Destinations
Ten apps worth installing before travelling to Japan
Transport, translation, payments and earthquake alerts. What to install before you leave and what to set up while you still have wi-fi at home.
Irene Salazar 8 min Photo by Denys Nevozhai on Unsplash Japan is probably the country where a phone changes a trip most. Not for the photos: for the transport, which is magnificent and fiendishly complex, and for the language, which outside the tourist areas is a real barrier. With four apps set up properly before you leave, the trip runs itself.
Transport, which comes first
Google Maps
In Japan it works surprisingly well for trains and metro: it gives you the line, the platform, the exit to take and the fare. Download the Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka areas on wi-fi before you leave.
A train timetable app
Japanese transport apps give you what Maps does not always get right: the exact connections between different companies and which carriage to board so you come out near the stairs. They get used constantly and consume little.
The transport card on your phone
There is a detail worth knowing beforehand: on iPhone you can add a Japanese transport card to the phone's own wallet and top it up from the handset, and that works for the metro, buses and convenience stores. On Android it only works on phones bought in Japan, so if you carry an Android it is best to buy the physical card on arrival.
Language
Google Translate with Japanese downloaded
It is the app you appreciate most in Japan, and the one that uses most data if you do not prepare it. Download Japanese for offline use before you leave: camera translation, which serves for reading restaurant menus and signs, then works without costing anything.
Conversation translation helps too, and is especially welcome in Japan because people play along with it without the slightest awkwardness.
Eating and getting around the city
- A local restaurant review app, which in Japan is used far more than the international ones and has listings for places that appear nowhere else.
- A taxi app. In the big cities they work well and save you having to explain the address in Japanese.
- The Tokyo metro map, which exists as a standalone app and works offline.
Safety: the one almost nobody installs and does matter
Japan has an early earthquake and tsunami warning system that sends alerts to phones a few seconds ahead. Those alerts arrive on their own, in Japanese and sounding loud.
There is also the official alert app for tourists, which translates those warnings into English and explains what to do. It is one of those things that take two minutes to install and that you are glad to have installed if it is ever needed.
And one warning worth repeating: earthquake alerts are not to be switched off even if they wake you at three in the morning. Those seconds are literally the margin for moving away from a window.
What to sort out before flying
- Download the maps of the cities you will visit.
- Download Japanese in the translator.
- Set up the transport card on your phone, if your handset allows it.
- Save train and accommodation bookings in a format that can be seen offline.
- Sort out how you are going to have data, because everything above except the downloaded maps needs it.
And point five, which ties them all together
These apps have something in common: they need internet for what they are really used for, which is looking things up as you go. Japanese public wi-fi exists and is abundant, but a good share asks for registration by email or for an app to be installed, and that with a suitcase in hand and no data is exactly the errand nobody wants.
How much data a trip to Japan uses, with the day-by-day sum, is in how many gigabytes you need for ten days in Japan.
Frequently asked questions
Which apps do I need to travel to Japan?
Google Maps with the maps downloaded, a translator with Japanese downloaded, a train timetable app, a taxi app and the official alert app for tourists.
Can I use a Japanese transport card on my phone?
On iPhone you can add it to the phone's wallet and top it up from the handset. On Android it only works on phones bought in Japan, so it is best to buy the physical card on arrival.
Does Google Maps work for the Tokyo metro?
Yes, and rather well: it gives the line, the platform and the exit. For connections between different companies, the Japanese timetable apps are more precise.
Do I need internet for all these apps?
Maps and the translator work offline if you download them beforehand. The rest, meaning checking timetables, calling a taxi or finding a restaurant, needs data.
Should I switch off earthquake alerts?
No. They arrive a few seconds ahead and are loud on purpose: that margin is what gives you time to get to safety.
