Hey man! I havent tried surfing here yet tbh
Hi everyone! Call me RennXu (a play on my given name Karen Sue). Not living in Tokyo, or Japan for that matter, but will be visiting for the first time this year. Japan is in the top half of my travel wishlist and I’m so excited. I’ve come across Tokyo Cheapo while researching for our trip itinerary. The posts have been so helpful.
I live in Manila, Philippines. Well, not actually in Manila (the capital city), but in Metro Manila (the National Capital Region or NCR). Visitors to our country often get that confused and get really ticked off when they find out that This-or-That-Hotel-Manila is actually located miles from the city of Manila. 
Planning a trip to the PH soon? Just shoot me a question and I’ll try my best to help!
For fun, I’d love to travel. But I can’t really do that a lot because work. And budget. Haha. Outside work, I mostly spend time on the arts (literature, painting, music, cooking). At some point, I’ve tried learning several new languages (Spanish, French and German) at the same time, hahaha. But as our Tokyo trip is near, I’m reviewing Nihongo.
Hmm… I don’t think I’ve encountered natto yet. Or maybe I can’t remember. Should I try it?
My Tokyo newbie tip: Research! 
Salut RennXu!
Ha, try it and see 
Hope you have a great trip - and thanks for the Manila/not Manila tips.
Gah, I’m scared. Hahaha 
Appreciate the welcome. Maraming salamat!
Hello! I’m Javon, owner of onegreenbicycle.com. I travel between America and Japan every year and travel all around. Although I always make it to Tsutsujigaoka area of Tokyo to help out with a yearly VBS program for some children in the nearby community and their parents.
I love to stay in Airbnb’s when possible in Japan and I have always wanted to try to hozugawa river cruise in arashiyama and stay at the hoshinoya. I love scuba diving and trying new foods. My top tip for Japan newbies is register some free wifi apps ahead so you don’t have to pay for pocket wifi or sim and you won’t be stressed as well. Those free apps can be found here.
Nope, I do not like natto. But I try to keep trying it so I can develop a taste for it at some point. Last time when I was talking to a Japanese friend, they showed me a Japanese food display similar to the food pyramid in America. I was shocked to find out there was a whole section for fermented foods and another section completely for soybeans.
For the past 15 years I have been experiencing Japan. And I’m now excited to start putting together some resources to help out new travelers. All of my resources can be found at onegreenbicycle .com
I also just launched a JR Pass Giveaway and you can enter by helping share my resources or submitting some of your favorite photos in Japan. So if you’ll be traveling around soon definitely like our facebook page and enter for a JR Pass for this summer/fall.
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Hello. My name is Deenita. I live in Bundaberg, Queensland, Australia.
I have always been fascinated with the Japanese culture, beauty and history. This will be my first trip to Japan. I haven’t been overseas in 23 years. So it’s been a long time between drinks! I have visited the USA twice, as well as Fiji, Noumea and Vanuatu. I am crazy about anime, especially Yuri on Ice, so much so I have organised my trip so I can visit Karatsu on which the main character’s home town is based on. This trip I will be visiting: Tokyo, Sapporo, Karatsu, Hiroshima and Nagano. As I am limited in funds Tokyo cheapo has been a blessing, the tips I have learnt will help me see the best of Tokyo at a fraction of a tour price. 
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@mrkirkland it’s been over a week since we came home from our Tokyo trip and am still giddy happy about it. Sugokatta! Certainly did not disappoint. Coming from a place with a rather terrible transportation system and road network, travelling around and even outside the city had been a great experience on its own (I had not, however, tried to take a train during peak rush hour; I’ve heard how that’s on a totally different level hahaha).
I missed the natto, though! Will probably look for it next time because I’m certainly coming back to Japan. 
So grateful for all the helpful content on this site! I make sure friends planning a visit to Japan check out Tokyo Cheapo. 
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Glad you had a great time! If you try natto next time you’re here, don’t forget to tell us your opinion
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I am Arpita, living in india, want to visit Tokyo
Hello everyone!
My name is Jurgen. My Japanese wife and I are in the process of moving to Japan, Mito to be exact. We share our time between Montreal and Mito but we will be permanently in Ibaraki as of October.
I first came to Japan in 2004 and I have been visiting many parts of the country ever since. I am a scientist, health care and IT professional. I am interested in arts and music, particularly baroque and romantic period.
I am also interested in motorcycles and hope to connect with other riders.
I have many plans for the future and would love to get in touch with like-minded people particularly in and around Mito. I would love to create a platform for expats in the Mito area and bring foreigners and Japanese together. We do have a small gallery/concert space and tiny cafe that I intend to set up as meeting point.
In Mito we are struggling with mundane problems like finding a source for buying food in bulk, or finding a reasonably priced gym that doesn’t charge 25000 Yen upfront to allow you to pay 12000 Yen per month for using a stationary bike or weights. But all’s well.
Looking forward to hearing from you.
