Japan on a budget
 

This little report is aimed at people who want to travel Japan on a budget,
if you are looking at a short holiday on two wheels and don't mind spending big bucks, many things here might not apply to you, but you are of course welcome to read it anyway :)

A bit of context, I missed Japan on my round the world travels for financial reasons, but I really wanted to travel this country extensively, so now, a few years after I was standing at the port of Vladivostok with my Honda Transalp and went to Bangkok instead of Japan, I needed a bike.

https://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hu...1&d=1561353679
Red line is the current 10 week 11500km trip, blue line is a previous trip on a bike borrowed from a friend.

Buying a bike
Before looking into buying I checked rental prices, for a 3 months rental of a CRF250L I was first quoted 9000 usd, 6000 usd was the lowest they would go after some discussion. For this money I can almost buy two brand new ones. No thanks.
I was always under the impression that buying a motorcycle on a tourist visa is not possible, I was wrong, but almost nobody knows about it.

There are three things you will need
A) A letter from your embassy (in Japan!) that certifies your signature. Here is what the US version of the document looks like: https://japan2.usembassy.gov/pdfs/wwwfsign.pdf (if it states your address to be at the fixer in point C it makes things possibly easier)

B) A valid international driving license, likely needs to be translated to Japanese (can be done easily for a fee at JAF offices, sometimes takes an hour, when busy -> next day)

C) A fixer (or how good is your japanese? :p)
The one I recommend here (the only one I know that offers this), will do basically everything for you. John (and his wife) at Apexmoto (sales@apexmoto.jp or https://www.facebook.com/ApexmotoInc)
For me it worked like this:
You tell John what kind of bike you are after and what your budget is, there are big auctions every week so it's good to give him a few weeks advance notice
You pay around 20% deposit of the expected buy price
John will send you a few emails with bikes on offer or you can check the auction website yourself (he will give you access).
At some point he will have made a purchase (you are buying more or less blind and trust him to make a good call)
In my case he got me a Honda CRF250L with 6600km and lots of extras for 350.000 yen (~3230 usd), this included his fee for sourcing it. He will also ask if you want anything done to it (oil change, phone holder...)
You now pay the outstanding amount of your new bike.
You fly to Tokyo, get the required documents (can be done in a day, but better allow two).
You take a train/bus to somewhere close to Apexmoto and wait for John to pick you up.
Someone (likely John's wife) will bring you to the bike registration place, in my case it took about an hour and I had papers in my name and a brand new number plate. Note, not many people in Japan know tourists can buy bikes, so some confusion is possible. Plates and service did cost a bit less than 200usd for me (might depend on bike size, not sure).
You go back to the shop, screw your number-plate on, do all the other preparations (attach your luggage...), meanwhile John's wife will get your mandatory motorcycle insurance ready (I think mine cost only ~25$/month). Health/Travel insurance can also be arranged, but I already had.
You ride off and have a wonderful trip.


Size matters, it's important to know that above 250cc there are tight vehicle checks (like the British MOT, German TUV...) that could potentially make things more complicated/expensive. Less than 125cc you are not allowed on highways and many tunnels/bridges, you are basically treated like a bicycle.
When taking ferries or paying tolls there are three classes, <= 125cc, 126-750cc and >750cc. I would have chosen a 250cc bike anyway but it's important to know that the engine size will also determine other factors/costs of your trip.


Selling a bike
The best and easiest way would probably be to bring the bike back to Apexmoto, they will take care of the paperwork and put it up for auction then remit the money minus commission once sold. I didn't go this way as my onward flight was from Osaka and I didn't want to carry all my stuff from Apexmoto to Osaka. I did almost regret that decision as I found it hard to get the bike on japanese auction websites and dealers would give me almost nothing for it (150k).
In the end Apexmoto found me a customer near Osaka and we managed to get the paperwork done within an hour at his closest transport department (buyer spoke good Japanese).
Sold for 250k minus commission, cheaper than the prices I saw online (~300k) but I didn't have much time left, so was happy about this deal.


