Anyone versed in travelling to Tokyo?

[Tweak155]

Hey guys,

Looking to book a vacation next year - destination Tokyo. Wanted to go there for a few years now but just never set it up. Always thought it was a really big trip to plan.

Now that we're actually doing it, I find out I'm either right, or we are complicating things. We really only have 2 main goals:

1 - Stay in Tokyo, likely near the bullet train system for easy travel.
2 - Visit Kyoto and see a lot of the traditional areas there

What's the best plan of action to take? We set aside a full 7 days for the trip, but is that enough? What's the best way to go about it? Outside of Kyoto, we just want to visit popular areas inside of Tokyo. We were thinking 1 full day in Kyoto and the rest in Tokyo, but that might not be realistic if Kyoto has a lot to take in.

We don't really have a budget per say, but saving where it makes sense doesn't hurt.

If anyone lives there and isn't afraid to meet an AT'er, let me know!

 

[LevelSea]

May want to pick up one of these if you plan on doing a lot of traveling: http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2361.html

I'd try to stay somewhere near to Yamanote line too. It's the main loop around Tokyo, and you'll be able to hit the major spots without transferring.

 

[NikolaeVarius]

http://wikitravel.org/en/Tokyo

Have fun

 

[OogyWaWa]

I've lived in Tokyo for the past 4 years.

Stay here: http://en.parkhoteltokyo.com/ it's the best bang for buck. ~120 USD/night but awesome hotel and great location. Easy access to Tokyo station for the bullet train to Kyoto

The station itself is near a number of main lines so easy to get to the hotspots in Tokyo.

7 days for just Tokyo could be just enough or too much depending on what you want to do. I wouldn't stay in Tokyo alone for longer than that. If you're going to spend a few days in Kyoto, the whole trip might be a bit rushed with just 7 days, but it's doable.

You're not going to be able to do anything with 1 day return journey from Kyoto - you need to spend the night at least. So thats technically 2 full days including journey time. In my opinion that's plenty of time in Kyoto, but then again I'm not into the temples and whatnot, so I get bored with them easily. Some people spend 3-5 days there... i dont know how

How many people and what age range? Tokyo nightlife is the bomb if you're into that kind of thing..

I might be willing to meet up, but depends on timing and all... got a baby on the way

 

[Tweak155]

May want to pick up one of these if you plan on doing a lot of traveling: http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2361.html

I'd try to stay somewhere near to Yamanote line too. It's the main loop around Tokyo, and you'll be able to hit the major spots without transferring.

Yeah we found this site, but that site lists a pass as 7 consecutive days, but when you look at the official site it looks like 5 days only. Part of our struggle as 7 days would be better.

http://wikitravel.org/en/Tokyo

Have fun

Nice site, thanks.

 

[MongGrel]

I've lived in Tokyo for the past 4 years.

Stay here: http://en.parkhoteltokyo.com/ it's the best bang for buck. ~120 USD/night but awesome hotel and great location. Easy access to Tokyo station for the bullet train to Kyoto

The station itself is near a number of main lines so easy to get to the hotspots in Tokyo.

7 days for just Tokyo could be just enough or too much depending on what you want to do. I wouldn't stay in Tokyo alone for longer than that. If you're going to spend a few days in Kyoto, the whole trip might be a bit rushed with just 7 days, but it's doable.

You're not going to be able to do anything with 1 day return journey from Kyoto - you need to spend the night at least. So thats technically 2 full days including journey time. In my opinion that's plenty of time in Kyoto, but then again I'm not into the temples and whatnot, so I get bored with them easily. Some people spend 3-5 days there... i dont know how

How many people and what age range? Tokyo nightlife is the bomb if you're into that kind of thing..

I might be willing to meet up, but depends on timing and all... got a baby on the way

+1 this sounds like your man to be talking to right there.

 

[Tweak155]

I've lived in Tokyo for the past 4 years.

Stay here: http://en.parkhoteltokyo.com/ it's the best bang for buck. ~120 USD/night but awesome hotel and great location. Easy access to Tokyo station for the bullet train to Kyoto

The station itself is near a number of main lines so easy to get to the hotspots in Tokyo.

7 days for just Tokyo could be just enough or too much depending on what you want to do. I wouldn't stay in Tokyo alone for longer than that. If you're going to spend a few days in Kyoto, the whole trip might be a bit rushed with just 7 days, but it's doable.

You're not going to be able to do anything with 1 day return journey from Kyoto - you need to spend the night at least. So thats technically 2 full days including journey time. In my opinion that's plenty of time in Kyoto, but then again I'm not into the temples and whatnot, so I get bored with them easily. Some people spend 3-5 days there... i dont know how

How many people and what age range? Tokyo nightlife is the bomb if you're into that kind of thing..

I might be willing to meet up, but depends on timing and all... got a baby on the way

Thanks for the hotel suggestion! Very reasonable price, pretty sure we'll book that.

