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21 days in Japan - Should i get a 14-day or 21-day JR-Pass?

damien
damien
about 11 years ago
2 responses

Hey there,

soon i'll start my trip to Japan and therefore im wondering, if i either should get a 14-day or 21-day JR-Pass for the following trip - I'm flying to and from Tokio. I hope you can help me with my decision:

12.04. Narita Tokio
19.04. Tokio Nagano
19.04. Nagano Tokio
20.04. Tokio ?? --> maybe, but somewhere near / max. 1h ride
22.04. ?? Tokio --> maybe
22.04. Tokio Nagoya
23.04. Nagoya Kyoto
25.04. Kyoto Nara
25.04. Nara Kyoto
26.04. Kyoto Osaka
28.04. Osaka Tokio

29.04. Tokio Narita

29.04. Narita Okinawa --- flight

02.05. Okinawa Narita --- flight

02.05. Narita Tokio
05.05. Tokio Narita

As you can see i'll stay the first week in Tokio and then i make a little trip to the region south of Tokio. Then i'll need to travel back to Tokio, because my flight to Okinawa starts from Narita airport - i know its a bit of a back and forth, but i'm meeting with friends, so its kind of making sense ;)

Shoult i take the 21-day JR-Pass on the day i land in Narita, or the 14-day JR-Pass when i start my trip to Nagano?
With the 14-day Pass i would need to buy the tickets for
Narita -> Tokio (landing in Japan)
Tokio -> Narita (off to Okinawa)
Narita -> Tokio
Tokio -> Narita (back home)

right?

And also another question:
My flight to Okinawa takes off from Narita Airport at 06:15 am.
When and how i should get from Tokio to Narita? (..its pretty much in the middle of the night ;))

Thanks a lot!
Looking forward to Japan!!!

Best regards
Damian

avatar
Daniel-san
18835 posts
about 11 years ago
Expert

Hi Damian,

Great plan you are making! Okinawa is a great destination too! Maybe in 2060 we will be able to take the Shinkansen there too :)

I think your best option will be the 14-day JR-Pass. The difference with the 21-day pass is 12,600, so if you could do that amount of travel with it the upgrade would be worth it but with your trip to Okinawa this may be a little hard. Also since you will travel in the night to Narita Airport you most likely won't be using the train for this.

I would recommand using the JR-Pass for the 15th-28th, this way you will be able to use it on every day of its useability, you could perhaps make a day trip from Tokyo with it, to Yokohama, Kamakura or Nikko for instance.

One thing you should look out for this the early flight out of Narita Airport from 6.15 am. It is almost impossible to reach Narita Airport from Tokyo at that hour. A Night Bus is pretty much the only affordable option, or you could stay the night around the Airport.

When you travel from Narita Airport to Tokyo you may find [Keisei + All day metro deal] interesting. It offers a good discount and you can make some great savings with the all day Metro Ticket.

Hope this helps,
Daniel

damien
damien
2 posts
about 11 years ago

Hi Daniel,

thank you for the quick answer. I checked your link about the night-travel to Narita Airport and there is a midnight bus, that leaves at 01:30 a.m. - i have to say, im pretty surprised, that there is no possibility to get to Narita using a train in the night ;)

Still a question regarding the JR-Pass:
How much do the trips i make cost each? (where i can find ticket prices / schedules? -> not in japanese ;))
How much does the train cost from Narita to Tokio and vice versa? --> I'll definitely would have to buy these extra, when i get the 14-day pass.

Thanks a lot!

Damian

avatar
Daniel-san
18835 posts
about 11 years ago
Expert

Hi Damian,

Sorry for the somewhat late replay! I made a Shinkansen trip from Fukuoka to Kagoshima, both are very great cities.
Here is a list of ticket prices, as requested.

Tokyo --> Nagano ¥ 8,170
Nagano --> Tokyo ¥ 8,170
Tokyo --> Nagoya ¥ 10,780
Nagoya --> Kyoto ¥ 5,640
Kyoto --> Nara¥ 690
Nara --> Kyoto ¥ 690
Kyoto --> Osaka ¥ 540
Osaka --> Tokyo ¥ 13,950

This adds up to ¥ 48,630, the 14-Day JRPass is ¥ 45,100 so you would be able to save at least ¥3,530, with your day trip from Tokyo it would probably be more.

When you travel between Tokyo and Narita airport you can choose between the fast Narita Express which is about 3000Yen or local rapid express trains that cost around 1,200Yen.

Hope this helps,
Daniel

PS: About trains not riding not at night, I have yet to find proof but I always thought it involved some conspiracy for Taxi drivers to get more customers.


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