West Japan in a Week
Saturday Night
Japan in a week using Seishun 18 Kippu (Youth 18 Tickets) was terribly cheap and fantastic. For only 11,500 each, me and a colleague was able to tour west Japan. From our place in Saitama, we head of to Tokyo central station to ride the Moonlight Nagara, a midnight train from Tokyo to Ogaki (Gifu Prefecture). From Ogaki, numerous and tiresome change trains occurred going to Hiroshima. Our original plan was just to have sightseeing in west Japan but later we found out that we were already hunting for UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Our itinerary was Hiroshima, Miyajima Island, then back to Hiroshima, Himeji (Hyogo Prefecture), Kobe, Osaka, Kyoto, Nara and Nagoya. But we did not have enough energy to stop by Kobe and Nagoya so we skipped those places. Afterall there are no UNESCO World Heritage sites in these areas. Perhaps next year we will visit them.
Seishun 18 Kippu (青春十八切符) or Youth 18 Tickets
Youth 18 tickets are seasonal (except Autumn) tickets of unlimited Japan Railways (JR) train rides all over Japan and JR Ferry ride from Hiroshima to Miyajima. Youth 18 tickets can be used by one person for 5 days or can be used by 5 persons in a day. The tickets are stamped with a validity date from the time you get in a JR station. Tickets can’t be used in ticket inspection gates (改札口/kaisatsu guchi). Instead, you pass within the station master exit and present your ticket. As a piece of advice, print a copy of all the possible stations of each train lines that you have to pass. The purpose is for you to know what train to board when changing trains in every terminal. Most seasoned travelers (especially the Japanese) are very well aware of their routes, so when in doubt, practice your Japanese and ask beforehand if where they are heading. Thus, a copy of the timetable would be also handy to pacify your fears of being lost along the way.
Moonlight Nagara, The Budget Train
Moonlight Nagara is a very popular train used by many Seishun 18 Kippu travelers. Ticket reservations to this train are booked as early as two months before departure so better book right away for a round-trip ticket. We were not able to ride the Moonlight Nagara on our way back home since I was kinda stupid not to have the return booking ahead of time since our schedule then was not yet fixed. The result, we have to take the tiresome day train with 4 change trains for more than 8 hours. Moonlight Nagara coaches are equipped with comfort rooms. Lights were not turned off during the duration of the trip so it was stressful especially when you are not used in sleeping when the lights are lit on.
Saturday Night
Japan in a week using Seishun 18 Kippu (Youth 18 Tickets) was terribly cheap and fantastic. For only 11,500 each, me and a colleague was able to tour west Japan. From our place in Saitama, we head of to Tokyo central station to ride the Moonlight Nagara, a midnight train from Tokyo to Ogaki (Gifu Prefecture). From Ogaki, numerous and tiresome change trains occurred going to Hiroshima. Our original plan was just to have sightseeing in west Japan but later we found out that we were already hunting for UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Our itinerary was Hiroshima, Miyajima Island, then back to Hiroshima, Himeji (Hyogo Prefecture), Kobe, Osaka, Kyoto, Nara and Nagoya. But we did not have enough energy to stop by Kobe and Nagoya so we skipped those places. Afterall there are no UNESCO World Heritage sites in these areas. Perhaps next year we will visit them.
Seishun 18 Kippu (青春十八切符) or Youth 18 Tickets
Youth 18 tickets are seasonal (except Autumn) tickets of unlimited Japan Railways (JR) train rides all over Japan and JR Ferry ride from Hiroshima to Miyajima. Youth 18 tickets can be used by one person for 5 days or can be used by 5 persons in a day. The tickets are stamped with a validity date from the time you get in a JR station. Tickets can’t be used in ticket inspection gates (改札口/kaisatsu guchi). Instead, you pass within the station master exit and present your ticket. As a piece of advice, print a copy of all the possible stations of each train lines that you have to pass. The purpose is for you to know what train to board when changing trains in every terminal. Most seasoned travelers (especially the Japanese) are very well aware of their routes, so when in doubt, practice your Japanese and ask beforehand if where they are heading. Thus, a copy of the timetable would be also handy to pacify your fears of being lost along the way.
Moonlight Nagara, The Budget Train
Moonlight Nagara is a very popular train used by many Seishun 18 Kippu travelers. Ticket reservations to this train are booked as early as two months before departure so better book right away for a round-trip ticket. We were not able to ride the Moonlight Nagara on our way back home since I was kinda stupid not to have the return booking ahead of time since our schedule then was not yet fixed. The result, we have to take the tiresome day train with 4 change trains for more than 8 hours. Moonlight Nagara coaches are equipped with comfort rooms. Lights were not turned off during the duration of the trip so it was stressful especially when you are not used in sleeping when the lights are lit on.
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