If you were to settle in, which would you choose? I’ve only lived on the West side of Tokyo but I’m curious to hear peoples preferences and why for either side.
West and East are so different it’s bizarre to think anyone would be so torn between the two.
I’ve settled in Meguro, which is somewhat southwest. Pretty quiet where we are, yet plenty of choices for food shopping and eating out. Decent schools and plenty of parks. Transportation options are good. Easy access for my commute, as well. Haneda isn’t far, which has advantages when traveling.
I’ve lived in west Tokyo my entire time in Japan, 20+ years. Love it.
But as a younger man, i loved the weekends spent partying in Shibuya and Shinjuku and whatnot.
Now? I might do some day shopping in Shinjuku, but Shibuya feels awful to me now.
East, nice place to visit, wouldn’t want to live there
West Tokyo is Hachioji. Cheap houses, costco, access to the mountains. Good friend of mine settled there and loves it.
East all the way; only snobs and attention seekers live in the west
I will go as far as saying anywhere within 23区, preferably Chiyoda or Chuo are the best places to live. Good train access, close to Tokyo station and an les than an hour to Haneda and a little more to Narita. Never thought of East or West after XX years.
How east are we talking about? I’ve lived on the east side of Yamanote (Kanda then Hamatsucho) and also out around the bay (Ariake then Kachidoki). But I’d say those are the eastern side of the central part of the city. I’ve also lived in Ichikawa, so about as east as you can get.
Basically anywhere from the east bank of the Sumida River onwards is historically shitamachi, so you don’t that pretentious vibe you might find in other hoods. A lot of that area along the bay is an industrial hellscape. Plenty of grimy places to eat yakitori and drink with ojisans though, if that’s what you’re into. The vast majority of workers are going to be commuting to central Tokyo.
I really think west of Shinjuku on a line that passes through is really nice. Something on the Chuo, Keio etc
Has a nice balance of being easy to get anywhere I want to go and much better prices than inside the Yamanote.
Although if I could afford it, I’d live near Yotsuya
Go Norff mate, big up Adachi
West and East of which, 23 wards or the whole Tokyo as prefecture?
East Tokyo eastern of Asakusa, like Katsushika, Edogawa, Arakawa.. are more susceptible to hazards like flood, closer to sea level, surrounded by rivers.. hence cheaper compared to West 23 wards like Setagaya, Meguro. Culturally different too, East wards are (shitamachi)more “humane”, casual, informal as being merchants, native Edo-ko living there for generations, while West wards (Yamanote) are lived by modern days Samurai such as manager class salarymen who immigrated from everywhere else. Casual calculations: For a 70m2 house with land close to station, in East wards will cost you 70mil Yen, in West wards: 110mil+ yen
If your west here means Western Tokyo which are smaller cities outside of 23 wards, story are different too. Western Tokyo originally is farmer culture. Lands are cheaper to 23 wards too, especially at those like Akiruno, Nishitokyo.. cities that you can’t name. Except Musashino Kichijouji is expensive enough to rival East wards.
If you want to be realistic, go settle down in Kawaguchi, Ichikawa or Hachioji
If I could afford it, Minato, but since I can’t I’ve settled on Shinagawa. That said, I would love to live in Chuo Ward if I could afford a detached house there. Shitamachi is generally better for restaurant variety.
I mean, wholly depends on your work place. I’d hate to live in Kichijoji and the like and be forced to get to Tokyo station.
East Tokyo has some nice deep drinking spots, stubborn old people and good jogging paths along the rivers.
West has hordes of mothers wobbling about with 2 kids on their bikes down narrow pavements, more expensive vegetables, and better funded parks.
I’ve only ever lived on the west side – on the Seibu Shinjuku line slowly moving outward – and anywhere between Nakano-ku and Nishitokyo-shi is great to live in. Nice neighborhoods, close enough to the action but just far enough that you can get away from it and not have ridiculous rent.
It’s very different. For example, Setagayaku and Suginami ku combine for about 20 Starbucks shops while Katsushikaku and Edogawaku combine for 2. This reflects the income levels with the East side being generally poorer.
If you’re talking about the 23 wards, I vastly prefer West Tokyo. Shinjuku, Shibuya, Ikebukuro, it’s where almost all my activities take me. I hardly ever travel to East Tokyo.
If you are talking within 23 wards, it entirely depends on neighborhood and your age. The biggest priority should be your transportation to work though. Central part of east is quite expensive as well.
pff. Yokohama
North Korea HANDS DOWN!!!!
Do people really look to reddit in order to decide where to live?
I really don’t get it.
West for sure. Easier access to the mountains, prettier townscapes and less suceptible for floods and such.
I think I enjoyed my time in Nakano most, busy, but easy to get away from it. I do miss the river bank from when I lived in Adachi.
East (around shin-kiba) looks relaxing, maybe good for people who want a laid bike lifestyle.
Right now I live near Oji, which has a charming river but that’s about it.
The west is more popular due to being closer to Shibuya and Shinjuku.
The east is generally less popular due to the closest entertainment hub being Ueno which is a bit old.
West Tokyo. East Tokyo is a barren concrete jungle of mostly factories and warehouses. I am talking about Edogawa-ku and parts of Koto-ku.
Central business districts are another story. I will prefer having residences in both business districts and west tokyo. But If I only have one choice, I will choose the business district area because it’s convenient for work, if I need to attend a meeting face-to-face.
