My sister, me and her husband are about to take a trip to Asia. Japan is one of our destinations. What should I know before going and where should we go other than Tokyo?

Has no one on this site visited Japan? lol. But really, maybe I posted this too late on a Saturday. My bad. My sister just proposed this trip.

there's been a few. one even living there.

Where u headed, tokyo?

I mean our plans are not set in stone. Of course we will go there, but I wanted to know what else we can do or what we should even do in Tokyo.

Check out small bars/golden gai district in tokyo. They have these interesting set ups of small bars that only fit 1 bartender and 5-6 guests. Its a dope way to meet locals as they will often go there solo and be interested in meeting new people. Japanese people in my experience are generally unassuming & polite in public, but after a few drinks start wildin

I have only had one experience with Japanese girls and it was not good lol. Not my fault though. It was at South Beach and the dudes who spoke to them right before us were wild lol. They just wanted to get away when I tried speaking to them. Should I be more reserved? I think I am really outgoing and maybe that's not the best thing for Japanese women.

Just learn some intro phrases in japanese. this goes for every country i've been to, but every local appreciates when a american makes 1% effort to speak a language other than english

Don't eat / drink walking in the streets

You there to smash japanese women too lol? You can't approach a girl on street and ask for their number or spark up a random conversation even if you know japanese. If you want to be outgoing you have to go to bars and clubs but outside of those places most Japanese people will be reserved.

How to speak Japanese

Visit the snow monkeys

Learn very basic things. Hello, goodbye, thank you, excuse me. If you have body odor bathe before boarding the trains and keep any cologne or perfumes to a minimum. Get some comfortable walking shoes.

See the robot restaurant show. It will be a highlight and memory you will never forget.

How much it costs for bang bang..

Aint Japan covid closed atm

Try the food in convenience stores, most of the stuff is really good.

Department stores usually have a fancy food court in the basement.

If you enjoy theme parks I'd highly recommend setting aside a day at Fuji-q highland (Tokyo). Rides there are insane.

Other popular places to visit are Kyoto and Osaka. I also visited places like Fukuoka and Kanazawa which I enjoyed.

Rent an electric bike to ride around, heaps of fun.

It’s closed fam

Hope you aren't planning on going any time soon because you probably aren't getting in and even if you do there won't be much to do because of covid

I've been to Tokyo, Kyoto, Takayama, Kanazawa, Osaka, Hiroshima, Kobe, and Nara. Overall I've spent around 2 months total traveling Japan.

For Tokyo:

I stayed in kabukicho the first time which is right next to Shinjuku (literally 5 min walk to Shinjuku station). It's known as the red light district but it's not really odee sleazy or anything. At most you're gonna have some Nigerians asking if you want to see some girls.

Ideally I'd stay close to Shinjuku because it's very easy to get anywhere, it's not as jam packed as Shibuya, and it's still a major hub. After Shinjuku I'd go for Roppongi or Shibuya. Slightly west of the city center is definitely where it's at.

The subway shouldn't take long to get used to. Just buy the passmo card and put like 5k yen ($50) in it and refill as you need to. The subway isn't that expensive but that depends on how far you travel since it's by distance. That's one reason staying in one of the major hubs is worth it.

You can also get a JR rail pass which is highly recommended if you're going to be traveling to various cities.

Food is pretty cheap especially if you aren't tracking down Michelin stars and s*** the whole time. A fulfilling lunch is gonna run you $12-18. Dinner varies a lot more but you can do a lot especially since theres so much street food.

A lot of museums require planning and tickets or reservations in advance.
teamLab Borderless
Asakusa for the sensoji temple
Nezu museum
Mori art museum
Design festa gallery
Museum of modern art MOMAT
Ghibli museum

Shinjuku Gyoen National garden and Yoyogi Park are really nice too

FOOD:
Tsukiji fish market: market area with great sushi spots with the freshest sushi around. Kinda touristy and confusing.

Unagi: a specialty in japan, unagi is broiled or grilled eel. Lots of places specialize in this dish, so much so that it’ll be the only thing they offer. Some of the places are crazy expensive and impossible to get into, but Hitsumabushi Bincho is much more casual and located conveniently in Ginza.

Izakayas: Japanese pubs. General term for a pub that typically will serve yakitori or grilled skewers of meat, veggies, etc. they’re all over the place but tend to be fairly small (only a few seats) though exceptions exist. Also sometimes known as Yakiniku, referring to grilled meat.

If you stay near Shinjuku you have Golden Gai nearby which are a bunch of small alleys packed with bars. The people inside range from tourists to locals and they always chat and have a good time in there

Go to Akihabara and walk down to the Don Quixote and get those kobe beef skewers out front. Amazing snack.

SHOPPING:
make sure to hit shibuya/Harajuku/roppongi (all in the same general area). Shibuya has the most cool stuff like bape, Visvim, cdg, Margiela, atmos, and a bunch of thrift shops like Ragtag that specialize in high end/designer stuff
Just know all the consignment shops prices are crazy. But you can def find a steal if really look around. Definitely hit up the actual Japanese flagships like Undercover because they're all gonna be cheap as hell.

SEX:
Yoshiwara is the place to go for Tokyo. Plenty of foreigner friendly soaplands although it will be more difficult getting into one if you're black which is unfortunate. You could try Dolce and Sweet Kiss for starters. Prices will range from $180-$260 for an hour, usually around $230. You pick the girls based on pictures from a book. You'll be getting head without condom and s***with condom.

In Osaka you're gonna want to hit Tobita Shinchi. This is an Amsterdam style red light district where you can see the girls out front before deciding to smash. Prices are typically a little higher at around $280 and CONDOM IS ON FOR EVERYTHING. Even head. Feels a little rushed but it's a nice one time experience.

I can write more about other cities but this is already long enough

You're finna get cucked by your sister

When you say closed you mean temporarily due to COVID policies, right? Right?

Weird post guy

i’m going there next summer

Make sure u absolutely know ur itinerary and exactly where events you're going to is located. A tour guide would be extremely helpful. The train and bus systems are very complicated if its ur first time around so get acquainted with that cause cabs in japan can run ur money up quick. Need to get ur JR pass prior to going there.

Food in Japan is really good but compared to the U.S the portions are very small so its gonna cost a lot to eat enough food to fill u (at least it was like that for me) buffets could be helpful or even the food in the convenience stores. There's also hella vendors everywhere so not hard to find places to eat at all. Reading the menus could be tough especially if ur allergic to anything. Like I'm muslim and Japan uses a lot of pork so that was a lil tough.

The language barrier is so and so, most people I met in major places like tokyo, shibuya, Kyoto, shinjuku knew english to some degree but more outside places like Hiroshima and nagoya, not too much. Someone who knows Japanese with u would be very helpful especially for directions. But overall I dont think it would affect u all that much, a translator app is advised.

There's a lot of places to visit, shrines, temples, museums, the tokyo digital art gallery is great, Tokyo tower is pretty nice, the memorial at hiroshima, etc

Idk how covid restrictions is in Japan rn so idk how open places are gonna be, so keep that in mind. Also make sure u brush off on some common Japanese etiquette and manners

Imagine taking this forum seriously