So one of the things I found quite difficult was imagining WHAT to pack for a foreign country outside of the EU. It was my first time and I had no idea what to expect.. what I could buy from there easily or what the weather was going to be like.

I had packed a lot of unnecessary things which I didn’t use. It was also a big pain to carry around most of the time as we traveled quite a bit and they have A LOT of steps, even just to go down into or out of the metro 😂 I was carrying around a laptop I thought I would need JUST IN CASE, which was obviously never even touched because I had no time to use it and did most of the necessary things from my mobile, so I suggest not bringing extra electronics unless it’s for work purposes.

Here’s a little bit of a list I’ve put together with stuff I found I’d need during the trip:

Documents

Of course there’s the usual; passport, visa/credit/debit cards, flight tickets and travel Insurance. If you’re driving make sure to have your normal license plus the International Driving Permit.

I printed out everything I needed, stuff like online tickets/reservations (so I wouldn’t have to print them out there) and also my Itinerary just in case for some reason I couldn’t access it online.

Scan your passport and send the copy to your gmail account just to be on the safe side. A lot of the times if you’re shopping you’ll want to take it with you for the tax-free shops as they will ask you for it. It’s highly unlikely to be stolen or anything like that but it’s very easy to lose if you are carrying it everywhere.

I also recommend bringing quite a bit of cash in hand as well, as Japan is still a very cash culture country, although in the bigger stores cards are accepted for sure.

Clothes

So this is a little tricky as it depends on the season of course. We went in Summer, which was awesome as all our clothes were quite light! I brought wayyy too many clothes, I ended not wearing some of them because they weren’t comfortable enough because we would walk all day and most of the time (as of course it is Summer) sweat a lot. You will also most probably be buying some new stuff from the stores there. We found it pretty easy to wash our stuff there too… Our Tokyo apartment had a washing machine, in Kyoto the Ryokan had a coin operated washing machine too. If you don’t have one at the place you’re staying, you can easily look up a laundromat close by or hand-wash with some detergent from the supermarket.

Umbrellas and raincoats are easily found at your nearest conbini (which are nearly on every corner) Also seasonal accessories (scarves, gloves and hats) are super cheap to buy around Japan.

Another handy item to carry around with you is maybe a small hand towel, either to dry off during the rainy season or the sweat in summer. I’ve seen so many Japanese people carry this around and freshen up in the public toilets.

Footwear

Basically I only wore two different shoes around Japan. One comfortable for walking, I brought my slip on and off Skechers shoes (which I found to be amazing for the amount we walked, I highly recommend them and cannot stress enough the importance of having good shoes!!!) and my other pair was more of a going out type which I used to go to a concert or if I knew we would be going out just to eat etc. Might be best to stick to the slip on and off shoes as you might have to remove your shoes in some places.

Electronics

As I said earlier, I basically only used my mobile for my two week trip, backed up with a power bank and a portable WiFi (which I rented from there). My mobile served as a transport guide, street guide, food guide and means of communication. I brought my laptop with me for nothing and was basically just dead weight, I was way too tired when I came back to edit images and I never needed to store photos on it at all as my Iphone had been cleared before I came on the trip. If you don’t own a power bank I suggest you get one for the trip, it saved me many times and also used it to charge up my portable fan that I had bought while there (we were there during a heatwave 😰 and it wasn’t too pleasant to spend the whole day out)

As Japan is such a photogenic country (every time you turn the corner it’s just a perfect photo!) you shouldn’t forget to pack a good camera. I used it for some random events but usually used my phone, maybe buy an add on lens for the phone!

Unfortunately I have to rely on the use of hairdryers and straighteners to keep my hair looking decent, so if you’re like me then that goes with you everywhere. In Japan I could not use the ones I had because Japan’s voltage is about 100v which is way lower than EU ones, so I ended up just buying a straightener from Don Quijote (the store for everything!) and just used that. It’s also something I can take with me again once I go back. If you stay in hotels (and some air b’n’bs) they might have a hairdryer handy! but mostly just did without.

Another useful item is the universal adapter plugs! I have one which is good for any country, which i recommend buying instead of just one that’s good for Japanese plugs.

Toiletries

This one varies a little from person to person of course, but there’s some things which I can point out;

Deodorant: if you’re someone who sweats quite a bit and swears by a certain brand it’s better to bring some up with you. Japanese don’t sweat as much ( at least not sweat that stinks 😒 😒 ) as much as westerners so I had heard that they don’t have a lot of strong brands there. Though I’m quite sure you can find a lot of the popular ones there.

Toothpaste/toothbrush: If you’re staying at a hotel I’m pretty sure that they’d have some there. You can also buy at any conbini.

Sunscreen: It’s quite expensive in Japan, so I suggest getting some from home!

Face lotions/moisturisers: See if the brand you use have travel sizes, I discovered that the brand I use have travel sized bottles after unfortunately but good to know for next time, saves so much space!

Medication/First Aid: I suggest bringing some plasters with you in case u get sore feet during the trip. When traveling to different countries your diet inevitably changes, so if you’re a bit sensitive maybe bring some medicine for an upset stomach, although saying this we did not need anything like that. Pack some insect repellent!! When we went to the Zoo and also hiking the mosquitoes wouldn’t leave us alone 😣 ! Be careful bringing prescription meds with you as Japan is a bit strict with them so do a little research on which is allowed and how much.

Making your Flight more comfortable

When we flew to Japan the whole trip took about 19 hours, we had 3 hours to Turkey, next about 3-4 hours at the airport then we flew around 12 whole hours to get there. I think that was one of the hardest things about this trip (especially on the way back), having to stay in a plane for 12 hours is not pleasant! That being said they make the flight as comfortable as possible, the plane is one of those huge ones with like 3 sets of rows of seats with TV screens on the back and some good meals. when you get on they give you like a small pocket along with a blanket and headphones for the screen. In the pocket you have some slippers, earbuds, eye mask, toothpaste and toothbrush , sometimes they have the do not disturb stickers too depending on the airline. In the toilets there you can also find some perfume just in case you need too spruce yourself up a bit.

Some things I wish I had brought with me was a neck pillow, as I think it would have been more comfortable to sleep with, moisturiser, some snacks to keep me happy during the times they’re not bringing out food and probably an extra bottle of water. They do serve a lot of water during the flight though mostly in cups so you’d have to call them again for more (which i couldn’t be bothered doing) so I always felt dehydrated for the most part, so an extra water bottle would have made me a bit more comfortable. Although not necessary I feel, some people would be more comfortable with noise cancelling headphones.

Another thing maybe that would be handy is bringing a pen with you, as they hand out some papers during the flight that you have to fill in, as you have to hand it in to them once you arrive.

My plan basically for the next trip is to only bring a hand luggage-sized suitcase with me with just basic items and a backpack, start from the sight seeing section of the holiday first then buy a big luggage from the Don Quijote store once we are in Tokyo, as I will do most of my shopping there.

Packing for your trip always varies quite a bit depending on the season and from person to person but I hope it helped a little 😊 If you have any questions please ask!