Tag: Osaka

Going Solo in Japan: 13 days & 7 cities for less than ₱50,000

Last October 2015, my friends & I went for a 9-day x ₱40,000 (each) journey around 3 key Japan cities. We enjoyed our first 5 days in the very busy Tokyo, literally walked around the ancient capital Kyoto & sort-of relaxed in the hippie city of Osaka. Towards the end of the trip, I kept on telling my friends that I will go back to the country really soon.

It didn’t take long until the next Japan trip happened. 3 months ago, I went on a 13-day solo Japan trip around 7 cities. I met 2 friends along the way, but I was on my own most of the time. It was a life-changing experience! I want to do it again.

Deer selfie at Nara Park

In 2015, I only spent ₱40,000 for the whole 9 days in Japan. For the 2016 trip, I challenged myself to try to fit in ₱50,000 (all in!) for the whole 13 days in. That’s additional 5 days & 4 nights, but only an additional ₱10,000 from the last budget. I may not have someone to share the cost of getting a pocket Wi-Fi, but not buying tickets for theme parks like DisneySea & Universal Studios Japan helped stretch the budget for a few more days.

The Japanese Yen (¥) to Philippine Peso (₱) exchanged rate changed from ₱0.39 in 2015 to ₱0.45 last year. This change in the currency rate affected the budgeting a lot; but it was all good. I was able to fit in ₱50,000 for the whole 13 days (including tickets); I even managed to hoard some chocolates & treats for my family & friends back home.

Hiroshima’s Shukkeien Garden

Let me elaborate below how I conquered the challenge. The discussion will be divided into 6 parts – Plane ticket, Bus pass, Route / itinerary, Accommodation, Pocket Wi-Fi & Everyday expenses.

Plane Ticket

It was late January 2016 when I came across a Cebu Pacific Air seat sale to all their destinations. I randomly checked possible dates of a Japan trip; I found a round-trip ticket for November for less than ₱5,000 (fare only). With no hesitations, I booked the said Manila-Nagoya-Fukuoka-Manila ticket. The trip was 13 days long; it includes 2 weekends & 1 Philippine holiday. What made me more excited is that my trip coincides with the peak of autumn in most places in Japan.

Round-trip Japan ticket for less than ₱6,000 was definitely a bargain!

I added baggage to my ticket a few days before my departure to & from Japan. Overall, I paid ₱5,907.87 for my round-trip ticket. A normal ticket Japan would cost around ₱15,000; so getting a ticket at this price is such a bargain.

Note that a Philippine passport holder is required to pay a travel tax worth ₱1,620 before leaving the country.

Visa

The Embassy of Japan in the Philippines does not accept personal visa applications. All applications should go through their accredited travel agencies. I submitted my requirements to Reli Tours & Travel Agency in Dusit Thani Hotel, Makati City. Visa handling fee costs ₱950.

It only took 3 working days before I got my passport back. The Embassy of Japan in the Philippines granted me a 5-year multiple entry visa valid until October 2021. Good stuff.

Willer Express Japan Buss Pass

Given I fly in to Nagoya & fly out from Fukuoka, I had to plan out my route from one city to the other. I was checking the bus routes of Willer Express when I saw their Bus Pass promotion.

The bus pass allows you to book up to 3 rides per day for 3, 5 or 7 days days at a certain amount. I took advantage of this promotion & got myself the ¥10,000 3-day bus pass which can be redeemed Mondays to Thursdays. I took 3 overnight rides & 1 night ride using the bus pass. It saved me around ¥8,000 & 3 nights of hostel accommodation.

Kobe’s iconic tower

Route

If you think about it, 13 days is quite a long trip; so I told myself I must visit as many cities / places as I can.

Note: I will not talk about where I went in these cities; watch out for the 4 separate entries about these 7 cities.

I flew in to Nagoya & stayed there for 3 days & 2 nights. People normally skip this city because they believe there isn’t much to see. To be fair, they actually have scenic temples, parks & gardens. On the 3rd night, I took a 3-hour bus to Osaka, then another 6-hour overnight bus to Hiroshima.

