Hi everybody,
I’m planning a solo trip to Japan for February 2024. I’ve started my planning really early because this is my first ever solo trip and I wanted to allow lots of time to find anything extra that I wanted to do (E.G. a month ago I didn’t even know about Hakone, I’ve learned a lot from reading this subreddit!)
I’m a HUGE anime nerd, my favorite is Sailor Moon. I’m hoping to find some 90s Sailor Moon merch at Mandarake. I also like shopping and arcades, but I don’t wanna go to Japan just to see the inside of a mall lol.
I want to add that I can’t eat pork and I’m not particularly fond of seafood, so any restaurant recommendations would be very helpful! I really wanna try Mont Blanc (no one sells it in my city!) so any suggestions for that would be appreciated as well. 🙂
I’ve tried to plan everything so that everything I’m doing on a given day is in the same area; would love to hear if there’s anything I should add, remove, or move around!
DAY 1: Arrive in Japan. Depending on the time of day, maybe check out Character Street if it’s early enough; otherwise I’m really just planning to get to my hotel and get some rest
DAY 2: Ghibli museum
Shirohige Cream Puff Factory (closes at 7)
Nakano Broadway
Donguri Republic in Chuo (ghibli store) (closes at 9)
DAY 3: Shinjuku
Meiji Jingu shrine + grounds
bookstore opens at 10:30, fruits parlor opens at 11
Shinjuku Kinokuniya Bookstore! I’d like to find a manga magazine…
Takano Fruits Parlor
Shinjuku Marui Annex
Tokyo Metropolitan building in the evening
Omoide Yokocho for dinner
DAY 4: Daytrip to Kamakura:
Breakfast at Chocolate Bank – opens at 8am
Walk to Hokokuji (Bamboo grove)
Komachi-dori street
Sasuke Inari Shrine
Back to Tokyo
DAY 5:
Imperial palace in the morning
Senso-ji and the shopping street leading up to it
Sanrio Gift Gate
Character Street if I missed it on day 1
Possibly going to Akihabara if I get done with everything else earlier than expected, since it’s fairly close by
DAY 6: Harajuku
Pompompurin Cafe
La Foret (Sailor Moon store <3)
Candy Stripper
Closet Child?
Kinji [Harajuku Branch]
Kiddyland
DAY 7: Hakone daytrip
Hakone Ropeway (Owakudani)
Hakone Glass Forest – opens at 10
Hakone Open Air Museum – opens at 10
Hakone Yuryo onsen – opens at 10, presumably will take ~2hrs.
Then get back to the train station, grab dinner before heading back in to Tokyo. (i think ill be hungry after the onsen lol)
Haikara Chinese Nisshintei for dinner (closes at 8) OR Hatsuhana Soba Honten (closes at 6:45)
DAY 8:
Hachiko Statue (I want a picture of it in the morning, would 7am be a good enough time to get there to avoid the crowd?)
Starbucks in Shibuya
Shibuya 109
Don Quijote
Tokyo Comedy Bar
DAY 9:
Ueno park + Museums; some museum choices include:
-Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum
-National Museum of Nature and Science
-Tokyo National Museum
babe wake up it’s time for Sanrio Garden Cafe in Ueno
Ameyoko Street
DAY 10: Odaiba
TEAMLABS Borderless in the morning
Miraikan
Small Worlds Tokyo for the Sailor Moon exhibit
Concert in Shimokitazawa?
https://www.japan-experience.com/all-about-japan/tokyo/nightlife/shimokitazawa
DAY 11: Akihabara! More figure shopping.
New figure shops: Amiami (tax-free shopping), Volks Akihabara Tengoku (lots of displays), Animate (Ikebukuro flagship store), Gamers
Used figure shops: Mandarake, Lashinbang, Suruga-ya
Radio Kaikan,
HEY! Taito Arcade
DAY 12: Kawazu
Cherry tree festival
Stop in Izu on the way back to Tokyo for Izu Teddy Bear Museum [closes at 5]
DAY 13: Last day in Tokyo. Go back to something I really liked. If you want extra time in Shibuya, Harajuku… this is the time to do it!
DAY 14: Go home! Maybe have 1 really nice last meal in Japan + LAST chance to repeat anything/buy more souvenirs (most flights leave in the evening so I should have at least until the afternoon)
Thank you for any advice/answers!!
**edited for formatting
5 comments
For day 11 (as you seem to be an early bird), know that most shops in Akihabara open between 10:00-11:00, so you can plan accordingly.
Have fun!
Your Kamakura day trip is pretty light. There are a few more shrines/sights near the locations you’ve mentioned which you could add if you wanted. Theres:
Kotoku-in with a large daibutsu.
Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gu in the main area of Kamakura
Zeniarai Benten Shrine which has a cave/tunnel as an entrance
[Kamakura-koko mae Station and nearby level crossing](https://zekkeijapan.com/spot/index/429/) is usually popular too aince it was in an anime. It’s also a nice ride on the Enoden along the coast.
For food, I recommend 鎌倉愡太郎 for okonomiyaki. It’s on Komachi dori and has a pretty extensive menu, so you can avoid pork/seafood.
I absolutely love Sailor Moon and I’ll be going to Japan in the fall! I can let you know what I find after my trip 🙂
If you’re into cosplay, maid/butler cafes, etc, you should add Ikebukuro to your list, it’s becoming an important otaku place also.
For your Imperial Palace visit, if you’re into history, I’d also check out Yasakuni Jinja across the street. It’s not your standard jinja, but it’s really interesting as far as Japanese politics and recent history goes.
I recommend you see PARCO in Shibuya. It’s incredible. And they have tons of great restaurants in the basement, including a number of restaurants that cater soecifically to certain dietary needs.