It isn't a good time for Airbnb hosts or renters in Japan right now: The private residence renting service was recently forced to cancel thousands of already booked and paid reservations in Japan, all thanks to a new set of Japanese laws that went into effect on June 15. Here's what's going on over there, and what you can do if you were planning on renting with Airbnb in Japan in the near future.

Traveller, let me give you my most useful tip for visiting Japan: The "konbini" is life. It's a one-stop shop for literally anything a wide-eyed tourist such as yourself may need while you explore the brightly lit corridors of Tokyo, or get swallowed by the serene silence of temples and shrines in Kyoto.

Planning trips with friends can be a tremendous and painful undertaking. Depending on your group, you'll either end up with a bunch of people who just want you to figure everything out on your own (so they can complain about it when you do), or a group of highly-opinionated friends who all have their own ideas on what the "perfect" destination and hotel might be, to a point that no one can agree on anything.

"Melbourne is more like San Francisco, while Sydney is more like L.A." That's according to Lifehacker's US readers, who were recently asked to share their tips on visiting Sydney. Here's some of the best - and weirdest - advice about "the town that Britain's convicts built."

Everything is a little different when you're driving in a foreign country, from laws and etiquette to where and how you pump your fuel. This handy guide gives you the lowdown on getting gas in 30 different countries throughout Europe, Asia, Africa, South America, the Middle East and North America.

I travel a good bit, so I've started to reach a point where not too many travel "hacks" surprise me. However, this week a friend of mine made a suggestion I was surprised I hadn't thought of before: splitting your checked items across two suitcases with a friend.

Project Fi already makes it cheap and easy to use your phone all over the world without needing to swap a new SIM card in every country, but if you're planning a trip to China, there's one huge reason to check out Google's service.

Budget airlines are a decent option for cheap travel, but they're also known to be uncomfortable, they nickel and dime you for every little thing, and now, people are questioning the overall safety of these low-cost flights. These four tips will help you pick a budget or foreign airline that meets all the right safety standards.

When you're planning an epic holiday, you want to be sure you're headed somewhere incredible in more ways than one. You want fascinating culture and history, eye-popping beauty, and, of course, incredible food. You want a location that millions of travellers can recommend.

Last weekend we shared the results of CheapAir.com's 2018 Airfare study. In the study it looked at 917 million different airfares and made some determinations on when the "right" time to buy is if you want to get a good deal.

Getting pulled over by Aussie cops is already nerve-wracking, but when it happens somewhere far from home it can be even scarier. Laws are different, customs vary, and you may have to pay a fine on the spot. Here's what you need to know before you get behind the wheel outside of your home country.

It's easy to shrug off bus travel when you can fly, take trains or rent cars, but bus travel almost always has one distinct advantage: It's dirt cheap. If you're travelling to the UK any time soon, check out their bus routes. You can see a sizeable portion of the country for less than $US90 ($117) (not including airfare and lodging).

I keep telling people that travelling to Japan is way more affordable than they think, especially if you book the right accommodations. We're talking as little as $25 to $60 a night if you know where to look! These obviously aren't five-star resorts, but they're worth it for the money you'll save.

You've just landed at your travel destination, but the Airbnb won't be available for a few hours. What to do? You could start exploring the city, but nothing ruins that exhilarating experience more than having to drag around heavy luggage everywhere.

Is there anything better than digging your toes into the warm sand on some beautiful, exotic beach? Well there is if that beach is riddled with hookworms that hope to burrow into your feet and make their way to your small intestine. If you do a lot of travelling to warm, humid locales, here's how you can avoid these nasty little things.

Even if you've had a holiday filled with rest and relaxation, the trip coming home is often enough to wipe you out and get you disoriented. The next time you plan a holiday, give yourself an extra day to bounce back and get ready for your return to work.

I'll usually be the first to tell you that you should dive into real local cuisine when you travel to another country. It's one of the most important aspects of a culture. But I'll also be the first to tell you that you should totally hit up fast food chains in other countries. They're awesome! If you have, what's your favourite thing that you just can't get here in Australia?

You're visiting a new city and you want to find a nice bar where you can grab a decent drink. Where do you go first? Close the Yelp app and hit the hotel bar, of course. Here's why.

Japan is a great place to visit, especially for first-time international travellers. It feels completely different than Western countries, yet totally familiar. I recently got back from a trip there, and while it wasn't my first visit, I still learned a whole lot. Mainly, I figured out what kind of items are best to keep on you at all times.