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I'm planning to go to Japan and Korea in October for about 2 weeks between them, flying out from the UK.
My original aim was to watch both the Japanese (5-7th Oct) and Korean (12th-14th Oct) Grands Prix as well as see some sights in both countries.
I'm planning on flying out sometime around the 30th of September, and I've booked off work until the 16th Oct (back in on the 17th).
My current idea is to fly to Korea to start, and spend a few days there, and then fly to Japan and see some sights, watch the Grand Prix, then fly back to Korea, spend some more time there, watch the Grand Prix, and then fly back.
So, does anyone have suggestions for what to do/where to go in Japan or Korea, and any tips etc.
October is non-negotiable, although I have been told the weather can sometimes be less than ideal (rainy) but that's just something I have to deal with.
I'm mid 20s, so no issues with going places that might have age restrictions.
Current plans/thoughts:
Fly in to Incheon airport.
Korea aims:
Some SC/SC2 live (depending on what's around and on at the time).
Visiting Jeju island for a couple of days.
Japan aims:
None specific yet.
So, ideas. Thoughts. Recommendations. Experiences.
I'm hoping my budget shouldn't be an issue, as I will have a decent sum of money saved up (£4500/$7000. Flights look like they should be less than £1500, leaving me £3000 to spend on accommodation and anything else I want to do/see/buy).
 
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you planning on going to south japan, or north japan? southern japan is obviously very close to korea and i know a lot of southern japanese people take a boat over. i backpacked from nagasaki to tokyo, and i have been as far north as yamagata. let me know what area you are thinking and i will give you my advice.
i'll pm you my picture gallery from southern japan.
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which cities and what do you enjoy doing?
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I'd say Jeju is a cool idea, however your gonna want to be in Incheon/Seoul for the Starcraft, and then its another flight to Jeju Island. If your going to the F1 however, you could probably get a boat to one of the smaller islands which are apparently equally beautiful just less touristy (and no sex land...thats a big turn off)
As for japan I have no idea 
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Japan sucks as far as i know.
User was temp banned for this post.
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On March 08 2012 11:04 Hyeon wrote:
Japan sucks as far as i know.
Made me laugh.
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On March 08 2012 11:13 Spekulatius wrote:Made me laugh.
i was laughing too. surprised he got banned.
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so, i looked up the grand prix, which is apparently where you are going in japan. that is in suzuka, japan. unfortunately, that area of japan is not one i have gone to as i specifically skipped it because i didnt find anything worthwhile to do there. my suggestion would be to jump on a train (bullet trains are especially nice) and go to nearby Kyoto. Kyoto has lots of temples (kinkakuji, kiyomizudera), geishas (hard to find, but are in gion) and other tourist traps. when you are done being a lame tourist, jump out of kyoto and go to nara (another touristy area, but less so), which is much more beautiful and also has its own temples, pagodas, etc (fucking deer are awesome, nara-shika). osaka is also close, but less to do there for a tourist, unless you like shopping (their aquarium is amazing though).
once you are done with all of that, you NEED to go to himeji castle. it is fucking amazing. most beautiful place i have seen in all of japan.
![[image loading]](http://www.japan-guide.com/g2/3500_01.jpg)
you can also catch a train to tokyo and do stuff there, but kyoto is so much closer so i would suggest it in your limited time frame.
edit:
because its fun. pics...
nara deer
![[image loading]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-cqsogDlmmGc/SL9eTgt93UI/AAAAAAAADJk/QX08wrAnMQ4/s800/DSCF2800.JPG)
ginkakuji
![[image loading]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-meMYKDJXm9Q/SL9fJfImIvI/AAAAAAAADOQ/ELsGdTX-5Y4/s800/DSCF2840.JPG)
kiyomizudera
![[image loading]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-qmBQ1SAl5kE/SL9fxs0NQ1I/AAAAAAAADRU/il2hJD4FE8w/s800/DSCF2864.JPG)
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Canada4481 Posts
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On March 08 2012 12:10 dAPhREAk wrote:ginkakuji
That's Kinkakuji (the Gold Pavillion), not Ginkakuji (the Silver Pavillion). I actually like Ginkakuji better, though; I used to go there every few weeks when I lived in Kyoto, it's very beautiful and relaxing. I find Kinkakuji a bit silly; there's not much to it but a shiny house on a lake. Don't be disappointed if you go to Ginkakuji, though; there is no actual silver pavillion. There was going to be, which is why it's called that, but they never actually got around to plating the house in silver.
