{"id":846839,"date":"2026-01-01T13:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-01-01T11:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=846839"},"modified":"2026-01-02T08:54:21","modified_gmt":"2026-01-02T06:54:21","slug":"japan-is-heaven-on-earth-for-south-africans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/lifestyle\/846839\/japan-is-heaven-on-earth-for-south-africans\/","title":{"rendered":"Japan is heaven on earth for South Africans"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Many South Africans are singing the praises of Japan, and its biggest city, Tokyo, as a great holiday destination. BusinessTech went to see for itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What we found was a friendly and advanced society with complete safety, honest people, great restaurants, and excellent service without the need for tipping.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What makes Tokyo even more attractive is that it is a relatively affordable holiday when compared to other world cities like New York, London, or Paris.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What sparked BusinessTech\u2019s interest in Japan as a holiday destination was the numerous South Africans who visited the country and provided positive feedback.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the reasons for the increasing number of people visiting Japan is that South African passport holders can now apply for a Japan eVISA online.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This eliminates the need to visit the embassy in Pretoria or the consulate in Cape Town in person for short-term tourism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although there are no direct flights between South Africa and Japan, many airlines offer local travellers the option to fly to Tokyo with a stopover.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We opted for Emirates, which offers economy class flights via Dubai for under R20,000 per person. The stopover is a breeze, especially if you have lounge access.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Accommodation prices vary significantly based on the area and the type of room or apartment you select.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can get basic accommodation for as little as a few hundred rand a night, while a comfortable hotel room will set you back well above R1,000 per night.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These prices are not outside what you would expect to pay for a hotel of similar quality and location in South Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A big drawcard for visiting Tokyo is its train system, which is widely seen as the world\u2019s most efficient. You can get from anywhere to anywhere using trains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although it can be confusing at first, it is not too challenging to figure out, and it makes it easy and affordable to travel across the city.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is striking is how quiet it is. Most people using the train don’t talk to each other in a normal speaking voice. It’s a whisper-only zone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tokyo also has excellent taxi services which integrate with Uber. It is quick to get a taxi, and prices are similar to those in South Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tokyo is extremely safe, and people are honest<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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One of the prominent reasons South Africans love Tokyo so much is that it is entirely safe, and nobody is looking to steal your stuff or rip you off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can walk through the city at 3:00 in the morning with total confidence, and losing a wallet often results in it being returned to its owner with everything inside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nobody is pestering you for money, and people are not trying to sell you products at inflated prices because you are a tourist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Experiencing such a safe and honest society is refreshing and provides a stark contrast to South Africa, where one must be constantly vigilant to avoid becoming a victim.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many South Africans reported that the sense of freedom that comes with Tokyo\u2019s low crime rate is one of the most memorable parts of the trip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A good example is people reserving a table in a busy Starbucks by leaving their iPhone 16 or MacBook unattended while they go to the counter to order.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A strong cultural emphasis on hospitality and social obligation supports the safety. Bringing shame to one’s family by committing a crime is a powerful deterrent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although they have many small, neighbourhood police boxes usually manned by one or two officers, this is not the reason for the low crime rate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is not that the people in Japan are deterred from engaging in crime. Instead, there is a sense that harming another person makes no sense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Excellent service levels without the need to tip<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Another striking aspect of visiting Tokyo is that they offer exceptional service levels without requiring a tip to show appreciation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were uncertain about what to expect, as we had heard that very few Japanese people can speak English. We had Google Translate ready to navigate this hurdle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, we quickly learned that it was much easier than expected to visit a restaurant or buy items in a shop, even though we couldn’t speak Japanese.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

English words are scattered throughout the city and on many items, and Google Translate was a great companion when no English description was available.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What stood out was how easy it was to communicate with people at restaurants and shops despite the language barrier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although the waiters could not speak English, we were able to get a table and order food and drinks without any problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In most cases, it was easier and friendlier to communicate with a Japanese person which could not speak English than it was in South Africa with a fellow citizen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The hotel staff in Tokyo was equally friendly and accommodating, and their English skills were typically better than those of their counterparts in restaurants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The \u2018no tipping\u2019 policy in Japan is another surprisingly refreshing way to travel. It removes a tremendous amount of friction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead of scrounging around for the right amount to tip, a quick Thank You (Arigato gozaimasu) is good enough. This is the way it should be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Excellent and affordable restaurants<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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A standout feature of visiting Tokyo is the thousands of excellent and affordable restaurants on nearly every street and building.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The dining landscape ranges from specialised noodle shops and burger joints to some of the world’s most exclusive fine-dining destinations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We focused on restaurants which the locals frequented, which offered meals with prices ranging from R100 to R150 for a set meal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These restaurants were typically much smaller than what you would see in South Africa, and it is common for people to sit on small chairs outside to wait for a table.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We loved the food, which typically consisted of a protein, a bowl of sticky rice, a broth, and a small salad or vegetable dish.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most of these restaurants only offered chopsticks, but it is surprising how quickly you become skilled in using them when there is no other option.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The waiters are friendly and efficient, and don\u2019t ever bother you. They give you a table and water, wait for you to order, bring you your food, and that is it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are no uncomfortable moments, such as asking you how your food is, or the like. They keep communication to a minimum and bring you your food quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Visiting a restaurant in Tokyo is an enjoyable experience, and if we stayed there permanently, we would seldom eat at home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The final word on visiting Japan<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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After we visited Japan, we could see what the fuss was about. The country is everything people in South Africa are hoping for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is safe, honest, and efficient. There is not a pothole, broken traffic light, or escalator which does not work in sight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Everything works well, and the Japanese people are smart, friendly, and respectful. It is hard to find fault with anything in the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Simply put, Japan, and Tokyo in particular, is heaven on earth for South African travellers, and it is well worth a visit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photos of Tokyo from BusinessTech’s trip<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Photos of the food in Tokyo<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Japan, and its biggest city, Tokyo, offers South African travellers a relatively affordable holiday with complete safety, great restaurants, honest people, and no tipping.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":846850,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9876],"tags":[11741,23724,1612,4517],"class_list":["post-846839","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lifestyle","tag-emirates","tag-evisa","tag-japan","tag-tokyo"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/846839","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=846839"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/846839\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":846913,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/846839\/revisions\/846913"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/846850"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=846839"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=846839"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=846839"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}