Physical Contact: Minimal physical contact is preferred. People tend to avoid touching others unless it is unavoidable, like in a crowded public place. Close friends or people of the same gender may stand or sit close to one another. Public displays of physical affection among opposite genders is uncommon.
Never hugging or kissing
In Japan, touching another person's body is considered rude, even with friends or family. Hugging and kissing are mostly for couples. Our editor Kanako said that she's never hugged any of her family members as a grown woman. She hugs her foreign friends but not the Japanese ones.
Displays of Affection in Japan
Asian couples don't usually express affection towards each other in public. Public displays of affection between members of the opposite sex'such as kissing, hugging and holding hands — are considered rude. Even families rarely touch, hug or display physical affection in public.
In Japan, you're not likely to see too much public smooching going on. As well as being reserved and modest by nature, most Japanese people also believe that drawing attention to oneself in public is bad manners.
Some people may feel embarrassed or vulnerable when having to directly express their feelings. Therefore, many choose not to say “I love you” but are still able to show their love and appreciation through their actions. Overall, there is no single reason as to why Japanese people don't often express love through words.
DON'T: IGNORE THE TABOO IF YOU'RE WESTERNERS
Your age, gender and country of origin don't matter, because if you are travelling in Japan, you have to respect the cultural aversion to PDA. Holding hands is okay. In smaller towns, you might get a dirty look if you're walking with an arm around your partner.
Guys like girls with a good scent. Sometimes they even fall in love with a girl just because she smells nice. The scent is as important as appearance. Japanese guys especially like floral, soap, and soft citrus fragrance. Many say shampoo flavor floating out from a girl is quite nice.
Nanpa (ナンパ), also transliterated as nampa, in Japanese culture is a type of flirting and seduction popular among teenagers and people in their twenties and thirties. When Japanese women pursue men in a fashion similar to nanpa, it is called gyakunan (逆ナン).
Japanese are known to be shy, so once they become a couple, they flirt discreetly when in public. For example, you can see many couples walking hand-in-hand but not kissing much. Most Japanese feel embarrassed even just exchanging a small kiss on the cheek in public.
In fact, in Japanese culture, people are taught not to maintain eye contact with others because too much eye contact is often considered disrespectful. For example, Japanese children are taught to look at others' necks because this way, the others' eyes still fall into their peripheral vision [28].
“Daisuki desu” means to really like or love something, so this has a similar effect as “suki desu”. For example, if you are confessing your feelings for someone, you might say: Suki desu! Tsukiatte kudasai.
In Japanese culture, love words are considered empty if they are not accompanied by a behavior that reflects those feelings. Like in other cultures, it can mean complimenting your partner, sending texts, making presents. It also means trying to anticipate your partner's needs and what could make them happier.
Make her feel appreciated
Notice her outfit, her nails, her hair – and let her know that you like it. If you keep your act together, treat her with respect, and show a genuine interest in her culture, family, and personal dreams, your impression is bound to be a good one.
Japan also has a kissing culture that differs greatly from ours. For the Japanese, kissing is part of sexual foreplay and therefore is considered to be highly inappropriate in public.
Japanese adult actor Eimi Fukada set out to become "the most hugged woman in the world." She held a 24 hour event where she hugged over 3,000 fans. In the 24 hours she claims she only took one three hour break and a few 10-minute breaks.
In addition to having light, clear skin, Japanese beauty standards value having large eyes and a double eyelid, or 二重 (futae). While there are many Japanese people who are born with a double eyelid, others go to great lengths to achieve the look.
If you care to stay out of jail, you had best avoid sexting the wrong person. Although, in Japan, even sexting the right person might still get you in trouble for violating the country's nebulous obscenity laws.
For respondents in their thirties, kissing on the first date was most common, coming in with 30 percent of the vote. This was followed by the third date (24 percent), then the second date (16 percent), and then on or after the fifth date (13 percent), and finally “after deciding to get married” (6 percent).
This sounds a bit creepy but it's not so much telling someone you love them but rather the Japanese way of letting them know you like them and asking them out. One thing that is very different in Japan is that it is not uncommon for a woman to ask a man out.
In Japan, dates are normally half-day or whole-day affairs as opposed to just having a quick meal and a coffee. This way, couples can really get to spend time together and learn more about each other. There are many things to do in Japan which gives couples a variety of choices for venues and activities.
Reaction to Bearded People in Japan in General
One unique survey* shows almost 85% of Japanese women between 20 years old and 39 years old do not like men with beards. Accordingly, more and more Japanese men have been removing their beards and taking care of facial treatment.
Nevertheless, for a confession, the most basic and widespread phrase is “suki desu” (好きです, I like you), often followed up by “tsukiatte kudasai” (付き合ってください, please go out with me).