What can one do in and around Tokyo on a student budget?

[Oakville]

Hey all,

My school offers quite a few "Summer Abroad" programs that allow students to spend 4-6 weeks in a foreign country and earn a full year credit (equivalent to 1 single class per semester). Considering after government grants, a 6 week trip to Tokyo (incl airfare, tuition, residence, food) is less than what I'd pay for the same full credit by taking two separate courses here (classic University of Toronto), I'm really looking into it. Only catch is, there are only 10 slots available and apparently 30-40 people apply every year. Pending I do actually apply, and make it in:

What can I do in and around tokyo? As far as I know, the school I'd be staying at would be 30km NE of downtown Tokyo, but "the city can still be easily accessed by public transit" which makes sense given its freaking TOKYO. As much as I'd love to see the city, i doubt id spend tooo much time there. I'd be way more interested in seeing the birthplace of the car culture that I have surrounded myself in, Nissan/Toyota stuff, some of the shops I have idolized (Signal auto, in particular).

Tell me what you've got!

Ryan

[Daryl @ RightDrive]

With a train map you can go anywhere, and check out all the places in your list. To make it more budget-friendly you could check into day passes and visit places that are clustered together.
Also make sure you hit all the Japanese fast food places, they will give you a quick lesson in real Japanese food for a cheap price.
Japan doesn't have to be expensive, and the Canadian dollar/Yen rate is really good right now.

[jumpei]

yeah, public transportation will take you everywhere.
if you could apply for Japan Rail Pass, it will save your wallet. http://www.jrpass.com/

hopefully you can get one of those 10 slots!! good luck

[Oakville]

I just have to make sure that it lines up with my summer employment and I'll pull the trigger!

Daryl, I plan on making trips to Osaka as there is a LOT there that I'd like to see. I'd like to see Mount Fuji/Fuji Speedway as well...is this something I can do in a weekend? Sorry about the dumb questions

I have one more really noob question; I know its not the same but when I am down in the states I drive, and have done so (a little bit) in Scotland. I am fully licensed in ontario, am I able to drive in Japan? / rent a car for a day here or there?

[ColinR33]

X2 on JR pass, got me everywhere, great experience.

[jumpei]

you need an international driver's license to drive in Japan.
I have Japanese international driver's license, that's how im driving in Canada.
I'm sure you can apply for Canadian Int'l license, and you can drive with it in Japan.

[Dragon Humper]

you need an international driver's license to drive in Japan.
I have Japanese international driver's license, that's how im driving in Canada.
I'm sure you can apply for Canadian Int'l license, and you can drive with it in Japan.

Yup, go to any CAA outlet and pay your $25 with some passport photos and you are good to go. I do that everytime I go. It takes less time to get used to driving there as it does to look the right way first at a crosswalk......lol.

Unless you have a lot of time to spend travelling you won't get to see as much as you'd like. Everything is accessible by rail for sure, but your travel times to anywhere south of Yokohama will be long. I did a day trip to the Tokyo Railway Museum (kinda where you will be)from a point approx. 30 km south of Yokohama and it took the entire day with about 3 hours at the museum. Left at 8am and didn't get back untill 9pm. Even took the Shinkansen from the museum to the Shin Yokohama station. Didn't help much.

Speaking of which, you must do the Shin, it is a freaking blast, the speeds are a little lame in the metro areas but once they get out in the country, they really put the coal to her. It almost looks unreal, like someone is playing back some footage at 3x normal speed, because its silky smooth.



Jon.

[Daryl @ RightDrive]

Daryl, I plan on making trips to Osaka as there is a LOT there that I'd like to see. I'd like to see Mount Fuji/Fuji Speedway as well...is this something I can do in a weekend? Sorry about the dumb questions

Like above, go to CAA and get an International Drivers License, and you can rent a car there.
The Shinkansen (bullet train) goes from Tokyo to Osaka every few minutes, that is the best way to get there as it's about 700kms away. I'd only go to Osaka if there was something specific you wanted to see, as it's pretty much the same as Tokyo aside from the local foods. For Japanese culture go to Kyoto, which is close to Osaka.

Mt. Fuji is in the country-side, so you can only get there by car. It's about 1 hour or so outside of Tokyo if I remember correctly. There may be bus trips to the part where you start climbing the mountain that you could join, but keep in mind Mt. Fuji is only open from June to August if I remember correctly. It's a hardcore climb, so don't just show up in your shorts and a water bottle. You will need a down jacket, pants, food and supplies. Even if it's 35 degrees at the bottom, it will be below zero at the top. Climbing up and down takes about 2 days.

Fuji Speedway will be boring if there is no event, as it will just be an empty place. See if there are some events on when you go. Most likely the summer will have stuff every day.

Any other questions let me know, I was there for a bit.

[Kunzz]

+1312312 on JR Rail Pass...saved so much money using that.

On a similar note, I just arrived in Germany for my student exchange! I highly suggest that you go for this

[nismo240r]

[Rainey94]

Its Funny you put this up because I noticed a similar opportunity at my school, without a doubt you should go for it if you can! That would be an amazing experience.

[jumpei]

I'm from Japan, so feel free to ask questions on PMs. i will try answer your questions as much as i can.