How Difficult is Travelling Japan without Japanese? | Travel Tips

I stayed at a hostel in Osaka and asked the receptionist if there was a cat cafe that she recommended, she told me to go have a cup of tea and she would write down the details, I thought she meant the address and how to get there but instead she typed up a comprehensive guide to every cat cafe in the area including pro's and con's and what kinds of cats they had. That was when I realised that Japanese people generally are ridiculously helpful and kind! :)

During my visit to Osaka some years ago, I became slightly lost looking for a bus stop for a certain route. An old man with his cane walked across the block to help me because of my obvious dilemma. He walked me to the bus stop and waited with me. He confirmed the bus was the right before sending me off and heading back. What a nice man he was.
I had many friendly encounters in japan and felt very comfortable after some time.

When I went to K’s Hostel in Tokyo they were booked and they called another hostel, made my reservation, drew me a map, and when I said “I hope I can find it” the guy said “well she (another worker) is going home in 5 minutes and can walk you there if you can wait.” Customer service is crazy. It was amazing. I seriously love Japan.

My cousin was in the US Air Force for over twenty years, and he tells an impressive story about being in Japan. He was a pilot, and he flew into Yokota AFB a number of years back. He was only there for about two weeks, but wanted to see as much of Japan as he could. He and his co-pilot took a train some place, but I can't remember where he said it was. It was in the evening hours, and after about thirty minutes or so, it became obvious to them that they took the wrong train. There was a tired salaryman sitting nearby, and by the look on my cousin's face, the salaryman could tell that something was wrong. He came over to them and tried to find out what the problem was, but he didn't speak English. The salaryman eventually figured out that they took the wrong train. So, in a calming manner, he put his hands up, and just said, "ok, ok, ok." At the next stop, the salaryman took them to another train that was going back in the opposite direction to the station they had left. The salaryman rode with them! Once they got back to the station, he then made sure that they got on the proper train, and marked on a paper schedule what train they'd need to get back. So, this salaryman, who had probably just worked 16 hours at the office went WAY out of his way to make sure that these Gaijin got to where they needed to go. Very impressive I think!

Can't stress enough how friendly and helpful the Japanese are. Was in Tokyo and lost my wallet the day before traveling to Kyoto for a few days.
Stayed at the same hotel when I got back to Tokyo. As I was checking back in, they told me my wallet had been found. Drew me a map and wrote a full list of instructions in both English and Japanese, in case I needed to stop and ask someone.
Was reunited with my wallet (with nothing missing, obviously) within a few hours of being back in Tokyo.
I love that country.

3:11 Gotta love how in english it says "Welcome to Japan" but in Japanese it says "Welcome back"

When I went to Japan I was looking for a store off in the suburbs of Tokyo that I had absolutely no idea where it was. I walked into this quiet little restaurant and the owners drew out a detailed map for me and gave me free drinks with lots of smiles and nods to go along with it. Whilst walking there a cargo truck driver who happened to speak a little English asked me where I was headed, and even offered me a ride there.
Never in my life have I experienced the hospitality and selflessness of the Japanese culture. For sure it is a country to which I must return.

The "Engrish" script on the t-shirt reminded me of my time teaching English in South Korea. Some of the parents would buy their kids t-shirts with English messages on them because they were viewed as being cool, but often they'd have no idea what the message on the shirt actually said. So I had a 10 year old boy come in wearing a t-shirt that was clearly too big for him, but his mum had bought it because it had English on the front. It said "Head down, ass up; that's the way I like to fuck". I spent the next hour of the lesson trying-and failing-to not piss myself laughing at him.

My travelpartner and me got lost in Kyoto, we didn't understand their bussystem yet then. An old lady noticed us and helped us. I even asked "but then you wil be late?" ... She replied, "no problem. I am local" and escorted us to the right bus-stop and made sure we were in the right bus.
This was our first encounter in Japan and their amazing hospitality.

Upon my arrival in Japan for the first time, I still didn't know the language and was having difficulty finding my hostel. (It was about midnight on a week night and the streets were nearly void of people.) A young man came up to me, and even though he didn't speak english, he made an effort to communicate with me using his phone. He helped by hailing a taxi for me, giving the taxi driver my address, and he even insisted on paying the fare. It was a very welcome and unexpected act of kindness, and I hope I can do the same for someone else in a similar situation someday.

We have an american guy here in argentina working, he's putting effort in learning and the co-workers sometimes go like "he talks to us and we don't know what he says ahaha but he's a great guy". We don't mind.

