Packing list for Japan, travel insurance for Japan, and taking your belongings

What to take with you to Japan: spotlighted

Featured items:

• Documents: passport that is valid until after your stay (although the airline sometimes asks for 6 months). An online and/or offline copy.
• Money: you can hardly take enough yen with you because Japan is quite “cash-based”, but you can also use your debit card there (at 7-eleven or Japan Post machines).
• Care: sunscreen with a high factor for the summer or while skiing (read more about sunscreens and sun block). It is also available there, but with a free whitening effect.
• Outdoor and handy items: umbrella and sunglasses, because the weather can go in all directions. A small waste bag, because there are hardly any waste bins.
• Clothing: there are four seasons, so there are also different ways to dress. In the summer, light (because it is warm and humid), layers in the fall and spring and nice warm clothing in the winter! Socks without holes and respectful clothing for temples are also important. Good rainwear is also useful (more about rainwear and waterproof clothing). 
• Shoes: easy slip-on shoes, because you will take them off often, hiking boots, slippers.
• Medicines and travel kit: a small first aid kit with possibly antihistamine if you suffer a lot from allergies and are going in spring/summer.
• Technology and equipment: world plug type A/B (see also world plug or travel plug).
• Woman: tampons if you use them, because they are hard to find there.

What are some other options for packing as well?

• Reusable water bottle.
• Quick-drying travel towel
• Your Japan Rail Pass.
• International driving license and a credit card for road trips.
• Directions booklet or Google Translate.
• Your own chopsticks, that saves a lot of wasted wood.
• A bear bell if you have one and are planning to go hiking.
• Your polite attitude. 

What should you keep in mind when traveling to Japan with your belongings?

• Which medicines are prohibited in Japan, so you cannot take them with you. 
• The many etiquettes - there are so many unwritten rules in Japan.

Are there mosquitoes in Japan?

• Mosquitoes do exist but they are usually not a problem for tourists or backpackers.

Can you buy DEET, or other mosquito repellents, in Japan?

• Generally you don't need it, but DEET, picaridin and other mosquito repellents are available in Japan, although they are not always easy to find.
• You can usually find it at drugstores such as Matsumoto Kiyoshi and large department stores with outdoor departments.

Can you buy a joint or weed in Japan, or take it with you to Japan?

• Japan has a long history of hemp as an important material for clothing and other fabrics.
• Nowadays cannabis is illegal on all fronts, with the exception of hemp production by a few companies.
• Legalization for medical purposes is in the works.
• Overall, they are very strict in Japan. Even trace amounts of THC can lead to fines, jail time or deportation.