European vibe in the middle of Nagoya – inside Noritake Garden

Genbaku Dōmu / Atomic Bomb Dome – UNESCO World Heritage Site in Hiroshima

The following morning, I met with my friend Michiko at the Hiroshima JR Station. We spent 2 days & 1 night in Hiroshima Prefecture; we visited Miyajima Island, then walked around the historical city & ate the best okonomiyaki in the area. On the 5th night, I took a 7-hour overnight bus to Kyoto.

With my friend Michiko before in Hiroshima

Upon arrival in Kyoto, I went to the hostel & waited for my friend Rona. We went around Kyoto for 1.5 days; we’ve been to the bamboo forest, plus temples & shrines. We also went to Gion to hunt for some geisha. We also met some cool people (Japanese, Dutch & some Filipinos based in Australia) at the hostel bar & enjoyed a night of drinking & sharing stories.

With Rona in a local ramen restaurant before she left for Tokyo

After another morning of temples & gardens, Rona & I boarded the 30-minute local train to Osaka. Rona stayed for a night (before she left for Tokyo) while I stayed for 3 nights. I went to some new places in the city – those I missed when I was there in 2015. I also met some amazing locals in Osaka plus a few tourists from Malaysia, South Korea & Germany. I also took day trips to Nara (with Rona) & Kobe (all by myself) which were both 1-hour local train rides from Osaka.

A beautiful sunny day in Nara Park

Dōtonbori – Osaka’s busiest place at night

On the 10th night, I took a 9-hour overnight bus all the way to the port city of Fukuoka. My final 3 days & 2 nights were spent here. Some parks & temples basically made up my last days in Japan. There were also awesome nights of drinking & walking around with some new friends from Singapore, Argentina, France & the US.

Ōhori Park – a place of scenic beauty in Fukuoka

I made a good choice of staying 2-3 days per city; I was able to visit most of what each city has to offer.

Accommodation

I’ve mentioned in my How I enjoyed a 9-day Japan trip for less than ₱40,000 all in blog post that Japan has one of the most expensive accommodation rates in Asia. To save some money, I decided to stay in hostels. Daily rate per bed in a dormitory room costs around ¥2,700 – ¥3,200. Each bed includes free Wi-Fi, a bed sheet, a pillow, a universal plug & a reading light. Also, these beds have curtains around so you still have your own privacy.

My dormitory bed in Osaka Hana Hostel

Hostels in Japan are generally clean & quiet. Dormitory rooms have common & clean shower areas & toilet. Hostels also provide free shampoo & soap. All properties have common lounge areas & kitchen facilities where you can meet fellow travelers.

Backpacker K’s House Kyoto Communal Lounge & Dining Area

I’ve stayed in 5 different hostels for 9 nights (3 nights were spent in overnight bus rides). The Hana Hostels / J Hoppers Group gives a ¥300 yen discount for every 3rd night stay in their hostels. I was able to get 2 x ¥300 yen discounts. I’ve provided a table for a summary of my accommodation costs:

The average daily rate would cost around ₱1,320 per hostel bed. It is a bit expensive if you compare it to the hostel rates in other Asian cities, but they are pretty affordable & reasonable in Japan. Also, all the hostels I stayed there are near subway stations & have excellent reviews online.

Pocket Wi-Fi

Given I will be on my own most of the time, I got myself a pocket Wi-Fi to help me navigate around each city / place. It also helped me check on the train schedules to different places.

I got my 3G pocket Wi-Fi from Japan Wireless for ₱3,268.15 for 12 full days. The package was delivered directly to my 1st hostel in Nagoya. The package included an extra battery bank, a pouch, charger & an envelope (to be used when sending the package back). I returned on my last day by dropping it in the nearest post box (can be dropped anywhere in Japan). I recommend getting a pocket Wi-Fi every time you go to Japan to prevent from getting lost.

Arashiyama Bamboo Forest – a must-see place in Kyoto

Daily Expenses

Just like the 2015 Japan trip, I gave myself a daily budget to cover all meals, transportation costs, entrance fees & beers (lol). I raised the daily budget to ¥3,500 per day (higher by ¥500 from the last year’s daily budget) because I was on my own & I don’t have anyone to share my meals & expenses with. There were also times where I splurged on food, like when I ate at Ichiran Ramen twice! Their ramen was soooo good I had to go back. I also had a kobe beef lunch set in Kobe which was also gooood!

