Travels Made Easy With Klook

Media Review

One of the shocks I faced before my recent Japan trip with my kids was to realize that we probably could not make it for the last train out of Haneda Airport due to our late arrival time. Bleh.

You see, I booked our flights on budget airline and it only dawned upon me a couple of weeks before the trip that because we would be arriving at an odd timing of 10.30pm in Tokyo and with immigration clearance, collection of check-in luggage and the long walk to the train station, we would probably not make it for the last train. Even if we rushed and managed to catch that last train out of Haneda Airport, we would miss the connecting train ride to our Airbnb, which was located in one of the suburbs. Just thinking of that alone gave me a minor heart attack and I decided that I could not deal with that stress on a family holiday. That was when I tried to research for different options I have and weighed the pros and cons.

Taxi rides are known to be expensive in Japan and to take a one-hour journey would have cost us a bomb – It was an unexpected expense we were not prepared to pay for. We could book an airport hotel room to stay overnight in, but that too would be expensive and would delay all our travel plans for the next day. Plus, a quick check online told me that most rooms are fully booked. There are airport buses that run later and we could probably try to take one of those, but the journey would be very long (not very enticing right after a 10-hour flight including transit) and we would need to get another taxi ride to our airbnb after reaching city area. The last option was to stay overnight at the airport of course – I might have considered that IF my kids were not with me. So, after weighing all the options I had, I decided to book a private airport transfer from https://goo.gl/ejRyn9 and now that the trip’s over, I can say confidently that I was glad I did that!

First of all, the pricing was very reasonable in my opinion. It would be close to 12 midnight after clearing immigration and ready to leave the airport, and the vehicle must be big enough to take my family of four, along with 4 luggages in total. The cost was less than SGD150, and that was only slightly more expensive than taking the airport train!

Secondly, I like it that communication is efficient and constant from the point I made a booking online for the airport transfer, right up to the point I boarded the transport. Right after I booked, I received a confirmation email for my booking. Once the booking had been noted by Japan’s side, I received another email confirmation for that. A few days before the trip, I received a Whatsapp message reminding me of my booking, as well as to request for any updated travel info if applicable. On the day of my travel, I received another Whatsapp message, this time round from the driver picking us up, about the exact location to meet. Upon reaching the pick-up point at Haneda Airport, the transport was there waiting for us! After a long flight, a spacious and comfortable ride was all I wanted, and I was so glad everything met our expectations!

Our private transport brought us directly to our airbnb apartment, which was awesome especially when the location was not exactly a very accessible one. I cannot imagine having to lug luggages with two kids and trying desperately to find the apartment at midnight in the winter cold. We would have been very miserable if that happened!

After we got back from our trip, we’ve recommended several of our friends to Klook as well, because we have tried it and benefitted from its wonderful service quality. Plus, there are so many travel experiences and services that they can book from their website, and it just makes the whole travel planning process a hassle-free one. If you are looking for places to fill up your itinerary, Klook can totally serve that purpose as well – Just look through all the packages they have and draw your inspirations from there! Planning your next holiday? Hop over to https://www.klook.com/ now! :) Mention JBABIES5 gives you $5 off your first Klook purchase!

Disclosure: This is a collaboration with Klook to review their products and services. All opinions expressed in this post are solely mine.

Japan Family Travel Essentials: JR Passes & Wifi Router From Changi Recommends

Media Review

It was our first family holiday to Japan, so I made a lot of preparations prior to the trip. The husband and I had been to Japan several times before but this time round, the two kids are with us and with the weather so cold, I really want to be sure that we are well prepared with everything we need for the trip, so we got our Japan Rail (JR) passes and arranged for the rental of our WIFI router online via https://www.changirecommends.com/ before the trip.

Why Changi Recommends?

If you have followed me on my previous travel posts, you would know that this is not the first time I used the services of Changi Recommends, and there are good reasons why I would return to them again and again for every trip I make:

1. You Get Your Essentials Ready Before The Trip

This is especially important if you are travelling with young kids and I cannot emphasize this enough! If you don’t want to run helter skelter during the trip itself trying to sort out simple logistics that you could have arranged for earlier, then go on to Changi Recommends and book what you need now. For our Japan trip, I booked 7-day Nationwide JR passes for all four of us as well as a WIFI router for the trip. Transportation is a major part of any vacation, especially in Japan where the network is massive and complicated, and can be very expensive. After settling that on Changi Recommends, I felt a huge burden lifted from my shoulders!

