I have a ton of overtime money and am dying to get the heck out of here ..soon. I have traveled exstensively but have never been to Asia. I have wanted to go to Japan desperately for a while now. I'm a male traveling alone, how difficult would it be for me as I speak No Japanese at all. How much of a detrement would this be?? I wanted to either see Tokyo, or stay in Osaka and go to Kyoto? Any help would be greately appreciated.

Although I have traveled solo to and enjoyed both Tokyo and Kyoto (esp Kyoto), neither city is especially easy for a single, non-Japanese-speaking traveler. Tokyo is enormous and difficult to find your way around (the subway system is excellent, but street addresses are impossible); Kyoto is much more compact and manageable, but public transportation is much more limited than in Tokyo. In both cities, you will find a high percentage of smaller, interesting shops and restaurants where the signs/menus are in Japanese characters only. If you go, especially solo, it is essential that you learn a few phrases (good morning, good afternoon, thank you, please, where is ...?). If you do choose Kyoto, I cannot imagine wnating to stay in Osaka. Kyoto is a big city in its own right, and there are plenty of excellent places to stay (both hotels and ryokans).

On the other hand, two cities that are exotic (for Westerners) and also excellent for solo travelers are Hong Kong and Bangkok (esp HK). English is spoken widely in Hong Kong (and, to a lesser extent, in Bangkok), and both cities seem to me to be much better geared to foreign tourists than do Tokyo or Kyoto.

If you want a less frenetic Asian city, Singapore is a possibility. It too is a place where English is widely spoken and understood. However, I find Singapore to not have the fever pitch of Hong Kong or Bangkok -- almost an Asia Lite experience.

Yes it is possible to travel solo in Tokyo. Haven't been to Kyoto or Osaka so can't comment on those cities. I was in Tokyo for a total of 3 months for work and have managed to get around during weekends by myself. Have managed to take day trips to Kawagoe, Kamakura and Nikko as well.

I too don't speak any Japanese at all. You have to be confident speaking sign language though. Most folks in Tokyo will try their best to help even though their English isn't that great. Lots of the youths and young adults do speak some English.

But if you decide to come to Singapore there's won't be any problem at all. From here you could travel to Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia quite easily.

English is not widely spoken in either Tokyo or Kyoto but train and subway bsigns are often in English. You really should be fine. And if you have maps and places that you are going written in Japanese people will be glad to help you. We had no real problem but we did our homework before we went. Personally I much preferred Kyoto to Tokyo. It's an incredible city.

Yes it will be a bit more effort that going to Singapore but in my mind 2000% more interesting and rewarding.

kosmo
I traveled solo to Tokyo last year with maybe three words of Japanese. I had very little trouble getting around, was there for a week and took a day trip to Kamakura. It is challenging but that's half the fun! I would go for it.
Best wishes,
Mara

Bonjour Kosmonaught,

There's tons of ressources in English for the non polyglot tourist to Japan, both on the web, in print, and at the various tourism info offices in almost every single city. As has been pointed out, signs in transportation systems are all in English so navigation is easy and the Japanese are very helpful.

For a start, look at

http://web-jpn.org/index.html for all kinds of infos on Japan (see virtual museum, Nipponia, etc.)

http://www.jnto.go.jp/eng/ for general info on travelling to and inside Japan, affordable accomodation, etc.

http://raku.city.kyoto.jp/sight_e.phtml Kyoto city tourism office

http://www.kyotoguide.com/index/index.html Kyoto visitor's guide (great magazine you should also get in print).

http://www.itcj.jp/ Wellcome Inns (affordable accomodations - reservation center)

http://www.digi-promotion.com/tokyo-...rhoods/yanaka/ Historic neighborhoods of Tokyo


Kyoto is easier to navigate for a first-timer (smaller, grid plan, more relaxed than Tokyo). Avoid staying in Osaka unless you have specific reasons to be there.

For a first time in Asia trip your best bet is to go to one of these cities:

1) Singapore
2) Hong Kong
3) Bangkok

You will get around far easier in these cities, you will also spend a lot less as Japan is very expensive.

Totally disagree. Your first time in asia should be where you "desperately" want to go and for kosmonaught, that's Japan. I went to Thailand for the first time in 1984 and went with a friend. It was our first time in asia and at the time everyone said we should be going to Japan because it would be cleaner and easier. But we wanted to go to Thailand so we didn't listen to them. And believe me no one spoke English there 20 years ago -- especially not in NE Thailand or southern thailand (long before the resorts hit it). We didn't take a tour and we were fine.

