Budget Before You Plan

A month and a half has gone by since I have arrived in Japan, and I can't even begin to recount all the new things I have experienced.  Though I must admit finding and making time to explore outside the prefecture we are staying in does take a lot of effort. As someone who can be extremely money conscious at times, I find myself less inclined to travel far due to the compounding costs of small expenses. As someone who is working with minimal money, I have had to find cheap ways to travel and cheap places to eat. The food part has been relatively easy due to the cheaper food prices in Japan, but the travel costs are almost unavoidable unless I want to walk a day to my destination. Unfortunately, for this IES Abroad program semester we were not allowed to buy or rent bikes to get around. This was definitely a highly disappointing fact to learn since I am positive that getting a bike would have seriously reduced to cost of travel by a lot. I digress, y'all are here to learn about the tips and tricks of living a cost-effective lifestyle whilst studying abroad and I am here to deliver! These tips will also just include general advice I have for travel as I feel it is useful insight.

1.  Take the morning trains to school

   When I say morning, I mean 6:30am morning. During the program we lived about a 45-minute train ride from school.  School officially started at 9am for me but after trying out a few train rides at different departure times I found that any train that left after 7am was packed to the brim with people. Since most people's workdays and school start around the same time people will generally leave around the same time. Not looking to breathe in another person's oxygen for 45-minutes I instead opted to take a train that departed at 6:50am instead.  Those ten minutes made all the difference between feeling someone's elbow in my side vs. sitting in an empty seat with only 10 other people in the train car. So, if you're down to wake up early in exchange for a peaceful train ride, I highly recommend doing so. After I got to school, I would use the extra time to sit in the school garden and peacefully read a book while drinking tea I bought from a vending machine. 

2. DO NOT TAKE A TAXI (It will drain your money like a vampire) 

   This is not from my own experience but from the multiple stories and accounts I have had the grace of hearing from. Taxi and Uber services in Japan are far more expensive than any other form of travel offered by the country. I've heard that for just an hour ride the cost had been close to $100 dollars. This may be due to the fact that using the services makes traveling faster and you are paying for the time to be cut down. Which does feel like a highly plausible idea, but in general I do not recommend utilizing Uber or taxi's when there is public transportation quite literally everywhere. Find the nearest train station or bus stop and save yourself a few dollars for that anime figure you've been eyeing. 

3.  Avoid tourist destinations 

   I know this sounds like a given but if you really want to save some money for your other hobbies do try to avoid the very popularized tourist places.  I find there are pros and cons to tourist destinations, albeit more cons than pros in my opinion when you really get down to the nitty gritty of it all. In highly tourist populated areas more people are probably going to be able to speak English (both a pro and a con depending on how comfortable you are with speaking Japanese). Though I highly recommend at least making an attempt to learn the language and hold a small interaction before entering any new country because it shows respect that you are doing your best to learn. At the same time in a highly populated tourist area the prices will be hiked way up, and it'll be like you never let the states in the first place. So, if you are able to and are looking to both save a penny or two and improve your language skills try to find somewhere with minimal to no tourists in the area. Then you will be able to find more homey food and get to feel more culturally immersed in Japan's actual culture and not some highly edited pandering.  

I have found that I have both saved a ton of money and have enjoyed myself a lot more when I venture out to lesser traveled areas. Often, I have found myself in a place where the locals don't really speak or understand English but boy is the food I find there so much tastier than what you'd find in a popular collab cafe.  If you're like me and stress about money at times I also highly recommend budgeting out how much you want to spend each month. It doesn't have to be concrete or absolute, you can use it as a guideline to have an idea of how much you are spending.  Plus, the occasional splurge is also needed when you are out an about. By that I mean any big trips you have planned or if you have a place in mind you want to go to. There is a fine balance between spending money for the heck or it and spending money because it's something you really want and or need. There are so many adorable and cute things in Japan and they always look so enticing to buy and bring home, at the same time I don't need five of the same things just because they are on sale.  So, in short, be smart and wise with how the money goes down the drain! 

Editor's Note: We're proud to amplify unfiltered student voices through our Correspondent program, recognizing that every study abroad adventure is unique. We value student feedback on their experiences, and we encourage students to collaborate closely with our Center staff regarding any questions or concerns as they may come up while abroad and adjusting to life in a new host city. Due to previous incidents involving students riding bicycles and differences in traffic laws, the Tokyo Center Staff advises students against using bicycles during their time abroad in Japan. Students with questions about health and safety before they depart should contact the Dean of Students Office at 800.995.2300.