Japan trains tickets

[swoop]

So I'm going to Japan and to be honest I'm pretty lost on what I should do regarding train tickets. I was advised by my travel agent that a national railpass is the way to go but I don't plan on traveling very far from tokyo so I think that will be a waste of time.

Travel wise I'm staying at the keio plaza and from there I'll be going to disney land, Ueno zoo, Akihabara for toy hunting, and mostly just wondering around the city after that, going to shows, sumo tournaments, some of the gardens and stuff like that. So I expect to be on trains a fair bit.

They don't have 7 day railpass tickets for the Kanto region so I would have to buy two three day rail passes at 8000 yen each and then tickets as I need them on the seventh day. Or would it be cheaper to not worry about buying tickets before I get there and just buy them as I need them over there?

[CBratron]

If the system is anything like HK's (or Sydney's for that matter), railpasses aren't worth it if you're just travelling around Tokyo as its cost covers so many options that you just won't use.
I'd suggest a prepaid/smart card. Purchase/recharge them from station vending machines. Stored value on them gets deducted as you scan in and out of turnstiles. Return the card when you're done and you get the ¥500 deposit back.

[Raptormesh]

If the system is anything like HK's (or Sydney's for that matter), railpasses aren't worth it if you're just travelling around Tokyo as its cost covers so many options that you just won't use.
I'd suggest a prepaid/smart card. Purchase/recharge them from station vending machines. Stored value on them gets deducted as you scan in and out of turnstiles. Return the card when you're done and you get the ¥500 deposit back.

Agree the JR pass is only really worth it if you're planning to take the shinkansen.

[swoop]

If the system is anything like HK's (or Sydney's for that matter), railpasses aren't worth it if you're just travelling around Tokyo as its cost covers so many options that you just won't use.
I'd suggest a prepaid/smart card. Purchase/recharge them from station vending machines. Stored value on them gets deducted as you scan in and out of turnstiles. Return the card when you're done and you get the ¥500 deposit back.

I had a look into these and I agree that they are the way to go. Thanks for your help

[Firestorm]

I agree with Cbratron, a smart card is a good choice
I was able to travel around most of the tokyo area using my rechargable "suica" card.
though it became useless after I arived in Osaka