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Tokyo Japan Getaway
60
items In May of 2024, my daughter and I decided to embark on a week long adventure to Tokyo, Japan after their Golden Week.
Map
Sections
12
Transportation
Airport
Apps for Travel
Hotel
Shibuya
Harajuku
Transportation
We travelled by Air Canada. Prior to booking, I did look into flying by Zip Air. Since we were on a specific time schedule, Zip Air was not available for the day that we wanted to return to Canada. It is worth a look as their prices were quite cheap,...
This is a nice afternoon flight which got us into Narita in the mid-afternoon. The customs and immigration there did take about 2 hours which felt like an eternity as we just wanted to get our Tokyo adventure started.
Air Canada
Defnitely worth checking it out to save some money on flights to Japan
Zipair Tokyo
Don't stress before your flight, just book your ride to the airport
Uber Technologies Inc
I decided to get the Suica card but the Pasmo is a good choice too. I ended up with the Suica only because the shop was closer than Pasmo to where I was buying our train tickets.
Suica
Wonderful metro system - made getting around town so easy and convenient
Tokyo Metro Home
Although we didn't use the Pasmo card on this Tokyo trip, this is the other card that you can use the get around town. It works the same way as the Suica card. We were planning to get the Pasmo card at the time since it had a cute Hello Kitty design;...
What is PASMO?｜PASMO
Use a site like Expedia to search for an airline leaving your departure city
Expedia Travel
Super convenient to buy your Welcome Suica card on Klook
Welcome Suica Card Complete Guide: Travel Japan with Ease - Klook
We did not plan to venture out of Tokyo on this trip, but if you do, please plan to purchase your rail pass ahead of time.
Japan Rail Pass
Airport
Easy to navigate through the airport, check-in went smoothly, and security check was quick ~ YVR highly rated and consistently on the Best Airport in North America list and often ranked in the top 20 globally
Vancouver International Airport
Everyone followed along through the long corridors and all filed towards customs and immigration. Once there, it was quick if you did the registration through the app.
NARITA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
We had a stopover in South Korea on our way back home. This is a beautiful airport with so many wonderful amenities for “in transit” travellers. We were able to have a quick little nap in the quiet room and then feasted on delicious food in one of it...
Incheon International Airport
Apps for Travel
Roaming the World… Get all your trusted apps ready to go
Before I leave on any vacation, I always get my eSim downloaded and ready. Roaming is expensive on my mobile plan back home.
Airalo
Hotel
We stayed at Hotel Sardonyx in Chuo City. We had some family that was also in town visiting Tokyo that had arrived a few days before us and they were staying just around the corner, so this hotel was perfect for us to be close to them. The hotel was ...
Hotel Sardonyx Tokyo
Since we had to be at the Narita Airport early in the morning, we decided to stay here the night. This way we didn't have to stress about making our way from our hotel in Tokyo to the train station and then over to Narita Airport. Super convenient ho...
Narita Tobu Hotel Airport - 東武ホテルマネジメント
Use Booking.com to search for the best accommodation to fit any budget
Booking.com | Official site | The best hotels, flights, car rentals ...
Shibuya
A vibrant, trendy district in Tokyo
World-Famous Shibuya Scramble Crossing ~ world's busiest intersection where thousands cross at once
Shibuya Crossing
You can find the famous bronze statue in the Hachiko Square, right outside the Hachiko Exit of the Shibuya Station. The statue honors an Akita dog renowned for his extraordinary loyalty.
Hachiko Statue
This open-air observation deck is atop the Shibuya Scramble Square and offers stunning panoramic city views. On a clear day, you may capture a glimpse of Mt. Fuji! Booking your ticket online in at least 2 weeks in advance is recommended to secure you...
Shibuya Sky
Great shopping mall to stop by and pick up some kawaii trendy clothes
Shibuya 109
If you have Don Quijote on your list of places to shop, then visit the Mega Don Quijote in Shibuya. It is about a 5 minute walk from the Hachiko exit of Shibuya Station. This place is open 24 hours a day, and pretty much offers everything you can thi...
MEGA Don Quijote
Ten floors of shopping bliss to satisfy the whole family, each floor is themed. On the 6th floor, aka Cyberspace Shibuya, you will find the first ever official Nintendo store in Japan, Pokemon Centre, Capcom store, and other Character Goods stores.
Shibuya Parco
Nintendo Tokyo ~ located on the 6th floor of Parco Shopping Mall
Nintendo Tokyo
Pokemon Center Shibuya ~ located on the 6th floor of Parco Shopping Mall
Pokemon Center Shibuya
Capcom Store Tokyo ~ located on the 6th floor of Parco Shopping Mall
CAPCOM STORE TOKYO
Sega Store Tokyo ~ located on the 6th floor of Parco Shopping Mall
SEGA STORE TOKYO
Godzilla Store Shibuya ~ located on the 6th floor of Parco Shopping Mall
Official Godzilla Figures, Toys & Merch | Godzilla Store Tokyo
Kura Sushi - Great place for fresh conveyor-belt sushi
Kura Sushi Shibuya Ekimae
Harajuku
Located between Shibuya and Shinjuku, Harajuku is Tokyo's iconic center of youth fashion ~ aka the area for “kawaii” culture and creative self-expression
This 400m pedestrian alley is famous for youth fashion, quirky boutiques, and IG-worthy street foods.
Takeshita Street (Takeshita-dori) 竹下通り
MiPig Cafe Harajuku - (not the one right on Takeshita Street) Japan's first micro pig cafe offers an unique opportunity to cuddle these clean, intelligent, and cute animals. The cafe is extremely popular so you must make an online reservation in adva...
