kamatacci

Thanks, dsbraid and flbronc, for the suggestions. All this discussion has made me wish we were leaving tomorrow. My son is a huge video game and manga fan, so we'll for sure check out Harijuku and Akihabara. And glad to hear another good report on the Akasaka Prince. We're both apprehensive about the food in Japan, so Wolfgang Puck's sounds like a good fallback. Flbronc, was it easy to do Hakone on your own? I've been debating whether it might be better to do a day tour there.

flbronc

Sorry for the delay... been out of commission ! Anyway, it was easy to do Hakone on my own. There were maps (in English) at the train station that were very detailed and easy to follow. I wish I still had mine - I would get a copy to you. I will double check (I rarely throw things out). The only suggestion I would have is this: if you are interested in the sightseeing trip on one of the boats/pirate ship on the lake do that first. You can then take the cablecar to the top and the lines are not as long as opposed to doing the opposite route. Actually I have found some good info on the lake trip and the various transports. http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e5210.html

This will explain the layout to you and perhaps that will help you decide. Good luck ! You'll have a great time. There are many good restaurants around the hotel also. I will check back more often in case you have other questions

emd

Does your son like Anime also, kamatacci? If so, there is a place at Nakano Mall (which is just outside the Nakono train station in western Tokyo) that is three floors of manga and anime shops. It is called Nakoano Broadway. Big Mandarake store there (famous anime and manga store), and there is also a big Mandarake in Shibuya (which has a cosplay stage). Tell son to google that and he'll find it.