Transportation to japan

[Knives]

Hey all i was wondering if i could take a boat instead of an airplain to japan cause im sure that a boat would be cheaper then a plane lol

[Foxtrot Uniform]

A boat from America??? I hope not because that would take months.

[Knives]

really a month? i dont think that long i was thinking like a week or 2

[Elizabeth]

I think it would be more like 2-3 weeks.

[chinablueyes18]

Most boats are now cruises. Its simply not practical anymore.

[jOshe]

If its cruises, need the price same will almost about the same?

need -->think* sorri~ :P

[DragonChan]

Boat would probably be more expensive if you think about it. The plane may be upwards of $1000 dollars (depending on various factors) but a 2-3 week boat ride would be very expensive. Not only for the ticket, but to pay to eat and drink during the trip? Ouch.

[nuovo]

Some shipping companies sell cabins on cargo ships. From the west coast, I would say it would take around 4 weeks to go to Japan with a cargo ship (much slower than cruise ships).

[chiquiliquis]

Do you already have your sea-legs? It would suck to be stuck on a boat for 4 weeks if you spent every day chucking your breakfast, lunch and dinner over board...

But, seriously dude... I think it would be a pretty cool experience. Go for it!

[nuovo]

Originally Posted by chiquiliquis

Do you already have your sea-legs? It would suck to be stuck on a boat for 4 weeks if you spent every day chucking your breakfast, lunch and dinner over board...

But, seriously dude... I think it would be a pretty cool experience. Go for it!

Yes, pretty boring but some people travel this way!

I just found this: http://experts.about.com/q/1837/1402373.htm

[mad pierrot]

It might seem more expensive, but if you count room/board, it's actually not a bad deal.

[Knives]

hmm i see.... What would jesus do??

[Keiichi]

Or how about going back with those Fishing boats. Well, it's possible in Hawaii since those Fishing students come pretty often.

Keiichi

[Mike Cash]

Originally Posted by nuovo

Some shipping companies sell cabins on cargo ships. From the west coast, I would say it would take around 4 weeks to go to Japan with a cargo ship (much slower than cruise ships).

I actually looked into that a few years ago. I figured I could save some money and since I was Ex-Navy the prospect of spending a few weeks at sea didn't bother me in the least.

I found that it was actually far, far more expensive than traveling by air.

[Flashjeff]

I was in the Navy for 20 years and can say with confidence that it would take a MINIMUM of a month to reach Japan from the west coast of the U.S. by sea.

I was stationed at Pearl Harbor in 1977 and it took two weeks to travel to San Diego and back. Several months later when my ship was relocated to Yokosuka, the travel time took close to three weeks (including a refueling stop at Wake Island), and that was on a state of the art warship doing at a good 20 knots.

On a cruise ship which meanders along at a more leisurely pace, you'd be looking at close to, if not more than two months. In other words----FORGET IT!!!

[Mike Cash]

Originally Posted by flashjeff

I was in the Navy for 20 years and can say with confidence that it would take a MINIMUM of a month to reach Japan from the west coast of the U.S. by sea.

I was stationed at Pearl Harbor in 1977 and it took two weeks to travel to San Diego and back. Several months later when my ship was relocated to Yokosuka, the travel time took close to three weeks (including a refueling stop at Wake Island), and that was on a state of the art warship doing at a good 20 knots.

On a cruise ship which meanders along at a more leisurely pace, you'd be looking at close to, if not more than two months. In other words----FORGET IT!!!

Hi Jeff,

Former Operations Specialist here. Did 3 and out, though.

A few important things to remember here:

1. Navy ships dick around along the way a hell of a lot, seldom maintaining high speeds, often dallying in an area for exercises

2. Cargo ships must maintain certain speeds (depending on local sea states) or they go "off hire" (no pay for that day, the shipping company eats all the expenses) and can/do make the trip faster than Uncle Sam's Navy does.

3. I just did a check on the Great Circle distance between Los Angeles and Narita and came up with 4737 nautical miles. At 20 knots you'd cover it in about 9 days and 21 hours. Since it took you guys more than twice as long to do it, clearly Uncle Sam's Navy is no slouch when it comes to moving along in a leisurely fashion. For it to take a month, the cargo ship would have to laze along at 6 and a half knots. They'd be off hire the entire trip.

Some interesting links

Some folks went from Australia to Japan by container ship (notice that the service speed is 18.5 knots, or about twice what you guys averaged going to Yokosuka)
http://www.geocities.com/brigun99/japan.htm

The Clifford Maersk makes 25kts fully loaded
http://www.ship-technology.com/projects/clifford/

A table of info on the COSCO fleet. Keep in mind that the low TEU (Twenty foot container Equivalent Unit) ships are very small and not the sort sent on transpacific journeys. The high TEU ships move briskly along at 23+kts
http://www.cosco.com/en/fleet/BoatLi...p&leftnav=/7/1

[Flashjeff]

Originally Posted by mikecash

Hi Jeff,

Former Operations Specialist here. Did 3 and out, though.

Cool! A former squid! It's not often I run into a fellow sailor! By the by, I was a Storekeeper!

A few important things to remember here:

1. Navy ships dick around along the way a hell of a lot, seldom maintaining high speeds, often dallying in an area for exercises

That's true, but when my ship (USS Knox, FF-1052) transferred to Yokosuka, we did no dicking around, we transited straight to Japan, making only that refueling stop I mentioned.

2. Cargo ships must maintain certain speeds (depending on local sea states) or they go "off hire" (no pay for that day, the shipping company eats all the expenses) and can/do make the trip faster than Uncle Sam's Navy does.

3. I just did a check on the Great Circle distance between Los Angeles and Narita and came up with 4737 nautical miles. At 20 knots you'd cover it in about 9 days and 21 hours. Since it took you guys more than twice as long to do it, clearly Uncle Sam's Navy is no slouch when it comes to moving along in a leisurely fashion. For it to take a month, the cargo ship would have to laze along at 6 and a half knots. They'd be off hire the entire trip.

Well, I was on a Fast Frigate, and by my own admission, I can't remember just how fast we went during the entire transit. After all, that was some 28 years ago, and memories fade with time. In other words, I'm getting old!


In any event, it's still impractical to transit to Japan by sea when a plane is much faster!

[Mike Cash]

The Knox was still in Yokosuka when I was stationed there aboard USS Reeves (CG-24). That was 84-86.

I don't recall precise info, but around 88 or so I looked into taking a cabin on a cargo ship from the US west coast to Japan. I was particularly long on free time and exceptionally short on money at the time. I seem to recall being quoted a price of around $5,000 for the trip.

[Flashjeff]

Really? Knox was still in Yokosuka back then? Cool! Of course, all the Knox class Frigates have long since been retired, and no doubt scrapped. A shame. The Knox was my very first ship, and that year and a half I spent in Japan (August 1977-December 1978) was far and away the best time I ever had in the Navy.

Five grand from the west coast to Japan on a cargo ship? OUCH! And that was in '88! Imagine how much a trip like that would cost today! The mind reels from horror!