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Preparedness checklist
Think of some stuff to do and/or an event to centre the trip around - Spring and valentine's day, I guess?
- Negotiate a suitable set of dates with your comrades
- Check prices for airfares and jiggle the dates until optimal
- Work has given approval for leave in advance
- Apply for leave from work
- Confirm leave approval
- Book airfares
- Thrash out a rough timeline of where to be on which days
- Figure out where you'll be and book accommodation
- How much is accommodation going to cost?
- How about travel?
JR pass? Car hire? http://rent.toyota.co.jp/en/index.html
- How many yens will you need? Buy some yens
Airflight price comparison
Air Asia - Departure on the 8th and return flight on the 17th
- Total days spent in Japan is about 8/9
- Total cost would be $998
- Based on 20kg luggage to Japan, and 25kg for the return flights
- Includes: Air Air insurance, 2 meals ($16) and seats chosen
- This is the cheaper alternative, but we would need to shinkansen from Osaka to Tokyo, which may only give us 8 days tentatively
Jetstar - Departure on the 5th and return flight on the 17th
- Total days spent in Japan is about 10/11
- Total cost would be $1431.17
- Based on 15kg luggage to Japan, and 25kg for the return flights
- Includes: 1 meal at no cost (trip from Narita to Sydney), otherwise it is $28 for the meal from GC to Narita, standard seats and travel insurance
- This is more pricey, however you get a flight that goes to Tokyo and have flexibility in how long you can stay for
Singapore Airlines - Departure on the 7th and return flight on the 17th
- Total days spent in Japan is about 9/10
- Total cost would be 1,275.96
- 8/12/13 - Kat paid $800 for the ticket
- According to the website, they have a 30kg allowance for baggage
- There were no options for meals, therefore I assume this includes meals. Also include travel insurance
- This seems best value with the best dates for travel if we are staying in Tokyo only
Ideas
What stuff do we want to do?
Thigh-highs store in Akiba: http://kotaku.com/the-worlds-first-thigh-high-sock-store-opening-in-to-1509674602
Kit-Kat specialty store! http://kotaku.com/the-worlds-first-kit-kat-store-is-opening-in-tokyo-1501753395
Museum of Megane in Ikebukuro, it'll be near where we're staying: https://foursquare.com/v/%E8%80%81%E7%9C%BC%E3%82%81%E3%81%8C%E3%81%AD%E5%8D%9A%E7%89%A9%E9%A4%A8/4ca4109ca73cb60cb2691e78
Go visit the Garden of Words: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Garden_of_Words
Enoshima: http://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Enoshima
Shimane, out Nagoya/Gifu way, for that inaka experience
- The K-On school is out near Nagoya, Blitz would be happy to guide
- All the fashion places for Kat:
- Nagoya
- Harajuku
- Shibuya
- etc.
- Sundays == Go out and be seen
- Butler cafe
- Maid cafe
Gyoza if we visit Sendai: http://tabelog.com/miyagi/A0401/A040101/4002355/dtlrvwlst/3607143/
That New Type bar in the same building as Cos-Cha and Little BSD
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shinjuku_Gyoen
The setting for Shinkai's newest thing
- Sakanaya (ăăăȘă), a sake place in Ikebukuro. Billboard has the name on in hiragana
Nishi-Ikebukuro 1-35-8, http://goo.gl/maps/1oDz
- Alex: "it is my absolute favourite place but their english is about as good as that of a kitten. The boss man knows my name so if you say Mr. Sayle (or Mr. Alex for that matter) sent you, you may get away with murder."
This book has a glowing review
- HUB in Shinjuku, a chain, the Japanese version of an Irish pub
- Alex: "the ones in Shinjyuku tend to speak english. They'll seat you like a japanese place and have bar maids which are friendly"
Here's one, nominally the JR Shinjuku Minamiguchi branch: http://www.pub-hub.com/shop/minamiguchi/
Heaven's Door Bar in Shimokitazawa, run by a British expat, location here, closes at 26:00 every day
Craftheads in Shibuya, looks like a beer and bourbon bar, closed on Mondays