Working holidays are a great way to get to know another country. However, it can be hard to find the best country for you. If you are considering taking part in a working holiday in Japan, and would like to know the reasons you should choose it, this article is for you!
1. About Working Holiday in Japan
Working holidays are for young people (between ages 18 and 30) of Japan and its partner countries to spend holidays in each other’s countries. You can explore the country you go to, while working part-time for some earnings. Many learn the language there during that time as well, which can be an asset when they search for work back to their home countries. Some use it as a stepping stone to live in that country. You can only get one working holiday per country in your life.
In 1980, Japan first became partners with Australia, but now is partners with Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Republic of Korea, France, Germany, The United Kingdom, Ireland, Denmark, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Norway, Portugal, Poland, Slovakia, Austria, Hungary, Spain, Argentina, Chile, Iceland, Czech, Lithuania, Sweden, Estonia, and the Netherlands. If you are from one of these countries, you have a chance to visit Japan on a working holiday!
2. Reasons to choose Japan as your destination
Rich and unique culture
Being an island country, Japan has a very unique culture that is bound to make you fascinated. Japan has many traditional festivals in different regions, often relating to its four seasons. An example would be the fireworks festivals held in summer. In some fireworks festivals, people would dance traditional dances and enjoy unique delicacies and cuisines from food stalls from around the venue.
Japan is also known for its modern technologies. It is home to many multinational companies such as Toyota, Sony and Nintendo. You might know of anime and manga as well. Akihabara or Harajuku may be places you may find interesting if you like anime or manga.
Japan has many temples and shrines built more than a century ago. They are usually built with traditional building styles that may be of interest to people who study architecture. You can visit these places during your holiday. There are many more traditional aspects of Japan that make it beautiful.
Safe and clean towns and cities
Japan is known to be a fairly safe and clean country. Its crime rate ranked 10th lowest in the world. There are “kobans” or small neighborhood police stations in Japan. There are more koban and substations (koban-like places but police officers live there) all over Japan. You can stop by when you need directions, if you accidentally get lost, or anytime you need help with.
Another sign of how safe Japan is may be seen on trains. It is normal for people to sleep when they are on trains because they feel safe enough to do so.
Japan is also known for being clean. When you first go to Japan, you may notice that the cities are clean. However, you may also notice there are not a lot of trash cans in public places.This is because people are expected to take their trash with them, and throw them away when they get home. The idea of cleaning after oneself is taught early on in Japan, where students clean their classrooms from elementary school. It is also good to know that tap water is drinkable in Japan. The food at food stalls is safe to eat so you have easy access to safe and tasty food!
Convenient modes of transportation
One of the main purposes of working holidays is learning the culture of the country you visit, which often leads to a lot of its attendees traveling. The Japanese public transportation system is known to be efficient and punctual. A lot of Japanese people use trains and Shinkansens (trains that can move at high speeds) to travel around the country. You can travel around a lot of the main tourist spots which can be nice. It takes about two hours from Tokyo to Kyoto (460 km or 286 miles) by Shinkansen and there is almost one Shinkansen ride every five minutes.
Japanese food
Japanese food is known to be unique and very good. From sushi to ramen, there is a wide variety of food that you may have enjoyed in your home country before. Japan is known for the origin of “umami,” the fifth basic taste (the other four being sweet, sour, salty and bitter). You can travel Japan and eat delicious food first-hand in the many regions that Japan has.
You will also notice that the chocolates, snacks, instant ramen noodles and other foods that you can get in a local supermarket may be to your liking. There are many kinds of chocolates in convenience stores as well. A lot of people who come from other countries to visit Japan, often stock up on these things when they visit the country.
You will be able to enjoy these as well.
3. Closing
There are many things Japan has to offer. I hope you stay safe, and have a great time on your working holiday, wherever you decide to go!
Reference
・”The Working Holiday Programmes in Japan”, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, retrieved 2023/3/10 from
・”第1章 地域社会との連帯”, 警察庁, retrieved 2023/3/10 from
・”Japanese People”, All Japan tours, retrieved 2023/3/10 from
・”What is Umami?A Guide To Umami Taste, History, and Umami Foods”, the spruce eats, Miri Rotkovitz, retrieved 2023/3/10 from
