Japan is a country with countless attractions of interest – a remarkable traditional culture that still exists, and an exciting and vibrant popular culture. The Japanese people tend to be xenophobic and many of them divide the world into two parts: people and things Japanese and everything and everyone else. So while individual Japanese people may be extraordinarily friendly and helpful to tourists, I have been told by Americans who have lived in Japan that the Japanese really do not welcome people from foreign lands living there because of a Japanese obsession with racial purity.

It is also a very safe country to visit, with a very low crime rate. But because it can be quite expensive, it does not have large numbers of foreign tourists visiting it relative to many other countries. Around 75 million tourists visit France every year while around 8 million tourists visit Japan. The image of Japan as a terribly expensive country has prevented many people who would fi nd Japan a wonderful place to visit from going there. Tours to Japan often cost twice as much as tours to countries such as Thailand or Vietnam. In Thailand and Vietnam I stayed at perfectly decent hotels for $25, including breakfast, while the least expensive hotel I could fi nd in Japan was around $80. And transportation in Japan is expensive, even if you take long-distance buses instead of bullet trains.

However, if you travel on your own and stay in business hotels, such as those found in the Toyoko Inn chain (which cost around 8000 yen or about $80 for a double room), take advantage of set price meals in restaurants at lunch time, and avoid going to very expensive restaurants, you can visit Japan for little more than you would spend in many other countries and much less than in many European countries now that the dollar is so weak and the euro is so strong.