Japan Travel Information
Introduction | Culture
| Money and Costs | Travel
Essentials | Events | Weather
and Climate | Map of Japan
Japan
Whether you end up taking photos of a reproduction Eiffel Tower,
surfing an indoor wave, musing in a Zen temple, shacking up in a
love hotel or kipping down in a capsule, you'll do best to come
with an open mind and be prepared to be surprised.
Somewhere between the elegant formality of Japanese manners and
the candid, sometimes boisterous exchanges that take place over
a few drinks, between the sanitised shopping malls and the unexpected
rural festivals, everyone finds their own vision of Japan.
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Culture
Until the 19th century, the main influences on Japanese art came
from China and Korea, but a distinct Japanese aesthetic was present
from early on. There is a fascination with the ephemeral (such as
in ikebana, the art of flower arrangement), with the unadorned,
and with forms that echo the randomness of nature. A gift for caricature
is also present, from early Zen ink paintings right up to the manga
(comics) of contemporary Japan. There is a wildness and passion
and an interest in the grotesque or the bizarre visible in many
works, from Buddhist scrolls depicting the horrors of hell to the
highly stylised renderings of body parts in the wood-block prints
of the Edo period.
The Japanese aesthetic is writ large in its architecture, from
graceful Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples, to elaborate castles
and practical gossamer-thin houses (built to keep cool in summer
and to crumple lightly in earthquakes). Precise physical composition
is also evident in Japanese gardens, meticulously planned no matter
how haphazard they may look. The two most famous Japanese performance
traditions are kabuki (melodramatic, spectacular theatre) and no
(formal, masked theatre), both of which can be seen in Tokyo, Kyoto
and Osaka. Ancient Japanese gagaku uses drums and Japanese instruments
resembling the lute, plucked zither, oboe and flute. Pop music is
massive in Japan: indigenous groups usually feature a gorgeous lead
singer of irrelevant talents. Girl punk groups have recently been
getting a good airing in the hungry world of indie music.
Much of Japan's early literature was written by women, as men wrote
in Chinese characters while women, who were denied the educational
resources to learn Chinese, wrote in Japanese script (hiragana).
Thus, while men were busy copying Chinese styles and texts, women
were producing the first authentic Japanese literature. Among these
early female authors is Murasaki Shikibu, who wrote one of Japan's
most important works of literature, The Tale of Genji, about the
intrigues of early Japanese court life. The revered poet Matsuo
Basho perfected just-so haiku poetry in the 17th century. More modern
literati include controversial Yukio Mishima, provocative Murakami
Ryu and cool cat Banana Yoshimoto.
Set aside several years if you want to learn to read Japanese.
Japan has one of the most complex writing systems in the world,
using three different scripts (four if you include the increasingly
used Roman script romaji). Fortunately, for visitors to Japan, it's
not all bad news. Unlike other Asian languages, Japanese is not
tonal and the pronunciation system is fairly easy to master. In
fact, with a little effort, getting together a repertoire of travellers'
phrases should be no trouble - the only problem will be understanding
what people say back to you.
Shinto (the native religion of Japan), Buddhism (a much-travelled
foreign import originating in India), Confucianism (a Chinese import
that is less a religion than a code of ethics), Taoism and even
Christianity all play a role in contemporary Japanese social life,
and are defining in some way of the Japanese world view. Religions,
for the most part, are not exclusive of each other. Shinto grew
out of an awe for manifestations of nature such as sun, water, rocks,
trees and even sounds. All such natural features were felt to have
their god, and shrines were erected in particularly sacred spots.
Many Shinto beliefs were incorporated into Japanese Buddhist practices
after Buddhism was introduced in the 6th century.
