yes, u need international driving license no matter which country u go. and no latest driving license is worthless if its not international driving license. and japan takes their rules and law very seriously.

I think English as the national language countries (US, UK, Aus etc.) does not require the IDP to rent a car for short term as the latest driving license has English on it, but Japan definitely needs it.

I did car rental in the US this year and they were fine with our latest driving license, while in Japan they specifically asked for the IDP when I rented a car in Hokkaido last year.

"no matter which country you go" is a bit of a sweeping statement leh. for example in australia, uk, singapore you can drive with just your malaysian license without IDP.

But yes, in Japan it's 99.9999% IDP required.

I think so since I just back from Perth which I use our latest driving license too not IDP for car rental. No problem in Australia.

im putting a list of restaurant in tokyo here, they are all awesome according to my taste so if it doesnt suite ur taste please don't bash me. if u wan photo of them, u have to wait till im back from tokyo next month. i won't be recommending any michelin places as you can easily google those.

Yakitori - i recommend a place call Toriyoshi 鳥よし in Naka-Meguro, the price is pretty standard and what i like about here is it doesn't get you all smelly and of cause the yakitori is one of the best.

Soba - Kanda Yabusoba in Akihabara, this is one of the top 3 soba places in tokyo for locals. Nice place and they have english menu as well if you cant read japanese.

Ramen - Hayashi in Shibuya, this is one of the best i tried in tokyo and is better than the michelin star ramen in Sugamo. It's a place where tourists will not go, only have like 9 seats. This shop only open from 11.30am to 3.30pm. They only have one selection and different sizes, easy right?

Tempura - Tentake in Asakusa, well not much to say bout tempura other than its one of the best one in Asakusa.

Bara chirashi don - Sushi Sho in Yotsuya, they served bara chirashi don every monday, wednesday, and friday. The shop open at 11.30am and they only served 20 bowls per day, its the best you can find in Tokyo. You can make reservation one month in advance or you can just go there earlier and hope they have a slot for you.

Taiyaki - Taiyaki Wakaba in Yotsuya, this is the place i always go after having bara chirashi don at Sushi Sho as they are located within the same area. One of the best taiyaki for locals with a lot of red beans paste inside unlike some taiyaki place with only a bit of red bean paste.

Abura soba (oily soba) - Abura Soba in Akihabara, honestly i dunno what is the name of this shop called despite eating here one year until i collected enough stamp for their t-shirt >< You can see a big sign "油" and its near an alley 5 min walk from Akiba station. They served the best abura(oily) soba i have ever tasted. There a many abura soba shop with the sign like that so don't go to the wrong 1.

Correct shop sign


Not correct shop sign


Maid cafe - I know many people sure want to experience maid cafe when they go Akiba, but there are tons of it so which one is the best and have many kawaii maid? My personal favourite is @At Home cafe, there are many floors so you can go each floor to have a look at their maids first see which floor you like.

Sushi - If you wan cheap and nice, you can go conveyor belt sushi in Shibuya, there is one inside Seibu on the top floor called Midori Sushi if im not mistaken. If you have more budget, go to 梅丘寿司の美登利 (Umegaoka Sushi no Midori) inside Shibuya Tokyo Mark City 4th floor, usual wait time about an hour to two hours but definitely worth it. (take note that tsukiji market sushi is overpriced and standard only if u ever thinking of heading there for sushi)

also for those that have a lot of money to spare, do make a reservation for Kyubey sushi in ginza, it is 2nd best sushi i ever had after Jiro sushi (im sure everyone noe bout this 1) and its way easier to get a reservation. Took me 4 months just to get a reservation for Jiro sushi ><

Kyubey sushi is as fresh as Jiro sushi, price also almost the same at 40k yen per course. the different is the way they make it but both places sushi will also melt in ur mouth so definitely worth it if u got some money to spare.

Unagi - Obana in Minami-Senju, this one seriously one of the best i had and the price is also not expensive compared to other unagi restaurant. The unagi will melt in your mouth when u put it in (if u know wat i mean). No reservation needed but its recommended as its always full house.

This post has been edited by chinti: Jun 14 2017, 12:30 PM

hmm, not sure how latest driving license looks like but few years back in US im not allowed to rent car with Malaysia license. but ya japan its a must to have international driving license

Nice list.
Any recommendations for unagi and fugu?

