Tokyo東京

Plan a Tokyo trip

Neighbourhoods

Asakusa

Old downtown Tokyo: the Senso-ji temple and its Nakamise souvenir street, rickshaws, traditional sweets, and Tokyo Skytree rising across the river. The city's most atmospheric, lower-cost quarter — best early before the crowds.

Shibuya

Tokyo at full volume: the famous scramble crossing, the Hachiko statue, towering screens, fashion buildings and a rooftop sky deck — plus tiny drinking alleys tucked behind it all. Youthful, neon, endlessly walkable.

Shinjuku

The world's busiest station and a neighbourhood of extremes: the serene Gyoen garden, free skyscraper views from the Metropolitan Government Building, the retro food alleys of Omoide Yokocho, and the neon nightlife of Kabukicho. Something open at every hour.

Ueno

Culture and bustle around Ueno Park: Japan's greatest museums, a zoo with pandas, and the boisterous Ameyoko market street beside the station. A family-friendly, good-value day in the old east side.

Harajuku & Meiji Jingu

A study in contrasts: the vast forested Meiji Shrine and Yoyogi Park on one side, and the teen-fashion frenzy of Takeshita Street with the upscale boutiques of Omotesando on the other. Shrine in the morning, shopping and crepes after.

Ginza

Tokyo's most elegant shopping district — flagship department stores and luxury boutiques along Chuo-dori (pedestrianised on weekend afternoons), the kabuki theatre, and serious sushi down the side streets. Refined, grown-up window-shopping.

Akihabara

'Akiba' — the electronics-and-otaku capital: multi-floor camera megastores, anime and figure shops, retro-game dens, arcades and maid cafés. Sensory overload, best dived into on foot.

Tokyo Station & Marunouchi

The polished business core: the restored red-brick Tokyo Station, tree-lined Naka-dori boutiques, the KITTE and Marunouchi buildings, and the moats and lawns of the Imperial Palace East Gardens just west. Smart, central and superbly connected.

Tsukiji & Toyosu (Markets)

Tokyo's seafood heart: the buzzing Tsukiji Outer Market for street-food and knives, the giant modern Toyosu wholesale market with its tuna auction, and teamLab Planets' digital-art baths a short walk away. Come hungry and early.

Odaiba

A man-made bayfront island of malls, a beach with Rainbow Bridge views and a replica Statue of Liberty, the life-size Unicorn Gundam, and big entertainment complexes. Reached by the driverless Yurikamome over the bay — a fun, family-friendly half-day.

Roppongi

Tokyo's art-and-nightlife district: the Mori Art Museum and Tokyo City View atop Roppongi Hills, the design-led Tokyo Midtown and Suntory Museum, teamLab Borderless at Azabudai Hills, and after dark a dense run of bars and clubs. A culture-by-day, lights-by-night neighborhood.

Ikebukuro

A busy north-Tokyo hub built around the Sunshine City complex — an aquarium in the sky, an observation deck, planetarium and malls — plus 'Otome Road', the anime-and-manga strip aimed at female fans, and some of the city's most beloved ramen. Less polished than Shibuya, more everyday Tokyo.

Nakameguro & Daikanyama

Tokyo's most stylish low-rise quarter: the willow-and-cherry-lined Meguro River with its canal-side cafés (peak magic in late-March blossom season), the book-lover's Daikanyama T-Site, and a slow drift of design shops, roasteries and bistros. A grown-up, unhurried day.

Yanaka

Old 'shitamachi' Tokyo that survived the war and the bubble: temple-lined lanes, a cherry-blossom cemetery, the wisteria-famous Nezu Shrine, and the nostalgic Yanaka Ginza shopping street with its cats, croquettes and traditional sweets. The city at walking pace.

Ryogoku

The home of sumo: the Kokugikan arena hosts three of the six annual grand tournaments, the streets are dotted with sumo stables and chanko-nabe hotpot restaurants, and the Sumida Hokusai Museum and Kyu-Yasuda garden round out an Edo-flavoured day east of the Sumida River.

Shimokitazawa

Tokyo's bohemian heart — a car-light maze of vintage-clothing stores, tiny live-music venues and fringe theatres, second-hand record shops, soup-curry joints and indie cafés. Recently joined by the BONUS TRACK and reload low-rise complexes. Best wandered slowly with no plan.

Tokyo Disney Resort (Maihama)

Japan's Disney twin-park resort, a short train ride east of central Tokyo: the classic Tokyo Disneyland and the world-unique, nautical Tokyo DisneySea, plus the Ikspiari mall and resort hotels. Each park is a full day on its own — buy dated tickets ahead and pick one per visit.

Warner Bros. Studio Tour Tokyo (Nerima)

Residential north-west Tokyo whose draw is the Warner Bros. Studio Tour Tokyo — 'The Making of Harry Potter', a vast indoor walk-through of film sets, props and effects on the former Toshimaen site. Pre-booked, weatherproof and stroller-friendly; pair it with the big family green of Hikarigaoka Park.

Kichijoji

Repeatedly voted Tokyo's most liveable suburb: the lake, swan boats and cherry trees of Inokashira Park, the Ghibli Museum on its western edge (separate timed ticket), and a dense, walkable grid of shopping arcades, the retro Harmonica Yokocho alley and beloved cheap eats. A relaxed, local, family-friendly day.

Koenji

Tokyo's punk-and-vintage soul: streets thick with second-hand clothing stores, record shops, tiny live houses and cheap izakaya, plus the Awa Odori dance festival each August. Grittier and more local than Shimokitazawa, it rewards aimless wandering and bar-hopping after dark.

Nakano

An alternative Akihabara: the warren-like Nakano Broadway mall is a temple of vintage manga, figures, retro toys and the original Mandarake, reached down the covered Sun Mall arcade packed with cheap eats and izakaya. A deeper, more collector-driven otaku day, with the old Araiyakushi temple a short walk north.

Ebisu

A grown-up dining-and-drinking quarter named after the beer first brewed here: the elegant Yebisu Garden Place with its beer museum and château restaurant, the buzzing lantern-lit Ebisu Yokocho, and streets of quietly excellent restaurants. Sophisticated and relaxed, and a short walk from Daikanyama.

Getting there

Haneda Airport (HND)

Closest airport — ~30-45 min to central Tokyo by Tokyo Monorail or Keikyu line.

Narita Airport (NRT)

~60-90 min via the Narita Express (to Tokyo/Shinjuku) or the Keisei Skyliner (to Ueno).

Shinjuku Station (Odakyu Romancecar)

Odakyu Romancecar from Shinjuku to Hakone-Yumoto (~85 min); the Fuji Excursion limited express runs Shinjuku → Kawaguchiko (~2h).

Tokyo Station

The Tokaido/Tohoku/Hokuriku Shinkansen hub — ~2h20 to Kyoto/Osaka.

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Plan a Tokyo trip