Osaka & Kyoto, Japan Thread 2

[shygirlme]

^^hi sis kami ni husband mas gusto namin osaka and kyoto than tokyo. city kasi tokyo madami tao. if babalik kami sa sakura gusto namin osaka and kyoto mas relaxing kasi yung feeling

[darna88]

sis pano yun 3 days kyoto and 3 days osaka? di dapat 2 hotels din kami?...

eh 3 cities kami sis 3 hotels

@darna88:
Osaka - 3 days (1 day for Universal Studios)
Kyoto - 3 days
Tokyo - 5 days (1 day for Disneyland or DisneySea, 1 overnight trip for Mt. Fuji in Kawaguchiko or Hakone)

Limit yourself to these 3 locations lang sis kasi may mobility issue kayo with a kid and a senior sa group. 

@ruthallanroy: Usually, mga 5-star hotels offer airport transfers. Otherwise, you have to go there on your own using public transportation. Sobrang mahal ng taxi even for short distance trips.

[fittotravel]

@darna88: Yes. 3 hotels. Pwede namang 2 lang (Osaka and Tokyo). Pero that would mean babalik kayo everyday sa Osaka from your Kyoto trip. Eh considering na may kasama kayong bata at senior sa group, medyo nakakapagod 'yun sis kaya hindi ko i-aadvise.

Saka kung sa magdecide kayong magstay sa hotel in Kyoto, di n'yo kailangang gumising nang maaga (compared to the scenario if you're to stay in Osaka). Saka makakatipid kayo sa fare (3x kayong babalik sa Kyoto, remember?) lalo na kung hindi kayo magji-JR Pass.

[shegie_285]

Interesting na Osaka is way better than Tokyo. Actually for our trip we didn't pick Tokyo  dahil one week na kami sa Seoul, feeling namin Tokyo would be just like Seoul - a big city.

Osaka and Kyoto are stroller friendly nga but sometimes it's hard to find the lifts sa train station. Most of the time nasa dulo ng station. And yes it could get crowded. Puro temples din sa Kyoto and puro lakad.

I'd pick din separate hotel sa Osaka and Kyoto although I know the feeling ng magpalipat-lipat ng hotel. Kapagod din. Another pros if may hotel sa Osaka and Kyoto if napagod kayo you could go back to the hotel especially may child and senior.

[fittotravel]

@shegie_285: I love Japan as a country. It is in fact my favorite country, so much so that in a span of 9 months, makakatatlong balik na ako.  But in my opinion, Seoul is a better city compared to Tokyo. Mas maraming activities. Mas relaxed 'yung atmosphere. 

[darna88]

sory for my ignorance  ..yun JRpass is for all around the places na ba?...for sample we are already in tokyo then we want to explore tokyo muna for 5 days before heading to Osaka do we need to always take the trains in JRPass just to be able to get to different tourist spot in tokyo?....

and if we will be staying for 11 days Tokyo osaka kyoto leg is it advisable pa ba to get a JRpass or not anymore? what is SUICA card?....pag ba hindi JRpass purchase namin yun SUICA card mas advisable na ipurchase namin?....

[fittotravel]

@darna88: The Yamanote Line in Tokyo is a JR-run train so pwedeng gamitin 'yung JR Pass. But if you're staying there for 5 days, hindi ninyo mamamaximize 'yung worth ng pass ninyo. Now if you're going to travel from Tokyo to Kyoto and Osaka, pwede n'yong masulit 'yung pass. Pero hindi guaranteed. Depende kasi kung paano ninyo ipa-plot 'yung travels n'yo. I have written a blog post on how you can maximize the use of the 7-day JR Pass. Nasa website ko. Kindly check your inbox. 

Suica, Pasmo, and ICOCA cards naman are prepaid transportation cards. You can use these on most trains (regardles kung JR-operated or hindi) and even on buses in Kyoto. Kahit saan mo nabili 'yung card, pwede magamit sa ibang lugar. Example, when we went there, I purchased an ICOCA card in Osaka. Nagamit ko 'yun sa Kyoto hanggang sa Tokyo. You just need to add value to the card. Pwede mo ring gamitin itong card on certain purchases (sa mga convenience stores like Family Mart, Lawson, 7-Eleven). 

[pret_ty68]

Alin bang airport ang malapit sa kyoto nagoya ba or kansai?  Plan kasi namin na diretso nang kyoto. Mga 4 or 5 days kami in kyoto tapos lipat nang tokyo mga 3 days in tokyo tapos yung pauwi namin sa narita airport na kami sasakay.

[marose17]

^ Kansai

From Kansai Airport, take the bullet train to Kyoto.  The train ride takes around 40-50 minutes.

[pret_ty68]

^
Thank you. Yung shinkansen na bullet train ba sis? Paano pala ang luggage sa bullet train pwede bang itabi mo sayo o may area silang pinaglalagyan?

[candygrenade]

^
Thank you. Yung shinkansen na bullet train ba sis? Paano pala ang luggage sa bullet train pwede bang itabi mo sayo o may area silang pinaglalagyan?

Shinkansen is Japanese for bullet train May space naman in front for your luggage, but do take note na limited lang and there is a chance that you will be sitting next to or in-between strangers kung hindi ka naka-reserved seat. Best not to be o-jama (perwisyo) in Japan kasi sensitive sila about personal space. Advice ko sa mga sasakay sa shinkansen huwag magdala ng malaki or maraming luggage kasi hassle talaga during the transfer and at the station (especially Tokyo, nakakaloka promise).

[pret_ty68]

^
Thank you. tig iisang luggage lang naman kami kaya lang plan ko sana dalhin yung medyo malaki na may wheels para isang bag na lang doon ko na rin ilalagay mga pasalubong. Paano pala mag pa reserve nang seat sa bullet train?

[candygrenade]

^
Thank you. tig iisang luggage lang naman kami kaya lang plan ko sana dalhin yung medyo malaki na may wheels para isang bag na lang doon ko na rin ilalagay mga pasalubong. Paano pala mag pa reserve nang seat sa bullet train?

You can choose and reserve seats when you purchase at the station, or you can ask your travel agency to do that for you

[darna88]

@darna88: The Yamanote Line in Tokyo is a JR-run train so pwedeng gamitin 'yung JR Pass. But if you're staying there for 5 days, hindi ninyo mamamaximize 'yung worth ng pass ninyo. Now if you're going to travel from Tokyo to Kyoto and Osaka, pwede n'yong masulit 'yung pass. Pero hindi guaranteed. Depende kasi kung paano ninyo ipa-plot 'yung travels n'yo. I have written a blog post on how you can maximize the use of the 7-day JR Pass. Nasa website ko. Kindly check your inbox. 

Suica, Pasmo, and ICOCA cards naman are prepaid transportation cards. You can use these on most trains (regardles kung JR-operated or hindi) and even on buses in Kyoto. Kahit saan mo nabili 'yung card, pwede magamit sa ibang lugar. Example, when we went there, I purchased an ICOCA card in Osaka. Nagamit ko 'yun sa Kyoto hanggang sa Tokyo. You just need to add value to the card. Pwede mo ring gamitin itong card on certain purchases (sa mga convenience stores like Family Mart, Lawson, 7-Eleven). 

thank you pero bakit pala ICOCA buy mo hindi SUICA or pasmo card

[bagaholic_chewy]

Question mga sis..

Weekday travel - Tokyo to Kyoto sa Shinkansen - punuan ba? Do we need to pay addl for reserved seats? Or hindi naman punuan so pwede na di mag-reserve ng seats? Kuripot-mode lang. Hehe.. also, ilang hours approx travel time?

[fittotravel]

@darna88: Pasmo, Suica, and ICOCA are all prepaid transportation cards. Ang Suica and Pasmo available sa Tokyo. ICOCA naman available sa Osaka. Pero pare-parehas naman silang nagagamit sa ibang lugar (ICOCA nagagamit sa Tokyo, ang Pasmo at Suica naman nagagamit sa Tokyo). 

@bagaholic_chewy: Bihira naman mapuno ang Shinkansen on a weekday. And if Osaka-Kyoto lang naman, you can just take a Rapid Service na JR-run din. 29 minutes lang naman 'yung travel time. Take only the Shinkansen if your hotel is near Shin-Osaka station. Kasi kung sa ibang station kayo manggagaling, lalabas na mas matagal pa 'yung travel time ninyo. Mas mahal pa. 

Osaka to Kyoto:
-via Rapid Service: 29 minutes, 560 yen
-via Shinkansen: 14 minutes, 1,420 yen

 

[bagaholic_chewy]

^ thanks, sis. Tokyo-Kyoto actually yung Shinkansen namin.. Tuesday/Wednesday yata ang nasa sched namin.. another question, is it necessary to buy shinkansen ticket beforehand, or keri lang pagdating na namin ng Tokyo Station, since weekday naman at para mas flexible ang time (we'll just take the next bullet train out).

[shygirlme]

^hi sis kami from Kyoto to Tokyo bumili lang ng shinkansen ticket sa station. andon ata kami ng 11am pero pinili namin ticket pang 1:30pm

[fittotravel]

@bagaholic_chewy: Ay sorry, naexcite ako. Haha! Pwede namang kayong bumili sa mismong station na. May reserve at non-reserve seats sa Shinkansen. Pero kung mula Tokyo naman, maraming seats 'yan sa non-reserve trains. Agahan n'yo na lang kasi syempre, paunahan 'yung upuan sa walang reservation.

[bagaholic_chewy]

^ & ^^ thank you! Ayan nagkakaidea na ako para maayos ko ang budget. Buti na lang weekday kami Shinkansen so makakatipid din sa non-reserved seats, hehe.

Me kasama kami na baby, 1.5yo by that time (sa Nov pa travel, medyo excited lang mag-research,hehe). So we plan on bringing 2 rolled luggage (na si hubby bahala) + umbrella stroller (na ako in-charge) + tig-isa kami handcarry na backpack ni hubby... 2 years ago, kami pa lang ni hubby kaya di kami masyado concerned sa mga gamit. But now na me kasamang baby, medyo kelangan matuto mag-pack light.