Better train etiquette in Japan: Tips for tourists to ride like a local

rugby fans during the 2019 World Cup, were criticized for loud behavior on Tokyo’s metro trains.

Tokyo and other Japanese cities shouldn't hold large scale international events. There's always a litany of complaints from the locals. Public transportation, which is crucial for moving people, is already overburdened in normal times. Tokyo is just too crowded for accommodating these kinds of events.

Tokyo and other Japanese cities shouldn't hold large scale international events. There's always a litany of complaints from the locals.

So, like every big city everywhere...

Why should only Japan be excluded?

They want tourists to remain frozen in place when other passengers are trying to get on get off the train, refuse to give up courtesy seats for the elderly or injured, and let their small children run rampant and alternate sitting on their parents lap with sitting.standing on an otherwise empty seat?

Strangerland

So, like every big city everywhere...

That's not the message in this article. "A unique aspect of riding the train in Japan is the quiet atmosphere...", etc.

"Unique" means there is nothing else like it anywhere. I daresay a significant number of Japanese believe this as well.

Instead of writing "ride like a local", the title should say "ride like a civilised person".

Again, this article is written in such a way, that makes like the Japanese are the only civilised and educated nation in the world, while the rest of us, are uncivilized barbarians and primitives.

Personally, I did all those things, and I am doing those, even more, by default, whithout a Japanese local tell me about those "rules". This is the education I have received long time ago from my parents but also from society, and in my own country are also considered common sense.

Because being civilised and educated in manners, is not the attribute of a single nation or culture, you know.

Locals in tokyo are quite rude pushing to make space to play games on their phones during rush hours and frankly not caring about basic rules is the past. Don’t blame foreigners when locals act horribly now. Train and public etiquette in so many places in Tokyo is zero as people don’t watch where they are going. Selfishness has entered Japanese culture in Tokyo completely. It’s not foreigners who I find to be the most respective. This morning alone a Japanese woman had a backpack on her back during the crowd not holding on to the bar and playing her phone bobbing back and forth against other passengers without any care in the world.

Yes Japanese trains are in general quiet and have a good athmosphere (especially when reserved seats). All good sound principles, but indeed "ride like a local" is a terrible choice of words and makes it sound like all Japanese people score 100% and tourists are clueless idiots... It's all about respect for people surrounding you. Sadly in a world which consists more and more of "myself and my phone" it has become more common to ignore others around you...

As for misusing the luggage space / shinkansen luggage rules, it would help tremendously if these rules were explained properly before you board the train! For example any tourist buying a JR pass should be given an explanatory leaflet (or PDF) with the pass. I am convinced that most of the tourists with large suitcases on long distance trains have simply no idea of these rules, and while yes it can inconvenience "locals" this is not done maliciously in the huge majority of cases. It's not as easy as it seems for foreign tourists to know "the rules" in Japan, even though "plenty of signs" are supposedly there...

Trains are certainly not quiet; not quiet enough for me anyway. There are endless announcements about what to do and how to be and they are in Japanese. If everyone was as polite, well-behaved and considerate as supposed, why would these announcements be running on endless loops? How to hold your bag, how to sit, how to get off the train, how to avoid noise, how to use your phone, not to rush onto the train, what to do if you see a chikan, what to do if you see a bag and god knows how many more. Does nobody hear them except me.

I am a foreigner myself in Japan and I agree that many tourists just don't care about Japanese etiquette. Even though they know it they still talk loudly and do whatever they want. I can see it all too often. If you visit another country you have to adjust to the culture. These are basic rules no matter which country you visit in the world.

Plenty of Japanese do not appear to abide by the "no smelly food on the shinkansen rule."

@JeffLee

Tokyo and other Japanese cities shouldn't hold large scale international events. There's always a litany of complaints from the locals. Public transportation, which is crucial for moving people, is already overburdened in normal times. Tokyo is just too crowded for accommodating these kinds of events.

You are absolutely correct! Tokyo is not equipped to hold large scale international events when thousands and even millions pour into the city! Everything comes to a standstill because of the issues with the local transportation. Luckily that many of the Rugby World Cup matches were spread out to other areas because if it was only Tokyo then there would have been a bigger mess! Tokyo dodged a bullet because Olympic didn’t have the general crowd due to the pandemic or the transportation issues would have just made it impossible for locals to move around. Imagine if during an international event being held in Tokyo there is a natural disaster such as a major earthquake and Tsunami…there would be utter catastrophe and unnecessary deaths would occur because of the crowds.

One thing I noticed often on the Midosuji subway these days is that some foreign tourists take more notice of the special seats for the elderly, mothers to be etc. They get up as soon as their friends tell them, or they notice the information on the windows and get up, whereas some Osakans generally don't care and just grab a seat.

Back in the late 90s, there was one night in the year, when foreigners would run wild through the carriages of a train and run to other carriages when the train stopped at a station. Some local Japanese were fascinated with all these foreigners running around in costumes and some local Japanese were so angry and complained to the JR staff.

Aaaa, those were days of the Osaka Loop Line Halloween Train!!

why would these announcements be running on endless loops? How to hold your bag, how to sit, how to get off the train, how to avoid noise, how to use your phone, not to rush onto the train, what to do if you see a chikan, what to do if you see a bag and god knows how many more. Does nobody hear them except me.

Have to admit, your experience sounds rather unique. The only announcements I've regularly heard on trains are the ones telling you about the next stop and whether the exit will be on the left or right side of the train. Perhaps a regional thing of some sort?

I've used subways all over the world. Wait your turn, be quiet, keep your hands to yourself, cover your mouth if you cough or sneeze. Not hard to do. Works everywhere I have been. Transit staff are generally polite if you are. It gets a little harder if you have a young child with you but still workable.

At least on the local trains in Kyushu these guidelines don't seem to apply to middle and high school students. It seems every backpack needs its' own seat as well as the student. More than once I have had to politely inform them to move the backpack so my wife can sit.

You must live in the countryside, SalarymanDaishi.

This should be etiquette everywhere. How about the Japanese not pushing and shoving when sightseeing in Europe. They have about 50 of them with brollies sticking up and regardless of what is in the way they steam ahead to follow the brolly. Also talk exceedingly loud in the process. Very polite in some respects but not when they are the tourist. Their trains are excellent but this guide is basic human courtesy.

Shame they are not so considerate to whales, dolphins Nd other animals you may find on a menu.

I live, at present, in Oxfordshire, UK, but my home town is at Fürstenfeldbruck near Munichen, Bavaria. I have often used both trains and buses in these towns but always sit quietly keeping to myself........I have no media devices, but would never use them if I did have. What I really hate though, is men sitting with their legs wide open, which I think is an expression of their manly hood........or in my mind, lack of it.

What I really hate though, is men sitting with their legs wide open, which I think is an expression of their manly hood........or in my mind, lack of it.

There is a reason why men have to sit with their legs open. There is an additional organ requiring space.

Oh, my.

Here we go again with the self-adoration of the mythical 'japanese etiquette' thing.

I simply shake my head in disbelief when I hear that tripe.

As numerous people have accurately pointed out above is that the whole question is posed as if japanese and only japanese have these so-called otherworldly etiquette skills which no other peoples on the planet possess.

I'll succinctly state based on years of observation that all the terrible and socially unacceptable things that they accuse non-japanese of doing, they themselves do exactly they same things and dare I say, on occasion, even worse.

There. A bit of a grip of reality as a guide to what is known as ' etiquette in japan '.

It’s weird how on an article about cultural norms, commenters try to use the edge cases that by definition lay outside the norm, as some sort of proof that the norm doesn’t exist.