Japan has fascinated people for centuries. From the samurai traditions to geisha culture, to sakura, to modern robotics, to anime there are numerous things people are interested in, when it comes to this island country.
The high interest was also generated from the fact that the country is highly homogeneous and hasn’t been as welcoming to visitors for centuries. This created even more mysterious aura. Nowadays, Japan is open to visitors and not surprisingly is one of the most popular destinations in the world. So, while no longer shrouded in mystery, it remains intriguing. Considering all this, it’s not surprising that we were very excited to plan this trip 😊
I can’t exactly say since when did I want to go to Japan. For a long while, I considered it rather unreachable destination due to extremely high price, which I simply couldn’t afford. But then I found out that it’s not as crazy, as it seemed. Hotel prices seemed reasonable, and everything got somewhat more affordable to tourists, due to fluctuation of Yen rates.
No amount of time is ever enough to thoroughly explore Japan, but on our first trip we allocated almost 3 weeks to at least experience parts of it. Our trip was full of historical temples, shrines and castles, cutest trains, unique cafes, gorgeous gardens and so much more. It absolutely exceeded our expectations tenfold.
When to go to Japan?
I guess Japanese Sakura blooming season is widely known occurrence. So everyone knows, spring is the best time to visit Japan. Interestingly, I have seen cherry blossom blooms in a number of countries, but somehow Japanese Sakura season is differently revered, due to a lot of symbolism associated with it. Koreans actually do have many traditions related to cherry blossoms too but that’s not as widely known.
Except the cherry blossom season (around March-April depending on the year), which doesn’t last long, almost all of spring is good period to visit the country. Just keep in mind that the Golden week in May, when Japanese get long holidays, may complicate your trip, due to crowds.
Another popular period is Autumn for the autumn foliage colors. The yellows and reds can be seen across the country from October to early December, but this changes every year. Plus, the weather is mild and drier than summer. I actually decided for this season for our first trip, as the colorful photos looked amazing. Turned out it was absolutely worth the hype.
Winter is the dry and cold season so not as popular. While summer is hot and very humid, however, July and August are still busy seasons due to school holidays. If you can avoid those 2 months, definitely do so, as it’s simply not a good timing, while still very crowded.
Visa requirements for Japan
Japan provides visa free access to citizens of 69 countries in the world. There are also a few countries, which are eligible for Electronic Travel Authorization (e-visa). Make sure to open the linked official websites, as there are some scam websites, which claim to offer similar services.
If your country, like mine, is not on either of those lists, you will have to obtain an actual visa at a Japanese embassy near you. Make sure to apply no earlier than 3 months in advance. You will be given a visa valid for 3 months from the date of issue. It means that you have to enter Japan in that timeframe, not that you should leave in that timeframe. The visa will also say, how long after entry to Japan it is valid for. Mine indicated 30 days.
The tourist visa, called temporary visitor visa, application requires two copies of filled visa application form, travel itinerary indicating which cities you will be visiting and the hotels you will be staying at (make sure to put the phone numbers of the hotels in the part called Contact details), copies of your flight tickets, documents proving your financial ability (enquire with the embassy what exactly they require – I had to bring my work note and bank statement), 2 photos and, of course, passport. Copies of accommodation bookings are not necessary. There was no fee to be paid for the visa in Georgia, however, this may vary in different countries, so make sure to enquire with the relevant embassy.
The process wasn’t difficult. I made an appointment at the embassy and left the listed documents. The visa is normally ready within 5 working days.
Other requirements for entry to Japan
There are two forms you will actually need to fill for passing through Japanese immigration. However, you don’t necessarily have to do anything in advance. You have an option to do everything on the flight or on the spot, when you arrive.
Immigration declaration form can be filled online via Visit Japan website or in person on the spot. We actually were not given this form on the plane (we were given customs declaration though), so enquire if they have one. If not, you can pick it up and fill while standing in the passport control queue, which is usually quite long.
Customs declaration is a form you will need to fill with the information or any goods or money you are bringing into Japan. You need to fill one declaration per family. You can fill the form before travelling to Japan via Visit Japan website or do it on the way or upon arrival. We got the physical form on the plane. It only took a few minutes, as we had nothing to declare.
