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Would JR pass work for my itinerary?

Yenushka
Yenushka
almost 6 years ago
5 responses

I'm travelling in Japan from 3-14 May 2018. I am so confused about the JR pass and the other trains and not sure what works best and is most cost effective for the places I plan on visiting.

  • Please let me know if I'm best to get the JR pass. If not please recommend the pass that works best for this schedule.
  • I live in Dubai. Is there a place here where I can buy the pass or is it only available online? How long will it take to reach me?
  • Would the JR pass cover travel between the attractions in each city or only travel between cities?
  • Whats the best option for travelling within cities from attraction to attraction?

Itinerary
Travelling in Japan from 3rd May – 14 May

Day 1:
• Narita Airport – Ginza • Hama Rokyu • Tsukiji fish market • Kabuki Performance • Ginza • Tokyo Central Railway • Head back to the hostel

Day 2
• Ginza • Imperial Palace • Meiji Shrine • Harajuku • Shibuya Crossing • Back to the hostel to relax • Mori Tower in Roppongi Hills • Tokyo Tower • Government building in Shinjjuku • Shinjuku - Golden Gai • Shinjuku to the hostel

Day 3
• Himeji-jo • Senso-ji Temple • Tokyo Skytree • Odaiba Take a break at the hotel
• Akihabara

Day 4
Tokyo to Hakone
• Cruise on lake Ashi • Komagatake ropeway to see sweeping views of Hakone National Park • Hot springs here

Day 5
Hakone to Kyoto
• Gion – Geisha district. • Kyomizu-dera • Kodai-ji • Shoren-in • Higashiyama –Sannenzaka & Ninenzaka • Honen-in Temple • Philosopher's Path • Silver Pavillion (Ginkaku-ji). • Kyoto imperial palace park • Nishiki Market • Asahi Brewery

Day 6
• Arashiyama Station • Tenryu-ji Temple • Arashiyama Bamboo Forest • Togetsu-kyo bridge • Iwatayama Monkey park • Ryoanji Temple • Golden Pavilion (Kinkaku-ji) • Saiho-ji • Sanju-san-gen-do temple • Kyoto tower

Day 7
Day trip to Nara – take the JR Line from Kyoto to Inari
• Tofuku-ji • Fushimi Inari Shrine • Todai-ji • Isui-en • Head back to Gion.

Day 8
Kyoto to Hiroshima
• Atomic bomb dome • Peace memorial museum • Castle • Flame • Okonomiyaki Village

Day 9
Hiroshima – Miyajima – Himeji – Osaka
• Miyajima –Take the ferry. - Visit Itsukushima shrine at high tide to see it “floating” - 5 Storey pagoda • Himeji • Osaka • Shinsekai

Day 10
• Tempozan Marketplace/ Naniwa Kuishinbo Yokocho • Tempozan Giant Ferris Wheel • Dotonbori by day • ShinSai Bashi – Suji (Namba) • America Mura • Kurumon Ichiba Market • Grand front building in Umeda
• Umeda Sky Building (aerial/floating garden observatory)

Day 11
• Minoo Park • Osaka Castle • Harukas 300 • Dontonburi • Hozenji Alley

Day 12
Osaka to Narita Airport

avatar
Daniel-san
18832 posts
almost 6 years ago
Expert

Hi there,

Let's have a look at your questions:

I live in Dubai. Is there a place here where I can buy the pass or is it only available online? How long will it take to reach me?

We can ship to pass quickly anywhere within the UAE, for delivery details see:
https://www.jrpass.com/delivery

Would the JR pass cover travel between the attractions in each city or only travel between cities? The JR Pass covers travel between all the cities you plan to visit, as well as the local JR Network in cities like Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka. You can also use the sightseeing bus in Hiroshima and Ferry to Miyajima. That said, you may still need other local travel as well locally, depending on the attraction.

Whats the best option for traveling within cities from attraction to attraction?

It depends on a case by case basis, the JR is very extensive in Tokyo for instance but in Kyoto the general transport method is bus.

Hope this helps,
Daniel

Yenushka
Yenushka
5 posts
almost 6 years ago

Thank you for the prompt reply. :)

Few more questions:

  1. I'm trying to find the best way of getting from our hostel in Osaka to Narita Terminal 1. According to google maps this is it:
    o Midosuji Line: Dobutsuen-Mae Station to Shin-Osaka Station – 20 mins, 9 stops
    o Tokaido-Sanyo Shinkansen Nozomi 14 Tokyo Line: Shin-Osaka Station to Tokyo Station – 2.5hrs, 5 stops
    o Yamanote Line: Tokyo Station to Nippori Station – 11 mins, 6 stops (platform 4)
    o Skyline 35 Narita Airport Line: Nippori Station to Narita Airport Terminal 1 Station – 39 mins, 2 stops (platform 1)

Which parts of this journey will be covered by the JR pass?

  1. I would like to do a day trip from Kyoto to Nara and return to Kyoto. I would like to visit the following places along the way:
    • Fushimi Inari Shrine • Todai-ji • Isui-en Would I be able to use just the JR pass or would I need to purchase other train tickets in addition?

  2. I am also doing a 2 day trip to Hiroshima:
    Day 1 - Kyoto (Jam Hostel) to Hiroshima (Tsuraya Hostel)
    Day 2 - Hiroshima (Tsuraya Hostel) to Miyajima Shrine then Himeiji Castle and finally Backpackers Hostel Toyo Osaka
    Will the JR pass cover all the locations I plan on visiting or will additional train tickets need to be purchased to get to the locations?

Sorry for all the questions. I just want to make sure I get everything in order before making the purchase. Thank you!

avatar
Daniel-san
18832 posts
almost 6 years ago
Expert

Hi there,

1.) The route is covered starting at Shin-Osaka. Instead of the Skyliner, use the Narita Express from Tokyo station to Narita Airport and the route is fully covered.

2.) The JR Pass covers travel to Nara and back, as well as local trains to Fushimi Inari and Todai-ji can be reached in 10-15min on foot from Nara station.

3.) I don't know the exact locations of your hostels but the JR Pass will cover travel between all the cities you mention. Even if you need additional local transport, intercity travel will account for 99% of travel cost and that is all covered by the JR Pass.

Hope this helps,
Daniel

Yenushka
Yenushka
5 posts
almost 6 years ago

I've been looking at my connections and I think the 14 days pass would work best for me. Can you confirm if this is correct:

Day 1 - Narita Airport to Tokyo Station = Y1320pp
Day 4 - Tokyo to Hakone Yumoto (Freepass) = Y5410 + Y1090 for romance car upgrade)
Day 5 - Hakone Yumoto to Kyoto =Y12500pp

After this point I was planning on activating my 7 day JR pass:

Day 6 - Kyoto tour
Day 7 - Kyoto Nara
Day 8 - Kyoto - Hiroshima
Day 9 - Hiroshima - Miyajima - Himeiji - Osaka
Day 10-11 - Osaka Tour
Day 12 - Osaka to Narita airport

But considering the first part of the travel charges come to nearly Y16000 - won't I be better off getting the 14 day pass to cover that section too?

Then for Hakone, I can just get the Y4000 free pass from Odawara onwards.

Please let me know if I have calculated this correctly or what my cheapest option would be. Thanks heaps!

Yenushka
Yenushka
5 posts
almost 6 years ago

Also, what is the cheapest and quickest way of getting from Hakone to Kyoto? On Hyperdia I'm seeing that the ticket is Y7020pp + unreserved seat fee of over Y5000pp. Do we HAVE to pay for a seat or can we just buy the ticket and stand or use a free seat?


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