Hi, these are my itinerary : 4 days in Tokyo, then 4 days in Osaka, and then another 4 days in Kyoto (where we will also go to Nara), and lastly, another 4 days in Tokyo again (where we will go to Mt Fuji), the whole trip will be 16 days in total. We were planning to buy the 14-days Nationwide JR Pass, but if you have other suggestions about which JR Pass to buy, that would be great. I also have another question regarding the JR Pass seat booking, if we bought the JR Pass, we will first get the Exchange Order, then we can use it to activate the JR Pass once we arrive in Japan. Can we book seat before the JR Pass is activated? For example, we buy the JR Pass today or tomorrow, can we book the seats for our trip (which is in 30 days or next month) from now? What is the requirement to book the JR Shinkansen seat? Is it enough to use the Exchange Order to book the seats or do we have an active JR Pass to book the seats? Thank you.
Which JR Pass to buy?
Hi there,
Seats can be served once you are in Japan and have exchanged the JR Pass. In addition to the return Tokyo - Osaka/Kyoto - Tokyo, are you planning on doing any further day trips or intercity travel? I'm asking because just Tokyo - Osaka/Kyoto - Tokyo would not be enough to make savings with a JR Pass.
Kind regards,
Daniel
Hi Daniel-San,
yes we're planning on doing a lot of day trips around the city (which we hope will mostly be covered by the 14-days JR Pass), as for intercity travel, I guess we might go to Shirakawa-Go if we still have enough time. So far, these are the intercity travel that we will be doing :
Arrive - Narita
Narita - Shinjuku
Travel around Tokyo for 4 days
Tokyo - Osaka
Travel around Osaka for 4 days
Osaka - Kyoto
Travel around Kyoto for 4 days
Kyoto - Tokyo
Travel around Tokyo for 4 days
Go to Narita for the flight home.
Do you recommend us buying the 14-days JR Pass or just get the individual shinkansen ticket for each trip?
Thank you.
Hi again,
A 7-day JR Pass would be superb if you returned to Tokyo before it expires. A 14-day pass would need a bit more travel to be really cost-effective. A trip to Shirakawago (by taking the train to Kanazawa or Takayama would be a great start). You could also add a day trip from Tokyo to Nikko and or Hiroshima (from Osaka).
Happy travels,
Daniel
