I’ve wanted to go to Japan for years, but never decided to until now. If I could get tips and cool locations to visit that would be great. Also I need to learn some Japanese, so if anyone knows an easy way to learn some Japanese, I would also greatly appreciate that too. Thank You Very Much
Well as far as traveling to Japan all you need is a valid passport and you can stay for up to 90 days. No Visa or anything else is required.
I would recommend to you the Kansai area which is made up of Osaka, Kobe, Kyoto, Nara, Wakayama and several other areas.
You can fly into Kansai International Airport (KIX). I would stay in Osaka and from there it is a short train ride to the other cities in the area. The Umeda area is very convenient as you have access to many different train lines and they have transportation to and from the airport directly there as well. Umeda also has tons of shopping and places to eat pretty much any kind of food you desire.
Japan is very seasonal so unless you love humid heat don’t go in Summer and try to avoid Winter if you hate cold and snow. Spring and Autumn are the best times in my opinion.
Getting around is easy. Trains will pretty much take you near enough anything you would want to visit but taxi’s and buses are also easy to come by.
Kyoto is amazing. You will be able to visit countless Temples, Shrines, and Gardens there and will get a great sense of History. I reccomend Kiyomizudera, Kinkakuji, Ginkakuji, and Nijo-jo at the minimum. Kyoto station is very impressive also.
Nara is also awesome. You can feed and pet tame deer that wander the streets around the impressive Todai-ji and deer park. There are some good places to eat around there too.
Kobe has some great spots to visit. The city has a very nice feel to it.
As far as language you should learn at least the basics of hello, excuse me. You can buy software cheap at Costco, and perhaps hire a tutor where you live or take a class at the community college if they offer it. Also there are some online resources you could search for. Manners are perhaps more important than language in Japan. You should study up on etiquette things like always wear good socks because you will need to remove your shoes upon going into someones house and at certain temples and shrines, not eating while walking things like that. You should also be alerted that some public bathrooms do not have paper goods so you may want to bring a small supply or at least check before…
Hope this helps. Japan is an amazing place and you will have a blast.
p.s. Japan is only as expensive as you make it. You can stay at a nice business Hotel for less than a hundred dollars a night if you shop around and can find very cheap but delicious food all over. If you stay at an expensive hotel and eat at high end places then yes it will cost a fortune but you can find yummy meals for under $5.00.