Singapore is "easier" for an American but so is New York or Los Angeles. Kyoto and Tokyo are so much more interesting than Singapore.

As for price -- you can do Kyoto and even Tokyo for very little money these days and be very comfortable. I did a few years ago as have other people on this forum. It's not a shopping paradise but there are people out there (me being one of them) for whom that is NOT a priority.

Of course if your heart is set on Japan then by all means go!
But my comments stand- its cheaper in the other cities - comparing apples to apples. Its also a lot easier to get around in these cities in my opinion. Tokoyo is simply not, in my opinion, the first place to visit for a first time trip to Asia. Lets hear from other Fodor regulars- what would be the first city you would advise for a person's first trip to Asia all things considered?

Bill-- I think every person is different. Their comfort zone is different and what they want in a trip is different. For some people India is a perfect first trip, for others Cambodia, for others Japan and for others Singapore.

I absolutely don't think anyone needs to go to a place like Singapore to get "your feet wet" in order to enjoy asia. What makes asia wonderful is that it's NOT like traveling in a western country. If all you look for is what's similar you miss the essence of the country.

There is no one best place for a first trip to Asia. There are as many best places as there are people. Just do your research and, most important, keep an open mind and enjoy.

Of all the places I have ever been in Asia (and I've been most places), Singapore was by far the "easiest". It's also the only country I never want to return to.

OK - lets hear from Kathie/Bob/GPanda/and the rest- what city do you advise for a first trip to Asia- in your opinion- leave out all the caveats- al things considered what would it be?

for me, it was always nippon. next, india. third, bali. beginning to sound like one of our famous "best of" polls that always end up ........

I'd agree that Kyoto is a great (maybe spectacular) place to go for your first Asian trip <b>if</b> you do your homework in advance. But if you just show up in Kyoto and not really know where you'd want to stay or what you'd want to see, it would not be a good choice. (You'll wind up staying near the train station, probably wandering the streets there as well, which would be a shame.)

Hong Kong or Bangkok on the other hand are pretty good spots for the traveler who doesn't do a whole lot of preparation. In those cities, half the fun is just being part of the maelstrom, exploring streets that look interesting and finding something amazing to see and hear and smell and taste around every corner.

I wonder why some posters suggest other country when kosmonaught &quot;desperately&quot; wants to go to JAPAN and mention no other country.

Apparently &quot;Asia&quot; is all one country around here.

Kappa- I agree.

Well.... if you read the original post carefully it does seem to suggest that while he desperatley wants to go to Japan he is not sure. That leaves the door open IMHO.

&gt; Lets hear from other Fodor regulars- what would be the first city you would advise for a person's first trip to Asia all things considered?

Bill, this is not one of those &quot;What are your favorite Asian contries?&quot; thread. It seems above question is yours and not kosmonaught's. He is asking precisely about Japan even if he may sound slightly unsure. So in the spirit of trying to be truely helpful to kosmonaught who &quot;is deperate to go to Japan&quot; why not asking him what his passions are about the country than starting a slightly off-topic vote.

So kosmonaught, I hope you got useful infos so far especially from the first few posters(sorry, not from me) and can you let us know why you are so desperate to visit Japan? We may be able to give you more useful infos from that angle (besides huge source of infos already given by Florence).

I agree with Gloria. I didn't find Japan difficult to navigate at all. So what if English isn't widely spoken? Isn't the reason we travel is to experience different cultures? I LIKE it when English isn't spoken, it's more fun and there is always a way to comunicate--hand and body language, pictures, smile, frown, calculator, etc. As for prices, Japan is not that expensive, a lot less than much of Europe at this point. Besides, kosmonaught did say he has &quot;a ton of overtime money&quot; so I don't see money as being a big problem here. I found both Tokyo and Kyoto to be easy to get around. My husband and I were not on a tour and we not once hired a guide and we did just fine. Found everything we were looking for and stumbled on some wonderful things as well. We also went to Hiroshima and Miyajima, and took several day trips as well, all on our own, using trains and buses. The only time we got lost was in Kyoto looking for a restaurant one night. We eventually found it. We speak NO Japanese either. This was not an impediment. In restaurants, many places have &quot;model&quot; dishes of food you can point to and some have menus in both Japanese and English. Japan is not Mars and anyone with a modicum of sense will be fine. I would stay in Kyoto over Osaka though, Kyoto is wonderful. Try and do both Tokyo and Kyoto, very different but both amazing in their own ways.

To answer Bill's question, the first Asian country I would suggest is the one you want to go to most.