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I moved to Japan from North Carolina with my husband and young daughter in the spring of 2022. My husband is in the U.S. Military and this is his first overseas deployment.
The facility is cleaned regularly
One of the things you’ll immediately notice in Japanese public toilets is their incredible cleanliness – the facilities are checked, cleaned and kept in pristine condition throughout the day.
But cleanliness doesn’t just come down to the efforts of janitors and cleaners: in Japan, the cultural importance of cleanliness is deeply rooted in social norms, and caring for shared spaces is considered a shared responsibility for everyone.
In fact, in schools, children sweep rooms and buildings, mop floors, and clean toilets. Clean and considerate behavior in public places is instilled from an early age and is evident not only in public restrooms, but in every aspect of life in Japan. You won’t find paper toilet seat covers in Japan either. Instead, each toilet is equipped with a disinfectant dispenser to clean surfaces before use.
The toilet is high-tech
Japan’s public toilets are known for being high-tech, and often equipped with features to enhance comfort and hygiene. We’re not sure how they do it, but the technology they use to mask toilet odors is extraordinary. Aside from deodorants, some of these toilet features include heated seats, adjustable bidet functions, and air dryers. For privacy, some toilets even come equipped with buttons that play soothing sounds or music.
These high-tech features can be confusing to first-time users, as they once were to me. Luckily, multilingual explanations are becoming more and more common, catering to the needs of tourists and non-Japanese speakers. And when all else fails, I just whip out my trusty Google Translate app to figure out how to flush the toilet.
Family Friendly
As a parent, one of the best things about living in Japan is the wide range of facilities for children, including public toilets. It’s not uncommon to find separate toilets for children, complete with child-sized toilets, sinks and hand dryers.
If you can’t find such a toilet, there’s a good chance that regular public toilets have child-friendly sinks and urinals.
For adults who bring small children to the restroom, the toilet stalls are equipped with small fold-out chairs to provide a safer and cleaner place for children. Some family-friendly establishments also offer toilet topper seats for children, which are useful if your small child cannot fit safely on a regular-sized toilet seat.
Some bathrooms have a baby room
In recent years, there has been growing awareness of the need for inclusive facilities in public restrooms across Japan. Many places now offer gender-neutral or family restrooms that offer more space and privacy for parents and caregivers with children. These family-friendly options are often equipped with baby changing stations, grab bars, and other accessories for people with different needs.
Baby rooms are also usually located next to the toilets and are unisex rooms equipped with a comfortable padded changing station, a special bin for soiled diapers, a sink, a hot water dispenser for heating formula or bottles, and a separate room for nursing mothers.
Efforts to improve accessibility have also led to the installation of toilets designed for people with disabilities. These single-stall toilets typically have larger stalls, grab bars, and lower sinks to make sure everyone can use them comfortably.
It was only after moving to Japan that I saw an adult-sized changing station for the first time, a feature I imagine many caregivers would appreciate.