Prepaid IC cards

Hi again!
Now I have a lot of stupid questions about those prepaid cards.
I have tried to understand all details but haven�Lt clean enough for myself. I checked here http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2359_003.html
We are 2 adults and 4 kids going to travel in Japan for 21 Days. Our itinerary ( I mention just big cities and not Hakone, Takayama and others...) are Tokyo ( 8 Days), Hiroshima ( 2 Days) and Osaka / Kyoto ( 6 Days).
My questions are:
1. Have I buy Suica for JR trains and Pasmo for non-JR-trains for Tokyo and Icoca for Hiroshima / Kansai? Or can I use just one card everywhere?
2. As I understood I have to return IC-card for deposit and refund to same Company there the cards were bought. Does it mean I cant return my Suica/Pasmo cards at Kansai Airport?
3. For Childrens cards we need to letter theirs names with japanese letters. Is it important to be exactly ? or can we just use theirs names like they sounds in japaniese: Vik-tor, A-le-xan-der, Os-kar, Ja-kob? My oldest sun studies japaniese and he can prepare this but I want to be sure.
Thank you !

1. Have I buy Suica for JR trains and Pasmo for non-JR-trains for Tokyo and Icoca for Hiroshima / Kansai?

Suica and Icoca have almost the identical coverage area. One exception is Hiroshima, where trams and the Miyajima ferry are covered by Icoca but not covered by Suica. As for Tokyo and Kansai, all transportation is covered by both, Suica and Icoca.

2. As I understood I have to return IC-card for deposit and refund to same Company there the cards were bought. Does it mean I cant return my Suica/Pasmo cards at Kansai Airport?

Yes, that is what it means.

3. For Childrens cards we need to letter theirs names with japanese letters. Is it important to be exactly ?

No.

You can't use an IC card to buy Shikansen tickets. But there is no problem using a foreign credit card at a ticket counter/office.

If you lose your deposit, that is just part of the expense of a trip to Japan. But the card value is valid for a long time, so if you return in the next few years it will still be available then.

You can use some IC cards in some convenience stores, so towards the end of your trip you can burn off the remaining money that way, except for the deposit.

There is an Android app that can show you the remaining value of your Suica card. That assumes you have a smartphone with NFC capabilities. The app works great on my Samsung S3.

Thank you for answer. We will keep our Cards like souvenirs or for another time 😀

Thanks again.

1. Is it any other way to pay for trams in Hiroshima than Icoca card? Probably we will get Suica /Pasmo for Tokyo and Kansai as we fly to Nartita.
2.Is it nesessary to buy Icoca for just 2 says in Hiroshima? Can we just pay cash for tram travel?
3. Can we use Suica/Pasmo in Nagoya?
4. Can we use Suica for charge Kansai One pass (as a special kind of Icoca card for foreign Tourists)?

Our itinerary is Tokyo-Hakone-Nagoya-Takayama-Gero-Hiroshima-Osaka/Kyoto. We will travel for 21 Days. We will get 7 days JR pass for places between Tokyo and Osaka.

Thanks.

1. Is it any other way to pay for trams in Hiroshima than Icoca card?

Cash and Paspy card. Suica/Pasmo cannot be used.

2.Is it nesessary to buy Icoca for just 2 says in Hiroshima?

No.

Can we just pay cash for tram travel?

Yes. Or get a day pass. The basics are explained here:
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3404.html

3. Can we use Suica/Pasmo in Nagoya?

Yes. See the basics here:
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2359_003.html

And here I`m again :-)

We will get 4 adults Suica and 2 Children -Suica. When we will charge those IC cards in Nagoya and Osaka - are there still adults- and Children fares applies ? I mean there are another regions of Japan . Does cards work the same way - like adults and Children cards? Anybody?

The IC card itself will know what kind of card it is, whether adult of child. You can add value to them at any machine that accepts them for re-charge. All you have to do is add half the amount to the child one than you would to the adult one as the child's fare is half of that for an adult.

Great! Thank you!

