What points do you prioritize spending money on? Is it traveling or staying in comfort? Band merch? Or just hitting as many lives (of a certain band or during a specific time frame) as possible? Are you willing to travel as far as the band is performing (like Fukuoka or Hokkaido), or are you content with just hitting as many places around honshu or around your general vicinity? Do you have any favorite cheap travel recommendations for bigger cities?
In the past I would travel/stay/eat as cheaply as possible (which meant lots of overnight buses, hostels/manga cafes, and rice balls/instant noodles), and then buy as many tour goods I wanted that I could afford. Now that I'm older, I still travel cheaply, but I tend to use the Seishun18Kippu when I can and drive everywhere else. Shinkansen is a last resort... I've never attended a live outside of honshu, so I've never flown to see a show.
I like that I can get off at random stations with the Seishun18Kippu, explore and do a little sightseeing, and then get back on the train and go the rest of the way. Now I only buy tour goods I can use (or of a certain member) and then trade with other girls on Twitter for randoms (cheki/trading cards/stickers/rubber bracelets/etc.) Since I'm getting older and going to lives takes a lot more out of me, I tend to stay at a business hotel within walking distance to the live house (I hate having lots of stuff to carry at lives, worrying about getting a locker, and commuting before/after). What about you guys?
Also any tips you'd give newbies possibly going on their first live tour?
I guess one of my tips is that you can usually get much cheaper deals on business hotel singles if you book 40-70 days before, when the tour is first announced. Then if you end up deciding not to go or can't get a ticket, just cancel your reservation within the cancelation time frame, since at least 95% of hotels don't require you to pay upfront. That way you're covered no matter what you do. Tickets can usually be gotten last minute, but with hotels it can be much more difficult/way more expensive, especially in places like Osaka where there are fewer hotels compared to other larger cities.