Category: Health & Safety

Hokkaido is a wonderful place to travel, but earthquakes are common in Japan. Most visitors will never experience a major disaster. The point of preparing is simply to know what to do if strong shaking starts. A few basic actions matter far more than trying to understand every alert in a foreign language.

Before anything happens: make a two-minute plan

When you check in to your hotel, find the emergency exit and evacuation route. Keep your phone charged, and keep your shoes, a warm outer layer and any essential medication where you can reach them. In a Hokkaido winter, leaving a building without proper shoes or a coat can put you in danger a second time.

Install or bookmark an official source of warnings. The Safety tips app from the Japan Tourism Agency and JNTO sends push notifications in several languages for earthquake early warnings, tsunami warnings and some severe-weather information. Phone signals and alerts are not guaranteed in every situation, so listen to local announcements as well.

If you are indoors when strong shaking starts

Protect your head and neck, and move away from things that could fall, windows and tall furniture. Get low and take cover under a sturdy table if you can do so safely. Do not rush down stairs or try to run outside while the ground is shaking. Follow instructions from hotel staff, station staff or other facility staff.

Do not use elevators during or immediately after a major earthquake. When the shaking stops, look around carefully, and if you are told to evacuate, use the designated safe routes.

If you are outdoors

Stay away from glass, signs, unstable walls and anything else that could fall. Move to a safer open area, watching out for traffic, debris and damaged sidewalks. In winter, ice and snow make sudden movements dangerous, so move carefully and stay away from roof edges where snow or ice could fall.

If you are near the coast

If you feel a strong or long earthquake near the sea, or an official tsunami warning is issued, act immediately. Move quickly to higher ground or an official evacuation site, following local instructions. Do not stop to take photos of the water, and do not go back to the shore until the authorities say it is safe. The risks on the coast are different from those in central Sapporo, so check the hazards for each place on your itinerary.

After the shaking stops

Check for injuries and building damage, and be ready for aftershocks. Follow facility staff and official announcements rather than viral social media posts. Trains and other transport may be delayed or suspended while tracks, roads and facilities are inspected. Do not head straight for the airport without first checking whether it is safe to travel.

The Japan National Tourism Organization provides disaster and travel information in several languages. The Japan Visitor Hotline, 050-3816-2787, helps visitors 24 hours a day with problems including disasters. For fire or ambulance emergencies in Japan, call 119.

If you are traveling with children

Agree on a simple rule: stay together, listen to staff, and do not run toward the exits while the ground is shaking. Keep a small bag of essentials ready, and decide where your family will meet if you get separated. A paper copy of your accommodation’s address can help if a phone battery runs out.

Before you go out again

Check train and subway disruption information in Sapporo and any updates from your accommodation. If there is also snow or ice on the ground, our Sapporo winter shoes guide may help.

Official references: JNTO: Safety tips alerts · Japan Tourism Agency: Emergency guidance · Sapporo City: Multilingual disaster pocket guide

Nobody plans to get sick on holiday. But knowing the first few steps can make a difficult moment less confusing, especially if you do not speak Japanese or do not have a Japanese phone number. Sapporo has medical information and language-support services, and it helps to know which one fits your situation.

First: is it an emergency?

In a serious or possibly life-threatening emergency, call 119 for an ambulance. This is Japan’s emergency number for fire and ambulance services. Sapporo Fire Department says multilingual interpretation is available for callers who cannot speak Japanese. Stay on the line and follow the operator’s instructions. Explain where you are, what happened and how to contact you. If you need to, ask someone nearby to help you describe your location.

If you have a data-only eSIM that cannot make voice calls, ask hotel staff, shop staff or someone nearby to call 119 for you. When you need emergency care, do not wait while you try an app or a web form.

If you are not sure whether you need emergency care

Sapporo’s Emergency Medical Consultation Center (#7119) offers 24-hour phone advice from nurses about whether you may need urgent care. If you cannot dial #7119, use 011-272-7119. The city lists multilingual support, although the languages available and how calls are handled may vary. This is an advice line. It does not send ambulances, and it is not for routine questions about medicines you already take.

For non-emergency illness, find the right care

If you need a doctor but your symptoms are not immediately life-threatening, ask your accommodation to help you find a clinic or hospital that treats your condition. Check the opening hours, specialties, language support, whether you need an appointment and how payment works. Do not assume every clinic can see walk-in patients or has an English-speaking doctor.

Sapporo City offers a free Medical Communication Hotline for international visitors, including tourists. The service helps patients communicate with medical facilities within Sapporo, including assistance with hospital appointments and interpretation during medical visits.

Hospital appointment and inquiry assistance is available on weekdays from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., while medical interpretation is available 24 hours a day. Support is available in up to 32 languages, depending on availability.

You can request assistance through the application form on Sapporo City’s official website, or call 011-211-2121. Phone and data charges may apply.