Ichiran ramen was sooooo good! Too bad we don’t have one here in Manila

Kobe Beef’s melts-in-your-mouth goodness!

Instead of getting daily breakfast from 7-Eleven or Family Mart, I drop by the supermarket before going home at night to buy my own bento meal. Most supermarkets offer discounted food at night because they need to sell all cooked food before the stores close. I store these packed meals at the hostel fridge & just reheat them the following morning.

One of the many bento breakfasts I had

I also had some spare money from the daily budget which I used to buy some chocolates & treats for family & friends back home.

Summary

All expenses are in. Let’s have a look how much I spent all in for this 13-day trip. Note: Exchange rate during my trip: ¥1 = ₱0.45 (doesn’t include items paid via credit card -> pocket wi-fi & bus pass)

See? I made it! I survived a 13-day Japan trip around 7 cities for less than ₱50,000. It may not be as super affordable as travelling in Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City or Kuala Lumpur; but Japan offers a different kind of experience you wouldn’t want to miss.

I know I’ve said it in my previous Japan blog, but I will say it again here. Travelling to Japan isn’t that expensive as many people think. There will always be ways to make it really affordable. I’m telling you, next time you see a cheap round trip ticket to any city in Japan, go ahead & book it. It’s a trip you’ll never regret!

Watch out for the specific blog posts about the experiences I had in the 7 cities mentioned above. It will be posted here in the coming weeks. If you have any questions, feel free to comment below or send me an email to contact@thewkndtravel.com. You can also send me a message on Facebook, drop a comment on Instagram or send me a tweet on Twitter.

Autumn colors in Meijō Park, Nagoya 😍

PS. All photos above were shot using my HTC Re.

The Japan Series | 3 of 3: OSAKA

For the past weeks, I talked about how I spent roughly ₱40,000 for this Japan trip, how we enjoyed Tokyo for 5 days & how we managed to squeeze as much as we can in our brief 1.5 days in Kyoto. Now, it’s down to the last part of this series; our final 2.5 days in Osaka. I will give you a detailed recap on what we did & where we went in our last days in Japan.

Let me tell you that the primary reason we dropped by Osaka is to visit Universal Studios Japan, especially The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. We kind of relaxed a bit in this part of the trip; there was no pressure to go to this place or that.

The Japan crew at Universal Studios Japan 😃

Day 1 (Day 0.5)

After getting the our bags at Backpackers Hostel K’s House Kyoto, we walked to the JR Kyoto Station & took the 29-minute train to Osaka Station. We then transferred to the local Midosuji Line to Namba Station where our Airbnb apartment is near.

Inside Namba Parks Shopping Centre

We dropped our stuff & settled for a while. After an hour of rest, we walked around the nearby Namba Parks. It is a commercial complex with an 8-level garden with waterfalls, ponds, etc. It also has very interesting interiors. After walking around the complex, we then walked our way to Dōtonbori via the Shinsaibashi shopping street. I think it was a 1.5 km walk from Namba Parks. We didn’t mind walking because the weather was nice.

Colorful Dōtonbori at night (with the famous Glico Man)

We braved the crowd & took photos with the famous Glico Man. We also checked out the shops & restaurants within the shopping area. We stopped by a local tempura shop to have dinner before we walked back to the apartment.

Day 2

We only had one planned for this day & it was the main reason we stopped by Osaka before going home – to visit Universal Studios Japan. Ticket purchases were only available on site during our visit (unlike Tokyo Disney Sea, where we booked our tickets online). Each entry park ticket costs ¥7,400 per person (₱2,886 that time).

Upon entering the theme park, we immediately went to the ‘timed-entry’ ticketing booths for The Wizarding World of Harry Potter to get our scheduled entry passes. Yes, you’ve read that right, you need to secure your entry passes for you to go to the Harry Potter World. They regulate the entry of the guests every 20 minutes. Slots fill up really fast so make sure to get yours as soon as you enter the park.