Eating is half the fun of being in Japan, and the adventurous eater
will be delighted to know that Japanese food is far more than the
sushi, tempura and sukiyaki for which it is best known in other
countries. With the exception of shokudo (all-round eateries) and
izakaya (the equivalent of a pub with meals), most Japanese restaurants
specialise in one type of cuisine. In a cook-it-yourself okonomiyaki
restaurant, diners choose a mixture of meat, seafood and vegetables
to fry up in a cabbage and vegetable batter; a robatayaki is a rustic
drinking restaurant specialising in charcoal grills. There are a
variety of cook-at-your-table restaurants where you'll end up eating
sukiyaki (thinly sliced beef, vegetables and tofu cooked in broth),
shabu-shabu (beef and vegies cooked by swirling them in broth and
then dipped in sauces) or nabemono (a participatory soup, with each
diner dipping ingredients from trays of prepared raw food). It's
possible to eat relatively cheaply by sticking to humble shokudo,
or eating bentos (boxed lunches) or teishoku (set meals) from cheaper
restaurants or cafeteria-style places.
Drinking is the glue that holds Japanese society together. It is
practised by almost every adult, male or female, and a good number
of teenagers. Beer is the favourite tipple of the Japanese and it's
dispensed everywhere from vending machines to temple lodgings. Sake
(rice wine) is served warm or cold, with the warm stuff especially
likely to go straight to your head. Sake hangovers are memorable,
so drink carefully. Japanese green tea contains a lot of vitamin
C and caffeine. It's very healthy and refreshing and is said by
some to prevent cancer.
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Money
Japan is probably the most expensive country in the world for travel,
but there are ways of keeping the outlays to an almost bearable
level. A skeleton daily budget, assuming you stay in the cheapest
hostels, eat modestly and travel short distances, would work out
to US$60. Add about US$10 for extras like snacks, drinks, admission
fees and entertainment. Staying in business or deluxe hotels and
eating in pricey restaurants can easily have the ticker tipping
US$100. Long-distance travel is a real budget buster in Japan -
if you intend to travel around to different places, it's well worth
investing in a Japan Rail Pass. At the other end of the spectrum,
high rollers will have no problems off-loading their cash. Japan
specialises in establishments catering to the ostentatious flattery
of business accounts - the higher the bill, the greater the prestige
of the guests.
Cash is still king in Japan, although the use of credit cards is
pretty widespread in major cities. The Japanese are used to a very
low crime rate and often carry wads of cash for the almost sacred
ritual of cash payment. Foreign travellers can safely copy the cash
habit, but should still take the usual precautions. You can change
cash or travellers' cheques at an 'Authorised Foreign Exchange Bank'
or at major post offices and some of the large hotels and stores.
US dollars are preferred; trying to exchange Taiwanese or Korean
currency is a fruitless task. The majority of ATMs do not accept
foreign-issued credit cards. Look out for the Cirrus or Plus logos
or check with your card company before departure.
There is little tipping or bargaining in Japan. If you want to
show your gratitude to someone, give them a gift rather than a tip.
Bargaining is largely restricted to discount electronics districts
where a polite request will often bring the price down by around
10%.
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Travel Essentials
Visas: US passport holders, most EU residents and visitors from
Australia and New Zealand do not require a visa if staying in Japan
less than 90 days. For information on visas visit the Japan Ministry
of Foreign Affairs website at www.mofa.go.jp
Health risks: Malaria, Dengue Fever, Tuberculosis, Rabies, Japanese
B Encephalitis
Time: GMT/UTC +9
Dialling Code: 81
Weights & measures: Metric
Getting Around
Flying is an efficient way to travel from the main islands to any
of the small islands, and is often not much more expensive than
going by rail. Check whether you qualify for discounts - there are
some weird and wonderful ones (for example JAL offers discounts
for three or more women travelling together, or for a husband and
wife if their combined age totals 88 or more). Train is the way
to travel in Japan. The trains are fast, frequent, clean, comfortable
and often very expensive. Services range from small local lines
to the shinkansen super-expresses, or 'bullet trains', which have
become a symbol of modern Japan. Shinkansen reach speeds of up to
300km/h (186mi/h), are spookily efficient and can be travelled on
with one of Japan's few travel bargains, the Japan Rail Pass. Japan
Rail Passes must be pre-purchased overseas and are valid for almost
all Japan Rail services. Intercity buses are generally slower than
trains, but they are markedly cheaper. Also, unless you've got a
sleeper, travelling overnight in a reclining bus seat can be preferable
to sitting upright on the train.