Budget
My usual goal is to spend not much more than 1000$ per month, depending on the country that means camping and also cooking myself.
A huge reason why I love Japan so much is the food and drinking culture, something I wasn't willing to skip to keep my budget. Just did a rough calculation and I come out at 480$ per week (includes everything but the bike purchase itself), which is almost exactly what I had aimed for.
Never touched a frying pan and didn't have too much convenience store food + about 2 beers per day on average.
Most money was spent on Food/Beer, some for fuel and other road charges and not too much for accommodation.

Traffic
You ride on the left, people are generally driving very careful with a few exceptions in the big urban centers.
Traffic limits are extremely low but nobody seems to care about these, it's not uncommon to go more than twice the speed limit, I've seen two mobile speed cams and lots of road monitoring electronics, but most are not to check for speed violations (i hope :D). My personal strategy is to ride in a way that I feel is safe for everyone.

Tolls
If you use express-ways you have to expect to pay 2 or 3 times of your fuel costs additional in tolls, it's extremely expensive even for bikers.
Bring enough time then you don't have to take express-ways, but riding through the massive urban areas in central Japan isn't fun either with stop-lights every 200m, either way it sucks, so try to stay out of urban areas as much as you can.
There are some bridges that cost big bucks too, most notably the ones that link the Island of Shikoku with Honshu, I was shocked to get a 25usd bill after crossing one of these bridges.
Also Japan has a lot of "skylines", scenic roads built for the purpose of tourism (i think), they cost between 300-1000 yen (3-10$). Racing bikes usually come to those and go up and down for hours, I paid for a few but it was mostly not worth it for me. It's for people who love curvy roads, scenery isn't that spectacular or can be had for free in the same area.

Roads
Condition of most roads is excellent, unfortunately in all parts except Hokkaido it's very difficult to find a dirt-road that actually lead somewhere.
Get used to road blocks, Japan has a huge network of roads, but many have been closed for various reasons (natural disasters, unused, constructions...), you might not know till you hit a proper fence and have to go back.
Also don't expect any real adventurous roads like along cliffs without guardrails... Japan's safety standards are very high, so everything too exciting gets fenced off properly. Check dangerousroads.org for Japan to get an idea what is considered exciting here.
Having said that, there are many really beautiful rides and of course you can try things like "getting as close as possible" to an active volcano, riding roads that are known to have many bears roaming around, or just to go as remote as possible from civilization.

Holidays
There are certain holidays where the country is fully booked with basically not a single bed left. Golden Week probably the most notable which lasted a record 10 days this year but is usually around 5 days. Hide, don't do anything in these days, or just ride some remote roads but don't try to go to a museum or anything that a Japanese family could think of doing. There are also times where the big cities get fully booked by foreigners coming in for Cherry blossom or Autumn leaves viewing. Beware of Olympics 2020!!!

Food
...is excellent. Try as much as you can, amazing raw fish, Japanese style bbq, regional specialties, convenience store snacks, udon, soba, tempura, curry....
a glass of delicious draft beer is usually around 500 yen (~5 usd) in a restaurant, 200-300 yen for a big can in a supermarket.
There is zero tipping, but some bars might have a table charge which is very uncool if you want to bar-hop.
A good lunch set sets you back around 650-1000 yen (6-10usd).
For evening food I usually pay around 1000 yen (10usd) + beers.

Language
If you get off the tourist trail almost nobody will be able to speak English with you. Most could have an okay conversation with you by text chatting but Japanese people are extremely shy/inexperienced about speaking/hearing English. More tech-savvy Japanese would get out google translate very quick to talk with you (it works well but I personally dislike it). Restaurant menus are often Japanese only, sometimes without pictures and even the prices are in Japanese alphabet. What I do in this situation is go on google maps and check the pictures that have been posted for this place, if someone else is eating something that looks good I point at that. If you are not vegetarian etc. you can be sure whatever you order is good, you just might not know what it is or how to eat it properly :D


Route planning
There are a few google maps overlays that really helped me:
1) Best Motorcycle Rides:
A guy named Warren who has ridden his bike all over the country made a map for himself with notes about certain roads, he loves curvy rides so this seems his main factor for classification but with the comments he wrote in many of the roads it's an invaluable resource https://www.motorcycleparadise.net/2...-in-japan.html

2) Free Camping and Onsen Map
Another Google maps overlay can be found on this facebook group:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/wildcampingjapan/
Direct Link to the overlay: https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewe....Tnen48lI5NCn7w
It's an excellent collection of reststations, free camping spots and hotsprings. Some are out of date but mostly it's accurate.

