Japan Travel Guide

A collection of the best Japan travel tips and info for your journey

Japan Travel Guide

A collection of the best Japan travel tips and info for your journey

Japan Travel Guide

A collection of the best Japan travel tips and info for your journey

Japan Travel Guide

Overview

Japan is an amazing combination of old and new, modern and traditional. You can ride a futuristic bullet train through the city, and visit a medieval Samurai castle in the same day. There is a huge variety of cultural attractions here, both old and new.

We love traveling in Japan. The transportation is efficient, the people are polite, and the toilets are computerized. Osaka is a smart place to start; it's great for trying street food, shopping for weird and unique souvenirs, visiting Samurai castles, and getting a feel for what Japan is like.

Kyoto is the old capital and the cultural center of Japan, with lots of old shrines and temples to see. Tokyo is consistently voted the world's #1 city, and it has a little bit of everything.

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Quick Facts

Language

Japanese; 'Thank you' is 'arigatou gozaimasu'

Religion

Buddhism & Shinto

Capital

Tokyo

Visa

90 day visa free access for many countries

Climate

Varies, but generally mild

Power Plugs

Type A / B

Apps

Hyperdia

Flights

As a tourist, your main airports in Japan will be in Tokyo (code: NRT or HND) and Osaka (code: KIX). These have lots of direct flights from other countries around the world. The city of Kyoto doesn't have an airport, but it's easy to get there from Osaka. You can shop for flights to Japan on Skyscanner.

Transport

Transportation in Japan is generally by train, and the entire country is connected by an impressive and complex rail network. It can be a bit confusing at first, but it gets easier as you go. I'd recommend using an app like Google Maps or Hyperdia to help with navigation in Japan.

Safety

Japan is one of the safest countries in the world, with an extremely low violent crime rate of 0.28 per 100k inhabitants (96% lower than the global average). Japanese people are polite and friendly to outsiders, but the language barrier can be difficult at times because English isn't as widespread as you might think. It's a good idea to know at least a few important Japanese words.

Budget

Japan may not be the cheapest place to travel, but it's still less pricey than you might expect. Hostels are available from $13 and private hotels from $30, although a private room in Japan will be pretty small and the bathroom will be shared. Meals are about $5 to $10 depending on location.

Tours

The best Japan tours & activities

Snow Monkey Park

Visit Japan's elusive snow monkeys in Nagano!
See More

Posts

My latest blog posts about Japan

Get In Touch

Feel free to contact me if you have travel questions, comments, or suggestions!
I'll try to get back to you!