chadbag Posted August 13 Share Posted August 13 Yeah, a domestic flight would be an interesting experience if you haven't done it. We flew into ITM (Itami) via Haneda on our last trip and then back to Haneda from ITM on return so I've done the domestic flight. Though I'll probably get another chance when I got to "pick up" my sone end of 2025 when he is done with his time there on Hokkaido. No need to spend a day, all day on trains to get to Sapporo when Sapporo is the goal... Plus the time in the airport (get there early, security, etc) can be meaningful. But there is a reason Japan has a very robust domestic flight network for a place the size of California. Link to comment
Kingmeow Posted August 13 Share Posted August 13 6 hours ago, Tony Galiani said: And are the planes really as clean as they look in the videos? And is food at the airport as inexpensive it STJ shows in his travel videos? Ciao, Tony Yes and yes! On my last (and first) trip, we flew back to EWR from Osaka (we came via NRT) and since ANA is a partner of United, it was an ANA flight out of ITM to NRT for the connection. To tell you the truth we liked the ANA flight sooo much better than United. Friendly, polite and engaging staff from beginning to end. I've never seen so many people smile at me! 🙂 2 Link to comment
Tony Galiani Posted August 13 Author Share Posted August 13 @Kingmeow I figured as much and am looking forward to my ANA flight when I return to the US. Though I did run afoul of their tech today (which is about as mediocre as most tech is IMHO). I always check my reservations periodically before travel to be alert for any flight changes or other issues. United finally sent me the ANA reservation code so I went in to take a look. The reservation indicated I needed to add my passport info which I tried to do. But no matter what I did, it would simply not accept the info. I tried three different browsers, revised cookie settings - all without success. Finally I resorted to calling - to hear multiple messages advising callers to check the ANA web site as most requests could be handled there. Finally I did get through - interestingly enough, they tell you which call center you are connecting to - USA, Japan or The Phillipines - and got my passport info attached to the reservation. At least in theory. I plan to go in tomorrow to see if it really happened. Tony 1 Link to comment
Gunzel Posted August 14 Share Posted August 14 Naoshima is very easy to get around as a tourist. Bus, taxi, bike rental. There are at least a few other art islands as well which are worth a visit. You could probably do it as part of your travel from Osaka to Takamatsu, just leave your bags at the information centre at the port, but you'd need to leave Osaka fairly early I think. Next trip we are planning to catch the bus from Osaka to Takamatsu along the Shimanami Kaido to check out the bridges, but the Seto Ohashi bridge for the train is also pretty spectacular. You could catch the Sunrise Seto from Takamatsu back to Tokyo, in combination with the Sunrise Izumo (they combine at Okayama for the trip to Tokyo) it's the last regular sleeper train operating in Japan, and is likely to be discontinued when the carriages need replacement. I wouldn't recommend a Nobi Nobi seat unless you want an experience but the sleepers while compact are quite comfortable. You generally need to book early. 2 1 Link to comment
Tony Galiani Posted August 16 Author Share Posted August 16 Well I finally started to firm up travel plans. I have reserved a hotel in Takamatsu near the JR station and sorted out a bunch of things to do - indoor and outdoor depending on the weather. I have not firmed up my travel to and from Shikoku yet but am close. Probably will take the train so get the Seto Ohashi bridge experience. ANA has a surprising number of daily flights to Tokyo so will likely take that option when we leave. Prices were very reasonable. In my dreams I take the Sunrise Seto or a ferry but not sure I am ready to try booking either from this distance. Ciao, Tony 2 Link to comment
Tony Galiani Posted August 18 Author Share Posted August 18 Now I am on the horns of a dilemma for our days in Tokyo. I have discovered a cat themed shopping area by Nippori Fabric Town. On one hand, I can get my wife to go over there and between the fabric shops and the cat themed shops, I can have an entire day - possibly even more! - to go to train stores as she will be completely captivated by the shops. On the other hand, there is a shop selling cat tail donuts! Can I actually pass that up? https://www.yanakaginza.com/ Tony 3 1 Link to comment
cteno4 Posted August 18 Share Posted August 18 Maybe your wife can bring you back a kitty bag of cat tail donuts?! What a way to finish a day of train shops? jeff Link to comment
