Before you leave:

Get hold of a recent Lonely Planet or other guide book for Japan and read up on general advice for travellers and their recommendations for the cities or regions you will visit. I thought the latest edition was far too heavy to take with me so just took photos of the pages on the three cities I was visiting and uploaded them to the photos app on my laptop. That, or take some written notes with you.

Download the Google Maps app and learn how to use it “on the run” before you go. It is an absolute necessity. Using it with some bluetooth ear phones is probably wise so you don’t annoy others when you are being guided on a trip.

Download the Google Translate app and learn how to use that too. It is really useful in Japan as people want to help, but often don’t have enough English.

Download some e-sim apps and compare their coverage and data plans. I used FLEXIROAM and found their e-sim had good coverage in Tokyo, Kyoto and Nara. It was also incredibly cheap: about A$28 for 10GB of data over 30 days!

Start using WhatsApp as that will allow you to make phone calls with your e-sim plan and when on wifi, rather than paying for a more expensive (and in my experience less reliable) calls and data sim package.

Get a Revolut (Visa) card and use that for purchases in a foreign currency. It saves on transaction charges and you get the conversion rate on the day of your purchases. You just upload your own A$ to it from your savings and it operates everywhere as a debit card. You can also use it to withdraw some cash (yen) that you will need in some places (train stations, temples, shrines and other tourist attractions that only accept cash).

If you can afford it, line up a local guide for a day or half-day on your first full day as they will help to familiarise you with a few key attractions and the best ways to get around (principally the metro in Tokyo). I used a great one-on-one guide from https://www.toursbylocals.com who was a photographer and he was fantastic in both Tokyo and Kyoto. I noticed that quite a few are booked well in advance. For me these two days were well worth the money. You can search on the expertise of the guides and also on the tours they give.

Find yourself a small and light day-pack for your daily carry items (camera, sunscreen, passport, wallet, ear phones, phone, sun hat, mask, anti-bacterial wipes, etc.). This seems rather obvious, but I forgot to pack mine when travelling to Europe last year and had to buy one in Helsinki.

Get some comfortable sturdy walking shoes. In Japan I was using the metro (subway) and buses extensively and still walking up to 23k steps some days when walking around certain interesting districts, between temples in Kyoto and within parks. I recommend trail running shoes by Karhu (Ikoni Trail) and Salomon (Ultra Glide) because they are both comfortable and have very durable soles.

If you are flying into Tokyo, both airports (Haneda and Nareda) are a long way from the city centre and there are a few options to travel from them to your accomodation. Once you know where you are staying, search for the best option to get to/from the airport and note the closest metro station and the line it is on. Write it all down. A taxi or Uber-taxi will cost upwards of $70. Using the metro or monorail may involve a change of trains, or as I did you may find you are on the right line, but it is a limited express train that does not stop at your closest station (oops!). Be prepared in advance as you may well be tired after a long flight. The staff at the airport train station are very helpful.

When you are there:

Yen coins and notes are really handy, especially for a quick train ticket and at some venues. A little coin purse is handy so they do not spill everywhere.

In Tokyo when using the metro for a whole day the (JR) Value Pass will usually be best and cheapest option, but make sure you collect it when passing through the ticket gates (a one-way ticket is swallowed by the gate). Some private lines are not covered by the metro, so be aware you may need another ticket or pass with broader coverage. If you plan your trip using Google Maps, it will give you a reliable indication of the one-way fare, so get used to looking for it before you depart.

On the metro trains there is a really useful screen above the doors on the inside of the train that updates your progress, hopefully towards and not away from your destination. It flashes in both Japanese and English and stations are also numbered. On some screens it gives you a very accurate indication of the time remaining to get there.

The metro subways are great, but make sure you note the recommended exit and then look for it when you get out at your destination.

If you get off the train and your ticket will not work or you realise that you made a mistake with your fare, look for a “Fare Adjustment Machine” that will usually be either side of the exit gates. You just put your ticket in and it tells you how much more you need to pay. Easy as pie.

Be prepared for crowds or plan to avoid them if possible. I think Tokyo has more than 30 million people in an area smaller than Sydney or Melbourne. It is, however, really efficient at moving them all around. Just remember you’re not the only person on the planet and you’ll be OK. Eventually you’ll find a seat on your train or get to the front of the line.

Convenience stores, drug stores and grocery stores are all over the place. Just search for them. I found 7-11 a better option than Family Mart in convenience stores. You can also easily search for decent cafes and bakeries. Eating options are literally everywhere and at all levels of cost. I didn’t have any bad experiences and a couple of times I had no idea what I was eating.

Uber-taxis are a good option at the end of a long day or when you are tired. Booking it on Uber means you don’t need to hail a taxi and then stuff around with payment transactions at the end of the trip.

Museums are mostly all closed on Mondays, so plan on doing something else, e.g. (gardens and parks, shopping, temples and shrines).

If you plan on shopping or you are one of those people who simply cannot resist a surprise purchase should the opportunity arise, keep your passport with you. (I didn’t as I was scared of losing it!) Some Tokyo stores actually deduct the tax on a machine in their store if you have your passport or even a photo of the main page. I think that can save you around 10% on big purchases.

Some recommendations for things to see and do in Tokyo:

The Tokyo Photographic Art Museum is brilliant and puts on really stimulating and very well curated exhibitions. I saw three there on my visit. It was well worth it and one of the highlights of my whole trip.

Depending on where you are staying it could be worth finding the historic Nihombashi Bridge and then having lunch or getting some food from the nearby Nihombashi Mitsukoshi Main department store.

The Museum of Western Art in Ueno Park has a great permanent collection and I saw a fabulous illuminated manuscript exhibition there too. Nearby you’ll also find the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum, the Tokyo National Museum, the National Museum of Nature and Science and the Ueno Royal Museum.

Take a long stroll through Ginza and stop by: Ginza SIX (fabulous shopping mall with boutiques and stores for all and a great rooftop garden): the multi-floor Itoya stationery store; the huge Muji flagship store; and department stores like Mitsukoshi.

Walk up the busy Nakamise-dori Street to the Senso-ji Shrine & Pagoda and surrounds.

A quick visit to the Tsukiji Hongwan-ji Temple, then walk on to the Tsukiji Outer fish markets and on to the beautiful Hamarikyu Gardens.

Walk the Omotesando Hills shopping strip and walk to and around the Meiji Jingu Shrine park. This could be combined with a visit to the Nezu Museum if you start at the Shrine. The Shibuya Scramble Crossing is not that far away and should not be missed – either afternoon or early evening.

I visited the National Art Centre Tokyo in Roppongi and while the building itself is interesting, I did not enjoy the art exhibitions at all.

Other options, depending on your tastes and what is on include the Sumida Hokusai Museum and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo, but I ran out of time.