Nippon Adventure: Accommodations and Transportations

I've been planning this trip way before my second semester began, hoping I won't need much distraction with the plannings. Most importantly, I wanted to do this trip independently where I'm not obligated by a secondary voice.

Even though I've been to Japan before, I planned to travel from west to east starting from Fukuoka, Hiroshima, Miyajima, Osaka, Kyoto and finally to Tokyo. I booked a direct SIA flight using my partial mileage redemption to reach Japan via Fukuoka and depart from Narita. It was quite costly but less trouble of transit or wasted traveling time if I were to fly in-out from 1 city. 

I've managed a night stay at Fukuoka, 2 nights at Hiroshima with a day trip to Miyajima, 2 nights in Osaka with a day trip to Kyoto and lastly 2 nights in Tokyo. I stayed at Hana Hostel (a sister brand to J-Hoppers which I had a pleasant stay previously at Osaka) for both Fukuoka and Hiroshima, APA Hotel Namba-Shinsaibashi for Osaka, and Hotel Wing International Shinjuku. 

Like previously, I purchased the national JR pass to travel around Japan freely. The 7-day pass can only be purchase outside of Japan and it cost around SGD340 for unlimited rides on the JR city buses, trains and Shinkansen (bullet train).

Fukuoka:

Hana Hostel Fukuoka is located 2 subway stops from Hakata Station and situated along a shopping arcade Nakasuka. It wasn't difficult searching the place but it's at the very opposite end of the arcade from the subway station. There are plenty of diners along the arcade but not Starbucks hence I had to resort to Starbucks beverages from convenient stores. There is also a superb Thai massage parlor where I had the best Thai massage ever (even outdid the original Thai massage from Thailand itself).

Since I was in Fukuoka for a day, I opt for a 8 bed mixed dormitory. Everyone was pleasant but reserved by staying in their own bunk bed with the blind down. Each bunk is huge enough for a comfortable stay with an individual dresser to store personal belongings. The atmosphere is quite cozy with the wooden interiors.

Since JR isn't the main line in Fukuoka, I delayed changing my JR pass by a day (staying for a total of 8 days). There are a couple of private line which the pass does not covers. However, I gotten the Green Loop bus service which loops around the city to major attractions. The drawback is the 30mins intervals. Most of the time, I was wasting my time waiting for the bus as the places I'm going are far apart. I did walk to some places after checking in and over-utilizing the worth of the Green Loop pass because the last few places were within walking distance.

Hiroshima/Miyajima:

I continued my stay with Hana Hostel Hiroshima for the next 2 nights. I wanted a bit more privacy so I booked a single en-suite Japanese style room which feels more likely room during my ryokan stay. The room is meant for 2-3 people stay but I had it all to myself. The hostel location is only 5mins walk from the Hiroshima station but food around the area is quite scarce.

I was blown by the coziness of both Hana Hostels where the keepers took notice of you even when the place was fully-booked. They remembered our conversations about planned itinerary and asked whether I enjoyed the places I went whenever I returned back to the hostel. Truly amazing services.

Hiroshima is another city which JR is not the prominent transportation. A local tram line operates around the city and cost only ¥150 1-way within the city limits. The main attractions are all within walking distance hence a tram ride was sufficient. I did walk to every location on the first day and uses the tram by the second day.

My second day in Hiroshima was a day trip to Miyajima. This is when I utilized my JR pass for the train and ferry ride. It's only 40 mins away from Hiroshima.

Osaka/Kyoto:

I wanted to further my stay with Hana Hostel which is conveniently located within Namba but I managed to find a business hotel APA Hotel which is at a similar price of SGD60. The hotel provides better amenities and is just a few minutes walk to Shinsaibashi/Dotonbori for a quick shopping/eateries. 

Osaka has a few JR lines connecting to many locations however getting to Namba requires a transit. I had to use the private subway line for a direct route to Shin-Osaka whenever I have my luggage on. Getting to Kansai Airport or Rinku premium outlet is also covered by the JR pass. Same goes for traveling to Kobe and Kyoto which is an hour away by public train and roughly 20mins by express.

Kyoto has a scarce JR line but plenty of other private lines. Getting around Kyoto is still easy.

Tokyo:

Back in 2010, I stayed in a Khaosan Hostel at Asakusa which was quite inaccessible. Many of the hostels in Tokyo are quite inaccessible as well hence I decided to stay in a hotel instead especially one that is easily accessible by JR line and to Narita Express. After much research, I booked Hotel Wing International Shinjuku which is less than 10mins walk from JR Shinjuku. 

However, I had a bad experience in this hotel. Firstly, it's situated within Shinjuku red light district which is quite sleazy. I got touted for sex. The hotel also had a centralized heating system which unable guest to set the temperature in the room. It's either the heater is on or off. I requested some assistance to keep the room ventilated and the staff provided me with a fan. Apparently, I wasn't the only one with the fan as I saw some guest on the same floor who opened their room to allow the alleyway air conditioning into the room.

Getting around Tokyo was easy as JR line runs throughout many parts of the city. Some attractions are within walking distance or a transfer to a private line. There many JR station and the main stations such as Shibuya and Shinjuku are quite huge. Eventhough I commute to Shinjuku daily, I ended up towards different exit every single time due to the human traffic flow and the vastness of the station.

Generally, this solo adventure was more laid back eventhough I planned a lot. Accomadations weren't a letdown except for Tokyo and moving about was easy. I however would preferably return to Osaka than Tokyo as it is less congested. I can also revisit Kyoto and Hiroshima and can even venture to Kobe and Nara. Maybe I could plan a summer in Japan soon. 

Next few entries would be my adventures around Japan. Stay tuned.