Saving for Japan. How much will I need?

[Morrow]

Some of you may remember my other thread(s) about my interests for Japan, and i've decided to follow up on it a little more. Recently I was thinking about the general saving process for my trip, and how much I will actually need to fufill my dream of going to Japan. My goal at the moment is $20,000 AUS dollars, which converts to around 15,200 US dollars (I converted it just to make it a little easier for the Americans here!).

The plan is to go to Japan at the end of 2007, or maybe spring time in 2008. Actually it could even be earlier, it all depends on money. Anyway, I want to take in as much of Japan as possible, so i'd like to stay for around 90 days (which im under the impression is the maximum allowed with a tourist visa). Would 20k be enough? Is 90 days a little long with that much money, or is it plenty? I've heard a number of mixed messages from people - some say Japan is increadibly expensive, but i've also heard alot of people say that Japan can be quite cheap if you spend your money wisely.

Any tips or help would be fantastic.

- Morrow

[Iron Chef]

15k US seems like an awful lot to me just to cover all the bases for 90 days. Of course, it ultimately depends on where you plan on staying during that time, what your accomodations are, your expected itinerary while there, etc. etc.

[nice gaijin]

If you don't have any friends to stay with, lodging will easily be your biggest expense, probably closely followed by transportation (especially if you plan on doing a lot of travelling, which seems to be the case). If you plan on moving around a lot, I strongly recommend against large pieces of luggage. Think like a backpacker, and your life will be much easier when moving your stuff around.

15k sounds like a lot; that should be more than sufficient to cover your expenses while in Japan. I spent only one month in Japan last year and spent about 3 grand including airfare, but I spent most of my time living with friends instead of hotels. A cheap $30/night place for 90 days comes out to $2700, and a $60/night place would be $5400 total. If you intend to stay at a hotel the whole time, you can figure your lodging bill would be somewhere in that range, if you're frugal. Hostels would probably be cheaper still, and again, thinking like a backpacker would make things easier.

It really depends on a lot of things; what you plan on actually doing is the biggest factor.

[Morrow]

Cheers for the replies. So, you think that $20,000 AUS dollars would be too much? What do you think would be a suitable amount of money? Note that I do intend to travel to most parts of Japan as I possibly can in that set amount of time. I'd probably spend a little extra time in Tokyo (I hear Tokyo is more costly compared to other places).

[Iron Chef]

Try planning a hypothetical itinerary for a typical day. Calculate your total expenses to see what a rough estimate might look like then multiply as needed. You should consider the following variables (just to name a few):

Accomodation (if you stay at one place for a long time as your "base", you should be able to haggle for some kind of a discount as opposed to a couple weeks here, a few days there, etc.)
Meals
Travel (train, bus, subway, taxi)
Entertainment
Souvenirs
Admissions (should you decide to do some sightseeing)
etc.

It's a lot to think about. Always better to be safe than sorry, so if you can afford it--bring more than you expect to need/use. Good luck to you.

[budd]

depends on how resourceful one is and adept at thinking outside the box
yeah taking 30000 or so would be wise
gl hth

[Dena81]

Yeah, I honestly wouldn't go by what people tell you here for actual amounts of money. I'd go and search. Check sites like expedia or something like that for flight costs and hotel and then try to get an idea of what you're going to spend.

[nice gaijin]

yeah, what do people who have stayed and travelled in Japan know about estimating the cost of staying and travelling in Japan?

[ArmandV]

yeah, what do people who have stayed and travelled in Japan know about estimating the cost of staying and travelling in Japan?

Figure the following:

1. Daily room rate.
2. Estimated daily transportation costs.
3. Estimated daily food costs.
4. Estimated daily miscellaneous expenses (souvenirs, entertainment).

Multiply those by the number days you will be in Japan. Take the final amount and maybe add 5-10% for anything unforseen and you have it.

[nice gaijin]

lol why did you respond to my sarcasm seriously?

[ArmandV]

lol why did you respond to my sarcasm seriously?


Mac must be rubbing off on me.