Welcome to Kensho Quest! We share tips for planning an amazing trip to Japan. Our advice is based upon visiting Japan many times over the past 20 years. We’re going to walk through step-by-step the order to plan a Japan trip. You can watch the embedded videos for more details.
Disclosure: We participate in the Amazon Associates program, among other affiliate programs. If you click our affiliate link and make a purchase, we will earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. Thank you!
- Japan Planning Video Guide
- First Steps
- Which Season Will You Visit Japan?
- Where Will You Visit in Japan?
- Which Transportation Will You Use from One City to the Next?
- Book Your Flight to Japan
- Book Accommodations
- Plan Itinerary for Each City
- Local Transportation Within a City
- Money Matters
- International Driving Permit
- Travel & Health insurance
- Emergency Preparation
- Install Apps on Your Phone
- Internet Data Plan for Japan
- Learn Some Japanese Words
- Pack for Japan
- Visit Japan Web
- Arriving at the Airport
Japan Planning Video Guide
We also made a video version of this Japan Planning Guide, that you can watch here.
First Steps
Make sure to take these first steps, as skipping them could prevent you from visiting Japan.
Valid Passport
Check the expiration date on your passport. Or, if you don’t yet have a passport, apply for one right away. The quickest way to ruin a Japan trip is to realize that you don’t have a passport that’s valid for the length of your stay in Japan. Each member of your party needs to have a passport, no matter what their age.
While not technically required by Japan, it’s a good idea to have at least 6 months validity remaining on your passport when you enter. Many countries around the world require this, so keep it in mind if you will visit multiple countries on your trip.
Visa Requirements
Next, check whether or not your nationality requires a visa to visit Japan. As citizens of the USA, we are able to visit Japan without a Visa as tourists for up to 90 days. Having an onward or return ticket is required. This is not legal advice. Please do your own research.
Medications
If you have medications that you rely on taking consistently, be sure to check whether they are legal in Japan. There are many prescription and over-the-counter medications that are legal in the USA, but not legal in Japan.
Which Season Will You Visit Japan?
Think about which season you want to visit Japan. You can start by listing the activities you want to do while you’re in Japan. Do you want to go hiking? Skiing? Enjoy beautiful flowers? Or do you want to visit cities, shop, and sightsee?
If you want to ski, you can visit Japan in Winter. If you want to hike, you can visit in Spring, Summer, or Fall. If you want to hike up Mt. Fuji, the climbing season runs from early July to early September.
If you’re hoping to get a picturesque view of Mt. Fuji, winter is your best chance at clear skies. In spring, you might catch Mt. Fuji framed in cherry blossoms. Or during fall, you may glimpse Mt. Fuji framed in vibrant autumn leaves.
Some activities are not as dependent upon the season, such as visiting amusement parks or shopping.
Spring in Japan
Spring is a popular time of year to visit Japan, with the cool weather and hopes of seeing sakura cherry blossoms. Cherry blossoms tend to reach full bloom in Tokyo around the end of March or beginning of April. Each year there is a cherry blossom forecast, but it’s just a prediction. When we visited, full bloom happened later than forecast. If you visit during cherry blossom season, expect it to be very crowded!
If you’re hoping to see flowers in Japan, cherry blossoms aren’t the only attraction, there are many beautiful spring and summer flowers.
Summer in Japan
Summer in Japan is hot, humid, and rainy, making it one of the least pleasant times of year to visit. Since our family lives in a humid tropical climate, we don’t mind visiting Japan in the summer. But heavy rain can interfere with outdoor plans. If you visit in the summer, have some options for indoor activities, such as museums and art exhibits. The peak of typhoon season often occurs in August or September, which can result in cancellation of Shinkansen trains. This is one of the reasons we avoid visiting in August.
Fall in Japan
Fall is one of my favorite times of year to visit Japan! While September weather is similar to summer, October and November have cool pleasant weather. Autumn leaves tend to peak in Tokyo around mid November to early December, decorating the parks and gardens in vibrant colors.
Winter in Japan
Winter is low-season for international tourists in Tokyo, so you may be able to avoid crowds and get better prices on hotels and airfare. We love visiting Japan in the winter, but rather than staying in Tokyo, we head north to Sapporo for all types of fun in the snow! February is high season in Sapporo, due to the Sapporo Snow Festival, with impressive snow sculptures.
