'I just got back from Japan. This is my ultimate shopping guide for beauty, fashion and more.'

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'Japan is phenomenal,' they said. 'Seriously, it'll knock your socks off,' they said. Well, they were right.

We just got back from three weeks in Japan, and all I want to do it go right back. 10/10. Five stars. From the food and the people to the sights and the efficiency, every experience we had was unforgettable. I can't stop raving.

As a self-confessed fashion and beauty devotee, I was so incredibly excited to shop in Japan. And let me tell you – it did not disappoint.

From department stores to vintage haunts and well-curated boutiques, Japan is a fashion and beauty lovers paradise. We spent our three weeks across Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka and Hiroshima – I fit in as much shopping as I physically could amongst all the sightseeing and eating, and I've rounded up all my top picks.

Watch: Heading on a trip soon? Here are some of the Mamamia team's must-pack travel essentials. Post continues below.

Japan shopping tips.

This was my first time in Japan, so I'm certainly no expert, but we got around! Before you hit the shops in Japan, a few useful tips:

• Don't forget your passport so that you can shop tax-free for eligible purchases over 5000 yen (approx. $AUD50)

• Most shops don't open until 11am or so (some open a little earlier, around 10am, but not many). For us, this meant mornings were for heading to any tourist sights bright and early to beat the rush, as well as time to try all the excellent coffee to fuel up for the day ahead

• Just like European brands are generally cheaper for Aussies to buy in Europe, I found that Japanese brands were better value in their homeland – Commes des Garçons and Issey Miyake were much cheaper than Aus!

• So many of the department and flagship stores are 5+ levels high. Head directly to the top level you want to visit and then work your way down. This saved us a lot of time (and distraction!) on many occasions.

• Make location folders in your Google maps account and 'save' stores (and any spot) you want to visit. That way, wherever you are, you can open your map and see what's nearby that you wanted to visit

• I did find the clothing sizes to be a bit smaller compared to Aus, and the size range wasn't as diverse in many locations

• As is custom in many Japanese inside spaces, you need to take your shoes off inside change rooms (even if you're just trying on a top) - keep your shoe choice in mind if you want to try on lots of things

There really are just so many wonderful boutiques, departments stores and markets, it's impossible to hit every single one. There were plenty I missed, even with over 20,000 steps a day.

Now, let's get stuck into each Japan shopping location.

Shopping in Tokyo.

Ginza shopping.

We stayed at two hotels in Tokyo, and our first was just outside Ginza – an excellent choice! Ginza has to be one of the cleanest suburbs I've ever strolled in my entire life. I honestly don't think I saw one stray piece of rubbish anywhere along its beautiful, tree-lined streets.

Every designer brand you can name has a store in Ginza (some even have multiple!). The Hermès store is like a work of art (as are many buildings in Japan), and Japanese skincare brand Shiseido has stunning flagship store if you're looking to stock up on the famous J-beauty brand (I picked up one of the Shiseido UV Lip Colour Splash lip balms).

Lots of the sportswear stores have incredible spaces in Ginza too. Adidas, On, Onitsuka Tiger, New Balance and Nike to name a few. My hubby bought a pair of New Balance sneakers (we were amazed they had his size as I struggled in a lot of places to get my size 41 shoe) and received the most incredible service ever. A lot of the sportswear brands had city-exclusive tees which was really cool.

Me living my best life in Ginza! Image: Supplied.

Being in Japan, we of course had to shop at the largest Uniqlo in the world! It's 12 floors, has a café, a florist, and a customisation station. Connected to Uniqlo via a skybridge is Dover Street Market.

This was a must visit for me – a great curation of designers (including great Comme des Garçons selects – I got the cutest long sleeve here for a fraction of the Aussie price), a café and a super cute rooftop garden with an incredible view.

