is it worth to buy the JR pass for two weeks

Hi there,
Me and my girlfriend are planning a 2 weeks trip to Japan soon, so we've just started to check some information on what to do and to see. We are thinking on spending some days in Tokyo, followed by Kyoto and eventually Osaka and finishing in Hiroshima. My guess is that we will arrive and leave Japan through the same airport (Tokyo), so I have been wondering if is it wise to buy the 2 weeks JR pass, or if there is some other alternative that anyone is willing to share?
The pass doesn't come cheap, and most of the info I have seen mentions the advantages of buying the pass for one week compared with what you have to pay with individual tickets, but not for two weeks...

Thanks

If you really want to save money, then the Japan Bus Pass may prove perfect for you:
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2369.html

Tokyo - Osaka/Kyoto - Hiroshima - Tokyo can be done for just 10,000 yen, using the 3-day pass. Plus: you will save on three nights' accommodation and lose no sightseeing time (except possibly due to being tired because of the overnight bus rides).

If you prefer travel by shinkansen, then a 14-day rail pass will cost about the same as regular tickets for the long-distance trips. If you add minor trips, the pass will likely pay off.

What you will find is that the JR rail pass is good for getting you long distances. There will be places, such as Kyoto which it is better to use the bus system, where this expensive pass just sits and collects dust.

The seven day JR Pass works out to just over 4000 yen/day, which is expensive concidering that most places have a local pass for about 1000 yen/day or less. The first and last day can also be expensive, because the airport can be pretty far from the center of the city.

There are always exceptions to this rule. Fukuoka Airport is suprisingly close to Hakata Station, and so my transportation cost on my day of arrival was only 260 yen. A day where you expect to go only one place, such as DisneySea, will have a simple back and forth transprtation cost, and will not come close to the 1000 yen/day. An IC card is helpful for thses days:

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2359_003.html

So in general, group your long distance travel into a seven day period and use a Jr 7 day pass. Try to make it include either the first or last day of your trip, so that you can also use the Jr Pass for the airport transfer. Purchase an IC card, and look into a local day pass for the days where you will be going to several locations.

If you are really budget minded, the Japan Bus pass sold by Willer Express is a great value.

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2369.html

I like to travel one day, and then stay for a few before moving on to the next location. A Jr Pass with a 7 day expiration makes this about 3-4 cities. The Japan bus pass, which allows 3 or 5 move days within a two month period can be very effective.

I hope this helps.

Hi there,
For those 2 weeks, the plan is to stay a couple of days in Tokyo (4-5 nights), then travel to Kyoto-Osaka area (3-4 nights), ending at Hiroshima (2-3 nights) and then returning to Tokyo to catch the flight home.

I've been checking and all the flights that depart from Europe, either go to the Narita airport or the Haneda airp. As it seems the Haneda airport is much more closer to Tokyo than the other one, is it worth to buy the 2 weeks pass or just the 7 days and keep it the second part (after Tokyo).

I've seen that the pass includes some buss lines also, but as I've read here not all. Is metropolitan public transportation inside the big cities included in the pass?

Thanks for all the help

No. For the most part. There are some exceptions.

Get a 7 day pass, use it for the last 7
day of your trip, which includes the last day back to the airport. Get an IC card, use it for low cost days. Buy day passes for the higher cost days.

If you want to travel with a Shinkansen, definitely get the 7 day pass.

It will be well worth it for Tokyo-Kyoto-Hiroshima-Kyoto (over 34000yen in regular shinkansen tickets), and maybe a few day trips in Kansai area (like Himeji, Nara). Even better if you can fit a return trip to Tokyo in that 7 days, but you could take a normal train or bus for that if you want to spend more than 7 days outside Tokyo.

Or you could fly to Osaka and spend 2-3 days in Hiroshima + 4-5 days in Tokyo, returning to Osaka for a return flight.

About the flights, many airlines fly from Europe to Osaka, and the multi-city tickets I have bought (HEL-KIX + NRT-HEL) did not really cost more than regular HEL-KIX-HEL or HEL-NRT-HEL. Try a multi-city search for your flights, you might be surprised.

Thanks for all info.
I think I have the big picture, I'll eventually buy the JR pass for the last 7 days, trying to include the trip from Tokyo to Kyoto/Osaka, to Hiroshima, returning to Tokyo airport or any other airport if it suits..

I just want to ask if that other pass "IC pass", is suitable for all the interurban transportations inside each urban area where each card applies, so I could use it to lets say travel around Tokyo, visiting everywhere? Also, can I just buy the Suica card and use it on all the major cities there?

Thanks again and sorry for all the questions, it's just it's so much overwhelming.

I have used my SUICA card in Hiroshima, Nagasaki, Osaka, Fukuoka, Kyoto, and Tokyo. I have used it on a train to pay for a first class upgrade, and to pay for food from the cart lady. It works.

I have a wallet that has a plastic slot on the outside for a driver's liscense, and when I go to Japan, I put the Suica card in it on top. That way I just place my wallet over the IC box on the turnstyle and go through it. There is a screen that will tell you how much money you have left on the card. When I exit whichever station from traveling, I plop the wallet when I exit on the turnstyle, and the monitor will tell you how much your trip cost you.

It's pretty simple. You enter and start the charge, You can then pass through several station, and change trains. Once you exit, it will charge you for your travel.

Switching from different train lines requires you to settle up with your current train line before you enter another one.

There was one time last year where I had a JR Pass, and passed from a private line (which I had to pay for) into the JR side of the Station. There was not an exit to the outside, just a transfer from the private line into the JR Line. I had to show a ticketing clerk on the JR side that I had a Jr Pass, so that they would de-activate the SUICA, because it thought I was starting to use the JR Line, and had started another charge.

Other than that, I have never had a problem. I now keep my Suica card charged with the amount needed to take the Kansei Liner from Narita Airport Terminal 2 to Nippori Station, so that I do not need to fiddle with money to get to my hotel in Nippori. It has a Post office two doors down, so I can hit the ATM there and get cash to start my trip.

So the SUICA is now accepted in Hiroshima trams? I thought only the ICOCA was accepted.

I used it during Holy week last year on the tram. I went to the Yosakoi Dance parade that goes towards the A-Bomb park.

I didn't know it would work, so I showed the tram operator my wallet with the SUICA Card, and he nodded, which I interpreted as it was OK. I had gotten change at my hotel that was across from the station, so I covered myself just in case. Even though the tram is a fixed 150 yen per trip, I would rather not mess wiht the change and tap my wallet in the IC card box.

Thanks ebaychucky311! While I do hold both of them (SUICA and ICOCA) and a KITACA, I'd like to just have one IC card to top off for this trip!