3) Riders houses (Hokkaido only)
An outdated list but if you find one that is still operational chances are high you will have a very good time:
https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer...txGgE&hl=en_US

4) iOverlander
I've put some spots in there and I hope to add quite a few more in the next few days.

Sleep
There are several options,
a hostel dormitory will cost between 15-30 usd.
A private room more like 40usd-60usd, in rare cases ~30usd.
Free official camp spots, these are usually really nice, maintained by the district/town offering toilets and sometimes other facilities.
Michi-no-ekis, these are rest-stations all over Japan that usually have free WiFi, toilets, restaurants, local produce and people in cars are allowed to overnight/rest there. Tents are not seen very often and probably not wanted but if I couldn't find anything else I would just pitch late at a flat spot and leave before the main buildings would open in the morning.
Free camping, this was my absolute favorite, there are amazing camp spots to be found, officially it's illegal to camp in non-designated spots but if you are polite about it you should have no problems, neither with locals nor police. Small parks near towns can be nice, especially the ones at the ocean. After dark there is usually nobody around. I often used the piers that fishermen use for fishing at night, they sometimes put up a tent for a nap themselves. If you go for the spots that are visible to others make sure there is a toilet close by, I think this gives the locals a better feeling that you will leave "without a trace".
There are of course also paid camp-grounds, not expensive (~5$), but they lacked character most of the time, I only used a couple.

Convenience Stores
7/11, FamilyMart, Lawson are everywhere, many have small tables inside and some even outlets to recharge your phone. All of them have clean high-tech toilets, 99% of all toilets I used where in convenience stores. My morning procedure after camping would be to find a store with tables and outlets, get some drink, a snack and recharge batteries plus do the route planning for the day.
They also have free WiFi but it's often restricted in usage time.


Mobile Internet
I don't plan ahead much so having internet everywhere really makes my life easier.
Best offers you will get at the Airports when you come in, so do your research which one is a good package for you before you arrive.
Expect to pay around 60$ for 3 months 10GB internet sim. Getting a local phone number is rather complicated, better to use something like google call/skype call... Being able to call a number can be helpful when you go to a city and need to find out if there is some space to park the bike.
I have an american phone so my frequencies are rather strange and Softbank as the carrier behind was much better than NTT Docomo.

Time of the year
My trip started 4th of April and ended mid June (Visa is 3 months for most people).
I would say this was almost perfect, I had some very cold nights at the beginning (-3 degrees/26 Fahrenheit) but as I was heading South it started to get warmer very soon. I had Sakura (cherry blossom) time for more than two weeks, everything looked really nice and contrary to my expectation it wasn't horribly overrun by tourists coming specifically for this time. I had rainy days but weather forecasts are really accurate so I planned some indoor rest days once I saw it would turn bad, almost never had to ride in the rain. I arrived Hokkaido in the North on the last day of May and spent around 10 days, unfortunately with quite a bit of rain and cold temperatures. June is the beginning of the rainy season on Honshu but Hokkaido is usually dry and nice at that time. This year was a bit weird, also they had new heat records just a week before I arrived. There were still very enjoyable sunny days.


Things to see
My main interest are nice roads, good views, free onsen (hot springs), lively drinking spots and abandoned places.
Temples, Castles and other typical sights I only visited if I saw a nice photo opportunity and it was right in front of me.
(but this was also my second trip to Japan and I saw many of those on the first one)
If you are into history and other things I'm sure Japan will satisfy you as well.

More
Warren of MotorcycleParadise has written an extensive guide about riding in Japan here: https://www.motorcycleparadise.net/2...wo-wheels.html
It's not exactly budget travel, but contains lots and lots of good information.


