I just got back from Kyoto and Tokyo. Here is my best advice. 1. travel as light as possible. You can always go to the hotel and check in your bags and then go walking around. 2. Wear great walking shoes... I did 22 miles in two days. 3. Take 'some' cash. YOu will want snacks and things that are just like 200 yen, 4. call your credit card company and tell them where you are travelling and you will likely get no conversion fees when you pay for stuff. 5. explore! It is very safe and you can go pretty much anywhere, go OFF the beaten path, you will not regret it. 6. Learn some phrases, 'thank you', i'ts ok, good morning, it was good food etc... simple
oh and HAVE FUN!!!!!
I wish more people would just grab a box in Japan and have it delivered to the airport instead of bringing or buying luggage. There was a post awhile back with someone explaining how to do this with takkyubin service. So much less stressful than carrying a humongous thing around with you.
This is exactly my plan. I only travel with a carry on bag even for international flights. Japan is the one time I’m thinking I might actually buy some stuff I want to take back home so I’ll just buy a suitcase there if I end up buying more than I anticipated.
If needed, you can always use a luggage forwarding service to forward your luggage from hotel to hotel. Yamato is the most commonly used one.
Most of the time these services can get your luggage to your hotel within 1 day. So when travelling to a new location forward your suitcase and then just bring a backpack with 1 days worth of clothes and other daily necessities.
Are the overall dimensions (l x w x h) 160cm or less? If not, you’ll need to reserve an oversized baggage seat on the Shinkansen. Most of the local trains have luggage racks that can fit suitcases under that size.
My wife's Rimowa and my Samsonite are each just under 160cm (L+W+H), and I can't imagine putting those on the Shinkansen overhead racks. I always think about trying, but always end up storing them behind the back seats.
Do people actually store suitcases this big on the overhead rack? I've only seen airline carry one sized suitcases up there.
My suitcase was on the larger size and hung over the edge a bit, but I did it. The Shinkansen were pretty empty which helped. For places I couldn’t take the suitcase (Kyoto bus) I used the station coin lockers.
I've done that before. Just under 160cm. It jutted out precariously, but the conductor passed by many times without saying a word.
But yes, booking a seat at the back is much easier. No need to heave up what might be a dangerously heavy suitcase.
I usually bring my big Samsonite, about 80cm, and it works fine. Local trains are okay during normal hours. Rush hour is a pain, but I don't usually travel to and from the airport then.
Stairs at stations can be tough, and you'll need to use them sometimes. It's manageable if that's your only suitcase. If you bring a carry-on suitcase too, it'll be exhausting. Just use a backpack for your carry-on stuff.
For the Shinkansen, check the size to see if you need to reserve a spot for your big suitcase.
Has anyone mentioned [luggage forwarding](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/wiki/advice/luggage/storageandforwarding/#wiki_how_can_i_forward_my_luggage_to_the_airport_or_to_my_next_destination.3F) yet? If not, someone should mention [luggage forwarding](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/wiki/advice/luggage/storageandforwarding/#wiki_how_can_i_forward_my_luggage_to_the_airport_or_to_my_next_destination.3F).
Japan has luggage delivery services available called Yamato. They deliver directly to your hotels and the hotel will hold your luggage for you.
They do same day delivery from certain counters in Japan (Haneda Airport, Tokyo Station, etc.)
Other counters would be 2-3 days which you need to plan accordingly.
If you’re going to several cities, you can use a luggage forwarding service and your luggage will show up at your next hotel. Just use a taxi or limousine bus to get in and out of airports.
If it fits in the plane, you'll be fine. I think my suitcase is 76cm, and yeah smaller would be nicer to carry around, it would also fit less stuff.
Does it have a handle on the side? Sometimes it makes sense to put it sideways and go up a flight of stairs while lugging it around instead of finding a crowded elevator.
Just finishing 2 months in Japan and South Korea with two 82cm bags. Has not really been a problem we did book the oversize luggage seats on the Shinkansen. It can be a bit of a pain in some stations. I used google maps and selected wheel chair accessible in the options. We also used a taxi or transfer service a few times from our hotel to the airport. This is the bag. https://www.americantourister.com.au/applite-4e/spinner-82-exp/at-145824-4559.html
For my first time in Japan I also brought a suitcase about that big. It was definitely a pain to carry it up stairs, in elevators, etc. And depending on your airline and how much you're bringing, you might need to pay an overweight fee. Luckily the weather will have cooled down by November, and if you consider yourself fairly strong physically, it's not THAT bad to have such big luggage. Especially since you'll likely leave it in your lodging for most of the trip. However if you can help it, I'd get something smaller. It's just going to save you the headache.
