Transportation method to choose: highway buses, LCC aircrafts, or shinkansen?

Saving money while traveling in Japan is difficult since long-distance transportation costs a lot,
especially if you’re visiting many sightseeing spots. To save money,
you must choose your transportation method in Japan carefully,
and today we’ll introduce and compare three different transportation methods which you can use while traveling around Japan.

Highway buses

 Amongst other transportation methods, highway buses are the cheapest options available for you.
A single trip from Tokyo to Osaka costs around 3000 yen to 5000 yen at most, which is very affordable compared to trains.

The highway buses depart in the morning or night, and if you take the night buses,
you can sleep through the night while traveling, so you don’t have to pay extra money for lodging.

We strongly recommend using highway buses if you want to save more money and don’t mind being in small spaces for a long time.

Money: ★★★★★

Time: ★★★☆☆

Comfort: ★★☆☆☆

 LCC

The other option available is LCC (low-cost carriers) aircrafts.
The number of companies operating LCC in Japan is increasing, some of them are Air Asia, Jetstar, and Peach. With these airlines,
you can travel to many local destinations in Japan for a cheaper price, somewhere around 5,000 yen to 10,000 yen for a single trip.

Many of these flights depart from Narita International Airport and Kansai International Airport.
You might have to pay an extra fee if you’re checking in your luggage into the carrier.

Money: ★★★★☆

Time: ★★★★★

Comfort: ★★★★☆

 Shinkansen

Although shinkansen is awesome, comfortable, and fast, it’s not cheap.
A ticket for a single trip can go up to 30,000 yen per person, Shinkansen is not the cheapest choice available for you.

A round trip fare from Tokyo to Shin-Osaka can go up to 30,000 yen,
so if you want to take the Shinkansen, make sure to get JR Pass beforehand to save some money.

JR Pass is a train pass allowing you to take unlimited ride on all JR trains; including shinkansen, and all JR buses.

The price of JR Passes vary depending on the length of your trip.
The cheapest pass is for 7 days, which costs around US$300 per person.

Money: ★★☆☆☆

Time: ★★★☆☆

Comfort: ★★★★★

So, which transportation method you’d use to save your money and time?
Each method offers you different advantages, so make sure you plan your trip carefully and ahead to save even more money!