Things You May Need in Japan

Traveling in Japan in quite easy if you plan ahead. In the big cities, public transportation is quite accessible. If you’re in the rural areas, it may take more planning due to less frequency for public transportation. Nonetheless, here is a list of things I found helpful when I was in Japan.

IC Card:

Pasmo Card or Suica Card are the most popular ones but any of the train IC cards will work.

They pretty much work the same, just sold by different train companies.

An IC Card is crucial especially if you’ll be using public transportation. They work on almost all buses and trains across Japan, not just Tokyo.

Cash:

It’s good to have some cash on you because while many places take card now, many still only take cash. Plus, you’ll need cash to refill your IC Card.

Coin purse:
If you plan to use cash, you’ll get a coin bag for your coins. The Japanese $1 and $5 are in coin so even if you don’t want to carry change, you will probably end up doing so when you use cash. Also, there are vending machines everywhere! While they do take IC Card payments, they also take cash.

Portable Charger:

If you plan to navigate your way through Japan with your phone, you will need a portable charger. Even our Japanese friends had portable chargers on them!

Google maps and apple maps do work in Japan.

Tote bag:

There aren’t a lot of trash cans around so it’s good to have a bag to put your trash in. Don’t just throw it on the sidewalk! Japan is quite clean so you won’t see trash laying around. You also have to pay for the bags you get at stores so it’s best to carry your own bag to put things in.

Google Translate/Papago app:

If you can’t read Japanese or don’t read Japanese, a translating app is super helpful. Especially when it comes to restaurant menus, because some restaurant don’t have English menus and/or English signs.

Umbrella:

It’s good to have an umbrella with you for unpredictable rain. Or sometimes it’ll rain in the evening and not in the morning and it’s just good to have it with you in case.

Local SIM/eSIM card:

Having either a local SIM or eSIM card will be super helpful, especially in areas that don’t have wifi. It was super helpful for me since I was using Google Maps to navigate throughout the day. There are many affordable options. The eSIM I got was through Airalo, but there are many out there.

These are things I found useful and helpful in Japan. Hopefully you find them helpful too! Have fun on your Japan trip.

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