Affiliate Disclosure

Some links on this site are affiliate links. If you click one and make a booking or purchase, I may receive a commission. It costs you nothing extra — the price is the same as going direct.

That’s the short version. Here’s the longer one, because the details are where this actually matters.

Which links

Affiliate links are the ones inside the highlighted boxes, marked with a 🔗. They currently go to accommodation and activity booking platforms — primarily Booking.com and Klook, accessed through the Travelpayouts partner network.

Ordinary links in the body text — to official sources, government pages, transport operators, news reports — are not affiliate links. I link to those because they’re where the information came from.

What it doesn’t change

I write the article first and add links afterwards, to the things the article already recommends. Not the reverse.

Concretely, that means this site will regularly tell you not to buy something:

That the Japan Rail Pass doesn’t pay for itself on most itineraries, even though I earn more when you buy one
That booking a ryokan direct is sometimes cheaper than any platform I earn from
That basing yourself in Osaka instead of Kyoto can save you a meaningful amount of tax

If a recommendation only makes sense once you know I’m paid for it, it isn’t a recommendation — it’s an advertisement, and I’d rather not run those.

What it does change

It’s the reason this site exists rather than being a hobby that quietly dies. Checking Japanese-language sources, comparing prices across booking channels, and updating articles when the underlying rules change all take real time. Affiliate commissions are what pay for that time.

If you find something here useful, using a link costs you nothing and is genuinely the most helpful thing you can do.

No sponsored content

I don’t accept payment for reviews, placements, or inclusion in a list. No hotel, tour operator, or booking platform has paid to appear on this site or has any say in what it says about them. If that ever changes, it will be labelled clearly at the top of the article in question, not in a footnote.

Accuracy

Prices, tax rates and transport rules in Japan change, sometimes on short notice, and this site covers several things that are actively changing right now. I date my articles, state when a figure was last checked, and update them when the facts move.

I still get things wrong. If you spot an error, please tell me — corrections are welcome and I’d rather fix it than defend it: hello@japanfromhere.com

Always confirm prices and booking conditions with the provider before you pay.

This disclosure is made in line with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission’s guidance on endorsements and testimonials, and with the disclosure requirements of the affiliate programmes this site participates in.

Last updated: 2026-07-27