USJ Park Ticket & Harry Potter World Timed-Entry Pass

We planned to get in there around sunset, but there were no longer passes available so we took the latest – 3:20 pm. We walked around the park & tried as many rides as we can while waiting for our turn. We had our lunch in SAWS Restaurant inside the Sharks Village. We also checked out the goodies in the specialty shops nearby & watched the daily parade of stars.

Saw Flying Ford Anglia before entering the theme park

At exactly 3:20 pm, we entered The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. It was a bit of a walk from the USJ theme park; but the long walk was worth it. The Hogwarts Express welcomed us to the park. We walked to Hogsmeade afterwards. We were lucky the butterbeer pop-up shop in just opened. I got a glass of iced butterbeer worth ¥700.

Iced butterbeer!!! 😋

We walked to the Hogwarts Castle & waited for the sun to set. The castle was beyond beautiful during sunset. We went inside the castle, saw some moving & talking people in the frames (just like the ones in the movie), a hologram of Dumbledore, Harry, Hermione & Ron & other familiar sightings from the movie.

The Hogwarts Castle before sunset

Sunset from the Wizarding World of Harry Potter

After a long day at USJ, we decided to go back to Shinsaibashi to have dinner. We also dropped by Daiso (the ¥108 shop) to get some goodies before heading back to the apartment.

Day 3

It was our last day in Japan. It was also a Sunday, so Junelle & I decided to hear mass in Sacra Familia Catholic Church in Umeda. Majo wasn’t able to join us because she could barely walk due to fatigue. We attended the 9:00 Sunday English mass.

Had a nice stroll at the Osaka Castle Park

After mass, we decided to have a quick look at the Osaka Castle. We took the subway to Osaka Business Park Station then walked through to the Osaka Castle Park. Due to limited time, we were not able to go inside the castle. We had to rush back to the apartment to get our things.

Outside Osaka Castle

After fixing our bags, we went out to have lunch in a nearby ramen restaurant. We had a short walk around Namba Parks again; then tried the famous okonomiyaki (pan-fried food with batter, cabbage & a variety of toppings & ingredients) on our way back. We got our luggage & went straight to Kansai International Airport for our flight back to Manila. The flight left Osaka a little late, but we landed at Ninoy Aquino International Airport on schedule.

That pretty much sums up the short stay we had in Osaka. Before we left Japan, I made a promise to myself that I will go back to this beautiful country as soon as possible to explore more. That promise materialized after a year where I went back to Japan for 13 days & explored 7 cities. I will tell you more about that recent trip in the upcoming blog posts.

I hope you had fun reading through the 3 parts of our October 2015 Japan trip. Make sure to also check out how I managed to spend less than ₱40,000 for this 9-day trip. If you have any questions, feel free to comment below or send me an email to contact@thewkndtravel.com. Alternatively, you can also send me a message on Facebook or ask me on Instagram or Twitter.

Arigatou gozaimasu (ありがとうございます) 🇯🇵 & have a nice day! 😃

PS. Thanks again to Junelle for allowing me to use some of her photos.

2016 Recap: Going Solo

In less than 25 hours, another year will come to an end. Before I start another calendar year in my life, I believe it is a good time to look back where this year took me.

2016 was mostly about solo travel. After years of travelling with various sets of friends, I finally had the courage to go on my own, (re)discover old & new places, experience different cultures & meet new friends.

Let me give you a recap of how this year of solo (& some of not-so-solo) travels went.

Yangon, Myanmar

I initially planned this as the first solo trip of the year but my friend Geof tagged along. There are no direct flights from Manila to Yangon; so we had to book tickets to Bangkok, then onwards to Yangon. We had a 16-hour layover in Bangkok so we took the chance to go out of the airport, stay in a hostel over the night & see the Grand Palace in the morning.

           Team Philmar at the Yangon Amazing Games 2016

Then, we took the afternoon flight to Yangon & spent the rest of the trip there. We joined the Amazing Game Yangon & attended the Global Village 2016 Program, both organized by AIESEC in Myanmar. We also went around the city by foot, discovered different temples & pagodas & experienced Chinese New Year in Yangon Chinatown. We went to different markets, tried their street food & watched football (with beers) with our roommates in the hostel.