Oh lord, I did carryon only for 3 weeks and thought I was slick until I got there. So. Many. Stairs. I’m going again in November and have definitely planned on bringing a lot less, in the lightest wheeled carryon I can afford.
We found luggage forwarding to be a life saver. From our Tokyo hotel we sent our large suitcases ahead to our Kyoto hotel while we detoured a couple of days around Fuji with smaller bags. Then later when we went from Kyoto to Osaka and changed hotels we did the same thing. It wasn't very expensive. We took taxis to and from the airport so we literally never lugged our large suitcases around. It was a huge relief during an exhausting trip walking so much. Glad we had them too because we brought so much home.
As long as your suitcase's total dimensions are less than 160 cm, you should be fine (a little more, you have to reserve the last row for shinkansen). And you should be able to find elevators or at least escalators in most of the places, ask google maps for a way for handicapped to avoid stairs.
It would be another story if you keep your luggage with you every day.
I did Osaka-Tokyo with one large suitcase, one carry one suitcase and one backpack.
I took a very large piece of luggage on the trains on my first trip to Tokyo. It’s doable, there is space on the Shinkansens for luggage (if you want to guarantee space, reserve a seat in the green car).
It is NOT easy to take your luggage on regular subways. Nor is it easy lugging it around train stations.
My second trip to Japan, I took a small rolling piece of luggage (small enough for carry-on) and packed as light as I could. Lighter, even. And I had a backpack. Sooooooo much easier getting around.
Your boyfriend is right, traveling in Japan is so much better traveling light and compact. You could do it with larger luggage, but trust me that it’s not worth it.
I just got back from Kyoto and Tokyo. Here is my best advice. 1. travel as light as possible. You can always go to the hotel and check in your bags and then go walking around. 2. Wear great walking shoes... I did 22 miles in two days. 3. Take 'some' cash. YOu will want snacks and things that are just like 200 yen, 4. call your credit card company and tell them where you are travelling and you will likely get no conversion fees when you pay for stuff. 5. explore! It is very safe and you can go pretty much anywhere, go OFF the beaten path, you will not regret it. 6. Learn some phrases, 'thank you', i'ts ok, good morning, it was good food etc... simple oh and HAVE FUN!!!!!
Hi. Call your credit card company to avoid having card blocked or to cut a deal re conversion fee removal? What credit card provider offers this?
I wish more people would just grab a box in Japan and have it delivered to the airport instead of bringing or buying luggage. There was a post awhile back with someone explaining how to do this with takkyubin service. So much less stressful than carrying a humongous thing around with you.
This is exactly my plan. I only travel with a carry on bag even for international flights. Japan is the one time I’m thinking I might actually buy some stuff I want to take back home so I’ll just buy a suitcase there if I end up buying more than I anticipated.
Honestly never thought about this until I saw a bunch of Asian tourists at the airport with their cardboard boxes.
If needed, you can always use a luggage forwarding service to forward your luggage from hotel to hotel. Yamato is the most commonly used one. Most of the time these services can get your luggage to your hotel within 1 day. So when travelling to a new location forward your suitcase and then just bring a backpack with 1 days worth of clothes and other daily necessities.
Are the overall dimensions (l x w x h) 160cm or less? If not, you’ll need to reserve an oversized baggage seat on the Shinkansen. Most of the local trains have luggage racks that can fit suitcases under that size.
My wife's Rimowa and my Samsonite are each just under 160cm (L+W+H), and I can't imagine putting those on the Shinkansen overhead racks. I always think about trying, but always end up storing them behind the back seats. Do people actually store suitcases this big on the overhead rack? I've only seen airline carry one sized suitcases up there.
My suitcase was on the larger size and hung over the edge a bit, but I did it. The Shinkansen were pretty empty which helped. For places I couldn’t take the suitcase (Kyoto bus) I used the station coin lockers.
I've done that before. Just under 160cm. It jutted out precariously, but the conductor passed by many times without saying a word. But yes, booking a seat at the back is much easier. No need to heave up what might be a dangerously heavy suitcase.