Another highlight in the area is Ginza SIX. Once again, a stunning building that often has art installations (The Big Bang Cat by Kenji Yanobe was there when we visited) that is home to big designers (think CELINE and Loewe), streetwear brands (like Adidas and North Face) plus a Marni café and an EATALY! One of my favourite shopfronts inside was hueLe Museum – so many gorgeous vases, and unique clothing pieces.

I also enjoyed Mitsukoshi – the oldest department store chain in Japan (couldn't help myself in the beauty section and picked up a Loewe candle)! It's got an epic food hall on the lower two floors (as do a lot of department stores in Japan – always worth a visit downstairs if you get snackish while shopping).

Aoyama, Omotesando and Harajuku shopping.

This bucket of suburbs was my favourite. So many of the stores here felt like art galleries – there's so much consideration taken with the architecture and visual merchandising.

Some of my favourite standalone designer shops in these areas were Acne Studios, Commes Des Garçon, the Issey Miyakes and Loewe.

There are so many epic vintage stores around these streets. A few of my fave picks:

• Amore Vintage: there are multiple Amore Vintage locations. The different stores specialise in different curations, including one store dedicated to only vintage Chanel. Incredible!

• BRAND COLLECT: I nabbed a beaut Zanchetti bag in brand new condition for a fraction of the price of a new one. There was an ace selection of bags (lots of great Loewe) and some beautiful clothing (a whole rack of pre-loved Pleats Please by Issey Miyake).

• Salamanca Vintage: a great selection of vintage bags, but TBH found the Kyoto stores better value.

• MixTHINKS: a truly wild selection of vintage bags, watches and more. It's two floors and brimming with great finds, so prepare to be overwhelmed in the best way possible.

Cat Street in Harajuku is also a super fun visit. They have lots of the big brands (including epic Ralph Lauren and Coach stores) but also lots of smaller finds. I absolutely adored Pauline Studio (lots of beautiful jewellery pieces) and AHRES beauty – a quirky new Japanese beauty brand.

I picked up their best-selling cleansing balm and a very cool lipstick – it comes in a few separate pieces which you put together, including a little gold band that you lock onto the outside with a little screwdriver. I loved the theatre of it all!

The Harajuku Tokyu Plaza is a must visit for its cool architecture and the view from its trendy rooftop garden, but it's also home to a heap of cool pop-ups and boutiques. 

The All Good Flowers Lab that's inside sells their own funky vases (mine looks like a cool little alien) as well as other brands (like one my personal faves, Corsi Design). This centre is also where I got one of my favourite souvenirs of the trip – a tote bag collaboration between KISS TOKYO and Ball&Chain.

Just up the road, the Cosme Harajuku store is a beauty-lovers playground, filled to the brim with local and international beauty brands.

Azabudai Hills shopping.

This was actually the first place we visited when we got to Tokyo, as the centre is home to the very popular teamLab Planets. The teamLab is downstairs, but if you venture up a few floors, this centre is just gorgeous. There is an incredible food market, and we ate one of the best pastries of our trip next door at Comme'n Tokyo. But back to the shopping!

There is a whole raft of stunning boutiques in here, like United Arrows and The Store by C. The top level of the shopping centre is Ogaki Bookstore – an incredible book shop with a gorgeous array of jewellery and trinkets to take home as souvenirs. The Conran Shop is also very cool – lots of funky homewares, with knick-knacks like vases and tote bags that will fit in your suitcase home.

Ginza designer department stores. Image: Supplied

The centre is also home to one of my favourite beauty destinations of the trip – Nose Shop (there are a few of them around but I think this had the biggest selection).

If you're into fragrances, Nose Shop is a must. There are hundreds of stunning, unique scents from around the world. I picked up a fragrance called Mahoganysun by Per Roy and it's simply divine!

Shibuya shopping.

Once you've gotten over the sheer volume of people walking through Shibuya Crossing, head to the Shibuya Scramble Square centre (it's the building that Shibuya Sky is on top of). There's truly something for everyone in here.