I personally recommend filling the physical customs declaration card, as we did, given that we encountered no delays whatsoever with it. Upon arrival, after passing passport control, it took us 2 minutes to present the form, there were basically no queues. On the other hand, if we filled the form online, we would have to fill same information on the computer screens provided before passport control and that’s one additional unnecessary step, which will delay you more.
Money Matters for Travelling to Japan
While Yen exchange rates have changed lately, Japan is still considered an expensive country to visit. I have to agree it’s quite expensive, but not to the extent you are imagining. In fact, it was cheaper than travelling to most of the EU countries.
- If you book in advance you can get business hotel rooms for a range of 6,000-10,000 yen per night (depending on the city). However, if you are picky about particular locations, especially in Kyoto and Tokyo, the prices would start from 15,000 yen. On the other hand, in other cities, like Kanazawa and Takayama, the prices were equivalent of 4,000-5,000 yen a night on average. I booked our hotel in Kyoto about 5 months in advance and I managed for under 8,000 yen a night. Shortly after, there was hardly anything in that price range. So make sure to book early for the most popular cities and keep checking afterwards. All other cities were easier to book later on – I changed some of my bookings when I found good deals.
- Sightseeing can be either free, cheap or expensive, depending on your interests. Shinto shrines are free to visit, while famous Buddhist temples all have certain fees, usually around 500 yen. Some of them even have several fees for each part of the temple (But that applies mostly to Kyoto – I will go into detail about this, while writing about Kyoto), so you should make sure to know which part exactly do you want to see. Museums all have different fees, but not expensive still. As opposed to these, modern attractions, like rooftop views, Disney, Universal or Nintendo, etc are rather expensive.
- If you are planning to travel long distances with Shinkansen trains, transportation is quite expensive. Especially nowadays, that the JR Pass has become significantly more expensive and is hardly saving money any more. However, there still are many ways to save money, including getting regional JR passes, taking slower trains or buses (which take considerably longer time) or flying – domestic flights on longer distances are cheaper than Shinkansen.
- Food is definitely not expensive compared to Europe. You can eat in restaurants easily without breaking a bank. We are not much of foodies, so can’t advice on this, but definitely look into izakayas and smaller restaurants.
Don’t forget to bring card and cash as well. There are certain places, which do require card payment, but those are very few. You can use cash almost everywhere. On the other hand, having no cash is not a good idea. You will be needing cash for various things, like ticket machines (charging physical IC cards is possible only with cash), markets, some small restaurants, etc.
We brought USD with and changed on the spot. However, finding exchange offices was not as easy, as in some countries. They aren’t at every corner, especially in smaller cities. Although we did find them in Shinjuku in Tokyo and in Kawaramachi in Kyoto. Just Google the locations. Keep in mind that the exchange offices often have a limit on how much you can exchange – at least, that was the case during our visit. One of them allowed exchanging 300 USD at one time, another – 100 USD. I am not sure if the reason was the exchange rate at the time or something else, but if you need to exchange a lot of money, do plan accordingly.
Getting money from ATMs is possible at many locations, including at supermarkets, like 7/11 or Lawson. Just double check the fees of your bank and the ATM.
Accommodation Options in Japan
Japanese accommodation is known to be smaller in size, than most travelers would be used to. This is due to the high concentration of population in cities. There are various options you can choose from – from traditional ryokans with onsens to apartments to capsule hotels to business or luxury hotels.
A well-known budget option is so-called capsule hotels (which aren’t really hotels, but rather hostels). However, in reality they won’t save you much money, especially if you aren’t travelling solo. I highly recommend finding business hotels instead, given that those are really good value. In most of these, space is small, but you will have your private space and all amenities for very little more than the cost of capsule hotels. Here are the details on the business hotel chains and what to expect.
If you have the means, a very popular option is to stay at least one night in a ryokan – traditional Japanese accommodation. Do stay in one for the experience, if you are interested. There are smaller ryokans – budget options, as well as very fancy ones with onsite onsen. I skipped this, as I preferred business hotels far more.
Here are a few suggestions for booking accommodation in Japan:
- Book in advance – If you want to find an accommodation with reasonable prices, absolutely book in advance. This is especially important, if you are travelling in high season (most of spring, July-September, October-November, New year period – so basically most of the year 😀 ). I would suggest booking at least a few months in advance, if you can. Just keep in mind that some hotels open their bookings six months in advance, some – three months in advance, so you will have to find a way to check very early on and then when other hotels also become available. Either way, Japan is not a country, where you will find cheap places last minute in high season. Last minute hotels are far more expensive. I booked hotels several months earlier and changed a couple eventually. When I looked a month before our trip, the prices at least doubled. We paid a range of 6,000-11,000 yen per night for double rooms (depending on the city and the location).
