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?

Japan Kantō Winter Drive to Mt Fuji - Part 6 - Last (Tokyo-Singapore)

Departing from Kusatsu, we headed towards Ikaho Onsen to meet our friends for lunch. Coincidentally they were on their way to Kusatsu on the same day we depart! 

Lake Haruna

To reach Ikaho Onsen, we had to pass through Mt Haruna, also known as Mount Akina in Initial D!

Firstly there was Lake Haruna, where we took a little stroll and tried to take a few steps on the frozen waters~ Except for the occasional cars which passed by, there was hardly anyone in the area. 

After Lake Haruna came the main event, the drive from Lake Haruna to Ikaho Onsen is supposed to be the actual route that Initial D creators based their Mt Akina route on. Some kind person has marked the map here. 

Japan Kantō Winter Drive to Mt Fuji - Part 5 (Ryokan Tokinoniwa 季の庭)

On the last day we check-in into 湯宿　季の庭（ときのにわ）Tokinoniwa
[Official Website]. It is an onsen ryokan situated in the southern part of Kusatsu town. They are part of the Kyoritsu Resort Group and their establishments are usually nice and stylish.

After we parked the car and walked into the main hall, the first thing we were told to do was to take off our shoes before we stepped onto the reception area. Initially I thought it was a hassle to take off my shoes and then have to wear them again when we go to the rooms. It was later then I realized that the entire building was covered with tatami mat! 

Japan Kantō Winter Drive to Mt Fuji - Part 4 (Exploring Kusatsu)

One of the key reason why we stayed at Kusatsu Onsen Hotel Village instead of beside the Yubatake was because J wanted to play with snow. The very next morning we woke up early for the buffet breakfast and walked to the snow field of the resort.

Japan Kantō Winter Drive to Mt Fuji - Part 3 (Lake Kawaguchi-Kusatsu)

The amazing Matsumoto Castle...

After Lake Kawaguchi, we were supposed to make a 3.5 hour drive to Kusatsu. However I chose to make a detour to visit Matsumoto Castle. I'm a big fan of Japanese castles and I was not going to miss this as Matsumoto Castle has the oldest castle donjon remaining in Japan.

Japan Kantō Winter Drive to Mt Fuji - Part 2 (Atami-Lake Kawaguchi)

On this day we have a date with Mt Fuji~

After checking-out of our hotel we continued our drive towards Lake Kawaguchi. The day's drive would bring us to Mishima Skywalk, then Gotemba Premium Outlet and finally Lake Kawaguchi where I booked ourselves a nice room with a view of Mt Fuji!

Japan Kantō Winter Drive to Mt Fuji - Part 1 (Tokyo-Atami)

In 2017, went to Japan right after Chinese New Year. That was one of the first journey whereby we spent virtually the entire trip by self-Driving around Japan.This trip will bring us from Tokyo to Hakone before stopping at Atami for a night, then onwards to Lake Kawaguchi for a night to take a look at Mt Fuji. After that we will head upwards to Kusatsu with a detour to Matsumoto Castle for a look before finally making our way back to Tokyo.

Hokuriku Tour Part 4 - Tokyo!

Tokyo 1st day
Back to Tokyo... been to Tokyo too many times to feel excited about the places we were going to visit but to the 3 guys most of the places were new to them as they only ever got to visit where the tour bus would bring them. I figured the Tokyo Skytree would have been a great place to bring them since I've never been upstairs myself~

From the top everything looked pretty small and I was glad the weather was kind to us.
One could really see how urbanised Tokyo is yet there is a sense of neatness in how the buildings are actually lined up.

We opted for lunch below the Skytree, within the massive shopping centre which serves as the base of the tower. Cold udon was the choice of the day considering the summer weather~

After lunch we made our way to the train station to make our way to Asakusa. It is only one station from the Tobu Skytree station to the Asakusa station, and from there its a 10-minute walk to the Asakusa Kannon Template (Senso-ji 浅草寺)

For me, Asakusa is one of the most visited sites. Whenever I bring first-timers to Tokyo, Asakusa will more likely than not be in the itinerary. I guess its because it gives a sense of traditional Japan within the urban landscape which makes it such a treasure...

