Thinking of traveling to Japan, but ....

[RadarScope1]

...my wife and I don't speak any Japanese, and don't know anyone there.

I know we have some folks who live in Japan here on RB. How difficult would it be for English-only speakers to get around? If we pull the trigger on this we plan to of course learn what basic words/phrases we can between now and October, but that's not much time. Any input or advice on what/what not to do would be appreciated.

[Majors]

...my wife and I don't speak any Japanese, and don't know anyone there.

If you stick to tourist shit, you're fine. Most folks Japanese have some English, but it's all piss poor from what I recall. They use Arabic numerals, so buying stuff is easy but if you try to use the subway, better get a english map. I would not have visited if it was not for a friend living there at the time...plus the fact it saved me some dough by crashing at their (tiny)place.

If you go, I would take a look at Sendai. It's a large enough city but still off the beaten path from regular tourists. And no doubt hit Kyoto, it's too good. Also, railpass ftw.

[Breetai]

If you go, I would take a look at Sendai.

Good grief, why Sendai? I can't think of one compelling reason to go there, unless I had a friend that lived there. Nothing against it, but for a tourist what is there to see there that you can't see a similar version of elsewhere???

To the OP, buy a travel guide, plan well, get a railpass (seriously, you basically NEED this if you're planning on going to multiple cities), and you're set. The touristy spots and the main cities like Tokyo, Yokohama, Osaka and Kyoto all have plenty of information available in English. The smaller places that are popular with foreigner tourists do as well, like Nikko, Kamakura, Hakone, Nara, Himeji, Hiroshima (well, it's actually a fairly large city), Miyajima, etc. The places I've listed are PLENTY for a two week trip (and are basically my recommendations after being here for 4.5 years). Heck, they're plenty for a month trip. Check out japan-guide.com, it's an extremely useful site for getting ideas for trips, finding hotels/hostels, asking questions and browsing on their travel forums, etc.

[otaku]

I've always wanted to go on a popjapan tour and still plan on it at some point

[hashiriya1]

If you go, I would take a look at Sendai.

Good grief, why Sendai? I can't think of one compelling reason to go there, unless I had a friend that lived there. Nothing against it, but for a tourist what is there to see there that you can't see a similar version of elsewhere???

I live in Sendai, and I chose Sendai over Tokyo after living there for 2 years.
If you aren't all those temples and shrines (Seen one, you have seen them ALL)Sendai has a lot to offer. I mean, jesus, this is the home of Masamune Date. The most badass samurai ever (he is even the star character in BASARA!) Sendai is also one of the 3 Nihon Sankei, but only if you are into touristy stuff. Tohoku is a beatiful place for nature and scenery that you don't see in Kanto. I have driven from Aomori to Kagoshima and I Tohoku is still #1 to see the real beauty of Japan's nature. It's the perfect place for a tourist to just rent a car and get lost on purpose. From the cuisine to the local culture, Sendai and Tohoku have a lot to offer for those looking for more than just a giant Buddha and a couple of restored castles.

Furthermore, Sendai is a retro gamer's heaven. More retro game shops here in Miyagi than anywhere else (Niigata is a close 2nd)I have seen in Japan, and I have been to 40 of the 47 prefectures, all by car.

To the OP: If you really want to seem castles and shrines, just go to Kyoto if you can. All the other places like Nikko, Kamakura, NAra, Himeji, etc etc is all the same. Just go to Kyoto and have done with it. If you go to all of those places, you will feel like you are wasting time and money when you could be looking at more things. Diversify your trip, and don't waste it all on castles, temples, and shrines. Most of which aren't even the originals since American B29s once flew overheard, if you know what I mean. Modern culture has just as many offerings as the older cultural things.

You don't need to know Japanese. When I came here in 2002, I didn't speak a lick of it and I got around fine...and I didn't do any of the tourist stuff until years later. Don't waste money on tours or tour guides. Just buy a book and use that. Lonely Planet books seem to be the best due to their detail. You can save money by doing it all yourself, and you also learn more that way.

[hashiriya1]

...my wife and I don't speak any Japanese, and don't know anyone there.

If you stick to tourist shit, you're fine. Most folks Japanese have some English, but it's all piss poor from what I recall. They use Arabic numerals, so buying stuff is easy but if you try to use the subway, better get a english map. I would not have visited if it was not for a friend living there at the time...plus the fact it saved me some dough by crashing at their (tiny)place.

If you go, I would take a look at Sendai. It's a large enough city but still off the beaten path from regular tourists. And no doubt hit Kyoto, it's too good. Also, railpass ftw.

Nice little ode to Sendai in your avatar. Maybe only a few people would get it. Anyhoo, glad to see that someone else doesn't just recommend the places any other tourbook would recommend. Cheers!

[RadarScope1]

Thanks guys. I am mostly just worried about being completely lost. I generally love the experience of feeling my way around a new place, but it's almost always been in a place where I can talk to people (US or UK).

I hoping to hit the Ahikabara district and go to a baseball game. I'm a big baseball fan and really want to see a Japanese game in person. Not sure a game will happen, though. We're going in late Sept and early Oct if we go. When is the regular season over in the Japanese leagues?

[Dakinggamer87]

I can't wait to go to Japan someday..

[molotovwars]

I've traveled to Japan twice. Both times were before I started studying at University. I had no problems at all getting around. As others have said, I recommend Lonely Planet. From my own advice I would recommend having your trip well planned.

Decide what cities you want to visit and when. For me, a friend and I were traveling in the summer and wanted to see Sumo, so the summer tournament was in Nagoya in mid-July, so that was the center of our trip. We were there for about 3 weeks, but only got a 14 day rail pass (the ones that only foreigners can get). The trip started in Tokyo and ended in Kyoto, but we were in a different city just about every night except for the beginning and the end. We spent maybe 4 days in Tokyo then had the rail pass activated and once it ended spent the rest of the time in the Kyoto/Osaka/Nara area.

We stayed in hostels mostly, but also stayed in traditional ryokans, a capsule hotel, shukubo (zen buddhist temple lodging), along with a hotel stay here and there. I made all the reservations by phone and never one had to give a credit card number or any sort of real commitment. I went to the back of the lonely planet guide and found the phrase "Does anyone there speak English". I had my itinerary planned and knew what places I wanted to stay on what dates and I started making phone calls. I just used that phrase and all but once couldn't get someone who spoke a little english to make the reservation. On the one I couldn't do I had a friend of mine make the phone call.

In general I budgeted $100 a day, which included accommodation, food, travel, any entrance fees, etc. Some days were more others were less. We were budget minded, but we did a huge variety of things all across southern Japan and on the plane ride there made a list of all the food we wanted to try. As a result we might have spent a little more having things like whale, kobe beef, and blowfish, but all well worth it in our eyes.

Good luck man, if you do it you'll have a great time.

[blackmagepwns]

I would think its just like traveling to any other country, just look up things about it and don't get caught in the wrong place.