How much it really costs to travel to Japan for 17 days
Before going, I ran the numbers over and over. Here's what we actually spent over 17 days in Japan, and where most of the budget went.
Before going, I calculated the budget over and over, like you're probably doing right now. And the conclusion, after actually living it, is that the numbers we were working with turned out to be pretty close to reality — with a few nuances worth mentioning.
We stayed in a middle range, neither strict backpackers nor splurging on every meal: between €2,000 and €4,500 per person excluding flights. That range has a simple explanation: spending isn't constant at all. There are €15 days (a ramen, local transport) and there are €150-or-more days (an omakase, a night at a ryokan).
Lodging took the biggest bite out of the budget, without a doubt. Sleeping at a ryokan in Takayama and another night in Miyajima cost quite a bit more than a functional hotel in Tokyo, but they were, without any comparison, among the best decisions of the entire trip.
What I least expected was how well you eat while spending little money. A decent ramen is €10, a bowl of gyudon less than €6, and the street food in Dotonbori, Osaka, is cheap and spectacular in equal measure.
Leaving that extra 10-15% margin isn't generic advice — it's literally what saved me from running short in the last week of the trip.
If you need one specific number: for 17 days, budget around €4,000-4,500 excluding flights.
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