There and back again... A Japan Business Trip Story...

Just came back from another business trip to Tokyo. A red-eye flight on a Monday night out from Changi returning on a Friday night flight back from Haneda. That gave me the full 4 days from Tuesday to Friday in Tokyo.

A few observations I made during this trip:

1) Massive influx of foreigners working in frontline service roles.

2) Food is great and still very affordable, especially with the cheaper JPY

3) Shopping for clothes (e.g. UNIQLO, GAP etc), easily cheaper by 20-30% compared to Singapore

4) Never seen such a great number of European/American tour groups

Kobe Beef course meal for 9,800yen? Sure~

Love the place to bits but hotel has been a bit expensive the last week. Glad the company was paying because I will not be flying into Tokyo and staying there during the peak season. After 4 days of walking and eating I was pretty tired (more due to the overnight flight and shopping for the missus than the work...) and was ready to go home.  But it also invoked a thought in me. We might enjoy Tokyo for a long weekend more than a Phuket or Bangkok trip.

I probably can get away with short 4-day getaways like this in future flying into Tokyo on a Thursday night and returning on a Monday evening. A quick check on Google Flights and Booking.com revealed that a ticket on Zipair would cost S$574/pax (or S$1,148 for 2) and a hotel room at Sotetsu Fresa Inn Ueno-Okachimachi (incl breakfast) for 2 will cost S$466 for the 3 nights from 12th Jan 2024 to 15th Jan 2024.

That works out to S$1,614 for 4 days in Tokyo from Friday to Monday. How would you spend those 4 days? I would probably do the following:

Friday - Arrival, rent a car and drive over to Atami or Kawaguchiko for a night's stay at an onsen ryokan or maybe do a night of glamping at QOONEL+. (Note: that will increase the hotel cost since any accommodation at those tourist area will cost more than Tokyo's business hotels)

Saturday - Check out from Onsen ryokan or glamping site, spend half a day sightseeing before going back to Tokyo. Check-in and start roaming the streets of Tokyo.

Sunday - More shopping, more eating, one can take a walk at Asakusa and Tokyo Sky Tree or Meiji Jingu Shrine and Omote-sando. Find a nice cafe and chill the afternoon away.

Monday - Check-out, have a nice breakfast followed by shopping at Ueno Ameyoko before going to the airport.

Tuesday - Go back to the office with a refreshed mind and body!

I figured the entire trip will work out to slightly more than S$1k/pax excluding shopping. It's definitely a bit tiring on the overnight flight but for the quality of the food and climate I think its a big upgrade over any South East Asia destination. 

Would you do it?

Planning for a nomadic retirement lifestyle... in Japan

The big MONEY question.... how much do I need to retire if I were to lead a nomadic lifestyle with my spouse? Singapore is a terribly expensive place to live in, but if one were to think positively (no choice, right?) the money earned in Singapore has more purchasing powers in other countries. 

Take for example the Japanese Yen. When I first went to Japan 25 years ago the vending machines were selling drinks at 100yen. Well guess what? You can still find drinks at 100-120yen these days. With the exchange rate shifting from 60+yen to nearly 110yen per S$1, what used to cost me S$1.65 is now around $1.00. 

Accommodations

So with that in mind, I think it is a relatively safe to say that rental will not increase excessively in Japan if one is looking for a place for long-term nomadic stay, especially alternative cities like Okayama or Hakodate where they might provide some really good AirBnB options. The rising trend will be co-living spaces if one is looking for a balance of cost and social interactions.

Kurashiki is a great destination!

Like any city, peak season prices are exorbitant but if you book in advance one can still find reasonably priced AirBnB for around S$1,500-S$2,000. But do take note for some AirBnB listings, they do charge additional surcharges for utilities.

However, do not restrict oneself to just AirBnB options. Business hotels are relatively cheap depending on the location and season. For example, UNIZO INN Express Hakodate Ekimae near Hakodate Station in Hokkaido can go for just S$1,600-1,700/month. That's a fantastic location and includes housekeeping everyday. I would go for that if I don't cook!

Budget for Accommodation: $1,500 for 2 pax

Food

If you intend to eat out every meal everyday, then I think a S$40/day is enough to eat pretty well in Japan. In fact I don't think I will spend that much considering I've been eating light for either breakfast or lunch these days to keep my weight down. 

I'll not be eating this everyday... maybe once a month!

