If you are looking for the best pocket wifi in Japan out of the numerous Japan pocket wifi rental providers, you should seriously consider getting Sushi Pocket Wifi. I’ve used Sushi Wifi myself during my past trip to Japan last September. strongly recommend them for their consistent reliable service and blazing fast “only in Japan” wifi internet speeds. 🙂
Below i s my review of Sushi Wi-Fi since a number of people have been asking me on how to stay connected in Japan while on the go.
Buying Before or on Arrival in Japan
Before buying the pocket wifi for my trip to Japan during the Rugby World Cup in 2019 I did some research in order to see which options suits me the best. Most of the websites I found had these message of limited wifi pockets available and especially on Klook offers were running out every day as I was talking with my brother to see which options does suits us the most.
I had the impression that taking the number of tourists coming to Japan and demand of pocket wifi is great, the available items will not be on offer while arriving in Japan. I was wrong as when I have arrived at the Narita Airport there were a lot of shops which were selling the pockets at a similar price with the one I have purchased only.
So why to buy the wifi pocket before arriving in Japan.
- Your Arrival flight time is beyond the store opening hours.
If your flight is delayed you might find the stores closed as they are opened from morning till evening only. In this case the best solution is to order online and have it delivered either to your hotel, pick it up from Lawson Stores at the airport. Operating hours: Pick up: 6:30am, until last flight arrival; Return: 7:00am-9:00pm, daily: an example of operating hours for one wifi pocket provider in Japan.
- Gain Time: arriving in high season in Japan and with hundreds of tourists queing for the wifi pocket it will lose a lot of time.
- The desired pocket wifi type (limited, unlimited, number of days available) is not available anymore when trying to buy on the spot
- If you don’t have a date plan from your home based phone provider better buy the wifi pocket before and have it picked from the airport. It’s a challenge finding the right
Unlimited vs Limited Wifi Pocket in Japan
The answer to your question depends on many factors. How many devices are you going to use. What are your needs (to you need to upload videos while traveling a bullet train in Japan? Hint: JR Trains to have free wifi but not excellent signal) and most of the train station in Tokyo and around Japan do provide internet service free of charge. How many people are going to use the device?
For my case I have decided to book the unlimited wifi pocket because we were 3 persons traveling on the same time and each of us had a laptop as well to be used while traveling to Japan.
During our 10 days of use of the wifi pocket we have used around 3 GB of data and used only for Google Maps, News, Facebook and uploading some photos.
Having an unlimited data plan for your wifi pocket will not make you restrain from using the internet.
An limited 1GB per day of data in Japan can cost you up to 3-5$/ and an limited one can cost you up to 7 to 10$/day. Taking into consideration my used data for my past trip in Japan I would probably go with the limited plan.
Most important thing while booking the wifi pocket package is to have have the Power Bank included! Since we keep the Wifi Router opened most of the time
5 Reasons Why You Need a Pocket Wifi in Japan
1. Free wifi is not everywhere.
There are enterie cities in Europe which already have free WIFI in the downtown areas and we are expecting a country as tech as Japan to have internet quite everywhere. But it’s not exactly the case. Even if most of the shops, restaurants and Starbucks in Japan might have free wifi, you still must go in and probably have to buy something in order to access or to ask for the password. If you are in an emergency you will lose a lot of time just going inside. Plus the level of english is very low in Tokyo and in the rural part and it would be very difficult to start a conversation on the very first place!
Klook.com
2. Google Maps: does it work offline in Japan?
These is a thing of the past. For some location Google does not allow the Google Maps to be downloaded (local laws probably). But this issue has been changed for Japan and now it is available to download the Tokyo Map to your phone. Just be sure to have it downloaded before your trip; otherwise we might need good internet to have it done!
3. Security Issues.
In our days smart phone are just more than a device to make a call. It can be everything for you: your workplace, bank, payment wallet and so one. Free Wifi are one of the easiest way for a hacker to enter your mobile device and steal your credit card details of example. Having a pocket wife for Japan will make this security issue vanish and
4. Public transportation is cheaper than Taxi.
And try to use as much as possible compared with the use of taxi which is very expensive in Tokyo in Japan. I have seen mostly locals using the taxi and I was wondering how rich those persons are taking into consideration how expensive can be a taxi ride in Tokyo
5. Getting lost in easier in Tokyo & Subway
Osaka, Tokyo, Nagoya: everytime I wanted to find a location, subway exit or a restaurant located in a subway we must need internet to located it. Sometimes even with internet it was impossible to find a restaurant; that tricky it is to handle the huge subway intersection in Tokyo. Most of them are mini-towns and changing a line can take up to 20 minutes (happened several time but I did not got lost)
What is a Pocket Wifi and Why Rent One in Japan?
A pocket wifi is a small portable wifi router which can provide wifi connection up to 45 devices while you are traveling in Japan.
But wait: why I can not use a SIM card as I use most of the time while traveling to foreign countries? But a 1-2$ SIM card and top up with the amount needed to have voice & data.
Japan has one of the most strict rules when it comes to buying and registering a SIM card; plus the shops where there are available the clerks don’t speak english to well so it might take forever to get along!
My suggestion that you book your Japan pocket wifi rental online at least 1 to 2 weeks in advance to be sure it was available . If you will be visiting Japan during spring (Sakura Season ) or autumn peak season, it is better to book months ahead to secure your pocket wifi rental. I booked 3 days in advance and it was a bit of a challenge to find the perfect wifi pocket for Japan.