Awesome list, thanks! marking down in google maps

unagi i would recommend Obana 尾花 in Minami-Senju, the unagi seriously melts in your mouth. another one is Kabuto in Ikebukuro i tried it once but u need reservation like 6 months in advance which i find it ridiculous. for fugu sorry cant recommend as i only had it once and it was normal only

also for those that have a lot of money to spare, do make a reservation for Kyubey sushi in ginza, it is 2nd best sushi i ever had after Jiro sushi (im sure everyone noe bout this 1) and its way easier to get a reservation. Took me 4 months just to get a reservation for Jiro sushi ><

Kyubey sushi is as fresh as Jiro sushi, price also almost the same at 40k yen per course. the different is the way they make it but both places sushi will also melt in ur mouth so definitely worth it if u got some money to spare.

Just found digi actually having a roaming package for japan trip. RM25 for 3GB + 30 min call. Valid for 72 hour. Need to choose DoCoMo network for this package. Below is the link.

http://new.digi.com.my/roaming/roaming-pass#last

Anybody tried this before ?

This post has been edited by clive841202: Jun 14 2017, 04:14 PM

our latest license hv english character there...
mean u can use it in the country that use english as primary language

fyi... most japanese ppl dont understand english
tat y u need IDP license todo the translations... legally

Because i love japan ichigo daifuku 苺大福 a lot. im writing down a list of shop that i will go try during my upcoming trip. None of these have been tasted before so i dunno their taste yet, will just write down the shop name here for easier access later. Picture and reviews will come after im back from japan.

-越後鶴屋 Echigo tsuruya in Suginami
-果匠 正庵 Shouan in Shibuya
-あけぼの 銀座本店 Akebono Ginza branch
-大角玉屋 銀座店 Oosumi tamaya Ginza branch
-銀座甘楽 Ginza Kanra
-江戸うさぎ Egousagi in Nishinippori
-南青山 まめ いちご大福 Mame in Minamiaoyama
-鈴懸 Suzukake in Shinjuku Sanchome

also for those that wan to impress their date be it japanese or wat, i can highly recommend Sky Lounge Stellar Garden (my italian date love it). it is on the 33rd floor with awesome tokyo tower view, there is a 1000yen cover charge and another 1.5k yen if u wan seats beside the windows. the foods there are so so and a bit pricey as its a bar so i suggest just order drink and mayb some light snacks. the money pay is definitely worth it as the view is superbbbbbb.

if u wan awesome view for proper fine dining dinner, u can pm me as well and i can giv u the info.

This post has been edited by chinti: Jun 16 2017, 09:40 AM

nope...for usa and aussie no need IDL

boleh saya nominate u jadi TS Japan thread baru?
so u can share those food, goodies n tips

munkeyflo

lol nola, im not always here. i just come here every once in awhile to read read and see wat tips i can giv to ppl
munkeyflo can just copy paste my info into mayb a new spoiler for foods n other stuff

*i provide red light district info for ahem too(through pm only) *

This post has been edited by chinti: Jun 16 2017, 04:34 PM

did anyone reply u yet? my piece of advise is check JAL and ANA, they r often a lot cheaper if u factor in the baggage cost by airasia or any other airline tht doesnt include free baggage check-in.

it is highly advisable to book both air tickets and airbnb latest by november this year. however, do keep in mind tht not all airbnb will accept booking right now as they know they can still increase the price during tht season. if u r traveling alone, may i suggest just book backpackers hostel? they r safe, clean, n cheaper for one person.

for tokyo and kyoto area, feel free to pm me if u need help planning. i will include all the bus station, train stop n so on for u just in case as some people r not used to the system there.

also do check the cherry blossom forecast b4 u book air ticket so u can know which region u should go first. sakura only fully bloom for a week so u wont wanna miss tht.

as for sapporo, u can just forget it i guess. the best time would b around feb where all the ice events r held during tht time.

well ppl not everyday go japan, once a while check see got new tips n guide from u is nice.
kinda good detail u give on what to dine n where exactly.

my last jepun trip, i follow recentcid tips n guide.
now without him

i feel like goin Japan again. next year maybe?

haha but those r all according to my taste, not really places tht tourists go.
anyway, i will do my best to snap all the restaurant i go n their foods to post here on my upcoming trip next week

This post has been edited by chinti: Jun 16 2017, 05:23 PM

sapporo is the peak during feb winter season...for good reasons