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Everything Is Animated: Jump Over to Japan from $999 with Air and Hotel for a Week

This fall and winter, take advantage of the low airfares and affordable travel deals to see the Land of the Rising Sun.

Japan is a land of contrasts. Tokyo has so many bells and whistles (and cool cartoon characters) you feel like you've entered a technological dream. The countryside, however, is a Zen garden with peaceful landscapes and temples that soothe Western travelers and residents alike. This fall and winter, take advantage of the low airfares and affordable travel deals to see the Land of the Rising Sun.

American Airlines (tel. 800/433-7300; www.aa.com) has some NetSAAver low fares to Tokyo and Osaka from all over the United States. You must purchase your tickets online by October 14, 2005, with travel good through March 14, 2006, as you long depart your United States destination by December 14, 2005. Sample prices to Tokyo include:

  • $611 from Albuquerque
  • $641 from Birmingham and Boston
  • $595 from Chicago
  • $621 from the New York City area
  • $521 from Los Angeles

The same restrictions apply on the Osaka route. Fares are slightly higher, in most cases by only three or four dollars. For example, from Albuquerque and New York, it's only $625. Check closely for some low fare surprises such as $545 from Columbus, Ohio.

For full-fledge air-and-hotel packages, Gate One Travel (tel. 800/682-3333; www.gate1travel.com) has a seven-day self-guided tour to Tokyo departing once in late October and twice in November starting from $999. The trip includes round-trip airfare, hotel accommodations and daily breakfast. Hotels vary in level of luxury starting at the $999 price for a four-star hotel in the Ikebukuro district business quarter and going up to $1,239 for the five-star Keio Plaza Intercontinental in the middle of the city. Airport security fees and departure taxes are not included in the price of the trip. Sightseeing excursions, airport transfers and extended stays are available through Gate One. A four-hour, half-day city tour of Tokyo costs approximately $56, while a full-day, 10-hour tour of Mt. Fuji, Hakone and Lake Ashi with a train ride costs $167 per person.

Ritz Tours (tel. 626/289-1010; www.ritztours.com) has a few different Japanese tours to choose from for package travelers. If you can depart fairly soon, traveling from October 28 to December 8, 2005 will get you a low price of $1,199 per person for a seven-day six-night trip that splits time between Tokyo, Japan and Beijing, China. The special "Hot Deal" trip includes round-trip airfare out of Los Angeles or San Francisco, daily breakfast, airport transfers, a half-day sightseeing tour of Tokyo, a full-day tour of the Great Wall and nearby sites, and a half-day tour of Beijing. Ritz Tours also offers "City Modules" which are land-only three or four day trips to some of the more popular Asian destinations. A four-day three-night Tokyo trip that includes accommodation, breakfast and transportation transfers as well as a sightseeing tour in a sightseeing motor coach costs approximately $450 per person based on double occupancy rates. This trip is available through December 31, 2005.

If you act by an October 6, 2005 booking deadline, you can lock in a full package tour to Tokyo from United Vacations (tel. 800/527-9246; www.uv-asia.com) starting at $1,050 per person for five nights at the Shinagawa Prince Hotel in Tokyo and round-trip airfare out of Seattle, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago and New York. The Shinagawa Prince Hotel is a giant property that some call "a city amongst itself" -- it has hotel has over 3,000 rooms centered on a large tower.

Talk with fellow Frommer's travelers on our Japan Message Boards today.


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