jaga jaga your eyes kena cucuk by your partner. Haha!

The couple next to me switched seat. The guy who was initially seated at the aisle - later on sat at the window seat and his wife/gf was at the aisle instead i can tell you they were not over reacting - it was a little too revealing. Not sure if the air stewardess realize it or that she didn't care. There was another male crew around... felt like she could have asked for his help instead #justsaying

Probably just find that she made a number of people uncomfortable with the situation. She didn't have to climb up so many times hahahaha

Ah... since my cousins all tell me it's "budget airline", I really thought so! I agree their food is pretty good so no complain on that. They even serve Häagen-Dazs.

Unfortunately their older, lower res and smaller screen for inflight entertainment also isn't doing them much favour. Even MAS's screen is better ...and they probably knew of the problem with the ventilation as there were no blanket or pillow provided. Likely to know it's hot so no blanket is necessary for passengers.

Thanks for the tip RC! If i fly with Cathay again in future, will give this a shot

Finding out what to do in Fukuoka only requires Googling. Come back when you've done your research

Nope sadly it wasn't a fully good experience, as I described it. Budget or not, even AA gives you sufficient ventilation.

Fortunately or unfortunately, this FA's skirt was pretty short - it was definitely above knee length and as the FA climbed onto the aisle seat's pedestal to push the luggage further into the compartment (she had to lean forward), I could almost see her underpants from the split of her skirt a lot of passengers turn to look. Generally i have no issue with that others want to wear and I'm not one of conservative mind. But know when it's too much since there are families and children at the seat area where she climbed up the pedestal numerous times.

This post has been edited by sweet_pez: Dec 31 2018, 10:47 AM

No idea, all the female FAs were in skirt.

Right on that... it makes sense why no blanket and pillow were provided at our seat. Not sure if the others are the same or that we're probably just unlucky to fly with this poorly maintained aircraft

Nikko for Day trip?? No, no. Suggest if you're planning to do Nikko, at least 2D 1N. There's a lot to see/ visit there.

Yes you can go day trip at Kawagoe. Unfortunately imo it's a bit too touristy (then again, aren't we all tourists) and there wasn't much to do/ shop there. Been there once and that's already good enough. If you have spare time and didn't know what to do - you can give it a shot, as you may have a different perspective and the place could have changed compared to 2 years ago.

Sigh which is why I personally prefer Hotel compared to AirBnB. Other than worrying about cancellation, the latter is sometimes hard to find as it's usually in residential area. Last year my cousins who went to Osaka had so much problem trying to unlock the door under the cold winter only to find out the Host gave them wrong code.

In fact with the new law governing AirBnB in Japan, the houses/ rooms rental isn't all that cheap. It's comparable to Hotels imo. Probably AirBnB is suitable for families/ big groups.

Cooking = potential savings. It could do your pocket some good provided you don't have to do the cooking.

There are both pros and cons for AirBnB/ Hotel. What I've personally experienced multiple times - the bad outweigh the good. Usually i like how Hotels are also able to give you recommendations, check directions etc. Services are very good in Japan so you won't have problem. Stayed in Trend Hotel Asakusa last month and they put us in a room on the 3rd floor. There's no lift ...the concierge carried each of our luggage 3 floors up with his strength. Totally

Suggest you don't wear your winter jacket till you've touched down in Japan. The plane could be hot for all you know. Since not everyone carries a backpack to stuff their jacket in so you can leave your winter jacket in the baggage. But make sure it's at the top and easily retrievable when you open it. Once you arrived at the airport and got your luggage, just stop somewhere and retrieve your jacket from your baggage.

Hahahaha yeah and AirBnB located in residential area can be a nightmare to find. I experienced it twice in my Dec trip. They're harder to find due to lack of landmark, unlike Hotels which is commonly located along main street.

Ah but breakfast depends on establishment. Some hotels offer them and some don't. But either way yes, fresh towels, clean room, bins emptied for you, availability of TV and other services is what makes Hotel desirable for me. I've stayed in 2 AirBnB with no TV although TV is not a main component in our choice, without it there's no white noise. Felt so quiet when everyone sits around together.

If you've not tried Hotel in Japan before then yes, don't hesitate and just go for Hotel at least once

Hakone is worth spending a night in. You can enjoy onsen at the Hotel. Imo that's totally worth paying for ady. My last stay - the Hotel per pax was around RM320 for a night but including Japanese dinner and buffet breakfast. There's onsen as well... with full hotel facilities. Worth it

Jeans and shirt no issue. If you're afraid, wear long sleeves instead. Reach Narita then take your jacket out. Make sure to bring something thicker if it's going to be 1-2 degrees celcius. Don't forget to buy your heat tech too (but don't wear on the day you're flying... or else you'll be sweating). It's mostly the wind that makes it unbearable.

Other items you'll want to bring over or buy there: gloves, face mask, hand warmers.

This post has been edited by sweet_pez: Jan 8 2019, 09:25 AM

Hmm you may want to allocate more time for Toyosu if you plan to have lunch there. Upon moving, the restaurants are less and area is smaller - causing extremely long queue in all restaurants. Especially when you're planning to head there on a Saturday too... my cousins saw all the queues and gave up immediately.

But honestly speaking, since implementation of the minpaku law governing AirBnB in Japan, it's no longer as cheap as it used to be. The price these days are comparable to Hotels. Sometimes when there's deal/ offer or voucher, choosing a Hotel could actually give you more value - as one of the forumer pointed out in earlier posting.

