Any advice about planning a trip to Tokyo, Japan?

Any advise about planning a trip to Tokyo, Japan?


I am planning a trip to Tokyo and I was wondering if there is anything I needed to know before I book it. If you've visited what are some tourist attraction I would definitely want to look into.Any advice about planning a trip to Tokyo, Japan?
Hi there,











As for Tokyo, to optimize your time there and see a lot I always take people for their first time:





Any morning:


1.) Go to Sosenji Temple (Asakusa) walk around ';Nakamise Dori'; and ';Kaminari Mon.';


2.) Take taxi to Ueno park walk around, then can walk towards Akihabara (the electronics dictrict)


3.) take JR Yamanote Line to Harajuku-get off and walk down ';Takeshita Dori'; and see all the teenie-boppers and fashion


4.) From Harajuku walk towards Meiji Jingu (shrine) nice walk


5.) From Meiji Jingu walk towards Omotesando


6.) From Omotesando you can walk to Shibuya and make sure you walk up ';Center Street';


7.) On way home take subway from Shibuya Station and make sure you see ';Hachiko'; statue











Other daytime activities:





1.) Kichijoji-nice little area, lots of nice shops/restaurants/park, my favorite part of Tokyo!


2.) Odaiba-Venus Fort mall, get to ride over Rainbow Bridge, see Fuji TV


3.) Tokyo Tower-not really anything interesting...haha


4.) Nagatcho-to see the Japanese National Diet Building


5.) Ikebukuro-nice area just to walk around in





Eating:


1.)Try cheap and good ';kaiten sushi';-sushi on a conveyor belt, good quality and good price


2.) Ramen shop-if it's crowded it should be good


3.) A good stanby chain restaurant is called ';Otoya,'; nearly everywhere and serve traditional Japanese food





These are just some basic things for a few first days in Tokyo, have fun!





If you are gonna go to to other cities (which you should), take the JR Shinkansen (Haruka/Nozomi) to Osaka.


While in Osaka see:


1.) Osaka Castle


2.) Walk around Dotonbori at night


3.) Eat takoyaki and okonomiyaki





Take train to Kyoto (stay in Granvia Kyoto Hotel-right on top of train station)


See:


1.) Nijo Castle


2.) Kiyomizudera Temple


3.) Ryoanji Temple


4.) Sanjusangendo Temple


5.) Kinkakuji Temple


6.) Ginkakuji Temple


7.) Walk around Pontoncho at night for dinner and drinks


*Take taxi around Kyoto is better than subway/bus





Then take a day trip to Nara (1 hour from Kyoto) and see Todaiji Temple





For other info check out: virtualtourist.comAny advice about planning a trip to Tokyo, Japan?
To add to seamonkey's answer, finding ATM's that accept ANY foreign bank cards (not everyone is American) can be difficult, but post office ATM's are usually trouble-free. However, check with your bank before you leave and make sure your PIN will be accepted in Japan. You may have to change it to four digits if it isn't already.





As for tourist attractions, it depends on what you're interested in. The Imperial Palace grounds are just up the street from Tokyo Station. You can't see much of the palace (except in December for the Emperor's birthday and in January for the annual speech to the public), but the grounds are nice.





If you want to see the stereotypical image of Tokyo, go to Shibuya station and watch the thousands and thousands of people crossing the street at Shibuya crossing.





http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXtOdSgf6鈥?/a>





Go to department stores. The service and variety is amazing, especially on the food floors.





A lot of people would go to Akihabara, Harajuku, etc. to see electronics and annoying, cutesy girls dressed in weird costumes.





Try Meiji-jingu in Shinjuku. It is a relatively new shrine, but it is very important to Japanese people.





I would try getting out of the city a bit to see real Japan.





Have a great time.
Bring a good amount of Japanese paper money and travelers cheques. ATM's that accept american cards are hard to come by and the exchange rate is kinda evil. Some places take card but overall its cash only.





I'm going to say go see a japanese live play like Bunraku. It's a good experience.