Many pictures and stories can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/veely.red
I'm on Instagram too but not many pictures of Japan on there yet: @moritzontheroad

There would be a lot more to write about but the thing that I'm really missing on this trip is computer-time and I'm continuing travels to Hawaii->LasVegas and possibly Alaska this summer so won't have much time in the next few months either.

Good reading bier

Great post. Conveyor belt sushi is also a great tip to have cheap sushi :)

The free camp sites are great. Especially on 2 wheels you can use all of them. On 4 wheels a bit less.

Where is the second picture taken?

Thanks for posting- photos look amazing bier

I did use this for accommodation: https://www.hatinosu.net/

I love conveyor belt sushi, especially up in Hokkaido.

The lake is Lake Toya, the picture with the road is around Aso volcano on Kyushu.

Great. I really liked the roads around Aso area, but did not see that road that you took.

What is also great is to go to beaches outside the summer season. For Japanese it is not ideal conditions to swim so they don't go. But outside summer it is not so hot and humid, so that is better to me. On East side of Kyushu, in November, we had a whole bay with a stunning beach to ourselves for 4 days. It was awesome. Weather was really nice, just quite some waves (which you don't have in summer)

OMG!

This must be karma or something else.

I have just got back from our fourth family trip to Japan and we hired a camper. Loved it. In a few years we will retire and wanted to use the new 12 month tourist visa (you need 30million yen in savings) and tour the country but couldnt for the life of me work out how to get a bike (or even a camper) for while we are there.

You have answered my question and I now consider you a legend! beer

Seriously. Thanks man! bier

Here is the link to the visa I was talking about

https://www.mofa.go.jp/ca/fna/page22e_000738.html

The michi no eki network as hellcoder mentioned are really really good.

We used them with our camper all over Tohoku. The michinoeki app is really good as well. There is a filter to choose ones with showers or onsen attached.

Highly recommend using the onsen's. The naked thing is no biggie and its a great place to chat with more adventurous Japanese who have can speak some english.

The rural michinoeki's would be fine to erect a tent on dusk as are many of the parks in Japan. I follow a bicycle touring guy who camped all over Japan using parks and was only questioned by security once.

Also, if you can learn the letters for Katakana (there actually syllabaries) it really makes getting around easier as they are used for borrowed words like gasoline and cafe etc.

Love Japan

:)

Very nice!

Japan on a bike is on my bucket list! (I have spent some time in Japan as tourist already)

I would do it on two maxi scooters if possible. Did you see some?

Strapped together? bier

There are amazing big scooters in Japan and I saw heaps in Hiroshima. Some look like star wars speeders!

Hello


¥108 per plate for 2 nigiri or 6 maki :D:thumbup1:

I' ve been in Japan as a backpacker, with my XT660Z and my bicycle (actually a recumbent trike).


Backpacking is just ****.
Bicycle is great/cheap to transport there and gives you a reason to eat, eat and eat. But no fun on the hills and Japan consists mostly of hills.
The motorbike is the best way to travel.


Thank you for posting your methode on how to get a local bike.


sushi

[QUOTE=Homers GSA;601744]Strapped together? bier

There are amazing big scooters in Japan and I saw heaps in Hiroshima. Some look like star wars speeders!

Ha ha no my So and I on two seperate maxi scooters

[QUOTE=jfman;601794]
Awesome!




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

A couple of details to add to this excellent thread.

Camping
-In neither the free camping nor the paid camping you will find a shower. I spend time in the Onsen OR i hide out in the handicapped washroom in the MishiNoEki with a bar of soap and my washcloth.

HOKKAIDO
-the Hokkaido only version of 7/11, FamilyMart, Lawson is called SeicoMart. There (to date for us) is no wifi or sitting area. But they have Kentucky Fried chicken style snacks.

Speaking as someone who lives here ful time and rides and camps all the time and all over Japan I can say with 100% certainty that the statement is not entirely true at all.
I would say 60% of the free camp sites do not have showers while 40% do
But there has only been 1 been a paid camp ground with no shower and hat was a prefectorial campground in Ehime in Shikoku.
Every other paid camp ground I have stayed at has showers. Now they may still be a paid shower but they are there.