A Child Suica Card works always as a child card, until it expires, when March ends while its holder is at the age of 12.
That�fs why a holder should be identified, and personal information on the holder is necessary for this identification.
So, when you apply for a Child Suica Card, it is better to spell the name of the holder just the same as in his/her ID document such as passport.
(Due to technical limitation, the name might be printed on the card in a little different way.)

We are 2 adults and 4 kids.
We will get 4 adults Suica and 2 Children -Suica.

How are the exact numbers?
Have you conformed that each of the kids should be eligible for a Child Suica Card?
(The age standard for Child Suica Cards differs from that for child-rate Japan Rail Passes.)

NOT: conformed
BUT: confirmed

Thank you. The youngest one is 8. the second Child is 12 but he is still at primary school. So as rules are for Suica Child card he can still use this card. Do you know if we need any proof from his school? Any documents?

Other are 13, 17 and we are two adults, theirs parents.

I know that JR pass is just up to 11 years old so in that case we will get 5 adults and one Child JR passes.

the second Child is 12 but he is still at primary school.
So as rules are for Suica Child card he can still use this card.

The eligibility depends simply on passengers�f age, and the age standard is based on the Japanese school age; whether a foreign passenger belongs to a school in his/her homeland is not relevant.

When will you do this journey?

In April 2017 or later, he who is now 12 will not be eligible for child IC transportation cards.
If his legal birthdate is the 1st of April 2004 or earlier, he is now already too old.
If his legal birthdate is during the one year from the 2nd of April 2004, he should be eligible until March 2017 will end.

Can we use Suica for charge Kansai One Pass (as a special kind of ICOCA card for foreign Tourists)?

Well, I am not sure what you are asking about, but a Suica card does not bring you benefits which are connected to a Kansai One Pass.

Our itinerary is Tokyo-Hakone-Nagoya-Takayama-Gero-Hiroshima-Osaka/Kyoto.
We will get 7 days JR pass for places between Tokyo and Osaka.

In Shinagawa Station,
you can return Suica cards to JR-East for a refund at the JR Ticket Office (near the north gate)
then go into the Shinkansen zone through the Shinkansen (North) Transfer Gate with your Japan Rail Pass.
(JR Shinagawa Station is much simpler than JR Tokyo Station.)
http://www.jreast.co.jp/e/stations/e788.html

In Shin-Osaka or Kyoto Station,
you can go out of the Shinkansen zone through the Shinkansen Transfer Gate with your Japan Rail Pass
then get Kansai One Passes issued by JR-West at the JR Ticket Office.

In Shinagawa, Kyoto and Shin-Osaka Stations, the Shinkansen zones are managed by JR-Central, which is the operator of Tokaido Shinkansen (Tokyo -- Shinagawa -- Kyoto -- Shin-Osaka); there you can neither make a refund of Suica Cards nor acquire Kansai One Passes.

We will keep our Cards like souvenirs or for another time

E-money stored on a Suica or ICOCA card can be valid for ten years after the card is used last.

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

This article seems to have become too long and completed for beginners (due to the historical backgrounds of IC transportation cards in Japan).

The very basic is that you should use the same IC card both when you enter one usage area on the rail network and when you exit it.

Dear Omotenashi!

Thank you for answers.
1. My nr 3 is born 16th of Jan 2005. So OK - we need just one Child Suica.
2. Kansai One pass is a kind of Icoca (plastic IC card). I meant - if we keep our Suica cards from Tokyo - can we recharge those with Kansai One Pass ( and avoid paying a new deposit for new cards). This is what I mean.

But maybe we have to get Kansai One Pass and keep it like souvenir too :-)

Wait...

I used my Suica card on Hiroshima Trams in 2014. Has something changed?

Maybe you just didn't notice that it was rejected, because the Hiroshima trams never accepted Suica.

For Omotenashi:

For example here I find information in English (I suppose for foreign Tourists) that say : Children up to 12 at primary school can still use Children fare)

http://www.keisei.co.jp/keisei/tetudou/skyliner/us/value_ticket/coupon...

But OK. I will ask at the station.

@Ekaterina RE: Kansai One Card
As you already said, Kansai One Card is just a special edition Icoca card. You will not be able to transfer your balance from Suica to Icoca because they are issued by different companies.