- Book near metro and train stations – Given the great public transportation system, I suggest looking at hotels near the metro stations in big cities and bus stops in smaller ones.
- Some people may suggest to exclusively book the hotels directly; however, I can’t say this is always best. I personally looked at prices directly, as well as on Booking.com and Agoda and found that third parties provided better deals, which were not offered on the hotel websites, so I booked via third party. It worked out well in all cases.
- Keep in mind that in popular cities like Kyoto and other popular weekend destinations, such as Kumamoto, the rates often increase on the weekends, as well as on holidays. Check my article on business hotels for further details.
Where to stay in Tokyo – as one would expect, the city has a wide range of accommodations all around. Most people would suggest finding a hotel in Shinjuku, Shibuya or Ueno, but honestly these locations are often more expensive than those a couple of metro stops away. In reality, wherever you stay, you will need to use transportation every day and it doesn’t really matter which part of the city you stay at, as long as you get back to your hotel before metro closes at midnight. We stayed at Tamachi one time, it was near Yamanote line (a circle line, which basically gets you to most sightseeing spots in the city) station and got us everywhere easily. The hotel was half the price than the same chain in Shibuya or Shinjuku, so it definitely was best for us. Another time we stayed at Asakasa area with 2 metro lines nearby. This was also a pretty good option for getting to most parts of the city.
Where to stay in Kyoto – Given the popularity of the city (for a good reason), this may be the most expensive accommodation you will book during your trip to Japan. Some people choose to stay in Osaka instead and travel from there every day to see Kyoto sights. This really can be an option, as from Osaka to Kyoto travel time can be even less (especially with Shinkansen), than from one part of Kyoto to another (if you take buses). Besides, public transportation for sightseeing in Kyoto is not as great, as you may expect. You will more often need to use buses, which can be crowded and very slow.
Location wise, if you can find a cheaper option nearer the main train station, it might be slightly more convenient. Otherwise anywhere within the central areas is fine, as long as you have metro and bus stations nearby. We stayed near Shijo-Omiya station, which had two metro/train connections and a number of bus stops nearby. If I found a hotel with a similar rate near the train station, I would go for that, but otherwise, this location worked out quite well for us.
By the way, I chose to stay in Kyoto from Sunday to Friday, skipping the weekend, which ensured that we didn’t pay weekend premium on hotel rate. I also booked our hotel over 5 months in advance. When I looked at hotel prices closer to our travel dates they kept increasing and tripled a month before.
Where to stay in Osaka – whether you choose Osaka to sightsee in the city itself or to do day trips, being near the stations of the Midosuji line is a pretty good idea. It gets you to major train stations, as well as most sightseeing spots. If you can afford it and don’t wanna take metro in the evenings, being near Dotonbori is nice enough, however it increases price significantly in my experience and it wasn’t worth it for us. During both of our trips to Osaka, we stayed near Yodoyabashi station on Midosuji line and we could get to almost most sightseeing spots and major stations in the city without line changes.
Where to stay in Kanazawa – Central areas of Kanazawa aren’t all that large, therefore basically anywhere near Nagamachi district or Omicho market is quite good. Just make sure you have bus stops nearby and with direct line to the Kanazawa train and bus station, which will make your travel to and from the city easier.
Where to stay in Takayama – Central area of Takayama is small and the hotels are concentrated here anyway. I just suggest staying near the Takayama train and bus station, which will make your trip to and from the city easier, as well as give easier access to Hida Furukawa and Shirakawago, if you are doing day or half day trips.
Apps you will need in Japan
Maps – of course you can’t visit without trusted Google maps . It works pretty well in Japan, except some small issues. It also provides information on transportation. However, if you want more exact app for transportation, use Navitime. The app provides detailed information on which transport you need to take with the price breakdown. You can also indicate here, if you have any of the travel passes, whether JR Pass, any of the regional passes (such as Shikoku rail pass or Hokaido rail pass) or any of the city specific passes (such as Osaka Amazing pass or Tokyo day pass). The app also provides some interesting walking itineraries and guides, but we didn’t really use the app for those purposes. You can also consider Citymapper in bigger cities, which provides great option for finding transportation.
