Tony - Japan 2024 Planning

[Tony Galiani]

Starting to think about a trip to Japan in 2024.  Planning to ask for some input later on but right now I am using a trip to Vienna to test out some things for my Japan trip.

 

For the first time I purchased an eSim for our travels.  Normally, we pick up a sim card when we arrive somewhere, or in the case of my Japan trips, I pre-order sim cards which we put into our phone in transit.  That approach has worked well and been relatively economical - 12 Euros for a Greek sim card earlier this year and US$20 apiece for sim cards for our Japan trip also earlier this year.

 

This time, I purchased an eSim for the stunning amount of US$5.50.  At first I did not think that price was legitimate but it was.  I used a different method for research this time.  Rather than rely on a web search which brings up lots of blogs which recommend sims and then links (from which they earn revenue), I focused on reviews from users with personal experience.  I used Rick Steve's travel forum and also learned that adding /reddit to a web query brought up quite a few personal experience reviews which turned out to be very helpful.

 

So far, so good.  My options - I ended up choosing Airalo - were US$4.50 for 1GB of data or US$5.50 for 1GB of data, 10 minutes of phone calls and 10 minutes of texting over 7 days.  After three days, we have used about 15% of our data allowance.  Interestingly, I purchased it for use in Austria and on a day trip to Bratislava, we could not use it once we crossed the border but no big deal.  The only drawback so far is we can't quite figure out how to use the call and text options - not sure what our number is.  We gave what we thought was our number to our hotel, but it did not work when they tried to call us.

 

Anyway, now planning to use an eSim for a hoped for trip to Japan in early 2024.  Hope this info may be useful to others on the Forum - though I expect most people are ahead of me technically so this may not be news!

 

Ciao,

Tony

 

[mojo]

I am looking at using an eSIM as well for my trip next month. The main reason being that last time I had trouble with a physical SIM from Yodobashi Camera (whatever their own brand one is called, I forget... IIJ?). I thought it was my phone because it worked great for 3 weeks, and then couldn't stay connected for more than a few minutes or even seconds at a time.

 

Turns out though that there is a problem with certain Google Pixel phones and certain Japanese networks. It's not clear exactly which are affected, and some people report that a software update fixed it for them, while others report that the latest Pixel 8 still has issues. It seems to be an issue with certain "virtual networks" (MVNO), where they don't have any cell towers of their own and just use someone else's network.

 

Anyway, a few people have mentioned that Ubigi eSIMs work fine with Pixel phones in Japan, so I will probably try one of those. They seem very cheap, but people say they work well. Given the low price and the fact that you can order one before going and have it working from the moment you land, I will try it. Saves faffing around with SIM cards as well - It seems like most of the providers don't give you a SIM card tool in the package anymore!

 

I found a few reviews of Airalo in Japan, with people saying they are not good compared to Ubigi. Must be a different network. Ubigi use Docomo, which I have found to be pretty good in my travels. I was also considering GTN, because they give you a phone number. You need a phone number to sign up for stuff like Yahoo Auctions. I'm hoping I can move my Yahoo account to using a different login method that doesn't require getting an SMS though.

 

Anyway, I shall report back in a few weeks when I have tried it out.

[Tony Galiani]

@mojo - Looking forward to hearing about your experience with Ubigi.  Nice to have options - and at reasonable prices.  I was surprised at how lost cost the eSim turned out to be.  Mira is going to call her aunt in Germany to test out the calling piece but so far the data piece has been fine.  Only two days left for our stay in Austria and we still have 62% of our data capacity left.

Cheers,

Tony

[Gunzel]

Am using an Ubigi eSIM right now. And used it in my trip earlier this year. Certainly beats all the faffing around picking up, swapping and returning cards that we used to do. I’m much less cautious with data use as well, as the recharge options are really easy with Apple Pay, and you can access the Ubigi app to do it even when you have run out of normal data. 
 

Also bought a Korean eSIM from them for our side trip to Korea. 

[chadbag]

We used Airalo on our last trip to Japan last December.  Worked fine for all of use and was easy to top off.  Darn cheap and easier than the old method of getting physical SIM cards, having to return them, running out of data and needing a new one or a complicated "recharge" process.   We are on iPhones that have dual SIM capability -- ether one physical and en eSIM or dual eSIM.