Back in the day, commutes were my biggest source of stress.
23 comments
West and East are so different it’s bizarre to think anyone would be so torn between the two.
I’ve settled in Meguro, which is somewhat southwest. Pretty quiet where we are, yet plenty of choices for food shopping and eating out. Decent schools and plenty of parks. Transportation options are good. Easy access for my commute, as well. Haneda isn’t far, which has advantages when traveling.
I’ve lived in west Tokyo my entire time in Japan, 20+ years. Love it.
But as a younger man, i loved the weekends spent partying in Shibuya and Shinjuku and whatnot.
Now? I might do some day shopping in Shinjuku, but Shibuya feels awful to me now.
East, nice place to visit, wouldn’t want to live there
West Tokyo is Hachioji. Cheap houses, costco, access to the mountains. Good friend of mine settled there and loves it.
East all the way; only snobs and attention seekers live in the west
I will go as far as saying anywhere within 23区, preferably Chiyoda or Chuo are the best places to live. Good train access, close to Tokyo station and an les than an hour to Haneda and a little more to Narita. Never thought of East or West after XX years.
How east are we talking about? I’ve lived on the east side of Yamanote (Kanda then Hamatsucho) and also out around the bay (Ariake then Kachidoki). But I’d say those are the eastern side of the central part of the city. I’ve also lived in Ichikawa, so about as east as you can get.
Basically anywhere from the east bank of the Sumida River onwards is historically shitamachi, so you don’t that pretentious vibe you might find in other hoods. A lot of that area along the bay is an industrial hellscape. Plenty of grimy places to eat yakitori and drink with ojisans though, if that’s what you’re into. The vast majority of workers are going to be commuting to central Tokyo.
I really think west of Shinjuku on a line that passes through is really nice. Something on the Chuo, Keio etc
Has a nice balance of being easy to get anywhere I want to go and much better prices than inside the Yamanote.
Although if I could afford it, I’d live near Yotsuya
Go Norff mate, big up Adachi
West and East of which, 23 wards or the whole Tokyo as prefecture?
East Tokyo eastern of Asakusa, like Katsushika, Edogawa, Arakawa.. are more susceptible to hazards like flood, closer to sea level, surrounded by rivers.. hence cheaper compared to West 23 wards like Setagaya, Meguro. Culturally different too, East wards are (shitamachi)more “humane”, casual, informal as being merchants, native Edo-ko living there for generations, while West wards (Yamanote) are lived by modern days Samurai such as manager class salarymen who immigrated from everywhere else.
Casual calculations: For a 70m2 house with land close to station, in East wards will cost you 70mil Yen, in West wards: 110mil+ yen
If your west here means Western Tokyo which are smaller cities outside of 23 wards, story are different too. Western Tokyo originally is farmer culture. Lands are cheaper to 23 wards too, especially at those like Akiruno, Nishitokyo.. cities that you can’t name. Except Musashino Kichijouji is expensive enough to rival East wards.
If you want to be realistic, go settle down in Kawaguchi, Ichikawa or Hachioji
If I could afford it, Minato, but since I can’t I’ve settled on Shinagawa. That said, I would love to live in Chuo Ward if I could afford a detached house there. Shitamachi is generally better for restaurant variety.
I mean, wholly depends on your work place. I’d hate to live in Kichijoji and the like and be forced to get to Tokyo station.
East Tokyo has some nice deep drinking spots, stubborn old people and good jogging paths along the rivers.
West has hordes of mothers wobbling about with 2 kids on their bikes down narrow pavements, more expensive vegetables, and better funded parks.
I’ve only ever lived on the west side – on the Seibu Shinjuku line slowly moving outward – and anywhere between Nakano-ku and Nishitokyo-shi is great to live in. Nice neighborhoods, close enough to the action but just far enough that you can get away from it and not have ridiculous rent.
It’s very different. For example, Setagayaku and Suginami ku combine for about 20 Starbucks shops while Katsushikaku and Edogawaku combine for 2. This reflects the income levels with the East side being generally poorer.
If you’re talking about the 23 wards, I vastly prefer West Tokyo. Shinjuku, Shibuya, Ikebukuro, it’s where almost all my activities take me. I hardly ever travel to East Tokyo.
If you are talking within 23 wards, it entirely depends on neighborhood and your age. The biggest priority should be your transportation to work though. Central part of east is quite expensive as well.
pff. Yokohama
North Korea HANDS DOWN!!!!
Do people really look to reddit in order to decide where to live?
I really don’t get it.
West for sure. Easier access to the mountains, prettier townscapes and less suceptible for floods and such.
I think I enjoyed my time in Nakano most, busy, but easy to get away from it. I do miss the river bank from when I lived in Adachi.
East (around shin-kiba) looks relaxing, maybe good for people who want a laid bike lifestyle.
Right now I live near Oji, which has a charming river but that’s about it.
The west is more popular due to being closer to Shibuya and Shinjuku.
The east is generally less popular due to the closest entertainment hub being Ueno which is a bit old.
West Tokyo. East Tokyo is a barren concrete jungle of mostly factories and warehouses. I am talking about Edogawa-ku and parts of Koto-ku.
Central business districts are another story. I will prefer having residences in both business districts and west tokyo. But If I only have one choice, I will choose the business district area because it’s convenient for work, if I need to attend a meeting face-to-face.
Back in the day, commutes were my biggest source of stress.
Westside is de best!