How to Travel in Japan for less than S$150 or US$115

This is a follow-up to my previous post on an  trip to Japan that has not been budgeted.
In this post, I will reveal my actual figures versus the estimates from my previous post.
If you are interested in reviewing the budget from the previous post, you can refer to this
(Budgeting for an unbudgeted trip).

I'm glad that the cost fall within the budget and some were actually lower than the cost I have budget for.

Here's a run-down of all the cost. The main cost that I factor in a travel budget are

• Accommodation (Mix of hostels, home-stay, ryokans)
• Transport(Trains, taxis, buses, coaches)
• Meals(rice balls, instant noodles, restaurant meals, fast -food,snacks)
• The figures quoted below are all in Singapore Dollars where I reside. So it will be lower if you convert the entire cost into U.S Dollars. Hence the USD 115.

ACCOMMODATION
Destination	Days (Stay) Nights		Lodging		J Yen	S$
Tokyo	2	2	Kimi Ryokan Tokyo		7875Y	103
Hokkaido-Biei-Furano	2	2	Cress Guesthouse-Biei		10000Y	131
Sounkyo Onsen+Daisetsusan	1	1	Resort Pension Yamanoue @ Sounkyo		8800Y	115
Hokkaido-Sapporo	2	1	Sapporo City		S$68	68
Mt Fuji-Hakodate	2	1	Mt Fuji		3900Y	51
Tokyo	4	3	Shinjuku Washinton Hotel 3-2-9 Nichi Shinjuku Shinjuku-ku Tokyo Ph:81 33343-3111		$252.20	252.2
					Total	720.2
TRANSPORTATION
From (Source Station)	Mode	Dep	To (Destination)		Jyen	S$
Haneda Airport to Kimi	Limo Bus	Haneda	Ikebukuro West Station		2000	26
Ikebukuro to Kimi	Taxi	Ikebukuro	Kimi		1070	14
Kimi	Limo Bus	Haneda	Haneda-Flight to Sapporo		1200	15
Kimi to Hotel Metropolitian for Limo Bus	Taxi	Haneda	Haneda-Flight to Sapporo		710	9.1
Air Ticket to Sapporo(return)	Place	Haneda	New Chitose Airport (CTS)		21600	283
New Chitose Airport to Sapporo	Train	New Chitose Airport	Sapporo		1040	14
Sapporo to Asahikawa	Train	Sapporo	Asahikawa		RP (4170)	-53
Asahikawsa to Biei	Train	Asahi	Biei		RP
Biei Furano Round Pass	Train	Furano	Furano		5400	71
Biei-Furano	Train	Biei	Furano		RP	RP
Furano-Biei	Train	Furano	Biei		RP	RP
Furano 1-Day Tour Twinkle Bus Tour	Bus	Furano	Furano		1000	13
Sounkyo	Train/Bus	Biei	Sounkyo Onsen/Daisetsusan		1920	25
Sounkyo	Train/Bus	Takikawa	Sapporo		1920	25
Asahikawa	Train	Sapporo	Sapporo		RP (4170)	-53
Sapporo	Train	New Chitose Airport	Tokyo		1040Y	14
Haneda Airport	Kawaguchi 5th Station	Haneda	Mt Fuji		2400Y	31
Kawaguchi Sta.	Bus/Monorail	Gotemba	Gotemba(Outlet Mall)		1470	19
Gotemba	Bus/Train	Gotemba	Shinjuku		1630	21
Shinjuku	Bus	Haneda	Flight back to SG		1200	15
Several Taxi Trips	Taxi				5000	65
Subway Trips	Subway				3000	38
					Total	658.1
MEALS
Date	B'fast	Lunch	Dinner	To (Destination)	Snacks	Jyen	S$
20-Sep-13	N.A	N.A	Flight	Ikebukuro West Station	N.A		0
21-Sep-13	Rice balls+coffee	Bento	Dinner @Ootoya	Kimi	N.A	5440	70
22-Sep-13	N.A	N.A	Dinner provided@Biei	Haneda-Flight to Sapporo	Autumn Festival	2050	26
23-Sep-13	B'fast provided	N.A	Dinner provided@Biei	Haneda-Flight to Sapporo	Tour	585	11
24-Sep-13	B'fast provided	N.A	Dinner provided@Accomodation	New Chitose Airport (CTS)	N.A	0	0
25-Sep-13	B'fast provided	N.A	ramen@ramen Village	Sapporo	N.A	975	13
26-Sep-13	B'fast provided	N.A	Instant noodles	Asahikawa	350	170	7
27-Sep-13	Instant Noodles	N.A	Tendon	Biei	200	605	10
28-Sep-13	Instant Noodles	Cake	Dinner Treat	Furano	495	105	8
29-Sep-13	Bread	N.A	Dinner @Yoshinoya	Furano	750	1190	15
30-Sep-13	Instant Noodles	N.A	Katsu Don	Biei	600	1605	21
			Drinks from vending machines	Furano		1200	15
						Total	196