                   A visit to the Shwedagon Pagoda

Of course, a visit in Yangon will never be complete without visiting the Shwedagon Pagoda. It’s definitely a place to visit in Yangon.

Koh Lipe, Thailand

This should have been a beach trip to the Gilis in Indonesia or a weekend in the forests of Luang Prabang, but plans changed when Carl, the Brit guy we met in Ao Nang last year, recommended Koh Lipe. This place is also known as the Maldives of Thailand.

It was my first international solo trip, to an island unknown to all people I know back home. It took me 2 flights (Manila to Kuala Lumpur, then to Langkawi) & 1 ferry ride (Langkawi to the island) to reach Koh Lipe.

                 Walking at the shores of Koh Rawi

I had the most relaxing 3 days of my life there. I literally walked around the beautiful island, sipped some fresh fruit shakes while sitting on the shore, enjoyed some quiet time in paradise, got sun-kissed in the scenic beaches & met some cool new friends in the hostel & in the island tour.

Koh Lipe is truly a paradise; it’s a place I will definitely go back to in the future.

      With my sister in the grounds of Petronas Twin Towers, KL

I had a one night stopover in Kuala Lumpur before I flew back to Manila. I dropped by to visit my sister who was assigned there for work. We heard mass & had lunch together; also made a quick visit to the grounds of the Petronas Twin Towers.

Pangasinan

For the 2nd year in a row (& maybe for the last time), my friends at work decided to have a beach weekend trip somewhere far from the metro. We, a group of 16 fun people, went to Pangasinan for a weekend last May.

           View from the Governor's Island, Hundred Islands

We spent the first day around the Hundred Islands in Alaminos City. We walked around a crowded island, went to caves & jumped over a cliff. We then went to a lighthouse, a beach, another cave & into a market on the 2nd day.

                      With the best colleagues!

The road trip was really long, we enjoyed each other’s company.

Boracay Island, Aklan

This trip pushed through just because I didn’t want to waste the cheap roundtrip tickets I booked. I went to Boracay all by myself, stayed in a party hostel & ended up having a great time up to the point I didn’t want to leave.

                 Mad Monkey Hostel Boracay's pool

The weather wasn’t that favourable during my stay. Good thing, Mad Monkey Hostel had a swimming pool & a bar / restaurant. I found myself staying in the hostel all throughout the trip, talking to different people from all parts of the world, drinking with new-found friends & exchanging travel stories with everyone.

                           Boracay Beach

It was also one of the days where I had too much alcohol, passed out & woke up in my bed the next day not knowing how I went back the night before.

El Nido, Palawan

Just like the Yangon trip, this was supposed to be another solo trip. Days & months after, my high school travel buddies joined, making it a reunion trip for the 4 of us. The last trip the 4 of us were complete was way back in Singapore 2 years ago.

           With my highschool travel buddies / constants!

El Nido is place I will never get tired of visiting. It was my 3rd time to visit the paradise & I still am in awe of how beautiful the place is. I took my friends to Nacpan Beach twice (Yes, twice!) then joined them in the famous Tour A (Lagoon Tour).

                    Small Lagoon, Miniloc Island

It’s one of the trips where we made great memories together & enjoyed each other’s company.

Bangkok, Thailand

This is the best trip of my 2016. I wasn’t able to see much of what Bangkok has to offer but I surely had fun drinking, socializing & partying.

   One of those nights in Khao San Rd with 10 other solo travellers

I flew to Bangkok with a roundtrip plane ticket, a hostel booking & no plans at all. The only ‘tourist-y’ I probably did there was to go on a day tour in Ayutthaya. The rest was all about meeting people, eating ฿40 pad thai on the streets, drinking Chang beers & partying in Khao San Rd.

           A game of cards turned into one big party group!

I also met & hangout with a lot of people from all over the world – England, United States, Canada, The Netherlands, Poland, India, Gibraltar & a lot more.

Japan

When I went to Japan last year, I made a promise to myself that I will definitely go back to explore more. It didn’t take long for me to book tickets back to Japan; thus this trip was born.