We campervan around japan every couple of years and stay at Michi no Eki but use the app to filter those with onsen attached or nearby.

Have you free camped overnight in parks?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

And sometimes there are MichiNoEkis that have a coin shower. But that is a bit rare.

I prefer to use the Onsens anyway. But they are not always available in the area where you are, or sometimes for a high price.

The short answer is Yes.
The slightly longer answer is depends on what kind of park and where. Some parks in certain times of year it is ok and many it is not.

Onsen are great and you can find them or a cento ( bath house) in many places.
The least I can recall paying for an Onsen was about 350 yen where the most expensive one I have visited was 1,000 yen.

Hah! Thats so funny. Well, good to know there are showers out there. We found one in a Riders House (train) in the rain of Hokkaido after 1 month of camping. Thought we hit the lotto. We have seen more free use washing machine than showers.

A few more details regarding to this great thread.

KM PER DAY
Its hard to roll up many kms per day. On the other hand there is plenty to see, so there is no real need to do so. But traffic, stoplights and grannies that stop suddenly and park in the middle of the road all serve to hinder forward progress.

In Hokkaido it is possible to get 300km in a day. Lots of nature, twisties and long straight fast sections help. There is less urban areas and more foxes (and a few bears and deer). In fact, local Japanese riders come expressly to stretch their motolegs cuz they can't in the south. That and cheap Rider Houses help.

Meanwhile in the south, the stoplights every 800m, the heat and humidity all press down, and I found 200 km a good target. There are, however, plenty of great zigzag roads where we could roll at 75kph nicely (yes it is speeding, i just kept up with the locals) I never looked for them, but MapsMe found them. There must be many.)

If you do feel the need to eat up the kms, probably best to do it early, between 5am and 10am. It is easy since the sun wakes you at 0430hrs and shopping starts at 10hrs. The local Japanese riders in the RH all bail early, most likely since they have been asleep since sundown dark 18hrs.

GIFTS
The Japanese are said to be timid and correct. On the other hand we find folks open and ready to laugh big. Maybe we get a pass as a tourist Gaijin but one that has made an effort to come on personal transport.

Parents usher their kids to welcome us and offer sweets on ferries. We have dined and beered at campings.

People rush to find and offer us food, tea, sauna towels, second-hand origami, stickers, tomatoes, apples... One beach sunset we shared some boiled peas and a wiskey. One hot humid miserable afternoon at a MichiNoEki we gratefully accepted an ice cream.

Several folks have come just to practice french with us. And they love the group selfie idea, its payment enough.

As we stand outside*7eleven*for the free WiFi, people come out with coffees… all interested in our bikes and what we’re doing. Cool.

GARBAGE
Camping and periodically making meals (rather than eating bento chez 7eleven) I generate lots of garbage.

Japan is not so ecolo. Every thing is triple wrapped in a plastic bag box and wrapper. So garbage is big. But everything is super separated including bottle cap and bottle label has a bin. (The number of people who are sleeping in their car, motor running for A/C is shocking).

So the best likelihood of finding a garbage can is at the convenience store, but it's not guaranteed. In some municipalities, you return your garbage to the store who sold you the stuff/bottle/bag.

It was particularly difficult in Hokkaido where the campings and Rider Houses had clear signs to 'take your garbage with you.' Difficult for the riders.

OIL CHANGE
I have done one and very shortly I will be doing another, so much is the zigzagging to see the sights.

Turns out that all the 'Home Center' style stores carry acceptable oil (Honda10w30, Yamalube 10w40 as well as other known western brands like Castrol)

Best of all, for 3 euros they sell an oil drain box. A cardboard box, plastic lined and filled with recycled absorbent material. You drain the crank directly, and then the box gets closed and goes into the combustables bin. So easy.

ELECTRICITY
Turns out that just plugging into a socket to charge your phone or other electronics is considered theft. I tried one time in an onsen and got the magic eye. On one ferry every available socket was taped over. Ive seen plenty of NO PLUG IN signs.

