Home
Back

Dear visitor, if you know the answer to this question, please post it. Thank you!

Note that this thread has not been updated in a long time, and its content might not be up-to-date anymore.

Driving from Narita to Kusatsu Onsen 2015/9/7 11:37
Hello, we're travelling as 3 adults and 3 kids. Arriving in Narita 2 on Dec 26 around 2pm from Hong Kong. Planning to rent a 7-seater wagon (as we also have some luggage) from Nissan airport counter. Planning to head straight (more or less) to Kusatsu Onsen and down to our hotel in Shinjuku after two nights.

Questions please:
1) Are we expecting snow Dec 26-28 in the mountainous areas already? Will we need snow tires?
2) How is the traffic on Saturday mid afternoon going through Tokyo?
3) Is it a safe/gentle enough drive? My husband has not driven on snow before. I have but many years ago.
4) Is the English GPS adequate to get us there?
5) Could you suggest an ideal midway stop (snack and bathroom break) without getting off the tollways?

Would appreciate any advise. We also considered taking the trains but with kids and luggage, the transfers from train, bus, etc. seem longer and daunting. Just want to explore whether driving in Japan is an option. We've driven in many countries we visited, both right- hand and left hand drive automatic cars.

Thank you.
by wanderlost (guest)  

Re: Driving from Narita to Kusatsu Onsen 2015/9/7 12:08
1) Are we expecting snow Dec 26-28 in the mountainous areas already? Will we need snow tires?

Yes, there is a hogh change of snow, and yes, you have to get snow tires. If there is snow or ice on the road, then you will also need winter driving skills, otherwise it could be dangerous for your family and the drivers around you.

2) How is the traffic on Saturday mid afternoon going through Tokyo?

Generally, weekends are much less crowded than weekdays inside Tokyo. Saturdays are generally good timing to drive through Tokyo. During Saturday mornings, traffic out of Tokyo can be heavy, but you will leave Tokyo in the late afternoon when there should be no congestion. There may be slightly heavy traffic into Tokyo, though.

3) Is it a safe/gentle enough drive?

Driving through Tokyo is complicated and stressful. Sometimes you need to make crucial lane changes with just a few seconds.

As for winter driving, it can be very dangerous when there is snow or ice on the road. Especially on steep roads during the morning when the danger of ice is higher than during a sunny afternoon.

My husband has not driven on snow before. I have but many years ago.

Frankly, I recommend you to consider using public transportation, instead. It is quite convenient. As for luggage, you could consider sending the big luggage directly to you Tokyo hotel and bring only small bags to Kusatsu.

4) Is the English GPS adequate to get us there?

It depends on the specific company and car. Many outlets do not even offer English GPS.

5) Could you suggest an ideal midway stop (snack and bathroom break) without getting off the tollways?

There are parking areas and service areas every 20-50 kilometers or so. Lots of options.
by Uji rate this post as useful

Re: Driving from Narita to Kusatsu Onsen 2015/9/8 19:13
Thank you very much. We will definitely consider your suggestions.
by wanderlost (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: Driving from Narita to Kusatsu Onsen 2015/9/9 21:02
I drove to kusatsu from Tokyo to minakami to kusatsu to atami and back to Tokyo ueno as a drop off location for 3 days using Nissan, with a Nissan march 1400CC I think, three months ago, and I drove out of Tokyo at 6am, there are lots of lane changing and plenty of traffic lights, So expect a lot of stopping.

I also applied for a English GPS which I can say is considered very accurate, apart from some soft left turn/bend which the GPS speaks out, and is sometimes misleading, as you sometimes don't notice them, and some very small roads.

But the good thing is the GPS does pick up your location very quickly if you do make a wrong turn.

those are the main problems, but out of the city, it's rather relaxing to drive.

Make sure your staying hotel in kusatsu has free parking for your car, and do contact them in advance to let them know, as some require you to make reservation for parking.
by kms899 rate this post as useful

Re: Driving from Narita to Kusatsu Onsen 2015/9/9 21:15
Just a added note, seeing you are renting direct with Nissan, do get all their full coverage, so if anything happens you don't need to pay anything, the basic coverage included is not enough, and you will have to pay for NOC, and handling fee if something happens which can be anything from at least 50000 yen and up, my extra coverage only cost and extra 6000 yen for the Nissan march for 3 days, for your car, you will have to contact Nissan before hand for a quotation, you cannot add them during car collection.

This is a the break down of extra coverage charge for my rental as a P1 grade car, expect yours to cost more, and 1000 yen extra for GPS, although if you don't get the English GPS I think you can adjust the setting from Japanese to English (can't be too sure) and with Nissan you can also apply for Chinese, but will depend on the car.

CDW 2400 yen

NAS 1000 yen

NOC plan 600 yen

English GPS 1000 yen
by kms899 rate this post as useful

Re: Driving from Narita to Kusatsu Onsen 2015/9/9 23:44
We rented from Nissan a couple of times earlier this year in different locations. Each time we asked them to set the GPS to English for us which they kindly did. They would also set our first destination showing us how this GPS works. The easiest way to set your destination is to punch in the telephone number of the hotel you will stay in that night, so make sure you have the telephone numbers of all your destinations handy.
by Dutch Ann rate this post as useful

Re: Driving from Narita to Kusatsu Onsen 2015/9/10 02:14
I actually do my research beforehand, and make a list of all the areas I will visit and the hotels, then using mapion to get all the mapcode for the destination.

The use of the GPS is very easy to use with mapcode.
by kms899 rate this post as useful

reply to this thread