I went to japan for a week and a half, not knowing any Japanese language and they were so polite and welcoming, they respect each other, along with other people, I wish all countries did the same, don't let anyone influence your decision, live your life regardless

First time I came to Japan, I got lost at the train station. As in: The station was so big, I had to go to the subway and had no idea where to go. I was just standing around, looking lost and a local came up to me and asked me in VERY bad English (but so sweet!) where I had to go. He was with his wife and kids. I pointed at a picture of a subway and he actually left his wife and kids behind, took me to the subway station (that was a few minutes away) and he went back.
THAT is how kind the Japanese are. This was also when I just got of the plane and took the train, so it was my first experience with the Japanese. I have loved it there ever since (travelling anyway, still too scared to pack up and move).

On our trip to Hiroshima, my husband and I got on the wrong bus and a local man actually got on the correct bus with us and made sure we knew where our bus change was before he left. When he left we realized that he'd taken that bus just to help us find our way and was traveling back to where we started to meet his friend. People we met in Japan were so extremely nice.

I will never forget the level of frustration I felt back when I visited the Omitsutori festival in Nara. It was so impressive and the hotel was lovely. Took a bath in the public onsen and listened to the locals and I got that they were talking about the festival and I really just wanted to partake ... but my japanese was literally so bad that I just stayed where I was since I already learned that I'm going nowhere with english. Made me realize on what you miss out when travelling without the language. Currently spending time each day to improve my japanese for when we can travel again ... your videos really keep me motivated :)

This is very interesting video even for Japanese people. It is amazing that he mentioned 外来語(foreign borrowed words). It is one of the most helpful things because we have numerous 外来語　such as hotel(ホテル,ho/te/lu ), road(ロード,ro/o/do),key(キー.ki/i), station(ステーションsu/te/e/syo/nn),ticket(chi/ke/tto), train(トレイン,to/re/i/nn), park(パーク,pa/a/ku)…well, almost all of nouns in English that refer to things in daily lives are also used as Japanese words, though there are some knacks when you pronounce them in Japanese way. So don’t hesitate to use English nouns that show objects like them, but be careful about his advice: use a single word at once instead of a long sentence.

Every time the horse and cherry popped up it would make me laugh so hard.

Given as a native Chinese speaker/reader having lived in the U.S. for 30 years and learned to read a bit of Hiragana and Katakana, moving around during my first sightseeing trip in Japan (3rd overall) was almost 2nd nature (although the JR pricing scheme is very complicated and confusing). However, since I don't really speak Japanese and I found out that most Japanese don't seem to speak much English, verbal communication was really challenging. Luckily, since there are a lot of foreign workers everywhere in Japan these days and from those who I encountered, they all speak decent English, these foreigners come to rescue.

i once asked a french guy (in french) do you speak English, he respoded with yes (also in french) i then asked him where the toilet was (in English) he then turned around and walked away.

I kinda feel sorry for them businesses which spent so much money preparing for tourists who would never come due to Covid-19.

Not only Japanese language but also the very unique any kinds of way which modern Japanese would do in our life. If you guys will understand these, it will be very easy to travel or stay in Japan. Little by little. In any country, there will be their own customs etc. Anyone would be the same for the first time abroad. You guys know that Japan is a pretty high tech clean country. If you visit, will understand why, little by little. Hope seeing you guys will visit us someday in the future.

I'm Japanese but this video is accurate and amazing.
I was surprised that it was not a matter of course.
（I'm bad at English so I'm using translation software.）

I’ve found that the staff in the shops in the train station can be VERY helpful when you’re not sure where to go. I fully agree with the suggestion to bring a notepad & pen with you - I’ve had quite a few people draw maps for me which is so helpful (and their drawing & writing is amazingly precise, in general). It is also very useful if you bring a card or pamphlet with your hotel or address on it (in Kanji) - then you can show it to people, shrug, and usually get help (or show it to a taxi driver so they know where you want to go). I’ve also resorted to holding my ticket up to the little station map inside the train to make sure I’m getting off at the right stop - find the symbol for Chiba, for example, count the number of stops and keep track in your head - that sort of thing. And I agree that just about everyone is very patient and helpful.

