I know there are strict regulations against bringing back meats into the United States from other countries but does that include things like retort pouches of curry (beef, goat, etc), instant ramen that might contain pork/chicken broth in the liquid pouches, instant/cup tonjiru/pork miso soup etc?

Thanks in advance.

As the title says, I am going to japan next month and I was wondering what the best way is to see Mt. Fuji, I was debating between getting a group tour or just going to one of the towns nearby and Exploring myself, what would you guys suggest?

I have been to Japan before and spent time in Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Hiroshima and fukuoka.

Now I’m planning a trip with 2 kids in tow and I’m looking for the most cost effective locations. Will probably give Tokyo a miss this time due to accomodation price and the cost to get there.

What are some good cost effective cities to stay in?

I know Kyoto is comparatively affordable and Osaka is a little cheaper than Tokyo.

Would be flying in and out of KIX

My son will have time between jobs in December he's looking to go 12/4-12/24. This is what I'm suggesting for him but would like some feedback on some other places to potentially see and stay to fill in the rest of his itinerary

5 Days Tokyo w/day trip to Nikko

1 Night Hakone Ryokan Stay

2 Nights Osaka

5 Nights Kyoto with Nara day trip

2 Nights Kanazawa

3 nights in Nagano to ski for two days either Nizawa Onsen or Shiga Kogen

depart Tokyo

Is this park crowded? Is there an ideal time to go?

I’m staying at the Park’s hotel for 2 nights but may only one full day at the park.

Any tips?

Hi all, my SO and I are planning on onsen trips to Fukuoka this December (we're trying to avoid the holiday rush). We want to make arrangements for nice onsens and ryokans first and then grab our plane tickets as we know the onsens can get very difficult to reserve.

We will be departing from Korea and our budget is about $600~$700 per night, give or take a hundred. We would really appreciate any traveling tips and onsen recommendations as we are both very unknowledgeable about onsens in Japan. TIA!

Hello there,

Just to give some context, I got a lip balm thing from a pharmacy store in Shinsaibashi a day after landing since my lips felt a bit torn. The stuff was magical in a sense and made the cut almost disappear. It cost me some 900 yen or so. Are there are any other non-prescription items (non cosmetic that is) that you guys can recommend. I plan to get a nose inhaler or two along woth the pocari sweat packets for sure.

Thanks for your assistance here!

Hi, just wondering if there are knock off kids soccer/football sets in Japan? The genuine prices are still quite high for my son who loves them but also loves to get messy 🙄

Hi all,

I was looking to order an item off of a store website and collect it in-store. Does anyone know if there is a time limit on how long items are held for in stores? I didn’t want to make them hold it for a few days if they are expecting me to collect it as soon as it is in, but at the same time I was trying to be organised enough to order it a few days before collecting it in case there are any unforeseen delays.

I bought 3 sealed bags of consumables from Don Quijote - I’m flying back home today. Will I be ok to include these as my carry on allowance? I assume it’s the same as just having your duty free shopping that you do at the airport, carried on to the plane with you. Is that right? My other carry on item is just a small backpack.

Hi there! I’m running a trail race really early on Sunday morning. I’ll have to get something at a market beforehand to have for breakfast the morning of the race. Any recommendations? Usually I have oatmeal before a race, but I understand that’s not that common here (nor would I have a way to make it). Thanks!

We plan to visit Takayama Inari shrine (in Aomori) with public transport, according to several website we need to go to Goshogawara to take a bus going to Inari Shrine entrance gate and take a taxi from there to the main shrine. My question is how frequent are the buses going to and from Takayama Inari shrine and taxi that are availble to get us in and out of the shrine?

Anyone who already done this? There is not much information on the frequency or availability in the web. Thanks a lot!

I’m staying in Shibuya right now for another 4 days before heading off to Kyoto, and I’m wondering what sort of gifts and souvenirs some of you got from Tokyo? I wanted to get some stuff for people back home but I am sort of stumped on “good stuff” not just some super cheap souvenirs like most tourist spots have. So far I got $70 worth of different Kit Kat flavors from Don Q haha.

