You step off a 12-hour flight, jet-lagged, holding a passport, into one of the most efficient airports in the world. Everything is in Japanese. Nothing is signposted the way you expect. You have a hotel reservation 90 kilometers away, no SIM card, no yen, and a vague memory of having read that the trains stop at midnight. This guide is the calm hand on your shoulder for those first 24 hours.
Read this on the plane. Bookmark it for the airport. By the time you’ve checked into your hotel and eaten your first meal, you’ll already feel like you know what you’re doing.
Before you land: 4 things to do on the plane
- Fill in the customs declaration (handed out by cabin crew, or do it digitally via the Visit Japan Web app before flying β saves 10 minutes at arrival)
- Set your phone to airplane mode + Wi-Fi only until you have a SIM
- Note your hotel address in Japanese (screenshot from the booking confirmation) β useful for taxi drivers and lost moments
- Add a Suica card to Apple Wallet if you have an iPhone (works without a Japanese bank account, accepts foreign cards)
The Visit Japan Web app saves you the immigration paper form and the customs paper form. Do it 24-48 hours before flying. You get two QR codes β they scan in seconds at arrival.
At the airport (Narita or Haneda)
Both airports work the same way: deplane, immigration (10-30 min depending on flight density), baggage claim, customs (one of the fastest in the world if you used Visit Japan Web), and you’re out.
Connect your phone. Free airport Wi-Fi works. Don’t waste time at SIM kiosks here β eSIM is cheaper and faster (Airalo, Ubigi: download before you fly, activate on landing). If you must have physical SIM, pre-order online for airport pickup.
Get cash. Walk to any 7-Eleven ATM in the arrival hall. They accept foreign cards 24/7, in English. Withdraw Β₯30,000-50,000 β enough for the first few days. You’ll find another 7-Eleven ATM on every street corner in Japan.
Get a Suica or Pasmo IC card. If you didn’t add one to Apple Wallet, buy a physical one at the JR ticket office (Narita) or any train ticket machine. Load Β₯3,000-5,000 to start. This single card pays for trains, buses, vending machines, and most konbini purchases across the country.
Forward your suitcase. If you’re going straight to a non-Tokyo destination, the Yamato counter (look for the black cat logo) will deliver your suitcase to your hotel for about Β₯2,000, arriving the next day. You travel with a backpack. Game-changing.
Getting from the airport to your hotel
From Narita to central Tokyo: the Skyliner (Β₯2,500, 41 minutes to Ueno) is the fastest. The Narita Express N’EX (Β₯3,000, 60-90 min, direct to Tokyo/Shinjuku/Shibuya) is the most useful if your hotel is on a JR line. The cheapest is the Keisei Access Express (~Β₯1,200, 90 min). All are signposted in English.
From Haneda to central Tokyo: easier, much closer. The Keikyu Limited Express (Β₯350, 30 min to Shinagawa) or the Tokyo Monorail (Β₯520, 15 min to Hamamatsucho) both work. Or a taxi for Β₯6,000-8,000.
Avoid taking the limousine bus unless your hotel is one of the major ones it stops at β it’s slow.
Hotel check-in
Standard check-in is 3pm or 4pm. Most hotels won’t let you into the room before then but will store your luggage. Many also have a small onsen or shower facility you can use. If you arrive at 9am exhausted, drop your bags, go eat breakfast, then come back.
You’ll be asked for your passport at check-in (legal requirement, they photocopy it). Cash deposit is rare. Slippers in the room are normal.
The first meal
Don’t try to find a famous restaurant on day one. You’re tired, jet-lagged, and the queue will defeat you. Walk one block from your hotel and pick whichever place has people inside.
Solid first-meal options that exist on every block:
- Ichiran or Ippudo β solo ramen booths, ticket machines with English, hard to mess up
- Sukiya, Yoshinoya, or Matsuya β gyudon (beef bowl) chains, Β₯500, fast and good
- Any sushi conveyor belt place (Sushiro, Kura) β pick what you want from the belt
- Konbini (7-Eleven, Lawson, FamilyMart) β onigiri, bento, sandwiches, surprisingly excellent
Save the fancy meals for day three when your body has caught up.
The 12 phrases that will save you
Japanese people are extraordinarily patient with foreigners trying their language. Learn these dozen and you’ll dissolve every interaction:
- Sumimasen (sue-mee-mah-sen) β Excuse me / sorry. The most useful word in Japan.
- Arigatou gozaimasu β Thank you (formal)
- Onegaishimasu β Please (when asking)
- Kore o kudasai β This one please (with pointing)
- Toire wa doko desu ka? β Where is the toilet?
- Eigo no menyu arimasu ka? β Do you have an English menu?
- Okaikei onegaishimasu β The check please
- Daijoubu desu β I’m fine / no thanks / it’s okay
- Wakarimasen β I don’t understand
- Ikura desu ka? β How much is it?
- Suica de β With Suica (paying)
- Gochisousama deshita β That was a feast (when leaving a restaurant)
Full pronunciation guide and the rest of the survival vocabulary in Learning Japanese Before a Trip.
Etiquette: the four things you actually need to know on day one
- Take your shoes off when there’s a step up at the entrance, when you see a row of slippers, or in any traditional space (temples, ryokan, some restaurants, all homes)
- Don’t tip. Anywhere. Ever. It’s mildly insulting. Service is included.
- Don’t eat while walking. Eat your konbini onigiri standing next to the konbini, not as you walk down the street.
- Be quiet on trains. No phone calls. Conversations at low volume. Train silence is a national value.
That’s it for day one. Bowing, chopsticks, onsen rules, all of that you can figure out as you go. People are forgiving with travelers.
Day-one mistakes to skip
- Don’t try to do Tokyo on day one. Walk around your neighborhood. Eat. Sleep at 8pm. Wake at 4am with the jet lag and watch sunrise from somewhere quiet.
- Don’t drink alcohol with the jet lag. One beer feels like four.
- Don’t book a 7am tour for day two. Day two is when jet lag hits hardest.
- Don’t activate your JR Pass on day one if you’re not using it for a Shinkansen yet β start the clock when you actually need it.
The full list of common first-trip mistakes (and how to avoid them) is in First Trip to Japan: Mistakes to Avoid.
If something goes wrong
Lost passport: go to your country’s embassy in Tokyo. Most are in Akasaka or Roppongi. File a police report first at any koban (small police box, on most street corners β they speak some English).
Lost bag at the airport: the lost-and-found rate in Japan is famously high. Don’t panic. Report at the airline counter and at the airport’s lost property office. About 90% of items are returned.
Sick: any pharmacy (θ¬ε±) sells basic medications. Doctors who speak English exist in every major city β the JNTO emergency guide lists them by region.
Emergency numbers: 110 for police, 119 for ambulance and fire. Both have English-speaking operators.
By the time you wake up tomorrow
You’ll have a SIM, cash, a Suica card, a hotel, a meal in your stomach, and 11 hours of sleep behind you. The hard part is over. Day two is when you start actually traveling.
For the days that follow, see the 10-day first-timer itinerary. For everything you forgot to ask, the Japan FAQ.