First of all, I would like to apologize deeply for the delay in this post. It is not a guide, but I am in the middle of my annual charity mission at this time of the year, so many things have taken a back seat.

The spring flower season has nearly ended, and the Japanese tourism scene has reached a milestone, although the crowds continue to grow. From a traveler's standpoint, your feeling may be to plan a new trip for the next season. While I will leave the specific measures for the next time, I think that thinking about the general framework of your upcoming trip will help you avoid panicking when making actual plans. If you prepare to move promptly for your next trip, you will have more time and you can relax. I hope I can help you with this way of thinking about this issue.

Timing of Travel and Purchase of Airline Tickets

The timing of your airline ticket will depend on how busy you are with your work. Is it the time of vacation you can take, or is it when you can get tickets at better prices and with better choices? I could take vacations on my own time once I retired a few years ago. This kind of freehand has allowed me to book airline tickets on my favorite airline's frequent flyer slots, 355 days before airline tickets generally go on sale. Specifically, I accumulate miles on ANA(All Nippon Airways) and transfer them to mileage slots on Singapore Airlines, a Star Alliance airline, to buy tickets. The main reason is that Singapore Airlines charges almost no surcharges or taxes. All Nippon Airways offers direct and comfortable flights to Europe, but the taxes and surcharges can be as high as those of a budget airline.

Now, back to purchasing airline tickets. If your work schedule automatically dictates your vacation's timing, you can fly directly or via the third of location of your choice. For instance I am unfamiliar with the market for airline tickets to Japan, but if you consider connections, you can come to Japan via Helsinki, Finland, in a short time if you are flying from Europe. Turkish Airlines via Istanbul or Emirates via Dubai would be a good choice if you go southbound. It all depends on how valuable the tickets are.

If you plan to visit Japan for cherry blossoms in spring and autumn leaves in fall, it is recommended that you book tickets as soon as possible. Airline tickets to Japan during peak season are no exception, and you may find yourself paying surprisingly high prices.

Purchasing airline tickets is probably the most challenging part of the process, as it is the gateway to travel and, conversely, determines the duration of the trip. There are many routes to Japan, so please decide well, not necessarily 355 days in advance.

Themes and Places to Visit

What is the most important theme for your visit to Japan? Autumn leaves, flowers, snowy scenery, mountain hiking, you name it. You can also decide which is more important to you, and there will be no hesitation.

The places you visit during your trip depend on what you want to do during your stay. In other words, what theme are you going to have in Japan? Once you have a clear idea of what you want to do, the places you visit will naturally be decided.

For example, if it is your first visit to Japan, you may want to spend a week in Tokyo and Kyoto, 10 days from departure to return. Or, if you enjoy the autumn foliage, you could enter Tokyo and spend a week in the Tohoku region, combining it with hot springs.

This theme may be the first thing you can do to get your head around. This theme may be the first thing you can do to organize your mind, because it will naturally come to you if you are honest with your curiosity.

I am planning a trip to Europe this autumn. I arranged my tickets last year with Singapore Airlines, and the theme is clear: Paris after a long absence, Germany, where my daughter lives, and United Kingdom, where I have a reason to visit every other year. Due to my busy schedule, I have not yet decided on a detailed itinerary, but I only need to decide on intra-regional transportation and hotels soon.

Hotels

Your decision-making and research skills may not be enough to solve the problem here. How can you gather information on the following factors?

Convenience to the Destination

It is tough to grasp the public transportation system in the place you will visit and assemble it particularly in Tokyo. Many apps, such as Reddit, honestly ask for advice on itineraries. Still, checking the entire itinerary is difficult, so it is better to ask locals "which subway line is the most convenient for sightseeing in Tokyo?" If asked such a question, I would recommend several Ginza Line stations. For more details, please refer to my previous post(#136).

Access to Airports

Heathrow is the most popular airport in London, but Haneda and Narita have different advantages and disadvantages in Tokyo. This is not to say that Narita Airport is always far away and inferior to Haneda. If you have found a good deal on a ticket via Narita Airport, you should take full advantage of it and choose a hotel. The disadvantages are not so apparent if you look for a hotel in the Ueno area and take the Keisei Skyliner. Please see my past articles, especially if you consider using Narita Airport(#139).

Lastly

In today's world, if you make full use of AI such as Chat GPT, you may be able to make an ordinary trip without any help from anyone. However, if this is your first visit to Japan, you will encounter a few obstacles at key points.

I hope I can help those people. I have written more than 150 articles in just over three years. I will be delighted if you find the answer you want in any of them. If not, I hope you will use the Substack feature to ask me directly your questions. Some of my paid subscriptions include a service to answer your questions.

I am on a mission, so I can't devote much time to writing articles. However, I hope to provide helpful information once this mission is over. It will be helpful if you let me know what issues you have on the stage of your planning.

***My apologies for the irregular format since I edit on my smartphone. ***