Your other suggestions are excellent, though. Especially Nara. Feeding Nara's incredibly aggressive deer and watching them chase the more timid tourists around is a great deal of fun.
I also recommend visiting Inari-jinja if you go to Kyoto. It's a several-kilometer long hike on a path completely covered by torii:
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/l1yAH.jpg)
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On March 08 2012 17:19 AmericanUmlaut wrote:That's Kinkakuji (the Gold Pavillion), not Ginkakuji (the Silver Pavillion). I actually like Ginkakuji better, though; I used to go there every few weeks when I lived in Kyoto, it's very beautiful and relaxing. I find Kinkakuji a bit silly; there's not much to it but a shiny house on a lake. Don't be disappointed if you go to Ginkakuji, though; there is no actual silver pavillion. There was going to be, which is why it's called that, but they never actually got around to plating the house in silver. Your other suggestions are excellent, though. Especially Nara. Feeding Nara's incredibly aggressive deer and watching them chase the more timid tourists around is a great deal of fun. I also recommend visiting Inari-jinja if you go to Kyoto. It's a several-kilometer long hike on a path completely covered by torii:
lol. yeah, thats kinkakuji. typo. =) and i agree on other accounts. kinkakuji is basically just that golden pavilion surrounded by moss and water. although the moss is pretty cool. i found most of kyoto to be just a tourist trap though.
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If I do go to different parts, is it best to go by train, or would renting a car be viable? It would be possibly nice to be able to drive anyway (Japan specifically, since I'm used to that side of the road).
Also can you do bullet train and spend a day, or would it be better to spend a night or two in different places, renting a local hotel rather than having one "home base" place and travelling out from there?
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On March 09 2012 04:20 Lonyo wrote:
If I do go to different parts, is it best to go by train, or would renting a car be viable? It would be possibly nice to be able to drive anyway (Japan specifically, since I'm used to that side of the road).
Also can you do bullet train and spend a day, or would it be better to spend a night or two in different places, renting a local hotel rather than having one "home base" place and travelling out from there?
I would suggest travelling by train and getting a hotel. Car travel is pretty slow compared to the train system. I think it might also be more expensive, since the highways are toll-based (at least they were when I was there, that may have changed since then). And if you get a hotel in the area you want to visit, you'll have significantly more time there than if you have to get up, go to the train station, ride to your destination, find your way to the nice part of your destination, and so on before you even get started seeing anything.
If you visit Kyoto, and don't mind staying in a hostel, I highly recommend the Kiyomizu Hostel (http://www.hihostels.com/dba/hostels-Kyoto---Kiyomizu-YH-032368.en.htm). I stayed there about four years ago on my last trip to Japan, and it was fantastic. Japanese style, relatively new, with very friendly owners and good breakfast. And it's walking distance from Kiyomizu-dera and lots of other famous temples and shrines.
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On March 09 2012 04:20 Lonyo wrote:
If I do go to different parts, is it best to go by train, or would renting a car be viable? It would be possibly nice to be able to drive anyway (Japan specifically, since I'm used to that side of the road).
Also can you do bullet train and spend a day, or would it be better to spend a night or two in different places, renting a local hotel rather than having one "home base" place and travelling out from there?
public transit in japan is amazing; no car is necessary. it would probably be more of a hassle than its worth as well since parking is a bitch and roads are expensive (toll roads). the only time you would use a car would be going between cities (city travel by car is not recommended). i looked at suzuka and the surrounding areas and there appear to be trains everywhere, so it shouldn't be too hard.
when i backpacked through japan, i got a rail pass and every day i went to a different city. if you dont have a rail pass though, it can get incredibly expensive jumping around a lot on the shinkansen. my recommendation would be to pick a base (e.g., kyoto) and work from there. all of the recommendations i gave you would allow for day trips from kyoto (nara, osaka, himeji). if you want to go further (e.g., hiroshima) that would likely require an overnight trip. if you take the shinkansen/bullet train, i think himeji is less than an hour from kyoto.
