The next time you take a domestic flight in Japan, you may qualify for a "birthday hayawari".

These are promotional airfares offered by Japan’s two major airlines: ANA and JAL. As long as your birthday is within one week of your departure date, you qualify.

Here’s how it works: You–and up to three other people traveling with you–can book roundtrip domestic tickets to anywhere in Japan for 10,000 yen – 12,000 yen ($90 – $110) each way. You don’t have to be a Japanese citizen–anyone can take advantage of these airfares as long as you have documentation proving your date of birth; a passport is sufficient. The flight has to depart within seven days of your birthday and must be reserved in advance. There are a few blackout dates during the summer, but if you can’t get the flight you want within a week of your birthday due to an airline blackout, you’ll be offered another day to fly with the discount.

For ANA, go to http://www.ana.co.jp/eng/dms/fare/birthday/index.html for more details. The English on the website isn’t great, but I’ve flown with this airline several times, and their English-speaking customer support and overall service is excellent. Check out the special Chowari fares, too, which offer discounts for random weekends throughout the year, as long as you purchase 6 – 8 weeks in advance. It’s easy to book online with ANA, and in a pinch you can even book a flight as late as 30 minutes before departure through one of the ANA terminal kiosks.

For JAL, go to http://www.jal.co.jp/en/ . This website isn’t as good as ANA’s; it’s quite difficult to book discount fares online here. I recommend you book your JAL airfare over the phone. Tel. 0120-25-5931 toll-free from Japan, 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., or go through your travel agent from outside Japan.

Enjoy your birthday vacation,

Jennifer Adams
For International Living