2012 was a big year for Japan Travel Mate. I’d like to give a big thanks to all my visitors and followers.
Traffic to the site grew at an amazing rate! In September I had to upgrade the website’s hosting as the previous one just couldn’t handle the huge amounts of traffic!
Interesting stats from 2012:
- 18 new posts were published on JapanTravelMate.com. Although this is about 1/3 of what was published in 2011, I’ve been focusing on higher quality content.
- JapanTravelMate.com enjoyed double the amount of website visitors compared to 2011.
- The post ‘50 Reasons Why Japan Is Awesome‘ was liked over 62,000 times on StumbleUpon.
- JapanTravelMate’s Facebook page grew to almost 300 likes. I’ve only really started using Facebook since August 2012.
- JapanTravelMate on Twitter surpassed 500 followers.
In 2013 I’ll continue regular articles (at least 1 per month), daily sharing cool stuff Japan stuff on Facebook and tweeting all sorts of Japan related things on Twitter, so be sure to follow and get all the good Japan stuff!
Without any further rambling, I present to you…
JapanTravelMate.com’s Top 10 Posts of 2012
#10 – Osaka Nightlife
Osaka Nightlife – 5,328 views
Dōtonbori in Osaka, the centre of Osaka nightlife for the foreigner and many Japanese people… All around Namba and Dotonbori are many bars… Just be careful, if the sign says something about girls then it is probably a hostess bar. A hostess bar is a place where girls that work at the bar are very flirty and usually very cute…
#9 – 7-Eleven Japan International ATM
7-Eleven Japan International ATM – 5,358 views
Using your ATM card while travelling in Japan simply couldn’t be easier. You’ll get one of the best rates for converting foreign currency to JPY.
You can use your normal ATM card or credit card to withdrawal cash in Japan from your foreign account at 7-Eleven convenience stores from the 7-Bank ATM.
All 7-Eleven convenience stores in Japan have the Seven Bank International ATM, well everyone I’ve been to anyway, and I literally would have visited hundreds.
#8 – Sushi Train Restaurants in Japan
Sushi Train Restaurants in Japan – 7,033 views
All sushi train restaurants have a conveyor belt with fresh(ish) sushi travelling around, so you can just snap up whatever you want to eat. However at some sushi train restaurants, they have this very cool actual mini-train that delivers your food fresh from the kitchen, to your table. The one in this photo is a mini bullet train, and our table even has a train station name!
#7 – AUD to JPY – Get More Yen For Your Australian Dollar
AUD to JPY – Get More Yen For Your Australian Dollar – 7,659 views
I wrote this post to help Aussie’s traveling Japan get the most YEN for their AUD! Two years on, it still proves to be a popular and helpful post.
#6 – Japan on a Budget, Tips for Cheap Travel!
Japan on a Budget, Tips for Cheap Travel! – 8,268 views
Here’s a non-exhaustive collection of ideas for travelling Japan without spending a lot of money. These ideas for cheap travel are somewhat random, and unordered, but take a look and you’ll be sure to pick up a tip or two to save money on your Japan holiday.
I continually test these out and look for more every time I travel in Japan, which is just about every week!
#5 – Is It Safe To Travel To Japan?
Is It Safe To Travel To Japan? – 8,456 views
For travellers wanting to visit Japan, the best regions are those in Central and Southern Japan. Flights to Japan are relatively easy to find and tourists will still be able to access a range of travel choices. These areas have been little affected by the problems noted and can be safely travelled to without fear of radiation poisoning or negatively affecting ongoing relief and clean up efforts.
#4 – Why go to Japan?
Why go to Japan? – 11,400 views
If you are looking for reasons to travel to Japan, then look no further then this highly refined article from a foreigner (i.e. me) who has holidayed in Japan and now lives in Japan. When I first started this blog, the very first post was about reasons to visit Japan. Since then, I have discovered more of its hidden culture and surprises. A revision to the original list was needed, so here is the new Why go to Japan post.
#3 – iPhone/iPad App Reliably Recognises Kanji
iPhone/iPad App Reliably Recognises Kanji – 11,448 views
Looking for a way to learn and/or read kanji? Use your iPhone (or iPad) to draw kanji and find its meaning. As there are literally thousands of kanji, paper dictionaries and most iPhone/iPad Japanese dictionaries on their own are almost useless, as it can take a long time to look for just one kanji. I have discovered a method of translating kanji which is free and very reliable.
#2 – Why travel to Japan? Top 10 reasons to go and visit
Why travel to Japan? Top 10 reasons to go and visit – 12,747 page views views
There are so many reasons to visit Japan. Here are my top ten reasons why you should travel to Japan
#1 – 50 Reasons Why Japan Is Awesome (or, 50 Things To Do & See In Japan)
50 Reasons Why Japan Is Awesome (or, 50 Things To Do & See In Japan) – 66,058 views and 745 Facebook likes
This is a MONSTER post with lots of photos, so let’s get straight into it. In no particular order, here is 50 cool things about Japan?
My personal favourite…
If I could choose one post from 2012 which I think was the best, it’d have to be…
Inside a Modern Designer Capsule Hotel – 9hours, Kyoto
Inside a Modern Designer Capsule Hotel – 9hours, Kyoto – 3,996 views
I stayed here during summer whilst on a World Heritage site seeing mission in Kyoto. I’d been excited for months because this place looked so cool – and my 9 hour stay did not disappoint!
That’s it!
Another year has gone and the prospect of another full year is now here. Lots of cool new things are coming up from Japan Travel Mate, so be sure to follow:
