My sister told me to skip the train pass in Japan, and she was right

She said to just use a Suica card and pay as you go, because the JR Pass price went up so much last year. I was in Tokyo and Kyoto for 10 days and saved over $150 by not buying the pass. Has anyone found a better way to handle transport there now?

3 comments

3 Comments

jamieb807d ago

Yeah, the math on those passes got real bad after the price hike. My buddy went last fall and spent half his trip on a calculator trying to make it work. Suica was just way simpler for bouncing around the cities.

gray_morgan6d ago

Totally get that, the new math is a headache. I just tell people to map their big intercity trips first and see if the pass even covers those lines. Most of the time now, you're better off just paying as you go.

the_terry6d ago

Remember buying a week pass for a three day trip because the math looked good on paper. Ended up taking two long train rides and basically donated the rest to the rail company. Felt like a real genius that week.

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