Ball&Chain, the brand I mentioned above, has a bigger range available in here on level 5 and so many design options. I saw these bags being used by so many people in Japan – you can customise them with different straps and add-ons – they're super funky. This floor also had a whole host of smaller brands selling unique jewellery, homewares and more.

Miyashita Park is also worth a visit; it had some great little stalls littered throughout, including some more pop-up style market style shops which I adored. Plus, you can pop into Café Kitsune for a quick coffee.

Shibuya crossing and shops by day and night! Image: Supplied.

Shibuya is also home to a MEGA Don Quijote – the famous Japanese chain. Controversial opinion alert: I didn't love Don Quijote. It's definitely a bit of fun to explore, and worth a visit for the famous jingle alone, but I found it not great value and honestly too overwhelming.

I did pick up some of the highly recommended Derma Laser sheet masks here (which are awesome BTW – each pack has 7 very serum-drenched masks inside), but these were also available for the same price at 7-Eleven and most pharmacies.

(Pharmacies in Japan are elite – pretty much every pharmacy I went into was fabulous, and had a great range of beauty products. Thank you to the lovely Hannah Collingwood English for sending me some top recs!)

Shinjuku shopping.

If you ever make it out of Shinjuku station (if you've been there, you know what I'm talking about) Shinjuku is a great area for department stores:

• NEWoMan: quite contemporary, with lots of cafes and options. (I tried on lots of cute pieces in emmi!)

• ISETAN: split into men's and women's sections; gorgeous array of higher end designers. Towards the exit of the women's building, there's an incredible curation of giftable items (scarves, totes, homewares, smaller beauty items). 

Checking out Shinjuku shopping street. Image: Supplied.

I also loved the Muji here (Muji is another must-visit when in Japan!). It's not the flagship, but still has the café and lots of floors filled with great basics. I picked up a lovely solid perfume for cheap as chips!

Shimokitazawa shopping.

Shimokitazawa is such a funky little suburb, and a real thrifting haven! I'd recommend giving yourself time to just wander up and down the main street and pop into as many little boutiques as you can. My fave was Circulable Supply – a fairly new addition to the area, it had so many unique pieces for great prices. I nabbed a gorgeous vintage Gucci scarf, and my husband got the coolest button up for a steal. 

Roppongi Hills shopping.

Don't let the giant spider statue scare you, there is shopping to be done! If you're in the area, the Roppongi Hills centre features a store with one of my favourite beauty curations of the trip: ESTNation. Their beauty selection was impeccable. The second I walked in I knew I was going to be buying something.

Obviously, I did: a beautiful Diffar Hair Oil and a Nonfiction Santal Hand Cream. Both smell incredible and leave my hair and hands, respectively, super smooth. Their jewellery and eyewear selection were also *chefs kiss*.

BEAMS is an icon in Japan and an absolute must visit. I went into pretty much every one that I spotted (I found they were all a bit different to suit the area they were in) and I really adored the Roppongi Hills one. An expensive offering, but so beautiful. There's also a Zara in this centre if you like to visit an international Zara to see what they have on offer (it didn't rock my world the same way European Zaras do).

About a five-minute walk down the road is the National Art Centre – worth a visit for the architecture alone. As do many galleries, it has an ace giftshop. Aptly named 'SOUVENIR FROM TOKYO', it's a floor down from the entry and had so many unique bags, jewellery pieces, homewares and more. 

Shopping in Kyoto.

Shijo-dori shopping.

Shijo-dori is the main shopping hub in Kyoto. It offers up lots of the big brands, and the iconic Japanese department stores Daimaru and Takashiyama (I picked up another Commes des Garçon tee in Daimaru as the prices were just too good!).

There are plenty of fun finds around here, including a MoMA store, and the Fuji-Daimaru centre which had a great selection of storefronts (my picks are United Arrows, emmi, snidel and Adam et Rope).

Teramachi shopping.

Running through the heart of downtown Kyoto, the Teramachi strip was full of ace little finds.

