About This Guide
A personal Japanese travel reference designed for use on iOS devices — offline, fast, and always in your pocket when you need it most. Save it to your iPhone home screen and it works like an app, no internet needed. Even if your Japanese is limited, long-press any phrase to show just the Japanese text and hand your phone to a local.
What It Is
旅日本語 (Tabi Nihongo — "Travel Japanese") is a curated phrasebook built around real travel situations: checking into a hotel, ordering food, navigating transport, handling emergencies, and more.
Phrases are displayed in English, Japanese script (Kana/Kanji), and Romaji pronunciation. The guide assumes some familiarity with Japanese — the cards serve as reminders rather than lessons.
Features
520 phrases across 21 categories
Bottom sheet category selector with all 21 categories
Reference view — あいうえお Stem Chart and future grammar references
Ear indicator on phrases you may hear spoken to you
Full-text search across English, Japanese, Romaji, and Notes
Search from the landing page — results display in Guide
Long-press any card to show a large Japanese-only overlay
Tap the hanko seal on any card to save it as a Favorite
Favorites ordered most-recently-saved first, with A→Z toggle
Font size adjustable via A− / A+ controls, saved across sessions
Seasonal theme auto-switches by date — 春夏秋冬
Seasonal Bashō haiku Easter egg — long-press the hanko seal
Useful Links with Google Translate and JPY→USD conversion
Fully self-contained single HTML file — works completely offline
How It Was Made
🤖
Claude (Anthropic)
Designed and built through a collaborative conversation with the guide's author.
✍️
Phrase Content
520 vocabulary entries curated and authored by the guide's owner across 21 travel categories.
判
Hanko Seal
Produced using ChatGPT (OpenAI). White background added using Pixelmator Pro.
👂
Ear Illustration
Original artwork by いらすとや (irasutoya.com). Resized and prepared in Pixelmator Pro.
🔤
Typography
Cormorant Garamond, Jost, and Noto Serif JP via Google Fonts.
A Note on Accuracy
Phrases reflect the author's personal study notes and are intended as a practical travel aid, not a formal language reference. Japanese has many levels of formality — when in doubt, a polite tone (です/ます form) and a smile go a long way. 頑張ってください！
Offline Use
This guide is a single self-contained HTML file. Open tabinihongo.com in Safari and tap Share → Add to Home Screen for offline app-like access.
Version History
v1.9 — CurrentJune 2026
- CSS consolidation — shared header, widget, and footer classes
- Clean template build — eliminates recurring dropped JS block issue
- Useful Links fully restored — links, Translate, and JPY→USD working
- Landing page search restored
v1.8May 2026
- 520 phrases, font scaling via parent selector, credits version dot fix
v1.7May 2026
- Reference view, レファレンス card, JPY→USD correction
v1.6May 2026
- Landing page search, currency conversion, data-driven showView()
v1.5May 2026
- Season-aware Bashō haiku, elevator pitch, CSS consolidation
v1.4May 2026
- Search includes Notes, corrected hanko kanji, search clear button
v1.3May 2026
- TSV updates, navigation cleanup, updated Useful Links
v1.2May 2026
- Ear indicator, guide header redesign, scroll fixes
v1.1May 2026
- Bottom sheet category selector, localStorage utility object
v1.0May 2026
- Full production database, four seasonal themes, single hanko constant
<v0.8May 2026
- Proof of concept through to full feature set
