Anybody here cruised out of Tokyo (Yokohama) ??

[bazzaw]

I have accidentally booked 38 days on Cunard's Queen Elizabeth  - circumnavigation of Japan and cruise across to Alaska/Canada. Have never been to Japan and know very little about it - so our first visit will be quite daunting 

[qbay46]

Hi I have just come back from our second cruise around Japan, so if I can help in any way just ask. Both times sailed out of Yokohama and stayed in Tokyo before and after the cruises.

[OzKiwiJJ]

Japan is a wonderful place to visit. We finished a cruise in Yokohama last year and enjoyed a few days in Tokyo before flying home. We also did a land trip there in 2006. Read up on the ports, there may be some you can just explore on your own, others that you need to do excursions. It should be a fantastic cruise.

[MicCanberra]

Yokohama is the usual port for Tokyo for the larger ships. Japan is amazing, so different to most other Asian countries as it is ordered and clean despite the masses of people. It is also not cheap like many other places in Asia. Port guides and TripAdvisor will help immensely with sourcing information.

[OzKiwiJJ]

Most bank ATMs in Japan don't accept Australian debit cards but there are a zillion convenience stores like 7-eleven or FamilyMart that have ATMs that do. 

[Obilix]

I'll bite.

 

How does anyone accidentally book a 38 day cruise?

[The_Big_M]

I'm sure you'll enjoy the experience. A little preparation will go a long way, and the Japanese are unfailingly helpful if you're respectful.

[MicCanberra]

10 hours ago, Obilix said:

I'll bite.

 

How does anyone accidentally book a 38 day cruise?

By pressing the 'Continue with booking' button by mistake numerous times and accidently putting in the Cc details for the deposit. It is an easy mistake to make.😋

[SeaDog-46]

Bazza - We have just done 28d B2B around Japan cruise with 5 days in Yokohama prior to cruise.

Arrived at start of peak cherry blossom season in Yokohama / Tokyo at end of March.

Flew into Hanada airport as easier & nearer to Yokohama, via Singapore with SQ.  They had lowest prices & convenient timings from Brisbane with afternoon arrival in HND & morning arrival back in BNE.

Used debit card for cash from 7/Eleven which was easy & there are many of them around - some open 24 hours. Also Lawson [Station] is similar.

Stayed in Shin Yokohama to use Shinkansen with JP Rail pass.  There is a direct transfer from HND to the hotel as well as many other places.  Coming back had to get taxi from cruise pier to Yokohama City Air Terminal [YCAT] for bus transfer to HND.

The bus transfers are easy & very reasonably priced. Taxis are reasonable for short trips but drivers do not speak English & you need printed Japanese or map to show where you want to go. 

Few rubbish bins around so have to carry a rubbish bag.  No tipping.

It's a lot easier than most other cities as many signs also have English.

Questions - e/m jmnhs95  at the usual google mail.

John

[gbenjo]

Ask Brisbane 41..... he LOVES Japan 😁

[bazzaw]

On 5/21/2019 at 3:15 PM, qbay46 said:

Hi I have just come back from our second cruise around Japan, so if I can help in any way just ask. Both times sailed out of Yokohama and stayed in Tokyo before and after the cruises.

Thanks - how did you get to Yokohama from the airport or Tokyo??

[bazzaw]

2 hours ago, SeaDog-46 said:

 

Flew into Hanada airport as easier & nearer to Yokohama, via Singapore with SQ. 

It is still too far out to book air - but kind of automatically thought of non-stop to Narita from Brisbane - is the convenience of a closer (to Yokohama)  Hanada airport sufficient to overcome the inconvenience of a stop at Singapore?? 

[SeaDog-46]

As we intended staying in Yokohama / Shin Yokohama it was more convenient & less cost to use SQ with short stop in Changi/Singapore because of the timings.  The QF flight from Brisbane to Narita then arrived early in the morning. Timing now is better but it is a long - over 1 hr. drive into Tokyo by bus / train quicker. From HND the bus is only 20 mins & dropped us right at hotel.  Where you intend to stay & what you intend to do will effect your airport to some extent.  Hotels in Yokohama are cheaper than central Tokyo. Most have very small rooms. No jetlag due to Japan on +9.

There are transfers from Tokyo to cruise terminal but they again depend on where you stay. From Yokohama taxi whould be the best bet.

[cheznandy]

8 minutes ago, SeaDog-46 said:

As we intended staying in Yokohama / Shin Yokohama it was more convenient & less cost to use SQ with short stop in Changi/Singapore because of the timings.  The QF flight from Brisbane to Narita then arrived early in the morning. Timing now is better but it is a long - over 1 hr. drive into Tokyo by bus / train quicker. From HND the bus is only 20 mins & dropped us right at hotel.  Where you intend to stay & what you intend to do will effect your airport to some extent.  Hotels in Yokohama are cheaper than central Tokyo. Most have very small rooms. No jetlag due to Japan on +9.