Busy Holiday Seasons in Japan
You may want to avoid visiting during Japanese holiday seasons, since accommodations can be higher priced and train reservations may be harder to get. Some of the major holiday season in Japan include:
- Golden Week, which is a series of national holidays in late April to early May.
- Obon Festival in mid August, when many people return to their hometowns.
- New Years, at the end of December and beginning of January, when people also visit their families.
- Double check if any other Japanese holidays fall during your planned visit.
Where Will You Visit in Japan?
Once you’ve decided the time of year you will visit Japan, brainstorm a list of possible cities or areas to visit. Please consider more than just Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka. Going a bit off the beaten path can lead you to amazing sights and experiences, away from the tourist crowds.
Once you have a list of possible cities, start checking hotel availability and pricing. Based upon your research, you may change your list of cities. We book hotels and vacation rentals through Expedia, since the cancellation policy is usually clearly stated, and we can often cancel very close to the reservation date.
It’s best to book accommodations as far in advance as possible. Otherwise, you may not have many options to choose from, and what’s left may be expensive. Hotel prices can also be much higher during holidays and festivals.
You can watch our video on Where to Stay in Tokyo, which goes through the factors we consider when choosing a hotel. The most important thing is to make sure there is a train station within a 5 to 10 minutes walk.
Which Transportation Will You Use from One City to the Next?
The major transportation options for traveling from one city to the next in Japan are train, bus, or airplane. You could also rent a car, but we save that option for more remote areas.
Shinkansen Bullet Trains or Domestic Flights
Our preference is to travel on the high speed Shinkansen bullet trains. These are a smooth ride, and very convenient, taking you from the heart of one city to the heart of another city. We usually opt for the Shinkansen when traveling from Tokyo to Kyoto or Osaka. It’s more convenient for that route than flying.
There are routes where we either take trains or opt to take a domestic flight within Japan. For instance, when traveling between Sapporo and Tokyo Japan, we sometimes take the trains, with a journey time of around 8 to 9 hours. It’s much faster when we fly, with a flight time of almost 2 hours. When flying, we also need to allow time to get to the airport, check in, go through security and wait to board our flight. However, for that far of a distance, flying is still overall faster.
If you have never ridden a Shinkansen before, you can watch our Beginner’s Guide to Japan’s Bullet Trains.
The most popular Shinkansen for tourists visiting Japan is the Tokaido Shinkansen line, which links Tokyo to Kyoto and Osaka. Bullet trains only stop at a very limited number of stations. For example within Tokyo, the Tokaido Shinkansen only stops at Tokyo Station and Shinagawa Station. If you buy a Shinkansen ticket from Tokyo to Kyoto, that refers to Tokyo Station to Kyoto Station.
Buying Single-Journey Shinkansen Bullet Train Tickets
There are multiple different ways to pay to ride Shinkansen bullet trains. You can buy a single-journey ticket, for example from Tokyo Station to Kyoto Station. You can purchase Shinkansen tickets in Japan at JR ticket offices or ticket vending machines in train stations. There are also multiple ways to purchase tickets online, which you can do even before arriving in Japan.
You can watch our video showing how to purchase Shinkansen tickets on Klook, although there have been some changes since we made that video. For instance, you can now choose to reserve a seat with oversized luggage space when booking a seat on the Tokaido, Sanyo, Kyushu Shinkansen line. Oversized baggage refers to bags with total dimensions: length plus width plus depth of 161cm to 250cm. Also, when traveling either direction between Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka, you no longer need to redeem your Klook QR code for paper tickets at a ticket vending machine. Instead, you can simply scan the QR code provided by Klook at the Shinkansen ticket gate.
You can also watch our video explaining how to purchase a Shinkansen ticket on SmartEX and then link your ticket to your IC card, so you can tap into the Shinkansen ticket gate using your IC card, rather than inserting a paper ticket.
JR Pass (Whole Japan Rail Pass)
In the past, many people opted to buy the Whole Japan Rail Pass. We call it “JR Pass” for short. The JR Pass allows for unlimited rides on Shinkansen and other JR trains for the valid period of 7, 14, or 21 days. However, the price of JR Passes drastically increased in the Fall of 2023.
If you’re only going from Tokyo to Kyoto to Osaka, and back to Tokyo, the JR Pass won’t save you money. If you add in a visit to Hiroshima, then it can be worth getting.
You can watch our video explaining how to calculate whether the JR Pass is worth it for your route in 2024 and beyond.
