Visit Japan

The Land of the Rising Sun is a beautiful and unique place to visit, with many vibrant cities, spectacular landscapes, relaxing hot springs and fascinating traditions. Not to mention delicious foods! Here are a few quick facts to know before your trip:

• Japan has 4 main islands — Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku and Kyushu, from north to south — but it contains 6,852 islands in total! Only 430 are inhabited. Honshu is the largest and most visited island, with cities like Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka as well as the towering volcano Mount Fuji.
• More than 38 million people live in Tokyo, the capital city. This makes it the most populated megacity in the world. However, there are also many natural areas, and more than 65% of the country is covered in forest.
• The local currency is called the Japanese yen, which is represented by the symbol ¥. The exact exchange rate varies from day to day, but 100 yen is roughly equal to 1 US dollar.

• The weather is cold in winter and hot in summer, so many people consider spring (late March to May) and autumn (September to November) the best times to visit. The cherry blossom season is a popular reason to visit in April and May, but the changing colours of tree leaves in autumn are also stunning.
• The language spoken in Japan is Japanese. You may want to learn a few words and phrases ahead of your trip, like konnichiwa (‘hello’, to be used only during the daytime), konbanwa (‘hello’ or ‘good evening’, to be used in the evening or night), arigatou gozaimasu (‘thank you’, can be shortened to just arigatou in casual situations), and sumimasen (‘excuse me’).

Learn more about this destination in the articles below.