Tokyo: practical tips
1 h route4 stopsBest: March-April for the cherry blossom, October-November for autumnUpdated July 2026
Tokyo is the easiest big city in the world at almost everything: it’s absurdly safe, everything works, everything is on time and nobody will try to rip you off. The problems it gives are different ones, and there are four.
Here they are, without figures: prices move and the yen has swung wildly, so any number I put here will lie to you.
The route, stop by stop
4 STOPS- 01
Japan is not in the EU
This surprises nobody, nobody confuses Tokyo with the EU, so the warning isn’t the usual one. What matters is how much you’ll depend on your phone here, more than in any other destination in this guide.
Consider: the Suica on your phone is your subway ticket, the map is essential because Japanese streets mostly have no names and addresses run by blocks numbered in order of construction, not geographically, the camera translator is what lets you read a menu or a ticket machine, and the last train time is checked on the app.
Running out of data in Tokyo isn’t an inconvenience: it’s not knowing where you are in a city without street names. A local eSIM activates on landing.
- 02
You still need cash
Japan took decades to embrace electronic payments, and although that has changed a lot, you still need cash. Small places (the best ones, the eight-seaters) temples, markets, lockers and many Golden Gai bars are still cash only.
Where to withdraw: 7-Eleven ATMs take foreign cards without trouble and they’re on every corner, running 24 hours. Japanese bank ATMs, curiously, often don’t take foreign cards and close at night.
The rule: withdraw at the konbini. And don’t worry about carrying cash: this is probably the safest country in the world to do it in.
- 03
The last train, and the heat
Two things that shape the day. The first, already said but repeated because it hurts most: the last train is around midnight and there are no night buses. Missing it means a brutal taxi or staying up until five.
The second is the climate. Tokyo’s summer isn’t “hot”: it’s a humid oven. July and August pass 35 degrees at 80% humidity, and shade doesn’t fix it because the air is the problem. The city organises itself around air conditioning.
The good seasons are March-April, with the cherry blossom, which lasts barely a week and is hard to time, and October-November, with the autumn, which is just as beautiful, lasts longer and has better weather. If you can choose, go in autumn.
- 04
The language is less of a problem than you think
Little English is spoken, less than you’d expect in a capital this size, and yet Japan is easier than countries where everyone half-speaks it. The reason is that the system is designed to work without talking: menus have photos, restaurants have plastic replicas of the dishes in the window, you can point, tickets are bought from machines, and station signage is in English with line numbers.
Add your phone’s camera translator and it’s solved.
And what makes up for any barrier: if you look lost with a map, there’s a fair chance someone will come over to help, and it isn’t unusual for them to walk you to the place. Four words (arigatō, sumimasen) and a nod of the head open every door.
Frequently asked
Do you need cash in Japan?
Yes, still: less than before, but small places, temples, markets and many bars are cash only. Withdraw at 7-Eleven ATMs, which take foreign cards and are open 24 hours. Japanese bank ATMs often don’t take them.
When is the best time to visit Tokyo?
October and November: the autumn is as beautiful as the cherry blossom, lasts longer and has better weather. March-April is blossom season, but it flowers for barely a week and is hard to time. July and August pass 35 degrees at 80% humidity and are genuinely hard.
Is English spoken in Tokyo?
Little, less than you’d expect, and you still won’t have trouble: the system is designed to work without talking (photo menus, plastic replicas in the windows, ticket machines, English signage) and your phone’s translator settles it.