In-depth guides, local insights, and practical tips from our team on the ground in Japan.
In this article: Introduction Japan’s tourism problem is not a volume problem, it is a distribution problem. Visitor numbers have hit successive...
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In this article: Introduction The organising principle behind almost all Japanese etiquette is meiwaku — causing trouble or inconvenience to others. Not...
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In this article: Introduction The exchange rate has made Japan cheap for most Western visitors, and that produces a specific failure mode:...
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In this article: Introduction The first Don Quijote opened in 1980 and the founder’s insight was counterintuitive: make the shop harder to...
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In this article: Introduction Japan has an entire vocabulary for gift-giving. Omiyage are the regional sweets you bring colleagues after a trip;...
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In this article: Introduction After the war, black-market stalls selling vacuum tubes and radio parts collected under the railway arches at Akihabara...
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In this article: Introduction Roppongi has a reputation among Japanese people that lags about fifteen years behind reality. Ask a Tokyo resident...
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In this article: Introduction Sendai is a city of a million people that most international travelers pass through on the way to...
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In this article: Introduction Watch the platform staff at any major Japanese station and you will see the bow used dozens of...
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