Can someone please help me locate "real" thrift stores?? Most of the 2nd hand places l've been in Japan are just curated consignment stores, I'm interested mainly in clothes and would like to find something similar to a goodwill/value village. Where things are a bit more reasonably priced. Will be in Tokyo, Osaka, and Kyoto. Thanks for any help!!

I'd read before I travelled to stand on the left when on escalators (same as the car), and that seemed to be true in Tokyo. But Osaka seemed to favour the right. Is this a convention or are people just following the person in front?

Hello!

This is a bit of a niche question but I hope someone can help me out. I'm currently in Japan right now and I'm on a 3ish week vacation (currently at day 5). I was cruising Mandrake's website and I found some things I would really like to buy but it's in stock in the warehouse Sahra location. I was wondering if i can buy it online and have it shipped to my hotel however, I'm not sure how long shipping takes within the country. I'll be travelling to Osaka in the next day and staying there for about 9 days and back to Tokyo for the rest of the trip so I'm not sure to ship it to which hotel if that's even possible.

Any help woule be super appreciated, thank you!!

As the title says im going to Kyoto possibly around christmas for a few days maybe 3 days max, aside from the main attraction such as Gion district or Arashiyama what other recommendations do yall have for a first time in Kyoto?

https://imgur.com/a/eipDVaK

There was a couple with a kid taking photos a couple meters away when I sat down on the other end of bench. I assumed the bag belonged to them. I was tired and in zombie state and didn't norice when they left.

I did ask some girls and people but they all said it wasn't their bag.

I wasnt sure what to do but I vaguely remembered reading on reddit that in Japan, no one will steal it and the owner will come back for it.
So I left it - i never saw anyone that looked like they worked there so wasnt able to tell anyone in authority.

Did I do the right thing leaving it there? I don't think it was a suspicious bag with a bomb as it wasn't in a crowded area - just a beautiful, peaceful grassy area with a park bench overlooking a small pond.

PS The best part of my trip are the Japanese people. I am overwhelmed by their kindness. I am reluctant to ask for directions or help now as they will actually stop and take me to where I want to go even though it's out of their way. Arigatou gozaimasu.

Hello all! My boyfriend and I are taking a trip to Japan for golden week next year, and we're big ravers. Our last night in town will be a Thursday, and I thought it might be fun to go out clubbing.

Are Thursdays generally busy or not really? What about golden week in general? Lastly does anyone have any favorite clubs?

Thank you in advance!!

Hello! I’m currently going to take a trip to Japan

Visiting Osaka , Kyoto for a couple days and then staying in Tokyo for a week!

I was wondering if

Would you recommend finding better priced stuff for video games outside of Tokyo? If so any recommendations? I know Tokyo isn’t the best place to find good priced stuff unless it might be at a hard off and even then it’s pretty pricey

And for retro toys / sofubi toys would outside of Tokyo be best as well? Im looking for figures that are on the bigger side 12 and above inches around that size for a photoshop I’m doing. I’ve don’t some research where to find stuff in Tokyo but would like opinions and stuff and outside of Tokyo and I’m willing to travel as well by train!

Thanks! Excited to visit!

It’s often said that the best way to really learn and improve on the language is to immerse yourself in the culture.

I know in my country (Canada), when I try to speak French in Quebec, waiters will automatically realize it’s not my native tongue will switch over to English. Even though I really want to practice and converse with them in French.

So if I were to try my hand at ordering a dish or ask a shop owner something in Japanese, would they likely continue the conversation in Japanese? I would hope for an interaction where they realize I’m trying and would accommodate me. I would likely ask if they could speak slowly.

(Also, I realize it may depend on who I’m speaking to and whether or not they speak English).

