No matter how prepared you try to be, there are always somethings you wish you would have known before doing something new. Hopefully this will help you out.
The Shuttle from the Airport to the Base
The bus is located in terminal two I believe at Hanada airport if you are coming on a commercial plane. If you are flying on a military flight, just follow the crowd. You must make reservations for the bus prior to your flight in order to guarantee your seat. Otherwise, it is first come first serve. You need to have orders with you if you want to ride the bus for free and all in your group must be on those orders otherwise you will have to pay for that person. The ride is pretty long, about 2 1/2 hours and maybe 3 with traffic.
The Navy Lodge
When you first arrive at the base you will be taken to the PSD to check in (if you arrive early enough). They will then take you to the Navy Lodge. You MUST make reservations BEFORE you arrive. While we were staying there I actually saw a family being turned away because the Lodge was full. In order to make my reservation I emailed them and spoke with Nadiya. She was very helpful and was able to answer all my questions. The email is: nadiya.mcconnell@nexweb.org . Make reservations the sooner the better. Also, be prepared to pay for your stay. Yes, you will get your money back, but it can take a while so make sure to have the money on hand. The rate is $70.00/day and you must pay your bill every 10 days. It adds up really quick let me tell you. Plan on staying in the lodge for at the very least two weeks, more if you are coming during the peak of PCS season (summer). The rooms are nice enough and have little kitchenettes. The air conditioning is really pathetic so plan on asking to borrow and fan as soon as you can.
Housing
No matter if you are going to be staying on or off base, the sponsor must complete the housing brief. They go over all the things you need to know in order to be assigned a place. Once you decide what you want to do, their staff is very helpful and knowledgeable. Make sure to let them know what you are looking for. For example, if you want to live in an Ikego townhouse because you have kids, tell them that way you both don't waste time dealing with tower homes. (All housing is base on availability and qualifications). Start this process as soon as you can. Believe me, you want to get out of the lodge as quickly as possible.
Housing Goods Shipment
This is where we made our big mistake. We had never made this big of a move and didn't know what to do. We were told to wait until housing goods contacted us to talk to them about getting our shipment....So, so wrong. Go as soon as you can to have your shipment sent over. It will take up to 90 days to get here. Call the personal property office and ask if you goods can be shipped over immediately if you are moving here soon. With a little luck your stuff will get here just in time for you to move into your place.
Furniture and appliances
We had no idea what homes out here would be like. Would they fit? Would our toaster work? We were told that they wouldn't so we sold all of our furniture and anything with a cord. Turns out, in base housing all American furniture will fit and all of your electrical stuff will work. The electronics will function at a lower rate though, but they will work. You just might have to wait a little longer for that piece of toast to brown. So, in my humble opinion, if you are getting base housing, bring everything. The tower homes are huge, the town homes look pretty spacious. They only place you might need to worry about is Negeshi. Think 1950's home and plan around that.
Shopping
There are certain things that you cannot find here on base. You can always go looking out in town but that can be tough. The selection on base is small for almost everything so if you have something that you are planning on waiting to buy here, if you can, buy it now. You can buy things online, but one thing I recently found out is that electronics, no matter the size, cannot be shipped here through retailers. They have to be sent to someone back at home and sent through a friend of family member.
Communication
One pleasant surprise was how easy it was to talk to family and friends. They sell a military phone card here that gives you around 300 minutes of talk time to the states for $20.00. Its a great deal and the cheapest option. If you have a webcam there is always Skype. The postal service here is really good. You will have to apply for your postal box when you get here and there are locations at every base. The hours vary but are similar to hours in the US. It takes about 2 weeks to have something come from the states to here and about a week to go from here out.
Well I hope these little tid bits helped. If you have any other things you would like to know about, I would love to answer your questions. Either leave a comment or email me at navywifeinjapan@gmail.com.
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