Top 10 KINDNESSES we experienced over 2 weeks in Japan...💗 1. We stayed on Miyajima Island for a couple of nights. The guy at the front desk drew us a picture of what the famous orange Tori gate in the sea looks like "so we could enjoy it" (as it's under scaffolding). After a long (stressful) day going across the country on trains to reach the island, his thoughtfulness was appreciated.
2. I bought some clothes from Isetan dept store in Kyoto, totalling almost 20,000 yen, and went across to Kyoto Tower for some souvenier shopping. Then went for icecream and before I even realised it was missing, the souvenier shop lady ran around the shops to find me, to return my Isetan bag!
3. We were on the bus to Koyasan for a temple stay and an elderly Japanese lady decided to pass around a bag of mandarines to share.
4. We were standing on the train from Kyoto to Osaka, with all our bags, and a girl came over to fold the train seat down for us so we could sit.
5. We were looking lost in Shinjuku Station and a lady came up, gave us a map and explained what was around us...food courts, dept stores, toilets, etc.
6. We lost a laptop at a garden and a hat at a bakery and got both of them back.
7. People gave up their seats in McDonalds for us.
8. We bought convenience store food and paid the 8% tax (10% is eat in) so went outside to eat as per usual and the shopkeeper said we could come back inside to eat at the table.
9. In Hiroshima almost everyone we spoke to (it seemed!) gave us a paper crane (for peace). 💙
10. As it was our 10 year wedding anniversary, hotels gave us beauty products, cards and postcards.
I found Japan to be very organised, thoughtful, clean, efficient, friendly, helpful, on time. Sometimes there was a language barrier, but I agree, speak slowly, with fewer words and you will be understood. Google translate is helpful, but doesnt always get it right. Learn some basic phrases before you go to enhance your experience there.

Just got back from being in Japan for a month and not knowing any Japanese, and found this so relatable. I was surprised with how far out of the way the locals would go when I didn't know my way around. And a lot of them would apologize to me for not knowing much English when they knew more than I did Japanese, and I was the one on foreign soil.

2 years ago I decided to travel solo for the first time and without a lot of planning I end up going to Japan (almost the other half of the world from where I live) I didn't know anyone there, I didn't know much about the country but I was excited to explore and learn about it! in 8 days I went to 3 cities traveled around and tried different things I didn't face any problem there, my English would help me a bit when I need something with a smile and some hand signs everything went smoothly! the language would differently help to be more open to the culture but even without it you can enjoy your time there and learn a lot at the same time.

It isn't hard to get around Japan without knowing Japanese. I did it for almost a whole month going on day trips to smaller towns. The trains have a English button for buying tickets and most main signs are in English underneath the Japanese. Half the people can also speak English or enough to understand what you want/need and even if they didn't that didn't matter. I highly recommend traveling over there (post covid when they open up again)and you will have a amazing time.

I love your channel and the videos you post. You gave such a humourous presenting style while still getting important information across to the viewer. I'm binge watching in anticipation of my trip to Japan in 3 months time and I can't wait.

The employees at all the Airports and transit stations spoke some English and are extremely nice and very helpful. Our one day spent in Tokyo on layover was lovely and very easy due to user friendly info and very nice Japanese people

I still remember one of my first trips to Japan in 2005 (using the flight benefits that I had at the time with United Airlines as an employee (First class each way was $160)), and I went shopping in Akihabara. Because I accidentally brought up a display copy of a manga to the counter (rather than a sealed copy for customers), the cashier took it back to get a sealed copy for me. However, upon their return, they re-scanned another book which they had previously scanned before going back to do the swap, and it took a few moments of trying to communicate to say that they were double-charging for one of the items, before the cashier finally looked at the register receipt and saw that they had done a double scan for one of the books. Meanwhile, I'd had a couple of girls in line start chuckling at the thought of a gaijin who clearly couldn't speak (at the time) sufficient Japanese to get their message across regarding the transaction, and yet they were buying a manga that was just written in hiragana and kanji (no katakana or eigo in that particular book).

I went to Japan for a vacation in the summer of 2018 to see my family, and one night I decided to go to Tokyo tower by myself since I wanted an adventure. I used to be fluent in Japanese but since I moved to America I stopped using it, so coming back I only knew basics. So if I heard a normal conversation in Japanese I’d only pick up what is being talked about if I was lucky. Anyways, I went to the tower, stayed for a few, and I went down when it was night. It was around 7:30pm, I was heading to where I thought was the station. After walking a while I realize that I was in an area I never been in, and that I was lost. Looking around, I see a local coming out of his home and I, being that I was kind of freaking out, frantically went up to him and asked 駅はどこですか？(Eki wa doko desuka? Where’s the train station?) And he replied back, “Which station?” After that I told him the name, and he told me the directions. I told him thank you, and I thought that was the end of it. But to my surprise, he offered to walk me to the station (to which I realize it was the opposite way of where he was initially heading to and I felt bad) and on the way there he still tried to make conversation with me, even if his English wasn’t that good and my Japanese wasn’t that good either. While crossing the street to the station he made sure I made it into the building lol. All I could say was thank you 100x because back then I didn’t know how to really express my gratitude in a more coherent way. I am super thankful for that man, otherwise I’m not sure how I would’ve gotten home that night... even if he told me the directions, because honestly I didn’t remember what he said. Japan is a wonderful place with nice people, even with its cons. I’m looking forward to the day I come back again!

You should've said something about apps like "Google lens" which can translate live images,very useful in other countries

13 years ago when I visited Japan for my brother's wedding, I decided to play pranks and not speaking any japanese to people (I can speak native level Japanese). Asking directions, how to use bullet train/bus ticket and to get tickets raging from middle aged businessman looking guy to schoolgirls. For my surprise, EVEYONE responded in English (or at least they tried). You have no idea how impressed I was.

