If you?re only planning one trip within Japan and spending the rest of your time in and around Tokyo or another large city, it may be cheaper to buy a budget plane ticket than a Japan Rail Pass or equivalent train ticket. Deregulation of the aviation industry has led to a spate of budget airlines being formed. These might not have the romance of train travel, but as it?s now possible to get from Tokyo to Kagoshima for as little as 5000 yen one way, when the equivalent journey on the Shinkansen would cost six times as much, I’m more than happy to forsake a little romance.
I think most of the airlines have modernized their fleets since this was taken…

Budget airlines are also the best way of getting to Okinawa, with prices from Tokyo starting from as little as 7000 yen one way. As with all budget airlines, it pays to book as far in advance as possible. To check flights, I use Skyscanner as they seem to pick up all the Japanese budget airlines and so find the best deals. The best budget airline companies in Japan are Peach, Vanilla and Jetstar. The budget airlines run out of a few large hubs, so you may be limited if you want to travel between two medium sized cities. The main hubs, in decreasing order of usefulness, are Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya and Fukuoka. For trips to and from other smaller cities, you?ll most likely need to transfer at one of these hubs, in which case you may want to consider using the Japan Rail pass if you?re a temporary visitor, or another mod...