Shopping

Have an Awesome Time Shopping in Japan!

Photo：Akihabara

Tokyo, Japan, is one of the world's leading shopping and dining destinations.
There are a variety of popular commercial facilities, such as department stores, shopping malls, station buildings, supermarkets, convenience stores, and more.

Akihabara, also known as "Akiba," in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward, is easily accessible from Tokyo's popular tourist destination, including Tokyo, Ueno, and Asakusa, and is visited by many foreign visitors to Japan as one of the most famous shopping spots in Tokyo.
Akihabara is lined with large electronics stores where you can buy inexpensive electrical appliances, and it also has the largest number of shops in Japan selling anime goods from Japan's unique otaku culture and other subcultures, making it a great place to find rare souvenirs that you won't find anywhere else.

Popular Shopping Areas in Tokyo

Photo：Omotesando

The most popular shopping spots in Tokyo are:
・Harajuku's Takeshita Street, home to many shops where you can experience Japanese pop culture and "Kawaii culture."
・Asakusa's Kappabashi street, where you can find high-quality food samples that could be mistaken for authentic Japanese food made by Japanese craftsmen, and wholesale stores selling tableware and cooking utensils.
・Ameya Yokocho in Ueno, where you can find all kinds of products such as precious metals, watches, clothes, shoes, ingredients, and seafood.
・Ginza, home to famous department stores such as Ginza Mitsukoshi and GINZA SIX, as well as world-famous fashion brand shops, boutiques, and kimono shops.
and many more!

Below is the top 50 ranking of "Shopping Areas in Tokyo" (https://www.jalan.net/kankou/130000/g1_B1/) by Jalan.
No. 1 Isetan Shinjuku [Shinjuku, Tokyo]
No. 2 Tokyo Solamachi [Sumida, Tokyo]
No. 3 Omotesando [Shibuya, Tokyo]
No. 4 Nihombashi Mitsukoshi Main Store [Chuo, Tokyo]
No. 5 Tsukiji Outer Market [Chuo, Tokyo]
No. 6 Marunouchi Building [Chiyoda, Tokyo]
No. 7 Kinokuniya Shinjuku [Shinjuku, Tokyo]
No. 8 Ikebukuro Seibu [Toshima, Tokyo]
No. 9 Ameyoko [Taito City, Tokyo]
No. 10 Yebisu Garden Place [Shibuya, Tokyo]
No. 11 Tokyu Hands Shibuya Store [Shibuya, Tokyo]
No. 12 VenusFort [Koto, Tokyo]
No. 13 Roppongi Hills [Minato, Tokyo]
No. 14 Tokyu Hands Ikebukuro Store [Toshima, Tokyo]
No. 15 Akihabara Electric Town [Chiyoda, Tokyo]
No. 16 Takashimaya Times Square [Shibuya, Tokyo]
No. 17 Aqua City Odaiba [Minato, Tokyo]
No. 18 Tobu Department Store Ikebukuro [Toshima, Tokyo]
No. 19 Yurakucho Marion [Chiyoda, Tokyo]br> No. 20 Odakyu Department Store Shinjuku [Shinjuku, Tokyo]
No. 21 Harajuku Takeshita Street [Shibuya, Tokyo]
No. 22 Akihabara [Chiyoda, Tokyo]
No. 23 Tower Records Shibuya Store [Shibuya, Tokyo]
No. 24 Keio Department Store Shinjuku [Shinjuku, Tokyo]
No. 25 Kitaro Chaya [Chofu City, Tokyo]
No. 26 Shibamata Teishakuten Sando [Katsushika, Tokyo]
No. 27 Sunshine 60 [Toshima, Tokyo]
No. 28 Tennozu Isle [Shinagawa, Tokyo]
No. 29 Yanaka Ginza Shopping Street (Yanaka Silver Mint) [Taito City, Tokyo]
No. 30 Bic Camera Main Store [Toshima, Tokyo]
No. 31 Ikebukuro PARCO [Toshima, Tokyo]
No. 32 Nihonbashi Takashimaya [Chuo, Tokyo]
No. 33 IKEA Tachikawa [Tachikawa, Tokyo]
No. 34 Omotesando Hills [Shibuya, Tokyo]
No. 35 First Avenue Tokyo Station [Chiyoda, Tokyo]
No. 36 Matsuya Ginza [Chuo, Tokyo]
No. 37 Fabric Street, Nippori Textile Town [Arakawa, Tokyo]
No. 38 Yodobashi Camera Nishiguchi Main Store [Shinjuku, Tokyo]
No. 39 Tokyo Character Street [Chiyoda, Tokyo]
No. 40 Village Vanguard Shimokitazawa Store [Setagaya, Tokyo]
No. 41 GINZA SIX [Chuo, Tokyo]
No. 42 Jimbocho (Kanda Jinbocho) [Chiyoda, Tokyo]
No. 43 Tokyu Plaza Ginza [Chuo, Tokyo]
No. 44 UNIQLO Ikebukuro East Exit Shop [Toshima, Tokyo]
No. 45 DECKS Tokyo Beach [Minato, Tokyo]
No. 46 ABAB Ueno Shop [Taito City, Tokyo]
No. 47 Wako [Chuo, Tokyo]
No. 48 Hibiya Chanter [Chiyoda, Tokyo]
No. 49 Gatec City Plaza [Shinagawa, Tokyo]
No. 50 Village Vanguard [Koto, Tokyo]