Besides have a look at these apps:
- Translate app – Google translate works well here. Particularly useful is the photo translation feature, as we don’t read and write kanji. Make sure to download it, so that it works even when you don’t have internet. We did use the app extensively, while looking at menus in restaurants, choosing what to buy at the convenience store, reading the signs of the sightseeing places (some don’t have English signs).
- Taxi apps – taxis are rather expensive in Japan, however, you may need to use them in some locations. There are several options – Go and Uber are some of the most popular options.
- Suica app (only for Iphone users) – this app provides an electronic version of Suica, so you won’t have to look for a physical card. However, unfortunately it’s only available for Iphone users. It won’t work for Android phones produced outside Japan.
- Klook – this may come in handy, if you would like to prebook some expensive major attractions. Have a look at the Klook pass, it may save you money if you are seeing a few places in a short period of time. We personally didn’t do any of the attraction parks (Disney or Nintendo world) or aquariums, so getting this wasn’t worth it for us, but it may be for you. We did however use Klook to get the Japan Rail Pass and it worked very well. I also got a few advance sale tickets for cheaper than I would on the spot.
- Japan Official Travel App – is another resource for finding your way, but we didn’t really need it any more as Google and Navitime were sufficient.
- Ecbo Cloak – this app doesn’t direct to cloakrooms, as I thought, when I first saw the name 😊 It provides information about the luggage storage spots. If you are doing a stopover and need to store luggage, while to explore, it will definitely come handy.
In addition to these Japan specific apps, you should have your usual travel apps downloaded. See the thorough list here.
Getting a Sim Card
The main issue with getting sim cards in Japan is that, when you buy them as a foreigner, you are offered a data only plan, so you don’t have Japanese number. Plus, you can’t add any data once it’s over, which is rather annoying. I have heard only Mobal is the only provider, which offers the option of getting a Japanese number, we will definitely check it out next time.
Sim cards aren’t cheap in Japan. You can either preorder them and pick up upon arrival at the airport or buy them locally – you won’t save any money from either option. You can get them at 7/11 and other convenience stores, as well as vending machines at the airport. You can also buy them at the electronics stores, such as Yodobashi.
We got the card from 7/11 at the Narita airport by paying 5000 yen for 10 GB for 30 days. We haven’t found any cheaper options. I would be happy to receive recommendations for anything less expensive.
Transport in Japan
Public transport in Japan is amazing – from Shinkansen to fancy buses to amazing metro network in the cities, you have great options in many parts of the country. Here is the detailed information about public transport in Japan. You will find all details about Rail Passes and if they are worth for you, as well as the Suica/Pasmo/IC cards and general information about getting around in Japan.
Food and Café culture in Japan
I don’t need to tell you that Japanese food is famous, and you have plenty of different options to suit your tastes. As I mentioned a few times before, none of us are experts on food, however, there are some things we really enjoyed in Japan.
Convenience stores
First of all, when talking about food, I can’t avoid mentioning the excellent convenience stores. They are basically at every corner. They are great value and have easy options, if you are on a very strict budget. We were usually using 7/11, Family Mart or Lawsons. You have an option of getting prepared food which needs to be microwaved, sandwiches, ramen, sweets, etc. Their selection of drinks is also always great.
Some supermarket options many people rave about:
- 7/11 egg sandwiches,
- FamilyMart soufles – I personally didn’t like them much and preferred Lawson sweets, especially the tiramisu,
- Sweet fruit sandwiches from either of the (not my thing),
- Onigiri – a rice ball with salmon or something else inside,
- Ramen of course – there are dozens of types and flavours in any given shop,
- Steamed buns from 7/11,
- Ice cream – we haven’t really tried this, as we were there during the cold time. Next time.
Vending machines
You find the vending machines basically at every corner. They are mostly for drinks, but you find sandwiches, ice cream, sweets, some small necessities, etc. A couple of times we even noticed meat – although I doubt it’s a great idea to buy meat from there. Murat was actually looking at each one and getting a few different drinks every day. I think he tried most things on offer there. I do think coffee from the vending machines wasn’t good – mostly sweet and pretty strange. Some drinks were particularly sweet for my taste, but others were nice.