We're 27 & 30. We like walking around and just seeing what there is to see. Our past few trips (including our trip coming up here in a few days), we just book a popular location, get there and then figure out what to do. It's worked out really well for us so far.

I'm just nervous to do that in this case because this is our first time crossing the ocean and we don't speak the language. I'm more inclined to plan most of the trip in this scenario.

 

[OogyWaWa]

Thanks for the hotel suggestion! Very reasonable price, pretty sure we'll book that.

We're 27 & 30. We like walking around and just seeing what there is to see. Our past few trips (including our trip coming up here in a few days), we just book a popular location, get there and then figure out what to do. It's worked out really well for us so far.

I'm just nervous to do that in this case because this is our first time crossing the ocean and we don't speak the language. I'm more inclined to plan most of the trip in this scenario.

Tokyo is an _awesome_ place for doing just that. In fact, me and my wife sometimes just hop on a train and get off at a random stop to see what the area is like. We're always finding interesting little spots... my wife is Japanese and I speak it, but you will be fine pretty much anywhere you go. Not a lot of people speak 'good' english, but enough to get by and people are very friendly. If anything they'll be apologizing for their crappy english. You may run into an old fogey shop owner here and there that doesn't want to deal with the hassle of trying to communicate, but that's not too common.

Browse around on lonely planet, wiki travel & japan guide. Most of the advice is pretty good.

My family came for my wedding a few months ago, a lot of them for the first time. Of the things they enjoyed most:
1) Food (tonkatsu, sushi, okonomiyaki, yakiniku, ramen being the crowd pleasers)
2) Tsukiji (fish market)
3) Asakusa
4) Day trip to fuji (you can find on viator). Leaves in the morning by bus, returns at night by bullet train. Bus will come directly to that hotel by the way.

I would also recommend you stay in a 'ryokan' at least one night - preferably in Kyoto. It's more expensive than a western style hotel, but you won't get an experience like it in most other places around the world. The food is awesome and the baths are cool too. Don't worry about customs or anything, they all have english speaking staff and will tell you how to use the public baths (or have signs in english).

If you want a quick side trip from Tokyo, go to Hakone for a decent ryokan. Kamakura/Enoshima is a good day trip from Tokyo as well. Lots of neat stuff there too.


If you want to explore Tokyo... areas I recommend are:
Shinjuku (particularly Shinjuku 3-chome)
Shibuya
Kichijoji
Nippori

 

[SagaLore]

Instead of Tokyo, I recommend Shibuya. It's several stops away from Tokyo on the Yaminote line, which goes in a full circle, and itself is also a major hub for other rail lines.

 

[wetech]

Tokyo is an _awesome_ place for doing just that. In fact, me and my wife sometimes just hop on a train and get off at a random stop to see what the area is like. We're always finding interesting little spots... my wife is Japanese and I speak it, but you will be fine pretty much anywhere you go. Not a lot of people speak 'good' english, but enough to get by and people are very friendly. If anything they'll be apologizing for their crappy english. You may run into an old fogey shop owner here and there that doesn't want to deal with the hassle of trying to communicate, but that's not too common.

Browse around on lonely planet, wiki travel & japan guide. Most of the advice is pretty good.

My family came for my wedding a few months ago, a lot of them for the first time. Of the things they enjoyed most:
1) Food (tonkatsu, sushi, okonomiyaki, yakiniku, ramen being the crowd pleasers)
2) Tsukiji (fish market)
3) Asakusa
4) Day trip to fuji (you can find on viator). Leaves in the morning by bus, returns at night by bullet train. Bus will come directly to that hotel by the way.

I would also recommend you stay in a 'ryokan' at least one night - preferably in Kyoto. It's more expensive than a western style hotel, but you won't get an experience like it in most other places around the world. The food is awesome and the baths are cool too. Don't worry about customs or anything, they all have english speaking staff and will tell you how to use the public baths (or have signs in english).

If you want a quick side trip from Tokyo, go to Hakone for a decent ryokan. Kamakura/Enoshima is a good day trip from Tokyo as well. Lots of neat stuff there too.


If you want to explore Tokyo... areas I recommend are:
Shinjuku (particularly Shinjuku 3-chome)
Shibuya
Kichijoji
Nippori

Hakone is cool. Check out the hot springs, get a black egg. If you're into the bar scene, goto Roppongi at night (kinda like Time Square). I second Tsukiji, but make sure you get there early (6:00-ish) to be able to see an auction. Your first day in town is probably best, as you'll be jet lagged to hell and up at 3:00 am anyway. Also, get a PassMo card for the subway and fill it up with 2000 yen (refill as necessary). It will work on all the subway and rail lines.

Language shouldn't be a problem in Tokyo itself as Oogy says; signs are also mostly bilingual. Smaller towns are a different story.

