Tokyo, where to stay and what do to pt 1
Tokyo is a massive city, in fact its the largest city in the world by population. This means theres plenty of choices of where to stay at over 4000 Hotels. The easiest way I found to picture Tokyo is by breaking it down into "neighbourhoods", some of the most well known include Shinjuku, Shibuya, Ginza, Akihabara and Asakusa but theres also some less known names worth checking out. I found the below map by Tara O'Reilly really helpful to picture this:
Each "neighbourhood" offers something a little different, Akihabara is famous for being nerd central with lots of gaming shops but if your looking for great nightlife, Shinjuku and Shibuya should be on your list. If you're looking for affordable but well connected spots then Asakusa is the place to stay, which is also where I ended up staying.
For me Asakusa was a good mixture of things, there was a bit of culture with the nearby Senso-Ji temple, shopping areas just west of the temple, lots of cafe's and restaurants, two metro lines connecting seamlessly to the airport and the rest of Tokyo. But most importantly of all, I managed to get a hotel for roughly $80-90 a night which was neat and clean and right next to a subway entrance.
APA Hotel 285 Asakusa Ekimae
When coming to Japan you will find APA hotels are almost as common as 7/11 convenience stores. Its a large chain that operates over 350 hotels across the country focused on business clients at affordable prices.
Theres a couple elephants in the room with APA as I later discovered including controversies arounds its owners far right politics and cost cutting during construction leaving some 30% of their hotels allegedly not earthquake secure. So take that into consideration when making a booking.
Hotel 285 is one of several APA hotels in the neighbourhood, I liked this location as it was right next to an entrance to the Asakusa subway line which connects you to the airport as well as Shinagawa station where Shinkansen services depart from. For those with luggage, the elevator entrance to the station is conveniently right across the road.
I booked a single room which featured a double bed, desk and chair, bathroom and a large TV screen but not much else. It had a very good aircon system which was needed in the heat as well as a frosted window.
I paid $250 for three nights here via Booking.com and would say it was good value, I ended up spending little time in my room other than sleeping and a daily cool down between all the activities.
The hotel was neat and clean and I was able to check in two hours early for an additional $20 paid on the day. APA does cost cut so you won't have your room made up everyday but simply a bag of towels delivered to your room each day but this didn't bother me very much.
What to do in Tokyo
As said Tokyo is massive and the to do list is equally overwhelming, you could spend a week here easy. Theres lots of choice and some very well known activities. People with kids (or adults who still identify as kids) will have Disneyland and Universal Studios on their list while others will have the Studio Gibli museum on their list or the outer fish markets.
Almost all of the above as I mentioned in my tips post require some form of advance ticket purchase and are in hot demand. For instance two weeks out the tickets to the Studio Gibli museum were sold out.
Knowing I only had three days I focused on a few things including checking out cultural sites, doing some shopping, going to TeamLab Tokyo and eating my way through the countless restaurants across the city.
Meiji Jingu & Harajuku
The shrine dedicated to the spirits of Emperor Meiji and Empress Shoken is located in a large forest bordering Harajuku with the entrance being right by Harajuku station. The parks opening hours differ year round but its commonly open from sunrise to sunset with admission being free. At the entrances of the first you will find large Torii Gates and along the pathways you find various other attractions including the yearly sake barrel offering to the shrine and a number of french wine barrels which are a gift from France and serve as a cultural connector between the two countries.
This was my first stop in Tokyo after arriving and worked well as it was nice and quiet early in the morning, locals use the park to go for walks and runs but also to pray at the shrine. Its very peaceful and serene, at the northern end of the park there is an area covered in grass where you can sit and relax, have a picnic or sunbathe, but a park officer will tell you off for undressing as I witnessed while I was there.
You can also seek your fortune at the shrine and purchase amulets or omamori from 9am onwards, this is also roughly the time that the tours start to arrive which had the sudden effect of making this location far less calm and serene.
As I exited the park I made by may to Harajuku which is well known for its animal cafes and Japanese street fashion, you'll also find Takeshita street here. I sat in a Starbucks while I waited for stores to open and the place to come alive. Here you will also find Uniqlo's T-shirt printing studio where you can have your own specialised t-shirt prints made.
Takeshita st is famous for many things and in my opinion is somewhat over rated, my highlight was finding this capsule machine store. You will find these machines all over Japan where you throw 300-500 yen into the machine to be surprised with a small plastic souvenir. I may have spent a few too many yen here. Woops
Following this I enjoyed lunch at Gyukatsu Motomura which is a chain here in Japan serving fried beef steak which you cook to completion at your table with many sides. This dish and drink cost me about 2600 Yen or about $30 which I thought was good value for the quantity of food.
Senso-Ji Temple and Markets
Located in Asakusa this temple is Tokyos oldest taking back to the year 628. While the temple can be accessed from several ways most commonly you'll find your self walking through the shopping street called Nakamise, here you will find permanent markets open from about 10am-5pm selling all things a tourist may or may not need. Many restaurants also spill out on either side of this street, at the end you will find a primary school on the left and the temple dead ahead.
A great place to read your fortune, buy omamori or attend a festival if one happens to be on at the time your visiting. Senso-ji remains one of the most visited religious sites in the world and similar to the Meiji shrine many come to pray to and worship the goddess this shrine was built for.
The complex is fairly busy even by Tokyo's standards but I found it calms down after about 7-8pm and in summer you can enjoy the sunset here with a drink from a vending machine or a few desert snacks from the markets.
As Asakusa is a hive of activity so you will find many great eateries here, I enjoyed what turned out to be another Japanese chain called "Yakiniku Like" where they serve Japanese BBQ for you to cook at your station similar to Korean BBQ. You can pick your cuts of meat and various sides and drinks. Again 2800 yen gets you several meat options, rice, edamame, lettuce and a drink.
10/10 would recommend.
Part two of Tokyo activities incoming....
