Japan
Japanese
An archipelago of fourteen thousand islands where thousand-year-old wooden temples sit alongside the most populous city on the planet and the most punctual trains in the world.
Updated on
- Capital
- Tokyo
- Population
- 123 millones
- Currency
- JPY · Japanese yen
- Languages
- Japanese
- Plugs
- Types A and B · 100 V · 50 Hz in the east, 60 Hz in the west
- Time zone
- Asia/Tokyo
Before you go to Japan
When to go to Japan
Late March and April for the cherry blossom, and October to November for the red maples.
Four sharply marked seasons. Summer is hot and humid; winter brings heavy snow in the north.
What it costs to travel to Japan ●●●●○
High for lodging and transport, but eating is surprisingly cheap: a bowl of ramen costs 6–8 USD.
Is it safe to travel to Japan? ●●●●●
Among the highest in the world. Leaving your bag on a café table while you use the bathroom is normal here.
Visa for Japan
Visa-free for 90 days for Argentina, Chile, Mexico, Uruguay, Brazil, Costa Rica and the EU. Colombia, Peru and Ecuador do need to apply.
Little English is spoken outside the big cities.
What to see in Japan
- 01Fushimi InariKyoto
Ten thousand vermilion torii gates climbing the mountain; at seven in the morning you have it almost to yourself.
- 02Shibuya CrossingTokyo
The busiest pedestrian crossing on Earth: up to three thousand people every time the light changes.
- 03Mount FujiYamanashi and Shizuoka
The sacred volcano, 3,776 metres high. The best views are from the Five Lakes or from Hakone.
- 04NaraKansai
Free-roaming deer that bow for crackers, and the great bronze Buddha of Tōdai-ji.
- 05Peace MemorialHiroshima
The dome left standing after the 1945 bomb, now a global symbol of disarmament.
- 06Takayama and Shirakawa-goJapanese Alps
Centuries-old farmhouses with steep thatched roofs built to shed metres of snow.
Culture and food of Japan
What to eat
- Sushi and sashimi, best at a market at dawn
- Ramen, with a different broth in every region
- Tempura
- Okonomiyaki, the savoury pancake of Osaka
- Kobe wagyu
- Matcha and wagashi sweets
Customs
- Shoes come off when entering a home, a temple and some restaurants
- Tipping is not done and can be taken as an insult
- Trains are quiet: no phone calls, no loud talk
- People don't eat or drink while walking down the street
Festivals
- Hanami, picnics under the cherry blossom (late March and April)
- Gion Matsuri in Kyoto (July)
- Obon, the festival of ancestors (August)
- New Year, the most important celebration of the year
Shinto and Buddhism coexist without conflict: most people observe rites from both.
Curious facts about Japan
- The bullet train averages under a minute of delay per service across a whole year.
- There are more than five million vending machines: one for every 23 people.
- Greater Tokyo, with 37 million people, is the most populous metropolitan area in the world.
- It has the highest life expectancy on the planet and more than 90,000 people aged one hundred or over.
- The country has around 110 active volcanoes and records some 1,500 earthquakes a year.
Cities in Japan
- Tokyocapital · 36 m
- Kyoto51 m
- Osakasea level
- Hiroshimasea level
- Sapporo21 m
- Nara66 m
- Fukuoka15 m
- Nagoya23 m
- Kobe36 m
- Kanazawasea level
- Yokohama26 m
- Kawasakisea level
- Saitama Prefecture13 m
- Sendai53 m
- Chibasea level
- Kitakyushu36 m
- Sakaisea level
- Niigatasea level
- Hamamatsusea level
- Ōta10 m
- Kumamotosea level
- Aihara155 m
Data from Banco Mundial, GeoNames and WorldClim. Photo from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA). The editorial content is our own.