If You Are Traveling to Japan, Konbini Is Your New Favorite.
Traveler, let me give you my most useful advice for visiting Japan: Konbini is life. This is a one-stop shop where you can buy literally everything a wide-eyed tourist like you needs as you explore Tokyo’s brightly lit corridors or be swallowed up by the serene silence of Kyoto’s temples and shrines.
What is Konbini?
“Konbini” or “Konbini” is a convenience store, mini-market or wine cellar. We’ve got them all over here in the States, but after you visit one in Japan, you realize how much ours suck. Convenience stores here are undercrowded, dirty, and mostly sell chocolate bars and energy drinks to people who stop to buy gas.
Konbinis, on the other hand, has everything from freshly grilled snacks to pre-packaged healthy meals, booze and medicine, cosmetics and tools, and are super clean. There are several large konbini networks throughout Japan. Be on the lookout for:
- 7-Eleven
- Lawson
- Family shop
- Daily Yamazaki
- NewDays
- Ministop
- Circle K Sunkus
The big three are 7-Eleven, Lawson, and Family Mart, but you won’t be disappointed with any of them.
The food is actually amazing and cheap
Konbinis offers a huge variety of food and snacks. You can get freshly baked bread, onigiri (rice balls usually filled with something tasty), sandwiches, obento (ready-made lunch boxes), instant ramen, sushi, microwave-safe dishes, vegetables, oden (a type of hot soup ) and even decent fried chicken (Lawson’s favorite). You can also find a wide variety of crisps, chocolates, teas, sodas and other snacks.
However, the variety of products available is just one of the benefits. Their food is very cheap compared to what you get. You can get a decent, hearty meal for $ 5-6. And if you are on a specific diet, there are many unprocessed food options. You can buy regular cooked chicken breast neatly wrapped and ready to heat, or a salad made this morning, or a bag of hard-boiled eggs. When I come to Japan, I eat konbini at least once a day to save money and time.
They offer tons of services including ATMs
Whether you need cash, a photocopier, fax or free Wi-Fi, konbinis has everything you need, too. Almost every konbini in the major tourist areas has ATM machines that can be used to withdraw cash – no exchange kiosk is required. Generally, 7-Eleven is your best bet for this because they always have ATM machines that support foreign transactions. They can’t be used for free, but the convenience is worth it.
Konbinis also has multipurpose terminals, which usually include copiers / fax machines and a place to print photos from a digital camera. The interfaces may only be in Japanese, but you can probably ask a member of staff to help you if needed. If you need to deliver goods, many konbini have a takuhaibin, or drop-off / pick-up point, to send mail or receive packages. I used one to send a pocket wifi that I rented and it was as easy as using a letterbox. Last but not least, most konbini have free wifi which can be a lifesaver if you can’t get service there.
They have trash cans
I’ve said this before, but I’ll say it again: in Japan, it’s almost impossible to find trash cans on the streets. At some point, you will be stuck with your own trash and it will be annoying. I won’t go into details here, but there is an interesting historical explanation as to why this is the case . Fortunately, konbini usually have a trash can and a trash can right in front of the store. You shouldn’t use them unless you are a customer, but why not just grab a bite and then throw out the trash?
You can get a lot of booze on the cheap
Yeah. Beer, sake, wine, liquor – whatever, they got it. And it won’t be expensive for you to get drunk. Kanpai!
This is a good place to visit if you get lost
Turn around? Did your phone just run out of battery? Struggling to find a super-secret diner tucked away in a tiny alley nearby? Walk up to the Konbini and ask one of the staff. People in Japan are obscenely sweet and helpful, especially when they are at work. If you need help, they will try to find a way to help you. Plus, if you’re in the tourist area, many of the konbini staff are used to dealing with English speakers. Either they know a little English themselves, or they know what you are looking for because a thousand people like you asked the same question that week.