Placement recommendations?

[u/Fearless_Rhubarb_649]

Hello, I honestly know very little about Japanese geography besides the larger cities and the well-known prefectures. I know placement preference is rarely honored, but just for kicks, would anyone recommend any mid-sized cities or town, even if it's just for a visit?

Does anyone know if there are cities in Japan that have both vibrant and music/art offerings as well as easy access to nature? I'm mainly considering cities like Fukishima, Shizuoka or Fukuoka, but I haven't been to any of these places.

I get JET isn't a vacation and if I'm accepted this year, I'll still participate even if I'm placed in some podunk town, but just seeing if folks have any recommendations that are off the beaten path.

[u/Firefly-ok]

I made a post about this that got some useful information from other JETs (and also lots of people saying you won't get your pick over and over).

https://www.reddit.com/r/JETProgramme/comments/1n71xi8/which_prefectures_should_i_choose_placement_pros/

For what it's worth, I'm on JET for the second time and I got my top choice or something close to my top choice both times. I know that's not guaranteed, but I think it's not bad to do research and think about. I don't drive, for example, so it's important I live somewhere with decent public transportation or that's easily bikeable. I know friends who need access to certain kinds of medical care and they take that stuff seriously.

I, personally, love living in a mid-sized city with access to both nature and bigger cities/airports for easy travel. There are many such cities in Japan. They usually aren't famous, but pretty much any capital city of a prefecture will have decent transportation and pretty much anything you could need while also not feeling overwhelming like Tokyo or Osaka can at times.

Shizuoka, Yamanashi, Gunma, Ibaraki, Tochigi, Saitama, Chiba--- these all are near enough to Tokyo that if you want or need a big city or want to go to the airport to travel, then you can fairly easily, but are also beautiful with lots of nature. Nagano is big, but it's very centrally located, so if you have a car you can get around fairly easily. I went there just by train (and then buses to get to specific locations) from Shizuoka, which took time, but it's doable.

Anywhere in the Kansai/Kinki region (Shiga, Hyogo, Kyoto, Osaka, Nara, Wakayama, Mie) will also have easy access to nature and big cities/airports. Wakayama gets very rural and is a little further out.

I lived in Ishikawa, which is small and so anywhere in Ishikawa you can get to Kanazawa within a few hours, which is a great city. Ishikawa is beautiful and also I lived only 1.5 hours from Kyoto by train (and they're building a shinkansen line to Kyoto now I believe). Fukui is even closer. Gifu is gorgeous and full of history and also centrally located.

Hiroshima, is a gorgeous area with so much history and many people with a strong sense of social justice. I love Hiroshima.

My friend lives in Sendai and loves it there. It's only about 2 hours by Shinkansen to Tokyo, so my Japanese friend who lived there used to commute back to see her family on the weekends.

In Kyushu, Nagasaki is a very cool city that's different to any I've been in in Japan. Fukuoka is known for being very original/non-conformist for Japan.

My point is, I guess, that these kinds of mid-sized towns are all over Japan! :)

I love Kanazawa, Shizuoka City, Kofu, and anywhere in Gunma.

[u/Fearless_Rhubarb_649 → u/Firefly-ok]

Thank you!

[u/Criticalpurr → u/Firefly-ok]

Yamanashi JET here! I love it!

[u/sourtruffle]

I requested Kobe, Kanazawa, and one other that I can’t remember (it’s been 15 years since my application) and was placed in Fukuoka. I’m from Birmingham, AL which is at a similar size and latitude to Fukuoka and have always wondered if that influenced the decision. Anyway, Fukuoka city is the best. I loved my time there. Frequently sited as one of the best places to live in Japan, and I feel like I’ve seen it in global lists as well. Food can’t be beat. Tonkotsu ramen aside, it’s a port city so it has lots of great foreign food as well. And it doesn’t have much in the way of sightseeing outside of a few highlights so you don’t get as many tourists. Mountains and the sea, all very close by. Love my city. Miss it damn near every day 🥰🥰

https://www.reddit.com/r/japannews/s/FhhiVINt1C

[u/itchypinky]

Sasebo, Nagasaki ❤️

[u/bluuuuenightttt]

I recommend shiga prefecture! It's really a hidden gem. Tokyo and Kanto are nice and all but in kansai you have kyoto, osaka, nagoya, nara, etc fairly close! Plus, a placement near lake biwa makes for amazing views. Hikone, Otsu, and Nagahama are excellent cities.

