Show the Japanese phraseOpen official helpPrepare official alerts before you need them
Install the government-supervised Safety Tips app, save your accommodation address and evacuation route offline, and keep your phone charged.
HealthWhat to do during an earthquake or typhoon in Japan
Protect yourself during shaking, respond to tsunami warnings and handle transport disruption during a typhoon.
Page updated:
Source-check dates are shown with the relevant information below. A page edit does not mean every detail was rechecked.
Show the Japanese phraseOpen official helpImages in this guide, including the resource cards below, are illustrations. Screens and service status are examples, not live information. Use the official links for current information.
Check current multilingual warnings from the Japan Meteorological Agency
Check current JR East train status
Check the warning for your location now
This is a general safety guide, not a live warning feed. Check official information, your municipality’s evacuation instructions and each transport operator before leaving a safe place.
Contact your accommodation and ticket seller if a disruption changes your plans.
Illustration only. Screens and service status are examples, not live information. Use the official links for current information.
JMA now includes alert-level numbers in its heavy-rain, flood, landslide and storm-surge warnings. Your municipality issues evacuation instructions for specific places. Check both the weather warning and the local instruction; the same city can contain very different flood and landslide risks.
- Level 2: Check the local hazard map, hotel exit and a safe route before the weather deteriorates.
- Level 3: People who need longer to evacuate should leave dangerous areas. Others should prepare and consider leaving early.
- Level 4: People in the affected danger area should evacuate. Do not wait for a Level 5 alert or an English translation.
- Level 5: Danger may already be occurring. Take the safest action possible where you are; travelling through floodwater may be more dangerous than moving to a safer upper floor.
A numbered JMA warning is weather information; a municipal evacuation notice tells people in the specified area what to do. If a road outside is flooded, a slope is failing or strong winds make a route unsafe, do not force an outdoor evacuation—ask staff or emergency services for the safest immediate option.
Before anything happens, prepare these five things offline.
Prepare before conditions worsen. Follow current JMA, local-government, accommodation and transport-operator information for your exact location.
Install Safety Tips and allow notifications. Save the JMA multilingual page.
Save its Japanese name, address, phone number and nearest station.
Check the hotel exit map and ask where to go for a tsunami, flood or building evacuation.
Charge your phone and power bank. Save essential tickets and contacts as screenshots.
Keep shoes, passport, medicine, water and a small light where you can reach them.
Earthquake Early Warning or shaking: what to do immediately.
Protect yourself before moving. Near the coast, follow current tsunami warnings and local evacuation instructions; do not go to the shore.
- 1Stay calm and protect your headProtect your head under a sturdy table when available. Move away from windows, shelves, signs and anything that can fall.
- 2Do not rush outside or use an elevatorFalling glass and signs can make exits dangerous. Follow hotel, station or vehicle staff.
- 3On public transport, hold onTrains may stop for inspection. Do not force doors or enter the tracks. Wait for crew instructions.
- 4Near the coast, evacuate without waiting for a warningIf you are near the coast or a river mouth and feel strong shaking or weak but long shaking, or a tsunami warning is issued, move immediately to higher ground or a designated tsunami evacuation place. Do not wait for a warning.
Illustration only. Screens and service status are examples, not live information. Use the official links for current information.
Typhoon, heavy rain or strong wind: change the plan early.
Warnings and transport conditions change by place and time. Check JMA, the local government and the operator for your exact route.
- 1Check warnings before leavingUse JMA, your local government, accommodation and the relevant transport operator—not social media rumors.
- 2Move travel earlier or laterAirlines and railways may announce planned suspensions. Do not wait until the last service if a major disruption is forecast.
- 3Stay away from exposed placesAvoid coasts, rivers, slopes, underpasses and flooded roads. Indoors, keep away from windows during extreme wind.
- 4Follow evacuation instructions promptlyAsk accommodation staff if you do not understand a municipal alert. Do not wait for English information if staff direct everyone to evacuate.
