I'm in NYC so it'll probably be out of JFK. I normally fly Continental because of their direct flights and frequent flyer account, but I hear the Japanese airlines are roomier, but they seem more expensive.
I planned to book tickets in Jan so that's about 3 months in advance. But Orbitz now has a guarantee where if someone buys the same ticket from them at a lower price, they'll refund the difference, so I'm considering buying something earlier to ensure good flight times and better seats, but I'm not sure I trust their guarantee. There must be fine print.

Since you're in NYC, you can try the Japanese agencies such as IACE and HIS - sometimes their prices are better.....

Wow...did you know that it is $200 cheaper to fly JFK->NRT $1057.00 r/t
than from where I am
HNL-->NRT $1257.00 r/t
on a random search on kayak dot com for any monday in april '09? Weird pricing.

I am seeing oil and fuel prices going down so we will see what happens.

Thanks, I'll check out all these sites mentioned.
BTW, has anyone been to the Hello Kitty Theme Park? How is it compared to Tokyo Disney? I've already been to Orlando Disney and Hong Kong Disney.

JR Pass--you basically buy a voucher while in the US (this must be done BEFORE you get to Japan). When you land there, you exchange it to the pass at a JR station. You can do this in advance--just tell the JR station staff you want to have the pass activated from a certain date. For local and non-reserved seats, you just show the pass. You can make reservation on seats at the same time you get the pass activated. I recommend you do reserve seats for the Tokyo-Takayama and Takayama-Nagoya bit of the travel as it is a popular route. No penalty for changing reservation--so long as there are seats available.

Tokyo Subway--the easiest way is to get a pre-paid card called Pasmo. You can also use it for JR local train within tokyo area.

Hotel--$200 may be a bit of a stretch if you're looking for two rooms or a suite to accomodate all four of you. You might want to consider a rental apartment like Oakwood. (You should be able to book for less than 1 week for Tokyo).

Hello Kitty theme park--I beieve it is called Sanrio Puroland. We didn't go there because it seemed a bit far out of town somewhere in western Tokyo. It's also in western Tokyo, but would your kids be interested more in Studio Ghibli Museum?

Luggage/lockers: There are lockers large enough to accomodate 21" or 23" roll-ons at Tokyo, Takayama, and Kyoto stations. You might want to consider instead to send the luggage via courier network called Takkyubin. You can get it arranged via hotels (or some convenience stores), it usually takes 1 day and something like JPY1500-2500 per bag (depending on the size).

BTW, there is a national holiday on 29 Apr, and the week around 29 Apr-5 May is the peak travel season. Book the trains and hotels in advance! You might catch some cherry blossoms on the earlier part of your travel.

Oh, and there is Disney Sea in Tokyo, which I don't think Orlando or HK has.

We plan on going mid-April before Golden week so I hope it's not as crazy. I'm already looking into places to stay and only 1 place so far that I've found actually takes reservations this far in advance.

Based on the Takayama site, it looks like the train from Tokyo stops in Nagoya so I'm thinking of just hanging out there for a few hours before continuing to Takayama.

I checked out the Ghibli site. Is it so popular that I should worry about getting tickets weeks/months in advance? I think I'd rather buy them in Japan at Lawson's.

You change trains/lines at Nagoya. No reason to stop there. You could stop at Gero Onsen, between Nagoya and Takayama, if you would enjoy the hot springs.

I've been checking hyperdia.com and will probably take a train from Tokyo to Takayama at about 9:30am. I'm thinking of staying in Ueno at the Ryokan Katsutaro about 15 min walk from the JR Ueno station and 5 min from the Nezu Station (Subway Chiyoda Line). I've seen/heard horror stories about Tokyo rush hour! Which is the better station to get to Tokyo w/o being crushed and how long will it take? (I nearly had a heart attack when I saw the Tokyo subway map!)

Your best bet imho is from Ueno station. Get on the JR Yamanote Line (Outer Loop) to Tokyo station. I don't know the schedule but check w/hyperdia. It should take you from Ueno to Tokyo station in 8 minutes.

Go early enough to the station to give yourself plenty of time to familiarize yourself with the station (don't leave at the last minute). The stations are very crowded in the morning so no bags if you can help will be easier for you.

Being from NY you will be surprised how efficient the train systems are with their massive movement of people with such precise timing....it's amazing

Aloha!