One cannot budget for a long-term nomadic lifestyle like a tourist. You are not going to eat expensive delicacies like you would as a traveler. Well... at least not that often... 

Let's map out what a day will look like in terms of eating in Hakodate, Japan:

Breakfast

A typical day for me will be breakfast at Doutor. A German Hotdog and a cup of Royal Milk Tea? Sure~ 

But they have seasonal menus as well as some morning sets which goes for like ¥ 470~ I would say that's cheaper than Ya-kun or Toastbox these days... If you are not too big on breakfast then an Onigiri + Drink at the nearest convenience stall will only set you back like S$3.00.

Lunch/Dinner

A buffet meal at Gyukaku is between S$20-30… ridiculously low price when you compare to the price we pay in Singapore.

A sushi set meal goes from S$10-30. Ramen meal around $10-15. Many food courts serve meals costing no more than 1,000yen. 

Snacks and such

Starbucks latte goes for 400+yen. But there are many other coffee chains in Japan with decent coffee for that price. Need a snack? Take a walk at the supermarket to taste all the samples~ 

Budget for Food: S$40 x 30 = S$1,200/mth for 1pax

Transport

Depending on the lifestyle one is looking for, it can be as cheap as 0yen to 20,000yen if you are taking the shinkansen somewhere. When in Japan I would recommend using the subway and JR lines as much as possible on a daily basis, and if looking to explore a bit more, try to get those 1-day tourist pass so you can travel to as many places as possible in one day. 

Those 1-day passes usually cost 1,000-3,000yen and should be used when you feel adventurous and wishes to explore more on that day. But not all day passes makes sense to me. 

For example the JR Tokyo 1-day pass is 1,600yen. On average its around 200yen to get from point-to-point on the Yamanote line. It's 8 trips to cover your cost.

Coverage of JR Tokyo 1-day pass

However the Hakodate City Tram 1-day pass only cost 600yen whereas normal trips average around 210-260yen. You would have earned the price of the pass by just stopping at 2 tourist attractions before making your way back to your original stop. 

Best 1-day pass in my opinion~

Budget for Transport: S$5 x 30 = S$150/mth for 1pax

Wifi/Internet

Depending on your usage, ReadyRoam on Singtel for 4Gb @ S$18/30days might be enough for some people but others might prefer the 20Gb @ US$26/30days from Airalo E-sim. Whichever the case, its very important to stay connected wherever we go.

Budget for Data: Approx S$40/mth for 1 mobile

Travel Insurance

A comprehensive annual travel insurance will cost around S$300-500/year. It’s going to be way more expensive on a per-trip basis. 

Assuming one will be away for 6 months for a year that’s going to be between $50-100/month. Mandatory to get this.

Budget for Insurance: Approx S$100/mth for a family

Summary

It's going to cost quite a bit to stay in Japan for a couple.

Accommodations: S$1,500

Food: S$2,400

Transport: S$300

Wifi/Internet: S$80

Travel Insurance: S$100

Misc: S$300

Total Budget for Japan: $4,680 for 2pax/mth

On top of the above, there's also the return air ticket, but that's for another blog post. Do leave a comment if you think I've missed out anything or the figures are too high/low~ 

Just read about this event called Co-live Fukuoka.

 https://colivefukuoka.com/

Its apparently an effort by Fukuoka City to invite Digital Nomads to visit and hopefully spread the word that Fukuoka is a viable destination for Digital Nomads. I like Fukuoka very much. I think Tokyo and Osaka are too crowded and if I were to find a long-stay destination in Japan, Fukuoka or Hokkaido would probably be my first choice. 

The program has a 1-month community fee at US$699. And the official accommodation at co-living space LYF Tenjin Fukuoka cost approx. US$1650 a month. That's already like US$2,349. Not to mention basic spending money. Including the air-ticket, the whole adventure will cost around US$3,000... I have to admit a co-living space or community hotel like LYF is a great way to meet more people, but honestly I think that an AirBnB would be a cheaper option. 

I look forward to seeing some Youtube or Blogs on this Colive Fukuoka event as it is definitely a viable destination in our Nomadic Retirement Life~

Kansai - Chugoku Drive

Something to consider for Post-Covid... 14 days trip, 10 days of car rental.

Start from Osaka and end in Osaka...

