How to Ask Where to Rent a Car in Japanese
Learn to ask where you can rent a car in Japanese, understand staff replies, and handle basic rental requirements like licence and return time.
By SofiaGetting around · Yapr Learn
When you travel in Japan, renting a car can open up places trains do not reach. The key sentence is 車はどこで借りられますか。 (Kuruma wa doko de kariraremasu ka.), meaning 'Where can I rent a car?' This lesson teaches that question, the shorter casual version 車はどこで借りられる？ (Kuruma wa doko de kariraremasu ka.), and the words you will hear at the counter: 免許証 (menkyoshō, driver's licence), 返す時間 (kaesu jikan, return time), and 保険 (hoken, insurance). You will also learn how to ask whether an international licence is accepted, and how to confirm the return time. Everything stays at elementary level: polite ます forms, simple question patterns, and no complex grammar. By the end you can walk into a rental shop or ask at a hotel front desk and get the information you need.
By the end, you can…
- ask where to rent a car using 車はどこで借りられますか。
- ask whether an international driver's licence is accepted.
- understand and confirm a return time at a rental counter.
Listen once. Try it slowly. Then say it without looking.
Checking available voices…
車はどこで借りられますか。
Where can I rent a car?
Kuruma wa doko de kariraremasu ka.
Polite, standard question. Use it at a hotel front desk, station information counter, or tourist office.
車を借りたいです。
I want to rent a car.
Kuruma o karitai desu.
States your wish directly. Useful when a staff member asks what you need.
国際免許証は使えますか。
Can I use an international driver's licence?
Kokusai menkyoshō wa tsukaemasu ka.
Ask this before choosing a shop. 使えますか (tsukaemasu ka) means 'can it be used?'
返す時間は何時ですか。
What time is the return time?
Kaesu jikan wa nanji desu ka.
Use at the counter to confirm when the car must come back.
保険は入っていますか。
Is insurance included?
Hoken wa haitte imasu ka.
Haitte imasu ka asks whether something is included or already in place.
Pronunciation guides are approximate. Slow playback keeps the original pitch.
Make it make sense
Useful pattern
The pattern どこで借りられますか (doko de kariraremasu ka) means 'where can I rent?' どこ (doko) is 'where', で (de) marks the place where an action happens, and 借りられますか (kariraremasu ka) is the polite potential form of 借ります (karimasu, 'to rent'). You can swap the object: 自転車はどこで借りられますか。 (Jitensha wa doko de kariraremasu ka.) means 'Where can I rent a bicycle?' For a simpler version, say 車はどこで借りられますか。 slowly. If you cannot manage the long potential form, 車を借りたいです。 (Kuruma o karitai desu.) still gets your meaning across.
When to use it
Use the full polite question with staff you do not know: hotel reception, station staff, or a rental counter. With a friend or a casual host, the shorter 車はどこで借りられる？ (Kuruma wa doko de kariraremasu ka.) is fine, but learners should stay with the polite form until they are confident. When you call a rental shop, start with すみません、車を借りたいです。 (Sumimasen, kuruma o karitai desu.) Then ask 国際免許証は使えますか。 (Kokusai menkyoshō wa tsukaemasu ka.) Staff may reply with はい、使えます。 (Hai, tsukaemasu.) or いいえ、使えません。 (Iie, tsukaemasen.) Listen for はい (hai, yes) and いいえ (iie, no).
Listen to each line, then take one part and reply out loud.
すみません、車はどこで借りられますか。
Excuse me, where can I rent a car?Sumimasen, kuruma wa doko de kariraremasu ka.駅の前にレンタカー屋があります。
There is a rental car shop in front of the station.Eki no mae ni rentakā-ya ga arimasu.国際免許証は使えますか。
Can I use an international driver's licence?Kokusai menkyoshō wa tsukaemasu ka.はい、使えます。返す時間は何時ですか。
Yes, you can. What time is the return time?Hai, tsukaemasu. Kaesu jikan wa nanji desu ka.A little context goes a long way
In Japan, rental staff usually speak politely and may use keigo, honorific language. You do not need to reply in keigo; polite です・ます forms are enough. Many shops ask for your driver's licence, passport, and a credit card. Some smaller shops may not accept foreign licences, so asking 国際免許証は使えますか。 early is practical. Also, returning the car late often costs extra, so confirm 返す時間 (kaesu jikan) clearly.
One thing to watch for
Using 車を借りますか。 (Kuruma o karimasu ka.) to ask 'Where can I rent a car?'
Try this instead: 車を借りますか。 means 'Do you rent a car?' or 'Shall I rent a car?' It does not ask where. Use 車はどこで借りられますか。 (Kuruma wa doko de kariraremasu ka.) The particle で after どこ marks the place, and 借りられますか is the potential form meaning 'can rent'.
Your turn
Try answering out loud before checking a possible answer.
1How do you ask 'Where can I rent a car?' politely in Japanese?
Show a sample answer
車はどこで借りられますか。 (Kuruma wa doko de kariraremasu ka.)
This uses どこ (where), で (place marker), and the polite potential 借りられますか. A simpler alternative is 車を借りたいです。 but it states a wish rather than asking where.
2A staff member says 国際免許証は使えません。 What does this mean?
Show a sample answer
You cannot use an international driver's licence.
使えません (tsukaemasen) is the negative polite form of 使えます (tsukaemasu, 'can use'). So the shop does not accept it. If you hear 使えます, it is accepted.
3How do you confirm the return time?
Show a sample answer
返す時間は何時ですか。 (Kaesu jikan wa nanji desu ka.)
返す時間 (kaesu jikan) means 'return time' and 何時 (nanji) means 'what time'. You can also ask 返す時間はいつですか。 (Kaesu jikan wa itsu desu ka.) if you want a date or day rather than a clock time.
Memorise 車はどこで借りられますか。 as your main question, then ask 国際免許証は使えますか。 and 返す時間は何時ですか。 to cover the two most important rental requirements.
Progress is saved on this browser.
Practice real time conversations on Yapr for faster learning.
Put today’s Japanese into a conversation with an AI tutor. Speak, make mistakes, and try again.
Practice on Yapr