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I spent two weeks in Japan last month, spent most of my time there in Family Mart. The food man, the food.
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Himeji Castle is definitely awesome, I really liked walking around and seeing it, but iirc it was like 2 hours by express train from Osaka (I was staying in Osaka last time in Japan). You can also take the shinkansen/bullet train from Osaka to Himeji but it's pretty pricey. I only used the shinkansen when going from Osaka to Tokyo since it was the same amount of time by airplane but more inconvenient to get to my hotel from Narita airport. I found Mt. Hiei and associated temples on the mountain to be really calm and relaxing, but my favorite place to visit is actually Nikko and its associated temples/shrines. It's really beautiful and you can spend a day just walking around, looking at the forest and temples/shrines but it's like 3-4 hours by train north of Tokyo and the train schedule is a bit tough if you're on a tight schedule since it's like 1 train/hour (special express) or 1 train/2 hours (normal) iirc.
However, you have to budget your time really tightly if you plan to go to Nikko, so I think it might be better just to go around the Kansai triangle (Nara/Osaka/Kyoto) since there are a lot of places to visit around there in terms of urban city stuff, shopping, temples, and food. Himeji-jou, Kiyomizudera, Kinkakuji, and Inari-jinja are all places within the Kansai area and easily accessible by train. If you decide to stay in the Kansai area, I recommend getting an Icoca since most train line machines are compatible with it in the Kansai area and you can use it on all JR lines so you can use it if you visit Tokyo as well. You can buy one from a machine at any major JR Kansai area machine for 2000 yen, 1500 yen which is immediately usable and 500 yen to pay for the card cost (paid back if you refund). Instead of buying separate train tickets and stuff, you can just charge/reload one card and save yourself from losing little bits of paper in your backpack ^^.
Honestly, I was in Osaka last summer for an internship and went sightseeing every weekend and I still didn't see everything I wanted to see in Japan, but enjoy your time there  ! Definitely buy a good umbrella while you're there though! Even the ones sold in convenience stores are sturdy enough, but you can buy some cool-looking collapsible sturdy ones that you can keep in your backpack and whip out when it starts pouring ^^
Btw, if you want to try takoyaki (fried dough balls with octopus in them), one of the best places is this little hole in the wall near the JR Osaka station (my Japanese co-workers recommended it to me)! I highly recommend their negi-mayo (green onion+mayo topping) set if you want to try something for lunch while in Osaka ^^
In terms of hotels, the Super Hotel chain: http://www.superhoteljapan.com/en/ <- isn't too bad. I stayed at one for a short time when I went visiting a friend in Kyoto and the prices are pretty decent. Plan to do all your travel by train for the most part, above ground and below (subway) since it's very convenient. I miss the train system the most from Japan 
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On March 08 2012 08:14 Lonyo wrote:
My original aim was to watch both the Japanese (5-7th Oct) and Korean (12th-14th Oct) as well as see some sights in both countries.
hehe, left me scratching my head pretty hard wondering what the heck you meant.
And then I finally gave up and continued reading lol. Enjoy the GP's should be super awesome!
Do you need to get tickets or anything to get in? Suzuka is my favourite track to watch by faaar!!