Thanks, it seems the subway makes more stops and is probably more for commuters. We plan to travel pretty light each with a backpack and as small-med duffle bag.

I was wondering whether ryokan meals are worth the extra cost. The places I've considered so far don't. Some more expensive places include some meals and others offer meals separately but to me it seems the extra cost is more than I would normally spend on breakfast or dinner.

Sometimes they will give you a discount if you say "I don't want breakfast." And breakfast is usually not worth the adventure to sensitive morning tummies! Dinner -- I'd say do it at least once, because it's often gorgeous! But you may want a native guide to help you eat it (-:.

BTW, you can often mail your luggage ahead -- say, from Tokyo to Kyoto (just take what you need for Takayama). The Japanese post office still has surface shipping, so that can be a help if you pick up too many souvenirs.

Also, if you are staying at a fairly nice hotel, they often won't mind holding your luggage for you for a few days while you go touring. I did this at the Hotel Nikko in KIX -- we stayed two nights at the beginning, then left our luggage there while we did a three day trip to Kyoto, then spent a few nights in KIX again while visiting Universal Studios and the wonders of Osaka.

One more thing: Limousine Bus from the airport is 3000 for adults, and 1500 for elementary school students (in Japan, that means up to 12 years old, so if your kids are 6th grade middle-schoolers, white-lie and say they are in elementary -- they would be if they went to school in Japan).

Have a great trip! I just took my 12 and almost-8 year olds on a trip to the States, and it was such a fun age to travel with!

Oh, and one-more one-more-thing -- there is often shaved ice restaurants at the top of the hills in Kyoto (I'm thinking Kiyomizu-dera). Re-hydrate, and motivate with the "kakegori!"

The children's passports will show their ages to be elementary school age.

I had forgotten about the kake gori stands throughout Japan.

It is something that the Japanese have adapted from their Hawaii travels with a real Japanese twist like the seafood flavors.....sea urchin, tuna, ebi, ewhhhhhh

I love the traditional flavors with the ice cream and azuki beans in the bottoms...just keep the sea urchin away from me. lol

Here are some pictures of the shaved ice(kake gori) and how they are made. I know this store is in Hawaii but it is the prototype for shaved ice in Japan and worldwide

http://tinyurl.com/5hdtj3

Aloha!

mrwunerfl -- it's true the kids will have their ages on the passports, but the limousine bus doesn't ask for passports. A twelve-year-old can be an elementary school student, or a jr. high school student. They asked me which my daughter was. But she's in the Japanese school system, which is very different from the US school system, so that's why I thought it was a good tip to pass on. The kiddos don't stay half-price for ever (sniff, sniff, says the nostalgic mommy)

Tokachisan,

I remember you saying at one time you lived in Obihiro. I am researching Hokkaido for a trip next Oct and learned that Obihiro is in the "Tokachi" area.

Thus your screen name?

Just thought about you when I was reading that info today

Aloha!

I was looking at airfares and now they're around 1100 for April. Is that a decent rate?

Eris

The rate seems fair in this current market.

It all depends on your situation. If you need an upgrade or anything to do with miles I would buy now.

You can also buy the 1100 dollar ticket from and agent or airline's website that will guarantee you the lowest price.That usually means that if the price lowers on the ticket you buy before you leave they will refund the difference.

If it were me, and I know it is not, I would wait until at least the 6 month before my trip mark to purchase these tickets. With the price of oil now sliding and the backlash of the oil price run up which increased the price of jet fuel which in turn has left many people not traveling. I have noticed a significant drop in air ticket prices recently and hope that trend will continue as no one seems to be traveling lately due to the high costs and added fees.

Aloha!

I fly with AA and they used to give a refund (to my cc) if the price went down on an international flight without any penalty. Of course, I had to call and ask for it. Last fall when my fare to Japan went down about $100, they said they changed that policy....I called and spoke to three different agents and got the same answer....

I was thinking of buying tickets now so I can upgrade to business class since there's less of a chance to do that later. I usually fly Continental. I think they have a policy where if the price difference is over $150 you can get back the difference since that's basically what it costs to change your ticket. But you probably have to track it and call yourself. I was thinking of ordering tickets on Orbitz which has a price guarantee but I don't think I can use frequent flier upgrades via a vendor. I've never used my ff miles before and it seems pretty confusing to do on-line so I'll have to deal directly with the airline.