Strong or long shaking near the coast, or a tsunami warning: evacuate now
Do not go to the shore to watch, photograph or collect belongings. Move on foot when practical to higher ground or a designated tsunami evacuation building, and remain away until authorities say it is safe.
When trains or flights stop, do not travel to the terminal without a confirmed service.
A booking is not proof that a service is running. Confirm the exact service before going to a station or airport.
1Check the operator directlyLook at the airline, railway, airport or bus operator’s official service page for your exact route.
2Keep a safe place to stayAsk the hotel whether you can extend your room or store luggage before joining a crowded station.
3Rebook through the sellerContact the airline, railway or booking service that issued the ticket. Keep cancellation notices and receipts for insurance.
4Rebuild the route only after service resumesA ticket for one operator may not work on another. Confirm validity before boarding an alternative.
Already at a station or airport?
Move out of crowds and keep emergency exits clear. Use the operator’s official website or app instead of relying only on the departure board. If there is no confirmed departure, ask staff where you may wait safely and contact your accommodation before rooms sell out.
Questions travelers ask in an emergency: decide what to do in these common situations.
My hotel says to evacuate, but the JMA page has no English notice. Should I wait?
No. Ask staff which hazard and destination the local order covers, take your essentials and follow the on-site direction if the route is safe. Local evacuation instructions can be more specific than a national English summary.
My train or flight still appears on my ticket. Can I set out?
A booking confirms a reservation, not that the service will operate. Check the operating company's live status for the exact service, then check the local weather and the route to the terminal. Do not travel through a dangerous area to protect a ticket.
Can I walk through a flooded underpass to a shelter?
No. Floodwater hides depth, current, open drains and electrical hazards. Do not enter it. Ask hotel or station staff about a safer route or a safer place inside the current building.
What can I show staff if I cannot explain the warning in Japanese?
Show your phone screen and say この場所の避難指示は出ていますか。安全な避難先はどこですか。 (“Is there an evacuation instruction for this place? Where is a safe place to go?”). Give your hotel address so staff can check the correct municipality.
119Ambulance or fire when an immediate response is needed.Call 119
110Police for a crime, serious accident or immediate threat.Call 110
050-3816-2787JNTO Japan Visitor Hotline for traveler assistance. It is not an emergency dispatch number.Call the hotline
Earthquake and tsunami actions, the 2026 alert system, Safety Tips and emergency contacts checked against JMA and JNTO on October 13, 2026. Always follow the latest warning, local evacuation instruction and on-site staff directions for your exact location.
Official alert app: Install the Safety Tips app. The Japan Tourism Agency-supervised app sends earthquake early warnings, tsunami warnings and weather emergency warnings in 15 languages. Open the official app guide
Official warnings: Check JMA disaster information. Open current multilingual weather, heavy rain, earthquake, tsunami and volcano information from the Japan Meteorological Agency. Check current JMA information
Official alert explanation: Understand the 2026 weather alert levels. JMA explains the numbered heavy-rain, flood, landslide and storm-surge warnings and their relationship to evacuation instructions. Read JMA alert guidance
Official live transport status: Check JR East train status. For Tokyo, Kanto and JR East routes, check the current line and train status rather than relying on an earlier forecast. Check JR East service
Check official alerts and prepare for disruption
Official resources come first. Links open in a new tab.
Official safety leaflet: Earthquake and tsunami safety guidance. JMA explains how to secure your safety during shaking and when to leave coastal areas for higher ground. Open the safety leaflet
Official live traveler information: Check Japan Safe Travel Information. JNTO publishes current emergency information for major earthquakes, tsunami warnings, eruptions and emergency weather warnings affecting travelers. Check current traveler information
24-hour visitor support: Japan Visitor Hotline. Call 050-3816-2787 for assistance in English, Chinese or Korean with disasters, illness, accidents and other traveler emergencies. Open hotline details
Kyushu recovery discount for foreign tourists — Read the guide
Train and bus guide — Read the guide
Airport to city transport — Read the guide