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On March 09 2012 11:58 terialk wrote:+ Show Spoiler +Himeji Castle is definitely awesome, I really liked walking around and seeing it, but iirc it was like 2 hours by express train from Osaka (I was staying in Osaka last time in Japan). You can also take the shinkansen/bullet train from Osaka to Himeji but it's pretty pricey. I only used the shinkansen when going from Osaka to Tokyo since it was the same amount of time by airplane but more inconvenient to get to my hotel from Narita airport. I found Mt. Hiei and associated temples on the mountain to be really calm and relaxing, but my favorite place to visit is actually Nikko and its associated temples/shrines. It's really beautiful and you can spend a day just walking around, looking at the forest and temples/shrines but it's like 3-4 hours by train north of Tokyo and the train schedule is a bit tough if you're on a tight schedule since it's like 1 train/hour (special express) or 1 train/2 hours (normal) iirc. However, you have to budget your time really tightly if you plan to go to Nikko, so I think it might be better just to go around the Kansai triangle (Nara/Osaka/Kyoto) since there are a lot of places to visit around there in terms of urban city stuff, shopping, temples, and food. Himeji-jou, Kiyomizudera, Kinkakuji, and Inari-jinja are all places within the Kansai area and easily accessible by train. If you decide to stay in the Kansai area, I recommend getting an Icoca since most train line machines are compatible with it in the Kansai area and you can use it on all JR lines so you can use it if you visit Tokyo as well. You can buy one from a machine at any major JR Kansai area machine for 2000 yen, 1500 yen which is immediately usable and 500 yen to pay for the card cost (paid back if you refund). Instead of buying separate train tickets and stuff, you can just charge/reload one card and save yourself from losing little bits of paper in your backpack ^^. Honestly, I was in Osaka last summer for an internship and went sightseeing every weekend and I still didn't see everything I wanted to see in Japan, but enjoy your time there ! Definitely buy a good umbrella while you're there though! Even the ones sold in convenience stores are sturdy enough, but you can buy some cool-looking collapsible sturdy ones that you can keep in your backpack and whip out when it starts pouring ^^ Btw, if you want to try takoyaki (fried dough balls with octopus in them), one of the best places is this little hole in the wall near the JR Osaka station (my Japanese co-workers recommended it to me)! I highly recommend their negi-mayo (green onion+mayo topping) set if you want to try something for lunch while in Osaka ^^ In terms of hotels, the Super Hotel chain: http://www.superhoteljapan.com/en/ <- isn't too bad. I stayed at one for a short time when I went visiting a friend in Kyoto and the prices are pretty decent. Plan to do all your travel by train for the most part, above ground and below (subway) since it's very convenient. I miss the train system the most from Japan
nikko is very beautiful, but far as hell. i went there in winter and it was amazing to see all the frozen branches on the trees. and here is what epitomizes nikko:
![[image loading]](http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Fh9a37_LcXs/S9lafz9ooGI/AAAAAAAAAkA/HqSO-02piVA/s1600/d0149663_1343391.jpg)
nikko's famous onsen loving primates. =D
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Search function: Korea
And you'll get a ton of blogs/posts about peoples' experience in Korea ^^
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If you actually want to do anything good besides visiting temples all day every day (gets old after 2-3 days), try hitting up Akihabara, often called Otaku town in Japan. It's a place where anime/manga lives, among games and other pop-culture/sci-fi fads etc. That, in itself, takes a full day to explore if you're really into anime/games etc.
Try not eating at expensive resturants, as well... the smaller ones tend to be better from my experience; and in general just have more heart in it (unless it looks like complete shit, then don't try it).
Travel in Japan, especially in Tokyo is easy, JR Yamanote Line literally takes you to all the major stops in Tokyo including Shibuya, Harajuku, Shinjuku, Akihabara, Tokyo, Ikebukero, Ueno and more! However, as you said you only have a couple days.
You must try out Mutekiya in Ikebukero or Ichiran in Shibuya/Shinjuku. Both are amazing ramen places.
If you ever get the time (LOL), try going to Kusatsu. Easily the best onsen place in the world. It's the most famous in Japan by far. It may not be too good during October, but during winter it's amazing. Still, onsens are wonderfully refreshing.
Not too sure what else I write, I've been in Japan for a few years now (only 19 years old), as I live between Australia and Japan. So if you speak English and not much Japanese, it's fine in most places try and hire workers that speak somewhat English.
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Japan = radiation
Korea = no radiation
You choose.
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EPT
