Updated: 11/19/20 | November 19th, 2020
For years, I put off traveling to Japan because I was afraid of how expensive it would be. The rumors I’d heard about the country’s high prices made me hesitant to go. I’ve always loved Japanese culture, and I knew any visit would involve gorging on sushi and ramen, visits to lots of temples, and heavy train travel through the countryside.
But the thought of how much it would cost always made me think, “I’ll wait until I have more money.”
When I finally visited Japan years ago, I was shocked to discover that, while it isn’t cheap, Japan isn’t the prohibitively expensive country many people think it is. In fact, I actually found Japan to be very affordable and on par with (and sometimes cheaper than) countries in Western Europe.
In subsequent visits, I’ve learned to further master the country and turn high-cost Japan into an affordable place to visit.
Travel to Japan doesn’t need to cost a lot of money. Here’s a detailed breakdown of how you can cut your expenses to visit Japan on a budget!
How to Save on Transportation in Japan
Trains
The bullet train, while awesome, comfortable, and fast, is not cheap. Individual tickets can cost hundreds of dollars. Yet I think train travel is the best way to see the country, so in order to reduce your train costs, get a Japan Rail (JR) pass. The pass is indispensable for travel in Japan.
These passes cost 29,650 JPY ($282 USD) for 7 days, 47,250 JPY ($449 USD) for 14 days, and 60,450 JPY ($574 USD) for 21 days. All pass times are for consecutive travel.
Compare that to single tickets, where the three-hour journey from Osaka to Tokyo costs 10,500-15,500 JPY ($100-150 USD) each way. That single trip is almost the same price as the entire 7-day pass!
Moreover, these JR trains also serve local city areas and so can be used intra-city. I used my pass to get around Kyoto and Tokyo instead of buying metro tickets. So, even if you aren’t going to do much travel around Japan, buying a pass is better than buying individual tickets. While the high price of the pass can cause sticker shock, the alternative is even worse.
In the past, you could only order the pass before you arrive. However, until March 2021 you can purchase a Japan Rail Pass in Japan. Passes are available in the following country locations: Sapporo, Sendai, Niigata, Tokyo, Shinjuku, Yokohama, Nagoya, Osaka, Hiroshima, Takamatsu, Hakata, New Chitose Airport, Narita Airport, Haneda Airport, and Kansai Airport.
Metro
Most of the city metro tickets cost 100–300 JPY for a single journey. The price varies by distance and may often be higher In Tokyo, fares range from 170-320 JPY and a 24-hour pass is 600 JPY ($5.75 USD). You can buy a day pass in most cities which gives you unlimited travel for 24 hours for less than 800 JPY ($7.50 USD).
Buses
Buses are a less expensive alternative to the bullet train system in Japan, but they take more time. For example, the three-hour train ride from Tokyo to Osaka becomes a nine-hour bus ride. The price for that seat is just 4,000 JPY ($38 USD), but at some point, you need to think about how much your time is worth. For me, saving some 10,000 JPY was not worth the extra seven hours of travel, since I had such limited time during my visit. If I’d had more time, I’d have simply taken the bus.
There are also bus passes available that offer unlimited travel and begin at 10,200 JPY ($97 USD) for three non-consecutive days of travel.
Flights
There are many budget carriers now serving Japan — you can find them on sites like Momondo or Skyscanner. Peach, Spring, Jetstar, and Skymark are a some of the main budget airlines available.
In general, their prices are on par with bullet train tickets. If you book well in advance, they may even be cheaper than the train. However, more often than not that will be a bit more expensive and not really any faster if you’re going a short distance.
ANA also offers special last-minute fares via a hidden page on their website. It’s only available to foreigners and can sometimes be cheaper than the flights you find on Skyscanner, especially for longer routes around the country.
How to Save on Food in Japan
Surprisingly, I found the food to be inexpensive in Japan. True, my sushi addiction dramatically increased the cost of my trip but, overall, I found that I was spending far less on food than I’d anticipated.
As long as I didn’t feed my sushi addiction, I found I could eat for less than 1,500 JPY per day. Some typical prices were:
- Sushi lunch sets (sushi, soup, salad): 1,600+ JPY
- Traditional Japanese set lunches: 1,200+ JPY
- Sushi trains: 125–625 JPY per meal
- Small pasta: 400-500 JPY
- Western set menu (sandwiches, burger, pizza, etc): 1,200-1,500 JPY
- Fast food: 700 JPY
- Ramen: 700-1,000 JPY
- Tempura dishes: 100-150 JPY
There’s an array of cheap food options in the country so you don’t really need to spend much money on food (unless you want to splash out). You can save money on food in Japan by doing the following:
- Eat at “100-yen” shops – There are many 100-yen shops (the Japanese equivalent to dollar stores) in Japan, where set meals, groceries, water, toiletries, household items, and more are simply 100 JPY. I did all my shopping at these stores. Their names vary by region, so ask your hotel/hostel reception where the nearest 100-yen shop is located.
- Use sushi trains – Sushi in Japan is delicious at all levels. While I had a few fancy, sit-down meals, you can’t beat the sushi trains for value. At around 125 JPY ($1.20 USD) per plate, I could stuff my face for less than 1,500 JPY ($14.25 USD) most of the time. I usually just ate at sushi trains.
