Is moving to Japan (2 months – 1 year) a dumb idea?

6 comments

1. This is a copy of your post for archive/search purposes.

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   **Is moving to Japan (2 months – 1 year) a dumb idea?**

   Sooo, I visited Japan for the first time during a month long trip last year and it was great.

   Spoiler text is mostly tldr

   >!I’ve been kinda obsessed with the country for *years*. (Yes, started by anime) but lead to reading books, watching documentaries, normal TV shows and lots and lots of travel youtube. !<

   >!Usually I’m pretty aprehensive about because things never turn out ot be as exciting as I imagine them to be in the end. Turns out this time it was that way. Just existing and walking around the cities (even the “boring parts”) has been amazing, and don’t get me started on the drinking, the food, the shrines… I admit I’m a bit of a weeb but I realize the reality of Japan and the many issues the country and socitey have. !<

   Definitely gonna return for a second trip no matter what and even possibly more. But considering the ecological footprint of multiple flights I started to think about one extended stay instead of multiple shorter ones.

   I could apply for a working holiday so I could afford more time at once in the country. But I’m kind of afraid that working in Japan would just grind me down and leave me exhausted not leaving much energy for enjoying the trip.

   I don’t fulfill the conditions to get me a better-paying job over there.

   **Real TLDR: Save for a long time and go on a 3 month trip at some undefined time in the future or try to get a working holiday visa to spend more time at once but at the risk of just getting depressed at the day-to-day life.**

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2. It depends on what you want to do. You need a visa, you cannot “just move there”. A working holiday is likely the longest visa you can get unless you find permanent employment there. Whether that interaction is what you want is up to you. You might be able to travel there on a travel visa and also get a working holiday visa and do them sequentially in one order or the other. You’ll have to look up how much time you might need to wait inbetween.

3. Unless you’re looking to move to Japan permanently, I would just save up money and time to go on a three month trip to truly explore the country without having to deal with the ins and outs of daily life in Japan.

   You’ll get to see the sights, eat good food, relax at the onsens and probably enjoy the country more than the locals themselves by doing this.

4. If you have the funds to support this, you could consider a student visa. Even if you’ve completed college, as long as you’re less than 30 (I believe) you can take continuing education courses in Japan, through a number of universities. They even help with the student visa process. The catch is, you have to be able to afford to live there, and of course take courses.

   As someone else pointed out, you can go for 90 days on a tourist visa. Try that first, and see if it doesn’t meet your needs. You may find yourself itching to get back home before those 90 days are up. But if you aren’t and you want to stay longer, then you’ll know to pursue a more long-term visa, and then you can figure out what that looks like.

   Good luck! And don’t let your dreams fall by the wayside, even if you get haters telling you it’s dumb or that you’re being unrealistic. 🙂

5. I mean you don’t have to work on a working holiday visa. Working is basically just a way to afford your travel but if you have the money to live without working then go for it. Immigration and so on don’t care what you do while you are in Japan (except you know, illegal stuff etc) as long as you get out when your time is up. You will still need to pay into health insurance and set up some stuff like an address though (and some other things I may forget). If you don’t have the money, then of course you’ll need to save up more before you go.

   Jobs can be simple things like cleaning hotel rooms or whatever, so it doesn’t have to be exhausting. There is also seasonal work, English teaching. If you can speak basic Japanese there are even more options. Don’t assume all jobs will throw you into the “sell your soul to your employer overlord” stereotype prevalent in Japan.

   And yes, you’ll get bored of Japan eventually. People get bored of everything. Unless you’re a starry eyed person who loves everything and is forever happy by nature it’s just the way of things. You will also discover Japan’s dark side and have to live with that.

   What matters in the end is whether a place can provide you with what you need to feel ok while you live your day to day life. That’s what you should try to discover wherever you go.

6. Yes if you can’t get japanese wife