About Japan Prep

One kind of reader: the first-timer with 7–14 days, a real budget, and no patience for hype. We answer the decisions that actually cost money — with numbers instead of vibes.

Our methodology

Every price, schedule and rule in our guides is checked against official, current sources before it's published:

Tourism rules and seasons: JNTO and japan.travel
Trains and rail passes: the JR companies' own sites (JR East, JR West, JR Central, JR Kyushu)
Weather data: the Japan Meteorological Agency — actual historical numbers, not stock-photo optimism
Tickets and tours: the operators' official pages (Ghibli Museum, teamLab, Klook, GetYourGuide)

We never copy numbers from other blogs. Each article carries a visible "Prices & dates verified" badge with the date of our last check, and time-sensitive guides are re-verified on a rolling schedule. If a badge is amber or red, we're due for a re-check — treat the numbers as indicative until then.

How we verify: one worked example

Take the most-quoted number on this site: a reserved seat on the Nozomi from Tokyo to Kyoto. We don't copy it from another guide. We rebuild it from the rail operator's own fare tables:

the base fare for the distance, from JR Central's fare pages;
the limited-express charge for an unreserved seat;
the reserved-seat and Nozomi supplements, which change with the season;
a cross-check of the total on a Japanese route planner.

For a regular-season date that adds up to ¥14,170 one way, the figure our itineraries used when we last checked it on August 14, 2026. If the parts don't add up to the total, the number doesn't go in the guide.

Editorial policy

Official sources first. Operators, JR companies, JNTO and government sites. Where no authority publishes a number — hotel prices are the usual case — we label it as an estimate and say how we got it.
A verdict on every guide. Each guide ends with "Our call", and the numbers above it have to support it.
No paid placements. Nobody can buy a mention, a ranking or a link.
Dated, not timeless. Rules and prices in Japan change on fixed dates. When one changes, the guide is updated and its verified date moves with it.

Who writes this

Japan Prep is produced by a small editorial team, not a single influencer persona. No fake head-shots, no invented backstories: just researched, source-linked answers. When we state an opinion, it's labelled as one — every guide ends with a clear "Our call".

How we make money

Some links on this site are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Affiliate links only ever appear inside clearly marked recommendation cards, with the disclosure right there. Commissions never decide what we recommend — the numbers do. Full details in our affiliate disclosure.

Corrections

Spotted a price that has moved, a rule that has changed, or a date we got wrong? Email info@japanprep.com with the page and what you saw. We re-check it against the official source, correct the guide if we got it wrong, and the verified date on the page moves with the fix.

Contact

The same address reaches us for privacy questions, affiliate queries and press: info@japanprep.com.

We read everything. We don't accept paid placements, sponsored posts or link insertions — those emails get deleted.