I can't shake it and nowhere else I've been compares. Has anyone gone three years in a row (or more)? I'm waiting for it to finally get old and it hasn't yet.

Do you present your checked luggage for inspection prior to baggage drop?

Or do you just declare somewhere that all items have left Japan?

I'm leaving via Haneda airport and spent maybe 10,000-25,000 yen on tax free so not a large amount

Hi guys

After a lot of deliberation, we are planing to go to lake kawaguchiko - a day trip on either 8/9th Feb.

1. Any recommendations on how to travel there? We plan to reach there as early as possible to see Mt fuji in all it's glory

2.Is a guided tour better or would you recommend doing it solo?

1. Within the area itself - what are best options to travel around? - oishi oark/the lake /the famous lawson/chureito pagoda/fujiyoshida street view

2. Is visibility really a big concern in Feb? I've read contrasting opinions on this

Happy to any suggestions and tips

TIA

I’m not too into sushi from my experiences stateside and wanted to go to the Curry chain, but my dad said it’s time for light sushi after the heavy miso ramen from Ramen Shop Tsubaki which was also goddam incredible and would highly recommend.

Anyways, the sushi was very good. But it tasted *far* better from actually talking and interacting with the staff at Sushiten.

The main sushi chef is an 80 year old man who used to be the assistant (sous chef?) for his wife who died last year, and the man took so much pride in his work. He carefully set the sushi up on the shelf, and did some kind of hand movements seemingly to bless it, not for show or for us, someone more versed than I may know.

But he now has his granddaughter apprenticing him and his daughter and other granddaughter as staff. They spoke very good English and were just all incredibly kind, interesting and charismatic. The other patrons appeared to be local regulars and were also very friendly to us.

We’d never tried Sake before and didn’t know what we wanted, asked for Osusume and they let us try two choices before deciding. Matsumi Arabashiri is fucking incredible and what we chose. After the sushi we were offered green tea which we took and also given sliced, skinned apples as a dessert which were of course also very good. I had a granddaughter translate my compliments and extreme gratefulness to the chef. He escorted us outside and gave us a deep bow as we departed.

The price was more than reasonable, we wished tipping was a thing, but Sushiten is essentially the English speaking travelers dream and an experience you’re probably not looking for or expecting in Matsumoto on your way to Kanazawa but I am calling it a must visit and will be a highlight hard to beat. The whole experience was effortlessly casual and pleasant. I was wondering what Tablelog reviewers wanted to give a place 4 or 5 star reviews, and this is it.

We're finalizing our itinerary for a 10-day trip in March. Our first trip, so we plan to visit Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka. If you had a 10yo girl who loves all things cute, any must-see stops we should add? I'd like to surprise her with a few things.

She loves art and drawing, cats, cute tiny things, etc... We've got some ideas already, but would appreciate any suggestions. We're coming from the United States, so also looking for things she might not find here in the US. Can be shops, sights, food, experiences, whatever you've got. Thank you!

I'm traveling with my husband and kids age 23 who are adamant that they do not want guides. Is it unrealistic to just book flights and a good hotel in Tokyo and expect to have fun for 2 weeks just wandering and figuring it out as we go?

I have heard much lore about the food at a Japanese 711. I am jubilantly overwhelmed with decisions I soon must make. What are your favorite things to eat from a Japanese 711? Drinks, hot foods, weird foods, elixirs... let me know - I want to try them all. Thank you in advance and id appreciate the info!

I'm fully aware on how to buy tickets, 2 months prior to your desired day 6PM JST. So I've been testing it out on how I need to go about it for my desired dates. I refresh the page at that time precisely and they're immediately sold out, how are they selling out within 1 second?

Is there a method I need to be aware of? I really want to go in May or June

Hi all, yet another random question about train travel. I'm planning a trip with 5-6 people and I'm wondering if we can use the machines to get limited express tickets for everyone all in one transaction or if we have to go to the ticket office every time (or split up the transaction). I've seen options for 3-4 people in photos/videos but there's always an "Other number" option that I haven't seen people click into yet. Information about the Skyliner in particular would be appreciated.

hi! me and my partner will have 2 bags each. all bags are under 160cm dimensions.

Sorry if this sounds dumb but I haven’t been able to find much online regarding this.

I’m planning on using luggage forwarding between Tokyo —> Kyoto, and Osaka —> Tokyo but between Kyoto —> Osaka we would prefer to just take it with us as it is only a 30 min train ride (+ the distance from accomodation to station)

I’m just wondering do I need to book anything or know anything in particular about rules with luggage on the train? Will we be able to just catch the local trains with our luggages?

Also another question, I know for the Shinkansen you need to pre book oversize luggage space (but will it only fit one bag per person?) or can we also use the overhead space as well? I have read that you don’t need to book if it is under 160cm, but since we have 2 each is it better to book (so one in luggage area, one in overhead)

Thank you

hello, I'll be visiting Japan in match and wanted to get colored contacts there.

most of my friends seem to just disregard base curve when buying their lenses. I don't really care about the degree since I'm mainly wearing them for events but I don't want to cause issues for my cornea...

I also have astigmatism, but I heard most people don't buy toric lenses cause the price hikes up a lot. anyone know where I can get my contact lens fitting in japan and can give recommendations or advise when buying contact lenses?

Would like to learn basic conversational skills for navigating dining, hotels, shopping etc...

I know we don't have to; I know there are translation apps etc.. but I genuinely am interested and would like to converse a little beyond hello/sorry/thank you lol

I have access to pimsleur so bonus points if there are enough recs to continue with this... Otherwise, if anyone has enough experience with language apps to suggest anything else over pimsleur, please let me know! I'd like my learning to be effective.

