Japan: Practical information

Categories of Restaurant

 

• Izakaya

These are bars where you can sample lots of dishes.

• Famiresu (family restaurants) and Shokudo

They offer Japanese, Chinese or Western dishes.

• Teishoku-ya

Serve a main dish and a bowl of rice. Situated especially near business centres and very busy during lunchtime.

• Kaiseki Ryori and Ryotei

Offer Japanese haute cuisine

• Yatai and Rotensho

Street vendors

Rules For Eating Out

Lunch is usually served between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. and dinner between 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Rules vary from one establishment to another, but it is generally usual to pay the bill directly at the cash desk, on entering, after ordering or after the meal. It is not commonto leave a tip. 'Gochisosama deshita' is said while leaving the restaurant.

Price Indications

Food Specialties

Sushi, one of the most well-known Japanese food preparations, consists of cooked rice and other ingredients, including raw seafood, vegetables or pickled products. Raw fish, when sliced and served without rice, is known as sashimi. Makizushi are generally wrapped in nori (seaweed) and can be served as temaki (a cone-shaped hand roll filled with a variety of ingredients), futomaki (a thick and large fat roll filled with several fillings and sliced into six or eight pieces) or hosomaki (a smaller cylindrical roll with typically only one filling and sliced into six or eight pieces).

Many Japanese dishes are served in bowls (known as domburi) with rice on top and meat/vegetables underneath. Some examples include: oyakodom (eggs and chicken), katsudom (fried pork chops), gyudom (eggs and beef), unadom (grilled eel), chukadon and tendon (seafood and vegetables).

Japanese cooking also includes salads (gomaae), seaweed, noodles (soba), soups, meat grilled on skewers and cheese.

Drinks

Tea is the most widely consumed beverage. Popular alcoholic drinks include: happoshu (a by-product of beer that is less strong in taste, but has the same alcohol content), sake (a spirit made from rice) and umeshu (a Japanese liqueur made from plum). Local and international varieties of beers and wines are also available.

Dietary Restrictions

None

Table Manners

Many houses or restaurants have very low tables and cushions laid directly on the floor. The Japan Guide website gives some advice on how to sit down.

The meal begins with ‘’itadakimasu" ("I gratefully receive") and finishes with "gochisosama (deshita)" (Thank you for the meal). Chopsticks are used instead of cutlery. The Japan Guide website gives some advice on how to use them.

It is good manners to finish one’s dish right to the last grain of rice, and to put one’s place setting back after the meal as it was at the beginning. It is bad manners to blow one’s nose at table, or to go to the toilet during the meal. The Japan Guide will give you further information about table manners.

Means of Transport Recommended in Town

Recommendation

The bigger towns have well-developed metro systems and taxis available everywhere. The metros of Tokyo and Osaka are among the most extensive in the world and Tokyo's metro system ranks as the fifth best metro in the world. Destinations and information are written both in Japanese and in English. Taxi lights show green when they are free and red when they are not. Most taxi drivers do not speak English, so ask the hotel to write the address of your destination in Japanese.

Maps of Urban Networks

Map of the Tokyo Metro
Map of the Osaka Metro

Urban Transport Agencies

Tokyo
Osaka

Find an Itinerary

Google Maps lets you build an itinerary in every large urban centre across the world

Taxi Companies

Japanese Association of Independent Taxi Drivers (in Japanese)
Japanese Association of Taxi Tokyo Kojin (in Japanese)

Transportation From Airport to City Centre:

Airport	Distance	Taxi	Bus	Train	Car Rental
Tokyo Narita International Airport	65 km / 41 miles	JPY 30 000 / 60-90 min	JPY 3000 / 90 min	JPY 1000 / 75 min	Available
Osaka - Kansai Intl (KIX)	38 km / 24 miles	JPY 15 000-18 000/~50 min	JPY 400 / 45 min	JPY 900 / 40 min	Available
Nagoya - Chubu Centrair Intl (NGO)	32 km / 20 miles	JPY 13000 / 30-40 min	Available	28 min	-

Means of Transport Recommended in the Rest of the Country

Recommendation

The Japanese rail network is efficient and modern and remains the most suitable means of transport for foreigners. The network has recently been equipped with a high speed line (shinkansen) which travels at 185 miles per hour and links Tokyo with the other main economic centres in the country. The Japan Rail Pass allows one to travel at a reduced cost. For further information about the Rail Pass, consult the Japan Rail Pass website. Domestic air travel can be quite expensive, but it is practical if travelling with a lot of baggage.