 

 

[Guest]

Return SIM card?!  Never heard of that.  Personally, I prefer physical sim, much more anonymous and I still have to option to swap devices or convert to esim. I prefer not to buy sim from 3rd party, and buy 1st- or 2nd-party sim at Yodobashi or Labo ¥2500, 7GB 21 day.  Need more data, easy to just buy another, or top-off is an option if you prefer.  I have multi-sim/eSim iPhone purchased abroad just for the capability to have the choice of sim/esim.

[JR East]

Hi @Tony Galiani

 

REX of my two latest journeys in Japan, rsp rooughly 10 days each, my data consumption was around 3-4 Go as there is an automated sync of photos I'm shooting with my cellphone on a dedicated cloud + I'm using it google maps etc ... 

 

Reason why I really do prefer the unlimited plan compared to limited plan. 

 

For phone call, I'm using https://www.onoff.app/fr/ to use it abroad on my data plan (I'm sure you've the same option in the US as provider of service) and I'm bouncing my French cellphone number on it. 

 

Texting is going thru WhatsApp. 

[chadbag]

12 hours ago, Bob Martin said:

Return SIM card?!  Never heard of that.  Personally, I prefer physical sim, much more anonymous and I still have to option to swap devices or convert to esim. I prefer not to buy sim from 3rd party, and buy 1st- or 2nd-party sim at Yodobashi or Labo ¥2500, 7GB 21 day.  Need more data, easy to just buy another, or top-off is an option if you prefer.  I have multi-sim/eSim iPhone purchased abroad just for the capability to have the choice of sim/esim.

 

In the past I've bought Japanese SIMs for data that required you to return it when it was over.  You had to have a Japanese address and stuff as well.   This was in the past (7-19 years ago)and may not be the case any longer.  I'd buy them on Amazon.  

 

We used to be on T-Mobile and they had free roaming in Japan (thought at a slow speed) and we got by on that but the last few times we've used either physical SIMs from one of those "world service" companies or lately the eSIM route, which we set up before we leave so it's ready when we land.

 

[Yavianice]

I just get a pocket wifi so everyone I travel with has internet and I don't have to share it via personal hotspot since that instantly drains the battery to 0.

Also cost effective. No calling though, but, I don't really want to call while I'm on holiday anyway, and if I need something like a reservation I either go by the place or ask the hotel receptionist to do it for me.

[Yugamu Tsuki]

^ I use a pocket wifi as well and if I needed to call someone I would use Line or some other service that allows internet calls. SIM cards seem too daunting for me. I usually get my pocket wifi from the same place I get my JR Pass. I have had trouble passing from Tokyo to Shizuoka where frequencies changed. I though that the device was shot but I just needed to take the batteries out and put them back in. Pocket wifi may be a little more expensive that SIM cards though, but it is an option.

[JR East]

Hi, 

 

Here is where I'm purchasing my unlimited card, no need to return, once used, you simply remove the card and put it to recycling bin

 

https://www.japan-experience.com/internet-access/sim-cards

 

They are really affordable and unlimited. Sole limitation (which is not for me), having a double sim cellphone 

 

The sole drawback : it doesn't work with Google phones Pixel 6, 7, 8. Of course with Apple Iphone as yoy've only 1 slot for a card ... it's painful

 

 

Edited November 30, 2023 by JR East

[Kingmeow]

When we were in Japan back in September for 15 days, we settled on Pocket WiFi for about $4+ a day with unlimited data.  My wife has iPhone and I have Galaxy S22.  Plus we had a travel laptop.  All operated with no issues.  The kit even comes with an external battery pack in case you kill the battery of the Pocket WiFi in less than a day.

 

I was able to call with my S22 by using WiFi calling.  Even called United Airlines back home in the US.  Worked really well with no issues.  With (e)SIM we would have had to get two and then hot spot for the laptop.  Maybe cheaper with (e)SIM but the convenience of the pocket WiFi was great.  Just presenting another option especially if you are traveling with someone or have more than 1 device.

[Gunzel]

Definitely some of the SIM providers used to rent out the SIMs and you had to post them back at the end of the trip, I think Sakura Mobile was the one I used to use. Have also used pocket wifi’s and would consider if travelling alone again, but found with a couple  that we wanted to go off separately too much for it to work well for us.

 

The Ubigi eSIM is data only, no calls or SMS and no number that I can see. 

[Tony Galiani]

Back from Vienna on relatively pleasant flights via United and Austrian airlines.  All of you who have mentioned taking taking advantage of using the foreign airline partners for the international leg of an itinerary certainly have it right.  Our flights were on United for the domestic segment and Austrian for the flights in/out of Vienna.  Austrian was one of the best airlines I have flown so far.  Looking forward to trying ANA and some other airlines in the future.

