best way to visit japan

[southeastastra]

i know it will be expensive but i've really want to go, how long should i save for?

What is it about Japan that appeals to you? Do you know anyone who has been?

how long do you want to stay for? What do you want to do when you're there? How many of there are you?

I did 3 wks there about 10yrs ago, one week in Tokyo and 2wks travelling round with a rail travel pass (which are a must-have as they provide great savings). It is a lovely place and well worth going to.

My DH and I spent a couple of weeks there in 2005. We booked with a specialist travel firm (Audley) who arranged all our accommodation and couple of tours so that we had a nice mix of exploring by ourselves and sight seeing in a group.
We thought we'd be spending a fortune on food, but found it surprisingly good value (mind you, we live in London!). Most of the rail stations have fabulous food courts which don't cost the earth. Wine was expensive, so we stuck to Asahi and Kirren - which given the temperatures in September was a good plan anyway.
The rail pass is very useful if you want to travel round. It won't cover you on the Tokyo metro, but you can buy a travel card that's cheaper than individual trips (NB, when we were there the line over to Odaiba Island wasn't included - had a tricky time getting through the gates but the guard's ineffable politeness saved the day).
Some of the best sightseeing is free - our best day in Tokyo was seeing Akihabara, Shinjuku and the Meiji Shrine, followed by a trip over to Odaiba to go to Venus Fort and the Toyota showroom (which wasn't a car dealership As We Know It).

can't really help with info but I sympathise, it's one of my great ambitions too.

Have a couple of friends who went over there for a good few months teaching English with a company called Nova, if you were looking for a long trip. They weren't very complimentary about the work, but they got to do loads of sightseeing and traveling around!

I'd love to go on one of these trips.

My brother lives there, went to see him in 2000.
Rail pass was v good value, hotels were expensive, food variable depending - just like anywhere else you can buy food from shops where possible and do it on a budget or eat out a lot and pay more.

We went in spring when the cherry blossom was just starting to come out, it was gorgeous. However the tofu was not in season which was disappointing - apparently I will have to go back in the autumn some time for tofu scoffing.