AROUND JAPAN!
Do you know how much cost to travel around Japan by Japanese cruise ships? For example, a cruise around Japan & South Korea by the Asuka, a luxury Japanese cruise ship costs from 588,000 yen ($4,700) to 2,400,00 yen ($19,200) per adult (14-Night Cruise, 9/23/02 to 10/05/02). A cruise around Japan only by the Pacific Venus, my favorite cruise ship costs from 278,000 yen ($2,224) to 1,550,000 yen ($12,400) per adult (9-Night Cruise, 9/02/02 to 9/11/02).
Of course, the fares incude meals, entertainments, etc. But it's too expensive for me (and the ordinary Japanese public, maybe). If I had 278,000 yen ($2,224) now, I would go to the Caribbean or Mediterranean Sea, take a huge luxrury cruise ship or many various ferries and enjoy cruising.
Because of the fares and other reasons, the number of the passengers on Japanese cruise ships has fallen as follows.
Japanese cruise ships passenger volumes
1989 |
1990 |
1991 |
1992 |
1993 |
1994 |
1995 |
1996 |
1997 |
1998 |
1999 |
2000 |
2001 |
|
Ocean |
36,200 |
38,100 |
38,300 |
46,400 |
47,300 |
42,500 |
45,100 |
34,400 |
33,300 |
26,700 |
22,700 |
21,100 |
18,400 |
Coastal |
95,700 |
108,200 |
102,200 |
120,300 |
134,100 |
134,200 |
145,500 |
119,900 |
95,400 |
97,700 |
92,900 |
83,400 |
81,600 |
| Total | 131,900 | 146,300 | 140,500 | 166,700 | 181,400 | 176,700 | 190,600 | 154,300 | 128,700 | 124400 | 115,600 | 104,500 | 100,000 |
(Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport)
I want to take many various passenger ships, and sailing many days by the same ship is painful to me. Therefore, I sailed around Japan by "various ferries" (3 large car ferries and 2 small ferries). The expenses added up 70,000 yen ($560) or so per adult (5-Night "CRUISE", 10/04/02 to 10/09/02). My cheap but most luxury cruise vacation!
When you take a clockwise trip, you can sail around Japan without staying at any places. Let's go on a trip around Japan!!
Tomakomai-Ooarai (Higashi Nihon Ferry/Shosen Mitsui Ferry)
Tokyo-Tokushima-Kita Kyushu (Ocean Tokyu Ferry)
Hakata(Fukuoka)-Naoetsu(Joetsu) (Kyuetsu Ferry)
Naoetsu(Joetsu)-Muroran (Higashi Nihon Ferry)
02/12/18