 

[evident]

I go to Japan several times a year 2-3 nights in tokyo at a time then going to different cities... Tokyo has so much cool stuff to do. Do you want to stay somewhere where you can go out, and then if you miss the midnight subway, can take a cab back? if so, i'd recommend staying in Shinjuku, or Shibuya somewhere. lots of fun nightlife in both places, and even in Roppongi too, but I wouldn't recommend that area for first timers because it's mostly sleazy ex-pats and scammers.

During the day, one of my favorite areas is Shimokitazawa. its a great place for young people to hang out (i'm 29). great microbrewery there, food and music scene and so on. it's much more laid back than shibuya or shinjuku and a great break of pace from what you think is normal tokyo. Definitely check out Tsukiji before it gets bulldozed. once it's gone, it's gone and that will be a sad, sad day. I'd recommend not going to the sky tree or tokyo tower unless if you have time to kill and love to stand in line. I've been to both places just because some coworkers wanted to go and had a change in my original plans. you could just go to the shinjuku gov't building for free and get a good view also.

Asakusa is a cool place to visit during the day, along with Kappabashi nearby if you want to get some good kitchen knives as souviniers.
also close is the Yanaka district it has the really old school flavor of the city that i really enjoy

yokohama is nice to check out. it's a quick 500 yen subway ride away.
if you like food, check out the ramen museum there. Nissan also has a great museum there too.

If you WEREN'T going to kyoto, I think Kamakura would be a good excursion to see some temples, but i would skip it since you're planning to go to Kyoto

Best place to stay "access" wise would be Shinagawa station (prince hotel complex), but it just seems like a transit area to me. not many things to do or walk around in that area. but it's easy to get to Narita, and the shinkansen bullet train to kyoto.


I'd be happy to help you plan your tokyo trip, since i've been trying to get my wife to come with me on one my trips these times and will give me ideas of where to take her since it would be her first time

 

[Tweak155]

I go to Japan several times a year 2-3 nights in tokyo at a time then going to different cities... Tokyo has so much cool stuff to do. Do you want to stay somewhere where you can go out, and then if you miss the midnight subway, can take a cab back? if so, i'd recommend staying in Shinjuku, or Shibuya somewhere. lots of fun nightlife in both places, and even in Roppongi too, but I wouldn't recommend that area for first timers because it's mostly sleazy ex-pats and scammers.

During the day, one of my favorite areas is Shimokitazawa. its a great place for young people to hang out (i'm 29). great microbrewery there, food and music scene and so on. it's much more laid back than shibuya or shinjuku and a great break of pace from what you think is normal tokyo. Definitely check out Tsukiji before it gets bulldozed. once it's gone, it's gone and that will be a sad, sad day. I'd recommend not going to the sky tree or tokyo tower unless if you have time to kill and love to stand in line. I've been to both places just because some coworkers wanted to go and had a change in my original plans. you could just go to the shinjuku gov't building for free and get a good view also.

Asakusa is a cool place to visit during the day, along with Kappabashi nearby if you want to get some good kitchen knives as souviniers.
also close is the Yanaka district it has the really old school flavor of the city that i really enjoy

yokohama is nice to check out. it's a quick 500 yen subway ride away.
if you like food, check out the ramen museum there. Nissan also has a great museum there too.

If you WEREN'T going to kyoto, I think Kamakura would be a good excursion to see some temples, but i would skip it since you're planning to go to Kyoto

Best place to stay "access" wise would be Shinagawa station (prince hotel complex), but it just seems like a transit area to me. not many things to do or walk around in that area. but it's easy to get to Narita, and the shinkansen bullet train to kyoto.


I'd be happy to help you plan your tokyo trip, since i've been trying to get my wife to come with me on one my trips these times and will give me ideas of where to take her since it would be her first time

Wow, thanks for the offer. I bet my wife will want to take you up on that!

 

[Imp]

Love Tokyo, haven't been, plan on it.

If you're concerned about language, blowing ~US$ 180 on Rosetta Stone probably isn't a bad idea. No, you won't be fluent, but I've picked up a ton of Spanish and Mandarin words with it.

 

[litttlechica]

Wow, thanks for the offer. I bet my wife will want to take you up on that!

I am here to take you up on that offer.

PM me when you get the chance.

Thanks!

 

[evident]

Love Tokyo, haven't been, plan on it.

If you're concerned about language, blowing ~US$ 180 on Rosetta Stone probably isn't a bad idea. No, you won't be fluent, but I've picked up a ton of Spanish and Mandarin words with it.

I mean to say this in the nicest way possible but Rosetta stone absolutely is the worst language learning tool when it comes from a native english speaker trying to learn japanese! If you're strapped on time, i would give japanesepod101.com a try and listen to their newbie podcasts. the first few ones are free. also, pimsleur's japanese audio tapes are good too.

if you have time, learning katakana and hiragana will really help you out. you can memorize those characters in about 30 days. katakana help you read foreign loan words when you're there. hiragana is also useful as well.