Cargo Pass will free up time in your sightseeing schedule without eating much into your travel budget.

There are a lot of things to enjoy when traveling in Japan, from beautiful scenery and historical sites to delicious food and luxury shopping. Nobody gets all tingly with excitement when they get to the “lug my suitcase to and from the hotel” part of their itinerary, though.

So we were happy to find a way to skip that unpleasant chore and help us maximize our fun time while on a recent trip to Fukuoka City, where we found out about the Cargo Pass service.

Cargo Pass is an extremely budget-friendly luggage transportation service that connects Fukuoka Airport with roughly 200 hotels in Fukuoka City’s Hakata and Chuo Wards. How budget-friendly? The charge is just 550 yen (US$3.60) for suitcases with three-side measurements under 160 centimeters (63 inches), backpacks, or tote bags.

▼ Cargo Pass can handle larger luggage too, for 1,100 yen per piece.

The Cargo Pass route runs both ways between the airport and its partner hotels. If you’re arriving in the city, you can drop your luggage off at the Cargo Pass counter located in basement level 1 of the Fukuoka Airport domestic line terminal, and as long as they’ve got your bag by 2 p.m., it’ll be delivered to your hotel between 4 and 6 o’clock that evening.

Similarly, if you’re leaving Fukuoka later that day after staying at a participating hotel, you can ask for Cargo Pass service at the front desk on the day you’re checking out, after which your bags will be waiting for you to pick up at the Cargo Pass counter at the airport later that day.

▼ A Cargo Pass hotel front desk placard

While you could instead opt to ask your hotel to hold your bags for you after you check out, that also means you’ll have to go back to the hotel to pick them before heading to the airport, cutting into your last-day sightseeing time. Putting your bag in a coin locker at the station you’ll be boarding the train at for your ride to the airport is also an option, but that can easily cost you 500 yen or more, so you may as well have Cargo Pass take your luggage to the airport for you, since the cost is practically the same. Cargo Pass also saves you from having to worry about whether or not there will even be an empty locker at the station for you to use.

▼ Detailed directions for how to get to the airport Cargo Pass counter, whether you’re arriving at or departing from Fukuoka Airport

A full list of participating hotels can be found on the Cargo Pass official website here.

Related: Cargo Pass official website
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Insert images: SoraNews24, Cargo Pass
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