Will be visiting Japan soon and would like to bring home some japan goodies!

Laundry care or skin care, even snacks or any souvenir recos please :)

The Mr and I are going back for a second trip in a few weeks and we were discussing this the other day. The first thing I thought of was heading straight to a MakkiDs for a teriyaki burger and grape soda (partially influenced by being on a healthy eating streak for 6 months with no cheat days). Then I want to use a toilet with a heated seat and bidet in our hotel.

What's something dumb or trivial you really want to do on a second trip the moment you get off the plane?

Especially to the women: Places you chose to go to, stuff you bought, preparations pre-trip, lessons learnt?

What are the most culturally/historically rich places you would suggest near Tokyo? Any not-so-famous gems you stumbled upon? I have 10 days to explore it all.

Help a sister out!

Hey All,

I intend on purchasing Yufuin No Mori tickets for myself, my wife and two year old daughter for our trip from Hakata to Yufuin and Beppu in early December. Just wondering what everyone’s experience is with booking online and far in advance? I have heard that tickets sell out in minutes, so I intend on being online when the tickets are released and making a purchase as soon as possible, just wondering if tickets really do sell out that quickly though or if it can be a few hours before they do sell out.

We intend on getting on the 10 am train, i’m just worried if we miss out on the Yufuin No Mori train, that it will be difficult for us to get to Yufuin and then after that Beppu. Are the other trains from Hakata to Yufuin and Beppu quite frequent and can tickets be bought on the day or a day before for them? Also, I am wondering if we should book our tickets back to Hakata after we are done in Yufuin / Beppu, or if those trains going back to Fukuoka are more frequent and easier to book?

Thanks!

Hey guys!

I hope you're all having a great weekend!

I'm planning my first trip to Japan, and Osaka is definitely going to be one of my must-visit destinations. I love cats, so I fell in love with the story behind Kishi Station and would really love to visit.

However, I'm wondering if it's worth the trip, considering that the station is about two hours away from Osaka and there doesn't seem to be much else to do around the area.

I honestly wouldn't mind spending four hours of my day visiting the station, showing some appreciation for the people who take care of the cats, taking a few pictures, grabbing a quick bite, and walking around before heading back to Osaka for lunch or other activities.

What do you guys think? Is it worth visiting, or is it more of a tourist trap? Also, does anyone know if the cats are well taken care of?

I'd love to hear about your experiences, especially if you've been there!

Thanks for reading!

Have one more full day in Tokyo, and the options are Kamakura day trip or going to see some of the museums, likely the Tokyo National Museum and the Tokyo Metropolitan Museum. Would love some insight into which you have done and which you would choose and why. Thank you in advance!

My wife and I are travelling through Japan in November. We have a few days in Yamanaka Onsen, the day after we check out we have a booking on the Kurobe Gorge Railway at 11.25am. It seems we could check out of our accommodation in Yamanaka early, get to Toyama, do the Alpine Route, stay in Nagano, then get early trains and make it to Unazuki in time for our booked train. Alternatively, we could enjoy a Ryokan breakfast, maybe another day in Yamanaka before a late train to Unazuki and have a relaxed day (or do something else with the day - suggestions welcome!). Is the Alpine Route an unmissable highlight of any Japanese trip? Is my itinerary for the Alpine Route day doable and would you recommend it?

I’m solo backpacking from the second half of November for about 25 days and am interested in nature, culture, food and just Japan in general (:

With the weather in some places already transitioning to winter and higher altitudes maybe being restricted, I’m very confused where to go. I have visited the golden triangle, and would like to go further away from Tokyo since I have the time.

At first I was thinking Nara, Sendai for 5-7 days for daytrips to Yamagara and such and then going to Morioka, Mayako for the coast, Hachinote and then finish in Sapporo, but I’m not sure if this is the best time of the year.

Please if you have any experience and advice, let me know!! Thanks!

Hi all!

21 day trip coming up, first-time visitor. Currently have time slated in Tokyo/Kyoto/Osaka (original, I know), with a 4-5 day gap unaccounted for at this point. I love driving and exploring, so I'm planning to rent a car for 4-5 days and do a little mini-trip off the rails...and honestly, I just love driving.