- Eat at 7-11 – 7-11, Family Mart, and other convenience stores have a lot of pre-set meals for under 500 JPY ($5 USD) that make for cheap lunches. Additionally, supermarkets have many set meals at similar prices. I noticed this was a popular option for many Japanese people.
- Cook your food – Hostels (as well as many Airbnb rental apartments) have kitchens, where you can cook and cut your food expenses to less than 1,100 JPY ($10 USD) per day, especially by shopping at the 100-yen stores.
- Avoid fresh fruit – The one rumor about Japan that turned out to be true was that fresh fruit and vegetables were expensive. Outside of shopping for an apple or banana at the market, I generally avoided fresh fruits and vegetables. They were too expensive.
- Eat curry, ramen, and donburi – I essentially lived off these three foods during my three weeks in Japan. Curry bowls are as cheap as 400 JPY ($3.75 USD) per plate. Donburi, bowls of meat and rice, are around 500 JPY ($4.75 USD). Ramen is never more than 1,000 JPY ($9.50 USD). These are the best ways to eat cheap and filling meals in Japan.
How to Save on Accommodation in Japan
Living costs in Japan are incredibly high due to the limited space, high population, and rising housing prices. Unfortunately, those high costs transfer over into the tourism industry, making finding cheap accommodation a real pain.
Hostel dorms typically cost 2,500-4,000 JPY ($20-35 USD) per night and hotel rooms start at 8,500 JPY ($75 USD) for a double room at a budget hotel.
Here are some ways to save on accommodation:
- Work for your room – Hostels in Japan often let you stay for free if you clean for a few hours a day. Use a site like Worldpackers to find opportunities before you arrive.
- Couchsurfing – Hospitality exchanges are not as widespread in Japan as elsewhere in the world, but there is a small, active Couchsurfing community here. A lot of expats enjoy hosting because it lets them get back in touch with other westerners so don’t hesitate to reach out to them as well. Just make sure you send a request ahead of time to increase your odds of success (especially in popular cities like Kyoto and Tokyo). Read more about Couchsurfing here!
- Use credit card points – It’s times like these that travel hacking comes in handy. Frequent flier miles and regular hotel points can be redeemed for lots of free nights. I used my free accumulated nights from hotels.com for two free nights in Tokyo, but with the large sign-up bonuses right now for hotel cards, you can get up to a week’s free accommodation! Here’s a list of my favorite travel credit cards!
- Capsule hotels – A step up from hostels and a step down from hotels, capsule hotels (pictured above) are tiny capsules you sleep in. You share bathrooms and common areas, and your capsule has a light, outlet, and sometimes a small television. They are frequently used by businessmen who work late. These capsules begin at around 3,000-5,500 JPY ($25-50 USD) per night.
- Airbnb – Airbnb is a budget-friendly option, however, due to a 2018 law there are a few caveats. First, only hosts who have registered with the government can list accommodation. Second, you’ll need to send a copy of your passport to your host before arriving or let them copy your passport when you check-in. That said, it’s an affordable choice for anyone traveling as a group/family.
How to Save on Attractions in Japan
Most of the attractions were very cheap. I didn’t spend more than 500 JPY ($5 USD) per museum or temple. In Kyoto, there’s a temple pass that gives you unlimited transportation and access to the temples for 1,300 JPY ($12.50 USD). It’s a good deal, considering you’re probably going to see a lot of museums in Kyoto. Osaka and Tokyo had similar passes for their attractions.
Overall, I found these passes to be the best way to save money on temples, museums, and other attractions. Additionally, there are many free gardens, temples, and parks! I hardly spent any money on attractions while I was in Japan.
How Much Money Do You Need to Visit Japan?
Japan has an image of being one of the most expensive countries in the world, and if you’re staying in hotels, eating out, and traveling around a lot, it can be. You can easily spend over $200 USD per day by traveling that way. However, I don’t think a trip to Japan needs to be that expensive.
Traveling around Japan can be affordable if you know what to do and keep an eye on your costs. You can save money in Japan by living like a local.
Staying in a hostel, buying a rail pass, eating relatively cheap food, and visiting a few attractions will cost around $100 USD per day.
For reference, a 21-day trip would cost at least $2,100 USD (plus your flight). For that much money, you can go to Southeast Asia for months!
However, by utilizing the tips above, I think you can travel Japan for $80–85 USD per day. Japan shouldn’t cost you more than that per day if you don’t splurge. This would mean more bus travel, a (very) limited amount of sushi, only cheap restaurants, and the occasional night Couchsurfing (or other free accommodation).
On a bare-bones budget, a trip to Japan will cost you $65-75 USD per day if you stick to Couchsurfing, cheap food, bus travel (trains would be far too expensive), and only free attractions. I saw lots of travelers in Japan traveling on the cheap. They did it, and it’s possible — but you’ll never feed your sushi addiction if you travel this way.
To me, budget travel is value travel. Japan is never going to be as cheap a destination as Cambodia, Ukraine, or Peru, but there are ways to save money in every place in the world, and Japan has plenty of ways to visit on a budget. Japan will never cost $20 USD per day, but it also doesn’t need to cost hundreds.
