In this installment I taught youño cóhow to use the Metro in Japón so that you don't get lost in trying to understand the best means of transportation in this country.ís.
I made this tutorial during the trip to this beautiful countryís in December 2019 and january 2020, but it arrivedó the pandemic and you know what happenedó afterés. Now that Japón has been opened to the world again, I am going to reactivate these publications that I haveíprepared for everyone.
So that what happens to many tourists who visit does not happen to you. Japón for the first time it happens to them, I created this guíWhat can I help you with?á to understand the Metro, thanks to my experience in this país.
After having visited the cities of Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto y Nara, the subway and bullet train were my más used means of transportation in this countryís, it's not fáeasy to understand, but it's not impossible either.
This guyíto beá very greatáfica and the best way to use the Metro in Japanón is with Google Maps, without forgetting to previously download the map of the destination city and have permanent connectivity for it to work, since without Internet, Google Maps not show youá transportation optionsúblico.
Cóhow to use the Metro in Japanón
1. Select route
First in Google Maps we will define our departure and arrival points. For this particular tutorial we will leave from one of the hotels where we are staying in Tokyo heading to Haneda International Airport..
After entering the points and selecting transportation público, all available options are presented, time, connections and cost in yen. It is important to set the time you expect to start the trip., since secún that varyán widely options.
Spaghettiécan'tán see the subway and bus or mixed options, what a dutyán measure in time/money benefit.
2. Start the trip
The 90% of trips the startás on foot, so it is important to choose the optionówhat más convenient, sometimes walk a littleás will help youá to save money or limit the trip in general, everything isá in whatever you want. In my case, afterés from walking so much (some 100 kilómeters throughout the trip) the opción was always the one that involved the least walking.
In this example I choseí use the Ginza Line and connect with Asakusa Line, since from where I was there was noíand optionsódirect to the airport, so that's a good tip, look for a hotel that allows you to get between those two points on a train, thinking about the transfer with suitcases.
3. Understanding all the informationón de Google Maps
Once we did the fácil, let's get to the complex, understand all the informationón that Google Maps gives us. In the image below numberé la informationón and I explain it belowón:
- Your selected departure point and departure time.
- The time to walkás to the stationósubway no..
- The name of the stationón to enterás. The name is alwaysá outside the stationón in japanés and in Latin alphabet.
- The name of the límetro line that you should use. In this case Ginza Line, what will serve youá as information for when you enter the metro stop to be able to follow the instructionsñinternal ales towards the líline you selected.
- This information is key: is the informationón of the platform from which it will comeá your train, In this case the Platform 2. This informationóI will not serve youá so as not to make a mistakeíno sense of directionón to which you should go. Some trains have the word Local and it will help youá to know which one to get on, since some may say semi express or express. The locals stop at all the stops on the línea, very important.
- Tells you the times of the next available trains and the time at which to passán for the stop you are going to. Spaghettiéthere is no arrow > where canás see all the train options and their schedules that take you to your destination.
- Indicates you witháso much demand you can expect, to plan whether to goájust standing or sitting, key if you go with large suitcases.
- Important to take the vagónumber of subway you should take to reduce connection timeón and walk. In this case he recommends that I get on the 6. Remember that there are some wagons that are used úonly for women.
- You can see whatámany stops dutyás travel on that subway and if you open the informationócan'tás see the names of the stops, this information beingón key to see if it isás going in the directionón correct.
- Name of the stop where you should get off.
- Estimated time of arrival at your final destination and travel time.
4. Connecting with another línea
If your trip is direct point to point, With the data above you did it, but if you must change trains andínea, there are más points to review:
- Afterés to get off at Nihombashi, in that same stationón we will look for the new línea.
- We go to the Akasuka Line towards Haneda Airport, so we will look for that líline at the stationón and we will go to the Platform 1 and we will get on the subway that says Express (couldíthere are still other trains, pero más slow because they stop más).
- Depending on the train we get, recommends that we vagón get on for an exit from the stationón más ráask.
- Important point: This is one of the main complications of using the subway in Japanón. Some trains begin the journey with a color and name, in this case the Akasuka Line will transformá, That is why it tells us that first we must move forward 6 stops, until we get to the stationón Sengakuji.
- at the stationón Sengakuji the same train he is onáwe were going to changeá of name of theínea a Keikyu Main Line, so Google Maps clearly tells us Remain on board, Don't get off the train when I say this, couldíto be confused, but if you follow and read the instructions you will not haveás problems.
To add mápossible confusion, in this case, there is a new train name change before arriving at the airport afterés to move forward 5 stops:
- Afterés de 5 stops on the same train and línea, this changes to Keykyu Airport Line, but don't get off the train.
- Only missing 5 stops to get there.
- Final station nameón in which we will get off.
- I was instructedón final, walk for a minute looking for the Hanedakuukou Houmen exit
You arrived at your destination, I hope without losing you, It is certainly different from the subway systems that mayíwe love to be used to Latinoamérica, where language is the main barrier, but reading and concentratingágoing a lot, achieve itán to such a point that it reachesán to be experts laterés of a by of díace and get lost a little.
Cost
It depends on each city, of the time and distance traveled.
- Base value from 180 yen (about $1.80 dóhomes) upwards by section, paying almost $4 dóhomes.
- I recommend purchasing the JR Pass if your trip is from máximo a week in japón, saveáit's enough money (if you take advantage of it) since it includes unlimited trips on the líJR lines including the bullet train.
Additional considerations
- Google tooéI won't tell youá becauseé exit from the stationón go up to the street, they generally have núgroupers or tur point namesístatic, but some líneas no and the name will beá in japanés, the solutionón recommended is to leave at the door más close to the surface or use Google Translator.
- I knowñalizationón of lílines at each stop is más fáeasy to follow by color and by the initials of the línea like G for Ginza Line you will find itás everywhere to guide you.
- SpaghettiéWe went to Osaka and Kyoto, where can we say the meter is not so fáeasy to understand that in Tokyo, but the base is the same, although there will beá to put a little más of attentionón in the configurationón of lísubway lines and stop names.
- Finally, if they use the líneas the JR Pass, These stops and trains are the least tourist friendly, surprisingly., for the context of this service, but with a little concentrationón and understanding Google Maps directions well, achieve itán.
I hope this guide helps you a lot.ía about cóhow to use the subway in Japanón and if you have any other questions, I will be happy to help youé.
