You do not need fluent Japanese to travel well in Japan — but a handful of phrases changes everything. Start with konnichiwa (こんにちは) for hello, arigato gozaimasu (ありがとうございます) for thank you, and sumimasen (すみません) for excuse me, and doors start opening from Tokyo to the smallest mountain town.
Japan runs on courtesy, and visitors who return even a little of it are treated wonderfully. English is hit-and-miss outside the big tourist routes, so these phrases are not just polite — they are practical.
The magic word: sumimasen
If you learn one word, make it sumimasen (すみません). It means "excuse me" when you need attention, "sorry" when you bump someone, and even "thank you" when someone goes out of their way for you. Flag a server with it, apologize with it, squeeze off a crowded train with it.
In a restaurant, you are expected to call the server — a clear "sumimasen!" toward the staff is polite, not rude. Nobody will come to check on your table unasked in most casual places. Our guide to sumimasen unpacks all its faces.
The essentials
These six carry you from the airport to almost any situation, all in the safe polite form.
こんにちは
konnichiwa
Hello (daytime)
ありがとうございます
arigato gozaimasu
Thank you (polite)
すみません
sumimasen
Excuse me / sorry
はい / いいえ
hai / iie
Yes / no
お願いします
onegaishimasu
Please (when requesting something)
わかりません
wakarimasen
I don't understand
Eating out
Food is half the reason to visit Japan, and the ordering ritual is easy once you know the pattern: point or name the dish, add kudasai (ください) or onegaishimasu (お願いします), and you are done.
これをください
kore o kudasai
This one, please (pointing at the menu)
おすすめは何ですか
osusume wa nan desu ka
What do you recommend?
おいしいです
oishii desu
It's delicious
お会計お願いします
okaikei onegaishimasu
The check, please
Before eating, Japanese people say itadakimasu (いただきます) — a small thanks for the meal — and close with gochisosama deshita (ごちそうさまでした) on the way out. Saying that last one to the chef or staff as you leave a small restaurant is the compliment; read the story behind it in our itadakimasu guide.
Shopping and paying
Shops greet you with a chorus of irasshaimase (いらっしゃいませ) — welcome! You do not need to answer it. These three handle the rest.
いくらですか
ikura desu ka
How much is it?
これはありますか
kore wa arimasu ka
Do you have this? (showing a photo)
袋お願いします
fukuro onegaishimasu
A bag, please
Prices are fixed in Japan — there is no bargaining — and cash still matters in small places, so listen for numbers followed by en (円), yen. Our Japanese numbers guide gets you from ichi to ten thousand quickly.
Getting around
Train stations are where you will use Japanese most. Signage is usually bilingual, but a question saves you when it is not.
すみません、駅はどこですか
sumimasen, eki wa doko desu ka
Excuse me, where is the station?
これは東京に行きますか
kore wa Tokyo ni ikimasu ka
Does this go to Tokyo?
トイレはどこですか
toire wa doko desu ka
Where is the toilet?
Sayonara (さようなら) sounds like the textbook goodbye, but it carries a "farewell, perhaps for a long time" weight. Leaving a shop or restaurant, you do not need any goodbye at all — a nod and an arigato gozaimashita (ありがとうございました), thank you for what you did, is exactly right.
Keep learning Japanese
Six phrases open doors; a few dozen start conversations. Keep going with our free essential Japanese phrases, then practice speaking with audio and spaced repetition in the Pretalk app — a few minutes a day is enough to land at Narita sounding confident.
