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Local sim card with data plan

Jane
Jane
almost 11 years ago
3 answers

Hi,

I am seeking for a prepaid or rent a sim card with voice & data plan or only data plan, i.e. short-term service without contract and no rental phone attached.

From what I understood; Docomo, Softbank, EMOBILE & bmobile do not offer short-term data packages to non-residents without an Alien Registration Card.

Any experciences / recommendations on this subject?

Where to look for information in English for a fair price?https://www.jrpass.com/forum/topics/general-japan-travel/posts/new#

Thanks
Jane

avatar
Daniel-san
18919 posts
almost 11 years ago
Expert

Hi Jane,

Getting a (data) Sim card in Japan is pretty hard and expensive if you enter under a tourist visa. The Japanese government tightly regulates the Japanese Mobile market. Fortunately there are some option available. The easiest and most economic option is a BMobile visitor's sim.

You may also find our mobile Wifi rental article usefull or here about how pocket wifi works in Japan.

Lastly, I would recommend sighting up for the Wii2 Wifi service which is available at many places in Japan, including the Shinkansen between Tokyo and Nagoya (how cool is that?). It's been very helpful for me. They offer different plans but I would recommend going for the 380yen monthly unlimited service. It requires a Japanese address but you can for example put in the address of your accommodations without problem. The first month is free and you can cancel at any time, making for the best deal available.

I hope this helps!
Daniel


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