Tentative Itinerary for Tokyo trip 2022 September 12th – 22nd Solo Female Traveler

13 comments

1. Edogawa is really not central, so you will lose a bit more time in the train/subway to reach the places you want to visit Can be up to 30 minutes more for the day more central Tokyo or west of Tokyo. Are the prices that better there to justify it ? And would there be a bus close to the hotel going to Disneyland ?

   I do not think that going to touristy places will make them more prone to modify recipe to accommodate your allergies, just generally speaking, they don’t like modifying the recipe. However, what could work better is if you ask them for recommendation of what you can eat that would be ok with your allergies. And it does not matter if the place is “touristy” or not.

   I do not see why you would not bring toiletries with you. Yes there is size limits for liquid for carry-on luggage, but it might be easier to already have items you are familiar with. Over the fact that everything is written in Japanese and it would take time to identify what is what, there is also a lot of people living in Japan who do not like different products like deodorant and toothpaste from Japan.

   For the trip to Ito, there is an option that would not require to change train from Shinkansen to local train. It’s the Sapphire Odoriko, it’s a bit of a luxury train and the ticket is a bit more expensive, but it goes direct and you can order food in the train. There is also a limited number of departures each day, so check the website if you are interested [https://www.jreast.co.jp/saphir/en/cars/station/](https://www.jreast.co.jp/saphir/en/cars/station/) Question is, is is worth the cost of the train ticket to go there ? And while in Ito, I would look to try a onsen, there is a footbath next to Izu-Kogen station, or there is a ryokan that offer day use of their onsen from 11am to 2pm for 1600 yen and it’s 1 minute walk from the Teddy Bear Museum, it’s called Hanafubuki [https://www.hanafubuki.co.jp/onsen/](https://www.hanafubuki.co.jp/onsen/)

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   In general a bit surprised on how many “unusual” things you have in your itinerary, so while it’s interesting to see that you do not want to do the same thing as everybody else, there is also popular sports that you are completely missing, not sure if because they do not interest you or because you do not know about them, an easy one being Asakusa… or just the complete lack of a single temple or shrine.

2. I did the same thing 30 years ago. No Japanese and no money. Love the country. My Tmobile phone worked great there in 2018. Call your carrier. Try taking to people- they want to help. Fish in many many food items- be careful. I’m glad there was no internet or phones when I went. Have fun!

3. You should get a food allergy translation card that you can show when buying food or at restaurants so the staff can clearly understand your dietary limitations.

   – [Food Allergies in Japan: How to Travel Safely](https://livejapan.com/en/article-a0001856/)
   – [Quick Guide to Food Allergies in Japan](http://savvytokyo.com/quick-guide-know-and-understand-food-allergies-in-japan/)
   – [Printable Cards for Food Allergies in Japan](https://justhungry.com/japan-dining-out-cards)
   – [Select Wisely: Allergy and Medical Translation Cards](https://www.selectwisely.com/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIsIv5xYD_9wIVygutBh1GjAdLEAAYASAAEgIVvPD_BwE)

4. I agree with u/gdore15 about the toiletries. I would ESPECIALLY bring antiperspirant/deodorant. Most deodorants here aren’t also antiperspirants and September can still be pretty toasty. Also, only very few brands of toothpaste have fluoride in them and personally I find some of the Japanese toothpastes kind of nasty or grainy. But if you’re dead-set on buying toothpaaste in Japan, Donki probably has Aquafresh. I haven’t been in a long time so I’m not 100% sure.

   I also agree about the allergy issue not necessarily being solved in touristy areas. I have a friend who lives here and also has a pretty serious shellfish/seafood allergy. He’s taken to asking/informing staff at restaurants, as well as learning ingredients of a food before he tries eating it. He’s never had an issue. I think an easier strategy than trying to ask for recipe changes would be to learn some meals you know will be okay and then seek out restaurants that have those dishes available. There’s a lot of fish/seafood in this country but it’s pretty easy to avoid if you need to.

   Also regarding food, but be prepared to spend a stupid amount of money on a Dominoes Pizza. But ALSO, definitely download the Dominoes Coupon App. I have never, ever paid full price for a Dominoes pizza in this country and I NEVER will. There’s a permanent(?) 30% off any delivery pizza coupon on there, and even more coupons for carry-out.

   I’ve done Disney a few times, so if you have any questions about that let me know! I love Tokyo Disney, and I think you choosing to do Sea-Land-Sea is the correct choice. That’s how I always do it too. lol

   One thing I’d change personally is just like, cut out Bic Camera. It’s cool to see I guess (the big Yodobashi, too) but at the end of the day it’s really just a store. It’s not that impressive once you get past the initial “wow! Big!” factor tbh. But idk if you’re really into something there I guess it’s worth it? But you can find more interesting things around there probably pretty easily. Or if it’s electronics and stuff you’re wanting to see, why not Ikebukuro instead? Honestly, same @ MegaDonki, unless there’s something you NEED to see or buy there. It’s basically a Chaotic Neutral Target supermarket. If you’re going to buy toiletries from a Donki on day 1, you’ll get the same Donki Experience(tm) you’d get from a Mega Donki, just smaller-scale.

   My vote is for Sumida Aquarium, but I’ve never been to the other two options. Sumida Aquarium was very cool though 🙂

5. I get that you’re concerned about allergies but if you have allergy cards printed out you could safely switch out at least one of your meals at restaurant chains – Dominos for eg is particularly bad and expensive in Japan – for dinner at a random izakaya or mom & pop noodle shop. Might make for a cooler experience but you do you.

6. edogawa is too far away, bad idea. You should consider an hotel near a yamanote station , one on the circle . If you can’t afford Shibuya , maybe shimbashi, tamashi, shinagawa station etc . If you come from haneda airport it will be very convenient.

   I don’t like seafood (no allergy). I eated some pizza , went to macdonalds . I had a room with kitchen so sometimes i maked my own lunch.

   And you have some small supermarket who are cheaper than seven eleven, familymart etc

   named “Life” or “maruetsu” with fruits, bread , drinks… everything.

7. If you like shopping and theme parks, you might like visiting Odaiba.

8. Get translation earbuds from Timekettle! Found them on Indigogo, and they are great!

9. If you plan to travel outside of the greater Tokyo area, then you should really get a Japan Rail Pass, which you can also use on most bullet trains, making even distant places almost like day trips.

10. On the 17th I would go to the Sumida aquarium. It’s on the second floor of the Tokyo sky tree, so forget about the Tokyo Tower and just do all your shopping inside one of the many shops at the sky tree mall. I think they’ll have plenty of shops that you’ll be interested in. Character goods, plastic food models, special Tokyo banana only sold at the sky tree etc.

    https://www.tokyo-solamachi.jp/en/

11. >Thursday Sept 15th: Hit up Family mart to get food/snacks for the train ride and breakfast.

    Too many days already hitting up Konbini for breakfast and food, and if you are going on a Shinkansen, get the Bento boxes at the station. They may taste similar, but at least you get a nice looking lunch box.

12. Looks like a fun trip! Just something to consider for Disneyland, if you’re already really familiar with the original park in Anaheim or Magic Kingdom in Orlando, you’re going to find Tokyo Disneyland to be *very* similar, to the point where I would almost caution against allocating a whole day there (and I say this as a big Disneyland fan!). Tokyo Disney Sea is definitely worth it because it’s so unique though. I think the exception would be if you *really* want to see the new Beauty and the Beast area and ride in Tokyo Disneyland, in that case it might be worth it since that’s unique to Tokyo.

13. Check out Ainz & Tulpe, @cosme, and Tokyu Hands stores too for cosmetics and toiletries