Japan destination information

All you need to know before visiting Japan

Japan summary

Japan is a medium sized country with around 127M Japanese. Official language is Japanese. Japan uses metric system (kilograms, centimeters, °C). Time zone is UTC+09:00. Currency used in Japan is Yen (JPY).

🎫 Border Rank #️⃣ 158
🗺️ Passport Rank #️⃣ 2

ATMs in Japan are Available everywhere. Internet speed in Japan is on average 17.4 Mbps. In Japan you drive on the left side. Most cars have automatic transmission.

🏙️ Tokyo
🗣️ Japanese
👨‍👩‍👦‍👦 127M ☀️ ~11 °C 🌧 ~140 mm 👍 Developed 🚩 378k km2 (146k mi²)
🎫 Visa Exemption
🗺️ Passport Strength
📧 Japanese visa Online
🏥 Health regulation
🛃 Customs rules
🏛️ Embassies

General

Socket 🔌

Japan uses 100V, 50/60Hz with sockets and plugs Type A and Type B.

Languages 🗣️

  • Japanese

Money

Currency 💱

100 JPY = 0.94 USD

Japan uses the Japanese yen (symbol: ¥), code JPY.Banknotes come in denominations of 10000, 5000, 2000 and 1000 yen. Yen is subdivided into 100 sens. Coins come in denominations of 500, 100, 50, 10, 5 and 1 yen.

ATM 🏧🏦

Available everywhere

Automatic teller machines are everywhere in Japan. Pretty much anywhere you look there will be an ATM. Japan has one of the highest ATM densities in the world.You do not need a chip & PIN card to use an ATM — your standard magnetic card will work fine.

Tipping 💁🏽

Do not tip

Almost no one in Japan asks for tips. It is not expected nor obligatory to give a tip. In fact offering a gratuity may be considered rude.

Card 💳

Accepted only within large businesses

Credit cards are only accepted within Japan from large businesses & hotels. Visa, MasterCard, Maestro and JCB are the most widely accepted. American Express is less common. Diners Club, UnionPay and Discover are pretty rare. RuPay is unknown.

Phone

Mobile Phone 📱

Japan uses GSM mobile networks .

Roaming 🌐

If you don't want to buy SIM card in Japan upon arrival, make sure to check the roaming charges with your telecom provider before your departure so there are no surprises when you return home.

Emergency Calls 🚨

Police :

999

Ambulance :

911

Fire department :

911

Calling ☎️

International

To call Japan, dial +, then 81 (the country code for Japan), then the area code (without the initial 0) and the local number.

Locally

For local calls within Japan, start with the area code (with the initial 0). In the case above area code is 3 .


international: + 81 3 1234567
calling local: 03 1234567

Internet connection

Internet Speed 💯

Internet speed in Japan is on average 17.4 Mbps.

Wifi 📡

WiFi coverage in Japan is high. Many hotels, hostels, cafes, restaurants and bars have it.

SIM Card #️⃣

You can buy a SIM card for about ¥3,941.67, which includes 2 GB of data plan. You can choose from 3 telecoms: KDDI au, NTT DoCoMo or Softbank.

Driving

Rules 🚗

In Japan you drive on the left side. Most cars have automatic transmission.

Limits 🚦

Unless otherwise posted, the speed limits for cars and motorcycles are as follows: 40 km/h (24 mph) in all built-up areas, 50-80 km/h (31-49 mph) on undivided highways, 80-100 km/h (49-62 mph) on motorways and 80-100 km/h (49-62 mph) on expressways.

Weather

Temperature 🌡️

Rainfall ☔

Countries nearby Japan


More on Japan travel and visa information

All the informations you need to schedule your trip to Japan.

🎫

Visa Exemption

Check who can come to Japan without visa requirement.

🗺️

Passport Strength

Check countries nationals of Japan can visit without visa.

📧

Japanese visa Online

Apply for visa to Japan online.

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Health regulation

Want to visit Japan ? Check health regulation !

🛃

Customs rules

Want to visit Japan ? Check customs regulation !

🏳️‍🌈

LGBT Destination info

Check if Japan is LGBT friendly for travel.

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Japanese embassies

Check list of Japan embassies around the globe !