Japan travel tales

Our customers share their travelling experiences in Japan. Read about first hand stories on travel tips and guides, events, entertainment,shopping, food, business and transportation. Also, you might want to read our city guide.

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S Gwee	11 November 2004
Stayed at ANA Hotel Narita - Tokyo / Narita, Japan.
The Aeon Shopping Mall at Narita is very modern and has lots of interesting shops - and some at very affordable prices. The ANA Narita hotel provides free shuttle service to this mall. Our son loves Tokyo Disneyland and wants to go back again next year. Food and entrance fees are prohibitive but the experience was rich. My wife has to move around with a crutch and was pleasantly surprised to meet with lots of assistance and concern. Overall, our visit to Tokyo this time confirms the impression from a previous visit 7 years ago - Japan is clean, rich in culture, things move like clockwork, the Japanese people are polite and customer service is first-rate - even though we cannot understand what they are saying - the smiles and friendly gestures speak for themselves.
H Fischer	04 November 2004
Stayed at Shiba Park Hotel - Tokyo, Japan.
If you have the chance, visit the VENUSFORT shopping mall in Tokyo Bay Ariake and be surprised (on the Yurikamome line)!
M Oskarsson	27 October 2004
Stayed at Mansions at Roppongi, The - Tokyo, Japan.
There is a very good yakitori place just around the corner from The Mansions and Roppongi Hills is another attraction nearby. Be prepared this is a very busy area, but the hotel is very quite. Unfortunately no possibilities for breakfast in the hotel.
K Sim	25 October 2004
Stayed at Osaka Airport Hotel - Osaka, Japan.
Osaka's sights are well-documented but one attraction relatively close to the airport is worth noting (especially if you have a lazy day to spend watching planes). Skyland Harada is a park where you get great views of planes landing at Itami Airport, great place to people-watch or enjoy a practice game of softball.
M Linn	12 October 2004
Stayed at Kyoto Royal Hotel - Kyoto, Japan.
Kyoto is the cultural capital of Japan and a wonderful place to experience the soul of Japan. It is small and very easy to get around on the local bus system. Be sure to get an english map from the central bus station at Kyoto Rail Station.
M Maticek	11 October 2004
Stayed at New Miyako Hotel - Kyoto, Japan.
Took the JTB Sunrise tour of Kyoto, highly recommended to get background on the temples and shrines, especially since the sites are distant from the train station. Used the Haruka Express train to Kansai Airport which is very convenient (drops you right off at the terminal).
H Seiffhart	04 October 2004
Stayed at Kyoto Hotel Okura - Kyoto, Japan.
We selected a JTB Sunrise morning tour as an orientation to Kyoto. We visited the Golden Pavillion, The Imperial Palace and the Nijo Castle. The tour was rushed and should have gone for at least another hour. The two Tokyo JTB morning tours (Edo Tokyo and the Tokyo Bay Lunch Cruise) we went on by comparison were enjoyable, well-paced and relaxing. The transport system in Kyoto is so easy to navigate that we spent the rest of our week stay travelling on our own. We recommend the following places as must-sees -- Kyoto station's rooftop observatory, Takashiyama and Hankyu Department stores, the 400 year old Nishiki market and the covered shopping arcades around Teramachi. If you are going to see temples you must limit yourself as there are so many. We went to the Silver Pavillion which has a beautiful garden, Nanzenji, which is huge and has a fantastic Zen dry stone garden for contemplation and the beautiful Kiyomizu. One of the more impressive temples and the most accessible as far as photography was concerned is the atmospheric Chion-in. Also you must visit the very unusual Sanjusangendo Hall. We went to the Gion corner and found the traditional entertainment to be virtually incomprehensible. Wait until you witness the Ikebana demonstration!! Most visitors were bemused. This entertainment is rather expensive so think twice before you go. At dusk the Pontoncho and Gion offer a number of restaurants available to foreigners, just look for the English menus outside. We dined at two Pontoncho restaurants Kaiyoutei (French style, located directly on the river) and Ka-Shin-tei (Japanese style - reasonably priced and marvellous food). At dusk it is possible to witness geisha or maiko walking around in Gion and the Pontoncho. It is not necessary to book yourself onto a tour to see this. You should be neatly and smartly dressed to eat here. If you have children we would recommend a day trip to Osaka from Kyoto. Time wise we took in three sites - the Umeda Sky Building, the Osaka Aquarium - which houses a whale shark, the nearby ferris wheel and the Osaka Castle. Again, transporation in Osaka is OK and we even met some very kind locals who went out of their way to assist us. If you wish to buy souvenirs you must visit the Kyoto Craft Centre near Gion. Do not confuse this place with the Kyoto Handicraft Centre, which sells tacky stuff by comparison. The Kyoto Craft Centre is the best place to buy quality handicrafts. In fact we found no better place to shop for traditional wares even in Tokyo, and that includes the Oriental Bazaar. We recommend that you stay for at least one week in Kyoto. We ran out of time and would have loved to have gone on other day trips.
S Whitehurst	02 October 2004
Stayed at Grand Mer, Hotel - Okinawa Island, Japan.
Rented car just outside airiport. Note that the major familiar rental car companies seem to have pickup transportation at airport, but HERTZ is administered under Toyoto Rental car, so dont stand around waiting for a bus labeled Hertz. Very impressive Prefectural Peace Museum in Naha overlooking ocean with sculpture garden dedicated to those who lost their lives in the WWII Battle of Okinawa. Well appointed displays in the museum.
R Liu	21 September 2004
Stayed at Mansions at Roppongi, The - Tokyo, Japan.
Stayed at Mansions at Roppongi on the first part of a week-long visit to Japan in late September. This was definitely the best accomodation we had on the whole trip compared to the Westin Miyako in Kyoto and the Shinagawa Prince in Tokyo. Mansions is on a small side street - very quiet w/o street noise - a block or two off Roppongi Dori, on the right heading away from Roppongi Crossing (intersection of Roppongi Dori and Gaien-Higashi Dori - lots of taxis here) and the Almond Coffee Shop (if you hit Roppongi Hills, go the other way) - looks like an alley, but you can see the big white Mansions sign down the alley. Despite the great location, we ended up spending very little time in Roppongi itself. We had a great curry udon at Roppongi Hills, a large outdoor mall complex that is also connected to Roppongi Metro station. We had foot massages at an upstairs salon on Gaien-Higashi and dessert at the Almond. We actually spent one night browsing an all-night department store on Gaien-Higashi that had anything you could possibly need from costumes and socks to electronics and manicures. Walking at night is safe, but you will be eagerly invited into bars and night clubs by non-Japanese guys just doing a job. Overall, this would be our first choice to stay in Tokyo. Although you could find cheaper hotels, in my limited experience, it would be difficult to get a better value than this.
J Ong	10 September 2004
Stayed at Mansions at Roppongi, The - Tokyo, Japan.
Tokyo is still an expensive city despite years of struggling under a deflationary economy. The best way to move around is by subway, and taxi is a no-no (use it as a last resort) as it's ridiculously expensive. For foreign tourists, best to buy a JR Pass (Japan Railway Pass) before leaving home as it's not for sale anywhere in Japan. This pass will cover most if not all trains going to different cities in Japan, plus the JR lines running within Tokyo. Japanese food is generally good but the best could only be found by chance or recommended by locals as most speak Japanese only. Also, set lunches are better value for money vs a-la-carte menu at dinners. Akasaka temple is a good place to visit and Disneyland is definitely enjoyable for family. Other than that, there are more interesting venues in cities outside Tokyo.