A blog on how we travel Japan
Subway halt On 11 March, 2.46pm Japanese local time, trains on major subway lines came to an emergency halt, as part of a training drill, and also as a reminder for the 8th anniversary of the 3.11 Tohoku Earthquake. The subway lines involved were from within Tokyo and surroundings, including the Metro line, Toei line, …
Zao Onsen is one of the most popular onsen town and ski resort in the Yamagata Prefecture. The highlight for every visitors is the Zao Snow Monsters – ice trees covered with heavy snow, also known as Juhyo. At the height of winter, as freezing winds rushes through the Zao mountain range, thick heavy snow gets …
This is the Hayabusa-Komachi Bullet train that runs along the Tohoku Shinkansen line. Both trains are connected at this end and runs as one train from Tokyo to Morioka. At Morioka station, the trains will take several minutes to disconnect. The green Hayabusa train then continue its journey towards Aomori (and now Shin-Hakodate) while the …
The Three Views of Japan Hello friends, today we would like to introduce to you our trips to 3 awesome places in Japan! There are many Top list of destinations in Japan. There are top three gardens, top three night views, top ten temples, top three snow festivals, and etc. But the most famous of …
Year 2011 was significant for JR Vacation as we commenced our first Japan vacation on that year and have never looked back since. I remembered receiving many worrying comments about the planned vacation as it took place just a few months after The Great East Japan Earthquake. Finally, on our 18th vacation to Japan, we …
We have the habit of relying on HyperDia – Japan transportation search engine system (you can learn how to use this superd transportation search engine here) to map out the recommended route for all our travels in Japan. During our recent trip, we were surprised to find “POKEMON TRAIN KESENNUMA” recommended by HyperDia for our returning …
After our maiden hike at Yamadera (you may refer to our previous post here), we ventured into another first time: a winter boat ride down the Satetsu River to view Geibikei Gorge in Iwate Prefecture. The 2 kilometer Geibikei Gorge is a designated “National Place of Scenic Beauty”, as well as one of the “100 …
Shortly after a warm welcome into 2018, JR Vacation reached a new milestone! We embarked on our first winter hike at Yamadera! It was an exhilarating experience, as well as one of the most memorable highlights of our recent Tohoku winter trip. A little background about Yamadera: Located northeast of Yamagata City, Yamadera (literally translated …
Japan is covered with a vast network of rails. Trains and buses can get you anywhere. For most of our trips, public transport is our preferred choice. But, self drive trips are fun and easy too. In one of our latest trip, we squeezed in a self driving experience covering areas in the Kansai region. …