JR Regional Pass
An alternative to the Whole Japan Rail Pass is a JR regional pass. These regional passes also allow for unlimited rides, but only for a specific area of Japan or specific route. Regional JR Passes may cover only local JR trains, or they may cover both local trains plus a specific Shinkansen route. None of the regional passes cover the Tokaido Shinkansen line which links Tokyo to Kyoto and Osaka. The Tokaido is only covered by the Whole Japan Rail Pass. Or, of course, you can buy individual tickets.
Popular regional passes you may want to consider are:
The 7-day Hokuriku Arch Pass, which can take you on an arched route from Tokyo to Nagano, to Kanazawa, to Fukui, to Kyoto and Osaka. Or you could follow the arch in the other direction, from Osaka to Tokyo. It includes the Hokuriku Shinkansen from Tokyo Station to Tsuruga Station and the Thunderbird Limited Express Train from Tsuruga Station to Osaka. You can purchase the Hokuriku Arch Pass or read more information.
The 3-day JR Tokyo Wide Pass, which allows you to explore Tokyo and surrounding areas, such as GALA Yuzawa ski resort, Nikko, and even Mt. Fuji. Unlike the Whole Japan Rail Pass, the JR Tokyo Wide Pass includes the Fujikyu Railway line, taking you all the way to Kawaguchiko Station in the Mt. Fuji Five Lakes area. You can purchase the JR Tokyo Wide Pass or read more information.
The 5-Day Kansai Wide Area Pass, which allows you to explore Osaka, Kyoto, Nara, Kobe, and as far west as Okayama. The Kansai Wide Area Pass covers riding the Sanyo Shinkansen between Shin-Osaka and Okayama. You can ride local JR trains between Shin-Osaka and Kyoto. You can purchase the Kansai Wide Area Pass or read more information.
The 7-Day Sanyo-San’in Rail Pass has similar coverage in the Kansai area of Osaka and Kyoto, while continuing farther West to Hakata on Kyushu Island. It includes riding the Sanyo Shinkansen from Shin-Osaka Station to Hakata Station. You can purchase the Sanyo-San’in Rail Pass or read more information.
For more on this topic, you can watch our video on How to Travel Japan by Train Without the JR Pass.
Book Your Flight to Japan
You’ll most likely fly to Japan, unless, of course, you’re taking a cruise ship to Japan.
Once you know which cities you will visit and how you will get from one city to the next, it’s time to book your airline flight to Japan and any domestic flights within Japan.
Commonly used international airports in Japan include:
- Narita International Airport near Tokyo
- Haneda Airport in Tokyo (which is our preference between the two, since it’s more conveniently located)
- Kansai International Airport in Osaka
- Chubu Centrair International Airport in Nagoya
- New Chitose Airport in Sapporo
- Fukuoka Airport in Fukuoka, and
- Naha Airport in Okinawa.
There are others, so double check where you can fly to from your originating city.
You don’t necessarily need to book a round trip flight into and out of the same city. For example if you will visit both Tokyo and Osaka, you may want to fly into Tokyo and fly home from Osaka. This will save you the time and money it would require to return to Tokyo. For this approach, instead of selecting a round-trip ticket, choose muli-city.
Book Accommodations
Once you’ve booked travel to Japan, it’s time to book accommodations in Japan. Luckily, you’ve already done some research on accommodations. While hotels are the most common type, they aren’t the only option. If you’re traveling as a family, or staying longer than a couple weeks in Japan, you may want to opt for a vacation rental. This can mean renting an apartment or even an entire house. We go this route when staying for a month in one city. Benefits include being able to cook for ourselves and having our own washing machine.
You may want to splurge and stay a night or two in a Ryokan, which is a traditional Japanese inn. We especially recommend a Ryokan with an onsen hot spring. This can be either in the form of a public shared onsen bath, or a private onsen bath that you have all to yourself.
Other forms of accommodations include hostels, guesthouses, capsule hotels, or Buddhist Temple lodging. We’ve even camped in Japan! It’s fun to sprinkle in a unique stay during your trip.
You can find our Japan hotel recommendations in our Expedia Travel Shop.
Plan Itinerary for Each City
Once you’ve booked flights and accommodations, it’s time to plan the details of what you will do in each city. Prioritize the types of things you like to do! There are many sites and attractions you can visit in Japan. For example, you can visit:
- Temples and shrines
- Castles
- Museums
- Art Exhibits
- Traditional Villages
- Mt. Fuji
- Tokyo Disneyland
- Tokyo DisneySea
- Sanrio Puroland with Hello Kitty
- Universal Studios in Osaka with Super Nintendo World
You may also want to enjoy the city view from a tower or skyscraper. Or stroll through popular shopping districts. You can participate in cultural activities, such as a tea ceremony, or dressing in a kimono. And don’t forget to research particular restaurants you want to dine at.
