Hello Tokyo — A life with friends abroad, made ordinary.
No perfect English. No plus-one needed.
Weekends in Tokyo where you actually make friends.
01 — Vision
Someone to say
“it’s been a while!” to.
Someone to meet in the city you’re traveling to. Someone you can message from home, anywhere in the world. Other cultures and other ways of thinking stop being distant — and your own options widen.
What we want to give you isn’t a one-off international event, an English class, or a travel service. It’s that first spark. That is what Hello Tokyo is built around.
Someone to see wherever you travel.
Somewhere to come back to.
02 — Insight
The words “international exchange”
are what make it hard to show up.
“International exchange” sounds like you need fluent English, like everyone there is very serious, like it’s no place to come on your own.
But the real barrier was never English. It’s walking into a room you don’t know, arriving alone, not knowing what to talk about. We design those away.
- International exchange partyA night out where you make friends from abroad
- Meetup to practice EnglishEasy drinks with people from abroad
- Community members wantedLooking for people to drink with this weekend
We’re not selling the name of an activity — we’re offering what comes out of it. Nobody actually wants to “attend an exchange event”. They want to end up with friends.
03 — Concept
Making friends from abroad,
made casual.
What we offer isn’t the event itself. It’s the spark that turns into a friendship, and a place where that friendship keeps going.
The event is the entrance; LINE is just what holds it together afterwards. Making friends from abroad used to be something special. We want it to be one of your ordinary weekend options.
04 — Events
It can start with anything.
- Drinks
- Cafés
- Picnics
- Board games
- Sports
- BBQ
- Fireworks
- Seasonal events
- Japanese culture
One thing never changes: studying English is not the point. It only has to be easy to talk, and worth meeting again. Which format works best is still an open question — we’ll decide the shape and the size as we hear from the people who come.
05 — How it works
Four steps to your first one.
- 01
Join the LINE open chat
Takes seconds. Just reading along as invites come in is a fine place to start.
- 02
Pick one that looks good
One message for a date that works. You don’t have to come every time.
- 03
Just show up
Coming alone is fine. We learn your name and introduce you to someone.
- 04
Keep it going
It doesn’t end that night. Swap contacts, and carry it into the next weekend.
06 — For you
For students in Japan
For students in Japan
who want friends abroad.
You don’t have to study abroad to have friends abroad. You don’t need good English, and you don’t need to join a club. Go somewhere slightly different this weekend — that’s enough.
For international students
For people from abroad
who want Japanese friends.
Living in Japan doesn’t automatically get you Japanese friends. That’s the gap this started from. Your Japanese does not have to be perfect.
日本語が完璧でなくても大丈夫。話してみたい人が集まる場所です。
07 — FAQ
Questions we get.
My English isn’t good. Can I still come?
Yes. We never split people by language level. Some use a translation app, some get by on single words. When a conversation stalls, we step in.
Will I stand out if I come alone?
Most people come alone. We introduce people as they arrive, so starting out knowing nobody is the normal case here.
Is this a dating thing?
No. The point is friendship. We set the ground rules and host in a way that keeps romance-first participation from taking over.
Is there a fee?
We tell you before each event. Keeping the barrier low comes first, so we don’t charge more than we need to.
How safe is it?
For now our team is always present and we keep groups small. ID checks, a reporting route and the ground rules are being built out step by step.
Do I have to be a university student?
We’re starting with university and international students. Others are welcome if it feels like a fit — just ask us on LINE first.
08 — Join
Looking for people to drink
with this weekend.
Join our LINE open chat and the invites start coming. Show up to the ones you can make — that’s all.
Want a feel for it first? Take a look at Instagram.