There are heaps of good vintage shops around here – Salamanca vintage (which has two locations, and I think a better range and price points than the Tokyo store), kindal (incredible array over three well curated floors, with a great range of price points) and BRING.

I also stumbled across a freshly opened vintage store, Savi, with a small but beautiful collection. A vintage Loewe shoulder bag was my fave Kyoto souvenir!

There's also a big BEAMS near here, with a range of more affordable items compared to some of the Tokyo counterparts. The in-house brand blouses and dresses were so reflective of the street style I saw around – lots of layering and unique shapes.

Fragrance lovers must visit the Le Labo store. It's a beautiful layout with attentive staff, and has a quaint little café out the back.

Kyoto Station shopping.

There's also quite a few shops around the main Kyoto train station, including an Isetan department store.

My new Commes des Garçon purchase and soaking up sun in Kyoto! Image: Supplied.

Shopping in Osaka.

Shinsaibashi shopping.

The main shopping precinct in Osaka is Shinsaibashi. There are incredible stores sprawling over many floors, and amazing department stores like Parco and Daimaru (this Daimaru is just so gorgeous inside).

Fun fact: the Louis Vuitton Maison store in Shinsaibashi has a free art gallery with a mini Yayoi Kusama exhibit, including an infinity room! Enter via the lift on the right-hand side of the store. Meander down all the side streets too to find smaller stores (like Ameri Vintage, which sells vintage bags alongside new and very cute apparel).

I'd read online that Osaka is a haven for vintage shopping, and it didn't disappoint. The streets just off Shinsaibashi have so many vintage stores all together.

Some of my faves were Ragtag Vintage, Okura (I caved and bought a stunning Loewe hat here – justified given the very high temps), BRAND OFF and Thierry. There were so many vintage bags I drooled over, but I ended up with a gorgeous little Celine bag from my birth year, for a steal! 

Orange Street shopping.

Shopping on Orange Street, Osaka. Image: Supplied.

A trip to Osaka isn't complete without wandering down the very trendy Orange Street. It felt much more chill around here compared to Shinsaibashi and the street is littered with cool cafes and shops. My picks:

• Bio Top: cute café downstairs alongside a beautiful curation of beauty, with great fashion selects upstairs

• Kindal: incred vintage curation

• Journal Street Furniture & Circulable Supply: striking new homewares downstairs, preloved clothes upstairs

• The GoodLand Market

EXPOCITY shopping.

If you happen to be heading to see Tarō Okamoto's Tower of the Sun (which I am completely obsessed with), then you'll find yourself right by the LaLaport EXPOCITY shopping centre.

We only popped in here because it was 32 degrees and we needed some air con, but I was pleasantly surprised at how good this centre was, given how random the location felt. It had heaps of the Japanese faves I've already mentioned (like BEAMS and United Arrows) but some other goodies I hadn't explored yet:

• Stylemixer: Japanese brand with great blouses and frocks; I picked up the most beautiful sheer blouse

• Standard Products: this is Daiso's more refined sister; beautiful homewares and home fragrances for literally a few dollars

• Bshop: beautifully elevated basics

You don't need to go out of your way to visit, but if you're in the area and want some retail therapy, it's worth a pop in!

Osaka Station shopping.

Between shopping, I visited Tarō Okamoto's Tower of the Sun and Dotonbori River. Image: Supplied.

Finally, there's also quite a bit on offer around the Osaka train station. I tried on some of the funkiest jewellery from some small pop ups in Daimaru (just where you come out from the train).

There's also another ESTnation here in the Grand Front building, more of the classics (BEAMS, United Arrows), and some lovely boutiques: hueLe Museum (which I had seen before in Ginza SIX) was a standout with absolutely stunning pieces, Edition also had some cool bits and pieces.

All in all, as a fashion and beauty lover, I found shopping in Japan such a wonderful experience! I'm already planning the next trip back to explore even more.

Japan travellers, did I miss any of your favourites?! 

Feature Image: Supplied.