Mipig Cafe Harajuku
Yummy Tanghulu (candied strawberries on a skewer)
Strawberry Fetish - Sweet in Harajuku
Craving fresh fruit crispy crepes? Stop by this popular spot right at the entrance of Takeshita Street.
"SWEET BOX" Crepe Shop
Great place to pick up items for ¥100 at this 3 floor Daiso. Staff here speaks English.
DAISO Harajuku Store
Japan's largest try-before-you-buy cosmetics specialty store. It is located right in front of the Harajuku Station making it an easy stop after a day of sightseeing.
＠cosme TOKYO Harajuku
Shinjuku
Known as a major global hub for business, entertainment, and transportation
The Shinjuku Station is the world's busiest railway station which sees more than 2 million passengers daily.
Cute, warm, and cozy Sanrio character cafe ~ located on the ground floor of the Shinjuku Marui Annex mall. This cafe does not take reservations. We went right at opening on a weekday, and we didn't have any problems getting a table for 8 people.
Cinnamoroll Cafe
If you didn't have a chance to visit Shibuya Sky or Tokyo Skytree, then take some time and visit the free observation decks in the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building for its amazing panoramic views of the city.
Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building (Tocho)
The kids had a kick out of seeing this in person!
Godzilla Head
So fun to see such a big cat come to life!
The Giant 3D Cat
Worth checking out! They offer 2 tour options: the e-scooter tour for ages 16 and up and the walking tour
Tokyo Ninja Ride: Electric Scooter Street Adventure
Dress in traditional samurai attire which includes a kimono and hakama and learn the fundamentals of swordsmanship
Tokyo Samurai Experience - Klook
Disney Sea
Magical World of Disney Sea ~ the only Disney Sea in the world is here
One of the happiest place on Earth ~ We checked the crowd map and picked a day that wasn't going to be busy and it was pretty accurate. The kids were able to go on a few rides multiple times without much wait. Absolutely Magical at DisneySea!
Tokyo DisneySea
Park Hopper would be ideal if you want to visit both Disneyland and DisneySea on the same day. We decided to just spend our whole day at DisneySea so we opted out of the park hopper.
Tokyo Disneyland & Tokyo DisneySea Park Ticket - Klook
Ginza
The city's most famous shopping districts packed with internationally renowned departments stores and boutiques, upscale sushi bars, restaurants, and coffeehouses.
This market is known as Japan's “Food Town” where you can encounter all kinds of traditional Japanese foods.
Welcome to Tsukiji｜The Tsukiji Outer Market - 築地場外市場
You can watch Traditional Japanese Kabuki performances here in the refurbished theatre.
Kabukiza Theatre
Check out this living art exhibition in Ginza! You will see thousands of goldfish and koi in specially designed tanks that change with teh seasons.
Art Aquarium Museum GINZA Ticket - Klook
We didn't have time to fit this into our schedule, but the kids were interested in attending this sumo experience. We will have to try this on our next Tokyo visit.
Tokyo: Sumo Show and Mikoshi Experience - Klook
Minato City
The city is known for its blend of modern skyscrapers, historic sites, international embassies, and upscale residential areas. Major business hubs are located here like Honda and Sony.
Must visit this stunning exhibit ~ Such a mesmerizing art experience
teamLab Borderless: MORI Building DIGITAL ART MUSEUM
This iconic symbol of Tokyo provides panoramic city views from its observation decks.
Tokyo Tower
A historic Buddhist temple with the mausoleum of
Tokugawa shoguns. If you plan to visit the temple and want to head up to the top deck of Tokyo Tower, consider joining the half-day guided walking tour.
Tokugawa shoguns. If you plan to visit the temple and want to head up to the top deck of Tokyo Tower, consider joining the half-day guided walking tour.
Zojo-ji Temple
A man-made island in Tokyo Bay with futuristic architecture, shopping, and entertainment.
A guide to Odaiba - Tokyo's entertainment island
After our scheduled visit at Teamlabs, we made our way over to have dinner here at Gonpachi. This legendary Japanese izakaya is also known as the Kill Bill restaurant. Overall the food was tasty, the atmosphere was vibrant, price was very reasonable,...
Gonpachi Nishi-Azabu
Taito City
This is Tokyo's smallest special ward but one of the most culturally significant. It houses Tokyo's oldest temple and has the city's largest concentration of museums.
Located inside the Ueno Park and is Japan's oldest zoo.
Ueno Zoo
Tokyo's oldest Buddhist temple founded in 645. Your enter through the iconic Kaminarimon (Thunder Gate) and walk down Nakamise-dori, which is a 250m shopping street lined with shops selling traditional snack and crafts.
Sensō-ji
Such a great time dressing up in full ninja outfits and learning ninja skills like throwing shuriken, using a blow dart, and handling a Japanese sword. It was a wonderful family-friendly experience.
Ninja Experience Cafe Asakusa In Tokyo
Great activity to do with the kids in between sightseeing in the area
Tokyo Asakusa Food Sample Making Experience Cafe
Dress in a traditional kimono and stroll through the photogenic district of Asakusa
Asakusa No.1 Kimono Experience｜Best Value Full Service
Narita
Best known as the home of Narita International Airport
Wander through the historic streets checking out traditional crafts and trying the different treats
Naritasan Omotesando Street
Historic Edo-Period Streets in Sawara
Sawara | Travel Japan
Largest Buddhist Temple in Narita dating back to AD 940 known for its fire rituals - not far from Narita Airport
Naritasan Shinsho-ji Temple
This is great for those who have a 3-4 hours layover or in transit. Most people don't take the time to explore Narita, but it is such a delight to stroll through the Edo-Period preserved town.
For Narita Airport Users: Layover or Transit Guided Private Tour