The best apps for travelling in Japan

Japan is one of those destinations where your phone becomes a working tool from day one. A complex transport system, menus in Japanese, and signage mostly in kanji mean that a few well-chosen apps make a real difference. Everything here works without a Japanese SIM or local phone number.

Maps and navigation

Google Maps

The essential one. In Japan it works particularly well for public transport: enter your origin and destination and it gives you train, subway, and bus options with transfers, approximate prices, and wait times. It also shows which exit to use from the station, which matters a lot in large ones like Shinjuku or Osaka.

Useful tip: download an offline map of your area before you arrive, for when signal drops.

Walking and cycling

Google Maps walking directions are very accurate in Japan. Cycling mode exists but not all cities have marked bike lanes.

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Translation

Google Translate — camera mode

The most useful travel feature: point the camera at any Japanese text (menu, sign, medicine packet) and the app overlays a real-time translation on the image. It’s not perfect, but it handles around 80% of everyday situations.

It also does live voice translation between two people, handy if you need to ask something of a staff member who doesn’t speak English.

DeepL

For longer texts or when you need a more accurate translation, DeepL is noticeably better than Google Translate on Japanese. Copy the text (photograph it with Google Lens first if needed) and paste it into DeepL. The free version is enough for travel.

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Trains and transport

Navitime for Japan Travel

The go-to app for planning train routes in Japan. It shows exact timetables, platform numbers, prices with and without a JR Pass, and all the transfers involved. It also distinguishes between Shinkansen, local trains, and limited express trains — something Google Maps doesn’t always handle well.

Free version with ads, paid version without.

Smart EX / Express Reservation

If you’re taking the JR Central Shinkansen (Tokaido/Sanyo line: Tokyo–Osaka–Hiroshima), this app lets you reserve a seat from your phone without queuing. You need a foreign credit card to pay, and the reservation links to your IC card (Suica/ICOCA) or generates a QR code.

Private line apps

Some private railways with special trains (like the Romancecar to Hakone on Odakyu) have their own apps for seat reservations. Not essential, but useful if you want to book ahead.

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Information and emergencies

Yurekuru Call (ゆれくるコール)

The most widely used earthquake alert app in Japan. It warns you a few seconds before the tremor reaches your location — enough time to step away from windows or get under a table. Japan experiences several perceptible earthquakes a week and this app is standard among residents. Free, in Japanese but straightforward to set up.

NHK World

The international arm of Japan’s public broadcaster. Useful for following typhoon alerts in English, watching local news, and in an emergency, getting official information in a language you understand.

Safety Tips (Japan Tourism Agency)

Official app from the Japanese government with disaster alerts — earthquakes, tsunamis, typhoons — in multiple languages. It activates automatically when there’s an alert in your area. Somewhat redundant with Yurekuru if you have both, but official information in your language has its value.

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Food and restaurants

Google Maps (reviews)

For finding nearby restaurants, Google Maps reviews are enough for most situations. Filter by “open now” and distance, and check the photos before walking in.

Tabelog

Japan’s equivalent of TripAdvisor for restaurants. The average score on Tabelog is notoriously low (3.5 is already good), so don’t be put off by the numbers. The app is in Japanese, but the website has an English version and is useful for more specialist spots. For phrases and ordering strategies beyond the app, see our guide to eating in Japan without speaking Japanese.

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Additional safety

OMAMORI (LIVE JAPAN)

OMAMORI is a web service by LIVE JAPAN designed specifically for foreign tourists in Japan. The name comes from おまもり (omamori), the protective amulets found at Japanese shrines — and the concept is the same: a resource that keeps you safe if something goes wrong during your trip.

The multilingual OMAMORI map shows evacuation shelters, temporary refuge facilities, and safety points using official Tokyo government data. In the event of an earthquake, typhoon, or other emergency, you can find the nearest shelter in your language without having to rely on someone explaining what to do in Japanese.

Available at: livejapan.com/en/handymap

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Related reading

If you found this useful, these guides go well with it:

• Cash in Japan: how to get yen and when you’ll need it
• Japan’s departure tax triples to ¥3,000 from July 2026
• Autumn in Japan: when to go and what to expect