Bento boxes
Bento boxes are the food boxes you can find at train stations, which you can carry with you. The boxes come in a variety of sizes offering very diverse food. You can find options with beef, pork, different types of fish, vegetarian options, etc.
You will find the bento shops at the major train stations, mainly nearby Shinkansen stations. One of the biggest ones at Tokyo train station is Ekibenya Matsuri. There are also a few others around the station. You will similarly find them at the train stations in Osaka, Kyoto, Kanazawa, etc.
For those, who like kawai items, they have different themed bento boxes, like Hello kitty.
Restaurants and cafes
Most of the popular restaurants and cafes in bigger cities in Japan usually have queues or need reservation. So if you want to check out a specific place you absolutely don’t want to miss, do try to book it in advance. I however didn’t want to commit to a particular time (you never know when travelling – you may arrive to the place an hour early or late, it’s never that easy to aim for a particular time everywhere you go), so I only booked one café once. Otherwise, we would just try our luck and if the queue was over 10 mins long, we would usually skip that place.
By the way, you find a lot of no-frills restaurants and eateries all around Japan. Izakayas are sort of pubs/canteens, serving food and alcohol at relatively reasonable prices. They are basically like British pubs.
We didn’t try the most popular restaurants, like Tsuta or Tatsunomya Ramen in Tokyo, Kichi Kichi Omurice in Kyoto or Izakaya Toyo in Osaka, where people queue 1-2 hours. They might be great, but the hassle and wait wasn’t worth it for us. We had limited time in the country and didn’t want to lose that much time on queueing, unless we absolutely had to. However, here are a few places we liked:
Tokyo
- Harajuku Gyozaro – this small dumpling place serves gyozas and soups only. You basically have only 3 items on the menu to choose from. It was very reasonably priced and we did like it. We came here at a busy time, afternoon on a Saturday. We had to queue for about 10 mins, but the turnaround was very fast and it was no problem. Plus, we got our food within 5 minutes after ordering. Overall, I do definitely suggest this place.
Osaka
- Gyu-Kaku Dotonbori Ebisubashi – we tried the Kobe beef from here. It was decent, a bit more chewy than would have liked.
Takayama
- Hidagyu Maruaki – if you want to try the famous Hida beef in Takayama, we definitely recommend this place. It isn’t cheap, but the wagyu beef isn’t cheap anywhere. We did enjoy trying the different cuts of the A5 wagyu. As most beef restaurants, they bring you raw cuts and you fry them yourself on the stove in the middle. The place is huge and has great ventilation, so it wasn’t smoked at all.
- Hida Takayama Gyoza Sohonzan – we didn’t manage to try this place because it’s only open three days a week. But it was recommended and definitely was on my list.
Unlike with food, I do know my way around cafes and we did check out quite a few amazing ones. Café culture in Japan is actually great. Here are the posts about the café culture in Japan and the lists of great cafes by cities and areas.
Best 3-week Itinerary tips
Note: this can be arranged and rearranged according to your wishes. If you can fly into Tokyo and fly out to Osaka, then this can change relevantly by doing everything around Tokyo in the beginning. I will also provide alternative itineraries, if you are considering any regional JR passes.
Day 1 – Tokyo
See the detailed tips and itineraries for visiting Tokyo.
See the detailed itinerary for day 1 in Tokyo.
Day 2 – Tokyo
See the detailed itinerary for day 2 in Tokyo.
Day 3 – day trip from Tokyo to Nikko
See the detailed post for step-by-step guide on day trip to Nikko
Day 4 – Kanazawa
See the detailed tips and itineraries for visiting Kanazawa.