Tony Galiani Posted August 18 Author Share Posted August 18 I am thinking that I could go with her, pick up a bag of cat tail donuts, waddle over to the Nippori bridge for train watching and coffee then a further waddle on towards Sakatsu Gallery! Donuts and trains - not sure if I can beat that. Tony 2 1 Link to comment
Tony Galiani Posted August 18 Author Share Posted August 18 Saw this at Frankfort Airport - didn't pick it up but was tempted. Maybe some other time though not sure I need any thing else distracting from my modelling. Tony 3 Link to comment
chadbag Posted August 19 Share Posted August 19 6 hours ago, Tony Galiani said: Saw this at Frankfort Airport - didn't pick it up but was tempted. Maybe some other time though not sure I need any thing else distracting from my modelling. Tony I've seen a bunch of kits of this flavor in stores recently. Some are pretty spectacular Link to comment
Tony Galiani Posted August 23 Author Share Posted August 23 Trying to decide where to stay in Osaka - Umeda or Namba. Leaning to Umeda for transportation connections, Sky Tower, Osaka Castle, gardens and close to the river and easy access to Namba and other parts of Osaka as it is so easy to get around. Am I missing something? Ciao, Tony Link to comment
SL-san Posted August 23 Share Posted August 23 1 hour ago, Tony Galiani said: Umeda or Namba Tony, In the past I have stayed in a Toyoko-Inn near Shin Osaka as it was easy getting off and on the Shinkansen there. Its a bit quieter than Umeda or Namba which suited us but you might prefer something a bit more lively! The Osaka Metro gives really good access around the city once you learn to use it like the Paris Metro (planning your trip and interchange stations). Enjoy your time there...I am envious!! Graeme 1 Link to comment
Gunzel Posted August 23 Share Posted August 23 I’ve also mainly stayed near Shin-Osaka, and usually in an Airbnb apartment to the north, these are pretty quiet residential areas. When I’ve had an early start for the airport I’ve also stayed at Tennoji. 1 Link to comment
Tony Galiani Posted August 26 Author Share Posted August 26 Has anyone had experience taking the Airport Limousine Bus to/from Haneda Airport? Normally, we use the monorail but that means making a connection from wherever we are staying. Not a big deal but I may have extra bags this trip - hoping to resist temptation and not buy too many train items but we shall see. And my wife will certainly be visiting Nippori Fabric Town and various other shops so I expect she will want an extra bag. Plus, when flying ANA premium economy, you can access their lounge so want to get to the airport quickly and smoothly to enjoy that. As a fan of STJ, I should follow his example and have their curry before leaving Japan! We will likely end up at a hotel near Tokyo Station and easy access to the bus service so have been pondering that. Also thinking a taxi might be neat but maybe somewhat extravagant so less likely to do that. Ciao, Tony Link to comment
Kingmeow Posted August 26 Share Posted August 26 We have taken the "Low Cost Bus" (that's what my wife calls it on her agenda PDF so I'm pretty sure it's not the next level Airport Limousine Bus) from Narita to Tokyo Station back in September and it was easy and no drama. Luggage was not a problem. There is a Airport Limousine Bus at Narita but we went cheapo back then as we really didn't know the lay of the land. It might be that the same outfit has similar options at Haneda. If we had no issues with the Low Cost Bus, I would imagine the next level up with the Airport Limousine bus shouldn't be a problem either. We plan to do the LCB again to Tokyo Station in October. We too are staying at a hotel near Tokyo Station as the next day we will be busing it to Kawaguchiko and all the buses leave from Tokyo Station. 1 Link to comment
chadbag Posted August 26 Share Posted August 26 (edited) Shin-Osaka is probably not a bad place to stay since it is train-wise just one stop from Umeda. Like 6-10 minutes IIRC? -- in any case one very short ride. We have family in the area so I've never stayed at hotels in the Osaka area. Have everywhere else. But Umeda is a big hub to catch trains at and the Metro is also there. So staying near Umeda seems to makes lot of sense to me. On the Loop line, IIRC Shin-Imamiya and Tennoji are where you can get off and walk to Den Den Town. Joshin Denki super kids land with a whole floor of trains is there. Probably other small shops in the area. Edited August 26 by chadbag 1 Link to comment
