Hello everyone,
I am so glad I found this subreddit. My partner and I are going to Tokyo in mid-Dec before continuing to other SE Asian destinations. It’s their first time and my second time. We’re going to take it kinda easy and go with the flow, instead of fit in Tokyo’s biggest attractions. My partner likes to enjoy experiencing the different city life and has never been to Asia at all, and I want to not be super stressed trying to hit specific spots.
Specific questions
1. We will have 2 large luggage bags that we would like to store and get delivered to Narita for our departure flight on Dec. 18 at 6:10pm. I’ve done some research, and it seems possible. Is this a pipe dream? I know they will deliver to hotels, but I’m not sure on other airports.
2. Since we’ll only be in Tokyo for 72 hours (3 nights and 3 days), would we be okay with ATT or Verizon International Day Passes? I know that renting a pocket wifi or sim is typically recommended, but if we can get by without the added hassle, I would like to streamline our trip.
3. I love holiday lights and markets. Any recommendations on these would be great.
4. With respect to our 6:10pm departure from Narita and the fact that we need to grab our luggage from storage, how much time prior to departure should we get to the airport?
5. My partner is excited for conbini food, but I’d also like to try eel, sushi (rotary, not expensive), yakitori, and yakisoba spots. Any recs based on our loose itinerary would be super appreciated.
Dec 15
* Arrive at Haneda 2:45pm
* Get through customs, get Suica/Pasmo cards?, get our large luggage bags stored and arrange for delivery to Narita on Dec 18 for our flight out.
* Take train and check-in to hotel in Asakusa. Depending on timing and jet lag, grab dinner somewhere. Since it’ll be afternoon/evening, I was thinking of exploring Akihibara and going to an arcade or two, but I’m open to other suggestions. I would like to play rhythm arcade games that are hard to find in the US. We will also need to buy general toiletries somewhere, since we are planning to travel light.
* Go to some Christmas lights or market.
Dec 16
* Explore Senso-Ji in the morning. Then head to Shibuya, Shinjuku, Harajuku and Shibuya for the rest of the day.
* Meiji Shrine
* Skytree maybe?
* Go to more Christmas lights or market.
Dec 17
* Potentially hit up some Inari shrines in the morning. Then Ikebukuro. This will be our main shopping day to hit up Pokemon Centers, Hello Kitty stores, stationery stores, etc.
* Go to Milky Way – a horoscope-themed sundae shop.
* Go to another Christmas lights or market if possible.
Dec 18 – Sunday – departure day – flight departure 6:10pm
* Store our small luggage and bags at train station after check-out – haven’t decided which station.
* Depending on the previous days, keeping this day open to revisit any place from earlier. If nothing comes to mind, we’ll go to a different area like around Ueno or Tokyo train stations.
* Take train and get to Narita with time to pickup our stored luggage (transferred from Haneda – hopefully) and check-in.
Thank you again for reading and any advice/insight.
3 comments
Kuroneko does deliver to the airport. They have a tourist oriented page which explains most everything: https://www.global-yamato.com/en/hands-free-travel/
With regards to phone service, I know that Verizon was $10 per day last I checked. Go to your provider’s website to check the rates. For three days the fees should be pretty reasonable. You may be able to get by with service on only one phone if the two of you will be together most of the time.
For toiletries I would suggest Daiso as a good starting point if you are staying near one. Conbinis and Donki should have a reasonable selection as well but might be more expensive.
It’s normally recommended to arrive three hours prior to an international flight. I’ve never needed all that time but I’d rather be safe than sorry.
Toiletries will typically be provided by your hotel and then anything further just get at a konbini.
Suica/Pasmo you can just add to your phone now pretty seamlessly so you’re already ready to roll to get on the train.
You’re going to be in the neighborhoods with plenty of conveyor belt sushi so you can just really happen upon any of them. Sushiro, Kura, etc.
Re: your phone plans. If you’re going to be in SE Asia all throughout does your provider not offer a monthly one-time plan? I use T-Mobile and was able to just get an Intl 15 GB plan for $50 since I was going to Jakarta and Tokyo in November.
Do you mean you’d like to store your large suitcases the entire time you’re in Tokyo? And only travel to your hotel with your smaller luggage? If yes, after exiting immigration/customs into the arrival hall head to one of [the baggage delivery counters in Haneda.](https://tokyo-haneda.com/en/service/facilities/delivery.html) You can ship your large luggage straight from Haneda to Narita. It’s super easy, they’ll just need your departure flight info to ship the large luggage. Then, when flying out of Narita, you just head to the appropriate baggage delivery counter there to pick up your luggage before checking in for your international flight. The standard 2 hours prior to flight departure for international checkin applies and the badge delivery pickup shouldn’t take longer than 15-20 minutes usually.
There are tons of winter illuminations in the Tokyo area during the time you’re there.
– [19 Illuminations in Tokyo](https://www.timeout.com/tokyo/things-to-do/tokyo-illuminations)
– [22-23 Winter Illumination Guide](https://jw-webmagazine.com/tokyo-winter-illumination-guide-2017-2018-13d71df4af67/)