These are also popular as tourist spots and attractions.
Many of them are commercial complexes where you can have lunch at a cafe or take a break at a restaurant or on the basement floor (where many foods are sold in Japan's department stores) while shopping.

Tokyo Is Not the Only Popular Shopping Destination in Japan

Photo：Shopping

In addition to Tokyo, Nihonbashi (Osaka Prefecture), Hakata (Fukuoka Prefecture), Sapporo (Hokkaido), Nagoya, Okinawa, and Kyoto are also popular shopping destinations.

The following are the 50 most popular shopping centers in Japan according to Jalan's list of "Popular Shopping Centers in Japan" (https://www.jalan.net/kankou/g2_W4/).
No. 1 Sapporo Stellar Place [Sapporo, Hokkaido]
No. 2 Tokyo Solamachi [Sumida, Tokyo]
No. 3 Hanshin Department Store [Osaka City, Osaka]
No. 4 Canal City Hakata [Fukuoka City, Fukuoka Prefecture]
No. 5 Namba Parks [Osaka City, Osaka]
No. 6 Abeno Market Park Q's Mall [Osaka City, Osaka]
No. 7 Umikaji Terrace Senagajima [Tomigusuku City, Okinawa Prefecture]
No. 8 Yokohama World Porters [Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture]
No. 9 Osaka Takashimaya [Osaka City, Osaka]
No. 10 VenusFort [Koto, Tokyo]
No. 11 Roppongi Hills [Minato, Tokyo]
No. 12 AEON MALL Natori [Natori City, Miyagi Prefecture]
No. 13 Tennoji MIO [Osaka City, Osaka]
No. 14 LAZONA Kawasaki Plaza [Kawasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture]
No. 15 Takashimaya Times Square [Shibuya, Tokyo]
No. 16 Fukuoka PARCO [Fukuoka City, Fukuoka Prefecture]
No. 17 Aqua City Odaiba [Minato, Tokyo]
No. 18 JR Central Towers [Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture]
No. 19 Oasis 21 [Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture]
No. 20 AEON MALL OKINAWA RYCOM [Kitanakagusuku Village, Nakagami County, Okinawa Prefecture]
No. 21 Tempozan Market Place [Osaka City, Osaka]
No. 22 Amu Plaza Nagasaki JR Nagasaki Station Building [Nagasaki City, Nagasaki Prefecture]
No. 23 Nagoya Parco [Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture]
No. 24 Value Center TORIUS [Hisayama, Kasuya, Fukuoka Prefecture]
No. 25 Lalaport Ebina [Ebina City, Kanagawa Prefecture]
No. 26 Hankyu Nishinomiya Gardens [Nishinomiya City, Hyogo Prefecture]
No. 27 Ikebukuro PARCO [Toshima, Tokyo]
No. 28 ViNAWALK [Ebina City, Kanagawa Prefecture]
No. 29 Atré Kawasaki [Kawasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture]
No. 30 Terrace Mall Shonan [Fujisawa City, Kanagawa Prefecture]
No. 31 Yokohama Bay Quarter [Kanagawa, Yokohama Prefecture]
No. 32 AEON Narita Shopping Center [Narita City, Chiba Prefecture]
No. 33 Ario Kurashiki [Kurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture]
No. 34 Nikke Colton Plaza [Ichikawa City, Chiba Prefecture]
No. 35 ChaCha Town Kokura [Kitakyushu City, Fukuoka]
No. 36 Diamor Osaka [Osaka City, Osaka]
No. 37 JOYFUL HONDA Nitta Store [Ota City, Gunma Prefecture]
No. 38 Shonan Mall FILL [Fujisawa City, Kanagawa Prefecture]
No. 39 AEON MALL Kuwana [Kuwana City, Mie Prefecture]
No. 40 Unimall [Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture]
