The most important Japanese phrases for your first trip to Japan

You do not need to speak Japanese to travel through Japan. But a handful of phrases completely changes your trip: shop staff smile, small conversations happen, and you stop feeling like a silent tourist and start feeling like a guest. In this article you will find the most important phrases for your first trip to Japan, sorted by situation, each with romaji and meaning. By the end you will also know how to pronounce them and why just 20 of them are enough to get through daily life.

Greetings and basic politeness

You will need these everywhere, from your hotel to the ramen shop. Politeness is the entry ticket to every conversation in Japan, and even a simple thank you in the local language lands noticeably differently than English.

• 🌸こんにちは (konnichiwa): hello, the safe daytime greeting.
• 🌸おはようございます (ohayō gozaimasu): good morning.
• 🌸ありがとうございます (arigatō gozaimasu): thank you very much, the polite full version.
• 🌸すみません (sumimasen): excuse me, the most versatile word of your trip. It opens conversations, calls waiters and apologises for bumping into someone.
• 🌸お願いします (onegai shimasu): please, when asking for something or placing an order.
• 🌸大丈夫です (daijōbu desu): it is fine, also works as a polite no thank you.
• 🌸はい (hai) and いいえ (iie): yes and no.
• 🌸英語を話せますか (eigo o hanasemasu ka): do you speak English?

At the restaurant

For many people, food is the highlight of any trip to Japan. With these phrases you can order confidently, even when the menu is Japanese only. Pointing and ordering is completely normal and nobody expects more from you.

• 🌸二人です (futari desu): table for two. For one person: 一人です (hitori desu).
• 🌸メニューをお願いします (menyū o onegai shimasu): the menu, please.
• 🌸これをください (kore o kudasai): this one, please. Your most important restaurant phrase, just point at the menu.
• 🌸おすすめは何ですか (osusume wa nan desu ka): what do you recommend?
• 🌸いただきます (itadakimasu): said before eating, a kind of bon appétit to yourself.
• 🌸ごちそうさまでした (gochisōsama deshita): said after eating, thank you for the meal.
• 🌸お会計をお願いします (okaikei o onegai shimasu): the bill, please.

Shopping and paying

Whether at a convenience store, a souvenir shop or an electronics store: when shopping, very few phrases get you very far. The most important one is so short that we will take it apart piece by piece.

• 🌸いくらですか (ikura desu ka): how much is it?
• 🌸カードで払えますか (kādo de haraemasu ka): can I pay by card?
• 🌸袋をお願いします (fukuro o onegai shimasu): a bag, please. Bags usually cost extra in Japan.
• 🌸見ているだけです (mite iru dake desu): I am just looking.
• 🌸これはありますか (kore wa arimasu ka): do you have this? Works great with a photo on your phone.
• 🌸大丈夫です (daijōbu desu): no thank you, when the cashier offers chopsticks, a spoon or a bag.

Trains and getting around

The Japanese rail system is fantastic, but big stations like Shinjuku or Umeda can be overwhelming at first. With these phrases you will always find someone to point you the right way.

• 🌸〜はどこですか (wa doko desu ka): where is ...? Just put your destination in front: トイレはどこですか (toire wa doko desu ka), where is the toilet?
• 🌸駅はどこですか (eki wa doko desu ka): where is the station?
• 🌸この電車は東京に行きますか (kono densha wa Tōkyō ni ikimasu ka): does this train go to Tokyo?
• 🌸何番線ですか (nanbansen desu ka): which platform?
• 🌸切符売り場はどこですか (kippu uriba wa doko desu ka): where is the ticket counter?
• 🌸ここで降ります (koko de orimasu): I am getting off here. Useful on a crowded bus.
• 🌸まっすぐですか (massugu desu ka): straight ahead? For checking directions.

Emergencies and when you get stuck

Hopefully you will never need these. But the phrases you never need are exactly the ones worth memorising, because in a real emergency there is no time to look anything up.

• 🌸助けてください (tasukete kudasai): please help me.
• 🌸救急車を呼んでください (kyūkyūsha o yonde kudasai): please call an ambulance.
• 🌸警察を呼んでください (keisatsu o yonde kudasai): please call the police.
• 🌸道に迷いました (michi ni mayoimashita): I am lost.
• 🌸わかりません (wakarimasen): I do not understand.
• 🌸もう一度お願いします (mō ichido onegai shimasu): one more time, please. Saves you when someone speaks too fast.

Why 20 phrases change your whole trip

You will not debate politics with these phrases. You do not have to. Travel is 90 percent the same situations repeated: ordering, paying, asking for directions, saying thanks. Master those situations in Japanese and you experience a different Japan. Many Japanese people are shy about speaking English but light up instantly when you attempt even one sentence in their language. And there is a bonus effect: every successful mini dialogue makes you want more. Plenty of learners say their first trip to Japan was the reason they started studying seriously. Here is the short list for your cheat sheet.

Frequently asked questions

Save the short list on your phone, say each phrase out loud a few times, and your first trip to Japan will feel completely different. And if the trip lights a spark: Sakuraflow lets you keep learning with exactly these kinds of everyday sentences, from your first kana to real conversations.