I’m moving to Tokyo this summer with my spouse and 2 kids and I’m having a hard time distinguishing between all the different districts in the city. I feel like I am being guided to the more expat-oriented neighborhoods (which I am not opposed to) but my worry is that I am going to accidentally sign up to live in the equivalent of Manhattan’s Upper East Side with a country-club vibe and not realize it until we settle in. So for those of you who are NYC transplants, can you translate the different feel for Tokyo’s districts into NYC neighborhoods? Which areas remind you of the Village, Park Slope, Astoria, UES, Sunnyside, Harlem, etc and why? Appreciate any help you can give!
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Most places in Shibuya, Meguro, Minato, and Shinagawa-ku(s) will have that expensive, nice, accessible, expat vibe. They’re the expensive areas, the fancy cities.
I don’t know the NYC neighborhoods, but each ku is unique. I’m in one of the quieter ones for families and commuters on the west side of Tokyo with excellent access to Ikebukuro and decent access to Shibuya. Quiet, but can get anywhere fairly easily.
Instead of asking people to compare things to a place they may have never spent time in, why not ask for a neighborhood that meets your specific needs and requirements?
Instead of saying, “Tell me what’s like XYZ” you’ll have more success if you said, “I’m looking for a neighborhood with lots of parks and families, with plenty to do for children and good schools. I need to be by XYZ train line and preferably within a XX min commute to ABC Station for work.”
The number of people on this sub who can answer something like the latter question far exceeds the number of people so intimately familiar with New York that they can answer the question that you asked.
I’ve lived in Manhattan. None of the neighborhoods is anything like the Upper East/West sides or TriBeCa or Harlem. Tokyo is just different. A lot of expats live in Hiroo, Ebisu, Nishi-Azabu, Daikanyama, Nakameguro and Meguro for practical reasons – proximity to work, schools, shops that cater to expats. When you experience the morning subway crush, you’ll ask yourself why you didn’t live closer to the places you frequent, like your kids’ schools. I like the vibe of Nakameguro because I like to walk along the river and have some green spaces instead of just being surrounded by concrete high rises all the time. You’ll just have to go there and see for yourself.
I’ll take a stab, I’ve lived in both Tokyo and NYC:
Shibuya: a combination of time square and williamsburg. Huge and dense and touristy but also hip. No real NYC equivalent.
Nakameguro (really a lot of Meguro-ku and Shinagawa-ku): Park Slope
The Village: Shimokitazawa
Astoria: Hmm, Shinjuku maybe? Most diverse, and one of the busiest areas.
Ugh this is hard. I guess there really are no equivalents.
My bff says Kiyosumi is the place that reminds him most of Greenpoint from 10-15 years ago.