It took me six years to get to Japan.

Why?

I didn’t think I could afford it.

Every time I seriously looked into visiting, I would wince at the high cost of the train passes, read about how the hotels were super-expensive, and then fly to Vietnam instead. Or Taiwan. Or even Australia. Japan was simply too expensive for a budget traveller, so I decided to save it for when I was rich.

With that not happening any time soon, I decided to blow my money anyway, because I wanted to go and the gushing blog posts from travel writer friends had convinced me it would be worth the splurge.

Imagine my surprise, then, when I discovered that it really wasn’t that expensive.

I arrived in Japan fully expecting it to be the priciest country I’ve ever been to, but I discovered it’s more on a par with Western Europe or North America, and cheaper than Australia. It was way more affordable than Namibia, where my daily expenses came to $132, and way, way, way more affordable than the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where I averaged, um, $550 a day.

Anyway! This is about the cost of travel in Japan rather than my poor financial decisions, so let’s get started!

My 16-Day Japan Itinerary

Here’s a brief rundown of where I visited over my 16 days in the country — I think I managed to put together the perfect itinerary for first-time travellers to Japan.

Tokyo: 4 nightsHakone: 1 nightYudanaka: 1 nightKanazawa: 2 nightsTakayama: 1 nightKyoto: 3 nightsHiroshima: 1 nightOsaka: 3 nights

What’s Included in this Post

This budget breakdown covers how much I spent on accommodation, transportation, activities, food, and whichever miscellaneous items popped up while I was in country.

I’ve not included my flights into and out of Japan because this is going to vary significantly based on where you’ll be arriving from. In case you’re interested, though, I paid $320 for a return flight from Rome to Tokyo, which I scored through browsing my favourite site for flight bargains, Secret Flying. 

The amounts in this guide are listed in Japanese Yen and U.S. dollars, simply because the vast majority of my readers are from the U.S. And, as always, I do not accept comps or press trips, so everything listed in this post is something I personally paid for with my own money.

And finally, these are the expenses I paid while travelling with my boyfriend. That means that accommodation prices (with the exception of the dorm bed in Hiroshima) have been halved to indicate my share.

Okay — let’s get started with my expenses.

The Cost of Accommodation in Japan

There are so many different types of accommodation in Japan! I attempted to experience as many as possible while I was in the country.

I stayed in a capsule hotel, spent a night in a ryokan, slept on a tatami mat floor, stayed in family-run guesthouses, and checked out some pretty cool hostels. The cost of accommodation in Japan was on a par with Western European prices, so not incredibly expensive. While I did attempt to save money by staying in some cheaper places, I was also happy to splurge on extremely well-rated rooms, too.

If you’re on a tight budget, beds in a hostel dorm room will be around $15-25 a night, private double rooms in hostels and guesthouses are around $60-$80 a night, and staying in a ryokan will typically be over $120 a night, with most coming in at around $250 a night.

Tokyo: $33 per night/3,600 Yen per nightThe Airbnb apartment I stayed at in Tokyo has since stopped accepting guests. I would recommend looking at hotels in the Shibuya or Shinjuku districts. 

Hakone: $61 per night/6,750 Yen per nightIn Hakone, we opted for a private room in a lovely guesthouse, with a tatami mat floor to sleep on, and a private onsen on-site. It ended up being one of our favourite stays in Japan! The staff were lovely, and there was a restaurant/bar that served up fantastic pizzas. It had a cosy and chilled-out atmosphere, with great food and wine, and lots of blankets to snuggle up with as we ate. It was worth staying here just to experience the private onsen! I love this spot.

Yudanaka: $67 per night/7,400 Yen per nightIn Yudanaka, we splurged on a stay in a cosy ryokan, which is something you have to experience at least once in Japan. With prices often reaching as high as $300 a night for the experience, I was thrilled when I stumbled across a more budget option in Yudanaka. It was run by an adorable Japanese couple, and their house came with a private onsen, return transport to see the snow monkeys, and one of the most extravagant meals of my life. A kaiseki is a multi-course (like, 18 courses) meal that will see you eating roughly a week’s worth of food in a single night, sampling fresh, local Japanese cuisine. It was delicious, and I adored having no idea what anything was. It even included homemade cherry wine, which was delicious! I highly recommend the experience, although being presented with a seven course meal for breakfast had me on the verge of tears the morning after. 

Kanazawa: $40 per night/¥4,450 per nightIn Kanazawa, we stayed at one of the coolest hostels ever. It was clean and modern, and warm in winter, which was greatly appreciated. As a bonus, we were a 50-metre walk from some of the best ramen I had in Japan, so it’s worth staying there for that alone! I could have spent a week just in that private room. I highly recommend staying here. Despite being a hostel, the private rooms are particularly great for couples and it felt more like a modern hotel than a place for backpackers.