Hahahahaha even though it comes with a kitchen, i rarely find anyone actually uses the cooking facilities other than hot water and microwave. My cousins were full of tenacity and ideas about cooking before heading to Tokyo. When we were there, they gave up on the idea as they were too tired. For simple/ cheap breakfast, getting sandwiches from Family Mart or a tortilla wrap (which you can heat up in microwave) or making instant noodles (only using hot water) is usually sufficient unless you have spare time to make food in the morning or evening. Imo holiday is where one escapes from cooking or chores! Then again, this boils down to preference and time.

As for washing clothes - this round i chose to pay ￥300-￥400 for a laundromat rather vs the washing machine in airbnb. The reason is simple: lack of space. The airbnb is very small and with a big group, we are already lacking the space to hang our coats and towels... thus even if i washed them at 'home', there's nowhere to hang my laundry to dry. In winter, it's also harder for your clothes to dry especially thicker clothing like jackets and jeans. End of the day, i went to a nearby laundromat, within walking distance from accommodation. In the evening after dinner, I threw my clothes in for wash and head home first. After 45min, went back to laundromat to move them into the dryer. Since the house is packed with little space to move around for 9 people, I actually preferred to lounge around the laundromat where there's chairs and vending machine. Then again, this is just my personal preference.

Btw some hotels also offer laundry facilities or can divert you to the nearest laundromat. This is usually not an issue because not all locals have a washing machine at home, and even if they do, it may not have the capacity to wash bulky items like blankets etc. Thus if you ask, the Hotel will be able to divert you to a nearby laundromat.

I've only stayed in 4-Star Hotel in Japan once during a work trip. Other than that, all my personal trips - the Hotels are 3 stars or below. Like you mentioned - it doesn't affect the travelling by large... except in AirBnB it's slower due to a big group - as there's a need for 9 people to share 1 toilet, as opposed to Hotel, with 3 people to 1 toilet.

Just like DM3 said, look for a place nearby. Confirm the final location of your competition first, and book your accommodation nearby - preferably somewhere that you can just walk over to the competition venue. Better to stay around/ nearby to make it easy for yourself... if there's a need to transfer train, potential factors like train delay due to accident, technical issues etc will affect you.

Suggest you come up with a rough itinerary. From there, you can decide which area to stay to give you most convenience.

Hahaha the Chinese version - I noticed the first line was a repetition for the alcohol x 3. Couldn't read the Japanese as the characters are abit too blur/ small.
But from the English version i think it's saying that customers need purchase their own drinks before bringing it into the dining hall. Also, all meals to be paid at the restaurant as probably unlike some other hotels where the meals can be billed to the room. That's probably the reason why they mentioned "please purchase before meal or bring money for meal".

No specific itinerary meaning you'll only make plans once you're there? I'll presume this is not your first time there... so why not cross out places you've been before and then see what are the new places you want to explore.

End of the day there's too many Hotels/ Hostels in Japan so the best thing to do is to check the location and reviews of those who had stayed there before.

Ahhhh so you're on for a hunt hahaha. Agree, if you bring your family along it won't be convenient because 'treasure hunt' takes time and patience. Optionally you can also drop by Shimokitazawa if you've not been there before: https://digjapan.travel/en/blog/id=11608

That was what I went through in May. Enough time if there's no flight delay leaving KLIA. However due to 30+min delay in departing, we ended up arriving in Changi late as well. Friend and I was running in the airport, to get to the gate ASAP. The PA was paging for us as there was only less than 15min away from takeoff. Definitely a very stressful transit. Think twice if you have children and elderly.

1. Day 2: Tsukiji Market? You must mean Toyosu. The fish market had moved to Toyosu since last year. And if you're planning to go around Toyosu, it'll easily take up most of the morning i think. Asakusa will easily take at least 3 hours to cover (including shopping and lunch/ late lunch) and finally Akihabara probably 1-2 hours if you have nothing to shop. Note that Akihabara closes around 8-9pm. Also check what time the Tokyo Tower closes unless you have no intention to go in, and just to take shots from outside. You may want to see how to time it if you plan on going all 4 places. Imo it's a bit tight in terms of the timing.

2. Day 6 : Since you leave your stuffs in Tokyo Station, consider exploring nearby. If you've not been to the Imperial Palace, consider going there. Shop around Tokyo Station (Yaesu entrance, basement 1 has Character Street) and probably find the nearest Don Quijote to do your final shopping. But i'll actually suggest doing Don Quijote the night before - before you pack your bag. Actually you'll even have time for a day trip to Kamakura on Day 6.

3. Your Day 4 already covering Lake Kawaguchi. Why ask about Lake Kawaguchi/ Kamakura-Enoshima? You can actually do both based on current plan. However I'll usually advice to spend at least 2D1N in Fuji 5 Lakes if you were to visit. Enjoy the slow pace, nature, leisure and onsen as well as ryokan/ inn style breakfast to recharge.

1. Ah, outer market? Yes it's still there. However the fishes were delivered from Toyosu hahaha. Might as well go Toyosu...? Check out the new fish market. Just a recommendation. https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3021.html

Both Kawaguchiko and Enoshima/ Kamakura offers different things. The question will be: what do you want to see? both your Day 4 and Day 6 can do Day Trip.

I suggest both of you communicate through PM to share more information

P/S: We hit 200 pages!! Will put up new version tomorrow.