Buses

I haven't taken buses as often as I've taken trains, but there are two main kinds: the kind where the bus has a flat fee, and you pay as you get on, and the kind where the fee increases the longer you ride.

From my experience, city buses in Kawasaki and Yokohama are the former, 'flat fee' type, but in more countryside places, the latter is more common. When I went to Nikko, Hakone, Izu and Gifu, I encountered the second type.

With the 'changing fare' buses, you usually take a ticket as you get on the bus. You may enter through the middle on some buses, and exit via the front. This ticket will have a number on it; if you look at the front of the bus, there'll be a list of numbers with fares below them. This shows the current fare for people who got on at your stop.

So, for example, if your ticket has a '3' on it, look on the board for '3' and it might have '200' (yen) under it. As you travel, this will likely increase, sometimes alarmingly. Hahaha. I've paid more than 1500 yen on some such buses.

I usually screw up when I go to pay and put my money in the wrong place; it seems like the bus driver doesn't really check the tickets at all. I think you're supposed to just chuck coins and ticket in the same, big slot at the top.

Another pitfall about bus travel is that minor bus stops often have no romaji (English characters) on them at all, though major bus stops, and the buses themselves, should.

Despite this, in general, buses in Japan are much easier to ride than in Australia. In my city, at least, there is no guidance whatsoever as to where you currently are, where you might stop next, and where you should get out. In Japan there's a constant narration, telling you what the next stop is; some buses also have screens telling you the next stop.

The bus I was on the other day also had a TV screen playing ads. Leonardo DiCaprio was advertising Bridgestone tires. I mean, that's cool and all, but I don't really see the natural connection between Leo and Bridgestone...?