Whenever people go to Japan and come back, they always say “It wasn’t as expensive as I thought” because it doesn’t have to be! Cheap Japan travel is possible and I hope this article taught you that! Stick to the discount transit, local food, and local accommodation and you’ll keep your costs low!
Enjoy!
Book Your Trip to Japan: Logistical Tips and Tricks
Book Your Flight
Use Skyscanner or Momondo to find a cheap flight. They are my two favorite search engines because they search websites and airlines around the globe so you always know no stone is left unturned. Start with Skyscanner first though because they have the biggest reach!
Book Your Accommodation
You can book your hostel with Hostelworld as they have the biggest inventory and best deals. If you want to stay somewhere other than a hostel, use Booking.com as they consistently return the cheapest rates for guesthouses and cheap hotels.
Don’t Forget Travel Insurance
Travel insurance will protect you against illness, injury, theft, and cancellations. It’s comprehensive protection in case anything goes wrong. I never go on a trip without it as I’ve had to use it many times in the past. My favorite companies that offer the best service and value are:
- World Nomads (for everyone below 70)
- Insure My Trip (for those over 70)
- Medjet (for additional repatriation coverage)
Looking for the Best Companies to Save Money With?
Check out my resource page for the best companies to use when you travel. I list all the ones I use to save money when I’m on the road. They will save you money when you travel too.
Be sure to check out the Japan Rail Pass if you’ll be traveling around the country. It comes in 7-, 14-, and 21-day passes and can save you a ton of money!
Want More Information on Japan?
Be sure to visit our robust destination guide on Japan for even more planning tips!
Claire
I want to visit Japan soon because I’ve heard such good things about the people and the culture. It’s nice to know that there’s a way to visit such an expensive country for so cheap!
Mango
It’s really not as cheap as the author says. He said that including flight, you could stay at Japan for 21 days. In reality the cheapest single person, round trip flight I could find was $1500. That was even scheduling months ahead. And if you are EXTREMELY conservative, you might be able to stay one week on $2100. NOT three.
JOHN MCGOWAN
$2100 for a week seems very expensive. Did that include the price of your flight. If planning to go t japan I recommend stopping by the library and getting a language CD to practice ahead of time. A few key phrases really helps. This article though is pretty accurate but should mention that you need to be slightly adventurous and get off the beaten path for accommodation and food. I hope you had a great time while there.
Anthony
That $2100 for 21 days excluded flights, not included
Rory
Actually I just booked a round trip flight from lax to tyo for $600…
Elonkareon
Oddly enough, don’t schedule months ahead. Aside from certain Chinese airlines, the best prices only seem to come available about a month ahead.
Alanna
See – and I found a round trip flight from Canada for $650.
During Cherry Blossom Season.
It all depends when you book and where you look.
Alicia Becerra
I am planning a trip to Japan in early October, when do you think I should start looking and where?
Thx
Rumi
I agree with you. I’m actually from Tokyo and living in California for years. No locals are living shabby like the author stated to save the cost of living since Japan has quite a high tax rate. The bottom of society or poor students would, but usually, we don’t see the necessity to do so. I found that visiting Japan as a tourist is quite expensive even I stayed at my relatives’ homes’ most of the time, and compare to the cost of living in California. A foreigner might be able to travel like the author if you depend on your food on a 100 yen shop (it’s a dollar store) and convenience stores, and stay at a capsule hotel or cheap hostel as a homeless would. Sure, we don’t have a tip system like many western nations have, and we have very reliable and safe transportation. Sure, you’ll find cheap food if you don’t care about quality as everywhere else on the planet. I don’t think it’s possible to travel that cheap as the author states besides you don’t want to travel as a normal human being.
EverywhereOnce
I like the observation that “budget travel is value travel.” Not everyone sees it that way. Too many buget travelers get so caught up in the price of everything they see the value of nothing. Sometimes there really are places and experiences that are worth paying a premium for.
Rob
@EveryoneOnce – That’s a great point to remember. A few countries that are expensive (I found Australia to be worse than Japan) are a lot more simpler if you just accept before you need to dig a little deeper to enjoy yourself.
Living off 100yen food is not a great long term solution. But it is part of management of travelling to the place. Matt’s strategy is a good starting point for people wanting to enjoy the place, going in unplanned is quite costly, that’s a mistake I made in Australia, I assumed it was a cheap place as loads of backpackers went there and worked on farms, but I was very wrong.
I found vending machines to be a killer too in Japan. It’s easy to get sucked into the bright flashy lights from the convenience gods, but it’s not until you walk into a supermarket you realised just how overcharged you was for that coke.
melkonian
@AventureRob
I agree that Australia is far too expensive and probably more so than Japan, though I haven’t been to Japan yet (I am going in Sept 2013 for 3 weeks).
I was in Australia for 7 weeks and budgeted as much as I couldn’t, despite not drinking much, and I dont smoke. Even fast food was expensive and wasn’t goo either !( $12/£8 for thin greasy burger and a handful of over cooked chips!).
