vswish

Hello; My family will be visiting Tokyo for 10 days in June. We have a 17 year old daughter and a 12 year old son. We will be spending all of our nights at a hotel in Minato-ku. I have many questions and am hoping for some help:

- To get from the airport to the hotel, I believe we take the Narita Express to Shinagawa Station and then a taxi to the hotel. Do we need to purchase the train tickets before we leave?

- What would you recommend seeing and doing with a family?

- Do I need to make a reservation to visit the Imperial Palace? Is this worth seeing?

- Should we take a half-day sightseeing tour when we first arrive?

- Are day trips difficult to plan? I've read that Kamakura might be a worthwhile trip.

- What other advice or suggestions do you have?

Thanks so much for your help!

hawaiiantraveler

<i>To get from the airport to the hotel, I believe we take the Narita Express to Shinagawa Station and then a taxi to the hotel. Do we need to purchase the train tickets before we leave?</i>

No, you purchase them after you exit customs at NRT. There is the NEX/SUICA deal still available that will get you your NEX train ticket and a SUICA card for your subway and train travel in Tokyo and elswhere SUICA is taken(all of Japan).

http://www.jreast.co.jp/e/suica-nex/index.html

With so many people and luggage in tow you might want to take the limosine bus straight to your hotel and get the door to door service that provides. They also have a special going called the limo bus and metro pass which will get you a one day Tokyo Metro pass along with your bus ticket. See here:
http://www.limousinebus.co.jp/discou.../en/index.html

http://www.limousinebus.co.jp/en/

With family, have you seen this site yet?

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2164.html

<i>Do I need to make a reservation to visit the Imperial Palace? Is this worth seeing?</i>

You cannot get into the palace and they only open it up two days a year and then a limited area only. See the previous link I left for information regarding the palace and the other questions you are asking about.

It is very easy to travel and to plan travel within Japan on your own without the need of a tour or giudes. That said, if I wanted to do a tour I would wait until I got to the hotel and book with one of the local travel agencies(in your hotel lobby)which would give you a better rate and up to date info.

Aloha!

someotherguy

<b>hawaiiantraveler</b>: I've no personal experience of this, but the japan-guide page you link to above says "<i>guided tours of the palace are offered in Japanese, with an English pamphlet and audio guide provided. Tours must be reserved in advance with the Imperial Household Agency. Reservations can be made over the internet</i>". It gives a link to the application form (which is unavailable until 5am Tokyo time).

someotherguy

<b>vswish</b>, the JNTO has printable guides to pretty much all of Japan at http://www.jnto.go.jp/eng/location/rtg/index.html . Take a look at the ones for Tokyo Walks and Kamakura and see if they give you any ideas. Kamakura was the effective capital of Japan for 150 years or so and there's a lot of temples and interesting sights there. You can catch the train to Kamakura from Shinagawa.

panda2ac

I'd suggest the following day trips from Tokyo:
Nikko - http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3800.html. If you go, I'd suggest getting the World Heritage Pass from Tobu Railways at Asakusa Station. Pass includes rail ticket. http://www.tobu.co.jp/foreign/pass/w_heritage_pass.html

Hakone - You can get the Hakone Free Pass from Odakyu railways. http://www.odakyu.jp/english/freepass/hakone_01.html

hawaiiantraveler

someotherguy, sorry for being too discreet but that's why I left the link

Aloha!

offlady

I highly recommend getting the SUICA card mentioned by hawaiiantraveler. It makes it so much easier buying train tickets, and convenient for making purchases from vending machines and shops that accepts them. similar to our debit cards.

HappyMom32

Do you consider visiting Disneysea?

I am also planning a 5-day Tokyo trip with 2 teenagers and could not decide if this is worth it and if the shows are all in Japanese and we won't be able to enjoy the stories.

vswish

Thanks so much for all of your help!

For the limosine bus - is this something I need to schedule in advance with my hotel? (We are staying at the Sheraton.) Or are these buses just waiting at the airport? Sounds like this is probably a better way to get to the hotel - and a lot less stressful.

We are considering Disney, but we live in California so we've been to Disneyland many times.

Thank you for the ideas on day trips. I will look at all of the links you have provided.

Appreciate your help and will be back with more questions soon!

hawaiiantraveler

For limo bus:
Just as you exit customs you will be in a large area with money exchangers, car rentals and the limosine bus ticket counters. The people at the desk speak English and will help you with your tickets direct to your hotel. You will need yen for this transaction as it is cash only I am pretty sure. If you need yen, right behind you will be a bank desk where you can exchange your currency for yen or there are a couple of ATM machines but the desks are easier imho. Don't forget to ask for the bus/Tokyo metro pass deal. After you get your ticket they will tell you what bus stop number your bus will arrive at and you go out the door behind the desk and the numbered bus stops are all right there in front. The stops all have digital signs above in English and Japanese announcing the times of the next buses so wait in line till you see your bus coming up and que in with the rest of the people at the right time. The baggage handlers will load the luggage into the bus for you and your off to your hotel.

The fares and time schedules for buses to and from your hotel are listed in the link I left above.

If you buy a round trip ticket you qualify for the two day Tokyo metro pass but can only buy those at Narita Airport so would have to buy then.

Aloha!

hawaiiantraveler

sidenote: if you've been to Disneyland numerous times it is all the more reason for you to experience a Disney property in a foreign country. The differences and similarities alone are worth the price of admission. You have never seen a more ardent Disney fan than the Japanese, believe me. This from a person who has also been to Disneyland numerous times. In fact, amongst all the times I have been there included are the 10,20th,30th,40th and 50th anniversaries(well 51, I missed it by 2 months)and all visits to all other Disney venues world wide. Have also been to the 25th Anniversary in Orlando so I know of what I speak,lol.

Aloha!

someotherguy

You might find these reports by <b>emd</b> of trips to Japan with children useful

http://www.fodors.com/community/asia...e-girl.cfm?117

http://www.fodors.com/community/asia...rt-305.cfm?110

dreaming

I was in Tokyo in February with my 11 and 8 year olds...

We stayed at the Shinagawa Prince, so took the NEX from Narita to Shinagawa and walked over to the hotel.

The big winner in Tokyo for my 11 year old son was Tokyo Joypolis. We decided not to do Disney because of lines/wait times, etc., and the kids were very happy with Joypolis.

They thought Shibuya Crossing was interesting for a very brief visit - but were more interested in the cheesecake restaurant that overlooked the crossing than the crossing itself.

My DD enjoyed people watching in Harajuku (I think a 17 y/o would enjoy it too), with a visit to the nearby Meiji temple.

We also took a shortened version of Frommer's Tokyo walking tour #1 http://www.frommers.com/destinations...085020033.html, d a tea ceremony in Hama Rikyu, taking the boat to Asakusa, visiting Senjosi Temple.

offlady

The limobus is a great way to get to your hotel from the airport. They are clean, air conditioned, hassle-free and comfortable.

If you want to experience a different Disney park, I highly recommend going to Disney Sea. It usually isn't as crowded as the Disneyland, and the attractions are different from any other Disney park in the world.

However, I get my biggest kick going to Tokyo Disneyland and watching the Country Bears sing and talk in Japanese.