9781905864751

Japan is steeped inlegend and myth, perhaps the greatest of which is the popular misconceptionthat the country is simply too expensive to visit. The truth is that flights toJapan are cheaper than they've ever been, accommodation can be great value, whilethe warm hospitality which awaits every visitor costs nothing at all. The realsecret to travelling around the country on a budget, however, is the Japan RailPass. Use this comprehensive guide in conjunction with a rail pass to get themost out of a trip to Japan.
• Practical information – planning your trip; when to go; suggesteditineraries; what to take; festivals and events
• City guides and maps – where to stay, where to eat, what to see in30 towns and cities; historical and cultural background
• Kilometre-by-kilometre route guides – covering train journeys from the coast intothe mountains, from temple retreat to sprawling metropolis; 33 route maps
• Railway timetables and frequency charts – Bullet trains and main routes
• Customs, etiquette, Japanese words and phrases –with kanji
• Thisnew edition also now includes:
• kanji/hiragana/katakana for all place names mentioned inthe book so readers can point to the text when asking Japanese speakers fordirections.
• The extension of the shinkansen route from Nagano toKanazawa. This is now called the Hokuriku shinkansen.
• Additional side trips from Tokyo including to Kawaguchi-kofor magnificent views of Mt Fuji, and to Mito for Kairakuen, the only one ofthe three great landscape gardens in Japan not currently mentioned in the book.
• Expanded coverage of Nikko, Nagasaki, the side trip to Asosan, Beppu, and many places in the Kansai region

Graduating from Cambridge University, Ramsey Zarifeh, spent two yearsteaching in Japan. Now a journalist, he worksfor Reuters, Swiss Radio International and the BBC.
Anna Udagawa lives in the UK and was an English teacher in Japan before getting married there. She revisits Japan regularly and now works as a travel guide-book editor.