Prices in Japan

So is Japan expensive? My experience shows it is not very expensive. Food, especially seafood is cheap. Fruits and vegetables are the only exceptions - how about a box of cherries for $6?

Public transport is reasonably cheap, museum tickets also $3-10. Clothes are at Scandinavian prices, not cheap, but affordable. Electronics? Considerably cheaper, with incredible variety and ahead of the trends in Europe and America.

So why does Tokyo have such a reputation for being expensive? It's the housing & hotels. Many places I called had prices above $250 per single room, and rental apartments in Shibuya or Shinjuku are supposedly as high as $3000-5000 per month!!!

Also there's a lot of high end jewelry and clothing stores in Shibuya, Ginza. I saw quite a few places where shoes cost more than my plane ticket here!

But if you want to have a good time in Japan, and can afford the plane ticket, you can get by without burning a big hole in your pocket.