Nine-day travel guide to Japan

The summer vacation is approaching recently, and many friends believe that they can no longer bear to travel. Japan is actually a good choice, whether it is the urban environment, or the cherry blossoms and Mount Fuji here, they all make People like it endlessly.

So, today the editor will give you a guide for nine days of free travel in Japan! Keep it away!

1. Entry

Tickets can be checked online

In to the airport, you only need to go through customs and get on the plane, so just half an hour in advance, if you have luggage If you want to check in, you need to arrive 1 hour in advance.

When you go through the security check, remember to take your phone and computer out of your carry-on bag and put them in a separate place. You need to fill out 2 forms after landing in Japan. Someone will guide you to fill in the forms. Do not lose this form after entry. You need to keep it with your passport.

After filling out the immigration card, prepare for entry inspection. There are three types of entry inspection channels: Japanese, re-entry channels and foreigners-only channels. Choose a channel to go through immigration formalities according to the actual situation. Now Japan has implemented a new immigration inspection system, and you also need to take photos and leave fingerprints.

Collect your baggage

After the immigration procedures are completed, go to the baggage hall to collect the baggage you checked in when you boarded the plane. There is a large electronic screen in the baggage hall, which contains detailed information such as flight arrival and baggage claim desk number. Just collect your luggage based on your flight number and luggage storage voucher.

After collecting your checked luggage, go to customs and complete the final procedures for entering Japan.

Customs Inspection

After collecting your luggage, you will then go through Japanese Customs. Customs is divided into red and green channels. Take the green channel: when you are not carrying items that need to be taxed; take the red channel: when you are carrying items that are subject to tax or are unsure. In addition, everyone must submit a baggage declaration form for separate carriage.

If you fill in "No" for all three options on Side A of the declaration form below, you do not need to fill in Side B.

Luggage declaration form for separate transportation of carry-on items

PS: For questions about whether return orders need to be printed, you can take a screenshot and save it on your mobile phone to check in

Sometimes I will ask you to show it to him, or print it out~~~You may be asked, maybe not, but you should still be prepared~

2. Transportation

In Japan , everything running on the track is called a "tram", which means that a tram is equivalent to rail transportation, but it does not have as many names as domestic rail transportation (for example: national railway, subway, train, etc.), except for another saying - The "Shinkansen" is different, but it is still a tram. The Shinkansen is similar to the domestic high-speed rail.

There are dozens of large and small companies operating railway transportation in Japan. Because there is no separation of trains with different operating modes, in fact a company can have both "trains" and "subways".

To put it simply: JR--JapanRailway, similar to domestic national railways and trains; the subway is the subway~

1. JR

In the beginning it was A large state-owned organization, it was later split into six companies, each responsible for the original state-owned railways in parts of Japan: Hokkaido, East Japan, Tokai, West Japan, Shikoku, and Kyushu.

Each JR company is responsible for different areas

JR’s lines are also divided into types, including city/suburban commuter lines and intercity ordinary lines, such as the Yamanote Loop below It is the city commuter line:

Tokyo Mountain Bracelet: the route responsible for the city’s commute

2. Subway

The Tokyo Metro has a special situation—— There are two companies operating the subway, and the lines are not interconnected! One of them is called "Tokyo Metro" (Tokyo

Metro), which is a private company, and the other is called "Toei Subway" (Toei Subway) ), operated by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government.

Because there is no interoperability, when purchasing a one-way ticket, if you need to take a train across companies - for example, if you transfer from the Asakusa Line to Shimbashi to the Ginza Line, you need to pay the respective freight charges of the two companies, so the subway one-way ticket The Day Pass cannot be used on the Yamanote Line/JR

The Pass cannot be used on the subway. ?

Train transfers of different companies require exiting the station to transfer, even if the station name is the same.

There is another type called "through", which means that after a train completes its own line, it continues to another line. The latter may be the company's or cross-company.

Because the railway is originally on the same track, sometimes it can go directly from one place to another, even if it is from a different company.

Category: Japan’s railways are also divided into categories, similar to domestic express and general express.

So some trains have fewer stops, some have more stops, some are of poor quality, some are of good quality, and some have to always let superior trains;

Express trains are basically It refers to long-distance trains with many hops, and they are all "reserved seats"; ordinary trains can be hopped on and off, and they are all "unreserved seats", similar to domestic subways, you can sit if you get a seat.

3. Private railways

It is Japan’s private railways. There are more than 20 private railways in Japan.

The way of riding on a private railway is similar to that of taking a domestic subway. You don’t need to distinguish whether it is a private railway or not, as long as it can reach the destination, the principle is still the same as the above subway.

Tickets

There are many types of transportation cards in Japan. The most famous one in the Chinese travel circle is Suica (Watermelon Card), also called Penguin Card.

Suica (水瓜卡)

The Suica Card is issued by JR East. It is similar to a domestic bus card. With it, you can take JR East lines and subways in the Tokyo area. It can be used by buses, buses and the Tokyo Monorail between Haneda Airport and the Tokyo area.