Bruce Elio
There are also a few options for overnight buses as well which has the added benefit of saving a night of accommodation.
There are also many things in Japan that unfortunately just cost money but are still worth it in value. Sumo, baseball, ryokans, eating many of the delicacies, getting to one of the festivals, etc.
Reid
Great suggestions to save make Japan more affordable.
Does the JR pass cover bullet trains or do you pay extra for those tickets?
NomadicMatt
It covers the bullet trains.
Lance
Do you have a source for this? Everything I read online says that you have to pay full price for the Nozomi. JR Pass holders can not play a supplement to ride the Nozomi. It would be nice if I’m wrong.
Horatiu Silaghi
Hikari, Kodama and Sakura bullet trains are fully covered by JR pass. Nozomi and Mizuho bullet trains are not covered.
Dave
interesting – we’ll be traveling to Japan in September for two weeks and it will be our first stop. I fear that we may not have the budget experience to truly economize in Japan like we will in later countries, despite the fact that it is so necessary. Will take these tips into consideration though – thanks.
Gareth
How was your trip, any pointers you can share?
Erica
If you get really desperate for a place to stay, many internet and manga cafes have overnight plans that give you a small booth and access to a shower and some tea.
I’ve found it fairly tough to live frugally in Japan, especially since a typical “budget” dinner out with friends usually runs around 3,000yen. Kudos to everyone who’s found a way to do it!
For those wanting to go to karaoke, it’s MUCH cheaper during the day and picking a rainy day instead of going at night can be the difference between paying 700 and 2,000 yen.
Oh JR rail pass, it is so amazing and I hate that I can’t get it because I’m not here on a tourist visa. Helloooo night buses!
Daniel McBane
Osaka and Tokyo both have a “slum” area that offer the cheapest accomodation options in the country. If you speak Japanese, it is possible to find a Japanese style room for under $10. If not, no problem. Many of the hotels in these areas have begun catering to foreign backpackers and they offer rooms for around $20-$30, which is cheaper than both a hostel bed or a capsule hotel.
The word “slum” may put some people off, but a slum in Japan is like a normal neighborhood anywhere else. These areas are perfectly safe, but slightly dirtier than the rest of the country.
The “slum” in Osaka is located near the Shin-Imamiya Station on the Osaka loop line. It can be used as a base to explore the whole Kansai area (Osaka, Kyoto, Nara, Kobe) In Tokyo, the “slum” is located near Minami-Senju Station on the Hibiya Line.
NomadicMatt
Do you have any links to these cheap rooms? I’d like to know more about them.
Matt
I’ve stayed at a few of these hotels before and they are clean and cheap… really a great deal for long term travel in Japan. Hotel Raizan doesn’t have a curfew anymore (that was the only downside) and most people I met are staying for at least one month. There were plenty of tips going around there on tutoring or teaching English to make some travel money.
Ashley
Regarding fresh fruit and veggies, the rumor is just that, a rumor. There is the expensive produce in supermarkets, but when you’re looking at seasonal produce (perhaps not underneath department stores…) it’s not that expensive at all. Also, there are farmer’s markets all over, especially on weekends, that offer very inexpensive local produce. But even imported goods like bananas, etc., aren’t that bad. It’s just a matter of knowing where to buy. Pineapple and other items are cheaper here than in the States.
I also want to offer a word of caution regarding the rail pass: If you are traveling all over Japan, it’s a good option, but if only going to say, Tokyo and then maybe another city like Kyoto, it might not be the best way to save money.
The thing with hotels is that you can easily stay in nice and luxury hotels for very cheap, if you can search in Japanese. I honestly hate staying at hostels, and sleeping at an internet cafe just sounds awful, but I’ve easily booked hotels for $30-70 a night (and they are high quality hotels, though I’ve also stayed in standard business hotels). Though this also depends on what part of Japan you’re visiting. Unfortunately I find a lot of the sites in English tend to rip people off. I’m not sure that it’s intentional, but I do find it interesting (which is why I rarely book in English).
Anyway, just wanted to add my two cents from living in Japan the past four years. 🙂
NomadicMatt
We can agree to disagree on the vegetables. I never found them to be cheap, especially if you bought them in supermarkets or got a meal at a restaurant. Neither did anyone else on my trip.
I also disagree with you about the rail pass. A bullet train round trip to Osaka is the same as a 7 day JR Pass. Why not buy the JR pass in case you decide to add on trips instead of having to pay extra. Even if you don’t use the extra days, you still have them just in case at no extra cost.
Chris Booth
I have to say that I agree with Ashley regarding the JR Pass – but with an essential caveat: If you buy the 1 week pass you will almost definitely break even. But I got the 3 week pass and only JUST broke even. We traveled a lot, from Kansai Airport-Osaka-Hiroshima-Miyajima-Hiroshima-Kyoto-Nara-Kyoto-Hikone-Kanazawa-Takayama-Nagoya-Inuyama-Nagoya-Tokyo-Matsumoto-Tokyo-Okazaki-Osaka using bullet trains wherever we could AND city metro systems covered by the pass. The reason we only just broke even? The bullet trains are so much more expensive than local express trains. Look up the train fares you expect to use before you buy the pass and you can soon see if it’s worthwhile. I have to say that the ease of travel the pass provided made travel in Japan an absolute joy, and it’s very hard to put a price on that!
zain
So if I was to go to Tokyo and Kyoto, what would I use in stead of a JR pass?