In the past, we used a shared Google Doc Spreadsheet to keep track of our itinerary. That wasn’t the best system, especially when we made changes along the way. This time we’re trying the Wanderlog app, which can be used both on our phones and computers. Plus, George and I can edit the same itinerary we’re working on. We can easily enter airline flights, hotel reservations, places to visit, restaurants, and notes.
When we’re ready to book attraction tickets, cultural experiences and tours, I use the Klook website or app on my phone. It keeps all of our digital tickets and vouchers organized in one place. Klook accepts multiple forms of payment and translates into multiple languages, making it easy to use.
It’s worth researching which tickets need to be booked as soon as they are released.
For example, tickets to Ghibli Museum sell out quickly. The Shibuya Sky Observation Deck sells out quickly for the sunset time of day. Teamlab Planets and Teamlab Borderless tickets should be purchased in advance, as they are likely to be sold out if you wait until the day of your visit. While it’s rare for theme parks to completely sell out of entrance tickets, Express Passes for Universal Studios Japan do sell out quickly.
Restaurants that accept reservations may book up a year in advance. Many popular restaurants don’t accept reservations, and instead, you may need to wait in line for hours. If you want to dine at a themed cafe, such as Pokemon Cafe or Kirby Cafe, make reservations as soon as the dates are released.
You may want to reserve train seats up to one month in advance, if you will be traveling during a busy time of year, or you want to ride a specialty train. We also recommend booking in advance for the Fuji Excursion Limited Express train.
If you plan to rent a car, you can reserve it in advance.
Local Transportation Within a City
Before your trip, research the types of local transportation you will use to get around within a city. This may include trains, subways, buses, taxis, or ferries.
We use Google Maps to navigate in Japan and help us figure out which train or bus to catch.
We recommend getting an IC card, which is a rechargeable card you can use to pay for local transportation. This way you don’t need to buy a paper ticket for each train ride or pay by cash on buses.
Get one of the 10 interoperable IC cards, whichever one is available when you arrive in Japan. Any of these 10 major IC cards can be used interchangeably across the areas that accept payment by IC card. The 10 major IC cards are:
- Kitaca – issued in Hokkaido
- Suica – found in Greater Tokyo & North East Japan
- Pasmo – also found in Greater Tokyo
- Manaca & Toica – issued in Nagoya
- Pitapa – issued Kansai – Osaka/Kyoto (however, this one isn’t really for foreign tourists)
- ICOCA – issued in Kansai – Osaka/Kyoto
- Sugoca, Nimoca, & Hayakaken – issued in Kyushu and Fukuoka
Each person needs to have their own IC card to pay for public transportation.
Tap your IC card when entering a train station and tap it again to exit at your destination station. This is how the system keeps track of where you started and ended your journey, and therefore knows how much to charge you when you arrive and tap out.
You only need one IC card per person. Either a physical plastic card, or a digital card. If you have an iPhone 8 or later, you can install an IC card through Apple Wallet. Click the +, then Transit Card, and scroll down to Japan. You can choose from ICOCA, PASMO, or Suica. Personally I have the digital PASMO, and it’s worked great for me.
One of the main advantages to the digital IC card is that you can add to the balance while on-the-go using a credit card in Apple Wallet. I use the Apple Card, which is a Mastercard. In the past, foreign Visa credit cards didn’t tend to work, but that might be changing.
For a physical plastic IC card, you can charge it with cash at a charging machine in a train station, or at a convenience store.
If you are traveling with a child who is 6 to 11-years-old, they qualify for a Child IC card, which will allow them to pay half the adult fare. Child IC cards are only available in the physical plastic form. We have a video explaining how to get a registered Child Suica card. Children ages 5-years-old and younger can ride trains and buses for free with an accompanying adult. Up to 2 kids per adult. Any additional kids need to pay the child fare.
Money Matters
Before heading to Japan, think about how you’re going to pay for purchases and access cash while in Japan. We made a video covering payment methods accepted in Japan and a video showing how to use a 7-Bank ATM in Japan. We walk through the process of withdrawing cash step by step and explain the ATM fees you may encounter and how we avoid those fees. I recommend watching both of these videos.