kuro68000 Posted August 27 Share Posted August 27 23 hours ago, Tony Galiani said: Plus, when flying ANA premium economy, you can access their lounge so want to get to the airport quickly and smoothly to enjoy that. That reminds me, I found that despite my super-extra-economy ticket, I can access the JAL lounge. They actually have two lounges at Heathrow, both operated by BA, a normal one and a premium one for the more expensive tickets. Even the peasant lounge looks okay though. Not sure if ANA are the same, but I was surprised by this so maybe worth anyone else using JAL or ANA checking too. 4 Link to comment
Tony Galiani Posted September 2 Author Share Posted September 2 Currently looking at riding the Dosan Line in Shikoku. I just watched STJ's video about the Shikoku Mannaka Sennen Monogatari. Not sure I would take that train - thinking we might take a regularly scheduled train out of Takamatsu station. Not sure where to go though - looking on towns along the line with the idea we might ride to one to walk around and then take a train back. I found one video from 2013 on this forum and currently researching more options on the line. As always, any suggestions welcome. Ciao, Tony 1 Link to comment
chadbag Posted September 2 Share Posted September 2 Keep the ideas coming. I'm taking notes too. We were just talking at lunch about when next year would be best to go with my daughter's school, summer job and water polo, etc. The tentative thought was end of May and first half of June. Rainy season but we've never been there at that time and it would fit the daughter's busy HS life. We also found out that tentatively my son in Hokkaido will be done with his missionary service on Jan 9, 2026. He can come home normally, directly from there to home here, but parents can also go and pick up their missionary son or daughter so my wife and I (or at least me) are thinking about a trip after New Years in 2026. Go visit family a few days in Kobe and fly to Sapporo and pick him up, have him show us around Hokkaido and all the places he lived and worked, and then fly back to Tokyo / Kobe to visit his aunts and uncle (by marriage). (Yes I know Tokyo and Kobe are not close -- we'd either fly or take the train to Tokyo to visit one aunt in Yokohama and then train or plane down to Kobe to visit the other aunt and her husband and return home from there.) We'll see. When we get close and know what we're doing I'll make my own topic to explore the possibilities but for now I am happy to hear Tony's ideas and plans and take notes. 2 Link to comment
Gunzel Posted September 3 Share Posted September 3 I’ve been to Oboke. The town here is strung along the sides of the gorge. There’s a yokai museum and michi no eki with a restaurant and river view no more than a kilometre from the station. You could at a stretch walk to the next station Koboke (6.4km) along the river. They have boat rides through the gorge as well, I don’t know if you can do them one way. There’s some other pretty interesting stations along the Dosan line too, places like Tsubojiri (watch out for snakes), Shingai, and Tosa-Kitagawa, but make sure you check the timetable if you go to any of them. 2 Link to comment
Tony Galiani Posted September 3 Author Share Posted September 3 @Gunzel - Thanks for the info. I did some on-line research and it seems like the boat rides are a loop returning to the starting point. So, depending on the weather, a train ride to Oboke, boat ride and coffee shop stop seems like a good plan. Currently, I have enough things to do for our short visit to Shikoku: Ritsurin Garden, Oboke, Naoshima Island, Yashima Aquarium, Takamatsu Art Museum .... and, of course .... Mister Donut. A good mix we can pick and choose from depending on the weather. Typhoon season should be done but our back up plan in the event of a very bad forecast is to cancel Shikoku and return to Tohoku and do an apple tour. @chadbag - sounds like a good plan to me. I am anxious to return to Hokkaido myself. I suggested to my wife that next year I head to Japan a week before her so I can spend time riding trains around Hokkaido. She was not totally opposed to that idea but we shall see. Tony 1 Link to comment
Tony Galiani Posted September 3 Author Share Posted September 3 @chadbag - Forgot to mention - we went to Japan during the "rainy season" and it was not that bad. Had one bad day of heavy rain when we were in Kyoto and if we had not chosen to walk to the Aquarium and Railway Museum (and taken a wrong turn) we would not have had any issues at all. Though a waterproof jacket, as opposed to a water resistant jacket, would have been nice. Ciao, Tony 1 Link to comment