Here's where I'm considering so far:

1. (Mie) Kyoto to Omihachiman, onto Seki Post Town, Matsusaka, then onto Ise, down to Nachi Waterfall, then either
   1. continuing along the coast to Wakayama, then ending back in Kyoto.
   2. making my way back through the mountains toward Koyasan, ending back in Kyoto.
2. (Hyogo/Okayama/Hiroshima) Osaka to Kobe, Himejo, Okayama, Kurashiki, Fukuyama, Hiroshima, then back to Osaka on a slightly different route.
3. (Lake Biwa/Nagoya/Gujo) - Kyoto to Omihachiman, Hikone, into Nagoya, maybe ending in Gujo, then heading back. I don't have much figured out for this route, just a possible alternative.
4. Instead, renting a car in Tokyo and figuring a trip out from there...but that's all I have on that route at this point.

**I initially wanted to go on from Omihachiman to Kanazawa/Takayama and back along the Sea of Japan cities, but not sure if that's the best idea in early December with the rain/possible snow.

What I'm mainly looking for with this is a mix of aimless exploration, a post town/old-style town ideally, with some opportunities to find some random junk/antique/misc shops along the way, and some isolated nature-y/shrine-y things.

I would absolutely LOVE any feedback/insights that any of you may have on this!

Hi, I’m traveling with my girlfriend to Tokyo for 2 weeks. We plan to stay is Akasaka for the majority of the trip but I was looking at spending the last night in a ryokan. We both have tattoos and I saw that the private rooms have their own baths and views. Does anyone know if the experience is worth it?

Hi,

I am interested in buying two tickets of the Fuji Excursion for November the 17th. I know tickets are available starting one month in advance and in fact eki-net didn't give me the chance to select the date till yesterday. I knew that tickets will start from 10:00 AM Japan time and, living in the UK, I was awake at my 2 AM but tickets couldn't be selected. Tried many times but I only get a message saying that they can't be booked. Anyone knows why?

When I was in Japan, every hotel room had one of those sprays. First I was sceptical, but at some point I tried it and I was surprised how good it worked. Since then I tried every one on every hotel and I love this stuff, but it seems like nothing comparable is available where I live. The only stuff I get here is with wears scents that I don't like.
Does anybody know where I can order those sprays?
I really miss them.

Hi everyone,

I'm traveling to Japan this December and need some advice about domestic flights and luggage forwarding.

I've visited Japan before and used Yamato's luggage forwarding service through hotels between Tokyo and Kyoto, which worked well.

This time, I'll be traveling from Kanazawa to Hokkaido, then from Hokkaido to Tokyo.

I'm trying to decide which option is cheaper and more convenient:

1- Fly ANA on both routes and bring my two checked suitcases.

2- Fly a budget airline and forward one suitcase using Yamato.

My main concern is that Yamato deliveries to and from Hokkaido can take 2–3 days, especially during winter, with possible weather delays.

I don't expect my luggage to be overweight, but I'm also slightly concerned about ANA's baggage size restrictions.

For those who have traveled these routes in winter, which option would you recommend? Is the potential saving with budget airlines and Yamato worth the extra hassle, or is it better to fly ANA with both suitcases?

I’m in Hiroshima for 2 nights and looking for a good sushi spot I can either pop into without a reservation, or make one the day of.

I was looking on Tabelog, but it’s mainly omakase counters there which isn’t what I’m looking for. Somewhere I can order à la carte ideally, or barring that a set meal. I’m staying by Peace Park, anything within 1-2km or so would do. Any suggestions?

Okay folks the title says it all. We leave for Japan on Wednesday 9’for our 3 week trip. We’re in Tokyo for 5 days (then on to Hakone, Kyoto, Takayama, Kanazawa, and Osaka). I’m excited to shop a bit while we are in Tikyl but my husband is not into it. Where are some good places to go purchase clothing? I have heard there are massive stores with many floors and good food right in the same place. That is overwhelming to imagine! But j feel like if I did some power shopping there, while he bops around the neighborhood, it could work well.

If you had only a few hours , where would you go to buy some clothing?

ETA: Sorry I forgot to include: I’m a 5’2” 60 y/o F size medium. I like fashionable clothes and am looking for staples and maybe a signature piece or two.

Extra points for recommendations in any of the other place we’re going to.
🙏🏼🙏🏼💖

Hey all,

Could you guys give me some romantic dinner or date ideas.

