Hi! 24F, first time international travel alone and first time in Japan – been studying Japanese for almost 10 years now and finally saved enough money to visit. I’m aware of the start of the rainy season, honestly more so hoping I won’t get much of it (plus prices at this time of the year were reasonably cheaper).
To submit my visa (Brazilian) I need to list all places I plan to go on each day, so I figured out I should put it here so I can see if anyone has any suggestions. There’s a few days that seem a bit too packed, and a few that seem too empty. My main interests on this trip are art, nature, technology and culture. I’m not as much of an otaku as I used to be, but I still intend on going to Akihabara and visiting at least one game center. I don’t drink, and the night life doesn’t really attract me, so I’m skipping all of that. Lastly, I’m on a bit of a budget, an average of 60USD a day for food and souvenirs (already excluding ticket and transportation costs for what I’ve listed here, as well as hotel and plane tickets). It’s not a set in stone budget, it likely won’t go down, but I can’t say it’ll be much higher either.
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(Day 1) May 30, Tuesday
\- Arriving in Haneda at around 3PM. I’ll pick up a pocket wifi and get an IC card at the airport.
\- Monorail/train to my hotel by Ueno station. No idea what to expect as for jet lag, it’s a 12h difference in timezones, not to mention over 30 hours of travel time.
\- Check whatever I’m able to at the Ueno park area (except the zoo) and maybe Ameyoko, then sleep as much as I can.
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(Day 2) May 31, Wednesday
\- Ueno zoo, I want to take my time so I’m assuming it’ll take the whole morning.
\- Skytree. Haven’t booked my ticket yet, but I’m thinking of going there at around 1PM. I’m a bit scared of heights plus on a bit of a budget, so I’ll only visit the lower deck.
\- Sumida aquarium (package ticket with Skytree)
\- Skytree Pokemon Center
\- Hokusai Museum
\- Sensouji
Not sure if this isn’t too much, I’m considering changing the Hokusai Museum to another date if needed.
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(Day 3) June 1, Thursday
\- Kasai Rinkai Park: sightseeing, aquarium and ferris wheel
\- Yume no Shima Park and botanical garden
\- Miraikan
\- Gundam/DiverCity Tokyo Plaza (maybe check the arcade there)
I’m questioning if this isn’t maybe too little to do in a day. Would love to go to Tokyo Labs, but current budget won’t allow. If I do get more budget, I’m definitely adding it to the list after Yume no Shima.
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(Day 4) June 2, Friday
\- Ginza area: mostly sightseeing and visiting a few shops I’m interested in.
\- Art aquarium museum
\- Maybe Kabukiza? Would love to be able to watch something, but the schedule isn’t available for June yet.
\- Shiba park
\- Tokyo Tower, both decks
\- Mori museum
\- National Art Center
Possibly a bit too much for a day?
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(Day 5) June 3, Saturday
\- Akihabara
\- Shosen book tower and hope to find some botany or mycology books
\- Souvenir buying for otaku friends
That’s about it, it’s mostly a rest day, I don’t really have any plans other than that (but would appreciate suggestions!). If I need to move the Hokusai Museum to another date, it’d probably be to here.
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(Day 6) June 4, Sunday
\- Meiji jinguu
\- Harajuku walk
\- Maybe lunch at the Mame Shiba cafe? It’s a sunday so it’ll probably be too busy.
\- Hachiko statue
\- Kokugakuin museum
\- Yamatane art museum
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(Day 7) June 5, Monday
My flight back is in Narita, but it’s around 8PM. The plan is to leave the hotel relatively early to get one of the big coin lockers at the station for my bigger suitcase. I should be ok with carrying the smaller one with me during the day. Then go back to the hotel, kill some time and check out at 11AM. After that:
\- Visit what I couldn’t visit at the Ueno park during the first day (mainly the Tokyo art museum and the National science museum).
\- Former Iwasaki mansion gardens
\- Maybe Ameyoko again and buy some last minute souvenirs at the area
\- If I still have too much time after that, stop at Akihabara and spend whatever money I have left
Lastly, I’ll pick up my luggage at the coin locker and take the train to Narita airport, where I’ll return both the pocket wifi and the IC card. I feel like this is too little for a day, but I know the anxiety will be biting the back of my head the whole day, so I’m trying to keep it light.
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Sometimes I think that a week is too much just for Tokyo, but then I also think it’s too little. I considered rescheduling the trip to next year, but that gives me no guarantee that I’ll have more money or someone to go with me. Plane ticket is already paid for, so no take backs. I’d really appreciate any suggestions or tips, thanks for taking your time to read this!
1 comment
Pretty heavy on the museums, parks, and aquariums. You seem to be going to like…an average of 4 per day.
If your phone is compatible, I highly recommend getting an eSIM over a portable WiFi. Waaay more convenient (nothing to carry, nothing to charge) and usually cheaper, too.