Ask me any questions

[glabejut]

I guess the iternery may have changef for the past 5yrs. but I'm not going back to them or any agencies for any tours to Hokkaido or Japan.

Or any other countries for that matter haha

yea heard about a lot of scary stories. anyway what are the must buy stuffs over there? are the stuffs like dried scallops really much cheaper?

 

[cheefarn]

yea heard about a lot of scary stories. anyway what are the must buy stuffs over there? are the stuffs like dried scallops really much cheaper?

Yup and most other seafood too.

What I learnt from this trip is that Otaru may not be the cheapest place to buy fresh/dried scallops. Seaweed and 昆布 still ok.

You'd be surprised how cheap things are at Sapporo Outer Market. Google for the place location.That marketr primarily caters to their locals, so the $$ are cheaper. Its virtually impossible for any tour groups in SG to go there de. See the difference between F&E and packaged tours? F&E allows you to mingle with the locals at their levels... packaged tours forces you to see pre-determined tourist spots.

If you want fresh scallops at the source, meaning straight off the farms, you may consider touring the east coast of Hokkaido. Abashiri, Yubetsu and Mombetsu are major producers of ultra high quality scallops and other seafood. You can see some of their 'kelong' along the coastline when you drive along it.

百色恋人choc can be bought at the factory itself. The place is a must go in Sapporo.

And you gotta try the western pastries and cakes in Sapporo. You'd be surprised how the Japs can actually improve on western dishes with their Japs elements. They're not cheap but the taste is something you can't get here in SG for that kind of $$.

 

[glabejut]

Yup and most other seafood too.

What I learnt from this trip is that Otaru may not be the cheapest place to buy fresh/dried scallops. Seaweed and 昆布 still ok.

You'd be surprised how cheap things are at Sapporo Outer Market. Google for the place location.That marketr primarily caters to their locals, so the $$ are cheaper. Its virtually impossible for any tour groups in SG to go there de. See the difference between F&E and packaged tours? F&E allows you to mingle with the locals at their levels... packaged tours forces you to see pre-determined tourist spots.

If you want fresh scallops at the source, meaning straight off the farms, you may consider touring the east coast of Hokkaido. Abashiri, Yubetsu and Mombetsu are major producers of ultra high quality scallops and other seafood. You can see some of their 'kelong' along the coastline when you drive along it.

百色恋人choc can be bought at the factory itself. The place is a must go in Sapporo.

And you gotta try the western pastries and cakes in Sapporo. You'd be surprised how the Japs can actually improve on western dishes with their Japs elements. They're not cheap but the taste is something you can't get here in SG for that kind of $$.

is it the ishiya white chocolate place? is the chocolate really good cos im not really a fan of white chocolate? and how much is it roughly?

 

[cheefarn]

is it the ishiya white chocolate place? is the chocolate really good cos im not really a fan of white chocolate? and how much is it roughly?

To each his own la. Its great for me. Hey this ain't white choc from Cadbury leyThe taste, quality etc are much higher

How much depends on what types/size of choc you buy. From SG$7+ onwards

Shiroi Kubito choc is famous throighout the world. Just because its not sold regularly in SG doesn't mean its not well known.

Meidiya and Isetan do bring in limited quantities to sell everytime they hold a Hokkaido food/travel fair. But the $$ here is almost 50% more than you buy in the factory directly

 

[glabejut]

To each his own la. Its great for me. Hey this ain't white choc from Cadbury leyThe taste, quality etc are much higher

How much depends on what types/size of choc you buy. From SG$7+ onwards

Shiroi Kubito choc is famous throighout the world. Just because its not sold regularly in SG doesn't mean its not well known.

Meidiya and Isetan do bring in limited quantities to sell everytime they hold a Hokkaido food/travel fair. But the $$ here is almost 50% more than you buy in the factory directly

true also. will go there and have a look. but what are the snacks/souvenirs to buy for gifts that i can buy over that are not too bulky and cost about maybe $3 each?

 

[cheefarn]

true also. will go there and have a look. but what are the snacks/souvenirs to buy for gifts that i can buy over that are not too bulky and cost about maybe $3 each?

Those 100yen shops are your best bet. There are other 100 yen shops in Hokkaido in addition to Daiso.

Or you can also shop ard various gift shops located inside the attractions for best deals. You may just find something within your budget

FYI, unlike Sillypore, where we often have to pay alot for food only to find it taste awful, there's no such things as awful tasting food in Japan, particularly in Hokkaido. If you read my other postings/threads, Japs take great pride in their work and they're very particular about food quality.

Like I said, make full use of their 7-11, Lawson and Senicmart for your low priced food, beer,sake, shioju etc You have to experience it to believe it.

Do not use our local 7-11 as reference

 

[glabejut]

Those 100yen shops are your best bet. There are other 100 yen shops in Hokkaido in addition to Daiso.

Or you can also shop ard various gift shops located inside the attractions for best deals. You may just find something within your budget

FYI, unlike Sillypore, where we often have to pay alot for food only to find it taste awful, there's no such things as awful tasting food in Japan, particularly in Hokkaido. If you read my other postings/threads, Japs take great pride in their work and they're very particular about food quality.