 

With regard to our eSim, it worked fine for data and we ended up using about 75% of the available data capacity.  Though, for a trip to Japan, I will definitely follow up on the comments from @JR East and purchase more data capacity.  We were conservative in Vienna but likely to use much more data in Japan.

Could not get the phone and text capability to work however - tried calls to Mira's aunt and asked the hotel to call us and neither worked.  Not a major loss as it was only a dollar extra.  And probably not necessary for us in Japan in any event.

 

The other item of note is that Japan has definitely spoiled us.  Vienna was certainly very nice - relatively clean, easy to get around with lots of interesting sights and things to do  - though with an amazing amount of rudeness which sort of surprised us.  But everything seems easier and generally more pleasant in Japan.  And of course the train service can't be beat.  We took the OBB to Bratislava and ran into delays and quirky service.  Going to Bratislava the conductor announced station stops for a bit then stopped and never checked tickets.  On the return trip, the conductor announced one station stop but did go through the train inspecting everyone's tickets.  A trivial bit of travel info for anyone taking this route - the trains are composed of OBB and ZSSK rolling stock.  Oddly enough, the Slovakia Railway cars have power and USB ports while the Austrian cards do not.

 

Vienna does seem to have some sort of Japan connection - there is a Setagaya park in the Dobling section of town and there seemed to be quite a few Japanese tourists and restaurants there as well.

However, Vienna does outdo Japan when it comes to desserts "mit schlag"!  We went to town and had way more cafe and kuchen then we should have and certainly took advantage of that.  Fortunately, we were walking eight to twelve kilometers a day to offset all the goodies!

 

The trip was also a trial run for a winter trip to Japan and in that respect it produced mixed results.  My flannel lined pants worked great as did my coat but gloves, woolens socks and insulated boots were not as effective as I had hoped.  (I have some issues which seem to make feet and hands very cold sensitive.)  Thinking my idea of going to Sapporo and spending entire days outside in February would not be the best thing to do.

 

So - I would the happy to get any suggestions for a February trip to Japan.  Never thought this would happen but my music schedule is getting busy for early 2024 and a mid-February trip would work out great schedule wise.  If I don't go then, I likely will not have an opportunity until the summer and not sure that would be a good travel time.

 

Ciao,

Tony

[Gunzel]

Spent most of February this year in Kyushu, primarily based in Kumamoto and it was cold, but not freezing, nothing like Hokkaido at the same time of the year. There had been a cold snap when we arrived at the end of January and we did see a bit of snow falling when we were up in the mountains but otherwise it névé felt freezing cold and was sometimes quite pleasant. 
 

Lots of interesting trains in Kyushu, and the JR Kyushu rail passes are still pretty good value, especially if you can use the north and south ones separately (one of the drivers for us to stay in Kumamoto). There’s also an all Kyushu rail pass available to anyone that works for local trains  on JR Kyushu and all the private railways. 

[Tony Galiani]

Thanks - I was wondering about Kyushu.  I have glanced at one or two web sites about the area but right now my recent focus has been on finding flights - always a fun experience.  Hoping to confirm my February music schedule next week and will start searching in earnest.

 

We like outdoor activities so will see what there is to do there.  And I wouldn't mind a ride on the Shimabara Railway though not sure how realistic that would be in the time we will have.

 

Ciao,

Tony

[mojo]

I'm in Japan now. Got a Ubigi eSIM. It's okay, speed is good, but there is an issue. Some websites think I'm outside of Japan and just don't work, including the Hard Off app.

 

I can use a VPN to get around it, but it's a pain. When it runs it I'll probably look at getting a Yodobashi SIM instead.

[Tony Galiani]

Interesting.  Wonder why that is happening.  When we used the Airalo app on our trip to Austria, I did not notice a similar problem.  It did not work when we crossed the border into Slovakia for a few hours but that did not really surprise me.

 

One thing I did notice when reading the reviews on these was that the results were variable depending on the country where the eSim was being used.  Lots of complaints about their utility in southeast Asia.  Sort of surprised that you are running into issues in Japan, however.

 

I think I will try the Airalo app again on my next trip to Japan.  But I had completely forgotten that I could stop at Yodobashi to pick up a SIM card if necessary so I will have to remember that if we run into similar issues.

 

Cheers,

Tony

[Kamome]

On 12/2/2023 at 9:39 PM, Gunzel said:

Spent most of February this year in Kyushu, primarily based in Kumamoto and it was cold, but not freezing, nothing like Hokkaido at the same time of the year. There had been a cold snap when we arrived at the end of January and we did see a bit of snow falling when we were up in the mountains but otherwise it névé felt freezing cold and was sometimes quite pleasant.

