Hi im going to osaka, kyoto for 10 days. I did some research and was wondering if USJ is worth going. Anyone has experience on buying the ticket and what is your take on it.

And in Kyoto, I was wondering if any temple is worth going cause in Kyoto, it seems that theres a lot of temple and they said if you have been to one, it is sufficient cause it looks the same. I will go to Gion, kiyomizudera (eventhough they said they are renovating, im wondering if we can still visit around that area), fushimi inari, arashimaya, nara.

I felt that theres a lot more to do in osaka than kyoto. correct me if im wrong.

I will like your take on it if anyone has been there. this will be my first time heading there. Thanks.

Sorry we don't encourage spoonfeeding here. U can get tips from the first page of this thread, many useful links there. Also visit www.japan-guide.com.
Hahaha, RC's spirit still lives on!

Hey guys, I have a few questions regarding money and transactions in Japan. So first of all, I am just curious about where I should exchange my currency at. Before I go straight to the point, let me explain a bit of my upcoming journey. So the thing is that, I will be flying from the U.S. to Japan and many people said that Japan do not have many currency exchange service, and I was advised to change at my local bank. If I were to withdraw in Japan itself, I will incur a 3% charge on what I withdraw. So should I withdraw in the U.S. itself or in Japan, seeing most of the airport currency exchange is terrible..?

Another question is that, is credit card widely acceptable within Japan? The places I have set in mind would be Tokyo and Osaka. My credit card company allows me to use it in Japan without incurring any extra charges, which is great! But I am just curious if it is widely covered across Japan?

Hi guys
Is it okay to use Airbnb in TOkyo and osaka?

Sakura period around the other places you intend to visit is very early april. Late april/may need to go up to hokkaido d, and it's crazy to try and lump shirakawago/fuji/hokkaido in 10days.
https://www.jnto.go.jp/sakura/eng/index.php

Hi,

Anyone tried ANA before? It's about RM 300 more than AA but RM 800 cheaper than MAS for my trip.
Depart to Narita but return from Haneda which isn't a problem for me. I notice the baggage limit is 23kg instead of 30kg.
Economy class with these meals am I right? If yes then it's very similar to what I had with MAS last year.
Comfort wise how does it compare with MAS A330? It has in flight entertainment as well? Am I missing anything?
Thanks.

Hi All, our family 6 adults 2 kids will be traveling to japan next month. we have decided to rent a car, have anyone rent a car there before? Have you guys rent from https://www2.tocoo.jp/en/ before? Any feedbacks? Thanks.

Hi there , need some helps here ... Will be going to Osaka on Nov ... but i totally no idea where shall i start from ...

8 Days 7 Nights ... please give me some ideas ... ( i'm traveling with few old peoples )

Kinda in dilemma ...

Thanks ... ya, understood. i check in tripadvisor, i think they are genuine and also checked with my local host in JP, she also said said never heard of it but general they are trusted in japan. will do further survey and probably will pay more for those reputable one.

one more month to go so im here posting again. im going tokyo june 21st to july 1st. anyone going tht time and not confidence walking around or dunno how to plan ur trip can pm me, i know my way around tokyo better than KL.

You have my attention lol. Shop name and whereabouts?

Hi, I'm back with question again. Do we need special adaptor for Japan. I know their voltage is less than us so do we need special transformer?

Hey guys, I need some advice on the validity of my Malaysian passport. Currently, I will be heading to Japan from the U.S., and my Malaysian passport will expire on the 20th of August. Will there be any problems entering Japan? From what I have searched on Google, this is their statement on the validity:

You must have a valid passport and an onward/return ticket for tourist/business "visa free" stays of up to 90 days. Your passports must be valid for the entire time you are staying in Japan. You cannot work on a 90-day "visa free" entry

But the only thing that I am worried about is that, other countries have a passport validity requirement of at least 6 months before it expires. Does Japan have this rule?
Any opinions/ advice would help a lot, thanks!

Am i too early to plan for my next year summer vacation?

It will be my 4th visit to Japan, but my 1st one to Hokkaido. I initially plan to do it this year, but too last minute, too difficult to get leave, and flight ticket is abit expensive.. thus need to keep an eye on the Airasia coming sales =)
so few question here to clear my doubt

-What is the best time to visit Hokaiddo during summer? main concern is weather - dont want too hot
i plan for mid-late July visit to avoid the golden week, is it ok? It should be lavender/ sunflower peak season right?

-Tentatively, we will travel in a group of 2 adults, 1 elder, and 2 kids (4years old and 2 years old), i assume best way for transportation is by renting a car? Do child car seat (for 4 years old) is mandatory? SUV/MPV will cost me much more than a sedan...

-will only spend around 7+ fulldays in hokaido (exclude the date of arrival/departure), i hope i can stay longer though.. the concern is $$ and the stamina of the kids/elder.

-tentatively -> Asahikawa/Biel/Furano - Sapporo/Otaru

-plan to stay  a night in a ryokan with onsen, any recommendation ya? so many hotspring spot scatter around Hokkaido..

-I found the accomodation in Biel/Furano is quite limited / not family friendly.. Day trip from asahikawa doable?

I'll just head back to Malaysia and renew it before I go to Japan. Better safe than sorry lol
Was studying in the US since 2014 and have not went back or out of US since.

ok sure bro. i will share the review later if i decided to rent from them.
  Thanks bro. Totally understand about the parking fees and also challenges in finding car park. Actually I am also in dilemma until now. But the reason for us to go towards renting a car is because we have 6 adults (among 4 are senior citizen) and 2 toddlers (1.5 y/o and 3.5y/o).  And also my mother in law is not very fit walking too much.

To be honest, i am still in dilemma until today whether to take public transport or renting a car

Thanks for your advice, I will consider all the possibilities. Even renting a car is a challenge now as we need to book 1 baby seat and 1 booster seat. That already occupy 2 spaces in the car + 6 adults. Normal MPV might not be sufficient either.

I rented a car while traveling in hakone area ; 8 of us inclusive of 1 toddler and it was ok using serena (inclusive 1 baby seat).

We spend 4 days in tokyo and 3 days in yugawara and the driving experience was the highlight of our stay. 3 days at Hakone area driving up to lake kawaguchiko and small tow of Atami. You can never beat the convenience of traveling by car. Imagine 8 of us including the children needing to waze through the traffic of people getting into the train.
Driving give you that convenience of traveling from point to point and you can cover a lot more in a day. Never mind the toll/ petrol and the parking charges. But i guess you have to be really confident to drive in a foreign land.
The tip is to ask your landlord ( mine was through airbnd) to rent the car on your behalf and you can get your car cheaply (I used 100 yen car rental). By the time you are at the car rental place you will be treated like a big boss. It was nothing like in other countries.
I was actually requesting to rent a car during my stay in Tokyo but my other landlord was against it. But when i dis travel around Tokyo, the traffic is not more congested as in KL and it is doable to drive there as well.
As for the luggage, i just put them inside the room during my travel.
Hope that helps.

Typically late March to early April.  Some place may carry on to mid-April.  It depends on the weather that year.  This year sakura bloomed a bit later.

You can see the chart of sakura locations for 2017 ...

Hanami Japan: Popular spots 2017

For reference, Kyoto 14th April.
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