By tighttravellers, May 2026
Alright then! You’ve treated yoursen to an expensive weekend in Japan – here’s everything you need to know before you go!
Plus our experience as tight travellers – not that you asked.
JAPANESE GRAND PRIX TICKETS
If you haven’t already – buy your tickets here!
We booked our tickets well in advance – and it’s a good job. All the cheapo tickets sold out quickly! Grandstand ticket prices were through the roof!
This was the only time we had seen a discounted ticket option for under 23’s which was bloody good! One of our tickets was instantly half price – an absolute steal! They never did ask for proof of age, do with that what you will.
Tight Travellers Savings: ¥32,000 / £150
Our tight travellers tip: consider purchasing a camping ticket or get yoursen a camper van. If we go back we would 100% consider doing this to save on the cost and time that comes with the long commute! We will touch on this later on.
GETTING AROUND
If you’re a tight traveller like us, chances are you ain’t staying near Suzuka Circuit… right? A lot of folk stay away from the extortionate prices nearby and travel in by train. That’s what we did!
There will likely be multiple transport options, here’s a quick breakdown of the trains:
- Local Trains
- Limited Express
- Rapid Limited Express
Travel time and how much you want to spend will decide which option you’ll get.
Get yoursen a SUICA CARD: tap on and off trains and buses with ease. You can add a SUICA card to your Apple wallet and top it up as you go! If like us, there’s an Android user in the mix, you can add SUICA to your iPhone and Apple Watch wallet (2 separate cards).
Consider buying a multi-day rail pass to save money. We visited the track on Thursday – Sunday and just using our SUICA would have cost us around ¥20,000 per person / about £95!. We’d have to bloody remortgage with that price! So of course we asked around, had a look on’t tinterweb and scrolled through endless Facebook groups to save them pounds. Don’t worry though, you don’t have to – just continue reading!
MULTI DAY RAIL PASSES
Have a quick gander on Google Maps first and find the best public transport options from your hotel to the circuit. Keep in mind: Shiroko station is possibly your best option. Suzuka circuit (although closer) quickly gets rammed.
We bought oursen a KINTETSU 5 – DAY RAIL PASS for ¥4900 / £23 per person. This allowed us to get on the local or limited express trains. Make sure to double check what train options your rail pass covers.
Tight Traveller Savings: ¥15,300 / £72 per person
Don’t be the one queuing with the masses at the ticket booths in the station! Buying a multi-day pass will save you time and money.
WHERE TO STAY
We will advise you book your accommodation in advance; but we cancelled our accommodation in Gifu a week before and booked a hotel in Nagoya for cheaper! Not as pretty, but closer to Nagoya Station so a reduced travel time!
Best places to stay near Nagoya Station:
- Sanco Inn Nagoya Shinkansen-guchi Annex
- KOKO HOTEL Nagoya Sakae South
- Sotetsu Fresa Inn Nagoya-Shinkansenguchi
Best places to stay near Suzuka Circuit: (These sell out fast!)
Us tight travellers ended up staying a 20 minute train journey away from Nagoya Station because everything booked up so quickly! The only place we found that was in our budget – a Japanese Love Hotel. It was our first time staying in a love hotel, and we highly recommend you to check reviews before you go to make sure it’ll work for you, but for us it happened to be the perfect stay!
The room was mostly clean, comfortable, and absolutely huge! Queen bed and a jacuzzi bath was a reyt treat after a long day at the track. More importantly, it didn’t break the bank!
OUR COST BREAKDOWN
Total Spend over the Japanese Grand Prix Weekend: £815.56
(We are currently cringing away as we type that!). Here’s the cost breakdown for 2 people for Thursday – Sunday.
Grand Prix Ticket Cost: £450
Hotel in Nagoya: £188
Kintetsu Rail Pass: £46
Local Train: £20
Shuttle Bus: £5 (used once)
Food: £87 (about £11 each per day)
Souvenir: £20
HOW WE KEPT THE COST DOWN
- Buy a multi day rail pass
- Do the long walk from the station to the circuit instead of queuing for hours and paying for a shuttle bus
- Avoid eating at the circuit, we went to 7-eleven and ate at budget restaurants in Nagoya
- Stay a short train journey away from the city
- Don’t go merch crazy, especially if it’s Mercedes new team merch …
CAMPING AT SUZUKA CIRCUIT
If you don’t want to worry about the long travel days to and from the circuit, consider getting a camping ticket. Prices for these start at ¥101,600 / £477, tickets go on sale in October and sell out ridiculously fast.
But if you don’t mind not having a plan, you can car camp for free at Japan’s michi-no-eki (roadside stations). The nearest roadside station to the circuit is a 15 minute drive, so you could rent a camper camp here, just pay for parking at the circuit!
During our slog from the station to the circuit over race weekend, we did see people camping in the car parks nearby so that could also be an option.
Book your cheap flights here and enjoy!
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