What I realized

• Try your best to have at least breakfast included in the cost of the accommodation. This saves you both time and money. You do not have to do the morning roll call to get everyone to be on time, norning breakfast at the time of accommodation normally does the trick.
• If you have both breakfast and dinner provided at your place of accommodation as is the case with our minshuku at Biei(Will post updates on accommodation at Biei soon. Best place to stay at Biei), you can often save much more and control your cost, leaving you with more Yen for shopping, snacks etc.
• You can see from  the actual cost that the biggest bulk of our budgets were taken up by transport which includes an internal flight from Tokyo to Hokkaido. Within Hokkaido, I think it is better to drive as the fuel cost is less than individual coach/bus trips.

What is not included in the cost

• Two Onsen trips. One was included in our accommodation at Sounkyo, the other at Mt Fuji which we paid 900 Yen.
• Overweight baggage cost of $212. Yes, for our first trip, we were over weight by about 14 kg and over weight baggage at SQ is expensive.

Takeaway

• Japan is a well  organized country and runs on clock-work efficiency. Belying that clock-work efficiency is a culture that is always prepared. I find that Japanese are always prepared when they meet you or when they need to be in front of people or guest. 
• They seem to have a planning culture and it is relatively easy if you do your research before you depart to connect on trains and buses to your destination.
• Japan need not have to be expensive if you can live in relatively inexpensive places, dine where the locals do and learn a bit of Japanese before you leave. Otherwise, it's useful to download a Japanese app.
• I find this trip of great value for money and it is one of the best trips I have ever planned for and travelled to especially as I don't speak the language. But be careful who you choose as a travel companion as you can see that I skipped most lunches not out of choice but travelling with a shopaholic who constantly asks you if they should buy multiples of the same items when it is cheap and takes a 'hella' of a day.
• I might have more time to sample the local food if I had travelled with another. But would have spent more on food.

Budgeting for an unbudgeted trip

In May, on a whim, I deiced to plan for a trip to Japan.
Without much thinking and consideration of my finances,
I booked the air ticket as there was an offer on Singapore Airlines
for a return trip ticket from Singapore to Tokyo (Haneda).

In this and subsequent posts, I will be putting up my proposed budget for the trip,
hopefully, I don't blow this budget.

This is a budget that I have drawn up after checking out all the websites.
Well, this is my first trip to Japan and i realized that Japan goes by a Honor system.
Most places do not require you to pay via credit cards or transfer the payment to secure your booking. They will hold the room for you and you settle the payment when you arrive.

So I wonder if most Japanese business function on a cash flow accounting system instead of a double-entry system. But that is a story for another day.