"for beef you can say "bi-fu" for pork you can say "po-ku" for chicken you can say "chikin" and.. for horse you can say "BASASHI!!"" ngl i fricking lost it when i heard that

In 1976 I landed in Tokyo with no knowledge of the language. I bought a Japanese phrase book and hitch hiked practically the entire country North along the east coast to the far North to Aomori then South along the West coast to Kagoshima in the far South and back up to Tokyo in about 3 months. Never had a problem being understood and back then a lot fewer locals spoke English.

Keep in mind that even Japanese people don't necessarily speak perfect Japanese. As you say, language barriers exist, but we don't worry too much about them, because it is not so difficult to communicate with each other. There are a variety of tools that help us communicate including translation apps for smartphones. Don't hesitate to visit Japan. Have a nice trip!

Those "weird sounding English phrases" in Japan are often actually chosen specifically because they sound good or fun to the Japanese ear. Big companies have native English speakers who know what they are doing. It isn't usually just a mistake. This came from a few marketing people I talked to while I lived in Japan. Not sure on the validity of their claims, but it makes logical sense.

It's not really hard to travel in Japan without knowing any of the language. They can understand simple english like "How much" or "Can you help me?" and there are a lot of things that are translated in english. I remember when I was going to Tokyo from Fujinomiya, we stopped on a rest stop, I went to buy some snack from a stand without knowing any japanese and it didn't take long before she understood what I wanted to buy.
Camera mode of google translate app was my best friend travelling alone.

I went to Tokyo and stayed in Shibuya for 3 weeks about a year ago. I was a little concerned about the language barrier, but aside from confusing "hello" from "thank you" a couple times.. my gf (now fiancee) and I had zero problems. Including the time we lost her Pasmo card and had to speak with the concierge, who took us to see security. We barely had to use Google Translate. Google maps was actually more crucial.

As someone who is Asian (American) my problem with going to Japan is that a lot of locals look at me and assume I’m japanese as well and start speaking Japanese really fast to me. I feel awkward just responding in English so I had to get really good at saying “Sorry, I don’t speak Japanese” in Japanese 😅

Here I am, trying to plan my trip to Japan and getting more anxious every minute I'm thinking about it...and I stumble on your video!
You're really funny, and this video actually calmed me down a bit...so thank you! I'm definitely subscribing.

I got in a wrong train when i was in japan and had to get out in small station. There was no one at the station. I asked the person looking after the station for way. He didn't speak English so he wrote names of stations where i should get out, which platforms should i switch, to reach my destination. Also 2 old ladies helped me while i was in the train. Japanese people where really nice and helpful ❤️

Its our first time in Japan and we only speak very very very basic Japanese here (almost no Japanese) and every Japanese we came across is really understanding and have had no problem communicating ever! And yes, ppl here are so helpful! We got lost the first day here and had two lovely ladies approach us and spoke perfect English to help us get on the right train. Loving it!

I went to Japan for a week and no one knew Japanese. Everyone was so nice and helpful. You don’t need the Japanese if you can’t. But if you can learn some basic phrases you’ll be great.

I am happy that a lot of foreign country people are coming to Japan and learn Japanese culture.

When I went to Japan a couple years ago I had been studying Japanese in preparation for several months. In these months I was no where near fluent (obviously) but did have several dozen phrases and a relatively small vocabulary. I was at a restaurant in Kyoto talking with the owner/chef when my wife informed him that I had been studying Japanese to which he responded, "Why? no one speaks Japanese except the Japanese."
In my month long stay in several cities across the country, there was exactly one instance in which my inability to speak the language fluently made the situation any more difficult whatsoever. In fact one of the most surprising things I realized during my trip is just how little verbal communication is required in most of our daily activities. Beyond simple greetings, and our "please and thank yous" most interactions were handled through body language, mutually understood customs, and general non-verbal cues.

Thank you so much! This released a lot of anxiety. I have studied Japanese (and forgotten lots of it) but still retain a lot of basics and the ability to read and write. Given what you have said, I’ll just need one extra phrase for myself and I’ll be set. Thanks again.

Yeah, that would be France. I didn't find Japan more difficult to get around - although only for two weeks - than any other country that didn't speak English, but then a lot of Japanese people seem to have a few English words anyway. And many transport facilities have English options, including train announcements often. I used it a lot. I was very careful before we left to find out the word for thank you in Japanese. I used it a lot because Japanese people were very helpful. The concierge at the hotel helped me set up my new iPod - which pretty much tells you how long ago this was.