      European city vibe in a middle of a Japanese City (Nagoya)

This 13-day trip brought me to the beautiful gardens of Nagoya, the historical sites of Hiroshima, the ancient temples of Kyoto, the busy shopping streets of Osaka, the friendly deers of Nara, the tender beef cuts of Kobe & the delicious ramens of Fukuoka.

                   Arashiyama Bamboo Forest in Kyoto

I was able to experience the Japanese culture again but this time with the luxury of time.

                          Deer selfie ;)

That sums up all my travels for this year. I may have explored fewer places & countries this year; but I surely made awesome memories with different people.  I might not have anything booked or planned as of yet, but I look forward to another year of solo (& maybe not-so-solo) travels for 2017!

*Yangon photo credits to Geof & Nappark photo credit to Danielle.

How I enjoyed a 9-day Japan trip for less than ₱40,000 ALL IN!

 Disclaimer: Currency rate during our trip was 1 JPY = 0.39 PHP

Last July, ABS-CBN News reported that the Japanese embassy issued 225,676 visas to visitors from the Philippines for 2015. It was 38% higher than the number of visas issued the previous year. The increased number of Filipino tourists in Japan is a result of a more relaxed visa policy & the increased number of budget airline flights going to Japan on a daily or weekly basis. My friends (Majo & Junelle) & I were 3 of the 225,676 Filipinos who were given Japanese visas last year.

Many Filipinos think travelling to Japan is expensive. People say you need to at least have ₱100,000 to be able to enjoy 5-7 days in Japan. That is partly true; but only to people who are fond of staying in hotels, eating in fancy restaurants & taking guided tours. I say, there is always a cheaper way of doing things. In this post, I will show you how my friends and I enjoyed a 9-day Japan trip for less than ₱40,000 each. Please note that I won’t talk about the places we’ve been to because that is reserved for another post.

In case you missed it, I have been to Japan numerous times after this 2015 trip. I wrote some of the next budget trips, I hope you can check them out here: [2016] Going Solo in Japan: 13 days & 7 cities for less than ₱50,000, [2017] Outside Popular Japan Cities: Fujikawaguchiko & Takayama On A Budget – 7 Days For Less Than ₱35,000, [2018] Hokkaido Winter Series: The Ultimate Japan Winter Experience Without Breaking The Bank (7 Days For Less than ₱45,000 all-in), & [2019] Last-Minute Japan Weekend: 48 Hours in FUKUOKA For Less Than ₱12,500 – Flights & Hostel Included.

????????????????????????????????????

It was mid-October when we flew to Japan for 9 days. We spent the first 5 days in Tokyo, then headed south to Kyoto for 1.5 days & finally to Osaka for the remaining 2.5 days. It was the start of autumn so the trees & leaves were really beautiful. The temperature were just about right, not as hot as Manila & not as cold as Seoul.

I will divide the discussion into 5 parts – plane ticket, accommodation, things booked / bought before flying, daily expenses & chocolates / treats (pasalubong in Filipino).

Plane Ticket

Junelle & I were able to book a round trip ticket to Japan (with 20 kgs baggage per way) for less than ₱5,000 (₱4,912.56 to be exact) about 6 months before our trip. We took advantage of Cebu Pacific Air‘s Easter fare sale. Majo was able to book her ticket during a random fare sale 3 months before the trip for around ₱5,500.

japan-ticket-screenshot

A normal round trip ticket to Japan would cost you ₱15,000 – ₱20,000. Getting a ticket for less than ₱5,000 is definitely a great deal!

By the way, we also paid ₱1,620 for the Philippine travel tax before leaving Manila. This is mandatory to all Philippine passport holders who are leaving the country for vacation.

Accommodation

Japan has probably one of the most expensive hotel rates in Asia. A room for 2 in a nice hotel can cost you around ₱8,000-₱12,000. Very expensive. Even hostels have higher rates compared to the usual $10-$15 rate in Southeast Asia. For this trip, we only needed a place to take a shower, rest & sleep so we decided to stay in hostels. We also opted to stay there to save money.

