Hello,
Planning on chill solo trip on Mid November for a short getaway.
Appreciate if y’all could critic or recommend on my itinerary.
Besides, does getting Ic card suffice? Or required JR pass? I’m confused on this part.
Day 1: Shinjuku & Harajuku
– Touchdown (Morning)
– Travel to accommodation (Shinjuku)
– Explore area (Don Quijote, Isetan etc)
– Takeshita Street
Day 2: Meiji Shrine & Shinbuya
– Meiji Jingu Gaien
– Meji Shrine
– Shibuya Sky
– Hachiki Memorial Statue
– Miyashita Park
– Shibuya Crossing (Starbucks to get a good view?)
Day 3: Asakusa
– Kaninarimon Gate
– Nakamise Shopping street
– Senso-ji temple
– Ueno park/Rikugien Gardens
Day 4: Toyosu & Aikihabara
– Toyosu Market
– Teamlab planets Tokyo
– Small Worlds Tokyo
– Aikihabara (Tamashi nations Tokyo, Aikihabara gamers etc)
– LaQua (or is there any Ibsen y’all recommend)
Day 5: Chill and easy
– Scared that some places are unable to visit and could use this to makeup for it.
– Depart back 🙁
3 comments
Takeshita street is right next to Meiji Shrine, splitting them up is a bit of a waste, especially given that most of the stores there are for tween/teen girls, so it doesn’t take much time to see.
If you’re in Shinjuku and are going to the DonKi there, you could just keep going down to Shin-Okubo/Koreatown. Especially for dinner.
Ic card (most likely Suica) is all you need. It’s a prepaid card that saves you having to buy tickets for each trip you make.
The JR pass is designed to give you unlimited travel for set days and areas – depending on the exact pass. It’s designed for when you travel between multiple cities. As you are staying in Tokyo it’s not worth it.
Takeshita Street is an absolutely overrated area full of cheap-ish (but not as cheap) souvenirs for tourists. Tourist guides still promise you a “trendy neighborhood”, but the hipsters moved on 10-15 years ago. For an actual fun (souvenir) shopping experience, check out “Mega Donki” in Shibuya.
When in Shibuya, you might want to checkout the conveyor belt sushi restaurant “Genki Sushi” (or their sister restaurant Uobei Sushi). Yes, they are very “tourist-friendly” and definitely not high-class sushi, but a fun and affordable experience!
For an actual “trendy neighborhood”, Shimokitazawa (very close to Shibuya) was recently voted “trendiest neighborhood of Japan” by Time Out Magazine. It’s just lovely to stroll through the streets, have a coffee, do some 2nd hand shopping etc.
For the Shinjuku area, I recommend having dinner at/strolling through “Memory Lane”, a narrow labyrinth-style area with approx. 60 small izakayas, also fantastic to take a few pictures.
LaQua is a day-spa you’ll likely find in any other city too, not an onsen. Real onsen aren’t really a thing in the city, BUT an exception is “Jōmon natural onsen – Shiraku no yu”. You’ll feel like you’re in the mountains of Nagano. And perhaps combine it with lunch or dinner and the annexed soba restaurant. It’s the real deal.
Enjoy your trip!!