"Gomenasai, watashi no nihongo wa totemo warui desu" (I'm sorry, my Japanese is very bad) was my main line used when travelling in Japan. Even knowing the SLIGHTEST bit of Japanese can help to defrost even the iciest of Japanese people.
I remember visiting an underground izakaya in Shinjuku with a friend in October of 2017. The waitress didn't seem too happy to have two white people walk in through her door so she rather arrogantly guided us to a sign saying that there was a seating charge (in English) obviously thinking that this would deter us, but alas we agreed and were shown to a table in the empty izakaya. She dumped two menus in Japanese on the table and was about to walk away when I piped up "Sumimasen, eigo menu onegaishimasu" (Excuse me, English menu please) at which point she turned around with a look of surprise on her face which turned into a genuine smile. After that she couldn't do enough to help us, even going as far as trying to use what little English she knew when we hit a communications road block.
EDIT: PS, if you EVER come across an izakaya that sells BBQ'd chicken hearts, TAKE IT WITHOUT A MOMENTS HESITATION! It is honestly the tastiest thing you will eat.

In case you are wondering, the location where the film is taken at the beginning and end is Sendai.
The complicated route map that appears in the middle of the film is probably in Sendai as well.
This city is famous for beef tongue, Sendai wagyu beef, and zunda (young soybean jam).
The food is delicious and the climate is mild and comfortable, so please come and visit us!!

ive had 3 trips to japan and i noticed each time it got easier. in 2013 i dont remember seeing many signs in english while in tokyo. in 2015 i saw more signs in english. in 2018 i noticed there were so many more plus my favorite restaurants had english menus when they didnt have them during my first trip

We spent our (delayed) honeymoon (2.5 weeks, another few days in South Korea) in Japan without speaking a lick of Japanese. I was able to read most hiragana and katakana at least and know very, very few words, no kanji though. But without actually knowing words, that only barely helped. We still had mostly a comfortable experience, especially in more urban or tourist-y areas/locations.
In Tokyo there's a lot of English written everywhere. If a restaurant doesn't have a duo-lingual menu they often have either a specific printed english menu they can bring you, or they have a server who can speak english and help you.
We noticed this got less and less present the more "rural" areas got. It was great in Tokyo and Hiroshima, slightly less so in Kyoto, even slightly less so in Okayama and Naha. Still good though, because they're major cities.
We visited Innoshima (yes, Hikaru No Go) as well, which is VERY rural. There were barely people around during the day (working, school etc.) and there was NO english anywhere, not even in the Honinbo Shusaku museum, not even bus stations etc. We couldn't even tell which direction the bus was going, if it went towards where we wanted to go or further away from it.
Had a hell of a time getting back to the train station. Little bit of an adventure, but would not return without knowing more japanese.
We also used a Suica card and the JR Rail Pass, both helped A LOT getting around. Also had portable wifi, another AMAZING investment. Helps A LOT to have constant internet access so you can google stuff, look up maps etc. without having to worrying about roaming etc.
While we could get around with English, mostly, imho the stereotype of japanese people not knowing english very well, or at all, is NOT really wrong. Could also be that some *knew* english but were embarrassed and didn't want to use it, end result was still, we couldn't communicate in english with them.
We definitely wanna go back to Japan for vacation. I'd love to learn Japanese, would definitely help, but at my age and given the effort of learning it vs payoff (speak japanese on a 2-3 week vacation, maybe other future vacations, and read/watch manga/anime) I doubt I will. :/

I've only spent a few weeks in Japan but I did have anxiety over language difficulties. That's just me.
Having paper and pencil with you is a very good idea for making notes.
In Europe at least, a lot of people can read a little bit of English even if they can't speak or understand.
Also, be sure to write in CAPITAL letters. That makes a big difference.
If the local person writes something for you, you may be able to read it.

I went to Japan a couple years ago on holiday. So many people were so kind and at a Studio Ghibli shop, the person there thought we spoke Japanese when we said “Konnichiwa” and we laughed it off as they understood we didn’t. Since then, I have watched this channel and it has really been enjoyable. Thanks for being a really nice person to watch

What I like about Abroad in Japan is that not only is Chris' humor great, but so is the comment sections humor. They play off each other perfectly. I like this community. :D

Got on an express train and got lost. A bunch of local who doesn’t know English tried to help us. So friendly and helpful even they don’t even know English. 👍 I left my handbag 👜 at the train station counter and it was still there when I ran back to get it 👏 . Missing Japan ☹️ can’t wait to travel again!!

Also, pre-download the map area for where you plan to walk around as it uses less data and loads faster when needing directions

My sister and her SO needed this video. A lot of the culture is second nature to me now so I forget what's not considered common sense to others

Can confirm that in most of the Asian countries , English is taught as a subject throughout our whole school life. But we tend to be uncomfortable speaking it or understanding long sentences due to the lack of communication in English between the students. So not only japan, if you’re visiting any Asian country just simplify the sentence or keep it one word short.

