People often wonder how much they should budget for a trip to Japan and how to save money on a Japan trip.
The answer depends on the cost of airfare, hotel accommodations, transportation costs after arrival, whether guides are needed, etc. There are many ways to save money on a Japan trip and below are some practical tips to help with your Japan trip planning:
How to Save Money on a Japan Trip – Airfare
Japan travel is seasonal. If you go during cherry blossom or Sakura season between the last week of March and the first half of April, be prepared to shell out big bucks. The same applies to late October and November when many foreigners flock to Japan for its incredible autumn leaves turning red, golden and shades in between. Flying to Japan from the US and Canadian West Coast often costs around $1,500 on a round-trip ticket out of Vancouver, Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles. That’s economy class, of course. Passengers departing from New York or Toronto should budget $2,000 for the airfare.
How to Save Money on a Japan Trip – Hotels
During Sakura and fall colour seasons, a centrally located 3-star hotel in Tokyo and Kyoto can easily cost over 30,000 yen (US$208 as of Sept 25, 2024) per night including breakfast for two. Moving up to a 4-star hotel would easily set you back by another 20,000 yen. Luxury (5-star) hotels, not a top-level one like Peninsula Hotel, with a good location can be as much as 80,000 yen (US$555). Keep in mind that Japan does not have an official hotel rating system. To get an idea about a hotel’s classification, you are better off by placing your faith in a large online hotel booking company like Booking.com.
How to Save Money on a Japan Trip – Transportation
To save money, travelling long distance between cities is better done by long-distance bus. These buses are popular among budget-conscious Japanese and are very comfortable to ride in. They are safe, clean and quiet with lots of luggage storage in the belly. Shinkansen bullet train is faster but costs more than buses.
How to Save Money on a Japan Trip – Getting Around
The public transit system in Japan is efficient and reliable. Getting around in a city is better done by public transit – subway is faster than street bus but can be hard for first time visitors to navigate in big cities like Tokyo and Osaka.
How to Save Money on a Japan Trip – Meals
Despite fast-rising inflation post-pandemic, restaurants meals in Japan are much more affordable than in the West. You can have a very good meal in a nice restaurant for $30 or less including tax – you don’t tip in Japan. For a fancy dinner in a very high-end restaurant, please be prepared to spend up to US$100 a person. To save money without sacrificing nutrition, be sure to check out the food shelves of convenience stores (Seven Eleven, Lawson, Family Mart etc). You’d be positively surprised.
How to Save Money on a Japan Trip – Guiding Hiring
Private guides are not recommended for budget travellers. An experienced Japanese tour guide with good English would cost around 50,000 yen (US$360 as of Sept 28, 2024) for 8 hours of work. That’s the guide’s fee, not including his or her transportation and admission charges to be borne by the guests. Of course, meals are your own responsibility as well.
How to Save Money on a Japan Trip – Local eSIM
Don’t use expensive data roaming provided by your current phone company. Consider getting a Japan-specific eSIM or physical SIM card with lots of data allowance (30GB) and turn your smart phone into a powerful assistant by taking advantage of such apps as Google Maps and Google Translate.
How to Save Money on a Japan Trip – Use AI as Tour Guide
Have you tried artificial intelligence in place of a local guide? Information on tourist attractions delivered by ChatGPT can be better than a mediocre tour guide and it’s free! For example, at Senso-ji Temple, simply ask ChatGPT to “give me a good introduction to Senso-ji of Tokyo” and see what you will get.
In addition to the tips above, there are many other methods to save money on a trip to Japan without significantly diluting the quality of your experience. You just have to have to take the time to find and zero on those that are most suitable for your situation.
