Comments on: Japan travel costs: a breakdown of our spending

By: Andy Jarosz

Andy Jarosz — Sat, 31 Mar 2012 22:33:28 +0000

Thanks for sharing the link and I enjoyed reading your list Vi. Of course we could spend half as much or twice as much – it depends on where you want to stay, how you want to eat and what you want to do. The trip we took (and the amount we spent) was in line with the level of comfort we like and the amount of stuff we wanted to see. As the comments above and those on your post have suggested, it’s useful to see how different people travel and budget.

By: Vi

Vi — Sat, 31 Mar 2012 19:40:56 +0000

So your budget for one person was approximately £115 (185US$) per day.
My spendings were ~120US$ on my 10 day trip.
http://www.shorttraveltips.com/destinations/japan-travel-cost/

By: Martino Matijevic

Martino Matijevic — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 10:14:47 +0000

This is probably the most useful Japan article I’ve seen. Yes, I can find lots of “inspirational” articles on Japan, but very few help me decide how much I should pay for this-and-that, hence how much I should budget.

I am also really surprised to see how this “expensive” country is actually not more expensive than the UK. And the comment about superior service (at the same price) is very valid: the Japanese don’t mind paying high prices but expect (read: demand) service and quality.

By: Alex

Alex — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 13:34:44 +0000

Very interesting and detailed post! I knew Japan was expensive but it’s nice to see the distribution of expenses. That will be very helpful if one day I manage to save enough money to even consider going there

By: Nomadic Samuel

Nomadic Samuel — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 05:59:46 +0000

Andy, this is a really nice breakdown of the costs of your trip to Japan. I’ve only been in Japan for a few days, so I’m not as familiar with costs over an extended period of time. I found this budget very useful.

By: Japan Australia

Japan Australia — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 05:44:06 +0000

Thanks for that! It is good being able to see a breakdown of the cost of your trip and something like this would definitely help in planning a trip to Japan in the future.

By: Amanda Kendle

Amanda Kendle — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 07:19:41 +0000

Great post, very helpful info. I lived in Japan ten years ago and hope to go on a holiday there soon with my family – but have been concerned about the expenses as a tourist (it’s totally different to live there!) – and this has reassured me somewhat!

By: Andy Jarosz

Andy Jarosz — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 09:48:52 +0000

Thanks Jeremy – appreciate the kind feedback. Not sure if it is much more than travelling in Europe though – remember my amounts are for two of us. I also kept comparing with Europe as we made our way around – I would say hotels prices were similar to Spain (less than France/Italy but more than Portugal), but with levels of services and attention to detail that you’d never get for the same price in Europe.
Food was cheaper than in most of western Europe (closer to Poland I would say, although far more options to spend a lot more if you wanted to).
Overall I would say that our daily spending was very close to that of our trip through Portugal, Spain and France earlier this year, when we travelled with similar frugality.

By: Andy Jarosz

Andy Jarosz — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 09:44:11 +0000

Ah ok, then you’ll need to get to see your son at some point. Not sure how to best tackle the carbon footprint – is it better to fly and at least only have a 12 hour footprint or to go be land (probably 14 days minimum) and have a longer, slower-burning footprint. But it’s your son and I’m sure he’ll want to see you.
Agree about the Holiday programmes – same still applies. Virgin showed a destination guide to Tokyo on the flight – lots of 5 star hotels, Michelin restaurants and thousand pound a night treats. Great for the film crew to produce and I’m sure they got it all comped, but completely useless to the normal visitor.

By: Jeremy Branham

Jeremy Branham — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 05:55:21 +0000

Andy, good breakdown of costs on Japan. I knew it was expensive but didn’t realize it was that much more expensive than traveling in Europe. Granted, the business hotels may cost a little more than other hotels because of their convenience. Not sure how they compare with others.

I appreciate your honesty in this post. Your post was different than others I read because you are honest and humble and state that this is just your experience and that you don’t expect others to be the same as yours due to different tastes, experiences, etc. Really appreciate you stating that.