I was in Aomori, and we just got lost in the city for half the day and decided took the train back to Misawa in the evening. The train station we went too was just a platform with a small booth for tickets. The ticket machine broke (Not enough change for 5,000 yen), so we had to call someone to come fix it. The man was very professional and understanding, and helped us out no problem. It was one of the best experiences of my life just wandering the city and hitting up several locations, and everyone was very nice and patient with us. The Buddhist temple Showa Daibutsu was absolutely amazing and one of the most peaceful places I've been too in my life.

Chris, I just got accepted into the JET program! I have to thank you for inspiring me to apply--I couldn't be happier(:

Just started following your channel and really enjoying it. I love Japanese culture, I think. To be fair most of that has been learned through anime and manga and the food which I get is probably not an accurate representation, given that anime and manga is fiction, although the Japanese good I’ve eaten is amazing! Really looking forward to visiting one day and seeing what it’s really like.
Hahaha was saying to the screen, it’s has to be the French! Made me laugh when you said that! They get so pissy about the language sometimes, even if you try!

It's been my experience that French people get mad at you if you can't speak French even if you aren't in France.

If you stick to the main JR modes of transportation, there's plenty of english. Once you get to buses and taxis, that's where knowing some Japanese is useful. I did a lot of pointing, and showing where I wanted to go on my phone using Google Maps, or if I had a pamphlet I point to it. Google Maps was definitely useful before when finding out train times and train names, but last time I went, they didn't show those anymore. So I used Hyperdia, which is very exact as well. For restaurants, I usually ate in malls, not the smaller side street restaurants, unless they had plastic versions of their food in the window. Then I'd take a photo and show them inside and ask for that meal. If I was too tired to deal with that, it was Family Marts and Supermarket sushi. Apple is ringo as well, I remember that because of The Beatles. Apple corp was their organization, and Ringo was their drummer. ;) Those four words/phrases were what I leaned on the whole time.

Thank you for these videos. I've been an American all my life, but after actually studying Japan (actual study, not just anime, manga, and video games), I've given serious thought to moving there as a long term goal.

From my own experience, it was extremely easy to travel through Japan in 2018. Everything is so well organized and many Japanese were interested to start up a conversation in a bar. Trains are amazing. Couldn’t imagine working there, but traveling is great.

English simplified to Japanese people:
What I want to say: Excuse me, where do I find the restroom?
What I end up saying: Me, Shit!

I visited Japan last year for two weeks without knowing a lick of Japanese. I was able to get by *mostly* okay, but god I wish I'd known some of the language (I've been studying since though). There were quite a few instances that were awkward where I'd have to break out my phone and use Google Translate. I always felt awful needing to do that. BUT for the most part, I got by just fine. I really lucked out in a few places where a worker or someone happened to speak a little English, but they were few and far between. I should note that I traveled alone and never spoke to anyone lmao so take this with a grain of salt.

I’m honestly just scared that my parents will make me look stupid in japan. I’m going to japan in January and I just keep thinking about “what if I get lost in japan because my family knows nothing?”. When I was in japan last year at a convenient store I was trying to look for onigiri with tuna and mayo, I couldn’t read the characters but my dad decided to ask the cashier in english. The cashier looked so confused I just wanted to walk out but thank god for the guy behind us who speaked very fluent english and helped us. I’m looking forward to the people who helps just like that guy, of course I’m not expecting fluent english..

I've only been to Japan twice, but neither time did I ever have any issues communicating. Granted, I can read and write mandarin which allowed me to type out things on my phone for people so they could get the gist of what I was saying, but even that I didn't need to use often because I could usually find someone who spoke both Japanese and a language I speak whether that was English, French, or Mandarin.

A few months ago I was in Tokyo and for tourists they have a special metro cards where you paid once and could use it for 24, 48 or 72 hours (depending on which you bought) for free! 1500 yen for 72 hours of unlimited use. It was only for a selected few metro lines but that wasnt so bad since we only used one line to go to odaiba which wasnt included. But besides that it was amazing. We managed quite well with a very small amount of Japanese language. What was annoying is in certain restaurants they have these machines where you can order, you can select the language, but the english menu had half of the items the Japanese one had... Luckily a kind woman helped us! It was an amazing trip and I'd love to go back once more!

last time I was in Japan I spoke English the whole 3 days. everyone understood me and was very kind and friendly. very beautiful country, just kinda expansive. hope to be there soon after this covid blows over.

