Cheap Ticket to Japan

People always say to me "You have to go to Japan, its fabulous"...all the time. I don't get it, to me Japan is expensive..it is overrated. Though I'm a traveler, I've never liked expensive places. I'm a savvy traveler. Japan is always seemed expensive and boring and I just cant see why I have to go there. Until one day I read about Garuda travel fair on website, which offers cheap(er) tickets to most wanted destination. At first I wanted to go to Bangkok (for the hundreth of time) or Hongkong (with my folks), but I took a look at Japan fare (Tokyo)...geez IDR 6.6 million (equals to USD 470), it seemed like a steal. I was lured to look at that fare once again and compare to Hongkong fare IDR 5.5 (USD 392).I finally  decided to buy Japan ticket once i saw that they have availability in middle March, and what do your know, end of March is Sakura season! by the end of my trip there is hope that I might catch the sight of the iconic flower. Though the ticket is purchased in Garuda Travel Fair, I can book it over the phone through Smailing Tour. Its a couple thousand more expensive than book on the travel fair in Senayan, but considering the time and energy, I chose to book through Smailing tour. After the ticket is done, I started to browsed around on the cities I wanted to visit. My picks was Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto. I wish I can pick more cities but with only 8 days of trip, more cities means more time consumed to travel. Since this is also my first time to Japan, i wanted to enjoy those 3 lovely cities that I kept hearing from everybody. Here we go!

Tips on sourcing cheap ticket to Japan:

• Mark your calendar on every major travel fair : Garuda Travel Fair usually held on May and September. Singapore Airlines Travel Fair on September. 
• Keep an eye on Japan ticket promotion by these airlines: Air Asia, Japan Airlines and ANA Airlines (via HIS travel and Jalan Tour) 
• Compare ticket price via www.skyscanner.com, its a free website that allows you to compare the fare of several airlines
• Prepare the date. Every year round is a great time to visit Japan (thats what read), however do avoid golden week holiday that falls on end April or early May and summer time on June -July(too hot!). Popular times are: end March-April (sakura season), November (fall season) and December (winter season). So pick wisely. Popular dates causes the increment of travel cost component such as hotel and transportation cost.