Japan Trip on low budget-77k for 6 days all inclusive

Japan doesn’t appear in the list of preferred destinations when we think of a holiday. We check Europe,  Middle East and South East Asian countries, but not usually Japan. Even holiday packages advertised by prominent travel agencies usually focus on Europe, America and Singapore/ Malaysia/ Thailand. Why not Japan? I don’t know. May be everyone thinks there’s nothing unique in Japan or they think it is far and expensive not worth going. But after my short trip to Japan, I am very much pleased with this country and strongly recommend you give Japan a consideration for your next vacation.

For those of you worried about budget, below is a sense of what various things cost in Japan.

Yen to rupee conversion factor: 100 YEN= 60 INR

#	Activity	Approx Cost	Remarks
1	Flight	20k to 50k per person, return	Try booking during a sale for best deals
2	Japan Local travel	18k INR for JRPass (1 week, Ordinary), another 3k to 5k for travel expense not covered by JR Pass	Purchase before travel May not be needed if visit is too short or focused on one city only.
3	Meals	1800-2000 YEN onwards	A proper meal (2-3 items) in basic/mid-range restaurants
4	Water bottle-550ml	100-130 Yen	Cheaper in supermarkets, little expensive in vending machines
5	Taxi	590-610 YEN minimum fare (1.5kms) 1000 Yen for about 2.5 kms
6	Coffee	100 Yen (small, supermarket machine coffee) 300-350 Yen in coffee shops
7	Stay	Cheapest options- Capsule Hotels- around 1900-2500 YEN per person per night	Read my capsule hotel experience
8	Bus Ride	230 YEN per ride, any no of stops
9	Train Ride	210 Yen onwards, depending on distance/no of stops
10	Bullet train cost	Sample: Tokyo to Osaka- 15000 Yen in Nazomi- with seat reservation fee Tokyo to Osaka – 9000 Yen on slower bullet trains without seat reservation	Assuming you’re not buying JR Pass or want to try faster Nazome bullet train not covered by JRPass Check Google Maps or Hyperdia
11	Attraction Entry fee	Usually between 500 to 1000 YEN per person Tokyo SkyTree 2060 Yen, Disneyland/ Univ Studio even more
12	Banana	100-120 Yen per piece
13	Apple	Around 350 Yen per piece
14	Visa Fee	INR 440 for Embassy, VFS fee extra if you can’t submit direct.
15	Lockers	300 Yen- Small size 500 Yen- Medium size 700/1000 Yen-Large	Per day per lock (till 2 AM next day is 1 day) Small size can take mid size backpack
16	Sim card	2600 YEN (1 month, 1 GB limited voice call SIM)

Typical daily expenses in Japan: (intercity travel and flight not factored)

• 1 Full meals: 2000 YEN
• Around 10 different local train/bus rides: 3000 YEN
• Some snacks, Coffee water etc at convenience store: 600-1000 Yen
• Entry fee to 2-3 of attractions  during the day: 2000 Yen approx.
• One or two taxi rides: 2000 Yen
• Hostel stay: 2500 Yen
• Other miscellaneous  expenses: 2000 Yen
• Total: Approx 13000-15000 Yen per person per day or INR 8000-9000.

Below is what my 1 week trip cost me
I could save significantly on flight because of Air Asia sale- booked it in March 2016. Check this post on how to make the most of AirAsia sale

#	Activity	Cost	INR	Remarks
1	Flight	20497 INR	20497
2	JRPASS	17700 INR	17700	1 week ordinary
3	Stay expense 6 nights, budget hostels/capsule hotels Osaka: 1900 Hiroshima: 2400 Kyoto: 3100 Tokyo: 4680 (for 2 nights) Osaka 1 night: 2700	14780 Yen	8500
4	Entry fee to various attractions	Ranges between 300-1200 Yen per attraction, total 12000 approx.	7200	Tokyo skytree most expensive at 2060 Yen Accurate to +/- 10%
5	Travel not covered by JR Pass	7000 Yen approx	4200
6	Local sim card	2600 Yen	1500
7	Food expense for 6 days (meals, snacks, coffee, water n fruits purchase)	20000 Yen approx.	12000	Accurate to +/- 20%
8	Visa		440
9	Locker storage cost	600 Yen	360
10	Misc (newspaper, deer cookies, fridge magnet shopping etc	1500 Yen	900
11	Inflight meals purchase	86 MYR total	1300
12	Bank fee for withdrawing local cash using debit card	400 Yen	240
13	Chennai home to airport and airport to home		32	Local train + bus + walk
14	Interest lost on ticket booked 1 year ago (at 8%)		1640
	Total		76509

Round off Japan trip expense: 77000 for 6 days, everything inclusive

Tips to reduce expense during Japan Trip

1. Select a hotel/hostel within walking distance from a train station- preferably one serviced by JR line if you’re buying JR Pass. This will save precious time and Taxi expense
2. Plan your trips in multiples of 7 days, so that you can make full use of JR Pass (issued for 7 or 14 days)
3. There’re many vending machines all over, but I find that items like drinking water are cheaper in supermarkets (Family Mart of Seven i) than these machines.
4. Daily pass for metro/subway/bus or combined are useful and convenient. While buying daily pass check if it is valid for 24 hour from first use or for the calendar day. Kyoto daily pass is for the calendar day while Tokyo Subway/Metro pass is for 24 hours from first use. If it is for a calendar day, avoid buying it in the evening
5. Avoid taxi where possible. Walk or take train. A short ride of 2-3 kms will set you back by 1000-1500 Yen
6. Some attractions like Universal studios/Disney land/Tokyo skytree may not be really worth the time and money. Check if you really want to spend on these
7. Check opening and closing hours before visiting- most shrines close by 5 PM
8. Assuming you will be spending 5-7 days and will be visiting at least 2 to 3 cities, buying JR pass in advance makes sense. If you will be stationed in just one city then do the maths and figure out if JR pass is still economical. Here's a detailed post to help you decide if you would need a JR Pass.

Reading a bit about the attractions or checking photos online will help. Not every garden, shrine or castle is really worth visiting. Check photos online, reviews and check if you really want to visit the attraction or skip it. For example, attractions like Tokyo skytree are expensive at about 2060 Yen per person, plus demand lots of waiting time. If you’re not very keen for view of the city, you can skip it.

If you are looking for Japan visit suggested itineraries, do check this post- have listed 3 one week itineraries

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