Landlocked areas of Kyushu can get quite cold but can't be compared anywhere near Hokkaido cold. Areas of Saga, Kumamoto and Oita will usually get some snow each year in the highland areas whereas coastal areas see very little unless there's a definite cold snap. There's actually some skiing in Kuju, Oita, close to the Kumamoto border, for those looking for some cheap and less technical slopes.  I'm a little biased living in Kyushu but the variety of landscapes is pretty varied across the region and I love the mountains here. 

[mojo]

On 12/11/2023 at 10:02 PM, Tony Galiani said:

Interesting.  Wonder why that is happening.  When we used the Airalo app on our trip to Austria, I did not notice a similar problem.  It did not work when we crossed the border into Slovakia for a few hours but that did not really surprise me.

 

One thing I did notice when reading the reviews on these was that the results were variable depending on the country where the eSim was being used.  Lots of complaints about their utility in southeast Asia.  Sort of surprised that you are running into issues in Japan, however.

 

I think I will try the Airalo app again on my next trip to Japan.  But I had completely forgotten that I could stop at Yodobashi to pick up a SIM card if necessary so I will have to remember that if we run into similar issues.

 

Cheers,

Tony

 

In my experience, Japanese websites are some of the worst for trying to keep non-Japanese users out. I can kind of understand why, especially on sites like Yahoo Auctions where they were getting all these people using some broken machine translation to beg the seller to send something to them in Europe, and then complaining when their local postage service trashed it. Maybe Hard Off has the same problem, or maybe it's because they allow you to sell stuff which requires a permanent Japanese address and it's just too much hassle dealing with all the foreigners who get upset when they can't.

[Gunzel]

I found the HARD OFF app wouldn’t work on Ubigi, or on Airalo when I tried that briefly.
 

Ubigi also did not work with ICloud Private Relay and was sometimes blocked by transit.yahoo.co.jp as being in Europe.

 

Airalo was effectively a Singtel (Singapore) SIM and had to have data roaming enabled (KDDI or SoftBank). I only ever saw it connect at 4G but speeds and coverage seemed fine. It also seemed to chew through the data faster than Ubigi did, but I didn’t do any measurement. 
 

Be interested to hear about your Yodobashi experience, both purchasing and using. 

[mojo]

I will report back, but in the past I have really liked Yodobashi SIMs. They seem fast and recognize your location as Japan. The only issue is that there is some kind of incompatibility with the Pixel 7 Pro and maybe the 8 Pro. Rakuten had a similar issue and claimed to have fixed it, but I'm seeing some people saying they still have issues.

[Tony Galiani]

@Kamome - Kyushu is definitely on my must travel list.  I am intrigued by your mention of skiing there.  While I do not want to spend an extended time where all the activities are outdoors, my wife does like some low key skiing so finding a place where she can get it a bit of skiing in (while I nap!) might be nice.  Also looking into a place outside of Tokyo easily accessible by the Joestsu Shinkansen.

 

Anxious to purchase my flight tickets but hung up waiting for confirmation of my Spring music schedule.  Still planning on sometime in February though.

 

Ciao,

Tony

[Tony Galiani]

Well - I just booked a February trip after my normal amount of dithering.  Bought the flights then decided to change the dates so got that sorted out.  Not sure what we are going to do when we get there however!  Looking a lots of things to do and places to go but need to see what makes sense travel wise.  Anyway, glad to have sorted this out - have a bunch of travel and music commitments coming up so happy to find a window of opportunity for the trip.

Ciao,

Tony

[Tony Galiani]

Trip booked and first night hotel booked for the day we arrive in Tokyo but struggling with planning for the rest of the trip.  Current thinking is we would go somewhere right after we arrive then return and spend the last few days back in Tokyo.  Thinking of possibly Hakodate for a few days but not sure.  My wife wants to stop in Aomori - because she likes snow and it is the snowiest city in the world apparently - though I am not so sure about that.  I suspect there is a good reason hotel rates per night in Aomori that week are around US$60 for two people (as opposed to the US$400 or so in Sapporo).

 

Heading back to next Canada to test my new winter gear - some sort of insulated Canadian innersoles for my boots and Canadian made "Icelandic" socks rated to -30C.  Or so it says on the package!  They actually felt pretty good on a brief test during my last trip there.

 

Ciao,

Tony