Manners on the train, bus, and subway
Are you worried about making a good impression on your trip to Japan? Japanese manners may be different than yours, but no worries! Here are some manners to remember while in transit.
Let's check the three icons below
- Do
- Do not
- Sometimes ok
Overview
- Prepare your destination and transport fee ahead of time
- Fill in the back seats of the bus before the front seats
- Keep your bag in storage, on your lap, or in front of you.
- You can work on your laptop, phone, or study as long as it is silent.
- Talk on a cellphone, or make a call with any device
- Sit in a priority seat when you do not need it, especially when crowded
- Hold the door or rush in
- Sit on the floor of the train
- Talk to your friends beside you *Check what others are doing
- Eating/Drinking *Ok for shinkansen/Long-distance
Prepare your destination and transport fee ahead of time.
To avoid making others wait, and making the bus driver’s schedule late, you should prepare your tickets, cash, or IC card ahead of time. Make sure you have the right amount and know your destination, so you can be ready to press the button and get off smoothly.
Fill in seats from the back.
On an empty or bus with few people, you should board the bus from the back. If you need a priority seat, they are located near the front of the bus.
Keep your bag on your lap, storage area, or on the front of your body.
You might end up hitting someone with your bag, so you will probably see notices on trains asking you to wear your bag on the front instead of the back. You also save space for others when you put the bag on storage or on your lap.
You can work, study, and use your phone on silent mode.
It’s completely ok to work on your laptop, study with books, or use your phone. As long as no sound is coming out, you will have no problems!
Don't talk on the phone or any other device.
Generally, it is considered very rude to talk on the phone on busses, trains, etc. in Japan. In many cases, they are completely quiet. So using phones, face time, taking videos while talking, and things like that will probably garner some stares.
Don't sit in priority seats during busy times if you don't need it.
Priority seats are convenient and located close to exits, but it is expected that people who need them will use them. It can be okay to use them when there aren’t many people, but you should avoid using them as much as possible. Of course, you should use it if you need one!
Don't hold the door, or rush into the train.
The doors will probably close on you automatically, and you could get hurt. So avoid doing this no matter what!
Don't eat or drink from that can't be sealed.
Eating on transit is usually considered very rude, except for long distance trains like the shinkansen. You can drink, but it is polite to drink from things that can be re-sealed. For example, drink from a plastic bottle rather than a can.
Don't sit on the floor
Though it is tempting to sit on the floor when you are tired and there are no seats available, it is considered to be impolite.
I hope this helps you understand what is OK and what is NG on Japanese transport! Happy travels, next time we will discuss manners in daily life.
