and this place--Toyoko inn-- (recommended in askme) is 60/night, which i can do, altho i'd prefer to pay less.

we really wanna go to japan and are planning for early next year because tix are much cheaper. Feb-Apr seems to be the cheapest from what I've heard.

where did you get your airfare btw?

Can you put a dollar per day figure on cheap?

I think it would be very difficult to do for less than $200/day, though you might be able to get it to $150 if you're really good at that sort of thing. But I'm not a good cheap-traveller.

I've been to Tokyo, and it was a complete headfuck. As an experienced traveller, you'll get less culture shock than I did, but I still highly recommend you read as much about the place as you can and find someone out there who can provide a cultural bridge.

American has 550 rt from here(NY)--650 with all the taxes and fees. I have an 8-day rt on hold.

seany, i want to go for the headfuck---i need somewhere completely different--a challenge

(and i can pass for an anime character, so they should love me, no?) ; >

i found this place, which has cheaper rooms, but they lock the front door at 12:30...is Tokyo a late night town or no?

I know there's cheap food at noodle places and their fast food, and department stores, so that's ok...it's just hotel.

AskMeFi about the subject.

from my experience, $60/night is a very good price for any decent hotel room in Tokyo. I'd take it.

they're not decent--they're tiny and cell-like, but i can deal.

i'm going to call for a meetup too--i know gen is there (or was), and i think a few others.

I think i'm gonna do it--it's exciting, and i need something to look forward to soon : >

(Actually, smaller than a cell)

now--to learn to use chopsticks finally, before i leave...

a place like this would be much cheaper---Oak House, but it's min 1 month stay...

ah! they have an even cheaper hotel! Oak Hotel

but it's more uptown--here in Ueno, where the museums are, which is ok, i guess--they say the subway's excellent.

ok...i emailed the Oak place. : >

unless there are conflicts with work, which i'll find out tom'w, i'm going to Tokyo!!!!

and i got a backup reservation here--NEW IZU HOTEL (54 a night)

free Tokyo : >

cheap eats

bento boxes, udon, tonkatsu, dept store food halls, etc

i'm meeting up with gen : >

Good going! I was in Tokyo for a week once and the size and density of the city are completely unusual. Imagine Manhattan but way bigger.

Beware... almost nobody speaks English!! I got around only because my sister and brother know Japanese. So either find a tour group, or plan ahead extremely carefully (know exactly where you want to go and how to get there, or if you are exploring, prepare for the possibility you might have to make it back to the hotel without help from anybody, bring maps or guidebooks with lots of pictures so you can point at the pictures). I stayed at Hotel Sunroute by the Asakusa temple which isn't cheap. Asakusa is great, the temple is beautiful and historically significant. It is also by the district where all restaurants buy their plastic display food! To see a lot of youth culture, go to Harajuku. It is right next to the Meiji Temple (which is really a palace), so you can kill two birds with one stone.

A lot of foreigners go to Roppongi, so it's a seedy, divey area with... a lot of foreigners in it. I went and I don't recommend that.

Ueno Park was great. The Tokugawa Temple is there. That, the Meiji Temple, and Asakusa Temple are all some of the very few historical sites that weren't bombed away during World War Two.

Mt. Fuji is about an hour away and worth seeing; there is also a sulfur spring which sells famous eggs that are cured in the sulfur. I think it's just called Owakudani, which means "black egg". I have an authentic Hello Kitty black egg souvenir from there... priceless!

Ginza (the upscale shopping district) was not as exciting as people make it out to be. Akihabara is famous as the electronics district, but if you want to see Asia in all it's crowded, overdeveloped, consumerist craziness, you must go.

If there's any way I can help, email me (my email is in my profile). My sibs love Japan and I'd be happy to ask them for any info you need.

thanks halo!

i've been emailing back and forth with gen, and asking him all sorts of stuff too...

I lived there for three years and can recommend a bunch of places in Tokyo and its environs, but I'm sitting here in the office with a stack of paperwork and this thread is already days old. Email me if you want, amberglow, and I'll be able to make a bunch of good recommendations; I might be a couple days in getting back to you, though. Tokyo is awesome, I think you'll love it.

i emailed you Hugh--thanks!!! : >

i can't wait to go!

i posted for a meetup, and realized another mefite's there at the same time, and posted for one too

Tokyo Meetup again (it's a 2-fer now!)

In Tokyo, I don't believe I ever met a person who didn't speak some English. Of course there were plenty who didn't want to, but that's another matter. It is certainly possible to get around without the language. The transportation is the best I've ever used, and it is almost impossible to find a station in Tokyo without English signs (though there are a few on lines farther out from the city proper). The biggest problem is just how overwhelming things can be, with the huge density of people (particularly if you are not from a big city background, as was my case).

You're going to just miss this.

There are many art museums, and lot of interesting small museums that might be overlooked by most. I can't remember names off the top of my head, though.

If you have a some sort of itinerary developing, I might have some minor attractions to add based on the areas you'll be, but it's difficult to make recommendations without knowing a person well (my tastes don't seem to follow the norm).

email me, Nez--i'm up for most things, especially when i'm on vacation. : >