Guide to the NEWS concerts
Before the community gets bombarded with a million posts about, "HOW DO I GET TICKETS TO THE NEWS CONCERTS???" here's a small guide. I swear someone has already written something like this, but I can't find it.
Here's some important info I've collected from before I went to last years con and had tons of questions too...
If anyone has stuff to add, please feel free to comment here and I'll add it. It's always good to be well informed and have the correct information.
***This keeps getting updated, so keep checking back for new or more info.***
Getting tickets:
Tickets only show up at peoples homes about a couple weeks before the actual concert date, so don't go crazy asking where your tickets are or when they'll be posted on auction sites, etc. It takes a bit of time for them to get sent out. That means you'll have a short window of time to get your NEWS tickets. Unless you're lucky enough to have a friend in Japan who is a member of the club and has already invited you to the concert with them (then you don't need this guide). @_@;
The original price tickets go for is usually 6000yen (about 60US, depending on the exchange rate :P), so take this into consideration before you go paying a huge price for these tickets.
"For this concert, the price is 6500 yen (eyeslikefirefly: if you're in the fan club (with an extra 500yen service fee)) and 6800 yen (eyeslikefirefly: if the tickets go to public sale, they're this price) I don't know what's up with the price hike. I think it's worth mentioning that tickets might be hard to get for the Tokyo Dome concert this year (especially 12/31) because it will be held the same day as the Countdown. So fans from all over Japan will be trying to get these tickets. It is a good bet to try outside of Tokyo and Osaka for more reasonable priced tickets." ([info]chibi_hime)
- Through the Fanclub
The best way to get tickets is officially through the fan club, which you can only join if you have a Japanese address (or know someone with a Japanese address who is willing to sign up for you- it's kind of an elaborate process though). If you plan to join...there's a lot of detail involved. I'll add what I know if anyone is interested... Info on how to get into the fan club can be found here. :D (btw, this one was specifically written for the Arashi summer concerts a couple years or so ago. So, not all the information applies to the NEWS winter con.)
Fan club tickets come to you with your name printed on them by JE (to try to make them harder to re-sell).
- Through the "General Admission Sale" (info credited to arashi @ vox)
"If there are extra tickets JE will start to sell "general admission" tickets through Lawson's or Ticket PIA. They give you a date to start calling in, and if you get through then you can purchase a ticket even if you are not in the FC. The only problem is, you can only call in if you live in Japan."
This is only if the FC members don't buy them all up first, of course. I wouldn't count on this, but it's worth a try. The lines get really busy and you constantly have to call in to try to get through and once you do...it's all in Japanese so for this one you'll have to speak it pretty well.
General admission tickets don't have a name on them, so you'd be absolutely clear of worry about anyone stopping you over the name. (see more info about that below)
- Fanclub members
If you can't join the fan club, another way is to buy tickets from a fan club member who wants to sell them (not through an auction site). You can sometimes find them here on LJ or on some other blog sites, forums, BBS, etc. If you get them through a blog or forum- be careful. Agree to meet them some time before the concert and pay for the tickets then. It's the safest way to go because I've already seen people get scammed for tickets through livejournal. (This method is not always easy. You get them either by spending all your time on the internet or by pure luck.)
This one does not always mean you need to speak Japanese. Thankfully there are overseas fans who are lucky enough to be living in Japan and generous enough to offer there tickets to fans overseas. But you're more likely to find tickets through a Japanese fan- make a friend who speaks Japanese!
~ "In regards to this, as someone who has been scammed the other way and will hence never try helping other fans again, be aware that this also works as a double standard. I had bought tickets for some people who then couldn't come. After a bunch of hoop jumping, trying to figure out what was going on with them, they had people meet me. In the end I learned they were scalping my tickets for a higher price AND they never paid me for the tickets that I gave "their friends" or for the tickets that I still have and am now trying to basically get rid of so that the seats don't go empty. So be aware that people may not agree to meet up before you pay them." ([info]xelloss_poo)
~ Sometimes it is possible to work out a "down payment". This means you put a little money on the tickets to guarantee to them that you'll show up at the meeting place. It also means, if they end up not showing up, you've only lost a bit of money. Get good contact information from them (especially a telephone number).
