I Took Myself to Japan and the Cost Blew Me Away

Last spring, I crossed off a massive bucket list item when I went back to Japan for two weeks, traveling between Tokyo, Kamakura, Osaka, and Kyoto. Back in college, I got to spend three weeks in Tokyo thanks to a very generous scholarship, and since then, I'd been dead-set on going back. For my second trip, I wanted to book everything myself instead of locking myself into a vacation package. Only problem was, that left me to figure out the total of all my expenses separately, and as somebody who's not rich, I'd have to take care not to break the bank. So how successful was I? Let's break it down.

Accommodations

The biggest "travel hack" I can offer to anyone visiting Japan is this: book a cheap business hotel. Though these hotels are designed with traveling salarymen in mind, tourists can also stay there on the cheap. You get a modest but clean room, an en-suite bathroom, basic amenities, and a free (and quite frankly, delicious) breakfast for a steal.

I mostly stayed at Toyoko Inn locations, as I had a membership card with them from my previous trip. I bounced around between Ikebukuro (near Shinjuku in Tokyo), Osaka, and Kyoto for all but two nights of my trip. Though prices varied a little by dates and locations, I averaged just under $55 per night. My membership got me a slight discount, but I estimate that it would cost non-members only about $5 more per night.

I did splurge on accommodations for two nights of the trip. One night I spent at Akitaya, a charming little ryokan inn close to the waterfront in the beachside city of Kamakura. I also spent a night at Ohara no Sato, a gorgeous traditional inn and onsen in the mountains near Kyoto, surrounded by scenery straight out of a Studio Ghibli movie. Both of these places I found through Expedia, and between the two, I spent about another $160 - totally worth it.

Getting Around

Full disclosure: at least for this trip, I personally regret buying the Japan Rail Pass. If you don't know, the JR Pass is a special pass affording foreign tourists unlimited travel on any JR lines within a set period. Since I needed to take the Narita Express to and from Narita International Airport, and the Shinkansen (bullet train), to and from Kyoto, I figured that a two-week pass would be a worthy investment, and so, I dropped about $447 on it. Looking back, I realized that if I had just bought each train ticket separately, I'd have spent probably less than $250. Not my finest hour.

Otherwise, I mostly moved around on local rail, loading up my Suica card at the rail stations as needed. Though I didn't keep receipts for Suica uploads, I'd say I'd spent under $150 as a liberal estimate. I also schlepped it a lot on foot, and found out the hard way that Doc Martens are not ideal for multi-day urban hikes...

Food & Fun

You don't have to break the bank to eat well in Japan. I had access to free hotel breakfast almost every day I was there, so I only had to cover lunch, dinner, and snacks. Most meals that I had, including handmade sushi, dreamy soba and tempura sets, and a lovely spring-themed set meal near the Meiji-Jingu shrine, averaged about $15-20 or less. Even my "splurge" meals (such as a visit to Osaka's famous Kani Doraku crab restaurant or Ginza's gothic Vampire Cafe) were less than $50 at most. 

Recommended

Curious Sea Lion Gives La Jolla Beachgoers a Hilariously Warm Welcome

Drinking was cheap, too. I did the touristy thing and partied away a few nights in Shinjuku's Golden Gai, stopping off at tons of incredible themed hole-in-the-wall bars. You could easily score highballs and other mixed drinks for less than $7-8, and while some bars had cover charges, these were also no more than a couple bucks at most.

As for fun... well, I'd been fortunate enough to see tons of cultural and historic museums on my first Japan trip. For my second time around, I decided I wanted to go with the flow and explore, discovering cool things on the way. Most of the coolest places I went to, including historic Shinto shrines and famous city districts like Osaka's Dotonbori neighborhood, had no entry fees, leaving me all the more open to relax, linger, and adventure.

That's not to say that I only did free stuff. I love onsens, and I spent many a night soaking off a long day of walking in a serene bathhouse. I visited the Great Buddha of Kamakura, peeped pandas at the Ueno Zoo, saw the skyline from the top of Osaka Castle, and even learned how to hurl throwing stars at the fun (if touristy) Kyoto Samurai & Ninja Museum. However, all these were very affordable, ranging between $5-30 each.

Most importantly, leaving my options open allowed me to try local recommendations. My wonderful host at Akitaya pointed me towards the staggeringly beautiful Hasedera Temple, which I would have totally overlooked otherwise. A record store clerk directed me to an amazing metal show at a basement venue in Osaka's Nanba neighborhood. Not only were these experiences awesome and authentic, but they were also super budget-friendly!

The Grand Total

Alright, I've put this off long enough. Not counting plane tickets (nor the huge haul of souvenirs I bought for my fiance and fam), here's my rough total:

For the stuff that I have receipts for (basically, my accommodations and JR Pass) I spent about $1,260. Add another ~$150 for local rail, let's make that total $1,410. The next part is a wide guesstimate, so bear with me, but giving myself an average daily food budget of $45 a day and an entertainment budget of $25 a day, that's another $980 for a rough total of $2,390.

Was that trip dirt cheap? No, and believe me, I had to save up for it for a while. That being said, that total covered two action-packed weeks across four different cities, each day creating new lifelong memories. I might have saved a few hundred dollars if I'd bought a shorter vacation package that went to fewer locales, but I wouldn't have had the same memorable experience that I did. For the life-changing adventure I handcrafted and enjoyed, it was worth every penny. Best of all, I know how to do it cheaper next time - and you can bet that there will be a next time.

For more WanderWisdom updates, be sure to follow us on Google News!

Have you had a funny, interesting, or just highly memorable experience while traveling? We'd love for you to submit a video of your travels for a chance to be featured on WanderWisdom and our social channels! Click here to upload your clip and share your adventures with the world.