To encourage good manners in their city, Kyoto officials have issued an etiquette guide for foreign visitors highlighting various "a ki ma hen" ("don'ts") for visitors.
'Don't do this!' —
To encourage good manners in their city, Kyoto officials have issued an etiquette guide for foreign visitors highlighting various "a ki ma hen" ("don'ts") for visitors.
CIty of Kyoto
Each improper behavior is rated with unhappy emoticons. This is the second "Kyoto Insider Guide" the city has issued in collaboration with TripAdvisor. The first focuses on facts and tips about the city.
"A ki ma hen" rating —
Each improper behavior is rated with unhappy emoticons. This is the second "Kyoto Insider Guide" the city has issued in collaboration with TripAdvisor. The first focuses on facts and tips about the city.
CIty of Kyoto
Causing the mildest level of distress among Kyotoites are tipping tourists. Just "say 'okini' instead of tipping," says the guide. The guide also reminds travelers that they need to allow space for taxi doors to be opened remotely by drivers.
Mildly inappropiate —
Causing the mildest level of distress among Kyotoites are tipping tourists. Just "say 'okini' instead of tipping," says the guide. The guide also reminds travelers that they need to allow space for taxi doors to be opened remotely by drivers.
CIty of Kyoto
Taking pictures of geisha and maiko (apprentice dancers) is a must for many travelers. The guide urges travelers to refrain from interfering with maikos going about their business, or coercing them into posing for photos.
Quite distressing —
Taking pictures of geisha and maiko (apprentice dancers) is a must for many travelers. The guide urges travelers to refrain from interfering with maikos going about their business, or coercing them into posing for photos.
CIty of Kyoto
Smoking outdoors gets a rating of three angry faces. Travelers should only smoke in designated areas or face a fine of 1,000 yen ($8).
Serious offense —
Smoking outdoors gets a rating of three angry faces. Travelers should only smoke in designated areas or face a fine of 1,000 yen ($8).
CIty of Kyoto
Kyoto has also released a separate toilet guide to teach travelers the proper way to use a Japanese-style (left) and Western-style (right) toilet.
Toilet guide —
Kyoto has also released a separate toilet guide to teach travelers the proper way to use a Japanese-style (left) and Western-style (right) toilet.
CIty of Kyoto
Kyoto's etiquette guides for tourists
CNN  — 

Kyoto residents have had enough. A surge in tourism in recent years has brought with it an outbreak of dirty toilets and misbehaving travelers.

The city of Kyoto is battling the problem in what might be seen as a typically Japanese way – issuing polite guidelines amplified by adorable graphics to illustrate their annoyance.

Kyoto’s Tourism and MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conventions, Exhibitions) promotion office has shared two separate etiquette guides – “How to Use this Toilet” and “Insider Guide to Kyoto Part II: AKiMaHen (Don’ts) of Kyoto” – on the city’s official website.

The toilet guides, which come in four languages, cater to users of both Japanese- and Western-style toilets. The three-step guides illustrate how to sit on the toilet, where to throw toilet paper and how to flush.

“Many tourists use Japan’s public toilets the way they would use the toilets at home and discard used toilet paper in the trash bin,” says the announcement on the website. The guidelines will be posted as stickers in the city’s public and private toilet facilities.

Destination: Japan

List of don’ts for travelers

Leaving a tip? Outrageous.
Leaving a tip? Outrageous.
CIty of Kyoto

The city also hopes to address cultural conflicts arising from differences in lifestyles, according to an official memo on the website. Kyoto City has worked with TripAdvisor to create “AKiMaHen (Don’ts) of Kyoto,” a leaflet aimed at visitors.

The leaflet is topped with an illustration of five grumpy-looking Kyotoites captioned, “Kyotoites are pretty fastidious!”

Each impolite act gets an “AKiMaHen” rating from one mildly unhappy emoticon to three red, fiercely angry faces.

Some of the least unacceptable behaviors are tipping – how dare you! – and opening taxi doors by yourself. Taxi doors in Japan are opened and closed remotely by taxi drivers.

The most serious offenses include smoking outdoors in non-designated areas – punishable by a fine of 1,000 yen ($8).

Bicycling while drunk carries a whopping penalty of up to one million yen ($8,000) or five years in prison.

Other tips include being polite when asking a maiko (an apprentice dancer who wears a traditional kimono) for pictures and not canceling restaurant reservations at the last minute.

It’s the second part in an Insider Guide series. The first part focuses on facts and tips about Kyoto.

Unwritten rules for photographing geisha

Tips for eating sushi in Japan

20 most rude and annoying things passengers do on planes

This article was originally published in August 2015.