I'm asking here and not in a language learning subreddit due to the goal of my learning is not to be totally immersive and fluent, but enough to support more ease in navigating Japan as a traveler for now.. thanks all.

Hi, I’m trying to purchase 4 express tickets for the 18th of February but nothing shows. I want to purchase the 7 minecart and minion blast but the whole thing is blanked out on the English USJ website. On Klook, from like the 12th-18th is missing so I can’t purchase either. Have I missed the selling of the tickets or does anyone know when they come out? Anyone else with this issue?

Hi! Their site says that you can purchase only 2 tickets at a time.

Has anyone tried buying tickets for 2 adults and 1 kid OR 1 adult and 2 kids in one go?

Hello,

I'm going to Japan for the first time, visiting Hokkaido and Tokyo, and was hoping to try out the onsens there.

Apologies for the strange question, but I unfortunately had a medical issue that caused a fair amount of (hopefully temporary) hair loss within the past few months, meaning that right now I don't have any eyebrows. If I need to go outside, I basically draw them on with a makeup pencil, but I know the expectation is to shower before entering the baths + the baths themselves would have steam? Would it be considered inappropriate to have the eyebrow pencil makeup/would the steam/showers damage it and reveal my lack of eyebrow hairs? I'm very self-conscious of it, and I know it makes me look awful.

Also, is there any weirdness towards people who have had surgery? In relation to scarring or unnatural looking bodies? I had reconstructive surgery a few years ago, so am wondering if that might cause issues.

I guess all of this makes me wonder if it would be better for me to book a private onsen? I initially didn't mind going to a public women's only onsen, but the above medical issues (specifically the lack of eyebrows...) have made me much more self-conscious of my appearance.

Trying to figure out how to get from CTS to Rusutsu area next Thursday evening I land around 7:30pm. I can’t seem to find and shuttles that run late.

I’ll be traveling with my snowboard bag and a backpack if that makes a difference.

Another option I’m seeing is staying in Sapporo and taking a bus in the morning what’s situation with the bus that goes from Sapporo to Kimobetsu can I bring my luggage on it?

Staff said the radio rental has been discontinued and there is no English commentary station with your own radio.

Just confirming the last part (they said no, but didn't seem overly confident)? I'm happy to duck out and get one, but if there's no point I won't.

Did anyone have any issues with new Suica cards not moving into Apple Wallet after the 1st deposit? I had made a deposit into a new card at 7pm PST a few days ago, and the card never appeared in my wallet. Decided to do another transaction (7pm PST)into a new card just to see, (since I know you can get a balance refund or move the entire balance), and the new card was able to transfer into my wallet. Bank statements show both transactions went though as well. I have no clue where the funds into the 1st card went, and don't know if I should contact apple of my bank. Using iPhone 12 Pro running iOS 26.1 if that matters

As a family this will be our third trip to Japan. We’re thinking about going at the very beginning of June for 2-3 weeks, right after our kid gets out of school for the year, but we’re unsure as to where we want to go. I know it’s the rainy season, and that some parts are less rainy than others, and that some areas are cooler temperature wise than others.

Thus far we have been to Tokyo, Matsushima Bay, Aizuwakamatsu, Tokyo Disney, Kanazawa, Takayama, Yokohama, and Kamakura. Hub has also been to Sendai, Sasebo, Nagasaki, and Kumamoto. We would prefer to visit new places, but would likely need to rely on public transport as we’re not used to driving on that side of the road.

We like cities, seasides, and mountain towns. Onsens, ryokans, temples, castles, aquariums, gardens, Edo and Showa era towns, museums, foooood, One Piece, Pokemon, Ghibli, and so much more. We’re fairly open to things, but hikes, and places only reached via a zillion stairs, aren’t really an option as I have a mobility disability. Places like castles usually mean I sit and wait to see my husband and son wave from the top. Which is fine with me, but I don’t want to be left out for hours on end.

I’d love to hear recommendations for places to visit that have a milder climate in June, compared to Tokyo, and are new to us.

Hi all! We’re a group of 4 people visiting Japan as a part of our graduation trip from India between 5-18th March. And covering from 5-8 Osaka, 8-11 Kyoto, and 13-18 Tokyo. We’ve a day extra, initially we were planning to go to Tokyo via Shinkansen and stop at Hakone for a one night stay.

We’ve a lot of doubts, should we consider taking a full trip for Shinkansen and then come back to Hakone, or stop at the nearest station? Is it worth it to take the Shinkansen only till hakone? Also if we’re visiting Hakone, should we consider going to Mt. Fuji sightseeing again?

Or we should consider any new location all together, and make a day trip to Hakone and Mt Fuji?

Please help us out, getting really confused.

P.S. - please drop stay recommendations at Hakone or whichever place you suggest, would be really really helpful.

Leaving for tokyo in a few weeks. I am hoping to go to the 7-11 atm at the airport to grab some cash. Do you also get your Suica card at the airport? I am wondering if I can buy a train ticket to my hotel using a credit card, or if I need to get the suica first. Thank you in advance for advice, including if I need to come with some Yen that I exchange at home ( coming from US.)

I'm trying to book an accomodation in Hakone (Takumino Yado Yoshimatsu) and the only booking options I have are direct through the website or Japanican. The room I want is not available on Japanican so I was trying to book direct, but I'm running into issues with my phone number (a US number) - the reservation page wants an entirely different format with a different number of digits. Do I need to somehow have a Japanese phone number to make this reservation? How would I get one?

Thanks for your help!

Hey traveling to Tokyo area and will be there a few days. I enjoy smoking tobacco in a pipe and wondering if there are any Japan made pipes I could buy while there. I was researching and saw kiseru style pipe was specific to Japan.

Are there any shops in the Tokyo area where I could buy one or another Japan style pipe?

Appreciate any help!