Hello! 37F traveling with a few friends and my tween. Did my best to make an easy going itinerary but I am lowkey anxious about eating out. I have a fish allergy and one person does not eat pork. We do plan to carry allergy cards since no one speaks/read Japanese beyond a few phrases.
Hoping to get one night of clear skies for an awesome sunset view #fingerscrossed. Would love to get feedback on my plan as well as food suggestions. Thanks in advance for your help!
*Note: Left off most shrines/temples/statues for simplicity.*
**Fri, Mar 31 – Afternoon Arrival**
* Limosine bus to Shinjuku hotel
* Explore Shinjuku station and grab dinner
**Sat, Apr 1 – Shinjuku**
* Yoyogi Park and/or Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden
* Where ever my little heart desires to go
**Sun, Apr 2 – Imperial Palace Area & Ginza**
* Kitanomaru Park and Imperial Palace East Gardens
* Ginza and/or Marunouchi for lunch and shopping
* Guided night tour of Shinjuku (maybe w/o tween)
**Mon, Apr 3 – Harajuku & Shibuya**
* Meiji -> Takeshita Dori -> Omotesando -> Shibuya Crossing area
* Mipig cafe reservation (12:30p), maybe hedgehog cafe
* Optional Sunset: Shibuya 109 or Tokyo Plaza Shibuya (Shibuya Sky sold out)
**Tues, Apr 4 – Asakusa**
* Kimono rental (booked) -> Sensoji -> shopping streets -> tea ceremony (booked) -> return kimono
* Optional Sunset: Skytree
* Food places?? Hoppy St??
**Wed, Apr 5 – Odaiba**
* teamLabs Planet reservation (10am)
* DiverCity: lunch? and poop museum
* Fuji Building or Miraikan (not sure I’d have time for latter in the same day)
* Evening at DECKS: Trick Art Museum, maybe Joypolis, and dinner?
* Food places??
**Thurs, Apr 6 – Ueno & Akihabara**
* Ueno Park + museums -> Ameyoko St -> Akihabara
* Food places?? Maid Dreaming?
*Note: The original plan was to do Ueno Park on the same day as Asakusa, and Akihabara on the same day as Imperial Palace/Ginza. Felt as though it was a stretch plus I wasn’t able to get Ghibli tickets so that freed up a day!*
**Fri, Apr 7 – Akasaka & Roppongi Hills**
* Transfer to hotel in Akasaka
* Harry Potter Cafe and stores
* Roppongi Hills Mori Tower: Tokyo City View reservation (5p)
* Dinner??
**Sat, Apr 8 – No plans**
* Maybe DisneySea for food and sights, don’t care about rides
* Or do nothing!
**Sun, Apr 9 – Tokyo Tower Area & Yokohama**
* Transfer to hotel in Hamamatsucho
* Maybe morning visit to Shiba Park or Hamarikyu Gardens
* Head to Yokohama -> Cup Noodle Museum reservation (3:30p)
* Explore attractions (e.g. gundam)
* Sneak a night view of Tokyo Tower
**Mon, Apr 10 – Afternoon Departure**
* Maybe morning visit to Shiba Park or Hamarikyu Gardens
* Grab lunch??
* Head to Haneda
**Questions**
* Can you walk through Kitanomaru Park to get to the Imperial Palace East Gardens? Can both be done in 2 hrs?
* Are families with children out late night as well?
* How bad are the rainy days? Does it tend to be an all day thing, flood prone, or quick showers?
* Best apps for translating or looking up food labels?
* What are our chances of being able to book “mario” go-karting while in Tokyo?
* How easy is it to get a rickshaw ride on the fly?
* Which hotel restaurants or bars are absolutely worth a visit?
* Is it worth trying to get Ghibli tickets in person?
3 comments
Not a question from you but there is still Shibuya Sky tickets for sale for 3rd April on Klook, a lot of time options even.
I think Mario go-karting is a no go, you do need to have an international driving license for all participants that plan to join. And also you’ll be a nuisance blocking traffic while you’re go-karting.
Ghibli Museum tickets do not sell in-person, you will just waste your time travelling all the way there to be rejected at the door steps.
There’s more to Japanese food than fish. Dishes like tonkatsu are a thin fried pork cutlet and lots of great beef options too. There’s always a chicken option too.
– [Popular Dishes in Japan](https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2035.html)
– [15 Non-Fishy Japanese Food](https://livejapan.com/en/in-tokyo/in-pref-tokyo/in-asakusa/article-a0003047/)
– [Pork Free Ramen in Tokyo](https://www.timeout.com/tokyo/restaurants/best-pork-free-ramen-in-tokyo)
On April 5, there’s also a [Retro Game Hall](https://maps.app.goo.gl/ozMuhbBVGcZDKhCg9?g_st=ic) and [Ramen Street](https://maps.app.goo.gl/2EJNeSetNtpovA8C6?g_st=ic) where you can try ramen from different regions in Japan.
If you are allergic to fish you really do need to mention it in every restaurant and be extra sure. Even seemingly meat only dishes may use some kind of broth for flavour, quite often dashi which includes fish.
Same as for veggie only dishes