The wifi router was another essential for us, especially when we will be relying much on Google Maps to get around, and to keep everyone connected during the trip itself. You can also opt for overseas SIM cards too, but for our case, a wifi router worked way better because we had 4 mobile phones, 1 IPAD and 2 laptops that needed to connect to the same router. At any one time, we had a minimum of 4 devices connected to the router and that worked perfectly for us for the trip. Tip: Always book your routers early especially if you are travelling during peak travel periods as there are limited sets of routers for rental.

2. Easy & Convenient Pick-Up & Return

I booked my JR passes and wifi router on Changi Recommends way in advance before the trip, and all I needed to do was to pick them up from the Changi Recommends counter at Changi Airport Departure Hall right before I check in for my flight. I picked mine up from Terminal 4 – Every terminal has their own counters for passengers’ convenience. There was a staff there who explained to me how to connect the wifi router and how to exchange for my physical JR passes upon reaching Japan. I felt assured that I’ve got a huge part of the trip taken care of and that gave me a great head-start to my vacation! Upon reaching back in Singapore, I just needed to drop off the wifi router at the same counter and that’s it!

3. Good & Reliable Support

I had some difficulty connecting the wifi router when I reached Haneda Airport in Tokyo, but thankfully, there was a 24-hour whatsapp support hotline given to me in case I need any technical assistance. The support staff responded almost immediately even though it was close to 12 midnight, and was able to guide me through the whole connection process and I was connected in no time at all. Good support is always a plus point – The last thing I want is to be stuck at the airport overseas trying to sort out all the technical issues instead of starting on my vacation right away!

Why Japan Rail Passes?

If you are planning for a holiday to Japan as well, I strongly recommend that you get the JR passes like we did. Just a word of advice though – There are many different types of JR passes and they cover different regions in Japan and have different privileges. So get the passes that best meet your needs in terms of regions you are covering and whether you are going to cover one region in detail or travelling across regions over a few days. For my family, we planned to cover Tokyo –> Osaka –> Nara –> Kyoto and then back to Tokyo in a span of 7 days and so, the 7-day Nationwide JR Pass was recommended to me.

1. Covers Shinkansen Travels (Saves You $$!)

We had very little time to cover so many places, so time is of the essence – We would need to take the Shinkansen trains to save time in travelling especially between Tokyo & Osaka and our JR passes would cover the cost of that. Shinkansen trains are fast but they are expensive as well, so if you have a JR pass, that’s covered - Very value-for-money! Plus, with the JR passes, you can reserve your seats for Shinkansen so that you have a confirmed specific seat when you board.

We took the Shinkansen several times during our 7-day trip: Tokyo to Osaka, Osaka to Kyoto (Twice) and Osaka back to Tokyo to catch our flight home. I did a quick calculation and realized that a round trip on Shinkansen would have cost me the same as one 7-day JR pass! So worth it! Speaking of which, we thoroughly enjoyed every one of our Shinkansen rides – So comfortable, fast yet super stable and we even managed to catch Fuji-San on our way from Tokyo to Osaka and back! It was nothing short of mesmerizing. =D

2. Convenient & Fast Gantry Crossing

When you purchase your JR passes in Singapore prior to your trip, all you need to do is to make a one-time trip to any of the JR offices (at major JR stations) and get your physical JR passes done. With the JR pass, all you need to do everytime you take the JR rides is to go by the manual gantry, show your pass to the station staff and walk through. No need for you to check ticket prices, buy tickets and tap at the gantry to go through! So convenient, right? This is especially great during peak hours when the crowd can get really overwhelming and you even need to queue to get out of the station. Tip: Since you are already at the JR Office, reserve all your Shinkansen tickets at the same time to save another trip there!

Are Wifi Routers Really Essential?

I cannot emphasize how glad I was to have rented the wifi router from Changi Recommends for the trip. At any one time, we had a minimum of 4 devices connected to it and you would think that battery life would be a concern, but the router lasted us for about 10 hours a day before I needed to charge it. Some people say it is inconvenient having to charge it every night but I think that is a small thing to put up with. We needed the wifi connection to search for places to go to, addresses, google maps etc. The kids were constantly connected and could chat with their friends and play games during commuting. I was just spamming insta stories and social media posts to make my friends at home jealous. LOL!

