokan, very affordable):
http://www.andon.co.jp/
Capsule Hotel Riverside:
http://www.asakusa-capsule.jp/english/
Listel Hotel in Shinjuku- great location, tacky decor but very clean. That's where I stayed when my Montreal friends visited:
http://www.listel.co.jp/english/index.htm
K's house, always a safe choice:
http://kshouse.jp/tokyo-e/index.html
Oak Hotel, a bit more upscale than a youth hostel, and very cheap and perfect, located in Ueno:
http://www.oakhotel.co.jp/english/

Kyoto:
Guest House Kyoto:
http://www.guesthouse-kyoto.com/index.jsp
J Hoppers:
http://kyoto.j-hoppers.com/
Hinomoto Ryokan:
http://www.ryokan-hinomoto.jp/eng_info/

(as for Nara, it's a short day trip from Kyoto or Osaka, so don't bother booking a hotel there. Same goes for Kobe, if you decide to go it's also a short day trip. Kobe is beautiful, but there is nothing much to do beyond one day).

Osaka:
Koma Guesthouse, super cheap, amazing location for nightlife.
http://www.osaka-guesthouse.com/en/reserve.en/index.html

Hiroshima:
J Hoppers Hiroshima, perfect location, a few steps from Peace Park, and soooo cheap:
http://hiroshima.j-hoppers.com/
K's House in Hiroshima is brand new, but it's located near the JR Station, which is ways away from all the sights...
http://kshouse.jp/hiroshima-e/index.html




http://www.vivianlostinseoul.blogspot.com/

[Dan_84]

Something to keep in mind... The bullet trains (shinkansen) are super expensive-- more than you might expect! And while some of the JR rail passes may include shinkansen travel, be aware that the high cost of the pass may not actually be worth it in the long run, depending on how much train travel you do.

I was originally considering flying into Tokyo, spending a few days there, then taking the bullet train to Kyoto for a couple days, and then back to Tokyo. That idea was beaten out of me once I investigated the shinkansen prices!

However, I've since learned that overnight buses are a good alternative, as they're cheaper and you can save a night's accommodation! Hopefully you're able to sleep on the bus...

Anyway, my overall thought is simply: don't overdo it in Japan. If you have a really long time there, then sure, traveling around the country is great. But, for short time periods, it's expensive and you may find that more was actually less by the end of your vacation... And so ends this unsolicited piece of advice.

Oh, and I'll second the recommendation for the Oak Hotel in the above comment!