Transportation - 18 day Trip

Hi Everyone,

Im planning a trip to Japan in May 2023 and im getting overwhelmed with all the transportation methods/passes

We are planning to do an 18 day trip to japan and will appreciate any advice!

Tokyo
Hakone
Kyoto
Osaka (Nara)

Does it make sense to get the JR Pass? When would you take the JR vs a metro or does the JR pass also cover metro/transportation within the cities? (im getting confused with the information in the site - it says that JR pass covers "shinkansen and limited express trains, local trains, some JR buses and the JR ferry to Miyajima" but can you get around the city with JR buses/the trains JR pass covers?

Is there other passes that would make more sense to take or is it better/cheaper to just buy tickets on-site?

I think you are only going one way (Tokyo to Osaka), it wouldnt be worth the pass, and it would only be worth it if you were going both ways (i.e. returning to leave via Tokyo) within a week.

There is a calculator online somewhere to let you know, but for example in our forthcoming trip we are doing pretty much 3 times as much travel as you over a 2 week period, and the 2 week pass still isnt worthwhile.

It is very complicated, but don't overwhelm yourself trying to understand everything. You still have lots of time to plan and figure out the best transportation options.

There are many companies operating trains (including subways and monorails) in Japan. JR is the biggest of them all. JR also operates few buses and ferries. The nation-wide JR Pass can only be used on JR-operated transportations.

Let us know more details of your plan, then we can help you decide which pass (if any) suits your needs.

Hi!

Whether a JR Pass makes sense usually comes down to how many shinkansen trips you are taking within a specific time period. The more shinkansen trips in a shorter time period, the more it becomes worth it in simplest terms.

You can use JR trains to get around say Tokyo (and even around Kyoto and Osaka depending on your plans) but there are plenty of places particularly in Kyoto and Osaka that will not be covered by JR and the fares within a given city tend to be low.

So assuming you are doing just the places listed by you and you are flying into Tokyo and out of Osaka, no, a rail pass is highly unlikely to be worth it.

How you get into Tokyo, would depend on the airport you fly into and where you are trying to get to. A lot of people use the private Keisi Line from Narita (and change to a JR line within Tokyo if needs be) and from Haneda you are more likely to use a non JR line as well.)

Within Tokyo even if you are using JR the fares are likely to be low, unless you are planning much further afield trips not mentioned, like say Sendai.

For Hakone you can get there via shinkansen to Odawara and then transferring to a private line or from Shinjuku via private line directly to Hakone Yumoto. Most people spending time in Hakone get the Hakone Free Pass because they tend to do the Hakone loop or take a lot of methods of transport between. But again it depends on what you plan to do and over what time frame.

You will want to take a shinkansen from Odawara to Kyoto.

Going to Osaka from Kyoto is easy and there are a lots of options, from JR to non-JR and none of the trips are terribly expensive. The same is true for Nara. In general, the private line, Kintetsu is more convenient to Nara.

Good luck!