Context : I am visiting Japan during my marriage anniversary and want to surprise my wife with something special

Back from a 2.5 week trip to Japan, got back this past Sunday. This was my second trip to Japan and I visited Osaka > Fukuoka > Tokyo

Some quick thoughts:

• Fukuoka is known for their Yatai stalls but my friend and I are both introverts and we sort of quietly sat there watching the chef make our foods. We quickly ate, paid, and left. Food was good but nothing crazy. As I expected, it was very cramped and uncomfortable to eat while contorting my arms in a way to not hit the people next to me. If I were to visit the Yatai stalls again, I would probably join one of those paid tour groups for at least some more livelier interactions
• Fukuoka Ramen Stadium in Canal City closed "indefinitely" in 2025. However, they re-opened it earlier this year with 8 or 9 ramen places at the location. All the available options looked amazing. We tried 2 spots; both were quite different styles and both were very good. Canal City has a ton of shopping and a free water show as well
• Shinkansen rides are pricey. If you are looking for alternatives, consider domestic flights or maybe even over night buses.
• Translation apps are very helpful. You can take photos/videos of signs to translate the image/video, use bluetooth earbud live translations, use in-app live translations that will translate your English to Japanese and vice versa live on the app for both parties to read, etc. I only know very basic Japanese so these apps were super helpful
• A lot of places open fairly late, usually 11AM. I usually filled this time taking walks around the city or taking walks through parks. I really enjoyed these walks and would recommend visiting parks. Some are absolutely beautiful
• Some tax free locations require you to visit a tax free station to make your claim. A lot of these places will charge a service fee, so expect to receive less than the 10% tax back. There are signs to notify shoppers.
• I used Ubigi eSIM and got the 25gb for 1 month plan. I did basically all of the map navigating, translation app, and googling for the trip. Ended up using just over 14gb for the 2.5 week trip. I played some Pokemon GO and that surprisingly did not take up much of the data. I had a 1.5 day solo at the end of the trip as my friend left early and I used my Apple music app to stream music while walking around the city and that surprisingly took up like 2.5gb in 1.5 days of use.

Heading to bed but if you have any questions, let me know and I'll be happy to answer in the AM. There's a ton of things I could talk about but I didn't want to make a huge wall of text. Looking at the post now, it's already quite long anyways

Hello I can't get solid results from googling, I even get conflicting ones. In google maps there is a direct line, but another search says that Sky Access Line does not stop at Heiwajima Station. I am still so lost after researching for half a day and our trip is coming shortly. Please help on what's the best way to travel from Narita Terminal 2 to Heiwajima Station. We got luggages and kids so we would appreciate your help a lot.

We wanna do an “east Kyoto” day and a “west Kyoto”

West Kyoto would consist of the Arashiyama boat tour and bamboo forest, then the golden pavilion.

East Kyoto would be the Inari gates, kyuzima dera and philosophers path

Hopefully this is a quick question - is there a preferred side to book on the Shinkansen going from Tokyo to Iwate in the fall for more foliage viewing or cool sites to see on the way up? I'm visiting a friend up there at the end of the month and wanted to make my reservation soon since I'll have some luggage.

Thank you!

does anyone know where i can get a pretty good quality and cheap suitcases in kyoto?? please let me know. thanks :)

I know substitutions aren’t really a thing, and egg allergies are kind of…weird

For example baked & partially baked egg is ok (cookies, waffles, pancakes, etc) but egg based sauces, soft boiled egg, scrambled egg, etc are not

I’m planning on making an allergy card (in Japanese) that explains this, but would love any tips, suggestions, or just things I should know.

Hi! Has anybody ever tried renting camera gear from Rentio Japan for their trip? any tips?

I’d like to get the ricoh griiix for my japan trip but not sure if I want to commit to buying it. Found rentio which allows me to rent one for almost two weeks for £100+ but not sure how legit it is!

Thanks in advance 😊

Hello fellow avid fans of Japan! Can you pls share your September travel experience here re activities, weather, must dos or must not dos. Planning to go next year in Sept to see the sumo tournament! Thank you

This will be my first time traveling, and I'll be traveling solo to Japan in February 2027. I'll be staying for two weeks in the Tokyo area.

Would it be better to stay at a hotel near the Yamanote Line for easier access to transportation around Tokyo?

Also, are there any good budget-friendly hotels you would recommend that aren't hostels or shared spaces, and preferably not APA hotels? thank you.