After Asakusa, my uncle told me he wanted a new electronic blood pressure monitor, and so I brought him to Akihabara. Where else can you find such a massive array of electronics and entertain shops in one area?

In the end we decided to visit Yodobashi Akiba (short for Akihabara 秋葉原). Massive building of electronics, gadgets, toys and restaurants. A techie-geek paradise. A disneyland for old kids...

After that I had to leave the 3 guys to their own exploration as I had a dinner appointment with Japanese colleagues. Its one of those yakitori shops under the train tracks along Shimbashi station. It was great having cheap and good Japanese good while enjoying great conversation with colleagues based in both Europe and Japan.

Tokyo 2nd day
Rise and shine~ senior citizens really wake up early.. most of them wake up by 6am and I feel a bit ashamed to sleep later than 7am as it felt like they are all just waiting for me to wake up before they can start their adventure for the day...

By 8am we were already at Ebisu. Unfortunately, by 8am most of the shops weren't even opened! I thought of having breakfast in one of the nice restaurants lining the streets of Ebisu but they weren't opening till 10-11am! A short walk around Ebisu and some photo-taking later we made our way to Omotesando 表参道.

Still too early but Omotesando offered nice tree-lined streets and nice buildings which offered the guys a chance to use their cameras. We settled for a quick breakfast before making our way towards Meiji Jingu Shrine.

JR Harajuku Station

The Meiji Shrine 明治神宮 is another one of those places in Tokyo which showcases the traditional Japan. Unlike the various temples and castles all over Japan, the history of this place isn't much of a story but the environment makes for a good break from urban Tokyo. The fact that it is right beside JR Harajuku station makes for a very convenient place to visit whenever one is in Tokyo. Unfortunately the place is too crowded with tourists thus a bit of the splendor of the place has been diminished by the shoutings and pushings....

Exiting Meiji Jingu, I brought the seniors to Harajuku Takeshita Dori. I know its not really a place for old men but... been there done that, next stop Shibuya!

We were in Shibuya basically for lunch and a photo opportunity with Hachiko. No trip to Shibuya will be complete without either i) taking a picture of/with Hachiko and ii) taking a picture of Shibuya crossing. Checked both off from the to-do list and we also managed to grab a bowl of ramen.

After lunch it was swiftly over to Shinjuku. Too early in the day but showed them Kabukicho 歌舞伎町. A quick visit in one of the few duty-free stores. And then we had cakes and coffee in one of the many cafes in Shinjuku~

Spot the Godzilla!!!

4 guys having afternoon tea... surrounded by Japanese tai-tais...

We had sometime before our dinner appointment so we roamed around Ginza and Nihonbashi area...

Dinner was at Isomaru Suisan 磯丸水産. 　

Isomaru's sort of a chain restaurant. Instead of selling you fried chicken or burgers, it offers Japanese seafood~ I wasn't looking after the seniors' health but they weren't complaining. In fact they really looked forward to this meal as they had a pretty plain dinner the night before as they couldn't speak the language and settled for simple food.

They thoroughly enjoyed their last dinner of the trip as that also marked the end of a remarkable journey. The next morning we took the N'EX train which took us to Narita airport.

All in all, the trip was an interesting one for me. I cannot remember the last time I took a trip overseas with my uncle. And this time I had to play tour guide to him and 2 of his friends as well. Of course they left pretty much everything to me to decide so that made it alot easier for me. And they could walk way more than I could, so that made it easier (yet harder) for me as well...

Last I heard from my sister was they are talking about asking me to organize another trip to Japan again... I got to check if I can fit something into my schedule...

Posts from this trip:

• Hokuriku Tour Part 1 - Tokyo and Kanazawa
• Hokuriku Tour Part 2 - Toyama and Karuizawa
• Hokuriku Tour Part 3 - Kurobe and Karuizawa
• Hokuriku Tour Part 4 - Tokyo