What do you need to know before visiting Japan?

Entry, arrival and what you can bring

1. No visa for most short trips, and no JESTA yet. Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs lists 74 countries and regions with visa exemption, including the US, UK, Canada, Australia and EU countries; for most of them a tourist stay of up to 90 days needs no visa. JESTA, Japan's planned online pre-travel authorisation, is scheduled for fiscal 2028 (April 2028 to March 2029), so any site taking money for it now is not official. Keep a return or onward ticket on your phone. Details in do I need a visa for Japan and Japan JESTA.

2. Fill in Visit Japan Web before you fly. The Digital Agency's free site (vjw.digital.go.jp) turns your immigration and customs forms into QR codes for the airport kiosks. It is optional, paper forms still exist, and there is no official app, so anything charging a fee is a copy. Screenshot the codes in case you land without data. Walkthrough: Visit Japan Web guide.

3. The departure tax is now ¥3,000 (≈ $19.0). Japan's National Tax Agency raised the International Tourist Tax from ¥1,000 to ¥3,000 (≈ $6.3–19.0) per departure from 1 July 2026. It is built into your air or ferry fare, so there is nothing to pay at the airport, and children under 2 are exempt. See Japan departure tax 2026.

4. Check your medicines. Some ordinary Western medicines are banned in Japan, including cold remedies with pseudoephedrine such as Sudafed and ADHD stimulants such as Adderall. Up to one month of prescription medicine and two months of over-the-counter medicine can come in without paperwork; more needs an import certificate applied for before you fly. Our Japan medicine rules has the list.

5. Power banks have new flight rules. Since 24 April 2026, Japan's transport ministry rules allow no more than two power banks per passenger on flights to and from Japan, each 160Wh or less, according to Japan Airlines. You cannot charge a power bank from the seat socket or use it to charge your phone on board, and power banks never go in checked bags. Our Japan plug guide covers this alongside adapters.

Money: cash, tax-free shopping and local taxes

6. Carry some cash. Cards work in hotels, chain shops and most city restaurants, but the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry put Japan's cashless share of consumer spending at 42.8% in 2024. Temples, small family restaurants, rural buses and IC card top-ups regularly need notes and coins. 7-Eleven and Japan Post ATMs take foreign cards; most other bank ATMs do not. See how much cash to bring to Japan.

7. Tax-free shopping becomes a refund from 1 November 2026. Up to 31 October, eligible shops take the 10% consumption tax off at the till. From 1 November you pay the full price, show your passport, then have Japan Customs check the goods at your departure airport before check-in, and the shop or its refund operator pays you back. The ¥5,000 (≈ $32) minimum spend stays; the sealed bags and the cap on consumables go. Our Japan tax-free shopping guide covers how not to lose the refund.

8. Do not tip. Japan has no tipping culture, and cash left on a table is often brought back to you. Where service is charged it is already on the bill: upmarket hotels add a service charge and izakaya often add a small per-person table charge called otōshi. Details in tipping in Japan and South Korea.

9. Budget for hotel taxes in some cities. Kyoto's accommodation tax has five tiers from ¥200 to ¥10,000 (≈ $1.3–63) per person per night since 1 March 2026, and most mid-range stays pay ¥400 (≈ $2.5) or ¥1,000 (≈ $6.3) each. It is usually paid at the property. See Kyoto accommodation tax, and for a full budget, how much a trip to Japan costs.

Getting around

10. Get an IC card first. Suica, PASMO and ICOCA pay for trains, subways, buses and convenience-store snacks across the big cities. Regular Suica and PASMO cards went back on sale in March 2025 after the chip shortage, and the visitor-only Welcome Suica has no deposit but expires after 28 days. You can also add Suica to an iPhone or Android phone. See our Suica and PASMO guide and Suica on your phone.

11. The Japan Rail Pass rarely pays off now. JNTO says the nationwide pass rose on 1 October 2026: the 7-day Ordinary pass is ¥53,000 (≈ $336), up from ¥50,000 (≈ $317), and the 14-day is ¥84,000 (≈ $532). The official pass website is keeping the old prices for a limited period. A Tokyo-Kyoto return on the Nozomi costs well under the 7-day price, so run your route through is the Japan Rail Pass worth it before buying, and read our Shinkansen tickets guide.

12. Big suitcases need a seat booking, or a courier. On the Tokaido, Sanyo and Kyushu Shinkansen, JR Central requires a reservation for bags whose length, width and height add up to more than 160 cm, and bags over 250 cm are not allowed on board. The easier option is to send the case ahead: luggage forwarding costs roughly ¥2,500 to ¥2,700 (≈ $15.8–17.1) for a large suitcase from Tokyo to Kyoto or Osaka and usually arrives the next day.

Phone, power, water and the missing bins

13. Plugs are two flat pins at 100 volts. Japan uses Type A sockets, the same shape as North America, at 100V, with 50Hz in the east including Tokyo and 60Hz in the west including Osaka. Phone and laptop chargers marked 100-240V work fine; European and UK visitors need an adapter, and 230V hair tools will not work properly. See Japan power plugs and voltage.

14. Sort mobile data before you land. Maps, train apps and menu translation all run on data. Most visitors choose a travel eSIM installed at home; a pocket Wi-Fi router suits groups sharing one connection. Compare them in Japan pocket Wi-Fi vs eSIM.

15. Carry your rubbish. Public bins are rare, and a Japan Tourism Agency survey at airports found it was the most common complaint from foreign visitors. Bins are at convenience stores, stations and beside vending machines, and they are sorted by type. Keep a small bag for the day: where to throw away trash in Japan.

16. Tap water is fine, and save three numbers. Japanese tap water is regulated under national drinking-water standards and restaurants serve it free, according to JNTO. In an emergency call 110 for police and 119 for ambulance or fire, both free. The JNTO Japan Visitor Hotline, 050-3816-2787, answers in English 24 hours a day for anything from lost passports to illness.

Etiquette, seasons and crowds

17. Learn the etiquette from one page, not twenty. Japanese manners are mostly about trains, shoes, chopsticks, queues and bathing, and visitors are forgiven a lot. We have kept them in one place: Japan etiquette mistakes tourists make, with the follow-ups on what is considered rude in Japan, onsen rules and tattoos and temple and shrine dress.

18. Pick your season with the crowds in mind. Cherry blossom (late March to early April in Tokyo and Kyoto) and autumn leaves are the busiest and most expensive times; our 2023 visit fell across the 2023 blossom season. Golden Week 2027 runs from 29 April to 5 May, when domestic travel fills trains and hotels, and many businesses close for a few days around New Year. Plan around them with our cherry blossom 2027 forecast, Golden Week 2027 and Japan in winter. For routes, start with our Japan guide and 14-day itinerary.

Frequently asked questions