Japan Guide summarises the different means of transportation in Japan.

Rail Companies

Japan Railways - Hokkaido
Japan Railways - East
Japan Railways - Central
Japan Railways - West
Japan Railways - Shikoku
Japan Railways - Kyushu

Airlines

You Can Consult The EU Air Safety List. Look Also at the rating of the United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

Travelling By Yourself

Recommendation

Japan's road network is modern and safe; however, tolls on motorways can be expensive, traffic congested and car rental prices high. It is advised that persons without an excellent knowledge of Japanese do not drive alone, as all of the road signs are in Japanese.

Driver's License

Foreigners can drive in Japan with a recognized international driving permit for up to one year after entering the country. Japan recognizes only international driving permits which are based on the Geneva Convention of 1949. A few countries, including Belgium, France, Germany and Switzerland, however, issue international driving permits which are based on different conventions. The international driving permits issued by those countries are not valid in Japan. Instead, holders of a French, German or Swiss driver's license can drive in Japan for up to one year with an official Japanese translation of their driving licenses to be obtained from the respective country's embassy or consulate in Japan. People from other countries, whose international driving permits are not recognized by Japan, must obtain a Japanese driving license in order to drive in Japan. A Japanese driving license is required for all drivers who are staying in Japan for more than one year.

Conditions For Renting a Vehicle

The minimum age is 18. Rental costs are very high.

Rental Agencies

Tocoo
Times Car Rental

Tolls or Taxes

Motorways are subject to tolls and the rates are very high.

The Japan Guide website describes the motorway network and tariffs.

Road Maps

Map of Japan

Find an Itinerary

Live Search Maps

Traffic Conditions Online

Circulation

Parking Facilities

In Japan, some automatic parking structures store your car in designated spaces. Some of them are multi-level while some are single-level.

Rules of the Road

Minimum Driving Age

18

Side of the Road For Driving

Left

Speed Limits

49 to 62 miles/h on express-ways or motorways, 18 to 24 in town and 31 to 37 everywhere else.

Safety Belts

Obligatory

National Roads Organizations

The national road transport Bureau
Japan Automobile Federation
Drive a car in Japan

Quality of Communications

Japan has the most advanced telecommunications network in the world. The use of mobile phones and internet is very widely developed. Public WiFi hotspot are widely developed, Public telephones are accessible everywhere but start to disappear. The cost of international communications is high. Call-back services are available for foreigners.

Telephone Codes

To Make a Call From Japan, Dial 00
To Make a Call to in Japan, Dial +81

Number of Digits of National Telephone Numbers

10. They begin with a zero, followed by 3 digits corresponding to regional codes, and the other numbers. You can consult Japan international country codes and city calling code on 1areacodescountrycodes.com. 

Mobile Telephone Standards

Japan has its own mobile phone standards (both cell type and PHS type). Mobile phones bought in other parts of the world cannot be used in the country. You can buy a phone or also rent one for a short time, even for a single call. To avoid subscriptions, prepaid cards can be purchased.

National Mobile Phone Operators

eMobile, NTT DoCoMo, SoftBank Mobile

Availability of Internet

Internet Suffix

.jp

National Internet Access Providers

There are a great many providers; the biggest ones are NTT DoCoMo, KDDI, Softbank. Some of them offer fast and temporary connections: Live Door and Asahi Net .

Access in Public Places

Accessible in a lot of places.

Access in Hotels

Accessible in most modern hotels.