If you are planning to fly to Japan you can find low airfares and deals to enjoy a great trip. Airfares around the world are reducing and there is one major reason for that. International flights to Japan have never been cheaper, thanks to ever increasing competition between the airlines. Besides the normal decrease in airfare complementary offers and travel packages save travelers a fortune. The “Visit Japan” campaign initiated by the Japan government brought with it various special offers on flights to Japan in order to increase the number of foreign visitors.
The Japanese Airlines and All Nippon Airways are each offering air passes for exclusive use by foreign visitors to Japan, which enable holders to fly anywhere within Japan on much cheaper rates. Like the Japan Rail Pass, air passes have to be purchased outside of Japan and before you leave for Japan. They can only be used by non-residents of Japan who arrive to and depart from Japan by international flights. There is a limit of one air pass of the same airline per person and visit.
Air passes on flights to Japan are valid for a minimum of one or two to a maximum of five domestic flights. The number and routes of the flights must be specified when you purchase the pass, but the actual flights do not need to be booked until later, except the first one, which has to be booked at the time of purchase. Air passes are valid for 60 days after the date of the first domestic flight. You must note that there are some periods, during which air passes cannot be used. The typical blackout periods are mid December to early January, early to late March and mid July to late August. There are yet so many ways in which you can save on flights to Japan.
• Fly outside the peak seasons, which include Christmas and New Year, end of April, beginning of May and the summer holidays.
• Check travel agents, newspapers, travel websites and the airlines' websites for special offers. Most major airlines have a special offers section on their website. Many airlines also provide individual websites to the residents of each country or world region, which they are flying to.
• If your city has a sizeable Japanese community, chances are that a large Japanese travel agency, such as HIS, operates a branch there. Check them out, as they tend to be very well informed about offers on flights to Japan and often have access to the lowest fares.
• Consider tour packages as they combine airfare and accommodation at low rates, unavailable to individual consumers. There are tour packages for both, individual travelers and those who prefer to travel with a guide.
• Use an airline's mileage program, also known as the frequent flyer program. In the ideal program: collected miles never expire, miles can also be earned and used on flights of partner airlines, miles can be shared among family members and, there are alternative ways to collect miles, e.g. through usage of a credit card.
• Some airlines offer discount fares on domestic routes, if you book your flight to Japan with them.
While most people fly via Tokyo, there are several other ways of getting to and from Japan. For a start, there are many other airports in Japan, some of which make better entry points than Tokyo's somewhat inconvenient new Tokyo international airport. It's also possible to arrive in Japan by sea from a number of nearby countries, particularly South Korea.
Taking cheap flights to Japan means that you would save on your travel within Japan and of course a whole lot of money for that spicy shopping. Therefore, if you follow all the ways discussed above you can save money on your trip to Japan.
