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St Francis |
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Flying Trip Japan
August 7 to 20, 2026
About the Trip
Our plans for 2026 were to head up to the Red Sea in January, arriving in the Med about May, and enjoying the Med for a few months before heading home for a break.
Between our own boat issues, which delayed our departure into April, then the wind had started to turn, and Trump's ill-fated 5-day war on Iran and the ensuing fuel shortages, we didn't make it. (though, the boats that DID go, made it fine to the Med and to South Africa).
We ended up doing a 2-month cruise up into Thailand, where we explored the muddy but interesting Phang Na Bay, and later, a bit more of Langkawi. It was definitely not "the season" to be cruising Thailand, but we made the best of it.
In late May, we made the decision to head back to Pangkor Marina, do some more work on the boat, and do some traveling in nearby countries. China was first on our list. See our China notes here: 2026 China Trip
We had a tour company set up the China Trip for us. Japan was all on me (Sherry). I did all the bookings... trains, hotels, tours, etc. See details and notes below.
Visas
US citizens do not need a visa to do a tourist visit to Japan.
Costs
I have not yet done a cost summary for Japan. The flight from Malaysia on HK Express (via Hong Kong) was relatively inexpensive. Hotels ran less than $100 per night including breakfast. We didn't do a "rail pass" but pre-booked all of our major train hops (all direct bullet train) on the Japan rail website/app (Smart Ex).
We did get an "IC card" (bought at the Hiroshima Train Station n arrival... see notes below), which allowed us to take any Japan transportation with just a tap-on tap-off. Google was pretty good for navigating via public transportation.
We used an e-Sim from Trip.com. Very cheap--pick your validity duration and how much data you think you would use. I got 3GB per day for me ($15 USD for 14 days) and 1GB per day for Dave ($6 USD). Both were more than adequate. All the hotels and many of the sites had free wifi.
Arriving in Hirshima was a good experience. The airport and train stations are boh small and easily navigable, for your first day.
I
Our trip was Hiroshima - Osaka - Kyoto - Tokyo
Japan Notes and Tips 2026
(PDF)
I have not had a chance to update it completely with insights AFTER the trip, yet.
Our Japan Itinerary Aug 7-20, 2022 (PDF)
We enjoyed our short stay in Japan. I would recommend you spend a little more time there if possible (especially a day or two (at least) more in both Hiroshima and Tokyo). And a day or two more for "relax" days or half days.