There are opportunities however. In some of the convenience stores they have a table to sit and take yout meal, and they often have sockets available. (110v type 2 prong).

However when camping it is hard. Next to the distributing machines is an outside socket that looks like a plastic box. Sometimes you can find this type of box on the outside back wall of the toilet block.

Failing that it may be possible to find the plug that connects to the washlets or the automatic sink (they all need power) - if you tuck up your wires and gear you might get away with it.

Maybe best is to just ask to plug in.

This is such a good thread, a great summary of a wonderful place, I thought I would compile/list some great resources for travel in Japan:

Here are some of the sites i used:

https://www.motorcycleparadise.net/2...wo-wheels.html
top info. Warren deserves kudos.

https://www.madornomad.com/guides/asia/japan/
great blog info. Also other countries. Was current until everything is on covid lockdown.
https://www.madornomad.com/resources...ycle-shipping/

https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel...m_information/

Information for overlanders | Japan on two wheels
aka
inmate chris of japan
https://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hu...chris-of-japan

https://www.japan-guide.com/

https://en.m.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Main_Page

Facebook Gaijinriders

https://www.japan-guide.com/news/alerts.html

https://www.rental819.com/english/traffic-rules/

Free camping and Michi no eki map. Very nice resource.
https://m.facebook.com/groups/1492385404393013/

