Hi everyone! Part two of my pre-departure and arrival tips mostly focuses on what you can do to make your arrival in Japan easier and stress-free. A very helpful tip to remember (for Narita Airport) is that you should take a bus to your hotel or dorm when you leave the airport. Taking the subway is cheaper, however, this would be very difficult since you will have a lot of bags. Especially if there are stairs as well! After you exit customs, you will see the bus ticket area. Here, you can buy bus tickets or pre-buy the ticket voucher online, then show the QR code to the worker and schedule a bus. If you are close to Shinjuku in particular, I would recommend that you take the bus to Busta Shinjuku Bus Station, as there is a taxi stand right when you exit (and there are usually taxis that are big enough to fit all your suitcases). However, there are many stops that the bus could take you to, and, once you get close enough, hail a taxi with a red letter on the dashboard (in Japan, red letters typically mean Vacant, and green will mean Occupied).
Another very important tip is to buy the Mobal SIM card ahead of time. I bought the SIM card while I was in Hawaii and had it shipped to me before I left for Japan. A few days before leaving, you have to activate your SIM and choose your plan. I highly recommend that you buy the 30 GB plan, as Google Maps and Instagram (a good app for communicating with family and friends) drain your data quickly. You would pay for the SIM upon buying it, then pay every month for your chosen plan. I chose the plan that you can cancel your data anytime, which is convenient since I am staying for more than 90 days. This Mobal SIM also comes in handy since it also comes with a Japanese phone number. It is very convenient to have since some restaurants and activities need a Japanese phone number to make reservations. After arriving at the airport, you can connect to the airport Wi-Fi (if you are comfortable with that), then follow the QR instructions they give you and switch out your cards. Since you already pre-activated it with your selected plan, the SIM card will work immediately and allow you to easily use the Japan data network!
IMPORTANT: MAKE SURE TO TURN OFF YOUR PHONE WHEN SWITCHING SIM CARDS OUT TO AVOID PHONE DAMAGE
~I hope that this makes your arrival in Japan easier~