There are transfers from Tokyo to cruise terminal but they again depend on where you stay. From Yokohama taxi whould be the best bet.

Great advice John, we just booked Yokohama to Vancouver for 2021, have been to Yokohama as a port stop but not to fly into and cruise out of.

We plan on flying into HND and staying in Yokohama near the port, as we will only have a day or two to spare. Look forward to any other info you share😀

[qbay46]

Hi bazzaw,

   We flew direct flight from Brisbane to Narita airport on Qantas,, leaves around 10am arrives around 6pm at Narita. I book a transfer through Tokyo AirPoter to take us to hotel either in Yokohama or Tokyo depending on how I have arranged our holiday. It takes just over an hour by car to Yokohama with not much traffic, I know it is dearer than train or bus but after a long flight the last thing I want is to be sitting on public transport to get to hotel and they have been great service for me.

[qbay46]

Are you going to have a few days before the cruise or go over and get straight on the ship, last cruise we went over and one night in Yokohama and on to ship, stayed in hotel real close to pier and just walked to terminal, easy walk with bags.

[The_Big_M]

5 hours ago, bazzaw said:

It is still too far out to book air - but kind of automatically thought of non-stop to Narita from Brisbane - is the convenience of a closer (to Yokohama)  Hanada airport sufficient to overcome the inconvenience of a stop at Singapore?? 

As with seadog, wouldn't let location of airport be the main issue; just that if you have a choice HND is both closer to the port, and closer to Tokyo. Both have good connections though, just a little longer trip with NRT.

[SeaDog-46]

Another good reason to use Haneda HND is the Keikyu Bus that runs the Airport Limosine bus [coach transfer] - see www.hnd-bus.com

For a few hundred Yen you can go from HND to many places from Tokyo to Yokohama & YCAT. Their site is a bit confusing until you get to know the areas around Tokyo & Yokohama. See the route map attached. There is also a service from NRT to HND.

On arrival & after clearing at HND there is a ticket office to purchase your bus tickets.  The staff speak english & will help with where you want to go. With you free trolley go to the lift that will take you to ground level where the bus stops are. A friendly assistant will tell you which is your bus & load your cases.  Do  NOT  tip.

I use the Booking site for hotels - it is easy & comprehensive with good maps.  By clicking on the room name when choosing a room - a drop down box will show amenities in room & the size in M2.

The nearest hotel to the Yokohama Cruise terminal at Osanbashi Pier is -  4* Hotel Monterey Yokohama rated 8.4  - 600m away.  It is 16.6 km. from HND & 76 km. from NRT.  The front of hotel overlooks Yamashita Park & Yokohama port.

Rooms are 26 m2 which is large in Asia.  2 nights without breakfast A$210.

Be careful to book a NON smoking room as a large number of Japanese men smoke.

The photo of Yokohama looking west from pier on our last day.  Early risers saw Mt.Fuji as Westerdam arrived.

[bazzaw]

Hmm - It all sounds so simple - but as always the Devil is in the detail. At this time it is really too early to book any flights , hence cannot book any hotels either 🙂 But from what little info is to hand so far, the only decent flight would be a non-stop Qantas to Narita (around 9 hours) - all other options so far listed for flights into Haneda are much much longer  Qantas 12 hours and arrives at 6AM necessitating 2 nights hotel before departure rather than 1 . SIGH!! Decisions - decisions!! 

[qbay46]

Yes I found the direct flight on Qantas the quickest and easiest flight from Brisbane getting you in to Narita at around 6pm, what time of the year are you going, I got in early and book my flights and got a good price, they got dearer as time went on.

 

[bazzaw]

I think I might be over-panicking about the need to book a hotel so early. We were in Southampton UK last year for 3 cruises - the hotels there were packed out!!!  But then again there were multiple ships in port . I just did a test - Diamond Princess is sailing from Yokohama on 19July this year, only 7 weeks away.  - so looked for accomodation on 18 July -- there is plenty of availability!!!!  I thought everything would be booked out! 

[qbay46]

Last cruise I stayed in hotel Monterey Yokohama, nice easy walk to terminal

[bazzaw]

1 minute ago, qbay46 said:

Yes I found the direct flight on Qantas the quickest and easiest flight from Brisbane getting you in to Narita at around 6pm, what time of the year are you going, I got in early and book my flights and got a good price, they got dearer as time went on.

 

It will be in May next year - so 12 months away. I am not too sure about your assertion about booking early to get cheaper flights - Qantas are quoting around $700 one way in July this year ( by booking now) and $1400 for April next year.   

[Docker123]

This is my favourite place in Yokohama — Ramen Noodle Museum.

Go for dinner as there is often traditional(ish) music and dance performances.

 

Great variety of food, reasonably priced.

 

http://www.raumen.co.jp/english/

[SeaDog-46]

Bazza & Cheryl - many hotels in Japan only open for booking 6 months prior to stay date.

Cheapest flights to Japan from Queensland are via Cairns on Jet Star. 

www.skyscanner.com