Takayama: $35 per night/¥3,800 per nightIn Takayama, we stayed in a small, locally-run guesthouse in the centre of town. It was fine, although nothing stood out as being amazing, aside from the price, which was low for Japan. The staff were helpful, the shared bathroom situation was annoying, and the bed was a tatami mat set-up. No major complaints and I’d stay there again! There just wasn’t anything to fall head-over-heels in love with.

Kyoto: $35 per night/¥3,833 per nightIn Kyoto, we stayed in a cosy hotel, that provided us with a tatami mat room for an excellent price. This hotel was in a great location for exploring Kyoto and the bathrooms were nicer than anywhere else we stayed. It’s one of the top-rated guesthouses in the city, so when you take that into consideration, along with the price, I’m convinced you won’t find anywhere better to stay.

Hiroshima: $22 per night/¥2,450 per nightIn Hiroshima, we opted for a capsule-style hostel because I didn’t want to leave the country without trying one. Fortunately, we found ourselves in a room with only two other people staying there, so our capsule room with 20-odd beds was light on snorers. The owner of this place was ridiculously lovely, and it was within walking distance of all of the attractions. Really great bathrooms, a fun common area, and a cheap price. I would have stayed another night!

Osaka: $33 per night/¥3,600 per nightThe Airbnb room I stayed at in Osaka has since stopped accepting guests. I would suggest looking for hotels in the Namba and Umeda neighbourhoods.

My total cost of accommodation in Japan came to an average of $37 per day.

The Cost of Transportation in Japan

When it comes to travel in Japan, your biggest expense is most likely to be a JR pass. The best way to explore this country is by train, and by buying this pass, you’ll be saving a significant amount of money on your trip.

I’ll confess I was skeptical it would be as much of a necessity like every travel blogger claims, so picked one up then made a note of the cost of every train we took in the country. It turned out that my 14-day JR pass saved me ¥19,000 — or $175! That’s a huge amount of money, so I’m now firmly of the belief that this is an investment you’ll want to make. You can also buy a Japanese SIM card in advance through the Japanese rail pass site, which I did. It was such a relief to touchdown in Tokyo with a Japanese SIM card already in my phone and ready to go.

Other than the rail pass, we spent a little bit of money here and there on transportation, mostly on the metro in Tokyo and Osaka (tickets are around ¥100-¥200 for a single ride), a few local trains our pass didn’t cover, and a bus in a more rural part of the country.

A reasonably big expense was our Hakone Free Pass (spoiler: not free), although this was more of a combined transportation and activity cost. It provides you with unlimited transport around Hakone (where you’ll find Mount Fuji), and discounted entrance to the attractions in town. If you’re going to Hakone, this will save you money because it covers everything you’ll want to do there.

Here’s how my transportation costs broke down:

14-day JR Pass: $420/¥46,000Use of the metro in Tokyo: $6/¥680Freedom transport pass in Hakone: $36/¥4,000Train from Nagano to Yudanaka: $11/¥1260Bus from the snow monkeys to Nagano: $13/¥1,400Metro in Kyoto: $2/¥210Metro in Osaka: $7/¥780

My total cost of transportation in Japan came to a total of $495 for a two-week trip. That’s an average of $31 a day.

The Cost of Activities and Entrance Fees in Japan

Activities and entrance fees in Japan were very reasonably priced, and I never found myself outraged over the cost of anything. You’ll typically pay less than $5 to enter most temples, museums, and gardens.

Here’s how I spread my cash around:

Entrance fee for the hedgehog cafe in Tokyo: $13/1400¥Entrance to the Snow Monkey Park: $7/800¥Entrance to Kenroku-en gardens in Kanazawa: $3/310¥Entry to the Golden Pavilion in Kyoto: $3/300¥Entry to Ryoan-ji zen garden in Kyoto: $5/500¥Ticket for the Hiroshima Peace Memorial: $2/200¥

My total cost of activities in Japan averaged out to $2 a day.

The Cost of Food in Japan

Oh, Japanese food — I love you so freaking much. And in Japan, I ate.

The good news is that as long as you’re not going out to fancy restaurants, meals in this country can be great value. I rarely paid more than ¥1000 ($9) for a bowl of ramen, and street snacks like takoyaki were ¥500 ($4.50). We splurged on our kaiseki experience at our guesthouse in Yudanaka and paid ¥4000 ($36) for our food extravaganza. It’s a budget option compared to many other kaisekis, which can easily come to $100 for the experience, but still our most expensive meal. Another splurge was on sushi in Kanazawa, which I paid ¥2000 ($18) for.

Whether you’re on a budget or ready to splurge, it’s essentially impossible to eat badly in Japan. If you’re on a really tight budget, you can even get surprisingly decent food from 7-Eleven!