ITINERARY
Destination	Days (Stay) Nights		Lodging		J Yen	S$
Tokyo	2	2	Kimi Ryokan Tokyo		7875Y	103
Hokkaido-Biei-Furano	2	2	Cress Guesthouse-Biei		10000Y	131
Sounkyo Onsen+Daisetsusan	1	1	Resort Pension Yamanoue @ Sounkyo		8800Y	115
Hokkaido-Sapporo	2	1	Sapporo City		S$68	68
Mt Fuji-Hakodate	2	1	Mt Fuji		3900Y	51
Tokyo	4	3	Shinjuku Washinton Hotel 3-2-9 Nichi Shinjuku Shinjuku-ku Tokyo Ph:81 33343-3111		$252.20	252.2
					Total	720.2
TRANSPORTATION
From (Source Station)	Mode	Dep	To (Destination)		Jyen	S$
Haneda Airport to Kimi	Limo Bus	Haneda	Ikebukuro West Station		1200	16
Ikebukuro to Kimi	Taxi	Ikebukuro	Kimi		2500	33
Kimi	Limo Bus	Haneda	Haneda-Flight to Sapporo		1200	16
Monorail to Airport	Monorail	Haneda	Haneda-Flight to Sapporo		720	9.5
Air Ticket to Sapporo	Place	Haneda	New Chitose Airport (CTS)		21600	283
New Chitose Airport	Train	Biei	Biei		1040	14
Biei Furano Round Pass	Train	Furano	Furano		5400	71
Sounkyo	Train/Bus	Biei	Sounkyo Onsen/Daisetsusan		1920	25
Sounkyo	Train/Bus	Takikawa	Sapporo		1920	25
Asahikawa	Train	Sapporo	Sapporo		4170	55
Sapporo	Train	New Chitose Airport	Tokyo		1040Y	14
Haneda Airport	Kawaguchi 5th Station	Haneda	Mt Fuji		2400Y	31
Kawaguchi Sta.	Bus/Monorail	Gotemba	Gotemba(Outlet Mall)		1470	19
Gotemba	Bus/Train	Gotemba	Shinjuku		1630	21
Shinjuku	Monorail/Bus	Haneda	Flight back to SG		1200	630
					Total	1263

Total so far including accomodations and transport now amount to close to $2000.

Here's an estimate of the break down of the cost though cost might vary depending on the season you are travelling. I will be travelling in September of this year and hopefully I can stay within a budget of
S$3000.00 including personal expenses and gifts.

I had previously spent only S$1100 for a two week trip to New York and Boston and hope to stay within a budget. The above 2 week trip involves bunking in with a friend for 2 weeks in Boston and staying at a 3-star mid-town hotel in New York City that is within walking distance to the Lexington Subway. However the $1100 includes transport, meals personal expenses only andit excludes air ticket from SG to New York City.

Leave me comments on tips on how to save during my Tokyo and Hokkaido trip.
I will appreciate any tips you can offer and will write up about it when I return after using your tip.
Might also send you a gift if my budget allows.

How toSave $100,000 in 7 Years

I had originally written this article under another blog but realized that it fits into this blog theme on SG Smart Money. Hence I have decided to shut down that blog and just concentrate on this one.-
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How to Save $100k in 7 Years

This is my first post in Blogger and I am inspired to create this blog after coming
across this article in the Straits Times, dated 7 July 2013 article.

In this article, it shows how a young fresh grad, just straight out of school can save $100,000 in 5 years.

This article also assumes that

• You save 50% of your take home pay
• You are single
• You have cheap hobbies

• You are willing to make some sacrifices.

However, this article does not take into account the various 'milestone' events that can thwart a youngster's 'best laid plans' such as

• Student loans
• Weddings
• Honey moons
• New house
• Any other 'catastrophic' events.

After reading this article, I am inspired to safe $100k within the next 7 years.
In the next 7 years, I will be 40 and this is the goal that I want to reach at 40.
I am also hoping that combined with investments, I can exceed this goal. 

This is what I aim to to

1) Save 30% -50% of my take-home pay
2) Invest 60% into REITs and dividend paying stocks.
3) Start a part-time venture

I am also looking for a tracking chart to track my progress.

Creating Your Money Ladder

Money Ladder

I am currently reading a book titled
"The Story of Rich" .

Rich in this story is about a small business owner who successfully sold his small business for an 8-figure amount and is waiting to retire.

However with the amount of money coming to his hands, he is pondering how to plan for it.

This book is part parable, part-non-fiction and how-to book on personal finance.

There is a particular chapter where the author mentions about creating a money ladder.For instance, if you have $400,000 of savings, you might want to split them into 4 portions.

• First $100,000 is used as emergency cash and is placed in a fixed deposit account.
• The next $100,000 can be invested in high growth shares for greater yield
• The next $100,000 can be invested in dividend playing stocks
• Last $100,000 can be invested as an opportunity fund.

In this way, one can ensure that they have sufficient cash when they need to use in an emergency and not have to compromise on growth in a stock market.

I realized that this plan may work if you have lots of cash upfront but i am thinking of this works if you have limited funds like $40,000?

Here's how I would split the $40,000

• $10,000 in emergency funds
• $10,000 small companies and high growth stocks
• $10,000 dividend playing stocks like blue chips and REITs.
• $10,000 in bonds.

What do you think?
Is this type of assets allocation effective or only works for those with a large 'war chest'?