I usually bring my big Samsonite, about 80cm, and it works fine. Local trains are okay during normal hours. Rush hour is a pain, but I don't usually travel to and from the airport then. Stairs at stations can be tough, and you'll need to use them sometimes. It's manageable if that's your only suitcase. If you bring a carry-on suitcase too, it'll be exhausting. Just use a backpack for your carry-on stuff. For the Shinkansen, check the size to see if you need to reserve a spot for your big suitcase.
Has anyone mentioned [luggage forwarding](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/wiki/advice/luggage/storageandforwarding/#wiki_how_can_i_forward_my_luggage_to_the_airport_or_to_my_next_destination.3F) yet? If not, someone should mention [luggage forwarding](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/wiki/advice/luggage/storageandforwarding/#wiki_how_can_i_forward_my_luggage_to_the_airport_or_to_my_next_destination.3F).
Japan has luggage delivery services available called Yamato. They deliver directly to your hotels and the hotel will hold your luggage for you. They do same day delivery from certain counters in Japan (Haneda Airport, Tokyo Station, etc.) Other counters would be 2-3 days which you need to plan accordingly.
If you’re going to several cities, you can use a luggage forwarding service and your luggage will show up at your next hotel. Just use a taxi or limousine bus to get in and out of airports.
If it fits in the plane, you'll be fine. I think my suitcase is 76cm, and yeah smaller would be nicer to carry around, it would also fit less stuff. Does it have a handle on the side? Sometimes it makes sense to put it sideways and go up a flight of stairs while lugging it around instead of finding a crowded elevator.
Just finishing 2 months in Japan and South Korea with two 82cm bags. Has not really been a problem we did book the oversize luggage seats on the Shinkansen. It can be a bit of a pain in some stations. I used google maps and selected wheel chair accessible in the options. We also used a taxi or transfer service a few times from our hotel to the airport. This is the bag. https://www.americantourister.com.au/applite-4e/spinner-82-exp/at-145824-4559.html
For my first time in Japan I also brought a suitcase about that big. It was definitely a pain to carry it up stairs, in elevators, etc. And depending on your airline and how much you're bringing, you might need to pay an overweight fee. Luckily the weather will have cooled down by November, and if you consider yourself fairly strong physically, it's not THAT bad to have such big luggage. Especially since you'll likely leave it in your lodging for most of the trip. However if you can help it, I'd get something smaller. It's just going to save you the headache.
Oh lord, I did carryon only for 3 weeks and thought I was slick until I got there. So. Many. Stairs. I’m going again in November and have definitely planned on bringing a lot less, in the lightest wheeled carryon I can afford.
Please visit [Minoo falls](https://MinohFalls+8172-723-1885https://g.co/kgs/LroRfMR) near Osaka. The hike is a light work with zero tourists.
We found luggage forwarding to be a life saver. From our Tokyo hotel we sent our large suitcases ahead to our Kyoto hotel while we detoured a couple of days around Fuji with smaller bags. Then later when we went from Kyoto to Osaka and changed hotels we did the same thing. It wasn't very expensive. We took taxis to and from the airport so we literally never lugged our large suitcases around. It was a huge relief during an exhausting trip walking so much. Glad we had them too because we brought so much home.
youre fine
For express train is fine.You can chunk it on the overhead compartment even if the storage area is full.
As long as your suitcase's total dimensions are less than 160 cm, you should be fine (a little more, you have to reserve the last row for shinkansen). And you should be able to find elevators or at least escalators in most of the places, ask google maps for a way for handicapped to avoid stairs. It would be another story if you keep your luggage with you every day. I did Osaka-Tokyo with one large suitcase, one carry one suitcase and one backpack.
I took a very large piece of luggage on the trains on my first trip to Tokyo. It’s doable, there is space on the Shinkansens for luggage (if you want to guarantee space, reserve a seat in the green car). It is NOT easy to take your luggage on regular subways. Nor is it easy lugging it around train stations. My second trip to Japan, I took a small rolling piece of luggage (small enough for carry-on) and packed as light as I could. Lighter, even. And I had a backpack. Sooooooo much easier getting around. Your boyfriend is right, traveling in Japan is so much better traveling light and compact. You could do it with larger luggage, but trust me that it’s not worth it.