Local transportation
How do I get around Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka?
Google Maps. This is the most convenient and un-confusing way to get around. Learn how the basics of how Google Maps works for local transportation. It is quite easy, but there are some tips that can make it even more useful.
Start by writing your destination, and not just the nearby train station, you can put in the specific location. Let’s say that you want to visit shop A. Search for shop A, the choose “Directions” and choose the tab with the train icon. By default, Google Maps uses your current location as the starting location, change this accordingly. However, many times, this option might be the better one. The Japanese train station usually have multiple entrances and exists, and I mean multiple. For example, Shinjuku station, albeit the busiest transport hub in the world, has over 200 exits. As such, you can potentially save many minutes by knowing where to enter and exit. This is where Google Maps will help you. By knowing your current location, rather than the fact that you will take the train from station A, it can show you exacly which entrance and exit that you should take in order to have the most efficient path to your desitnation. This is also why I recommended that you type in your exact destination, rather than the train station, because this way, maps will know what direction and exit you should take to arrive to the destination with as little hassle as possible.
Even though, it will be difficult even finding the exit sometimes, and you will be lost many times. Instead of seeing it as an annoyance, try to find some amusement from the fact that the stations are so grand. However, once you get to understand a big station (if even possible during a trip), it is so much more efficient when exiting a station, where you can avoid many crosswalks, huge crowds, or sometimes heavy rain.
In Japan, they seem to like to have underground malls that are connected to larger stations, which is why they can have so many exists. For example, me and my friend once wanted to eat at a restaurant that was 15 minutes from the Umeda train station in Osaka. As we took the train to Umeda station, it started raining and we didn’t have any umbrellas. However, Umeda station is huge, some people call it Umedungeon as it is quite a maze. We decided that we would try to get as close to the restaurant as possible without leaving the train station. We ended up walking 15 minutes underground and arriving at the restaurant, that was in that underground mall connected to the train station.
Tips on navigating in train stations
That being said, it is not impossible to find the right exit. The first thing that you can try to figure out is which direction you want to head. North, east, south west? However, the stations can be quite massive with pathways in random directions. I would say that the best thing to focus on are the signs. They are your guide to your desired exit. I would consider the signs to be quite accurate. Most of them have writing in English. If you have a vague understanding of the major landmarks, you should be able to follow them to the exist. Most of the times, the locations that you want to visit are shown on the signs (e.g. Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building). The most important thing to understand with the signs are the yellow signs. They indicate that you are moving towards an exit. This is what you should be focusing on when arriving at a station. By doing this you will have solved 80% of your problems. The last 20% comes from the fact that many times, the yellow exist signs simply dissapear once you are getting close to an exit, which doesn’t really make sense. As such, my advice would be to simply find the nearest staircase that goes up, and hope for the best. Many times if I am lost, I simply try to find the nearest exist, and start navigating above ground, which is 100 times easier.
Suica and Pasmo card
They are pre-paid digital money cards (physical or digital) that you can use to board buses and trains without hassle. Further, they can be used for so much more than transportation. They can be used for most of the vending machines, stores, restaurants. I’ve even used them to enter the Shinjuku National Garden (fix link).
In order to charge IC cards, simply go to the closest train station and use the machines, most of the time the have an English options menu. I would recommend to charge anywhere between 2000-8000 yen, depending if you need take the longer rides e.g. to and from the airport. No need to worry if you have overcharged towards the end. You can use Suica cards on vending machines and the convenience stores (just ask before). I think you can also charge your IC card at the convenience store, not sure though.
If you have an iPhone (8 or higher)
This is the best way to use the IC card. Simply go to Apple Wallet, choose “Travel card” and search for Suica. Charge the Suica with any amount. Now you can just blip and go anywhere. It is that easy. Just blip when you go on trains, and blip when you leave the station. I’m not sure if you can get the money out of the card into your own bank account. But as you can use them in quite a lot of places, this shouldn’t pose a big problem.
If you have an Android
Having an Android unfortunately complicates the situation somewhat. If you have a Japanese Android, you can get an IC card on your phone similar to how iPhone users have, however, it is most unlikely that you have a Japanese Android. As such, your other option is to get a physical IC card. Previously, this hasn’t been a problem, however, I have heard that they limit the amount of physical card that they distribute as there has been a shortage in recent years as there are so many tourists that get them. They have introduced a new IC card similar to Suica that should last for one (or three?) months that you can get. Try to get either a Suica card or those travel IC cards. Then you can simply charge them and blip away similar to how iPhone users do it.
When to head out in the morning
Most of the stores open from 10 or 11 am. Keep that in mind when deciding when to head out in the morning. Checking out stores and shopping is one of the big attractions while being in Japan, so plan accordingly. If you are an early bird, I would recommend that you plan park visits and sight seeing in the morning before all the shops open. Remember that some parks and temples have specific opening hours as well. If you are not an early bird, waking up later and getting to the city at around 11 is not a bad option as well. For opening hours, the best and easiest is to check Google Maps. Remember that the opening hours are not always 100% accurate. I have had times when stores have been closed even if they say that they are open (not that frequently though). Have that in the back of your mind and don’t get too irritated if you arrive and they are closed. Enjoy the journey as well. This might be more prevalent in restaurants than stores.
When to go where? One thing to keep in mind, especially when you are in Tokyo, is what day it is. It is very easy to forget that Japan still have weekdays and weekends when we are on vacation. As such, going to the very crowded areas such as Shibuya and Harajuku on a weekend will have a big impact in terms of amount of people. On the weekend, both tourists and local people will be out. In areas such as the previously mentioned, it might be overwhelming how many people are there. Keep the in mind when planning. This might be something that you seek or avoid. I don’t really mind the people, sometimes that is part of the experience. But if you do mind, plan accordingly. In some areas, the weekend can be more interesting. I know that in Tokyo, mainly Shinjuku, Ginza or Akihabara, they usually open up the streets for pedestrians. This is a great time to visit these areas, as you can walk in the middle of the street and take pictures without having to worry about cars. For more information on when and where this happens read more here.