It is socially acceptable to drink in public in Japan. It's also not legally required for you to cover your drink, meaning you can drink in public, on the train and in front of minors without anyone batting an eye.

Often you will see drunk businessmen stumbling home, sleeping on a closed business's stoop or singing in the middle of the street. This is socially normal and often a required practice if you want to succeed in business.

According to social norms it is perfectly acceptable to drink in public places. Often times you will find young men on their way to the clubs drinking on public transportation. Most of the time people will go to the convenience store and pick up some alcoholic beverages (there is usually a nice selection of beer, canned cocktails and/or Japanese sake available in bottles).

It's important to note that there are no laws about displaying alcoholic beverages. You can drink in public places without any police intervention.

Another popular source of alcohol in Japan is the more 'traditional' style of an 居酒屋 or Izakaya. This is basically a restaurant whose sole purpose is to get drunk at. It's often frequented by businessmen and/or company parties after work. This means that the locations are generally very busy on week nights and can often support many groups of drunk individuals.

There is a rather funny mockery of the typical Japanese drunk businessmen on youtube that I thought I'd share.

There are quite a few methods of preventing a hangover but the best Japan has to offer is 'Ukon' root supplements. You can read more about them on my other hub here:

My Hub on Hangover Prevention