janisj

Re my trip to Kyoto and Tokyo next month:

Last week I tried to get tickets to the Imperial Household Palaces/Villas and the only one w/ availability Was the Kyoto Imperial Palace -- so I booked that. But for the others, I know can't enter the bldgs w/o a reservation, but can one visit the gardens? I haven't been able to find the answer on line or in a couple of guide books.

And - what are the chances taxi drivers speaking English - Slim to none? Possible? Probable? Should I print out cards w/ the destinations I'm likely to want to take cabs to?

Kathie

Some of our taxi driver spoke English, many did not. We had the concierge at our hotel write out our destinations in Kanji on the back of a hotel card. This worked well. And when we wanted to return to our hotel, we just turned the card over and showed it to the taxi driver.

janisj

Good idea -- thanks . I'm sure my guest house doesn't have a 'concierge' but the staff (at least some of them) do speak English so I'll give that a try. Especially the part about have the address of the hotel on the back of the card - or I may never find my way back

crellston

We spent 5 days there and rarely used a taxi, relying on our feet and the bus service which was efficient and easy to use. It is usually possible to find someone who speaks English, even a complete stranger, who will help out with directions or writing out the address as suggsted by Katie (always a good idea). There are also iPhone/ pad apps which, I am told, are pretty good.

Mara

As far as visiting the gardens of the villas, I believe entrance is allowed only with a ticket. I went to the Katsura Villa this spring and got tickets for me and my friend at the Imperial Household Agency in the Imperial Palace Park. We needed a specific day due to her schedule but I think I could have gone the next day if I wanted to. So I advise you to go there and inquire about availability for the villas that you want to visit. I know you are not in Kyoto for too long.....

As far as taxis, I have only taken two - one was from the station to my hotel which was close by. The other was from the hotel to my long term inn - I had a map written in Japanese from the inn - the taxi driver was holding it upside down...lol....luckily I had a pretty good idea of where to go....I wouldn't count on English at all....

MinnBeef

I don't recall taking taxis either, managing everything by my two feet, the subway or the bus out to the Temple of the Golden Pavillion. But I used the same approach that Kathie mentioned to explain who I was for restaurant reservations my hotel had made for me.

MinnBeef

I take that back. I did take a taxi from Kyoto station to Hotel Mume. In typical Mume fashion (i.e. they think of everything before YOU even think of it!), they had emailed me directions from the train station to the hotel in Kanji. It worked like a charm. The taxi drivers I'm sure are used to that.

kja

Like Mara, I was able to visit the Katsura Villa only with a reservation -- but I was able to make the reservation just a few days in advance at the location Mara mentions.

I didn't use any taxis while in Kyoto, but I believe janisj has very limited time there? If there is a very easy subway line between places, that might be the best bet so she can avoid surface traffic, but if the subway route is complicated, or if the alternative is a bus, a taxi might be the option that allows greatest time efficiency.

I NEVER travel in Asia without having the names of my hotel and the places I want to go in writing in both English and local script! And I think that's pretty common -- even very small places often have cards for that purpose.

Kathie

We opted for taxis because of what we considered to be limited time in Kyoto. Also, we were there at the height of the koyo and the buses were packed. I watched people wait through two buses before they could get on. We had lots we wanted to see in Kyoto, and knew that even with taxis we wouldn't see it all. But taking taxis was more time efficient than the other options.

Do what makes sense for you.

kja

Kathie -- As already noted, I agree that taxis would most likely beat buses when time is limited, but did you try Kyoto's subway system? I thought the subways VERY easy to use and they run so frequently that I can well imagine them being a better choice than taxis for some connections....

Mara

http://youinjapan.net/maps/kyoto/kyoto_bus_map.pdf

http://www.arukumachikyoto.jp/?lang=en

http://www.jrpass.com/images/map/map_kyoto_metro.pdf

Once you figure out your itinerary you can try to group the places you want to see in one area to make traveling among them easier. Japan-guide does it here: http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2158.html

Above are some links that should be helpful:

1) Kyoto Bus Map
2) Bus Route Finder
3) Subway Map

You can download the Bus Route Finder app for your phone but I found it very slow....very slow...lol....

Plus if you are in a small area then it is easier to take a quick taxi ride. Taxis seems to be all over the place...

russ_in_LA

We took taxi's more often in Kyoto than we expected, I think because it was the end of our trip and our feet hurt, it had gotten quite warm and humid, and because there was so much to see and do in a short period of time. Our guide book had the kanji script written next to the English for all of the major sites, so we found that all we needed to do is point if there was a question. The notable exception was the taxi driver who was listening to Willie Nelson when we got in. His English was excellent! ;-)

kja

I used hyperdia and Jorudan to identify the specific subway routes (with times, etc.) that might serve my purposes. If you haven't checked those sites, it might be worth a few moments of your time! Here is some info about each and how the differ:
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2323.html

curiousgeo

Taxis are a great and surprisingly reasonable way to get around to those parts of Kyoto not conveniently served by public transportation. Places like the temples in the eastern hills, while not that far from central Kyoto are a bit far to be walking to. After dark, certain places can be a bit difficult to find so a short taxi ride can be a real time saver.

BigRuss

"Especially the part about have the address of the hotel on the back of the card - or I may never find my way back"

Yeah, you think that's a joke but it's not.

We vrbo'd in Kyoto and the renter met us and gave us a map and circled the wrong place. We were lost for 2 hours and recovered our bearings because we had written down the kanji symbols on the lantern outside the flat and some helpful folks enabled us to pinpoint the location from that.

And honestly, cabs are really expensive. The buses are useful and relatively quick, and the various trains are always on time because: Japan.

janisj

Thanks everyone. Can you give me some sort of idea what you mean by 'expensive taxis'? One person's 'expensive' might be another's 'worth it'.


Besides the Imperial Household properties - are there any other places that need to be pre-booked?

curiousgeo

In Kyoto we used a combination of subways, trains, taxis and walked a whole lot. If I remember correctly taxi fare from downtown Kyoto up to Ginkakuji (Silver Pavillion), a 10-15 minute drive ran 1,000 yen or about $8. From there we walked the Philosophers Path down to Nanzenji, another beautiful temple.

russ_in_LA

I found that most of our taxi rides were 1,000 yen or less (aside from getting from the station to our hotel in Gion). For us it was worth it to taxi to the destination to get there at or before opening (especially being there at peak times of the year), and then walk back to the hotel over the course of hours, stopping at temples and gardens along the way.

For longer trips, like Arashiyama, we used public transport. Since we only had 3 full days in Kyoto our first time there, and 2 full days the second time, this enabled us to fit in a lot more than we might have, had we relied solely on public transport.

I can understand that a traveler traveling alone might not feel that the time savings justifies the cost, but for the two of us, the additional cost was not that great, and we felt it was more than worth it.

janisj

"a 10-15 minute drive ran 1,000 yen or about $8. "

Oh pshaw -- that's not bad (I'm used to London taxi prices)

"For us it was worth it to taxi to the destination to get there at or before opening (especially being there at peak times of the year), and then walk back to the hotel over the course of hours, stopping at temples and gardens along the way. "

Not having been there yet - that is sort of what I envisioned doing. A few cab rides to get places and LOTS of walking.

curiousgeo

And lots of walking is a great way to experience and discover the beauty of Kyoto!

If you do go up to Ginkakuji, a few blocks away is the main branch of a famous udon noodle shop, perfect for lunch. They are known for their cold udon with vegetables and dipping sauce.

http://www.tripadvisor.co.nz/Locatio...html#147866764