No. 41 Lalaport Fujimi [Fujimi, Saitama Prefecture]
No. 42 Abechika [Osaka City, Osaka]
No. 43 Hirakata T-SITE [Hirakata, Osaka]
No. 44 Kalmia [Toyohashi, Aichi Prefecture]
No. 45 Kintetsu Passé [Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture]
No. 46 Kishiwada CanCan Bayside Mall [Kishiwada, Osaka]
No. 47 Hibiya Chanter [Chiyoda, Tokyo]
No. 48 Marier Toyama [Toyama City, Toyama Prefecture]
No. 49 Midland Square [Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture]
No. 50 Nadya Park [Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture]

It's easy to get things from all over the world by mail order through online shopping sites, but one of the best parts of traveling is seeing and touching things in person.
The most popular products for shopping in Japan include electronics, household goods, cosmetics, and video games.

Souvenir Shopping in Japan

Photo：Tableware

Don Quijote, 100 yen shops, and MUJI are located all over Japan, and are popular shopping spots among foreigners.

Don Quijote is a general discount store that offers a wide range of items from food to brand-name goods.
The store is like an amusement park with products lined up like a maze.
You'll find a wide range of products popular with visitors to Japan, including foodstuffs, snacks, and beverages.

100 yen shops offer a wide range of products, from daily necessities to stationery and food for just 100 yen!
100 yen shops are great for souvenirs because you can buy high quality products at low prices.
100 yen shops have become one of the most popular places to go shopping in Japan for a reasonable price.

Visitors to Japan can also take advantage of duty-free (tax free) shops for shopping.
In Japan, there are two types of duty-free shops: "duty-free" shops that exempt not only consumption tax, but also tariffs, tobacco tax, and liquor tax, and "tax-free" shops that exempt only consumption tax.
Foreign visitors to Japan are treated as non-residents and are exempted from consumption tax on goods that are necessary for their daily lives (general merchandise and consumables).
Duty-free shops display stickers and banners with a red cherry blossom design, the symbol of the duty-free shop established by the Japan Tourism Agency, on their storefronts.

In addition, there are many restaurants and small shops that do not accept credit cards for shopping or other purchases, so this is something to keep in mind when visiting Japan.
If you visit a restaurant that does not accept credit cards, you can exchange money into Japanese yen at ATMs in convenience stores.
If you use your overseas credit card, you can use ATMs at convenience stores to exchange money into Japanese yen, thanks to their multilingual support.
Of course, banks and post offices also offer the Japanese yen exchange service.
The cards that are accepted and business hours of each convenience store and bank varies, so be sure to check where you can use what before visiting them.

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