Cheap travel in Kansai

I'm going to Japan for the 2nd time, and I will primarily be staying in the kansai (kinki) region, around nara/kyoto/osaka. I also plan to head to miyajima and hiroshima, but that will be my only long-distance travel. I will mostly just be moving around osaka/nara/kyoto.
There are lots of different options available for various rail passes and whatnot, so its kind of overwhelming. I'm not sure if I should even get a rail pass at all.

On my first trip to Japan, I noticed that there are quite a lot of non-JR travel options, so in order to avoid tons of unnecessary walking, I often ended up paying for subways and buses and things, even though I had a JR pass.

I'm trying to work a cost-effective plan for my trip. Any help would be most appreciated!

For travelling around Kyoto - I prefer to use the bus passes as it is more convenient as the buses tend to stop nearer to the destinations. Osaka - I usually bought day tickets if I plan to go to 2-3 places in one day. As for NARA - just buy the train tickets to NARA and from there take a bus. Most of the tourist destinations are nearby to each other.

If you are going to do Kyoto-Hiroshima return trip, as well as Kyoto-Nara, Kyoto-Osaka, etc., I think that a JR pass would be the best choice. You could of course use local trains and buses instead to maybe save a little more. The JR pass gives you a free ferry ride from Hiroshima to Miyajima too.

Josh

I would like to add some opinions about inner moving in Kansai area.

About Nara:
You should take Kintetsu Line in order to low budget.
From Kyoto to Nara:
It costs 610 yen and takes 44 minutes by Kintetsu's express (not limited express). If you take JR's rapid train it costs 690 yen and takes 50 minutes.
From Osaka to Nara:
It costs 540 yen and takes 40 minutes from Osaka-Namba to Kintetsu-Nara by Kintetsu's express (not limited express). If you take JR's rapid train it costs 780 yen and takes 60 minutes from Osaka station to Nara station.
Yes, we locals NEVER take JR.

If you take Kintetsu Line you don't need to ride bus because Kofukuji Temple and Todaiji Temple are not far from Kintetsu-Nara station (You can walk within 5 minutes from the station to Kofukuji temple). And Kasuga shrine is located near to Todaiji temple.

From Osaka to Kyoto:
I use to take three railways as follows.
When I visit central Kyoto I use to take Hankyu Line. It takes 40 minutes and costs 390yen from Umeda to Karasuma by limited express (No extra charge is needed).
When I visit eastern Kyoto, for example Gion, I use to take Keihan Line. It takes 50 minutes and costs 400yen from Yodoyabashi to Gion-Shijo by limited express (No extra charge is needed).
When I visit southern Kyoto, for example Toji temple, I use to take JR Line. It takes 30 minutes and costs 540 yen from Osaka to Kyoto by rapid train (called shinkaisoku　新快速).
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4006.html?aFROM=2157_2158