What should I be aware of when travelling as a tattooed person?

In Japanese culture, tattoos are historically seen as a sign of belonging to the mafia, the Yakuza. This makes the public's view of tattoos in general very different from ours. Because the government is doing everything it can to keep the yakuza out of the public eye, in many places tattooed people are not allowed to visit public swimming pools, saunas or gyms. Many establishments have signs posted showing tattooed people crossed out. And since the Japanese tend to be quite strict about rules, this rule applies to foreigners as well. If you ignore this rule, you will probably be asked to leave in no uncertain terms.

Here too, as in some other Arab states, tattoos have a rather bad reputation and are only tolerated. In the Muslim faith, religious scholars argue whether tattoos are a sin. Some are convinced that they are. Most tattoos should not cause problems in Dubai, but there are reports of people with tattoos attacking religion or showing violent images being expelled from the country.

Here you get as a tourist with tattoos certainly no problems. There are many young backpackers from the West who are tattooed and also the Thais like to get tattoos. However, Buddha images on the skin are often perceived as disrespect for the religion. When visiting temples, be sure to cover them up. And since 2011 it has been forbidden for tattoo artists there to engrave Buddha motifs.

Generally, in most countries around the world, you should cover up in religious places, such as temples, churches or mosques, and hide your tattoos if possible. Most of the time it is not directly forbidden to show them, but it is taken as disrespect towards the religion of the people there. As a rule, however, one is perceived as an innocent tourist and pointed out in a friendly manner. Because of course, one can never study all the rules and customs of another culture beforehand. But if you behave respectfully and ask in case of doubt, you should not get any problems.