J
Hi everyone, My name is Miguel, I will be living/staying in Ikebukuro Station area for 3 months from mid September. Going to be exploring Tokyo and its culture (and as much as Japan as possible) and this website has been of great help so far.
I will have available time during days (from noon to midnight more or less) so happy to meet with anyone who is willing to explore (or show) Tokyo!!
Cheers,
Miguel
My name is Nam, I’m the co-founder of TUN Travel and founder of hotels-in-vietnam.com.
I’ve been tech/internet business type. I love also travel around the world. I have been in Japan for 1 year.
Hi everyone!
My name is May Kwan but you can call me May I am from Malaysia~
So, I just came to Japan back in Mar 17 so it had been almost 5 months now! Time does flies fast~
Came here for work but looking forward to explore Japan in more in depth. I love travelling & meeting new people.
If there is anyone based in Yokohama, do give me a shout-out! hehe
Hello,
My name is Lucas, and I have moved from Rio (Brazil) to Tokyo a month ago. Just got an apartment in Shinjuku-ku, close to Higashi-Nakano / Ochiai.
I work for the Tokyo2020 Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, and will probably be here for the next 3 years or so.
Very interested in learning Japanese asap… also, always up for a beer!
Natto is… ‘exotic’. As for sports, running is my favorite (from 5k to Marathon).
Actually, I am going to Summer Sonic festival this weekend solo, so let me know in case you are also going.
Cheers!
My name is TD Taylor.
I used to live in Okinawa several years ago. I lived there for 4 years and visited Tokyo very often.
I am traveling back to Tokyo in May 2018 with my wife and children to show my children where they were born.
We loved the coffee shops and the just basic sightseeing.
Top tip(s): Be polite, and do not be afraid to ask questions (even in English - since surprisingly, MANY people speak (limited) English - enough to explain something).
We will be landing at Narita on 16 May, Traveling to Shinjuku from Airport. Traveling around Tokyo on 16-17 May.
Traveling to Station 5 at Mt Fuji on 18 May, and then to Narita on 21 May.
Economically speaking, Should I purchase 6 JR Tokyo 3 day passes and then 2 Suica cards for the other 2 days?
Hello everyone! ️
My name is Tanvi Talwar, I have just arrived in Japan a few days ago from India and I am loving every second even though its super cold.
I have come to visit my sister who is a student at Soka University in Hachioji.
I am a visual artist and short film maker by profession. I love food and traditional arts and crafts! My idea of fun is exploring spaces, meeting new people and drawing everything I see. I’m very new to this website and I like it already! Some great tips and articles! Thank you team TC!
I just tried natto a few days ago and it really wasn’t as bad as I had expected!
My question: Does anyone know of any immersive 2 to 3 day workshops in traditional arts? Like woodblock Printmaking, block printing, painting, intermediate origami or calligraphy?
Thank you!
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Welcome Tanvi!
We have an article with an overview of some cultural experiences, a few of those might be what you’re looking for:
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Thank you so much! I had not seen the article.
Jill here…
I’m currently living in southern Edogawa and absolutely love it here!
I got to Japan about 8 months ago, but have been busy with my Japanese studies and work.
I’m here on a sabbatical from my high school teaching job in order to learn Japanese. After 10 years of teaching, I wanted to have some fun learning something new and also see what it’s like to learn something from scratch now that we have Internet resources etc. So I’m currently studying at a language school full time. It also happened to be a great way to challenge myself and work on my memory which I fear may begin to fail me as I get older. So, I’m really enjoying Kanji.
For fun I like to follow the weekend tips from Tokyocheapo and go to various cultural events. When you live in a city, you hardly ever go touristing, but when you visit for a shorter period of time you tend to do so much more.
My big tip is meetup.com. There are so many groups that meet there almost every evening in Tokyo, that you could be out every night if you want. Everyone really wants to learn English more, so everyone is really open to striking up conversations. Also a second maybe even bigger tip is avoid Tokyo during the summer. If you come from a colder climate like I do, you will suffer immensely!
I actually like natto. Yes, it has a weird consistency but it’s quite nice. Admittedly, it’s not something that I buy on my own, but I won’t say no to it either.
I’ve lived now in 3 major world cities: Washington DC, Stockholm, and now Tokyo and I think Tokyo is one of the safest I’ve lived in. Although Stockholm is quite close as well and 3/4ths of DC is as well.
Weeellllll, thats my 自己紹介 (self introduction)!
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Hi mrkirkland and all,
I am Rebecca. I currently live in Boston Massachusetts. I am will travel to Japan in the middle of May. This is my first time to Japan. I just start to search information about Japan through Tokyocheapo.com. Form this website, I found out about JR pass.
Can you advise me which train pass should I have, JR 7 day pass or E-Voucher for Kyoto Bullet Train Non-Reserved Seats Ticket Package including 1-Day Subway & Bus Pass for the following trip?
Tokyo - Kyoto -Hakone- Tokyo within 7 days
Thank you!
Rebecca