Koyo in Autumn

The Autumn season is best known in Japan for Koyo, which essentially means "trees changing colour". Most areas in Japan during the months of October, November, and December transform themselves from hot humid places into dry beautiful picturesque landscapes.

Last year I went to two areas that I highly recommend: Myoko Kogen in Niigata, and Shiga Kogen in Nagano.

Getting there by car is the easiest way to take advantage of the beautiful mountains, as there aren't really any trains and buses are limited at best.

From Tokyo: Take the Kan-etsu Expressway towards Niigata, followed by the Joshin-etsu Expressway which leads towards Nagano. The Myokokogen Exit is the one you are looking for.

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The other area is called Shiga-Kogen, which lies on the border between Nagano and Gunma Prefectures. Its a really nice long drive in the mountains if you want to make your way slowly back to Tokyo. Here is my recommended route:

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From the Shinshu-Nakano IC, you can make your way up into the mountains and drive on the highest road in Japan on 292. Following this, you can make your way down the mountain into Gunma and eventually the Takasaki IC which will take you back to Tokyo directly.

Here's an example of what's waiting for you:


Happy Travels!

Which rental company should I use?

The service industry in Japan is such that you won't ever get really "bad" service compared to back home (wherever that may be). That being said, I have noticed a few differences in terms of rental agencies that I've used over here from time to time.

Nissan Rent-a-car

This is the company I have used the most, as they have the best hours (many with 24 hour locations), usually the best prices, as well as a good variety of cars. The services they provide are very basic and speedy, and also allow you to drop off the car free of charge if its within 50km of the original outlet. Most of the outlets are in really great locations as well, being either near major train stations or just about any airport in Japan.

I have only had one seriously bad incident with this company. I rented a car in Kyushu near the Oita ferry terminal, and they gave me an older Nissan March because it had English speaking satnav. It was nice of them to do so, but I would have rather had a newer car with the newer Japanese satnav. I took the car anyway, and on the last day of the trip we noticed a tire was really low. We got it checked at a service station, the inside of the rim was actually bent from the previous renter (we hadn't had a single misstep on our trip!). They put the spare on, and we took it back to Oita where they tried to charge us 20,000JPY for the broken tire. At this point we argued with them for about 30 minutes, and explained that it was Nissan's responsibility to check under the car, and mine was to check for cosmetic damage at the time of rental. Eventually we won the argument and they let us go free of charge.

Don't let this discourage you. If they try to rent you an old model, ask politely for a new one and check the outside of the car thoroughly.

Nippon rent-a-car

I've only used them once and I wouldn't do it again. Their prices are higher than Nissan, and they gave us a Prius with over 100,000km on the clock that was pretty beat up inside and outside by Japanese standards. The worst bit was the brakes which really felt as if they needed to be serviced or inspected.

That being said, they will rent you an ETC card for 300 yen a day which can lead to serious savings on the highway on weekends and holidays. Something to think about then.

JR Rent-a-car

I've only used JR's car rental once as part of a Shinkansen/hotel package up in Aomori Prefecture. It was really well run and they had us off the train and in the car within 15 minutes of arrival. We were also given what looked to be like a brand new Honda Fit with only 1700km on the clock. JR car rental outlets are usually located at major JR stations, so they can be really convenient if you're coming off of a Shinkansen or Limited Express train in a rural area especially.

When NOT to drive

As a lot of people know, the expressways in Japan are some of the most expensive in the world. That changed about a year and a half ago if you have an ETC credit card in your car which deducts the tolls automatically at the gates. The government introduced a sort of "all you can drive" plan on weekends and national holidays for only 1000yen, point A to B. Its a good deal, but the increase in traffic has been frustrating to say the least.

In my experience I have found that the Chuo Expressway seems to get backed up the most, probably due to its lack of a third lane and because it leads to the Fujiyama area. My advice would be to plan ahead, and leave very early if planning to drive on the weekends. If you have an iphone, download the app "Highways AOBO" and you can check traffic conditions on any expressway in the country (hint: red means the traffic is barely moving!).

If you are in a rural area, you need not worry about bad traffic as there just aren't as many people driving around, especially in the Tohoku region north of Kanto.

On major holidays (Golden Week, Obon, and Lunar New Year) its best to avoid driving altogether and reserve train tickets in advance. Expressways typically look like this the photo above.

I hate paying money to just sit in traffic, so if you're planning to drive at a typical weekend, escape Kanto early!

I can rent and so can you

The majority of foreign tourists who decide to visit Japan hit two places: Tokyo and Kyoto. They have the JR pass, they see a few crowded sights and then go home. Then how about for the rest of us? The backpackers, the long term travelers, the residents and teachers who live at least 20km from a station. The simple fact is, if you want to see the most interesting places in Japan, and not spend a lot of money then you should drive!

"But I can't speak the language and I can't read the signs!" Well, the fact is, there are resources out there that will let you rent a car with as little Japanese as possible, and the road signs (gasp) are also written in English (for the most part).

When I first came to Japan I used a third party website called "ToCoo! Travel" which arranges discounted car rentals of all kinds from all of Japan's major outlets. I still use them to this day. My personal favourite and recommendation is to use Nissan Rent-a-car, as they have very good service, cars that are usually less than 1 or 2 years old, and have a vast array of 24 hour locations within Kanto and Kansai.

The process is simple.
1) In your home country, get an international driver's license.

2) Contact ToCoo! Travel's website, and send them an inquiry in either English, Chinese or Korean and they'll get back to you within 24 hours, usually with your reservation as you requested.

3) When you pick up the car at the outlet, give them your passport, int'l license, and some cash. They'll ask you to write your address in Japan, and a contact number.

4) This is where it gets a bit tricky if you don't speak the language: They'll tell you about the insurance which states that if the car has an accident, and is drivable, then you are charged JPY20,000 upon return. If it is immobile after the accident, its JPY50,000 and no replacement car will be given. If you're a bad driver, upgrade your insurance coverage for about JPY5000.
Also, don't park illegally, as its a rather large fine. If you have an accident call the Police and just attempt to get a translator (or just shout English until you're understood).

5) Once this is complete, you and an attendant circle the car to look for any damage. I'm always a bit anal about this and point out every nick as I don't like to be charged. Sign the agreement and drive away!

BUT WAIT! You have a really good Sat Nav system and don't know how to use it?? Have your destination addresses written down in advance, and have the Nissan people enter them for you. They'll ask if you want "Kokudo" National Roads (Free but slow), or "Kosoku doro" Expressways which are tolled (Expensive but usually the best way to get somewhere fast).

Renting is a really good way to see some of the country that others never do (even native Japanese). Do yourself a favour and go ahead and try it!

http://www2.tocoo.jp/?file=rentcar_inbound/main