Where to Buy

You can find a wide range of products in hotel arcades, shopping centers, department stores, and specialty shops at duty-free prices. Supermarkets and bargain markets are among other recommendable places to explore.

Ordinary Stores

Hotel Arcades and Shopping Centers: Clerks speak English at shops in hotel arcades or in shopping centers conveniently close to major hotels.

Department Stores: Japan's department stores are firstclass in customer service and in the vast choice of merchandise stocked and displayed. Many hold frequent art and craft exhibitions. Roof playgrounds make children happy. Receptionists can summon English-speaking staff for special assistance.

Underground Shopping Malls: These malls are found at or near most major railway stations and below busy streets in Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto. For details, visit the nearest "i" information office.

Specialty Shops: Many specialty shops are located in fashionable districts of big cities, purveying everything from stationery to toys and haute couture.

Discounts & Bargains

Supermarkets: Japanese supermarkets abound in residential areas. Prices are less expensive than those of department stores. You can browse in aisle after aisle of foodstuffs, cooking accessories, and many other daily life products. The major chains include Daiei, Seiyu, Jusco and ltoyokado.

Discount Stores:Located near train stations and other busy areas, discount stores undercut the competition with highvolume, cash-only bargain sales. Ask an "i" information office for tips on where to go.

Bargain Markets: In the bigger cities, stores in wholesale districts sell a wide choice of merchandise, from saucepans to stereos, at wholesale prices. Tokyo's Shinjuku and lkebukuro districts are good for cameras and audio gear; Tokyo's Akihabara and Osaka's Nippombashi for electrical and computer gear; and Tokyo's Tsukiji and Okachimachi for food and general merchandise.