Escapism : Tokiyo Trip 1

I'm going to share some information about our next escapism to Tokyo. 

This would be the planning and information post.

Return flight ticket :

I bought 2 tickets to Tokyo on February this year before we got married. It wasn't from the famous AirAsia promotion, but it was from normal several days of ticket hunting. I managed to buy return tickets for around RM 900 each *not including adding extra for a seated chair next to each other and dinner. So we actually bought the ticket 7 months before the date instead of last minute plan. But I'm pretty sure they got promotional tickets to Tokyo all year long.

Money : RM 1000 each person (Return ticket, dinner, seated chair, insurance)

*

Accommodation :

I wanted to try Couchsurfing, but for our first official escapism AF prefers it to be well-planned because we don't know what to expect yet. So instead of hotel and backpackers hostel in Tokyo area, I searched for available places rented by the owner from Airbnb. I've been wanting to try this for ages!

I saved in my "Wish List" since February, but we decided to book the place at least 2 months earlier. For this, we missed a lot of cool and cheap places because they are fully booked for September :( We found one nice little apartment near a public park but a bit farther from the main city and thought we should give it a try. 

We requested to the owner, during this process - our debit cards were declined from using the system, later we found out it was because of our default amount for online transaction is RM 500 and any amount more than that will be declined. So, if you are planning to use your debit card for online transaction, make sure you add your maximum amount from your online banking account. 

Later the owner replied and accepted our request, the fees was paid instantly and I received the receipt. The owner is really nice and helpful; he shared the detailed map and explained things that we should know about the place. 

Money : RM 883 for 7 days 6 nights , around RM 442 for each person. For me, it is cheaper compared to hotel but more pricey compared to hostel. But we got ourselves a nice apartment for both of us, we can cook and all. I hope it's a nice catch.

Note : Places in the main city is really pricey, 

so you can choose places a bit farther and make sure you book early.

*

Maps :

We went to MATTA Fair in last March. We weren't there to see all the promotions they offered, we actually went there to see places and events that will be happening in Tokyo. So we went to a long booth with all the Japanese people - as they were promoting Japan. And we took all the maps that they can offer : The city map, the train map & schedule, the mini map, the list of places and all :D

Money : FREE maps & free stuffs

Other than that I downloaded mobile applications for : JR-East *the train, TripAdvisor *offline map. 

I'm yet to discover other useful mobile app. and I'll share this later. 

*

Food :

We will be bring foods like : Maggi, bread, sardine, biscuits, instant drinks, serunding and all those easy stuffs so we can survive on our own backups foods when needed. Maybe we can try bringing sandwiches for lunch while going to places and late night food while we were too hungry but lazy to go out. Having our own kitchen should be useful.

Money : RM 100 each person.

*

Other stuffs to consider :

I haven't planned on the transportation cards and whether we want to rent mobile internet while we are there. AF also haven't applied for a passport, whereas mine will still be valid until 2018. I will also need to have a power bank for my old iPhone.

I will be bringing my old Lumix LX and AF will be bringing his dLSR Canon 600D.
Which book should I bring ??? 

:D