Feb 21, 2026 from SoraNews24 -Japan News- Burning through cash just to throw things away tops list of headaches when moving house in Japan Spring relocations in Japan can drain your budget faster than expected, and garbage disposal fees are the biggest surprise. For many people when they think of spring in Japan, the first thing that ...
Feb 21, 2026 from SoraNews24 -Japan News- Last chance coming up for amazing east Japan for all-you-can-ride Shinkansen-inclusive train pass Get your Kyun Pass while you can. Ever since Japan Railways Group, a.k.a. JR, raised the price for its nationwide rail pass, a lot of the luster has been lost for what used to be widely considered ...
Feb 21, 2026 from SoraNews24 -Japan News- 566 million yen in gold bars donated to Japanese city’s water bureau Osaka Municipal Water Bureau suddenly becomes quite a bit closer to being flush with funds. Ironically, it’s hard to imagine a drier type of website than “municipal water bureau.” Browse through th...
Feb 20, 2026 from SoraNews24 -Japan News- Starbucks Japan complexly raises prices, will now charge for takeout bags Ecological goals and economic concerns mean no more free bags and more by-location price variations. There’s been a lot for Japanese Starbucks fans to be happy about over the last few days, as the ...
Feb 20, 2026 from SoraNews24 -Japan News- Shibuya Station’s Hachiko Gate and Yamanote Line stairway locations change next month Minor changes to majorly congested Tokyo train station are good to know before you go. Shibuya Station is one of the most crowded stations in Tokyo, and arguably the most chaotic too. Part of that ...
Feb 20, 2026 from SoraNews24 -Japan News- Japan’s new “Cunte” contact lenses aren’t pronounced like you’re probably thinking they are Cunte Jelly Trick and other lenses’ names might be too clever for their own good. In many ways, Japan has a very playful attitude about language. The Japanese language is richly expressive, with al...
Feb 20, 2026 from SoraNews24 -Japan News- Starbucks Japan adds new sakura Frappuccino and cherry blossom drinks to the menu Limited-edition spring drinks make their way to Starbucks, but are they worth buying? With February now coming to an end, spring is about to start, and with it comes sakura (cherry blossom) season...
Feb 19, 2026 from SoraNews24 -Japan News- Cherry blossom mochi lattes arrive at Japan’s Pronto cafe chain to start sakura sweets season What’s creamy on the outside, jiggly on the inside, and pink and delicious all over? This new sakura dessert drink. There are three signs that we’re getting closer to sakura season. The weather is ...
Feb 19, 2026 from SoraNews24 -Japan News- Japan just had its first same-month foreign tourist decrease in four years One country is clearly the cause, but fewer foreign tourists might not put the pressure it expects on Japan. On Wednesday, the Japan National Tourism Organization announced its latest statistics re...
Feb 19, 2026 from SoraNews24 -Japan News- The 10 most annoying things foreign tourists do on Japanese trains, according to locals Train etiquette can be hard to navigate for tourists, but locals need to watch their manners too. Every now and then, we see a number of work and business-related companies conducting surveys on tr...
Feb 19, 2026 from SoraNews24 -Japan News- Japanese zoo’s monkey bonds with Ikea stuffed orangutang following abandonment by mother[Video] Punch’s life started with a metaphorical gut-punch, but things are cuddlier, and happier, now. At just about any zoo, you’ll see a lot of kids holding plushies, either one they brought from home or...
Feb 19, 2026 from SoraNews24 -Japan News- New service lets you turn manga pages into T-shirt designs, over 200 titles to choose from Manga Plus adds feature that lets fans put manga page art they’ve fallen in love with onto a shirt. Odds are manga publisher Shueisha didn’t spend all that much time coming up with the Manga Plus n...
Feb 18, 2026 from SoraNews24 -Japan News- How to make curry in a rice cooker with zero prep work and no water[Recipe] Two steps, one piece of cooking equipment, and zero problems. The SoraNews24 office is, well, let’s call it “creatively cluttered.” That’s especially true at this time of year, when we’re still div...
Feb 18, 2026 from SoraNews24 -Japan News- We tried six Japanese burger chains’ coffee to test the state of fast food coffee in Japan[Taste test] In a rare twist, we headed to McDonald’s Japan, Mos Burger, and more without buying a single sandwich, because today we’re all about the beans. Our reporter P.K. Sanjun is a big coffee fan. For mor...
Feb 18, 2026 from SoraNews24 -Japan News- Japanese potato chip Rubik’s Cubes coming soon Delicious difficulty added to the classic puzzle. Of all the puzzles that I constantly get about 80 percent through and then give up, my favorite has to be the Rubik’s Cube. A timeless marriage of ...
Feb 18, 2026 from SoraNews24 -Japan News- Crazy-cheap Tokyo lunch: All-you-can-eat curry rice for 220 yen (US$1.40)! We go looking for faults in this sounds-too-good-to-be-true Ikebukuro offer. There’s no shortage of writers with healthy appetites on the SoraNews24 team, and as such we’ve rarely been accused of h...
Feb 18, 2026 from SoraNews24 -Japan News- Is Sapporio’s Snow Festival awesome enough to be worth visiting even if you hate the snow? [Pics] Can Hokkaido’s annual outdoor art event charm a Tohoku girl who’s always been lukewarm on winter travel? “You’ve gotta be crazy to go out of your way to take a trip somewhere at the coldest time of...
Feb 17, 2026 from SoraNews24 -Japan News- Japan has trams that say “sorry” while they ride around town…but why? Gomen means sorry in Japanese, but in this town you’ll see it written on the streetcar destination displays. You’ll encounter a lot of fascinating sights while travelling around Japan, and the fu...
Feb 17, 2026 from SoraNews24 -Japan News- Japan’s bathhouse-themed bar replaces hot water with unlimited alcohol Styled like a traditional sento, this izakaya chain lines its walls with 13 working faucets that let you pour your own drink. In my youth, I used to drink a lot of soda, perhaps to an unhealthy deg...
Feb 17, 2026 from SoraNews24 -Japan News- Shizuoka hot springs town invites you to see one of the longest hina doll displays in Japan This stairway of hina dolls at a local shrine is a true sight to behold and might actually make you lose your breath for good reason. Spring is almost upon us, and with the advent of March comes an...
