This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.
The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/krathlou on 2024-11-23 12:13:48+00:00.
Sitting in my hard sought hotel room unable to sleep as I had a pretty crappy day today. Thank you to this sub for existing, reading your stories and tips has been so valuable. Been soloing in Japan for the past two weeks and I just had the most chaotic day ever after a series of fumbles over the past week. Needing a space to just process my thoughts with fellow travelers and also thought I'd share here in case anyone would like to commiserate/learn from my mistakes:
- Overpaid for a beauty service where the beautician clearly punched in 15500 yen on the calculator but had 16500 on the screen. I was too shy to correct them and just paid it all -- considered this one an indirect tip since they were lovely but they did explain at the beginning and end of the appointment that the cost was only going to be 15500 (this was already the menu catered for foreigners and they were transparent about upcharges).
- Booked hotels on the go instead of well in advance. I was hoping to be spontaneous with this trip since many of my desired activities were weather dependent and in rural Kyushu but I did not anticipate just how populated these areas are with fellow tourists this time of year. Could not even book a hostel, camper van, or a rental car and I looked across multiple prefectures, cities, and was flexible with dates. Nada, nothing. Ended up paying hundreds of dollars per night for mid-range hotels in cities I didn't plan to visit but were somewhat close by and accessible by public transit. Spent hours of my days looking and contacting people via email. (Side note: Many ryokans I looked into both in the northern and southern prefectures were unwilling to take me as a single guest -- word of caution for those who may anticipate finding themselves in the same boat while using the online reservation systems. I recommend just emailing the accommodation directly -- this is how I was finally able to get a room at a ryokan last minute and I pretty much had the entire inn to myself. It was like having a private onsen without paying the premiums! Very happy accident.) Also happened to pass by multiple rental car offices that listed itself as having no cars available during my requested time, yet I saw most of the lots full of rental cars. Perhaps the websites aren't updated in real time?
- No voice SIM which led to many delays in communication and likely miscommunication. Booked accommodations, services, and transport both through directly thru company websites and third party brokers (both Japanese and Anglo-centric ones). Half of the accommodations request that queries be facilitated thru phone call.
- Having my credit cards lock after using too much tap. For those wondering, yes I contacted the banks well in advance notifying of my trip destination and dates. The systems here seem to dislike my Visas the most, MCs were mostly okay. They love my Amex though, which is the card with the highest FX fee (bleh). This one is kind of related to the above point about SIM. I ended up needing to install and buy a secondary Skype number since some of my banks did not have call collect and this option was cheaper than roaming with my home provider.
- Falsely thought I lost my phone at a bus station right as I was about to board a bus and had staff and locals rush to my aid. Ran around different spots in the station and asked folks if they had seen a phone. Eventually a staff member suggested I check a different part of my bag and behold, it was in a bag compartment I never put my phone in and in my panic and disoriented state from having spent 5 consecutive hours trying to find a place to sleep in another prefecture that evening, I didn't think to check it. (also extra delirious that I was still recovering from food poisoning symptoms from lukewarm raw oysters the previous night and needed to constantly go to the bathroom.) One local even offered to call my international number twice, which I now realize after surfing the web that they were likely charged long distance fees even though the call did not go thru. I feel terrible and wish I provided compensation but I was hurried on to the bus by staff who were already annoyed that I had delayed the departure and schedule. I felt terrible and apologized profusely to the driver who was pretty agitated with me the whole trip. I know the work culture for bus drivers can be very unforgiving here, ugh, just feeling so guilty. So very sorry to everyone who I inconvenienced there, I cannot apologize enough and if I could somehow repay them for their patience and kindness, I would in a heartbeat. I hope my mistake doesn't further ruin their views of tourists but I have a feeling it did -- so sorry to my fellow travelers for tarnishing our image.
- Bought the Sanyo Sanin Northern Kyushu Pass but ended up using mostly buses to cut thru the prefectures cause the time seemed to always be quite a bit longer via multiple transfers by local and bullet train. Basically paying double what I would've for transport had I planned better and earlier.
- Spending most of the daytime/core business operating hours in transit instead of transiting during early mornings or evenings. Again lack of planning and some confusion with Google Maps about best routes which can change if you miss certain trains/buses that run infrequently. Some of these routes need to be booked in advance and I didn't realized until arriving that this was the case. AH.
- This one is not Japan specific but choosing too many sightseeing attractions and not scouring enough for local spots. Travel in this country is already well known for how much walking is involved and I exacerbated this by trying to cram in too many sights. I now hobble around with multiple blisters on [edit: THE balls and heels of my feet, LOL] and rolled both my ankles while walking on steep cobbled hill paths. Wearing braces as we speak to make it to the end of the trip (hopefully without further injury!!).As a solo traveler, just the sights themselves can leave me feeling a little empty and most of the places are pretty crowded at the moment so I wish I did more research about experiences off the beaten path. Lesson learned.
Thats all I can muster for now since I'm recovering from a pretty nauseous bus ride -- will update with further mishaps cause I have a feeling my luck will continue to be low for the rest of the trip, haha
Happy travelling, everyone! May you experience more fortune and favour on your journeys!