Going to have five nights in March - we'd rather just do one island. Which would you say is better for us? We'd like offshore snorkeling, quiet beaches, but also enough things to do if it's a rainy day. Mummy understanding is Ishigaki has better beaches, but Okinawa has more to do?

Thank you

Going to Tokyo in 10 days and landing in Narita Airport from my home country. My almost 2 year old toddler is coming along with us and I've bought some ready-to-eat meals containing chicken/beef in pouches as Im afraid my child will not eat have anything to eat (Muslim-friendly wise) during long journeys. I've read somewhere that meat-based products will be confiscated at the airport. Is this true? How do I declare them if I have to?

I'm planning on going from Odawara to Takayama on a weekday in mid-November. I'd leave at 12:35 and be in Nagoya by 2:37 pm, via Shinkansen, then catch the Hida Limited Express at 2:48. It looks like the station is pretty easy to navigate, so the connection should be okay... Google Maps doesn't want to show me this combination as a route option, but I've seen it in other places. Is my plan doable and will I be okay buying my reserved seat tickets the day before, using a machine at Odawara Station?

As the title suggests…been advised by friends to get the JRPass for the 7 days, is this the best option? Or should we just wait till in Japan? I know we can’t get the pass there but will there be a difference?

Just saw this:

Release of 2024 Autumn Foliage Forecast (3rd forecast) | ニュース | 日本気象株式会社

I'll be there 11/12-11/26. According to this chart, I'm going to miss all the fall colors? Or is this just referring to "full bloom" fall, i.e. I'll still get some fall colors?

There are a couple of very old locked threads on this referring to Planets, but for Borderless specifically (ruling out Planets), I'd appreciate feedback on lighting types/intensity in the museum. For some context since I'm not asking for medical advice, but more a general sense of what the experience is like which will be another data point for me to consider and hopefully I'll be able to go, a bit about me:

• Visuals like the Avatar movies (Imax, 3d, 2d, and regular), the Matrix, action films, and animated films are all totally fine for me. Things like the Van Gogh Immersive Experience are fully enjoyable.
• Strobe effects, and beams of lights/lasers pointing either at my eye consistently or flashing in my eyes are problematic. Ambulance lights flashing 200 feet away good; ambulance lights 20 feet away flashing in my eyes no good.

So I'd love feedback on how much of the exhibit is Avatar/Van Gogh Immersive Experience type experiences, versus rooms that might be more of a strobe/EDM/laser show. And for any strobe rooms, are entry notices that there are strobes inside and alternate paths/guides to escort you to skip any of those problematic rooms?

*I am not asking for medical advice, but rather feedback on what I'd call "room styles" so I can better understand what risks might be present based on the types of lighting effects/experiences.*

Thanks!

I want to purchase the Kansai Wide Area Pass for this itinerary: Kyoto to Kinosaki, Kinosaki to Amanohashidate, Amanohashidate to Kyoto, Kyoto to (another day-trip destination tbd). I'm trying to find information on how this pass works without success. If I buy the pass online today, can I start reserving seats right away before arriving in Japan to pick up my physical pass? I would like to reserve seats on Limited Express trains, but I don't want to end up having bought the pass online without being able to actually reserve seats right away. Thank you!

Wondering how difficult its going to be to find a hotel where simple food can be made/stored? I'm not looking to make 3 course dinners. More like reheating leftovers, buying and storing breakfast foods etc.

Thanks

Edit will be in Tokyo, Chiba & Nagano regions

Visiting Tokyo for the 2nd time in January. My plan this time is to take things slow, relax and explore without any set plan in mind. During my first visit, I went through all the popular areas/neighbourhoods - Shinjuku, Shibuya, Ginza, Asakusa, Akihabara, Odaiba etc.

This time around, I want to check out some of the lesser known or less visited parts and wander around. I have the following places on my list:

• Kichijoji
• Nakameguro
• Daikanyama
• Jiyugaoka
• Shimokitazawa (popular, I know, but didn't visit it last time)
• Ikebukuro (same as above)

Any other cool areas I should check out?