Sushi Pocket Wifi Japan
There are a number of pocket wifi rental companies in Japan and my google search led me to 3 different providers with reasonable prices – Japan Wireless, Ninja WiFi and Sushi Wifi. All of these providers rent out high-speed unlimited pocket wifis within similar price range of about USD 50 for 10 days of rental or just about USD 5 per day. Depending on your number of days in Japan some providers have a short term of longer rental wifi period. In the end I have had to go with Sushi Wifi as it was the only option to take it outside Narita Airport. Our AirAsia flight from Yangon was due to arrive early in the morning and shop was not open and the other operators did not have it available online for the period needed to for us.
Best Pocket Wifi in Japan: Sushi Wifi Rental Review
If you are looking for the best pocket wifi in Japan out of the numerous Japan pocket wifi rental providers, you should seriously consider getting Sushi Pocket Wifi. I’ve used Sushi Wfi myself in my past trips to Japan last September in 2019.
I strongly recommend them for their easy to use website, delivery option and great wifi internet speeds both in Tokyo and rural areas I have been using it.
Asakusa Store – Sushi Wifi Pocket Pick Up.
Since it was my second time to Japan and my first time to rent a wifi pocket it was not difficult to get to the Asakusa Store as I have already been in that area before. Store is located on the ground floor of the complex and it is easy to be spot.
Shop was empty when I have arrived in the morning. Went to the counter and handled my passport and the printed paper with the wifi pocket order. There were other 2 more routers to be handle to other customers there. After filling in some details and sign up for pick up I was showed how the wifi pocket was working. I liked the fact that it was fully charged and could have used it the moment I have left the shop!
Why to to rent a pocket wifi from Sushi Wifi Japan:
1. Extensive Coverage. I was very happy with its extensive coverage during my trip to Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Lake Kawaguchi, Hakone, suburb areas surrounding Mount Fuji (including on the bus to the top of the mountain). I was able to get wifi connection 99% of the time from my Sushi pocket wifi.
The only time that the wifi connection went down was during the bus trip to northern part of Japan: Historic Villages of Shirakawa-go and Gokayama when we have passed many huge tunnels (miles in distance) and all the route was between different mountain range.
2. Extra Long Battery Life.The pocket WiFi has a 2,300mAh battery which is rated to last around 17 hours depending on your usage. From testing, we have found that it will run out of battery in about 4 hours. However we include a free power bank for the duration of your rental which will charge your pocket Wifi to full over four times on a single charge. Since we have used intensely and did not stop it for a second during our trip we had to use the power bank only for a few times during our trip. Most of the times we did charge it only in the evenings at the hotel.
3. High Availability of Pocket Wifi Units. My initial choices were between Sushi and Ninja Wifi since the prices were similar.
But when I have tried to book only the Ninja Wifi Router it was not available to be delivered to any location except for the airport and the selected days I wanted to choose were out of stock. So I have decided in the end to book the wifi pocket with Sushi which turned to be a great option!
4. Easy Delivery and Return. What’s good about Sushi Wife is they include a prepaid envelope so you don’t need to worry about the return process. I was only worried about how to return it. They said it can be just drop off at any Lawson convenience store or 7 Eleven. I search online for some shops close or inside Narita Airport and got a few locations.
The good thing is that I have asked at my hotel close to Narita Airport where I have stayed the night before if they can help me return it. And they said yes: just bring it and we will handle it tomorrow to the postman. So I have left it to my hotel concierge to mail it the next day to Sushi Wifi store. Easy at that!
Will I use Sushi Pocket Wifi again when I return to Japan?
Definitely, yes! I have used Sushi Wifi for my 10 days trip to Japan in 2019 and hope to visit again Japan in order to be able to use it one more time. Sushi Wifi has proven to be a very reliable pocket wifi rental provider.
My USD 27 Sushi unlimited pocket wifi rental for a 10 days was worth it and make my trip very easy to find the right trains, transportation and good restaurants with excellent reviews whole traveling to Japan.
Where to Buy Pocket Wifi in Japan:
If you are traveling from Singapore, Hong Kong and even Bangkok you can easily buy and have it delivered and pick up before leaving to Japan from Klook.com
Even if you you want to pick it from Narita Airport or Haneda or delivered to your hotel or Airbnb host in Japan, can easily be booked on Klook.com as well.
What Others Say About Sushi Pocket Wifi Rental Japan
Here’s what they have to say about Sushi based on their actual experience:
“I used sushi WiFi last summer (2019) and the service really lived up to my expectations! I chose the unlimited pocket WiFi and like the website says, there were no hidden charges, it was truly unlimited! You get a free power bank within the packet, which is quite large and a bit heavy but if you are wearing backpacks it is fine to carry along! The actual WiFi device is lovely and small and weighs practically nothing, less than my mobile phone. At the end of my 11 day trip to Tokyo I used 6.7 GBs of internet. I didn’t keep the device in permanently, I would turn it on whenever we needed internet for directions or translations. One of the reasons was to conserve the battery as we were out from 9am to 10pm everyday, and the other was because it was very hot weather and I didn’t want the device to overheat in my bag. It comes with a cable and a case to store everything in. You get a returns parcel that you can post back to sushi WiFi (just make sure when you pack everything in it all lays flat, nothing on top of the power bank specifically as it is large – the postbox holes are narrow!)
“Was delivered to the airport exactly as requested. The unit arrived fully charged and even had a charge bank included which meant I was able to use it for 13-14 hours a day! Was nice and easy to return just posted in a post box using an envelope provided. Would definitely use again!
“Just used their service for 3 weeks and the uptime has been very consistent and the connection very fast. We encountered a few dead zones in Tokyo but spent most of our trip in Kyoto and had no issues whatsoever. Will definitely be using agin in our next trip. Highly recommend if you’re planning to get some work done from Japan”
