Buses are inexpensive and frequent in most of the major cities. Most tourists do not take buses as the communication is almost always in Japanese and is therefore sometimes hard to understand, for everything from the bus drivers to the bus route maps.

In Tokyo, you usually enter through the front doors, pay the fare immediately, and exit through the back doors. Otherwise, enter through the side door and pull a ticket that has a number on it. An electronic sign at the front of the bus displays the numbers and corresponding fares. As you leave the bus, check the fare displayed on the electronic signboard and deposit that amount in the cash box next to the driver.