Have four things ready

1. Your hotel name and address, or your current location, written in Japanese.
2. Your main symptoms, when they started and whether they are getting worse.
3. Any allergies, regular medicines and relevant conditions, plus your travel insurance details.
4. A way for the hospital to contact you, and a contact for a travel companion or your hotel if you do not have a Japanese phone number.

Bring your passport and travel insurance documents if it is safe and practical to do so. You may have to pay the clinic first and claim the money back from your insurer later. What is covered depends on your policy, so keep all receipts and medical documents.

A multilingual helpline for visitors

The Japan National Tourism Organization runs the Japan Visitor Hotline: 050-3816-2787, 24 hours a day. It helps international visitors who are dealing with illness, disasters and other difficulties, and its supported languages include English, Chinese and Korean. It does not replace 119 or medical advice, and it is not a general booking or three-way interpreting service.

Useful phrases

• 具合が悪いです (Guai ga warui desu) — I feel unwell.
• 救急車を呼んでください (Kyūkyūsha o yonde kudasai) — Please call an ambulance.
• 英語の通訳が必要です (Eigo no tsūyaku ga hitsuyō desu) — I need an English interpreter.
• 住所はここです (Jūsho wa koko desu) — Here is the address.

Before you leave your hotel

Save emergency numbers and your hotel address so you can see them offline. Ask the front desk who to contact if someone gets sick at night. For questions about buying medicine without a prescription, see our Sapporo drugstore guide. If food may be the cause, see our food-allergy restaurant guide.

Official references: Sapporo: Medical Communication Hotline · Sapporo: Emergency consultation #7119 · Sapporo: Calling 119, including multilingual support · JNTO: Japan Visitor Hotline

A headache, a cold or a minor stomach problem can make even a well-planned trip harder. Drugstores in Sapporo sell many everyday products, but not everything on the shelves is medicine, and some medicines should only be bought after getting professional advice. Here is a safer way to approach it if you do not speak Japanese.

Step 1: Find the right kind of shop

Look for signs that say ドラッグストア (drugstore) or 薬局 (yakkyoku, pharmacy). Pharmacies that mainly fill prescriptions may work differently from retail drugstores. If you already have a prescription or take a prescription medicine regularly, ask a pharmacist or medical facility about your options. Do not assume a prescription from overseas can be filled directly.

Step 2: Ask to speak to the right professional

Over-the-counter medicines in Japan are divided into categories, and the rules on who can sell each one differ. For some, a pharmacist must give you information; others can be sold by a pharmacist or a registered sales clerk. Changes to Japan’s OTC medicine sales rules took effect on May 1, 2026. These include stricter purchase checks for designated medicines with abuse potential and new online consultation options for certain pharmacist-supervised medicines. A busy shop may not always have the right professional available for a particular product at that moment.

Try saying: “Kusuri ni tsuite sōdan shitai desu” (I would like to ask about medicine). You can also show a translated note with your age, symptoms, allergies, any other medicines you take and any medical conditions that may affect which medicine is safe for you.

Step 3: Do not choose by the picture on the box

Brand names may be different from those in your home country. Two cold medicines can contain the same ingredients, and taking both can lead to an accidental overdose. Check the active ingredients, directions, age limits and possible interactions with a pharmacist. Professional advice is especially important if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, buying for a child, taking regular medication or living with a long-term health condition.

A translated label helps with communication, but it does not replace checking the ingredients and instructions with a qualified professional. Do not rely on AI translation alone when deciding what medicine to take.

Step 4: Know when a drugstore is not enough

A drugstore cannot replace a medical assessment if your symptoms are severe, unusual or getting worse. Call 119 in a life-threatening emergency or if you need an ambulance. In Sapporo, #7119 (or 011-272-7119) is an emergency consultation line you can call if you are not sure whether you need emergency care right away. If you cannot make voice calls because you have a data-only SIM, ask hotel staff or someone nearby to call for you.

For help finding non-emergency care, read what to do if you get sick in Sapporo.

Step 5: Keep the box and receipt

Keep the original box, the leaflet inside and the receipt while you are taking the medicine. This helps a doctor or pharmacist see exactly what you have taken. If you get unexpected symptoms after taking it, stop and get medical advice promptly. In a serious emergency, call 119.

Useful Japanese phrases

• 薬剤師さんはいますか？ (Yakuzaishi-san wa imasu ka?) — Is there a pharmacist here?
• 英語で説明できますか？ (Eigo de setsumei dekimasu ka?) — Can you explain in English?
• この薬の成分は何ですか？ (Kono kusuri no seibun wa nan desu ka?) — What are the ingredients in this medicine?
• 子どもに使う薬を探しています。 (Kodomo ni tsukau kusuri o sagashite imasu.) — I’m looking for medicine for a child.

Important: This article explains how buying medicine works, not which medicine to take. If you need advice about a specific product, speak to a pharmacist or doctor.

Official references: Japan MHLW: OTC medicine classes and 2026 regulation · Sapporo City: #7119 consultation