My visit to Japan in 2020 - Hiroshima (1)

Airbnb advertisement for accommodation in Hiroshima central district

Two weeks ago I visited Hiroshima of Japan for about 8 days starting from 5^th March 2020. I planned on visiting the A-Bomb Dome, the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum; and in the nearby town Kure to see the Yamato Museum and the Iron Whale Museum (JMSDF). On top of that I planned on traveling by ferry to a nearby island (Miyajima) to see the Itsukushime shine which has its O-Torii partly emerged in the sea water during high tides.

I lived in this building. All its first floor apartments are min-paku

 I choose to live in a min-paku (民泊=みんぱく) in Hiroshima for two reasons. First, it is cheaper than living in a hotel; second there is a kitchen and a washing machine inside, both are important for an overseas stay in a fixed place for over one week. My apartment costed me less than HK$5,000 in total. I booked the min-paku through the Airbnb. The online booking was simple and easy. One point to note is that you should pick the one with a proper licence. 

An accommodation law has been enforced in Japan which demands that all min-paku to register with the authorities and that foreigners have to submit personal details such as passport numbers for record purpose. After booking the accommodation, I book the air ticket on line from the Hong Kong Express. I fly from Hong Kong to Hiroshima airport. I choose the Hongkong Express because it is one of the cheapest: one round trip air ticket is about HK$2500 with one luggage weighted up to 25 kg on top of one hand held luggage up to 7 kg. Also, as a matter of fact, there are not many planes that may fly directly from Hong Kong to Hiroshima.

Hiroshima Airport Homepage. HK Express is at the bottom of the list

This is my second time to fly with this low-cost airline company. One thing to note about low-cost jet is that you are not allowed to eat or drink your own stuff in the plane en route except for those you buy from the plane (you can order it before flying).

This time I do not have a good impression on Hongkong Express because for this trip both my departure day and returning day were changed by this company. My original schedule in visiting Hiroshima was from 3^rd March to 15^th March. I picked these days some 6 months ago. My departure day was changed from 3^rd to 5^th by this company about a week before departure. Probably due to the new corona virus, the company had to group travelers of different days together into one single batch in order to save money. My returning trip was even more disappointing. While I was in Hiroshima, the company unilaterally cancelled my flight just a few days before my scheduled return. By e-mail it suggested me to buy a return ticket on my own in Japan, or to postpone my depart date to until April when it would resume its flights to Hiroshima in Japan.