This card is for one person, which means it cannot be used by two people at the same time.

Of course, there are more than just watermelon cards in Japan, there are also: PASMO cards--sold jointly by Tokyo's subways and private railways, the little pink appearance is very cute; ICOCA--sold by JR West;

< p>PiTaPa--Kansai's private railways and buses are jointly sold.

Please refer to the picture below to understand where and which transportation card can be used.

PS: It cannot be used across districts. If you want to cross districts, you have to go to the manual window to buy a ticket in advance, because you cannot leave the station directly in the middle. In addition, unless the Shinkansen is within a specific section of some commuter passes, it will not work in any section.

To put it simply, if you plan to travel long distances, it is more dangerous to rely only on IC cards. It is better to buy paper tickets.

Paper tickets

It is paper. To purchase a ticket, go directly to: Confirm your destination at the automatic ticket vending machine -> Select the type of ticket you want to buy -> Price according to destination -> Insert the amount required for the place you want to arrive -> Take out the ticket.

For transportation within the city, you can just use an IC card. When taking high-speed trains such as Limited Express/Shinkansen, paper tickets are necessary if you need to purchase additional Limited Express tickets.

JRPass

The most famous JR among tourists

Pass (JR Pass) can entitle you to ride any ordinary train of the six JR companies across the country (i.e. The convenience of unreserved seats on trains that do not require limited express tickets, including general rapid, limited express, and express trains, limited express trains/Shinkansen, and reserved seats on limited express/Shinkansen are all free of charge.

This is a highly discounted pass that only foreign short-term travelers can enjoy. Therefore, this pass can only be redeemed by first booking with documents abroad and then presenting a foreign passport with the corresponding name in Japan.

In addition, if you are only traveling within Tokyo, you can also choose: JR23 area one-day pass, Tokyo

Subway one/two/three-day pass (the lines of the two companies You can ride them all!) These tickets. Instead of choosing JRPASS, it is relatively more cost-effective.

Of course, if you are not just doing activities in Tokyo, of course you still have to choose JR

PASS. We recommend some very popular passes: JR East Tohoku Area Rail Pass (one pass Visit the six northeastern prefectures! Choose 5 days within 14 days!), JR East South Hokkaido Rail Pass (Play from Tokyo to Hokkaido! Choose 6 days within 14 days!).

JR Kansai Area Rail Pass (you can start from Osaka and travel to Osaka, Kyoto, Nara and Wakayama with one pass!), JR Kansai Wide Area Pass (you can start from Osaka and travel from Universal Studios to Okayama! Paradise! You can take the Shinkansen!), JR Hokkaido Rail Pass (one ticket to travel throughout Hokkaido!)

JRPass additional explanation:

*The national version of PASS can only be used outside Japan You can buy the regional version in Japan, but the price is more favorable if you buy it domestically than on the spot.

*Only for personal use, and cannot be reissued if lost, damaged, etc.

* Tickets can be refunded. In the case of KLOOK booking, the redemption voucher that has not been exchanged for a physical ticket can be refunded within 11 months from the ticket issuance date. A cancellation fee of 10% of the face value will be charged.

*Cannot be used to ride the subway.

*At the travel center, green window or JR designated travel agency sales office at a JR station, show your JRPASS to the staff to help you reserve a seat and receive a seat reservation ticket.

Seishun 18 Travel Pass

If you don’t have a Japan Rail Pass, the most cost-effective one is the 5-day Seishun 18 Travel Pass. You can take unlimited free rides on JR trains running throughout Japan from Hokkaido in the north to Kyushu in the south.

The disadvantage of Seishen 18 is that you cannot ride limited express trains and Shinkansen trains, and each ticket must be used within 24 hours. But for travelers who crave slow-paced travel, it’s definitely worth the money. But even if you just need to travel back between Tokyo and Kyoto, you can save a lot of money.

Recommended route query tools

The fare query method for Japanese trains is: total fare = fare + seat price! Basically, JRPASS can take all routes. The following three practical tools are recommended:

1. Web page: Hyperdia

Transportation route cost inquiry tool.

In Chinese, in the "Detailed Condition Settings" below the query bar, you can choose to query only JR transportation. If you are using the national version of JR

PASS, it will also filter out trains that cannot be taken. The disadvantage is that the Hayabusa train that can be ridden by JRPASS has also been excluded

Website: /zh/

2.APP: Transfer information

In Japanese version and Chinese version, you can check routes and fares, but there is no way to filter out private railways or NOZOMI Nozomi and MIZUHO Mizuho trains. So if you use it to check the route with the national version of JR

PASS, you can exclude these two trains by yourself.

3.APP:googlemap

The transfer route is clear and the time taken is also clear, but you also need to exclude private railways or NOZOMI Nozomi, MIZUHO Mizuho trains, and other trains Or there are relatively few information points about fares.