About Go Japan Now — The Team Behind Your Japan Travel Guide
Go Japan Now is an independent travel media site dedicated to helping international visitors plan, prepare, and experience Japan with confidence. We publish in five languages — English, Japanese, Korean, Simplified Chinese, and Traditional Chinese — based on direct experience, primary-source research, and continuous updates.
Who We Are
An independent Japan travel media operated from Tokyo
Go Japan Now (gojapannow.jp) was founded in 2025 and launched publicly in early 2026 as a multilingual travel guide for international visitors to Japan. We are a small, Tokyo-based independent publisher — not a tour operator, travel agency, or government body.
STARK
Founder · Born and raised in Japan · Tokyo
Born and raised in Japan and based in Tokyo, I’m an avid hiker who has spent over 27 years exploring all 47 prefectures — and I still spend around 36 days a year traveling the country, plenty of it in the mountains. I write Go Japan Now in English and Japanese.
This isn’t a guide written from a desk overseas. It’s written by someone who actually lives here — riding these trains, buying these passes, and using these services, then writing about what works and what doesn’t. Every recommendation combines that lived experience with continuous primary-source research from operators like JR Group, Klook, GetYourGuide, Sakura Mobile, and the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO).
Founded: 2025 · Public launch: 2026 · Languages: EN / JA / ZH-CN / ZH-TW / KO · Coverage: 200+ guides across Planning, Getting Ready, Experiences, and Go Deeper · Run by: Founder-led, Tokyo-based · Location: Tokyo, Japan
Practical, honest, multilingual Japan travel guidance
Our Mission
Most Japan travel content online is either out of date, written by people who have never actually used the products they recommend, or trapped behind a single language. We built Go Japan Now to fix all three problems.
Our mission is to give international visitors the clearest possible path from “I want to visit Japan” to “I am here and everything works.” That means every guide is organized around the four real stages of a Japan trip — Planning, Getting Ready, Experiences, and Go Deeper — and every recommendation is something we have either used personally or verified against the official operator’s current pricing, terms, and availability.
We publish in five languages because the people who actually travel to Japan search in their own language. A Korean traveler looking up “JR Pass” should not have to read a machine translation of an English article that was written in 2022. Each language version is built on the same factual foundation but localized for the way that language’s readers actually search.
Affiliate commissions, never paid placements
How We Make Money
Go Japan Now is funded by affiliate commissions. When you click a booking link on our site and complete a purchase — for example, buying a JR Pass through Klook or activating an eSIM through Sakura Mobile — the operator pays us a small commission. The price you pay is identical whether you use our link or go to the operator directly.
We work with the following affiliate partners, all of which are operators we have either used ourselves or carefully evaluated for reliability:
| Partner | Category | Why we recommend them |
|---|---|---|
| Klook | Rail passes, attractions, transfers | Largest Asia-Pacific inventory, instant QR delivery |
| Sakura Mobile | SIM, eSIM, pocket WiFi | Airport pickup, Japanese support, US billing |
| GetYourGuide | Tours and experiences | Strong cancellation policy, verified reviews |
| NINJA WiFi | Pocket WiFi rental | Most airport counters in Japan |
| trip.com | Hotels and trains | Strong Asian market coverage |
| Viator | Small-group tours | Curated alternative to GetYourGuide |
| MagicalTrip | English-guided cultural tours | Specialty small-group operator in Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka |
We do not accept paid placements, sponsored posts disguised as editorial, or any arrangement where money changes hands in exchange for a positive review. When we recommend a product, it is because we believe it is the best option for the reader, not because the operator paid us to say so. If we accept review samples or complimentary access, we will say so clearly in the article. Full disclosure details are on our Affiliate Disclosure page.
Research, verify, publish, update
Our Editorial Process
Every guide on Go Japan Now follows the same four-step process:
Research
We start from primary sources: operator official websites, JNTO, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT), and direct hands-on testing. Secondary sources are only used to verify, never as a primary fact base.
Write
Articles are structured around the reader’s actual decision: what they need to know, in what order, to take the next step. We avoid filler content and SEO-padding. Every section earns its place by answering a specific question.
Verify
Prices, schedules, eligibility rules, and product specifications are cross-checked against the operator’s website before publication. Affiliate links are tested for the correct landing destination.
Update
Travel information ages quickly. We audit and refresh every guide at least once per year, and high-traffic guides (JR Pass, eSIM, airport transfers, seasonal events) are updated whenever the underlying product or schedule changes.
What we will and will not publish
Editorial Standards
We commit to the following standards on every page:
- Accuracy first. If we are not sure, we say so. If we are wrong, we fix it as soon as we know.
- Original content. We do not scrape, rewrite, or auto-translate other publishers’ articles. All writing is original to Go Japan Now.
- Real images. Photography is either our own, licensed stock, or properly attributed Creative Commons. We do not pass off AI-generated imagery as real travel photos.
- Disclosure. Every page that contains affiliate links carries clear disclosure. See Affiliate Disclosure.
- Privacy. We collect the minimum data needed to operate the site and never sell user data. See Privacy Policy.
- Corrections. Errors are corrected with a visible note on the article. Significant corrections are dated.
How to reach us, send feedback, or report an error
Contact and Corrections
The fastest way to reach us is through our Contact page. We read every message and aim to respond within three business days (Japan time).
If you have spotted an error — a price that has changed, a link that is broken, a recommendation that is no longer current — please tell us. Reader corrections are one of the most valuable inputs to our editorial process, and we will update the article and credit the correction promptly.
For business inquiries (partnership proposals, content licensing, press), please use the same Contact form and mark your message clearly. We do not accept guest posts, sponsored editorial, or link insertions.