My total cost of food in Japan averaged out to $23.20 per day.

Miscellaneous Expenses in Japan

A local SIM card: $14

I mentioned above that I was able to buy a local SIM card when I purchased my rail pass. If you aren’t going to be using a rail pass in Japan, I recommend taking a look at Airalo instead. Airalo is a company that sells local e-SIM cards for travellers. What that means is that you can buy a virtual SIM card online before you arrive in Japan, and then as soon as you land in the country, can switch on your data and start using it.

It’s worked flawlessly for me and I’ll never go back to physical SIM cards. It’s just so easy! You’ll pay $6 for 1 GB of data or $14 for 3 GB for Japan and can also top-up through the Airalo app.

If you’re going down the Airalo route, just make sure your phone is e-SIM compatible first (all recent iPhones and many Androids are).

Insight Guides guidebook to Japan: $25 

My sister bought me this guidebook as a gift before I left for Japan and at first I was like, Insight Guides? Meh. I wish she’d got me the Lonely Planet instead. Then when I opened it up and started reading, I decided Insight Guides are my new favourite guidebook company. It was so freaking useful!

What I love about Insight is that their books focus heavily on the history and culture of Japan, with big, beautiful pictures, tons of information about local customs, food, and how to travel responsibly and respectfully. I recommend picking up a copy before your trip to Japan, but not taking it to the country with you — they’re big and heavy, so this is one for inspiration, planning, and education. 

Luggage storage at Snow Monkey Park near Yudanaka: ¥500 ($4.50)

We had our backpacks with us when we visited the snow monkeys, so utilised the on-site storage facility while we hiked up the mountain in the snow. You can also hire snow shoes and winter gear if you’re unprepared for the climb, but I was fine in my totally impractical sneakers. 

Travel insurance for 16 days in Japan: $60

If you’ve read any other posts on Never Ending Footsteps, you’ll know that I’m a great believer in travelling with travel insurance. I’ve seen far too many Go Fund Me campaigns from destitute backpackers that are unexpectedly stranded in a foreign country after a scooter accident/being attacked/breaking a leg with no way of getting home or paying for their healthcare. These costs can quickly land you with a six-figure bill to pay at the end of it.

In short, if you can’t afford travel insurance, you can’t afford to travel.

Travel insurance will cover you if your flight is cancelled and you need to book a new one, if your luggage gets lost and you need to replace your belongings, if you suddenly get struck down by appendicitis and have to be hospitalised, or discover a family member has died and you need to get home immediately. If you fall seriously ill, your insurance will cover the costs to fly you home to receive medical treatment.

I use SafetyWing as my travel insurance provider, and recommend them for trips to the Japan. Firstly, they’re one of the few companies out there who will actually cover you if you contract COVID-19. On top of that, they provide worldwide coverage, don’t require you to have a return ticket, and even allow you to buy coverage after you’ve left home. If you’re on a long-term trip, you can pay monthly instead of up-front, and can cancel at any time. Finally, they’re more affordable than the competition, and have a clear, easy-to-understand pricing structure, which is always appreciated.

With SafetyWing, you’ll pay $1.50 a day for travel insurance.

How I Track My Expenses While I Travel

Every time I share my expenses, you guys always want to know how on earth I manage to keep track of so many details from my travels!

Because Never Ending Footsteps is my company, the vast majority of my travel expenses are business expenses. I therefore studiously record everything I spend everywhere I go. I take photos of every receipt I receive and use Xero accounting software to record these expenses. In cases where I can’t get a receipt, I’ll take a photo of the price list and my ticket or food, or something as evidence.

Once a week, I then sit down and spend an hour or so uploading my receipts to Xero and making note of every penny I spent in each country I visit. It makes writing these posts super easy!

How Much Does it Cost to Travel in Japan?

It’s time to tally up all of my expenses to see my total travel costs!

Accommodation: $37 per dayTransportation: $31 per dayFood: $23 per dayActivities/Entrance Fees: $2 per dayMiscellaneous: $2 per day

Average amount spent in Japan: $95 a day!

I don’t know about you, but given Japan’s pricey reputation, I’m fairly impressed with the amount I spent in the country, especially as I included quite a few splurges in there.

How about you? How expensive were you expecting a trip to Japan to be?

Related Articles on Japan🇯🇵 What’s it Like to Travel in Japan?🏯 How to Spend Two Weeks in Japan: An Itinerary for First-Time Visitors🍣 15 Weird and Wonderful Things to Eat in Japan🎌 23 Incredible Things to Do in Osaka, Japan (2023)😎 Hipster Harajuku: The Coolest Neighbourhood in Tokyo🦔 Should You Go to a Hedgehog Cafe? My Experience in Japan🐒 Why Seeing the Snow Monkeys in Japan Sucked