~Please don't bother people who say they are in the fanclub. If they have extra tickets to sell or want to ballot for other people, they will offer to in they're own time, with their own post. It is rude to bother them if they haven't offered. D: Fan club members are already being extremely generous to even offer their help, we don't need to bother them- no matter how desperate you are. :O!
- Scalpers (or "dafuya")
~Another way is through scalpers who are standing near the train station (that's closest to the concert venue) or by the actual concert venue. They are really sketchy, kind of yakuza looking people (usually you can spot them right away). But in this case, you would probably have to know enough Japanese to negotiate prices and tell them what seats you want, etc. From what I've heard you can tell them what price you want to pay for tickets, and if they don't have any for that price they can ask one of their fellow scalpers (apparently they have a system going on @_@;;). More expensive tickets will get you a closer seat, of course. If you wait until a bit after the concert has started, they'll lower their prices (most likely closer to the base price, in this case- 6800yen), but usually the good seats are gone by then- sold to people who are willing to pay the expensive price.
~This may not be the best option for smaller venues because prices tend to be higher. (thanks to [info]vickie0105 for that bit of information ^^) Also, logically, tickets for those shows would sell out more quickly because a smaller venue means fewer seats.
~"They will usually approach you and ask if you've got tickets for the concerts. And if you show interest, they'll ask you how much you are willing to pay. In the beginning, they will usually quote you very high price, try bargaining with them. But they may not entertain you at first but when it's near the concert time or when the concert has started, they'll usually lower the price for you. But be careful not to get them angry, they may just refused to entertain you after that!" ([info]kiraan)
~"If you want arena seats (eyeslikefirefly: this means floor seats) -especially if you want more than one- don't try this method. You can end up waiting forever or having to buy them for ridiculously high prices. If you don't mind a crappy seat, this is the easiest and fastest method." ([info]wiz323) Hey a crappy seat is better than no seat, right?
- Auctions
If you go through an auction site, be really careful about it. You will need to know enough Japanese to communicate with the person and understand how the site works. Absolutely DO NOT buy from people who have posted the seating number and row, and/or name on the ticket (general admission tickets don't have names pre-printed on them by JE). If you do, the Johnny's people will find you, and kick you out of the concert. They monitor auction sites and write down the names and seating numbers and kick those people out.
~Yahoo!JP has a complicated system now, so if you want to get tickets you'll probably have to go through a service or friend (who already has a well-established name on y!jp)
~ http://www.ticket.co.jp/
[info]wiz323 has bought tickets through ticket.co.jp, here's what they had to say, "You need a Japanese address, so the best way is to wait about five days before you go to Japan and put the hotel address. Just mail the place where you are staying saying that a package for you will arrive. The site is only in Japanese, but I was able to fill in the registration form with this translator and nearly-zero Japanese knowledge: http://dictionary.reference.com/translate/text.html
Of course, waiting means a risk, but if you pay someone to buy the ticket and ship it to you (some webpages do that) it can cost you 15-20% of the original price... plus the shipping cost. Usually you'll have to pay between 50-100$ if the tickets were expensive to begin with."
-Shops in Tokyo
"Another method is to get the tickets from a ticket shop. There is one in Harajuku, Takeshita Dori. It's fairly easy to find, since they have monitors outside that always show concerts. They also sell a lot of older concert goods and photos. The tickets are in a glass cabinet and they don't show the exact seat but only the range. They are fairly expensive and you have to pay in cash, but they are used to non-Japanese fans and not as scary as scalpers in front of the venue. They only have tickets for Tokyo though (see below), and I don't know any shops in Osaka." ([info]ina)
This one is good if you know your way around Tokyo or if you're just willing to try to find the place. ^^
Edit: Apparently they also have tickets for other shows, it probably just depends on what they get their hands on.