chadbag Posted September 3 Share Posted September 3 2 hours ago, Tony Galiani said: @chadbag - Forgot to mention - we went to Japan during the "rainy season" and it was not that bad. Had one bad day of heavy rain when we were in Kyoto and if we had not chosen to walk to the Aquarium and Railway Museum (and taken a wrong turn) we would not have had any issues at all. Though a waterproof jacket, as opposed to a water resistant jacket, would have been nice. Ciao, Tony Yeah it was originally the wife who was not enamored of the idea but in talking about it over the weekend it seemed to be an OK idea to her as well. We went once in April but otherwise have only been in the end of July through Mid september range, once in October IIRC, and then Christmas and New Yaesr time periods. The December holiday periods were handy when my kids were at the Charter school as they had a longer period off than the normal local schools. But that no longer applies and the daughter has swim season in HS> When we went Dec 22 she was in her freshman year in swim team and was not happy about missing some stuff. Link to comment
Tony Galiani Posted September 26 Author Share Posted September 26 My trip is getting closer and I am trying to sort out some final details. I have reserved hotels in Osaka, Takamatsu and Tokyo. I have also sorted out lists of various activities for each destination - indoor and outdoor to allow for weather conditions. Picked up a waterproof jacket - which is currently being field tested in Fredericton's rainy weather - so I am prepared for our next typhoon experience. More or less .... Also, wondering about my bright idea of flying into Osaka (KIX) as options from the US are limited if we miss our connection. There is one more flight from SFO to NRT if we miss the flight to Osaka. Nothing else direct to Osaka that would work so fingers crossed. Our connection is tight but greater than United's MCT (minimum connection time) for SFO - just hoping that things go smoothly. I was not too worried about it until our flights up here yesterday. We flew into Bangor via Newark. Both flights were early so now I am worried that I have used up all my good connection luck for the year! Still need to sort out transportation from Takamatsu to Tokyo and get more details on the airport buses in both cities. Also need to visit the Japan Entry web page and work through that. Finding more and more things I want to do and places I want to go so already thinking about a trip next year! But first things first - really looking forward to this. Ciao, Tony Link to comment
Kingmeow Posted September 26 Share Posted September 26 You me both!!!!! Our trip is less than a month and I'm starting to get really amped up for this. I'm almost done with my wish list to the hobby stores, mostly Kato and a bunch of stuff that aren't available here in the US. 😃 As for things to do, my wife got that all taken care of. She created a NINE page PDF listing every town we will be at and what things to do plus their admission prices, etc.!!! Since this will be a really long trip by our standards, I've even planned to get glasses while in Japan. Prices are about half of US prices! Plan is to do that immediately after arriving at Tokyo. There is a highly reviewed eyeglass shop right in Tokyo Station so that will be convenient as our hotel for one night is near the station. Then go travel around and when we get back to Tokyo (staying 4 days before leaving) the glasses will be ready. My brother-in-law has already been there for about a month already and he got new glasses and loves them. They are lucky in that they are staying for three MONTHS! Their constant texting of pictures every day is driving us nuts. Not in a bad way, but making us want to be there NOW! Last week, before the Feds meeting, we converted a bunch of dollars to Yens at Bank of America, hedging that the value of the Yen will rise significantly after the Feds meeting and the BOJ's meeting two day later. So far, that hasn't happened. And if it remains that way, we haven't lost anything. At least we will be ready with local currency once we get off the plane. I have still yet to put together all the information, maps, research, etc. to find the location of where my father was born in Kobe. I have most of the info but just have to put everything together in a booklet. My brother and his family will be there, coincidentally, at the same time in Kobe so this will be an emotionally (hopefully not too much!) charged time in Kobe! Both of us and our mother back home have Amazon Echo so we will stream the video to her once we locate the area. Hopefully people won't lose it. Mom is very good at crying. 🤣 Thanks for mentioning Japan Entry. I had COMPLETELY forgotten about that! We recently got Global Entry but that's only good for getting back into the US. 🙂 Link to comment
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