What to buy in Japan? — Top 23+ must-buy souvenirs & best things to buy in Japan

April 29, 2024

Electronics

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Japanese goods are famous for their high quality and reasonable price, making the trust of the world consumers, so electronics made in Japan is one of the indispensable items to be gift when back home from Japan. The item that most people buy is the phone, in addition to camera, rice cooker, massage machine, ….

Credit: best gifts to buy in japan blog.

store electronics made in japan — Photo: best things to buy in japan blog.

The electronics shops that you can choose are Akihabara (Tokyo), Yodobashi camera (nationwide), Bic Camera (nationwide), LAOX (nationwide), Daikokucho – Nipponbashi (Osaka), etc… In order to buy the good quality products with the cost only 30-50% you should pay attention to know the discount times of the year.

best shopping malls in tokyo tokyo shopping guide tokyo shopping center shopping area in tokyo (1) — Brightly lit billboards and shopfronts in the Akihabara district of Tokyo.

Drugs, nutritional supplements

Nutritional supplements, functional foods, medicines are the items selected by many visitors when they mainly produced with high quality raw materials from nature, cheap, safe to the health of users.

nutritional supplements japan — Photo: best things to buy in japan blog.

Algae, collagen, powdered milk … are very popular items in Japan. In which, Collagen has the effect of restoring and regenerating the skin, removing wrinkles caused by age; shark cartilage improves joint-related diseases, arthritis … are products are extremely trusted and love by middle-aged tourists.

DHC Premium Perfect Vegetables 60 Days 240 Grains Made in Japan

Japanese dolls

For the Japanese, dolls represent their own, nature, bring dignity as the people of the country of the rising sun.

Traditional Japanese dolls are available in a variety of styles and are also used on many different occasions. You can buy Kokeshi wooden dolls as gifts for kids, Daruma dolls for luck, prosperity, Kimekomi dolls or Hina dolls to decorate…

The price of traditional Japanese dolls ranges from a few yen to several hundred thousand yen.

Yukata

Yukata is a summer kimono, made of cotton and has fewer layers than normal kimono. Yukata is worn in festivals of Japan or at the ryokans (Japanese traditional guesthouses). This is really a meaningful gift for your beloved.

Yukata japan.1.j1 — Photo: best things to buy in japan blog.

You can buy yukata at the tourist spots of Japan, but if you want to buy ‘high quality yukata’, you should come to a fashion store, where there are many different designs and types with good quality.

Chopsticks

Japanese chopsticks are usually made of wood and inlaid lacquer and have two distinctly different heads, one with a very small head, and one with a larger head. These chopsticks are often draw or painted beautifully, so in addition to using them in the meal, you can use them as a decorative item. A set of chopsticks cost about 700-1000 yen.

Wakasa Sasame Yuki Black Japanese Chopsticks

Usagi Hashi Adult Chopsticks 2 — Usagi Hashi Adult Chopsticks

Sampuru: Plastic Food Models

Sampuru – A plastic copy of the food, which appears in most Japanese restaurants. They are made entirely by hand, sculpted carefully and painstakingly painted to near perfect proportions, similar the original dish.

sampuru.2.4 — Photo: best things to buy in japan blog.

You can buy sampuru at Kappabashi Street in Tokyo. Here, in addition to the models of food with the size is similar the actual size of the dish, you can also find small souvenir items of sampuru such as keychains…

Making sampuru (replica food) in Gujo Hachiman, Japan. Photo: best things to buy in japan blog.

sampuru fake food — Picture: best items to buy in japan 2018.

Cakes

With taste of elegance, light sweet, soft, smooth of each cake conquered any visitors when coming to Japan. The most famous cakes are Mochi, Matcha, Wagashi, Nama chocolate or Dorayaki. These cakes are priced at around 1,200-3,000 yen.

Furin wind chimes

Wind bell is a quite familiar product, made from many materials: wood, clay, metal, glass … Furin wind chimes are made from glass or metal, usually hanging in the main door or window with the desire to bring good luck and pleasant sounds. With beautiful design and color so the wind chimes are also considered a favorite item for home decorating. A Furin wind chime is priced around 500 yen.

Ukiyo-e prints

If you love fine art, you should not overlook the Ukiyo-e paintings, a kind of Japanese paintings wood carving. The colorful paintings of festivals, landscapes, Japanese people are clearly reflected on Ukiyo-e paintings will satisfy the love of art lovers. A painting of Ukiyo-e costs about 800- 50,000 JPY depending on the size.

Knife

28.1-Japanese-knives_masamoto_Deba-knives — Picture: best items to buy in japan 2018.

That is the perfect gift for those who love the kitchen. Japanese knives are considered as the best quality knives in the world. They are usually made from high quality carbon steel so the quality is very high. Price range from: 500 – 3,100 yen.

Wines

There are 5 famous traditional wines of Japan: Sake, Shochu, Umeshu, Amazake, Awamori. They are distilled according to traditional recipes, with special taste. Recently, the Japanese whiskey has also emerged as one of the world’s most famous and delicious whiskey at relatively high prices. Of which Sake is considered the National Drink of Japan. One bottle of Sake is priced at 1,900 yen.

135585_japanese-wine-tomi-no-oka — Japanese wine Tomi No Oka

007_Sake_Brands — Sake Brands. Picture: best items to buy in japan 2018.

japanese whisky — Photo: best things to buy in japan blog.

Some useful notes when shopping in Japan

Duty-free buyers in Japan are short-term travelers to Japan. Japanese citizens, or foreigners living, working or traveling here for more than 6 months will not be eligible for this promotion.
In Japan, the price of goods always sells at the listed price, the price is very clear so when you buy, you should not bargain.
In Japan there are many products made in China, however, these items are checked and guaranteed quality, so you can totally assured.
Functional foods such as algae, collagen, milk … you should take tour guide pre-order to get more cheaper.
There are many items to be sold at Japan Airports.
Buy at duty free shops to reduce from 5 – 8% of the price. At least 10,000 yen for electronics, refrigerators and household goods. Duty-free shops will have “Tax free” signage, when buying items above 5,000 yen will be tax exempt. At least 5,000 yen and not more than 500,000 yen per day, must be purchased at the same place with cosmetic, food, beverage, supplements …
It is not allowed to use immediately the discounted goods that have been purchased but only used when returning home.
The quantity of goods is limited.
When you purchase Tax-Free, you are not entitled directly minus tax that is required to be paid in full, then go to the tax refund counter to get back the tax.
Note: Not all shops have the duty-free counter. In the absence of a free counter, you must bring a bill to the Tax Refund counter nearby.

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