George Barley
The ‘work for your room’ and couchsurfing is pretty interesting. Why not? For the love of traveling and saving a significant amount for other valuable expenses, I’d certainly go for this. Whether you want it budgeted or not, thing is, it’s all worth the trip and the cost since Japan is an awesome place. Thanks for these tips by the way. Glad you had a good time there.
NomadicMatt
Welcome to the club! We meet in Bangkok for awesome food and good drinks! 🙂
NomadicMatt
My hostel was in that area. I liked it a lot.
Thomas Frank
Did you stay at a Khaosan hostel? I stayed at the Khaosan Annex and then Khaosan Kyoto when I went there, and they were both excellent! A lot better and cheaper than the crappy hostels in NYC 😉
Shane
For those that want accommodation one step up from hostels try the budget hotel chains like Super Hotels, Toyoko Inn, Richmond, Monterey. They’re reasonably priced business hotels with all the mod cons where a double can be had for $60 – $120.
They all had free LAN in every room.
Adam
How I long to visit those featured in the post.Yes it is true that one of the great expensive you will have to surpass upon travelling in japan is the transportation.Accompanied by great foods is the afct that you will enjoy travelling in Japan.
Shane
Doutor is a Japanese coffee franchise that serves cheapish food too. Coffee ain’t great but the food is good.
Vicky
We are starting our backpacking trip in Japan this fall so there are some great tips here. Right now I’ve estimated $80 per person per day which seems in line with your daily budget. Definitely hoping to find some couchsurfers to stay with!
NomadicMatt
Send requests out far in advance. It took me ages to find one in Osaka.
Mark
I’ve went to Japan many times and it depends on the mentality of how much you want to spend. If you want to travel very lightly and in an inexpensive way, it is possible.
you can always use hostels and those kinds of places, but you can always use cheap hotels too!
Although cheap hotels are for business travelers inside japan that just want to sleep and have decent bedding without hearing other people’s loud snoring like in capsule hotels.
Travelling from place to place would be good if you use bus to travel. For example, if you use midnight bus to travel from Tokyo to Osaka, it is a lot cheaper than using those bullet trains.
The best thing about Japan is that many people are friendly and smile, they try to offer advise even though they can’t speak English at all, and best of all, it is safe and you won’t be getting any food poison unlike Korea, China and other Asian countries.
I’ve went to Korea few times, and of those few times, 100% of the time, I had a severe diarrhea. China I would never recommend to friends as you won’t know what food you are eating. Food in China are dangerous from my collected info as industrial salt can be used as a table salt, which the restaurant owners will never use as they know its dangerous. Also another aspect is of China is that many places use sewage oil as cooking oil. yes, I’m not joking. They filter it so that it looks like an oil but sewage oil has many dangerous substances such as heavy metal and human feces.
On the Korean side, many restaurants gives out to you many small dishes at the beginning like Kimchi and all those sorts of things, but if its left over, they just put it back in the whole big pile and reuse them with the next customer. Like it or not, that’s just the way it goes for korean and China. For Japan, it doesn’t happen that way as laws are not strict but they just like to offer better service where ever you go as it seems as its how their race goes. Don’t forget that its always fresh too! and you can drink tap water almost anywhere as that’s why they had sushi from even when there wasn’t any fridges around. Korea, China and other parts of the world has undrinkable water so they couldn’t get fresh products and had to fry them to get polluted substances wiped out.
Getting back to the subject, yes, its still high priced, but compared to Singapore, it about the same price even if you travel over there.
If you have to use a Taxi, which is somewhat expensive, you should take a map and/or an address. Nowadays they have gps in almost all Taxis in Japan. Also, public transportation is very secure and on time unlike other parts of the world. Japanese people tend to be extremely punctual. In Tokyo area, Taxi fare starts out from about 650 to 680. If it says “Kojin” taxi, usually in white colored taxi, its a taxi not owned by a big company but a taxi that is run by an individual owner which costs less.
Mark
Oh, if you like doing samplers in Japan, try them out at those supermarkets next to the stations. They’ll give you tons of them! Just say ask them in English with a nice smile.
And with the supermarkets, if you go after 8pm or so, they tend to price down many foods, including sushi. Its because they’ve to sell it as its fresh product or they’ll just have to throw them away.
Not trying to be a peddler, but being s smart traveler, you can negotiate those to get the price down when its nearly closing time and they still have them out. You can catch the store people or store people that change the prices that comes by with the round/square red stickers!
If u ever need something, go to the 100yen stores which are usually located in the terminal stations or outside the moderate sized stations. They sell very good things at 100yen(105yen w/ tax). Many of those things if you buy them in the states or elsewhere will cost more than 100yen or more than a buck. Unbelievable prices.
Mark
BTW, there’s a new law in Japan that you’ll get arrested for watching or downloading illegal contents after October 1, 2012. I don’t think it applies to foreigners, but like all Asian countries and dumb politic rules/law, its up to the big brother of that country to decide if you’re a criminal or not so watch out.