See the detailed itinerary for day 1 in Kanazawa
Day 5 – Kanazawa
See the detailed itinerary for day 2 in Kanazawa
Day 6 – Shirakawago
See the detailed itinerary for day trip to Shirakawago
Day 7 – Takayama
See the detailed itinerary for 1 day in Takayama
Travel to Osaka in the evening
Day 8 – Nara day trip from Osaka
See the detailed itinerary for day trip to Nara
Day 9 – Koyasan day trip from Osaka (this can be done with overnight temple stay as well)
See the detailed post on a trip to Koyasan
Day 10 – Himeji day trip from Osaka (with possible stop in Kobe)
See the detailed post for a trip to Himeji
Day 11 – Osaka
See the detailed post for Osaka
Travel to Hiroshima in the evening
Day 12 – Miyajima day trip from Hiroshima
See the detailed itinerary for day trip to Miyajima
Day 13 – Hiroshima
See the detailed itinerary for 1 day in Hiroshima
Travel in the evening to Kyoto
Day 14 – Kyoto
See the detailed itinerary for day 1 in Kyoto
Day 15 – Kyoto
See the detailed itinerary for day 2 in Kyoto
Day 16 – Kyoto
See the detailed itinerary for day 3 in Kyoto
Day 17 – Kyoto
See the detailed itinerary for day 4 in Kyoto
Day 18 – Kyoto
See the detailed day itinerary for day 5 in Kyoto
Travel to Tokyo in the evening
Day 19 – Kawaguchiko day trip from Tokyo
See the detailed itinerary for day trip to Kawaguchiko
Day 20 – Tokyo
See the detailed day itinerary for day 3 in Tokyo
Day 21 – Tokyo
See the detailed day itinerary for day 4 in Tokyo
Things you need to book in advance, when planning your visit to Japan
Japan is one of the countries, where certain things need to be prebooked, if you don’t want to miss out. This includes sights, trains, cafes, restaurants and more. However, if you are planning a last minute trip and can’t manage to prebook everything, you will have plenty of things to do still, so don’t consider this, as something that will ruin your trip. You may just not manage to visit some of the extremely popular spots, but that’s perfectly fine, as Japan has so much to offer, you wouldn’t be able to exhaust everything in a lifetime.
Here is the detailed list and information on the main things you need or are recommended to prebook.
Other tips for travelling around Japan
- Safety: As you can see, I didn’t write a separate section on safety, simply because it’s not something you will have to think about in particular. Of course, you should take the usual precautions, as you would anywhere – like avoiding dark deserted alleys at night, if you are alone – but overall, it’s as safe for tourists, as it gets. That said, the harassment of women is still a big issue in the country. Plus, the yakudza is still quite strong, however, they don’t usually engage with foreigners, unless you decide on some very risky behavior – which obviously is not advised anywhere, especially not in a country you don’t know much about.
- Japanese people: Japanese are very respectful to everyone. They won’t show you, even if they don’t like something or are offended. Of course, as in other big cities around the world, in Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto, people are rushing to work and generally not smiley or nice to you. But we found that in smaller places, people are so welcoming and nice. For instance, in Uji, while climbing a hill, within 15 minutes 3 people smiled at us and said hi.
- Language: We found that English is not widely spoken around Japan. Even in bigger cities, in touristy areas, people in shops and restaurants know only a few words. But the Google translate works fine for most of the things you might need. Saying even a couple of Japanese words actually make people better disposed to you. I honestly only know a few words: Konichiwa – hello, Arigatou Gozaimasou – thank you (don’t just say arigatou, because this is only for close friends and it may taken, as impolite), Sumimasen – excuse me, sorry.
- Public toilets: Public toilets are easy to find at a lot of locations – train and metro stops, parks, popular attractions, convenience stores, etc. You will usually find the Western style (but mostly high tech) toilets. Sometimes, outside the cities, you may come by squat toilets though.
- Tax free shopping: All foreigners are eligible to shop tax free at the participating shops – look for tax free sign. Unlike in most countries, where you would have to keep a receipt and fill in a paper to get your money back at the airport, in Japan you simply get the tax free “discount” on the spot. Once you have your items, you go to the counters saying tax free, show your passport and simply pay the amount with tax already deducted.
- Passport: You are legally required to always carry passport on you. But even if this wasn’t a requirement, you will be needing the passport for some situations – like to get tax free from the shops or to confirm the validity of your Rail Pass (if you have one).
- Tattoos: You may have heard that Japanese don’t much like tattoos, which has to do with the understanding, that criminals used to have them. However, we have seen foreigners get around without issues. The only problem you might have, if you have a tattoo, is at some onsens – hot springs/bathes. Some of them won’t have an issue with it, but some do. So do enquire, before going to one.
- Smoking: I have heard that Japanese do smoke inside buildings too and it’s an issue, so one may have to get used to it. I am pretty sensitive to the smoke smell, so I anticipated I would be bothered. But to be honest, during our trip, we never encountered any smoked restaurant, café or a building we visited. At hotels we booked non-smoking rooms and also did not feel any smoke smell. That said, we didn’t go to any pachinko parlors or old school bars, so might be an issue there.