Hi all, we’re going to be in Japan for the first time during sakura season and are looking for feedback on our Tokyo itinerary. We’re going to be spending 8 nights in Tokyo during our trip with 5 at the beginning and 3 at the end. Fit almost everything on our list of things to do other than maybe Harry Potter Tour and seeing Asakusa at night. What do you all think of the itinerary?
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* Day 0:
* Land at 5:30pm, check-in to hotel near Shimbashi station
* Walk around a little and have a light dinner
* Onsen at hotel before an early bedtime
* Day 1:
* Explore Asakusa
* Also Sumida Park cherry blossoms, shopping at Kappabashi knife stores and Kimono Shoes
* Ueno Park
* Explore Akihabara
* Walk around Electric Town and some stores (Sunday so Chuo Dori is car-free)
* Dinner
* Maybe head into an arcade for a little bit if we’re not too tired
* Day 2:
* Chidorigafuchi Moat and boat rental
* Yasukuni Shrine
* Sotobori Park
* Imperial Palace and Gardens
* Lunch at Tokyo Station Ramen Street, check out character street stores if there’s time
* Suga Shrine Otokodan (Stairs from Your Name)
* Explore Shinjuku
* Day 3:
* Yoyogi Park
* Meiji Shrine
* Shinjuku Gyoen
* Lunch, maybe at Isetan Shinjuku
* Harajuku
* Shibuya Sky entrance at 5pm
* Explore Shibuya
* Day 4:
* Hamarikyu Gardens
* Zojo-ji Temple and Tokyo Tower (not going up)
* teamLab Borderless
* Azubadai Hills observatory
* Nakameguro
* Have a reservation for afternoon tea for dinner at Haute Couture Cafe at 6:30pm, we can change to their other location at Ometasando for 11am or 1:30pm.
* Day 5:
* Returning from Takayama in the evening, staying in Ginza
* Walk around Ginza and dinner
* Day 6:
* DisneySea
* Day 7:
* Day trip to Nikko
* Day 8:
* Uniqlo near hotel in Ginza
* Daiba Park
* Shibuya Parco, Nintendo Store and Pokemon Center
* Lunch
* ?, probably whatever else we missed, maybe find someplace to shower before going to the airport
* Flight home from Haneda at 10:55pm
by supez38
3 comments
I smiled at seeing ‘explore Shinjuku’ casually listed at the end of a day spent in other parts of Tokyo – this is a bit like noting ‘explore mid-town Manhattan’ as the last thing you’d do in a day in NYC! More generally, day 3 is very crowded and impractical – Shibuya is close to being as hectic as Shinjuku. Day 8 also seems a bit random, and you’d be wandering all over the city. The other days look well thought through.
Seems like you’re trying to hit all the greatest spots of Tokyo!
That being said – Day 1 is perhaps too much, there’s no way you’ll explore Asakusa, Ueno and Akihabara at more than a surface level in one day. I love Asakusa though, and would recommend even taking a quick walk through it at night to see Sensō-ji and nearby Hoppy Street.
Hell, I’d say take out 1-2 things from each day. For example, Yoyogi Park and Shinjuku-gyoen are both pretty huge, no need to do them both on the same day (and arguably one is enough for an eight day trip). I enjoyed Hamarikyu much more than the Imperial Palace and in some ways I like it better than Shinjuku-gyoen.
Thought on going to actually see the Cherry Blossoms, when we went last year, we were there maybe a week after full bloom (and I think it hit full bloom a day or two before originally forecast), and it really disappears quickly, trees that were almost all pink (with flowers starting to fall) when we arrived were all green by the time we left after a week.
Think Tokyo is scheduled to hit full bloom 30th of March this year – so if you’re there a few days before or after that you’re in peak period!
If you’re there a bit later, Shinjuku Gyoen has the double sakura variety, which blooms a little later and stays a bit longer – this was the best for us since we missed the peak flowering period 🙂