The new law just passed in favor of JASRAC, the Japanese music association, that says that CDs aren’t selling because people are downloading illegally. it even prohibits copying of DVDs for your own sake.
Like Keiko above says, it isn’t a safe country in a way, but a safe country just for the people working in the government. Also, there’re bad people out there but more awful are the police, who just stops you for nothing and illegally arrest you. The police can stop you but answering to what they say is by law OPTIONAL, but they say that it is MANDATORY. Never touch police officers or make jokes to them, as they won’t understand and take everything very seriously. They won’t pummel you but will surround you and never let you leave without arresting you for false accusations which will just lead your happy vacation to a sad conversation with a cellmate. If you think I’m joking take your chance.
Jess
I took advantage of the cheap airfare last summer and headed to Japan, and was SHOCKED at how affordable everything was…actually quite a deal compared to a lot of NYC spots! Also, western tourism was still really down while we were there, so all the hostels and hotels we stayed at were fantastic deals, and everyone was refreshingly polite!:-)
Rachel Anastasia
I’m currently in the midst of planning a year traveling and Japan was number one (ichiban!) on my list of places to go. I actually had tickets to go right around when the earthquake/tsunami happened and had to cancel my trip so I am really excited to finally have the time to explore. One of my biggest concerns is blowing my entire budget there based on the stories I’ve heard of cost, so this post was really informative. Thanks!
Elmer Cruz
One of my dream destinations, together with my partner, is Japan and we are really trying to save a lot for the trip. You are right that if we do the same as how we normally travel in Southeast Asia we’d really be racking up on credit card bills after. Your tips, however, gave me the courage to look into the alternatives like Couchsurfing. I’ve heard about it thru stumbleupon and immediately became a member. We also have a few friends there so now it seems doable, perhaps within the next 6 months. Thanks so much for a well researched article. You are a gift to the traveling community.
Cheapo Greg
Someone already mentioned it but the Seishun 18 ticket is available twice a year. It goes on sale earlier but can be used from July 20th until September 20th. It allows unlimited travel on local and regular express trains for up to 5 non-consecutive days. It’s slow, but a great way to see the country.
In terms of food, places like Yoshinoya, Sukiya, Nakau, Matsuya etc. are cheaper than buying the ingredients and cooking it yourself – especially because you’ll have to buy ingredients in small amounts so you can use them all up.
Steve
Hi, I think your info on costs in Japan is not realistic. Things are a lot more expensive and I believe it’s borderline impossible to travel for just $100/day.
In fact if you put all your energy into getting the cheapest hostel or hotel, getting only cheap and slow transportation, eat only the cheapest junk food and do not do much sightseeing it might cost that much, but really why would you come to Japan if you couldn’t do anything there???
One of the best things in Japan is the food. It’s possible to maybe just spend around 2000 Yen for breakfast and lunch, but many restaurants will easily cost several thousand for dinner, and if you plan to get drinks you will easily pay 500 yen for a beer in cheapo places. Add to that some snacks and you are looking at maybe 10000 yen total for a day. If you plan to hang out at specialty restaurants or nicer bars you can easily double, tripple if not quadruple that number.
Now hotels: Pretty much anything that is not a total shithole will set you back around 10,000 yen per night. You will pay a lot more for transportation, even if you only take busses: A single subway ride in Tokyo costs around $2 and since there are a ton of independent companies with their own subways and you will need to get around a lot you can’t really buy a pass.
Long store short: Budget $200 per day at the very least.
NomadicMatt
This is exactly what I spent in Japan.
I don’t know what you mean about the subway – I bought passes all the time and they got me on every subway line. Tokyo’s subway is city run. You might be referring to the JR line which is owned by a couple of different companies but a JR pass will get you on all of them.
I suspect our travel styles are quite different and you were doing something much higher end than I was but, even in regards to the food, it isn’t as expensive as you are making it out to be (as a number of the comments here can attest to) and suspect you avoided the local markets and restaurants on your trip, where you would find very affordable food. In fact, the food was so much cheaper than I thought I was completely shocked.
John
Hey Matt,
I am looking to visit Japan for ten days or so (hitting Tokyo, Kyoto, and Hiroshima). Excluding the rail pass how much do you think I should budget per day if I stay only at Hostels, and eat at local restaurants (nothing expensive), and use public transportation?
Also, are the cities traveler friendly for independent travelers? Like with a tour map could you navigate around easily?
Jeff
Hi Matt,
Both thumbs up for your blog! A lot of helpful tips and knowledge bundled, great! Just one thing that I don’t understand, is it that sushi is more expensive than the other options to eat you mentioned? I keep thinking that (eating) sushi in Japan is less expensive than whatever home country you’re from?
We’re (family 4) planning to visit Japan (and its Alps) this summer (any tips on weather?) and I REALLY look forward to satisfying my sushi addiction! Having to reconsider this would be major mindset adjustment (but I’ll get over it!).
NomadicMatt
You can eat from the sushi trains for 100 yen a plate (1 dollar). That will be your cheapest option.