Also.."as for the shops in Harajuku, they will slash the prices of concert tickets if they aren't sold the day of the con." ([info]devilayu)
If the Johnny's people suspect you for some reason and ask you where you got the tickets, the best thing to tell them is that your friend gave them to you (as a present, because they are sick, whatever. You might just be able to say your friend gave them to you and they'll leave you alone). Find out the reading of the kanji of name on your ticket. Because if they ask, you can say, "Oh my friend (insert Japanese name (or european/american name written in katakana) on the ticket here) gave them to me". Never say you bought them because tickets aren't supposed to be resold. :|
Of course, if you don't speak any Japanese you can just stare at them blankly and with any luck they won't have someone there who speaks English and they'll just send you on your merry way. XD;
If it's a bigger venue, they may not even stop to question you and just let you right on through! :D
**MOST of the time they will not stop you and ask you about the name on the ticket, but if it happens you should do what I said above. This is just a precaution.
Seating
Seating will depend on where you go- bigger places like Tokyo Dome have tons of seating, but you're more likely to get a ticket far away than close. Smaller venues are (again, from what I've heard) more intimate and you'll be more likely to be pretty close to the boys no matter where you're seated (at least closer than dome seating).
Research the venue you want to go to, usually you can find info about the concert venues online if you just type the name of the place into google. :o
Goods
Goods are sold outside the venue. Usually. I've heard they've had them only inside before for smaller venues, but that's not very likely. They can be bought by anyone, even people without tickets.
The line is usually long, so it's good to get to your venue at least 1 hour early (or even earlier if you're paranoid like me) if you want to be sure to get the goods you want.
Besides the goods they mention on the site, sometimes they'll be selling the CDs and DVDs (at least they were at Tokyo Dome earlier this year), so bring extra money for those if you be wanting them. Arr.
The end of the line is not hard to find, usually there is a person at the end of it hold a big picketed sign that says, "GOODS" in katakana on it.
Other stuff
If you bring a camera with you, hide it. The good thing about Winter Cons- big winter coats with lots of pockets. :D
If they find it in your bag, they'll most likely take it away and give you a ticket to pick it up after the concert (I didn't have to do this, but I'm guessing it's troublesome and time consuming when you just want to go home after standing for 3+ hours).
DON'T take pictures/video inside the venue (unless you want to risk it, but they have lots of staff watching) because they could:
A) Come and yell at you to not use your camera
B) Take your camera or make you take it out of the concert to the holding area (and probably give you a ticket to pick it up after the concert)
C) Kick you out of the concert
Most likely though, they'll just come yell at you if you're using a camera on your phone. Other cameras have to go out. I recommend just not doing it- leave it to the Japanese girls who can go to the concert more than once because they live in Japan. This might be your only chance to see a NEWS concert and you don't want to get kicked out.
Once you've successfully entered the concert...
- Respect your fellow fans. You don't want to give a bad name to your country by being rude to other fans.
- Don't raise your uchiwa (the fans with the member's faces on them, or your home-made one) above your head, the highest it should go is in front of your face, otherwise you'll block other peoples view.
- If you can't find your seat, don't guess. Just show your ticket to one of the Johnny's staff (they are easy to spot) and give them a confused look (or just ask them if you speak enough Japanese). They'll show you where to go. XD
- Don't throw things at the boys. I know you want to get your present or message to them, but that's not the way to do it. D<
Um...anything else? If anyone has any other questions I'll try to answer them the best I can, but if I can't, hopefully someone else can. I'm definitely no expert at this and I know there are more people who have been to more Johnny's concerts than me.
Aha! Found it! Link to another guide. (btw, this one was specifically written for the Arashi summer concerts a couple years or so ago. So, not all the information applies to the NEWS winter con.)
http://arashi.vox.com/library/post/natsucon-tickets.html
Links to other guides! :D
- http://community.livejournal.com/a_ra_shi/775345.html
- http://forum.takitsuba.net/index.php?action=printpage;topic=309.0 (scroll down a bit and you'll see a long post of a good guide)