Like I said, make full use of their 7-11, Lawson and Senicmart for your low priced food, beer,sake, shioju etc You have to experience it to believe it.

Do not use our local 7-11 as reference

ok. is there anything to buy at the airport? chitose and narita?

 

[cheefarn]

ok. is there anything to buy at the airport? chitose and narita?

Sure. Just shope around

 

[glabejut]

Sure. Just shope around

ok. looks like i need to change alot of cash to bring along.

 

[solarwings]

Hi, a question.
When connecting to domestic flight at Haneda, do I need to check out baggage first, then check in again?
Thanks

 

[cheefarn]

Hi, a question.
When connecting to domestic flight at Haneda, do I need to check out baggage first, then check in again?
Thanks

Yes you will need to collect all your luggage after you cleared Jap immigration at Haneda airport and lug them to the domestic check in terminal and check in again

Do take note that you need to collect free train/monorail pass from the info counter at the international arrival terminal for your trip to the domestic terminal. Haneda airport is so big that reg train and monorail services from Tokyo downtown runs through both terminals.

See here.
International-to-Domestic Transfers | Haneda Airport International Terminal

And here
Tokyo Monorail : Haneda Airport Guide > Connecting between international and domestic flights (Transit)

 

[darkmatt]

i never believe in tours..

i just took a 10 day holiday to tokyo in dec.

just did some homework before going. also managed well there

 

[solarwings]

Yes you will need to collect all your luggage after you cleared Jap immigration at Haneda airport and lug them to the domestic check in terminal and check in again

Do take note that you need to collect free train/monorail pass from the info counter at the international arrival terminal for your trip to the domestic terminal. Haneda airport is so big that reg train and monorail services from Tokyo downtown runs through both terminals.

See here.
International-to-Domestic Transfers | Haneda Airport International Terminal

And here
Tokyo Monorail : Haneda Airport Guide > Connecting between international and domestic flights (Transit)

Thanks! But my domestic flight quite early so I can only take the shuttle bus...

 

[GetaBlue]

Those 100yen shops are your best bet. There are other 100 yen shops in Hokkaido in addition to Daiso.

Or you can also shop ard various gift shops located inside the attractions for best deals. You may just find something within your budget

FYI, unlike Sillypore, where we often have to pay alot for food only to find it taste awful, there's no such things as awful tasting food in Japan, particularly in Hokkaido. If you read my other postings/threads, Japs take great pride in their work and they're very particular about food quality.

Like I said, make full use of their 7-11, Lawson and Senicmart for your low priced food, beer,sake, shioju etc You have to experience it to believe it.

Do not use our local 7-11 as reference

Just came back frm 7d Tokyo trip. Final night went to ueno ameyoko street to get another bag for check.in luggage. Went into this supermarket which sells alot of Japanese.sweets and tidbits, all quite low priced 100 to 300 yen. I bought an over flowing full basket for 10k yen...end up bag I bought full of these and had to buy yet another small bag at airport...lol

 

[cheefarn]

Thanks! But my domestic flight quite early so I can only take the shuttle bus...

How early? The monorail starts operation at 5.15am iirc. What time does your flight from SG touch down at Haneda?

You need to factor in more transit time if u take the bus. Try the monorail if u can

 

[cheefarn]

Just came back frm 7d Tokyo trip. Final night went to ueno ameyoko street to get another bag for check.in luggage. Went into this supermarket which sells alot of Japanese.sweets and tidbits, all quite low priced 100 to 300 yen. I bought an over flowing full basket for 10k yen...end up bag I bought full of these and had to buy yet another small bag at airport...lol

Haha yup, and Hokkaido is typically cheaper than Tokyo for most products.

Its amazing we can keep using words eg 'cheap', 'great value, buy' these days when we shop in Japan. It used to be 'OMG, freaking expensive' not too long ago.

Thanks alot to MIW for making SG so damn expensive as compared to Japan. Not only u guys made things in SG so much more expensive than the US, you managed to suppassed Japan these days.

And most of us don't even earn 60% of their average yearly salary

 

[marc2002]

Is the Fukubukuro only available in Tokyo or in other cities as well? Eg. Kyoto, Hiroshima, Sapporo, Takamatsu, etc?

Arrigato!

 

[gundamhamtaro]

Its available all over Japan. Be warned though in city areas like Tokyo Osaka etc most of it will be gone on the 1st day, so be prepared to queue up early in the morning since you need to fight with all the local people and tourists.

 

[solarwings]

How early? The monorail starts operation at 5.15am iirc. What time does your flight from SG touch down at Haneda?

You need to factor in more transit time if u take the bus. Try the monorail if u can

The first link you give say start service at 0900?

 

[cheefarn]

The first link you give say start service at 0900?

Hmm... we took the monorail at ard 6am during our mad rush from international terminal to the domestic terminal. And there were already a fair number of passsengers in the train when we board it

Could be old info that wasn't updated.