JR Pass & (Pasmo / Suica card)

This would be my rough itinerary for 12 days. Still in the midst of planning places to go but for Day 1 - Day 5 (Osaka & Kyoto) and the rest of the days would be within Tokyo.

Day 1 - Travel to Osaka from Tokyo
Day 2 - Osaka (USS)
Day 3 - Kyoto
Day 4 - Kyoto
Day 5 - Kyoto
Day 6 - Tokyo (Shinjuku)
Day 7 - Tokyo
Day 8 - Tokyo
Day 9 - Tokyo (Shibuya & Harajuku)
Day 10 - Tokyo (Tsukiji)
Day 11 - Tokyo (Disneyland) / Tokyo Tower
Day 12 - Tokyo (Akibahara / Gundam / Odaiba)

Do advise if it's worth to get the JR Pass Nationwide or JR Kansai Pass & is it also important to get the Pasmo card? It be good to have any suggestions to visit too.

Thank you!

Regards
Hana

Hello Hana,

The JR Pass covers all JR lines nation wide, there are also regional passes available, such as the JR Kansai area pass. These are valid in a certain area, there's no need to buy additional passes as the JR Pass will already cover this for you.

I recommend using a 7 day JR Pas from Day 1 - Day 7. this way you can make the best savings possible. From day 7 you could use an IC card (like Suica) and use that travel travel conveniently around Tokyo.

Also consider making a day trip from Tokyo on day 7, this would really help to max out your JR pass. You could for instance visit Nikko, Kamakura or Yokohama. All are interesting stops to be made.

Hope this helps,
Daniel

Necessary? No. But it more convenient that taking lots of change. That said, it doesn't really save you anything. Look into a 3 day subway pass:

http://www.tokyometro.jp/en/ticket/value/travel/index.html#anc03

Hi Daniel-san,

Thank you so much for the reply and your recommendations. Gotta highlight them in my itinerary!
There's one more thing I'm kinda confused:
About the Suica card, besides being able to take the JR line, can i use this card to take the metro/subways, like the other railway companies? And does the JR pass covers all fees including metro/subways/JR line except nozomi and mizuno trains? Please correct me if I'm wrong.

In Tokyo, is it worth visiting Tsukiji Market?
Looking forward to your reply.

Hana

Hi Toraneko,

Does this 3-day subway pass includes JR lines as well?
I'm so confused whether to have Suica or this pass you mentioned, cos i think hmm i definitely be taking lots of JReast lines.

Please advise! Thank you.
Hana

Hi Hana,

The Suica card can be used for (nearly) every kind of local transport in Tokyo, the JR, metro and Monorail all appect the Suica card.

The JR Pass covers all JR lines nationwide, including all Shinkansen lines and the JR network in Tokyo. Train types classifiend as Nozomi/Mizuhou are not covered but any other train type, such as the Hikari/Sakura is.

The metro is not part of the JR network and thus requires additional tickets.

Does that clear things up?

Tsukiji is well worth a visit if you can manage to be there before 4:30. This means either taking a taxi or sleeping closeby.

Hope that helps,
Daniel

Hana,
The subway pass doesn't cover the JR lines. But given that it averages into 500 yen per day, it is easy to recoup the cost and save money. You can also ride to your heart's delight. This is something the Suica card doesn't do.