When I went to Japan, I got a bad sunburn and needed aloe vera. My japanese at the time was not good and I could only make simple, short sentences. I tried asking the clerk for aloe vera アロエベラー, but felt helpless when he couldn't understand. A nice woman came up to me and said that she would take me there. She took me to a medicine shop which was out of her way and even stayed to help me find it. Things like that are so uncommon in America, because people are busy and don't have time. I was very happy that day.

Honestly, when I visited Japan last year it was pretty easy navigating it via English. I do know some Japanese, but like just barely enough. I've traveled to a few foreign countries, and I've found that body language like pointing and nodding and smiling and hand signs work extremely well at getting the basic point across. Also, pretending you understand what someone is saying to you when they don't speak your language lol. Just nod and mirror their facial expression. And say sorry a lot if that doesn't work.

I love this channel because it's not so much Chris's Vlog Abroad in Japan, as it is Abroad in Japan & Friends. As I'm watching it I look forward to recurring characters like Ryotaro and Natsuki. I've been binging since I discovered it this week.

Learning a countrys language is a sign of respect .

Been to Japan a few times and yeah the country and the people are amazing. I tried learning a few phrases as a sign of respect. If I had a query the Japanese people would have no problems trying to help. I remember doing charades or weird dance at a ticket vending to get concert tickets, by the way you have to go to a baseball game. I'm from New Zealand I hope to go back this year for the Tokyo Olympics.

Since im planning a trip to Japan in the near future this is absolutely helpful. Next is the budget video. Won't lie was scared on getting lost in translation but the simple sayings and 4 key phrases will help, might learn a few extra just to help myself and impress the family at parties XD

this channel has really improved over the years. the image quality is better and the protagonist no longer appears suicidal

I forgot my backpack inside a resturant once and one of the servers came running out in the street when he noticed, I'e only had good experiences with people in japan, they're so helpful!

When I was 18 I went on a 2 week trip to Japan as part of a Boy Scout/Sister City excursion. While I was there and staying with my host family, who spoke only a little English aside from the daughter of the home (who was RIDICULOUSLY beautiful!!!), I was trying to find bookstores and model shops to buy some anime books and models. Well, when the daughter Harumi told me where a few closeby were, I stopped in.
Not one person I initially spoke to spoke English. Notice I said "initially", because the person I first spoke with went and found someone who DID speak English so I would be able to communicate, and then that person went above and beyond what above and beyond would normally look like to help! One girl who spoke near-flawless English told me that they do teach English in school, but since most people in Japan rarely have the chance to continue practicing and using it, they forget it all. Makes sense...sometimes I forget my own English...and it's my native tongue. lol

4:16 I remember when I went to Vienna I got some kind of week pass for public transport. At first I thought I would have to check in at the bus driver, but he just looked at me weird. Apparently everyone is allowed to just enter the bus without checking the tickets, though fees for gettjng caught without a ticket are MUCH higher than in my country. Those week tickets are absolutely amazing though, so convenient

extra tip for travelling in rural areas: take the english AND japanese map from a hotel. If you want to go to a specific place or are lost, the japanese person can point it out on the map. If you only bring a English map, not everyone can work out where you are exactly as they can't read the map with English words very well.

Well done Chris from Abroad! I appreciate your insights regarding those who are thinking of traveling to Japan that do not speak their language. I know this video was posted three years ago and I want to say regardless of how long your videos have been posted it is still very informative and your videos are made with the highest quality. I hope that one day I will be able to meet you in Japan Chris! Keep up the good work! -Samurer12

*cough* France! *cough* YEP! I’ve traveled and lived all over the world, and France is the only country where it feels like people make no effort to understand you, even when you’re actually trying to speak the language- in fact they often just pretend they cant understand or purposely ignor you. My sister is married to a wonderful Frenchman who is one of the nicest people I’ve ever met- but the stereotype of French rudeness to foreigners is very true in my experience.

Every time I traveled to a foreign country I had little trouble communicating with the locals / workers. But when there is a language gap, most of them helped the best they could and I'd thank them for their assistance. Or sometimes they can completely save you from a unexpected experience or awkward situation without going through any of the details. An example:
When I was on a family vacation with my older brother, grandparents, and great-grandma to Italy we went to a restaurant near the Colosseum . We had spent a long day walking through Palatine Hill and through the Colosseum itself. So when it came time to eat we were tired and ready for a good meal. At some point my Grandma needed to use the restroom and the staff pointed her in the direction of the bathrooms. After a while she came back and said that she had used the restroom in the LGBT / gay bar right next door because the two establishments were connected to each other via a simple door. (She didn't tell me this until after we got back to our hotel)
But when I went to go use the restroom one of the male servers stopped me before I went in the same direction as the LGBT / gay bar and told me to go down the spiral stairs where the restrooms were located. I think they just didn't know she went through that door to the other place but they made pretty sure that I didn't have that same experience. But during my entire family vacation there we had no problems communicating with others since English was widely spoken everyone. If I went to Japan though, I'd need someone with me at all times. Due to my ADHD and anxiety issues.

