Tokyo - 5 days trip - Urgent Advice
Mar 27th, 2004, 10:07 PM
#1
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Tokyo - 5 days trip - Urgent Advice
I will be flying to Tokyo on 4 April and leaving on 8 April with 2 teenagers. We are not going to Disney.
4 and 5 April - in Shinjuku.
6, 7 and 8 April - in Shibuya and Ikebukuro
Any suggestions?
Yokohama - any suggestion beside (MM21 and Raumen Museum). Is this worth to go?
Thank you in anticipation for your assistance.
4 and 5 April - in Shinjuku.
6, 7 and 8 April - in Shibuya and Ikebukuro
Any suggestions?
Yokohama - any suggestion beside (MM21 and Raumen Museum). Is this worth to go?
Thank you in anticipation for your assistance.
Mar 28th, 2004, 12:10 AM
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We are also flying into Tokyo on the 4th. Why are you changing hotels? Shinjiku and Shibuya are not that far apart that moving hotels makes any sense unless it has something to do with hotel availibility. The Lonely Planet Tokyo guide may be one book that may help you through your short trip to Tokyo.
Mar 28th, 2004, 05:29 AM
#3
The cherry blossoms will be north of Tokyo by that time, in Sendai and Niigata (both are 2 hours from Tokyo by shinkansen).
You could to go to several Japanese baseball games. The Giants are home on the 4th. The Yokohama Bay Stars are home on April 6,7,8. I would expect to have no trouble getting tix for the Bay Stars.
Mar 28th, 2004, 05:33 AM
#4
References for the above:
http://www.japanball.com/cl04_4.htm
http://gojapan.about.com/library/spe...ayosou2004.htm
Mar 28th, 2004, 01:09 PM
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We just returned from Tokyo. The cherry flowers were starting to blossom. You probably will be catching the tail end of the flowering season.
If your teenagers are boys, one of those mega electronic stores may be interesting. We went to BIC Camera in Yurakucho, There are similar ones in Shinjuku whose name escapes me.
For fashion items for teenage girls, all Japanese stores carry pretty much the same thing, seen few, seen all. The foreign stores, on the other hand, carry items for the Japanese market not available at home (USA for us). Since the same item costs more in Japan, items not available at home were the ones worth getting.
Traveling in Tokyo, we used exclusively the subway. While Shinjuku-Ikebukuro-Shibuya are also connected by JR trains, going elsewhere not served by JR train is best accomplished by subway, unless you can figure out the bus system.
We used "Passnet T card", which in Lonely planets says "SF Metro card". But in Tokyo no one heard this name. Since there are TWO different subway companies, this prepaid card was an easy way not having to worry about which company, Toei or Eidan, we were using. We got a Y1000 card and got 6 short rides out of it. The card can be purchased at any station from a vending machine which LUCKILY accepts 10000, 5000 and 1000 bills. (Most vending machines only take up to 1000.) Also there were "Buy 2,3 cards at a time" button. But for T card, you can only get one at a time, not a problem since the machine gives changes.
If your teenagers are boys, one of those mega electronic stores may be interesting. We went to BIC Camera in Yurakucho, There are similar ones in Shinjuku whose name escapes me.
For fashion items for teenage girls, all Japanese stores carry pretty much the same thing, seen few, seen all. The foreign stores, on the other hand, carry items for the Japanese market not available at home (USA for us). Since the same item costs more in Japan, items not available at home were the ones worth getting.
Traveling in Tokyo, we used exclusively the subway. While Shinjuku-Ikebukuro-Shibuya are also connected by JR trains, going elsewhere not served by JR train is best accomplished by subway, unless you can figure out the bus system.
We used "Passnet T card", which in Lonely planets says "SF Metro card". But in Tokyo no one heard this name. Since there are TWO different subway companies, this prepaid card was an easy way not having to worry about which company, Toei or Eidan, we were using. We got a Y1000 card and got 6 short rides out of it. The card can be purchased at any station from a vending machine which LUCKILY accepts 10000, 5000 and 1000 bills. (Most vending machines only take up to 1000.) Also there were "Buy 2,3 cards at a time" button. But for T card, you can only get one at a time, not a problem since the machine gives changes.
Mar 29th, 2004, 05:09 AM
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Shinjuku is great but one day should suffice. If you want to catch the cherry blossoms in that area, the nicest place is Shinjuku Gyoen, a private park open from 10-4. There is a small fee but the grounds are nicely maintained and the hanami (blossoms) are gorgeous. One day should be enough for Shibuya as well. I would skip Ikebukuro -there is nothing special there; just similar to Shinkuju but more confusing. If you can get there early (6 or 7am), the fish market in Tsukiji (Ginza Subway Line; Tsukiji Station) is fascinating. The Ramen Museum in Yokohama is recommended, especially if you are a ramen fan. I know you mentioned no Disney BUT if your teenagers are interested, DisneySea is quite different from Disneyland; the attractions are geared for an older crowd and I know a lot of adults who find the place very enjoyable.
Mar 30th, 2004, 07:43 AM
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Some corrections and suggestions for previous posts.
Tsukiji station is on Hibiya subway line, not Ginza subway line.
If you use subway lines over 4 or 5 times and more a day, it will be cheaper to buy One Day Ticket for subway lines. For Eidan subway lines(a major one), it costs 710 JPY.
As mentioned , there are two subway companies in Tokyo, and each has their own such kind of ticket . If you use both companies, buy a One Day ticket for both companies.
Finally, Eidan subway lines will change their company's name from April. It will be called "Tokyo Metro" and signs will be changed gradually. So, practically, Eidan and Tokyo Metro is the same. Be careful.
Tsukiji station is on Hibiya subway line, not Ginza subway line.
If you use subway lines over 4 or 5 times and more a day, it will be cheaper to buy One Day Ticket for subway lines. For Eidan subway lines(a major one), it costs 710 JPY.
As mentioned , there are two subway companies in Tokyo, and each has their own such kind of ticket . If you use both companies, buy a One Day ticket for both companies.
Finally, Eidan subway lines will change their company's name from April. It will be called "Tokyo Metro" and signs will be changed gradually. So, practically, Eidan and Tokyo Metro is the same. Be careful.