Here is a rough copy/paste:
Map for FREE CAMPING, FREE HOT SPRINGS and MICHI-NO-EKI's (Roadside stations) all over Japan.<br><br>Icons explanation on this link -> https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?f...gm.17433138826 33496&type=3<br><br>Before you start...<br>The locations contained within this map are the result of months of hard working with city local authorities, tourists associations and also from travelers adding new locations from within this map.<br><br>Don't forget to subscribe to: Free Hot Springs and Free Camping in Japan https://www.facebook.com/groups/wildcampingjapan/ <br>and our group of cycling touring and hiking in Japan: https://www.facebook.com/groups/alt.2600/<br><br>If you like the map, contribute by adding a new location yourself like an undiscovered spot, your best interesting place or reporting an issue via our facebook group (Please send us the address or coordinates). <br><br>We also have a Cycling Touring Hiking and Friends in Japan group:<br>https://www.facebook.com/groups/alt.2600/ <br><br>The map also includes onsens under JPY500 and hostels up to JPY3,500 and around 1000 "Michi no Eki". <br>Michi-no-Eki means “Roadside Station” in Japanese. The Michi-no-Eki system was launched 20 years ago to create a safe, comfortable road traffic environment, and unique, lively spaces that showcased the individuality of a region.<br>Each Michi-no-Eki has three distinct features:<br>“Refresh” – Rest facilities that include free 24-hour parking and restrooms.<br>“Community” – Regional co-operation where cultural centers, tourist attractions, recreation and other local development facilities promote interaction with the region. “Information” – Where road, tourist and emergency care information is readily available.<br>Free Wi-Fi, toilets, shops, restaurants, parkings, information centers, fax, credit cards, post offices, some with camping and onsen, and much more!<br><br>Japan is usually perceived as a very expensive country to visit; however, it is actually very possible to travel in Japan on a very tight budget. Perhaps the biggest way of massively cutting down your expenses is to do wild camping. You can effectively reduce your travel costs to food and admission fees alone.<br><br>As per my knowledge wild camping on public land is theoretically illegal and wild camping on private <br>property requires the landowner's permission. My personal opinion is that, if you pitch up a tent or even sleep on a bench in an out-of-the-way place so that you don't disturb anybody and don't make a <br>mess, you're unlikely to be disturbed either. <br><br>1) Here are some tips from other sites:<br><br>- Pitch your tent late and head out early. <br>- Respect for the interests of other people. <br>- Act with courtesy, consideration and awareness. <br>- Care for the environment. <br>- Take responsibility for your actions. Remember that the outdoors cannot be made risk free. <br>- Act with care at all times for your own safety and that of others and be as discreet and as <br><br>unobtrusive as you can. <br>- It should also be noted that you should try to be nomad as much as possible, i.e. stay no more than 2<br><br>-3 consecutive nights at one place.<br>- If police ask you to move – then do so, and ask them where it would be OK to camp for the night. They <br><br>should be friendly – especially to a tourist who is only at that spot for one night. (Living 25yrs in <br><br>Japan, I've never heard about whats the fine for wild camping)<br>- On private properties always ask for permission to landowner's.<br>- Look after the places you visit and enjoy and leave the land as you find it. <br><br>Fortunately, you can benefit from the "foreigner factor", which makes everyone much more tolerant of <br><br>you. However, it is a good idea to keep in mind that you are indeed doing an activity that stands on the <br><br>margins of society, and so you should strive to be as discreet and respectful as possible when camping, <br><br>so as to give the idea that you are a respectful traveler rather than a rude foreigner trying to <br><br>freeload off Japan and its people.<br><br>2) Rural Areas<br>Small towns' public parks will almost always be perfect. However, there are a few other possible ways to <br><br>sleep in rural areas. <br><br>- In rural areas, you can often find shrines at such places, make yourself known to the neighbors first. <br><br>Shrines are always open (as opposed to temples which usually close for the night), usually empty, and <br><br>they give a terrain for you to sleep on. <br><br>- Even though temples close for the night, it is usually possible to sleep in the parking lot of the <br><br>temples (if it is a rural temple). If you arrive at a temple and there is someone there (a monk or <br><br>someone tending the grounds), you can ask them if there is anywhere you can sleep. Sometimes, they will <br><br>direct you to the parking lot and they will let you use the temple's facilities. Obviously, if they tell <br><br>you that you cannot sleep there, be respectful and don't sleep in the parking lot. <br><br>- Michi-no-eki (meaning "Road Station") are rest stops on the side of the road all over Japan. There are <br><br>always toilets, vending machines, etc. You can almost always find rest huts there. Some michi-no-eki are <br><br>open 24h so you can sometimes sleep inside. <br><br>- If there is really nothing available, you can usually sleep in empty, out-of-the-way parking lots. <br><br>- In rural Japan, pretty much anywhere where you do not bother other people or step on private property <br><br>is a good spot (ex: shore, beach, forest, under a bridge...). Note that fields are private property and <br><br>by sleeping there you also destroy people's fields, which is not very nice.<br><br>- There are over 3,000 campsites all over Japan with prices ranging from 200 to 1,000 yen per night <br><br>(*Some of them for free) <br><br>3) Washing yourself<br>For washing yourself, there are a few methods. <br><br>- Public parks and toilets<br><br>- If the weather is warm, you can wash in public parks, using available water. Sometimes the parks have <br><br>toilets for handicapped people, which usually consist of a room with a toilet and sink, and is lockable; <br><br>very convenient for washing ! <br><br>- Public baths and onsen<br><br>- If it's cold outside or you do not want to wash in public parks or toilets, you can go to onsen (hot <br><br>springs) or sento (public baths). In practice there is no real difference between the two, so just ask <br><br>for the cheapest (they are usually around 400 yen). <br><br>- Internet cafes. In the big internet cafes there are sometimes showers available. They are usually free <br><br>(if you also use the computers) but there is some fee. By the way, almost all Internet Cafes "unlimited <br><br>free drinks" policy! <br><br>4) Washing your clothes<br><br>- For washing your clothes, you can do it by hand or find laundromats (coin laundry), which can be found <br><br>pretty much anywhere.<br><br><br>Note: This procedure has worked well for me, but despite of our best efforts it is possible that some <br>information of this group may be inaccurate, incomplete or out of date, so please contact in advance to ensure availability and use at your own risk. I'm not responsible for the use and accuracy of these information. Thank you for your understanding.<br><br>Enjoy!<br>james<br><br>Note: <br>Do not copy and edit without written permission.<br>Copy Rights James Oda (alt.2600.jp@gmail.com)

Camping sites (use Google auto translate)
https://www.nap-camp.com/

Rentals
https://www.advrider.com/f/threads/j...-2022.1552199/