Brandon Mathews
Hey, NomadicMatt. Thank you for sharing the information/insight. I’m a 28y/o recovering alcoholic, and am in many ways just beginning my adult life. I’m staying with family right now and really need a breath of fresh air.
I’ve always felt a sort of aching when I saw glimpses of Japan and Japanese culture. I feel as though my spirit has been there before, and I’ve always longed to travel there.
I’ve been working at a bakery in western PA for about 7 months now, and have saved a couple thousand dollars.
As crazy as it may seem, I feel like now may be the time for me to fulfill this desire I’ve had for the latter half of my life. I would most likely use any/all money I have to my name in doing this, and would be looking at a very uncertain future. Sounds crazy to me.
If you see this and have a chance, I would greatly appreciate any advice, knowledge, & wisdom you could share with me.
Thank you so much.
Brandon
Vernon Henro
Matt-
I travel to Japan every year, staying for a month or two with my son and his family. Rail passes are a must, and I’ve travelled most of the islands at one time or another. One thing I think you and your readers have missed is the use of business hotels. They are usually near the train stations, often just across the street. Most cost about $60 a night. The rooms are small, but the are clean and comfortable with ensuite bathrooms, wi-fi and televisions. In Kanazawa I stayed in one that also proved an in-room computer. And, most offer a buffet breakfast. Lonely Planet is a good, reliable guide to these hotels.
Luis
I’m just finishing up visit to Kyoto and certainly agree with posted comments. One correction I would offer is that the metro day pass is only good until midnight of day purchased, not 24 hours…At least in my case. On the food topic, we often grab some ‘rice balls’ at Lawson or Family Mart for days we will be on the move… Triangle – shaped, with tune or other fillings
lsen
Japan’s frequently cited as being expensive simply by measure of erroneous comparisons to SE Asian countries; it’s a modern, industrial, technologically advanced (with unusual caveats to that statement) country, and should thus be compared to similar countries such as Singapore or city states like Hong Kong. Japan has a high standard of living, which, like anywhere else, you pay accordingly.
The transport system is just about the best in the world, accommodation is contextually reasonably priced, and the food is amazingly good value given the quality. On which note I would strongly advise against eating solely at fast food restaurants as you are missing out on one of the main reasons to come to Japan. Drinking is, however, very expensive, unless you avoid beer, which is heavily taxed. Sake, shochu, whisky, and other spirits are remarkably cheap in comparison.
In my travels around Japan, I set my accommodation limit at ¥6,000 – 8,000, which will get you a cheap business hotel or a reasonable ryokan. Capsules are awful, but worth doing once, hostels variable (but generally good, though not for me), and there’s often a good minshuku deal to be had. Love motels are another option, though obviously more fun with a partner. Add the fact that I don’t skimp on food, have nights out, and aim to enjoy my traveling rather than compete on squeezing every last penny, and I’d say a more palatable figure is much more around the ¥15 – 20,000 a day. ¥10,000 a day would just be a miserable subsistence experience. Blanket rules cannot be applied to budget traveling, Japan is a culinary extravaganza; deny yourself that and you may as well not bother coming.
Mark
Your point about comparison between Japan and Singapore is pretty accurate. But to be honest I find Singapore also very expensive.
A 10 minute cab ride from Airport to my hotel set me back by 27 SGD. I haven’t been to a lot of countries but that seemed expensive to me. This was however pre-uber. just my two cents.
Lili
So, here’s the thing, im mexican and will be going to south korea for a semester, once im finished with school i want to travel, my question is, what do you recommend more, China and japan (2 separate journeys), or going to east asia (cambodia, thailand, Myanmar and vietnam is what i had planned) im thinking on spending no more than 2000 usd.
Rashaad
When I went to Kyushu during Golden Week 2010, I bought a three day SunQ bus pass and it’s a good way to save money while traveling in Kyushu. It’s valid for all buses on that island.
swanny
ok i might just add that if you want to go skiing, Japan is far cheaper than Australia and New Zealand. The lift passes and ski hire blows that of Oz and NZ out of the water.
Not sure how it compares to Europe or Canada but as an Australian (from Perth) it is far cheaper to get to than Europe or N America. I tend to go there for skiing for a week or two every year. Brilliant conditions, great powder, really nice people and Niseko has a brilliant nightlife (even though there are more Aussies than Japanese people there).
From my experience only Tokyo is expensive and even there you can find cheap places!
Todd
Excellent article. I budget-traveled to Japan many years ago, and was curious as to how it compared today – this article was just the (pun ahead) ticket. One important note: Exchange rate makes a HUGE difference. Your article (from 2012) quotes a rate of 80 yen to the dollar. As of today (2016), it’s 110 yen to the dollar. That’s almost 40% more for your dollar! Arrigato!
