I only have about a week in July for a vacation. Would y ou recommend Tokyo or Beijing?
My concerns about Tokyo are the cost and are there enough things to do for a whole week? Concerns about Beijing are related to smog and safety. Can anyone recommend one over the other or address any of my concerns?

You can be sure Beijing will have lots of smog.

Is there enough to do in Tokyo for a week? Absolutely.

But neither place will be very hospitable in July - it will be hot and will feel hotter from all of the reflected hat from the pavement and buildings.

Is there a reason you are restricting yourself to these two cities?

Ditto everything Kathie said.

Thank you Kathie. I will have to deal with the heat as that is when I get my vacation- July. I'm more worried about having enough to do in either one of those cities. you didn't mention stuff to do in Beijing- what is your opinion as I'm leaning towards that city over Tokyo right now but interested that you said, "absolutely" about Tokyo. Are you trying to persuade me to chose Tokyo? I'm interested in Asia and would prefer a city that I get fly to direct from Chicago. Vietnam takes too logn and I have been to Thailand before. would appreciate grealy any further comments and thank you.

IMO, Beijing deserves AT LEAST 6 or 7 days, if not more. I spent more than 7 days there and did not see everything I would have liked to see. There certainly is enough to see in Tokyo for a week's visit, especially if you include some day trips. For my interests, given a tight time line, I gave Tokyo 3 days (plus a few days that could have been done as a day trip, although I didn't) and felt comfortable with that choice. To be clear, I wasn't all that interested in the modern parts of either city, and was instead focused on the older sections. It really depends on what YOU want to see and experience. For what to see in either city, a good guidebook or two will prove invaluable. Also check trip reports on this board and especially the planning threads, where you can learn what people considered and why they did/did not pursue those options. As you consider your options, do some research on pollution in Beijing -- it has become a very serious problem for an incredibly fascinating city.

Madboy, I responded specifically about there being enough to do in Tokyo because you questioned that. I assumed you knew there was enough to do in Beijing.