The notebook image is a v60. Chris definitely not a big coffee drinker and doesn't know. The best ones in the UK are made in Japan, even if they now sell on amazon for about £20.
Years after watching him however, this video is amazing, and going to really help my long trip to Japan. All the phrases are pretty much anime intensive also, so kind of fun to see that they're actually useful after years of being a big anime fan too.

Watching this video gave me flashbacks of my last visit to Japan. I was learning french at the time as a subject in university & I know some japanese phrases since I watch a lot of anime. But somehow my brain got confused & had a hard time communicating. I would accidentally speak french thinking I was saying something in Japanese haha

I traveled to Japan knowing 4 words. It was great, I had no issues.

Something I strongly recommend before anyone goes to a country where they can't read their language, is to download the Google Translate app AND within the app, download the language. Then, without WiFi, you can point the camera at the writing and it can give you a rough translation (far better than nothing). It has helped me with many picture-less menus on vacation.

Joke's on you I can't even socialise in English let alone in a foreign language

As someone who speaks Mandarin and English well but not Japanese I would say Japan is one of the harder Asian countries to travel in from a linguistic perspective and that is from the perspective of someone who could read the meaning of much of the Kanji. Ironically for us it is only Kanji that we can understand for Japanese writing. That the Osaka subway ticket machines only had Japanese surprised me as in a number of other non-English speaking Asian countries the subway ticket machines still have English (eg Taiwan). I still really like Japan though.

I studied French in school,French being at least a *tiny* bit like English...same alphabet at least. When I was dome I knew how to ask where the bathroom...and the library....was. My visits to Japan were very frightening. I once got lost in the Tokyo subway system and would still be there if it wasn't for a helpful Japanese man who noticed the distress on my face.

When I went a couple years ago it was really easy to talk with people, the hardest thing was the appliances. Everyone I met in Tokyo spoke some rudimentary English and that was usually enough to get around. The oven, toilet, and street signs were brutal though.

I personally found it super easy to travel there without Japanese. The only difficulty I had was getting from the airport, to my hotel in Tokyo. I was told not to use Google maps at the time, so I wound up getting super lost and started panicing. Once I flipped on Google maps, traveling became a breeze. The train stations themselves are the only thing that's difficult...but thats due to the size of the stations and the fact they use multiple train companies in the same stations.

When I was in Japan most of the time my girlfriend spoke for us because she knew a little japanese. But one day I had to go to a theatre alone. I was incredibly nervous because no one had spoken english to us the entire vacation. When I arrived I realized that it's pretty easy to communicate even without a common language in most situations. But to be polite they brought one of their managers who was able to speak english. He was SO nervous and was blushing and sweating the entire time. I said that it's fine and that I will manage without help but he insisted on explaining everything to me in english. It was unneccessary but so sweet. In the theatre I sat next to an older japanese woman and she ignored me as best as she could. But at the end of the first act of the play the lights went on and we were both crying from what happened in the first act. We were both wiping our tears away while trying to protect our makeup when our eyes met. We both had to laugh and after that she offered me some lemon candy. When the play was over we kinda "talked" for a bit even though I didn't speak japanese and she didn't speak english. She showed me the way to the shop and I was able to tell her that I was from Germany. At the end we bowed and she waved at me until I was out of sight. So I learned that day that I can understand a good portion of a theatre play even without knowing japanese, that japanese people WILL help you (if you want it or not lol) and that you don't need to speak the same language to find human connection.
I really want to go to Japan again one day and I will work on my japanese until then. But I'm way less scared now because of the experiences I made the last time I was there.

"japanese is typically only spoken in japan"
as I sit here in america where 3 different neighbors next to me are trying to pronounce their favorite anime opening lyrics

I am loving this video and your sense of humor. What you said about Japanese being a extremely helpful and selfless is true. If you are traveling there, you don’t need to know much Japanese at all. Although it will definitely help you to know the four words mentioned as well as male and female.

Like how your Japanese friend cleared up that simplifying english to talk to Japanese locals isnt rude as by our standards it may seem. But it actually helps them understand.
Didnt think even a simple sentence of 3 words can sound like 1 blurred.

わかる〜それ助かる〜！ってアドバイスばっかりだった✨
単語で聞いてくれる人はすごく分かりやすい！
お寿司屋さん🍣と焼肉店でバイトしてた時は
chicken？pork？って聞かれてbeefが咄嗟に出てこなくて
cowって言ったけど伝わらずツノのポーズしながら
「モー！👆🏻👆🏻🐄」って必死に伝えたら
「oh, beef !?」って笑って真似しながら理解してくれて
単語でも交流出来てめちゃくちゃ楽しかった覚えがある😂