My Thoughts On Visiting Japan
What is some essential knowledge?
7-11 is your best resource. Best ATMs. Best quick-bites. Don’t be ashamed– it's a Japanese company and the Japanese seem to go there a ton.
APA Hotels are everywhere, cheap and consistently excellent. All hotel rooms in Japan are tiny.
Always carry at least $100 worth of Japanese Yen in cash (15,000 JPY). You will occasionally need it.
There are no trash cans anywhere but 7-11. Carry a trash bag in your backpack.
Surprisingly few Japanese speak English, especially outside of major cities. Learn to say “Thank you” “Excuse me”, “Yes/No” and “I do/don't understand”.
Getting common over-the-counter medication in Japan is hell-on-Earth.
Japan Airlines JAL Explorer Pass enables extremely cheap air travel for tourists only. I used it, it's great-- good alternative to bullet trains if going really far.
What should I see in a week?
- A few days in Tokyo
- Pick one/two destinations for an overnight trip. You can take an evening bullet train to almost anywhere major.
What should I see in Tokyo?
Tokyo is divided into 23 wards. Only a handful are common tourist destinations. They are all in the central part of Tokyo.
You can imagine central Tokyo like a clock with the palace in the center and all the interesting wards surrounding it. The Yamanote elevated train line goes in a circle around this clock meaning that you really only need to use one train for your whole stay! And since the train is elevated, you can just ride it in a circle for a lovely tour of the city.
Must See
- Yodabashi Akiba Camera Store - Holy shit. This is the craziest store you will ever go to in your life. They sell literally everything in this towering department store. You can find a $10,000 CD-player and firewood on the same floor. We spent about 8 hours here broken up into 2 hour segments. The top floor is restaurants– I recommend the French Toast Factory. The Japanese make French Toast in a specific way that is the most delicious I’ve ever had. I took my family and all my friends and we all agree on this.
- Shimbashi - A labyrinth of bars and restaurants. Mostly locals! At night, a total must visit. Secret tip: You can go up the stairs on any of the surrounding high-rises and get amazing evening views of Tokyo.
- Ueno - On its own, not a must see– but it's a great home base. It's well connected but a quieter place to stay than others. Home to a major train station, a major park, the Tokyo Dome baseball stadium and a number of museums– but only a short walk are very chill neighborhoods. The Airbnb’s in some of the places make you feel like a local. Early morning walks here are my favorite.
- Akihabara - This is the famous electronics/anime/scale models/video gaming area. Lots of geek shopping.
- Shinjuku Golden Gai - A ton of bars, each the size of a closet, all packed into a tiny district. Go at night and have a drink. It's very unique.
- Ride the Yamanote - Long day and just want to sit and look out the window and see all of the various parts of Tokyo? Take the Yamanote. The front car you can see out the driver’s window– also less crowded. Watch as the train gets crowded and empties at various parts throughout the city.
- Baseball game at Tokyo Dome - Try to get seats near the home team cheering area. Constant songs and cheering. Near 1st base / outfield.
- Asakusa Shrine - We went early in the morning (7AM ish) and were the only people there other than some monks playing the drums and chanting. It was awesome. At night it gets crazy!
See
- Shibuya - This is like NYC Times Square. Home to the famous “Shibuya Scramble” pedestrian crossing. Super touristy. I usually visit this place for a few hours then never come back. Would not recommend getting a hotel here.
- Shinjuku - This is somewhat like NYC Financial District. Home to Tokyo govt. Has a shopping district that IMO is overwhelming and not particularly unique.
- Harajuku - Known for outlandish fashion. On Sunday’s japanese gather in cosplay outfits, otherwise just a ton of vendors selling novelty junk to tourists. One stop from Shibuya.
- Central Tokyo - Like the NYC Financial District. I found the palace grounds super boring. The train station is very good looking though.
- Samurai Museum - Short and sweet.
Avoid
- Ginza - This is like NYC 5th Ave. It's just expensive shopping. Zero culture.
What airport should I fly into?
When you fly into Tokyo, you have two choices: Narita or Haneda.
Having done both a few times, I personally fly into Haneda when I can.
Narita is pretty far away from Tokyo but is better setup to handle international and tourists. I have observed the lines are shorter for immigration and tourism services. But then you have a one hour ride into Tokyo.
Haneda is almost in the center of Tokyo but the lines for immigration and tourism services are much longer. But once you are out of immigration, you take the city trains into Tokyo and the ride is much nicer and more interesting.
What are some side-trips from Tokyo?
Nikko Kinugawa - My all-time favorite family destination outside of Tokyo. You take a train through the countryside to Nikko. Then you take an even smaller train through the forest to Nikko Kinugawa. You are now in a unique hot-spring town built over a river gorge.
In this town is an amazing theme park called “Edo Wonderland” where all the staff dress up in character as if in 1600's Japan. The theme-park replicates a typical Japanese town from this period. You can rent a legit costume from a large catalog and be treated by the staff according to what role you chose. There are a few theaters that have exciting and funny shows. There are cultural activities like a parade for the Geisha and other just-for-fun activities. You will get the best pictures of your entire trip here. About a 2-5 hour visit.
Also in town is a world-class attraction…of miniature world-class attractions. Many famous buildings, castles, palaces, etc from around the world are modeled here in 1:25 scale. The place is called Tobu World Square. It’s about a 1-3 hour visit.
Once extremely popular with the Japanese but now almost abandoned… Nikko Kinugawa has amazing deals on large hotel rooms with river gorge views and private hot-spring fed tubs. I recommend the hotel Mikazuki. Very surreal to walk through a town that was built-up in the 70’s with high-rise hotels but is now a ghost town. With the alpine river gorge, it's all somehow pleasant and relaxing.
Osaka - Famous for having a dense food district– Dotonbori. Really exciting and well lit at night. Many restaurants don’t allow minors. The river running through Dotonbori with all the electric billboards is where you start your culinary journey.
Hiroshima - Actually a very long bullet-train ride but an incredibly interesting and moving experience. Might not be for everyone, but if it sounds interesting to you then you should. The Peace Museum is necessarily intense.
Kyoto - Everyone says to go but when I last went 20 years ago it wasn’t for me. Hesitant to go now since I heard it’s quite crowded.