Most people know that you're supposed to take off your shoes when you enter someone's home in Japan. However, the rules of proper shoe etiquette are a bit more complicated than that. If you're visiting Japan and want to get off on the right foot with your hosts, here are the rules you'll need to follow.
When To Remove Your Shoes in Japan
While the rules aren't necessarily set in stone, these are the places where you'll need to check to see if you need to remove your shoes:
Workplaces
Schools
Hotels
Homes
Unless you're visiting the home of a foreigner who hasn't adapted to any Japanese customs, you'll almost always have to remove your shoes inside someone's house or flat. It doesn't matter if the home is traditional or modern, the default should be to remove your shoes unless the resident tells you otherwise.
Restaurants
Most modern restaurants in Japan won't require you to take your shoes off. If you go to Mos Burger, a local fast-food chain, you'll see Japanese people wearing shoes inside. But if you go to a more traditional restaurant, it may be expected that you take your shoes off.
Hotels
Just as with restaurants, you may not have to take your shoes off in a hotel if it's a more modern style. If it's a ryokan, which is a traditional Japanese-style inn, or a capsule hotel where you essentially just rent a bed, then you may have to take your shoes off before entering.
Schools
Typically, schools in Japan require that you take off your shoes at the entrance. Students and teachers do wear shoes indoors at school, but they have special indoor-only school shoes that they swap to when they arrive at school, leaving their outdoor shoes in a cubby at the entrance.
Work
If you work in Japan, you may have to swap to indoor shoes when you arrive. If you're visiting a friend's office or getting a job in Japan yourself, then your workplace may require you to take off your shoes before entering.
How Do You Know if You Have To Take Your Shoes off?
There are a few key indicators that you have to remove your shoes:
There's a place to put your shoes, such as a cubby
Other people have left their shoes at the entrance
There are slippers or indoor shoes provided
Special Circumstances: The Extra Japan Shoe Etiquette Rules You Need To Know
It's not enough to just know when to take your shoes off in Japan. Sometimes there are special indoor shoes and sometimes it's more appropriate to be in just your socks. Knowing what to wear when can help you to impress your hosts and avoid causing any offence.
Toilet Slippers
In many Japanese homes and other locations where you're expected to remove your shoes at the door, there are also toilet slippers, used exclusively in the toilets. To use these properly, switch from your indoor shoes or slippers to the toilet slippers when you enter the bathroom and then don't forget to switch back when you leave. If you're expected to use toilet slippers, you'll see them just outside the bathroom door.
Tatami
If you're entering a tatami room, remove any shoes that you're wearing, even if they're indoor shoes or slippers. Tatami can be delicate and you shouldn't wear any kind of shoes when stepping on it.
Correct Shoe Direction
Whenever you take your shoes or slippers off, make sure that they're facing the right direction. The correct direction is whichever way will be easiest for the next person to put them on. Toilet slippers, for example, should face toes towards the bathroom so the next person just has to slide their feet in. The idea is that the last person to wear them turns them around as a courtesy for the next person, even if that next person is you.
Conclusion
The best way to ensure that you observe all of the proper shoe etiquette in Japan is just to watch what everyone else is doing. Pay attention to when locals remove their shoes and follow suit. If you're really unsure, don't hesitate to ask someone. It's better to ask than to commit a faux pas and dirty up someone's floor with outdoor shoes.
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