In Tokyo, we stayed for 4 nights in Oak Hostel Zen. It’s a very cozy hostel located in Taito area, a few minutes walk from JR Yamanote Line’s Uguisudani Station. The girls stayed in a twin room with common bathroom while I stayed in an 8-bed dorm room also with common bathroom. I payed ¥13,100 (around ₱5,109) for all 4 nights, roughly ₱1,280 per night. Each dorm bed had its own reading light, universal plug & curtain + super fast WiFi. I had my own privacy even if I stayed in a room for 8 people. [Update – Oak Hostel Zen has ceased operations due to the Covid-19 pandemic.]

tokyo-to-kyoto

For the 5th night, we decided to take the night bus from Tokyo to Kyoto. The bus trip takes 7-8 hours so that saved us one night hostel accommodation. We booked our tickets via the Willer Express website. We took the Relax bus where each passenger has a plug beside him/her plus luggage check-in is allowed. The bus ticket costs ¥5,900 each (around ₱2,301).

We spent our 6th night in Kyoto. We also stayed in a hostel named Backpackers Hostel K’s House. It is about 15 minutes walk from JR Kyoto Station. We got ourselves a triple room with common bathroom. The room cost ¥9,600 for 3 people; that’s ¥3,200 per person (roughly ₱1,248).

The last 2 nights were spent in a room in Taichi’s flat. We were supposed to stay in Osaka Hana Hostel but since Majo joined us last minute, we had to look for another one. Accommodations in Osaka fill up pretty fast, we were lucky we found Taichi’s place. The last 2 nights cost us €122; that’s €40.67 each (around ₱2,130 each that time).

Our Tokyo & Kyoto accommodations were booked via Hostelworld while our Osaka accommodation was arranged with Airbnb. These platforms help travellers a lot in looking for accommodation in almost all places. They also feature reviews done by previous guests which contain ratings & comments about their respective stays.

Things booked / bought before leaving for Japan

There were 2 things we purchased before leaving for Japan – pocket WiFi & DisneySea tickets. Since we were staying for 9 days & we were afraid of getting lost (which we did by the way!), we rented a 3G pocket WiFi from E-Connect Japan. We got it for ¥6,986 or ₱2,825.97 (₱942 each) for the whole duration of the trip. We had it delivered to our hostel a day before our arrival. We also purchased our Disney Sea tickets ahead of time to save us from lining up in the park ticket counters. Each ticket costs ¥6,900 (₱2,776.89 rate reflected in my credit card statement).

Daily expenses in Japan

imag0016-2

I can’t remember exactly how much we paid for each meal or for each subway ride; but what we did was to allocate a daily budget for food, transportation & temple entrance fees. An average good meal in Japan costs around ¥400 – ¥500 while a subway ride could cost you around ¥150-¥200 depending on the distance. We didn’t want to deprive ourselves during the trip so we had a daily budget of ¥3,000 yen. That daily budget turned out to be too much for a day. You can survive with ¥2,000 a day.

Daily budget - ¥3,000 x 9 days = ¥27,000 x ₱0.39 = ₱10,530

**We weren’t able to buy Universal Studios Japan (USJ) tickets while we were still in the Philippines so we bought it on the day itself. An entrance ticket costs ¥7,400 per person (₱2,886 pesos).

Chocolates / Treats

A trip to Japan will never be complete without buying chocolates, treats or anything matcha-related. I remember I bought different kinds of chocolates & biscuits plus some random goodies in Harajuku & Daiso. I don’t exactly remember how much each item costs but I believe I spent around ¥12,000 (roughly ₱4,680).

Summary of Expenses

Let’s now sum up everything mentioned above:

japan-summary-2

There you go! We only spent ₱39,139.45 all in for a 9-day trip to Tokyo, Kyoto & Osaka! Yes, that already included airfare, accommodation, food, transportation, park tickets & even pasalubong (treats & chocolates).

Travelling to Japan isn’t that expensive as many people think. There will always be ways to make it really affordable. I’m telling you, next time you see a cheap round trip ticket to any city in Japan, go ahead & book it. It’s a trip you’ll never regret!

PS. Thanks to Junelle for allowing me to use our photo in Roppongi.