Destination OS · One district per half-day, one bed on the loop
Tokyo 東京
Tokyo is twenty districts on one rail loop: pick one bed near your airport's hub, one district per half-day, never cross the city twice in a day.
- Cash
- 2/5
- Heat
- 4/5
- Stroller
- 4/5
- Friction
- 55/100
Rules in force · 5
- Japan ↗IC cards (ICOCA/Suica) are topped up with cash at station machines.
- Japan ↗Smoking while walking is banned in most city centres; use designated areas.
- Japan ↗Shinkansen bags 160–250 cm (L+W+H) need a seat reserved with the oversized-baggage area.
- Kanto ↗Suica/PASMO is the default IC card; ICOCA also works.
- Kanto ↗Tokyo stands on the left side of escalators.
Overview
Tokyo runs on time and on rails, and it is too big to see. The failure is not missing a sight; it is spending three hours a day on trains, dragging bags through Shinjuku station at rush hour, and landing at Narita after the last Skyliner. Choose Shinjuku for Haneda, Ueno for Narita, and plan each day inside one or two neighbouring districts.
Fits
- First trip to Japan (via HND)
- Food and city walking
- Families (elevators everywhere)
Does not fit
- Temple-dense trips (go to Kyoto)
- Travellers who want one compact centre
- 2 days
- Asakusa + Shibuya/Harajuku; skip the rest
- 3 days
- Asakusa, Meiji/Shibuya, Marunouchi/Ginza
- 5 days
- Four districts + Kamakura
- Don't confuse
- Shinjuku station and Shinjuku-sanchōme are different stations; the station has 200+ exits.
Decide
You will like
- Efficient trains
- Late dining
- Distinct districts
You will hate
- Rush-hour trains
- Huge stations
- Long transfers across the city
When
Cold, clear skies.
Cold; plum blossom.
Late-March blossom crowds.
Blossom early April; Golden Week at month end.
Avoid Golden Week.
Rainy season.
Heat and humidity.
Extreme heat; Obon.
Heat and typhoons.
Good walking weather.
Leaves late November.
Illuminations; closures Dec 29–Jan 3.
Money
- Budget
- 8,000–12,000 excl. bed / day
- Mid
- 12,000–22,000 excl. bed / day
- High
- 22,000+ excl. bed / day
- IC card
- Suica/PASMO on every train, subway, bus and in most shops; add it to a phone wallet where supported.
- Cash rule
- Tokyo is mostly cashless; keep ¥5,000 for shrines, small restaurants and IC top-ups.
Arrive
Haneda is Tokyo's easy airport: Keikyu to Shinagawa, then the JR loop; after the last train, night buses and a fixed-fare taxi still reach the bed.
Narita is far: the Skyliner to Ueno is the zero-brain path, and after about 22:00 the ladder ends at an airport hotel more often than at your bed.
Move
- Default
- JR Yamanote + subway; walk inside a district; avoid the rush hours with bags.
- Passes
- A 24/48/72-hour subway pass pays with 4+ subway rides a day; JR lines are not included.
- Last trains
- Most last trains leave between 23:30 and 00:30; status unknown until verified per line.
- Other modes
- Other modes (Rome2Rio)
Luggage
- Lockers
- Large coin lockers exist at all major stations and fill by late morning (status unknown).
- Forwarding
- Forward bags Tokyo → Kyoto the day before; airports also accept forwarded bags for departure.
- Dead zone
- Check-out to check-in with bags: leave them at the hotel desk; do not ride the Yamanote with them at 18:00.
Clusters
Morning cluster: Sensō-ji before 08:30, Nakamise after it opens; flat, 2–3 hours; bags fine on the main streets.
rescue coverage 93% · max p90 7′ · half
Walk it one way: Meiji Jingū at opening, Harajuku mid-morning, Shibuya crossing by lunch; 2 km flat; bags forbidden at crowd peaks.
rescue coverage 96% · max p90 7′ · half
Evening cluster: Omoide Yokochō and the east side after 18:00; never cross the station with bags at rush hour.
rescue coverage 100% · max p90 7′ · 90m
Lunch and afternoon cluster: Tokyo Station, the palace East Gardens, Ginza; flat, covered, bags fine on weekdays.
rescue coverage 97% · max p90 7′ · half
Days
One district per half-day, one bed in Shinjuku; the last day ends at Shinagawa with bags off-peak.
Places
Enter at opening from the Harajuku gate; 45 minutes on gravel paths; the gates close at sunset, which moves every month.
Go before 08:30 for the precinct without crowds; the grounds never close, the main hall and shops keep their own hours.
Eat
Tiny counter bars by the station: go at 17:00–18:30 for a seat; groups of 3+ rarely fit together; not for large bags.
Sleep
HND arrivals and night owls: one transfer from Haneda, big 24h hotels, but pick the south or west side — not above Kabukichō.
Desk: staffed 24h
NRT arrivals and museum days: the Skyliner stops here, Asakusa is one stop away, rooms cost less.
Desk: staffed 24h
Survive
Safety
- Heat (Jul–Sep): plan an air-conditioned stop every 90 minutes.
- Earthquake: follow staff instructions; hotel rooms list evacuation routes. Official alerts only.
- Emergency: 110 police, 119 fire/ambulance.
Red lines
- No phone calls on trains; set phones to silent.
- Queue in marked lines on platforms.
- Kabukichō touts: do not follow anyone into a bar.
Practical
- Toilets: stations, department stores, convenience stores; many are free and clean.
- Tax-free shopping needs your passport at the counter.
Nearby: Kanto day-trips · Kyoto (2h15 by Shinkansen)
Sources
- GO TOKYO (official tourism) (official)
- Tokyo Metro (official)
- Wikivoyage — Tokyo (secondary)