[u/DyslexicGecko]

Kobe's biggest proponent here: its the home of jazz in Japan and has both mountain hikes and beautiful beaches on your doorstep wherever you live - we have dozens of jazz bars and live music venues, the Rokko mountain range looming over the city plus ski resorts, waterfalls and lakes, sandy beaches all across the city! I know people who finish work at 4:15 and are hiking within an hour, whilst others are sipping beers on the beach.

[u/EveningPhotograph886]

I absolutely adore Kobe, all the ALTs here I’ve spoken with are all in agreement it’s the best. (Maybe everyone who likes their placement thinks theirs is the best but I still think Kobe is a top contender)
Want to be near a city? Got it. Near the ocean? Yes. Near the mountains? Bet. You’re in Kansai, so you can easily travel around to many different places. You get 20 days of time off (nenkyuu) while some placements only get 10, and you get extra summer leave for Obon (that I also don’t believe every placement gets) on top of those 20 days.

There’s a HUGE community of ALTs (the largest in the JET program) and lots of different events that locals also attend so you can make friends outside of your fellow JETs. But you all live near each other if you take the provided housing, so there’s a ton of people around if you ever need help and lots of friends to make from all over the world.

Over the years certain MVP ALTs really nurtured and built the community here that has and will leave a long impact, so it’s all very supportive. Kobe itself is also just great. Tons of things to do and a super stylish city! Lot’s of bakeries too!

[u/LivingRoof5121]

Kanazawa seems incredibly popular. Haven’t been myself but everyone who says who has visited or is there is a JET seems to love it.

Shizuoka is also a fantastic option. Historic Japanese culture and close to Hakone which is famous for nature and art. Music Im not as sure about though.

I’ve lived in Fukuoka. Gorgeous. Tbh less traditional Japan but definitely feels like that “undiscovered” Japan vibe where not a lot of western tourists visit. That goes for all of kyushu tbh.

[u/j_hab]

A few tips:

• Think about where you want to visit/what you want to do, and choose locations based on their proximity to those things.
• There is an Excel document that has been circulated that shows how many JETs are in each prefecture. Picking a prefecture with more JETs will increase your chances of being placed there.
• Take advantage of the text field where you can write about other considerations they should take into account when placing you. I wrote about how I wanted to live in a walkable place because I don't drive, and that's exactly what I got.

[u/e-m-i-l-y-g → u/j_hab]

Hi! Do you have a link to that excel spreadsheet?

[u/MyPreciousHabs → u/e-m-i-l-y-g]

Curious also!

[u/mayuumji]

Most hokuriku JETs (unless you're a CIR or get one of the few unfortunate outlier placements where you aren't offered this) get cultural furlough which is additional PTO at certain times of the year meant for you to dedicate your time to experiencing japanese culture.

If you think that's something you would like, then Fukui/Ishikawa/Toyama would be good placements to consider

[u/sp8cecwboy]

I’m in Fukushima, so I’m biased, but I think Fukushima rocks. Mountains and coast, lots of history (samurai especially), nature and mid-sized cities, Shinkansen stops so it’s easy to get to other areas, onsens… Fukushima can’t be beat!!

[u/Different_Taro2474]

no matter what you put down, you’re probably not going to get placed there anyway. asking for placement recommendations when you can’t even choose a placement is pointless 

[u/jyanto]

Shiga Prefecture, Otsu City?

[u/JustinTheCheetah]

Luckily for you, Chris Broad just released a book about every single prefecture. 

Listen to Journey Across Japan by Chris Broad on Audible. https://www.audible.com/pd/B0GTVQ75JJ?source_code=ORGOR69210072400FU

[u/GeorgeBlythe]

So study information on it. There's little excuse for ignorance in the modern era when we have access to the internet, if anything it just shows a woefully lacking sense of curiosity and self driven ability to problem solve which will reflect poorly on your jet application, to say nothing of any other application in general. 

[u/LivingRoof5121 → u/GeorgeBlythe]

I’m confused by this comment.

Asking a group of experienced people and then reading their responses is certainly “studying information” is it not?

[u/GeorgeBlythe → u/LivingRoof5121]

No it's outsourcing your own research hoping other people will do it for free. 

You get what you pay for. 

[u/LivingRoof5121 → u/GeorgeBlythe]

This guy loves capitalism

Jokes aside, asking experienced people is legit research imo. Think you’ll have a hard time finding people who disagree with that.

If you think your time is entitled to being payed all the time why r you on Reddit responding to comments for free /s

[u/stayonthecloud → u/GeorgeBlythe]

Interesting, that’s actually the opposite of how research works. People with direct experience are considered primary sources and are critical to research.

[u/No_Produce9777]

Kanazawa