Japan is one of my favorite places in the world. As a Leo who falls on the cusp of Virgo, the organization, peace, and cleanliness all speak to me. If you are looking to book a trip to Japan, here are quick 10 tips I recommend!

1. Book in the off season. I think that the best times to visit Japan are in the off season. You will see much less tourists, the shrines will not be nearly as busy, buses and trains will be easier to ride, the list goes on. I visited Kyushu in the Spring, and came back to Japan and stayed in Tokyo during Christmas and New Year. It was really special and different over the holiday’s than you may think.. If you need a bus.. I recommend Willer. Then go from the south to Sendai at affordable rates.

2. A digital train card. I recommend loading up your train card so it’s ready to go when you arrive. Japan is the master at trains and you will use it. From Kyushu to Tokyo I used ICOCA. I still have it saved on my phone for my future visit, hehe!

3. Learn the rules beforehand. Japan is such a beautiful, respectful, clean county and that is partly due to the cultural respect for rules and rule following. I recommend you read customs of Japan before visiting, but some absolute necessary topics to familiarize yourself with are trash management, the no tipping culture, train etiquette, taking of your shoes, escalator rules (they vary city to city), and the restaurant etiquette.

4. Travel Light. I know people always say to travel light, but Japan really should be done lightly. Firstly, Japan has anything and everything you would need. In fact, there are products from Japan that I wish I could get. Shopping for items will not be a problem. Secondly, the rooms are small. Unless you plan to book a 5 star hotel, chances are your room will be very very tiny. You do not want to be piling around all your stuff. For 2 years of travel I used this bag and completely stand by it. It is simply the sturdiest toughest bag I’ve ever bought!

5. Tech Gadgets. If you are a tech gadget nerd like me 🤓 then you will love this bit. Japan is the best at technology. In fact, during my time there I decided to revamp my whole photography setup and traded in my gear for a new camera system. It was great, they were more than fair, and they take such great care of used lens that I bought all used lenses! Even if you don’t have a need for anything, there market for refurbished technology is very outstanding!

6. Travel Outside the Norm. Tokyo, Osaka, Nara, Kyoto, and Fuji are wonderful and should not be missed! However…. may I recommend Kanazawa, Kamakura (a train ride from Tokyo), Fukuoka, Hiroshima, Miyazaki, Nagasaki, Kagoshima, Kumamoto… etc. There are so many wonderful cities in Japan, you will not regret visiting one of these!

7. Business Hotels. Any city you stay in I really recommend seeing about business hotels. They are no frill hotels, very basic but have everything you need. We stayed in many in Kyushu and loved them. They were clean (of course) and were perfect for what we needed.

8. Get Cash. Japan is a cash friendly place. Plus, you want cash because it’s inevitable you will want something to drink from a vending machine during and after a long day of walking!

9. Use a translator and learn basic phrases. Speaking a bit of Japanese goes a long way. For example, learning the basic numbers, hello, goodbye, good morning, thank you, etc. are easy. One I really recommend is “Gochisousama deshita”. This is a polite way to say thank you for the meal and the effort that went into it!

10. Go to at least one Tokyo Rooftop View. The 3 main are Shibuya Sky, Sky Tree, and Tokyo Tower. Off all 3, Shibuya Sky and the Sky Tree are pretty amazing. The views you see of Shibuya crossing is fun. However, to see the vastness of Tokyo the Sky Tree is where it is at. You really get a feel for how big the city really is.

10 Tips for Visiting Japan

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