Japanese Calling Cards / Phone Cards

[hintgiver]

Hi everyone,

I hope someone will be able to help me. There is someone dear to me in Uji who I have wanted to talk more with on the telephone. I am going to be in Japan starting January 2006, however, I would like to be able to talk more with them before that. Everyday we talk via e-mail; constantly sending messages to one another.

I can call them no problem. My current long distance carrier is awesome and I can talk to Japan for an hour for not much money at all. However, they only have a cell-phone and their carrier is Docomo. I was checking on the Docomo website and found out that to even receive calls from the US is expensive which, defeats the purpose of me calling them as a way to avoid expensive phone charges.

Then I was thinking if there was a way I could buy a Japanese calling card off the internet, give him the numbers, and that way they could call me without worrying about expensive charges and the phone call would still be able to be my treat.

What I was wondering from all of you. If anyone knows a site (Japanese or English I can read both) where I could by calling cards/phone cards that can be used in Japan to call the US. Any help anyone can give me would be very much appreciated.

Thanks in advance,
Ted

 

[GaijinPunch]

I was checking on the Docomo website and found out that to even receive calls from the US is expensive which, defeats the purpose of me calling them as a way to avoid expensive phone charges.

I don't think this is right. There could be a weird plan he has, but generally in Japan there are no "minutes". The person initiating the call (whether it be from a land line or a cell) is the one paying. Your LD rate from the US should be an additional 10-20 cents if you're calling a cell phone rather than a land line.

Then again, she could have some weird plan. I used J-phone/Vodaphone and got hours & hours of international calls. I never checked my bill but always kept it within the normal 10,000/month zone.

Then I was thinking if there was a way I could buy a Japanese calling card off the internet, give him the numbers, and that way they could call me without worrying about expensive charges and the phone call would still be able to be my treat.

If I'm not mistaken, he will still have to pay X yen per minute on his local phone to make this call, which can be even more expensive.