Burcu Basar
I was scared to travel to Japan just for cost reasons but once I went – I found that without giving up too much quality – you can still have a decent experience both accommodation and food-wise at a reasonable cost. Japan rail pass is also another plus and ANA Airlines also offers Visit Japan passes with which you can get a one way ticket for around USD 90. I have been to Japan three times and it did not break the bank. Burcu (www.burcubasar.com)
Steve Mitcham
I appreciate the effort in this article, but it’s difficult to escape the conclusion that despite what one might try and do to cut down the costs, Japan *is* indeed a fundamentally expensive place to visit. It’s the transportation that makes this the case. The rail pass is a better option than paying single tickets, but that’s only because single rail tickets are incredibly expensive to begin with. It’s still not cheap to pay almost 300 dollars for a week of internal travel (after you’ve already paid for flights to get there). There aren’t many destinations in the world that are as expensive as that – in fact I can’t think of a single one where I’ve paid as much as that on internal travel costs.
So it’s only not expensive if you want to just stay in one city the entire time or make very very limited travel between different places. In short, for any normal tourist that wants to see some of the country it’s expensive and there isn’t actually a good way around that.
Neil
Yes, the airfare is the expensive part. It’s a given it will cost a pretty penny. I flew from IAD to NRT via Incheon on Korean Air – it cost me about $1900 RT.
However after extensive searching, my hotel was similar to a super 8 (had hot water, secure front desk, internet, etc) for an average of $75/night. My daily expenses when I was out and about was budgeted at a max of $80 which I easily kept…other days I went over a little.
Key was that I had a backpack with me and always stopped by the 7-11 and/or Lawsons and/or DonQuihote store to pick up water/snacks. That was the key to saving during the day when I had munchies, as a 20oz of drink of water/soda was approx JPY 150. While a liter of water was say JPN 350. Do the math this way for snacks and drinks…bring them back to the hotel room……and they all make for a well spent vacation (IMO)
Romain Simoni
It doesn’t seem too expensive considering the quality and the amount of travel you can arrange by using the pass. Don’t forget internal travel here means the whole country, not just a single city. But it seems there’s always too much exclusions and restrictions and that’s way too univinting.
Souptik Biswas
Is Japan expensive in January? I thought it’s winter so I expect it to be cheapest, but I’m curious about the new year eve in Japan. Can anyone please help me regarding that?
Marta
Why do you say Airbnb is banned in the country?
When I go and search for Tokyo or elsewhere, it appears loads of bedrooms and apartments…
NomadicMatt
They are illegal listings.
http://www.traveller.com.au/airbnb-in-japan-close-to-80-per-cent-of-listings-removed-after-crackdown-h112pl
Rohan Gillett
That’s very true. I own an apartment in Tokyo and the building has banned AirBnB, as has many others.
Lyric
None of the listings are illegal if they’re on Airbnb, even the Japanese government has confirmed this. They were NEVER banned. The issue was that most owners weren’t prepared to adhere to new regulations. Certain municipalities and whatnot can ban homeowners from renting through Airbnb, but that’s not a strictly “illegal in Japan” kind of thing at all. There was an article last April that even talked about how Airbnb was recovering after the crackdown because before, the amount of people using the service was causing hotel prices to drop. Just because Airbnb is banned in some places doesn’t mean it’s absolutely banned nationwide, and should be included as a way to save money. Kyoto in itself bans Airbnb from April to December, but that doesn’t mean it’s absolutely illegal. I would think a writer would do more research into this topic before publishing.
Miguel
Just wanted to leave a comment to say although there are strict regulations on Airbnb’s in Japan, contrary to what the above article claims, as of 2019 Airbnb’s aren’t ‘banned’.
I stayed in 3 different Airbnb’s during my 18 day stay there with no issues at all, and it was all very convenient.
Lia
i totally agree with you, Matt! I returned from my 14 days trip in Japan and the final cost was 1500 euros (including flights from Greece to Tokyo and back).
Try it ppl.
Pip
Um, you (of all people) don’t take the night coach (bus) ?
Actually in Japan they enforce the curtains being drawn on coaches at night and there’s one at the front too so you’re in a totally darkened environment. It’s meant to be relaxing but it’s a little scary because you can’t see what’s outside.
If you’re travelling to Japan at certain times of the year (university holidays), you can get seishun 18 kippu tickets for the train, which is a right laugh if you have no concrete plans and are easy going. Don’t bother if you’re likely to stress about changing trains seven times in one day and panicking about making the connection. You can get last minute accommodation in the Stix for about ¥5,000 or camp illegally (recommended).
AirBnB properties are required to have a health and safety licence but last I looked it existed and was not banned in Japan.
You can buy decent quality fruit and veg at 100 yen Lawson.
In Tokyo, get out of the main tourist places and check out real Tokyo. Walk around and see what you find. The cool places in Ikebukuro, for example, aren’t in any cheesy guidebook (unlike brimming-with-foreign-tourists-these-days Golden Gai). There are a fair few decent bars to be found without any crowds.
Also in Tokyo and Osaka can rent a bike cheaply and cycle around most of the downtown.
Lyric
Hey, I just wanted to let you know there was a little bit of misinformation in this article (though I appreciate the tips and will be using them when I go!). Airbnb actually isn’t banned in Japan at all. It never was. There were some regulations put into place because hotels were having to drop their prices, so that affected a ton of Airbnb listings. I assure you, though, that Airbnb is definitely legal there lol Hosts just now have to register their listings with local authorities and in some places, they can only rent rooms or homes out during certain months.