When we visit Japan, we take with us a little bit of Yen if we have some left over from a previous trip. Otherwise, we wait to get cash when we arrive. If you feel better having some Yen to take with you to Japan, you can order it from your bank, at least a couple weeks before your trip.
When we travel, we bring ATM cards for two different bank accounts, just in case one doesn’t work, but we’ve never had a problem in Japan. You may want to notify your bank that you will be traveling, so they don’t freeze your account when they see unusual activity.
We mostly use the debit card for our Charles Schwab Investor checking account, since it doesn’t charge a fee for using foreign ATMs, and it even reimburses us any transaction fee charged by the ATM.
We also bring our Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card, which doesn’t charge foreign transaction fees. We use that at shops and restaurants that accept credit card payment. We save our cash for places, such as small restaurants, that only accept cash.
When paying by credit card, if given the option to pay in either Japanese Yen or your home currency, always choose Japanese Yen. If you choose to pay in your home currency, the merchant can use dynamic currency conversion, which may include a mark-up fee of up to 12%. Whether you’re withdrawing from an ATM machine or paying with a credit card, always select Japanese Yen.
Some places, such as convenience stores, accept contactless payment, including from digital wallets, but we always bring physical cards, as well.
Check the conversion rate before your trip and figure out how much Yen you want to withdraw from the ATM upon arrival.
Japanese law requires carrying your passport with you while a tourist in Japan, and you’ll be asked to show your passport for any tax-free shopping.
Japan does not have a tipping culture, so there’s no need to tip.
International Driving Permit
If you will rent a car in Japan or do street Go Kart, make sure you bring both your driver’s license and an International Driving Permit. In the USA you can get an International Driving Permit at AAA.
We bring a carseat for our toddler if we will rent a car, but it’s not necessary for riding in taxis. For children 3-years-old and over, a Ride Safer Travel Vest is a compact alternative to a car seat or booster seat.
Travel & Health insurance
Double check whether or not your health insurance covers you while traveling abroad. If it doesn’t, you may want to purchase travel health insurance.
We’ve been using Safetywing Nomad Insurance for years. You can also use it for a short vacation. Along with reimbursing for emergency medical expenses, Safetywing also offers other travel related benefits. The main drawback is that the reimbursement process can take a few months.
We book our travel with the Chase Sapphire Preferred Credit Card, which offers travel insurance benefits.
Be sure to read the details of any insurance policy yourself, so you know specifically what is and is not covered.
Emergency Preparation
It’s a good idea to do a little bit of emergency preparation before your trip to Japan. Things like writing down the phone number for your country’s embassy or consulate in Japan and installing the NHK app on your phone.
The most likely natural disasters you may encounter are a typhoon or earthquake.
If you need to make an emergency call, it’s free to do so from a public phone in Japan. Dial 119 for medical emergencies and the fire department or 110 for the police.
If you are a US citizen, you can enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP), in order to receive alerts about the countries you plan to visit.
Install Apps on Your Phone
Additional apps you may want to install on your phone include a currency converter, translator, and taxi app. Please watch our full video of Japan travel apps.
Internet Data Plan for Japan
It’s important to have an internet connection on your phone while traveling in Japan. Chances are you will use your phone for navigating, translating, currency conversion, and more. While your hotel and some cafes may provide free WiFi, it’s also important to have data on your phone while you’re out walking around. Especially if you’re using your phone to figure out when the next train is coming. You can download maps of areas in advance, but that won’t show you real-time if your train or bus is delayed.
You can purchase a data plan specifically for your Japan trip, through a Japan-based provider.
eSIM
If your phone is unlocked and e-SIM capable, then an eSIM, or electronic SIM card is one of the most convenient options. You can research this before your trip. Then activate the eSIM once you arrive in Japan. Most eSIMS only provide data, so they will not allow you to make phone calls or receive SMS text messages.
- Our top recommendation is an eSIM from Japan Wireless.
- Mobal is the only carrier we know of that offers foreign tourists an eSIM with both data and a Japanese phone number.
Pocket WiFi
If you’re going to Japan as a family or a party with multiple people, you may also want to get a Pocket WiFi. This allows for more data for things like watching videos or playing games online. A pockets WiFi is a separate device to charge and carry around. However, they are often faster and offer a larger amount of data. Plus, you can use a pocket WiFi regardless of whether or not your phone is unlocked.
