The title of this blog post is what you may hear when entering a restaurant in Japan. It’s an expression that roughly translates to “welcome”. Now I realize you are bound to run into poopy people anywhere you go, but for the most part, I found Japanese people to be infinitely patient and helpful as we fumbled our way through their language. I guess what I’m getting at is don’t be afraid to go because of the language barrier. Do it! And here are some tips if you are planning to go (Nelson, Koklynn, Haisong):

• If you’re not particular about staying in a ryokan (which would be awesome if I wasn’t a cheapo), Orbitz has great airfare/hotel deals. Staying at a large hotel may also increase the likelihood of staff being able to switch to English when they realize how badly you speak Japanese (okay okay, maybe you don’t–but I do). And book a few months in advance to get the good deals!

• Don’t go during peak season (read more about when to travel to Japan). During Golden Week, the Narita Express train from Tokyo back to the airport was a little more expensive than normal. It’s actually discounted during off-peak season. As I expected, visiting popular getaways outside of Tokyo during Golden Week, like Hakone, was a very busy time. I expected Tokyo itself to be less crowded since I read locals tend to travel away during this time, but tourist attractions like Ueno Park were still completely packed.

• Bring medicine in case you get sick. You know what works for you. Going to the local store and trying to figure out which pharmaceuticals you need and how to take them can be challenging if you don’t understand Japanese characters. But if you find yourself in this situation, hopefully the store clerk can help you (get that phrase book out).

• Get the Suica and N’Ex deal at the airport (take escalator to floor below baggage claim to find the JR ticket office).
  • Your purchase includes a ticket on the Narita Express to your Tokyo destination (find out which stop is closest to your lodging beforehand), a pre-loaded Suica card to ride most trains and subways in Tokyo, and a comprehensive map of the subway and train lines that are covered.
  • You’re supposed to return the Suica card when you leave Japan. When you do, they will return the 500 yen deposit on it, as well as any remaining funds, minus the 210 yen processing fee. If your card has less than 210 yen (not counting the 500 yen deposit), that will be your processing fee (discount!).
  • If you don’t use your Suica card within 10 years, it becomes invalid…that part’s just funny.

• Grab whatever English maps you can find. Usually, they are near or inside ticket offices or visitor information centers at major train stations.

• If you’re going to Kyoto, you definitely need more than a day. I signed up for an overnight deal since just paying for the roundtrip train ticket would’ve been more. But Kyoto would probably be best explored over the course of two to three days.

• If you’re going to Hakone, get the Hakone Free Pass (can be purchased at the Odawara Line ticket office at the Shinjuku station) and opt for the slightly more expensive Romancecar. We took the regular “express” train, which felt like being on a subway for over two hours. Can be done in a day, but staying overnight at a hot springs resort would’ve been nice.

• If you’re planning to visit lots of places outside of Tokyo, the Japan Rail Pass might save you some money. I didn’t do this since we only went to Kyoto and Hakone in addition to exploring Tokyo, which was plenty for our 10-day visit.

• Buy/borrow a Japanese phrase book. I borrowed my sister‘s old version of Barron’s Japanese at a Glance, which was very useful. The ones with Japanese characters are good. If you think you’re going to butcher the pronunciation, just point to what you want to say. Here’s a bare minimum list of phrases that we found useful (note the “u” following “s” is usually silent):

And if you haven’t seen them yet, we have over 300 pictures of Japan up (as if this post wasn’t long enough already=).