Going to Japan in September, money advice

Hi all,
I'll be going to Japan in a few months, from September until late November.

I've never been before; in fact I've never been abroad before! But I have a friend teaching English over there at the moment so I won't be totally alone, but the adventure is kind of why I'm doing this. I've booked a room in a guesthouse in Tokyo my friend recommended and knows the person who runs it, which will be 169,000 yen for the time I'm there. I've paid a deposit on it but yet to pay the whole thing, which they say I can do any time now or when I arrive. I've also paid for the flights.

As its getting closer to the time, I'm starting to worry more about things, mostly the money aspect. How much do people recommend for a trip of this length? Obviously that's a really subjective question but any rough guidelines? Like I say I've got the guesthouse in Tokyo so accomodation won't need to be factored in, but I want to do a week or so of travelling using the JR pass where I'll be fine with just spending the night in hostels or whatever cheap accomodation I can find, and once that's over I'll head back to Tokyo and spend the rest of the time exploring the city. So outside of a week of travelling around, I'll just be living in Tokyo so I'll need to cover food and other basic expenses.

Also, what's the best way to access money on such a long trip? There's so many options that I don't know how best to do it. My friend recommends just using cash machines with my debit card, taking out enough to last you a week or so and just doing it that way. But does any one else have any other suggestions? I know there's travellers cheques but they don't seem to be so popular these days (and I've no idea how they work!).

So yeah, apologies for the unfocused post but I guess what I'm basically asking is:
- How much money do you think I'll need for a roughly 3 month trip in Japan? Excluding accommodation apart from one week where I'd like to travel around. In yen, or GBP as I'm in the U.K. I'm fine with roughing it and eating cheap.

- What's the best way of accessing money whilst over there? I've been told its fine to just withdraw money using my debit card at an ATM, but is there anything better considering the length of my trip?

Thanks very much in advance, if people need more info to give a better answer just let me know.

You have three months in Japan and only doing a one-week trip away from Tokyo? I would be prepared for more rail (or bus) travel outside Tokyo :)

For budgeting:
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2410.html

My friend recommends just using cash machines with my debit card, taking out enough to last you a week or so and just doing it that way

I think your friend, who is currently living in Japan, has given you the best advice for your up coming situation, unsure what else you are hoping to hear from others?

using a debit card at atms, you'll be charged a percentage by your bank for every withdrawal , it works out around ��5 for every ��100 taken out,
3% for conversion charge plus 2% atm charge , also the 3% is charged on every transaction , shops etc,
get yourself a Caxton fx prepaid card and just top up as and when needed,

as your on a 3 month trip you'll be giving the banks a lot of money for no reason,
i got caught like that my first trip ,didn't realise till i got back lol,
i'm also from the UK,

using a debit card at atms, you'll be charged a percentage by your bank for every withdrawal , it works out around ��5 for every ��100 taken out,

It pays to shop around for Cards with No Overseas Transaction Fees

As others have said just using atm's will be best, but you need to check on the charges from your bank. some charge a set percentage and can cost a fortune, but many cap it at £5-10 per transaction.

As for overall, when travelling i would factor in £50 a night for hotels and about the same for food and other expenses.

When you're staying in an apartment, you will not be going out everyday spending tons of money and will buy most of your food etc from local supermarkets which are far cheaper than eating out, i found i was spending around £20 a day unless i went into central tokyo.

Thanks for the replies everyone.

You have three months in Japan and only doing a one-week trip away from Tokyo? I would be prepared for more rail (or bus) travel outside Tokyo :)
Heh well I only put a week, I've been thinking about getting either the 1 or 2 week JR Pass. I'd much prefer to get the 2 week one of course, but again I'd be worried about the money aspect of travelling, since I'm going for a long time and I've not done any sort of itinerary, I'll have to just get whatever hotel or hostel I can find and I might up spending a lot. I'll do some more research on the places I want to visit though and aim for the 2 week pass.

I think your friend, who is currently living in Japan, has given you the best advice for your up coming situation, unsure what else you are hoping to hear from others?
Well taking money out does seem to be the standard thing to do, but I was just wondering if there were any other options, since I'm going for such a long time and I'll be using the ATMs a lot, I'll end up paying a lot in fees, which I'd like to avoid as much as possible.

using a debit card at atms, you'll be charged a percentage by your bank for every withdrawal , it works out around ��5 for every ��100 taken out, 3% for conversion charge plus 2% atm charge , also the 3% is charged on every transaction , shops etc, get yourself a Caxton fx prepaid card and just top up as and when needed, as your on a 3 month trip you'll be giving the banks a lot of money for no reason, i got caught like that my first trip ,didn't realise till i got back lol, i'm also from the UK,
Yeah I've been reading about the fees, I guess some kind of fee is unavoidable when taking money out abroad but I'd like to minimise it. I've not heard of Caxton FX, but it looks pretty ideal for what I want to do, I'm guessing it works out a lot cheaper than using my normal current account card?

As others have said just using atm's will be best, but you need to check on the charges from your bank. some charge a set percentage and can cost a fortune, but many cap it at £5-10 per transaction.
As for overall, when travelling i would factor in £50 a night for hotels and about the same for food and other expenses.

When you're staying in an apartment, you will not be going out everyday spending tons of money and will buy most of your food etc from local supermarkets which are far cheaper than eating out, i found i was spending around £20 a day unless i went into central tokyo.
Thanks, that's helpful. I have enough for the "budget" guide on the site, but it'll be very hard to live on the lower end of the estimates for such a long time, if possible I'd like to avoid living on discount convenience store food for 3 months! I'm still saving up though so I should end up with more than that, I'm just stressing unnecessarily.

Thanks again for the responses!

I have been to Japan a couple times (and currently living in Tokyo). The biggest thing is housing, but it doesn't seem that bad if 170,000 is for all 3 months.

My budget which is pretty accurate for myself right now is this:

Food: 45,000 Yen – Comes to 1,500Y per day, must find a good grocery store. Or live off gyoudon lol.

CMA: 30,000 Yen – Cover My Ass, in case of emergencies and such

Travel: 10,000 Yen – Suica/Pasmo card for transit, very easy to get and they even give a small discount (quite small) on train tickets.

Tourism: 10,000 Yen – Museums/Parks/Gardens etc.

Specifics: Tokyo Disney Sea, Day in Odaiba (ferris wheel, ferry ride there, etc).

Make sure to get an idea of where you want to go and factor that in, usually the tourism charge of 10,000 will cover it.

All in all: 95,000 Yen per month, or 285,000 Yen for 3 months. I am from Canada and my bank offers me unlimited international withdrawals without fees (which can be done at any post office or seven eleven, it's really simple). So $3,000.00 CAD is enough for me to live and have tons of fun in Tokyo for 3 months. Of course a Jr pass and such incur more costs so be aware of these. If you are smart and stay away from tourist traps, you can live quite cheaply in Tokyo.