Collect candidates
Google Places text search finds real restaurants, accommodation and visitor experiences in the selected destination and category.
TRANSPARENT BY DESIGN
Ranked.
Not random.
JAPAN 30 is an independent discovery platform. Google Maps provides place ratings and review counts; our published rules determine eligibility and order.
Check location and category
Administrative-area data and category matching remove places outside the requested destination or unrelated to the selected ranking.
Apply quality thresholds
Places must have a rating of at least 3.5 and meet category-specific minimum review counts. Small samples do not outrank established places by rating alone.
Check visitor relevance
For activities, administrative offices and other non-visitor facilities are removed unless a distinct public attraction, such as an observation deck, is present.
Remove duplicates
Parent facilities, branches returned twice and adjacent listings representing the same attraction are grouped so one destination does not occupy multiple ranks.
Calculate confidence
A confidence-weighted score combines rating and review volume. The public rating remains visible, while paid promotion never changes rank.
CURRENT BASELINE
Minimum evidence before inclusion
When a category cannot produce a useful shortlist, the review threshold may be reduced to a disclosed floor while all location, category and relevance checks remain active. A ranking may contain fewer than 30 places.
CORRECTIONS & INDEPENDENCE
Tell us when something has changed
Businesses cannot buy a higher position. Advertising must be visually separated from rankings. Venues may request a factual correction, report closure or provide accessibility and language-support information, but cannot request a preferred rank.
Submit a correction →