I have a little over a month to do a Japan and China trip around the end of December to the end of January, wondering if anybody has any experience with a similar trip? I'm trying to figure out which would be the cheapest way to fly (from Melbourne). Thanks in advance!
Wondering What Is The Cheapest Way to Do a Japan/China Trip in January, General Tips Also Needed!
WhaleStick on 24/09/2018 - 13:36
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Do you think its too late for jan/feb also?
Tip, go through previous JAP deals here, and check which days they aim at. Usually 6+months from now.
Will do, cheers. I did find a flights from 22 jan to 28 feb for $620, is that an okay price in your opinion?
@WhaleStick:
Depend, is that the time you like to fly? (based on japan weather/school holidays/etc) and direct flight? , full service flight? then Yes.
Are you going to ski? Cos it'll be heaps cold in Japan then
If you go to China first you may be applicable for the 144 hour visa. https://www.travelchinaguide.com/tour/visa/free-transit-144-…
where in china and/or Japan will you be going to
if flying in to Narita and going into tokyo then get the Access Narita bus.
I wish I had known about this previously!!
1000yen (~$12.50 ) -half price for kids to 13years- gets you from Narita to Tokyo station by bus - compared to rail which costs minimum 2500yen.
buses leave every 20 minutes. from each terminal.
you pay the bus driver directly (no booking required - and, if it is busy, with frequent buses you only have to wait for the next bus i.e. 20minutes)
here is the website http://accessnarita.jp/en/home/
the bus runs on the highway express way (i.e. think autobahn) so no traffic lights. except when you get near to the destination.
you are subject to the traffic conditions in comparison to rail.
I went from Narita to Tokyo at 9pm and it took 40 minutes. on the return trip (midday) it took 1.5 hours. so if you have a strict deadline then get rail.
though the cheapest rail takes at least 40 minutes as you stop at many stations.
Have done this a few times - the key for saving money is flexibility. If you don't care about the order you go, you can save heaps.
I always use Skyscanner to find the cheapest days to fly. Test out various routes (e.g. Mel-Japan-China-Mel or doing China first).
A few other budget tips:
* Get a card that offers good currency conversion rates (e.g. CitiBank Plus) as the bank travel cards give you terrible rates and high ATM fees
* In Tokyo, there's plenty of ways to get to the city cheaply. Take a look at the Keisei trains (~$15) though the $30 Keisei Skyliner is worth it for the time savings for me.
* Hostels/Capsule Hotels/AirBNB are incredibly affordable and clean in Japan. There's plenty of cheap accommodation in China but you'll need to do some more research as I found it hit and miss.
* Convenience stores in both countries offer affordable food/drinks unlike here.Great tips, thanks! I was in Japan for a bit in 2015 so I know the value of the 7/11 and Lawsons over there haha! First time in China though. How long did you spend in each country when you went?
I normally go to Japan for 2 weeks at a time and China for just over 2 weeks.
With China, I'd recommend downloading Google Translate and the offline language pack as well as an offline maps app - English signage is around in Beijing/Shanghai, etc but not many people speak English so having the app is a lifesaver. Also, make sure you have your hotel names written in Chinese so taxi drivers,etc know where it is. We had hotel locations written in pinyin (Chinese with romanised characters) and no-one knew where they had to take us!
Why not ING card instead of Citibank?
At the time, I didn't want to stuff around with the 5 transactions before I went - no requirements like that for Citibank. They're pretty close in terms of exchange rate (with the 5 transactions in the previous month) so you could use either.
Find a cheapest flight this week, eg using skyscanner, that would be your cheapest. Bit too late to look for flights within December to the end of January now.