This is going to be epic! LOL~

Shirakawa-go : Japan Kansai-Kanazawa-Kinosaki Drive - Part 5

Day 6
Today is about making our way from Takayama to Kanazawa, with a pitstop at Shirakawa-go and Gokayama!

 

Thanks to the snowfall the night before, the road from Takayama to Shirakawa-go was very scenic! The drive wasn't too long, taking approximately 1 hour. We probably took more time than that as we stopped along the way to take pictures~

We largely walked around the area, and visited the interior of some of these grass-thatched structures. It's probably going to look magical when its all snowy and the air was really fresh. But my stomach was calling for food, especially in the cold weather it just keeps calling out more frequently~ LOL~

After our lunch as we continued our drive towards Kanazawa, we made a small detour to Gokayama 五箇山. 

   

  

Gokayama is a lesser-known village compared to Shirakawa-go, but it is also on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Lesser crowd and quiet environment actually suit us more! 

After a good stroll around Gokayama, my stomach decided its time to replenish~ We hopped back into the car and started our drive towards Kanazawa~ By the time we reached Kanazawa it was already nightfall!

The Tsuzumi ("drum") Gate at JR Kanazawa Station

Apart from beautiful parks and museums, Kanazawa is also famous for cheap and delicious seafood! After checking into our hotel we quickly went out to grab a meal (or two)!

After our dinner, we decided that it wasn't enough so we went back to the area surrounding Kanazawa station to look for supper! 

The next day will be a full day discovering Kanazawa!

 
See the rest of the trip below:

• Part 1 (Osaka-Nara-Kyoto)
• Part 2 (Kyoto)
• Part 3 (Gero Onsen)
• Part 4 (Takayama)

Takayama : Japan Kansai-Kanazawa-Kinosaki Drive - Part 4

Day 5
It's all about Takayama today~ Its a drive to Takayama Old Town, then to our onsen hotel for the night in the middle of Hida-Takayama~


The drive today is short and easy, which gives us more than ample time to enjoy the streets of Takayama Old Town as well as an early check-in so we can have a nice outdoor onsen dip after we check in.

Hello Takayama~

I really enjoyed Takayama~ It's got such old world charm but everything was so clean and neat~ The best thing I enjoyed about Takayama was the streetfood! Wah seh~ The amount of delicious street food this place managed to squeeze into one stretch basically caused us to have our lunch while standing up~ LOL~

1. Hida Beef meat bun for a start~

2. Beef Croquette next!

3. Skewered BBQ Beef~ Yum!

4. Beef Stew~

5. Hida Beef Burger!

6. Finished off with Pudding from this shop!

The cold weather really helped with the appetite~ but it also helped with the walking after the food~ Clean, flat and neatly organized streets made it such a joy to talk around the old streets and taking in the sights and atmosphere. Along the way there was a few shops that offered free sake/miso soup so we gladly obliged~

J fascinated by the small fishes in the drain... the water was very clear!

We spent around 3 hours in Takayama before we continued our journey to our hotel for the night~ As we drove deeper into Hida-Takayama, the scenery started to change~

Our lodging for the night was at 奥飛騨温泉郷　穂高荘　山月 (Hodakaso Sangetsu)

Now the thing about this hotel... is the fact that it has a mixed outdoor onsen! (One more item on the bucket list checked!)

The outdoor onsen is situated on one side of the valley so it offers a magnificent view of the opposite mountains~

And as with all onsen lodging in Japan, its the dinner I look forward to the most~

For this stay package, it also came with A5-ranked Hida beef~

And we were still in time for some Ayu 鮎 fish!

After dinner all of us were so satisfied and tired that no one tempted to venture outside to challenge the outdoor onsen for one more time~  We did take a stroll outside the hotel and it was starting to snow. And that gave us the sight below:

Wow~

Breakfast was just as wow~  but unfortunately I was still trying to digest the food from the previous day...

After breakfast we still had some time before checking out so we took a walk outside the hotel. The scenery of the entire place basically changed overnight~ The fresh snow with the last of the autumn leaves gave the place very fresh and vibrant colors~ Everybody loved the cool crisp air~

Next stop will be Shirakawa-go and Kanazawa!

See the rest of the trip below:

• Part 1 (Osaka-Nara-Kyoto)
• Part 2 (Kyoto)
• Part 3 (Gero Onsen)
• Part 5 (Shirakawa-go)