When you ask about the best travel guide books for Japan, you’ll get as many differing opinions as people you ask. Some people are strictly Rick Steves fans while others like Frommers or Lonely Planet. And the bottom line is, they’re all good book written by highly qualified people. I have no doubt that any one of them will not steer you wrong on your first or next trip to Japan.
But I took a different approach when I starting planning my trip in January 2025. I did not google “best travel guide books for Japan” because, like you, I know there’s a lot of personal bias out there and, to be honest, personal preference.
When it comes to travel books, I like to hold a physical, paper book in my hand. I like to flip back and forth between pages. I like to look at maps. And most importantly, I like to judge the format of the book. It has to be engaging, easy to read, and just a little bit fun. And nice pictures don’t hurt either! We’re not in the era of AAA guides anymore so I expect a lot.
Best Travel Guide Books for Japan and Tokyo
With that said, I headed to my local Barnes & Noble to browse the travel section and hopefully find something simply based on what was in stock. And I got lucky! While you can head to Barnes & Noble or your local bookshop(please save brick and mortar bookstores!), you can find these on Amazon as well, which I’ll link to below.
1. Best Japanese Culture Book
If you’re American or from some other western country, you’re probably expecting a little culture shock. And you’ll get it! You’ll also see the new and the old side by side, and scratch your head at some of the order int he chaos that everyone seems to know about.
This is why it’s important to start your trip with a little context.
You don’t have to be a Japanese scholar but it helps tremendously to know the basics about Japanese life and culture. Be More JAPAN by DK Eyewitness books covers “the art of Japanese living.” In this 224 page hardcover book, you’ll find the following sections.
WELCOME TO JAPAN explores a brief history of Japan (you’ll learn the important of Edo and Meiji) and the highlights of Japan in each season.
A VIEW OF JAPAN focuses on the diversity of landscape throughout this island chain (mountains, beaches, cities, snow, tropics – it has it all!).
TIMELESS JAPAN covers some of the cultural foundations of Japan including Shintoism, Buddhism, and the importance of arts and beauty throughout the prefectures.
INNOVATIVE JAPAN explores high tech Japan including engineering, video games, robots, and gadgets (they have plenty of each!).
CREATIVE JAPAN is all about style – from arts to fashion, from traditional to kawaii, and, of course, mange and anime.
ENTERTAINING JAPAN provides insight into entertainment culture including theater, geisha, J-Pop, martial arts, film, and nightlife.
EDIBLE JAPAN talks about food and drink – including sushi and sashimi, noodles, rice, tea and tea ceremonies, as well as spirits like whiskey and sake.
HEALTHY JAPAN delves into the Japanese lifestyle of balance, which includes philosophies, healing powers of hot springs (onsen), and general approaches toward health.
This book is easy to read or skim and gives a great overview of Japan as a country.
2. Best Overall Travel Guide for Japan
I’m not brand loyal when it comes of travel guides. I recognize that they’re all written by different authors, even if it’s under the same umbrella. But for this trip to Japan, I really connected with the Lonely Planet Japan travel guide for some of the following reasons.
First of all, this 768 page book is thick but not incredibly heavy. It was easy to take on the trip with me but probably a little too bulky to carry around every day. Instead, I consulted with my guide before the trip and on each evening of my trip when planning the next day’s activities.
Although we spent the majority of our time in Tokyo, the book had 120 pages devoted to Tokyo and its surrounding areas (important since we wanted to do a day trip from Tokyo).
It also had easy to read general sections on planning your trip, understanding onsen etiquette, sample itineraries, when to go, prepping for the trip, and an additional 40 pages just devoting to general travel practicalities in Japan and a touch of history and culture.
The format is dense but the layout (fonts, pictures, spacing, etc.) make it easy to read and consult.
3. Best Off The Beaten Path in Tokyo Book
We had a 7 day trip planned to Japan and originally wanted to travel to Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Nara, and as far south as Beppu. And then we woke up and realized what a pipe dream that was. With the time change, we actually only ended up with 6 solid days in Japan. With the advice of others, we decided just to focus on Tokyo and I’m so glad we did.
You’ll hear opinions on Tokyo like, “it’s just another big city” or “it’s just a cleaner version of New York” or “it’s not worth spending more than 2 days there.”
Let me start by saying that Tokyo is bigger than you could even imagine and each ward or neighborhood is as distinct as Brooklyn and the Bronx. We spent a week in Tokyo and only scratched the surface! We definitely saw some of the larger attractions like TeamLab, Tokyo Skytree, Senso-Ji, and the shopping district in Ginza.
But in order to get more of the flavor of the city, you have to venture further or deeper to explore like a local. That’s exactly what Tokyo Like A Local (By the People Who Call It Home) by DK Eyewitness covered.
We used this guide to find unusual, often undervisited locations for eating, shopping, arts & culture, and exploring the outdoors.
Why I Love Buying Travel Books
As I mentioned, I love having something physically in my hands. It makes the travel planning feel more personal than just reading about others’ experiences online. And it’s a great reference if you ever plan to go again!
I do recommend that when buying travel books, always check the copyright date and try not to buy anything more than two years old. Things do change quickly so always verify that thing you want to do is still a thing you want to do.
And as always, if you have recommendations about the best travel guide books for Japan, I’d love to hear about them!
Fadra traveled with her family to Japan in January 2025 and hopes to go back and do more exploring soon!