- A pocket WiFi from Japan Wireless is our top recommendation for most people. And it comes with a power bank! You can save 10% with coupon JWKENSHO.
- For power users, our top recommendation is a pocket WiFi from Ninja WiFi, since it has dedicated high-speed data. You can save 10% with coupon KENSHO10.
- If you will travel in Japan for 45 days or more, then we recommend a pocket WiFi from Sakura Mobile.
If you want more details regarding choosing between Pocket WiFi, eSIM, or physical SIM card, please watch our Guide to Japan Data Plans. We will also link to our recommendations for each in the description.
Learn Some Japanese Words
It’s polite to learn a few words or phrases in Japanese before heading to Japan. Some of the basics are:
- Good morning – ohayo gozaimasu
- Hello – konnichiwa
- Excuse me – sumimasen
- Thank you – arigatou gozaimasu
Don’t worry if you don’t have time to study Japanese and you’ll be visiting major tourist cities such as Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka. You should be able to get by just fine, especially by using a translation app when needed.
I use Google translate lens to read menus, signs, ingredients lists, and the buttons on washing machines. Also, most train ticket machines have a button to select your language.
George made a video of helpful phrases to know when ordering food at a restaurant or shopping at a convenience store.
Pack for Japan
Once you’ve got the major planning done for your trip, such as plane and train tickets plus general itinerary, it’s time to figure out what to pack. Personally, I’m a planner, so I start test packing months in advance. If it’s your first trip to Japan, it’s a good idea to test pack at least a couple weeks before your trip, so you can see if you’re missing anything or if you need to reduce the weight of your bags.
I recommend packing a power bank portable charger for your phone. As mentioned before, you’re likely to use your phone a ton, and you don’t want the battery to run out while you’re out and about sightseeing.
You may also need to bring a plug adaptor. Japan uses both Type A and Type B plugs. The two prong (Type A) plugs that we use in the USA also work in Japan, so I don’t bring a plug adaptor.
Be sure to bring comfortable shoes, since you are likely to do a ton of walking while sightseeing or shopping in Japan. A pair of shoes that’s easy to take off and put back on is a plus, since some places will require you to remove your shoes before walking on wooden or tatami floors. Also, wear or bring a pair of socks for these situations, since it’s polite to wear socks rather than going completely barefoot.
I recommend packing as light as possible for Japan. Especially if you will be riding Shinkansen bullet trains from city to city. Packing light makes it easier to navigate train stations, quickly board trains, carry your luggage up a flight of stairs, and reach your accommodations.
We have a video and blog post on what to pack and wear for each season in Tokyo, Japan. And an Expert Japan Packing List. Plus, you can watch our video with tips on how to pack light for Japan.
You can also watch our Guide to Traveling with Luggage in Japan, which covers bringing luggage with you onto transportation such as trains, buses, and airplanes. We also have videos explaining luggage delivery services in Japan, which you can use to forward your luggage from the airport to your hotel or from one hotel to the next. And a video explaining where to store your luggage in Japan, whether for a few hours or for days.
Visit Japan Web
When your trip nears, you can register it on the Visit Japan Web website. You will need to have your passport, airline tickets, and hotel address. This process helps to expedite immigration and customs procedures with QR codes.
Make sure you not only register yourself and family members who are traveling with you, but also register your planned entry/return and complete the Immigration clearance and customs declaration. By the end of the process, you should be able to display a QR code for each individual person. There’s also a section you can set up to help with tax-free shopping.
The functionality changes periodically, so check the step by step instructions.
Arriving at the Airport
Upon arriving at the airport in Japan, you can connect to the free WiFi, in order to display your QR codes at Immigration.
Then retrieve any checked luggage at baggage claim. Proceed through Customs, again showing your QR code from Visit Japan Web.
As soon as we’ve gone through Customs, I head to the ATM to withdraw cash. Either 50,000 or 100,000 Yen.
George goes to pick up the pocket WiFi and our eSIM that comes along with a Japanese phone number. If you’re getting an eSIM that’s data only, you don’t need to pick anything up. You can simply connect to the airport WiFi and activate the eSIM.
You may also want to pick up your JR Pass, if applicable, or buy an IC card for local transportation.
You can watch our video on arriving at Haneda Airport that shows where things are located. Or one of our videos covering how to get into Tokyo from either Haneda or Narita Airport.
We hope that helped for planning your trip to Japan! Please subscribe to our Kensho Quest YouTube channel for more travel tips and inspiration.