Driving in Japan is much more feasible than it's normally made
out to be. You wouldn't want to get behind the wheel in Tokyo, but
in other urban centres the roads are fairly well signposted in English,
other drivers are mostly considerate and cautious, petrol, while
expensive, is not prohibitively so, and parking is not as difficult
to find as popular mythology suggests. Motorcycling can be a great
way of getting around Japan; 50cc 'step-thrus' are often available
for local sightseeing, and you don't need a motorbike licence to
drive one. Traffic in Japan moves on the left.
Exploring Japan by bicycle is perfectly feasible. The secret of
enjoyable touring is to get off the busy main highways and onto
the minor routes. Ferries are an excellent way of seeing parts of
Japan you might otherwise miss. The densest network of ferry routes
connects Kyushu, Shikoku and the southern coast of western Honshu,
across the waters of the Inland Sea. Ferries also connect the mainland
islands with the many smaller islands off the coast and those dotted
down to Okinawa and beyond to Taiwan.
Local transport is generally efficient. The largest cities have
subway systems, which are the fastest and most convenient way to
get around. Almost every Japanese city will have a bus service,
but many foreigners find buses difficult to use. Trams, which operate
in a number of cities, are easier to negotiate. Taxis are convenient
but (what a surprise) expensive.
When to Go
Spring (March to May), with its clear skies and cherry blossoms,
is probably the most celebrated Japanese season, but it's a holiday
period for the Japanese and many of the more popular travel destinations
tend to be flooded with domestic tourists. Autumn (September to
November) is a great time to travel: the temperatures are pleasant,
and the autumn colours in the countryside are fantastic. Mid-winter
(December to February) can be bitterly cold, while the sticky summer
months (June to August) can turn even the briefest excursion out
of the air conditioning into a soup bath; on the plus side, major
tourist attractions will generally be quieter at these times of
the year. It's also worth considering peak holiday seasons when
you plan your trip. Moving around and finding accommodation during
New Year, Golden Week (late April to early May) and the midsummer
O-Bon festival can be a real headache.
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Events
Expect a total sell-out for travel and lodging during Japan's biggest
holidays, New Year (December 29 to January 3) and Golden Week (the
lumping together of Green Day, Constitution Day and Children's Day
from April 27 to May 6). Other festivals include Coming-of-Age Day
(second Monday in January), when ceremonies are held for boys and
girls who have reached the age of 20. The Japanese celebrate the
end of winter on February 3 or 4 by indulging in Setsubun (bean
throwing) while chanting 'in with good fortune, out with the devils'.
Hanami (Blossom Viewing) usually runs from February to April; the
romantic Tanabata Matsuri (Star Festival) is on July 7; and O Bon
(Festival of the Dead), when lanterns are floated on rivers, lakes
or the sea to signify the return of the departed to the underworld,
takes place from July 13-16 and mid-August.
Kyoto's Gion Matsuri (July 17) is perhaps the most renowned of
all Japanese festivals. The climax is a parade of massive man-dragged
floats decked out in incredible finery, harking back to a 9th-century
request to the gods to end a plague sweeping the city. In the cute
and kooky department, Niramekko Obisha (January 20; Chiba) combines
a staring contest with consumption of sake - the one with the straightest
face wins. The Yah-Yah Matsuri (first Sunday to the following Saturday
of February; Owase) is an argument contest: competitors scream Samurai
chants and try to look fearsome. Afterwards, they take off all their
clothes and jump in the ocean. Knickers Giving Day (March 14) is
a bizarre follow up to Valentine's Day - men are supposed to give
a gift of underwear to their lady.
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Weather and Climate
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Japan Hotels Quick List
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