On the whole, we had a really smooth and enjoyable trip with our kids and I attribute a huge part of it to the services of Changi Recommends because I was well-prepared and had everything I needed for the trip before it happened. That’s really important when we have kids with us because watching over them to ensure their safety is tiring enough – I don’t have excess energy to fight fires or solve unexpected crisis! Thank you Changi Recommends, for always having my back for our travels. Till our next trip! =)

Disclosure: This is a collaboration between Changi Recommends and The J Babies for review purposes. All photos and opinions presented in this post are solely ours

Japan Autumn Travel: Shimokitazawa

I think a pictorial post on my all-time fav place in Tokyo is apt because Shimokitazawa is such a picturesque and beautiful neighborhood. It is often described as the bohemian, laid-back and hipster secret of bustling Tokyo, so if you like the sound of that, you can probably spend a whole day here. There are cafes, boutiques, thrift shops, kitchenware and home-furnishing shops, florists, restaurants, etc. I would want to live in this neighborhood if I ever move to Japan! :)

Getting to Shimokitazawa
Coming from Shinjuku, take an express train on the Odakyu line and get off at the second stop (7 minutes, ￥160). From Shibuya, get on an express train on the Keio Inokashira line and get off at the first stop (3 minutes, ￥130).

I share our family travels on instagram on-the-go. Follow us @klessislee and see our travel adventures at https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/kuanfamilytravels/

Tokyo Travel: Yokohama

Continuing my Tokyo Travel 2015 series, I bring you to Yokohama today! It was my first trip to Yokohama, and I absolutely love this place! It’s a mere one hour train ride from Tokyo city, but what welcomes you are the clear blue skies and deep blue seas! If you have only a few days in Tokyo but want to see a different side of Tokyo without wasting too much time on travelling, I strongly recommend Yokohama.

From Tokyo city (Shibuya or Shinjuku), take the Toyoko Line toward Yokohama and alight at Minatomirai station. This is a good place to start your day trip in Yokohama because some of the famous landmarks are all within walking distance.

Apart from the skies and seas, Yokohama has very lovely parks that are quiet, serene and peaceful. I see couples and small families having snacks or bento meals in the park, just enjoying a good time together. It’s the kind of life I love!

 

You’ll also see tunnels with interesting graffiti artworks everywhere and they are perfect for OOTDs and jump shots, don’t you think? :)

 

One of the iconic landmarks in Yokohama is the Red Brick Warehouse, which is a heritage building of 100 years old, now converted into a shopping mall. We made a pitstop here at one of the loveliest cafes I’ve ever been to, but that’ll be in another blog post.

 

Right outside Red Brick Warehouse is a dock where you can catch a ‘seabass’ (Sea Bus) to Yamashita Park, which is yet another iconic landmark in Yokohama.

Seabass tickets go at 350yen and it’s a quick 5-10 minute ride to the park.

The park is lovely but very, very crowded on the day that we were there. Nevertheless, with the cool weather and beautiful leftovers of the autumn season, we enjoyed a leisure walk through the park from one end to the other.

From Yamashita Park, you can take a 5-minute walk to Yokohama Marine Tower and pay 750yen to go up to the observation tower. We didn’t do that, nevertheless, if you want to have a bird’s eye view of Yokohama, this is a good option.

 

We continued walking to Chinatown from the park, and Yokohama’s Chinatown is a must visit for tourists because it’s one of the biggest Chinatowns in Japan. There are many Chinese restaurants and you can settle your lunch there if you like. We didn’t spend too much time there, but continued walking towards Motomachi Shopping Street. I didn’t have much expectations about the shopping street but to our surprise, there were really good sales happening and we left with a few bags for our aunts and a pair of boots for the husband!

By the time we decided to hunt for our lunch, it was already 3pm and most of the restaurants were closed for their afternoon break. Thank God for this café that was still open and they serve healthy and wholesome dishes!

This is a suggested itinerary you can use if you plan to make a day trip to Yokohama:
Red Brick Warehouse –> Take seabass to Yamashita Park –> Yokohama Marine Tower –> Chinatown –> Motomachi Shopping Street

Technorati Tags: Yokohama,Tokyo,Travel destinations