WESN Epic Hana Chase Places Visited & Transport

Transport Modes on my WESN Epic Hana Chase

On this trip, I took a variety of transport to make my way between Singapore and Japan and across Japan. A few I tried for the first time which made the trip interesting.

 

Flights

I took a total of 8 flights for this trip which cost close to SGD1,600:

1. International flights between Singapore and Narita
2. Domestic flight from Narita to Ishigaki
3. Domestic flights between Ishigaki and Yonaguni
4. Domestic flight from Ishigaki to Naha
5. Domestic flight from Naha to Kagoshima
6. Domestic flight from Kushiro to Haneda

JR Train Passes

In total, I used 7 different JR Train Passes:

1. All Kyushu 5 days Pass – to cover travels from Kagoshima to  Kumamoto /  Sage / Fukuoka prefectures
2. JR Okayama Hiroshima Yamaguchi Area Pass – to cover travels from Fukuoka to Yamaguchi / Hiroshima / Okayama / Kagawa Prefectures
3. JR Sanin Okayama Area Pass – to cover travels from Okayama to Shimane / Tottori Prefectures
4. JR Kansai Wide Area Pass – to cover travels from Tottori to Kyoto / Shiga / Fukui Prefectures
5. JR Hokuriku Area Pass – to cover travels from Tsuruga to Fukui / Ishikawa Prefectures
6. Japan Rail Pass – to cover travels from Kanazawa to Gunma / Saitama / Fukushima / Yamagata / Miyagi / Iwata Prefectures
7. JR East South Hokkaido Pass – to cover travels from Morioka to Akita / Aomori / Hokkaido Prefectures

The JR Kansai Wide Area Pass could only be bought in Japan. The rest were bought in Singapore to take advantage of the overseas discount or because it could only be purchased outside of Japan. In addition, I paid/top up for other train rides that were not covered by the passes or when getting a pass cost more than the train fares. All in, I spent about SGD1,400 for the passes and train travels.

 

Special Trains

I also went on a few special train rides in Kyushu and Tohoku regions:

• Hayato No Kaze
• Isaburo Shinpei
• SL Hitoyoshi
• A-Train
• Toreiyu Tsubasa
• Resort Shirakami

There were a few more I wanted to take but couldn’t fit into my WESN itinerary and schedule.

Ferries

Not forgetting water transport, there were a total of 11 ferry rides mainly to and from islands plus a couple sightseeing boat trips.

1. Ishigaki to Iriomote return
2. Ishigaki to Taketomi return
3. Ishigaki to Hateruma return
4. Kagoshima to Yakushima return
5. Wakannai to Rebun Island
6. Rebun Island to Rishiri Island
7. Rishiri Island to Wakannai via Rebun Island
8. Sightseeing boat trips at Yonaguni, Iriomote and Kabira Bay

 

Buses

Some places are only accessible by public bus if one didn’t drive. It was relaxing to go around some places with a tour bus as I didn’t have to plan the route. Below are the bus trips/tours I took on my WESN Epic Hana Chase across Japan:

• Public buses on Ishikagi Island and Yonaguni Island
• Bus tours on Iriomote Island, Hateruma Island, Noto Peninsula including Wajima, Rebun Island, Rishiri Island and around Akan-Mashu National Park
• Public buses between Imari and Okawachiyama village; Amanohashidate and Ine; Yamaguchi and Akiyoshidai Lime Stone Caves and Hagi; around Matsue, Tottori, Fukui, Takasaki, Morioka and Tokyo
• Special bus between Bichu-Takahashi Station and Bichu Matsuyama Castle
• Overnight express bus from Sapporo to Wakkanai
• A couple of airport buses

 

Taxi Tours

Something new that I discovered on my WESN Epic Hana Chase trip were Taxi Tours. I did 3 taxi tours around the places listed below:

• Yamaguchi City
• Factory night tour around Tokuyama
• Tottori City

Car Rental

I really enjoy driving in Japan outside the major cities like Tokyo, which was terrifying. I rented a car for a total of 21 days as it was easier to drive around out of the way places:

• Okinawa main island (3 days rental)
• Yakushima (3 days rental)
• Oga Peninsula (1 day rental)
• Hokkaido (11 days rental)
• Tokyo to Nikko and Kawaguchiko (3 days rental)

 

Last but not least, there were ropeways and even a bullock cart ride!

Next post on my WESN Epic Hana Chase Budget & Actual Spent.

Or have a read of my Izu Peninsula Road Trip or check Ling’s Japan Travel Tips.

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