6 day Tokyo Itinerary Feedback

5 comments

1. Please don’t go to the cruel and inhumane owl café (or any other animal café, for that matter). The only reason they continue to exist is because of ignorant customers and unusually lax animal cruelty regulations. If you feel the need to see owls, go to the Inokashira Zoo, which is next to the Ghibli Museum.

   I’d suggest skipping Gotokuji and the Shirohige joint. The former is in my neighborhood and is just a typical shrine, of which you’ll see plenty in Japan. The several shelves of little cat figurines are periodically cleaned up, so you may not see many. It’ll also cost you an hour or more. The Shiro-Hige Cream Puff Factory (a) just has regular cream puffs available anywhere but is for unknown reasons internet famous despite being unknown in Japan and (b) is apparently sold out of cream puffs an hour after opening.

   Because of Golden Week, expect the first three days in Tokyo to be extraordinarily crowded.

2. Many people leave Tokyo on GW, but those that stay are out and about doing things in force. Lots of things will be slammed, though trains in the city will be on average less crowded than normal. You will also be on crowded shinkansen going to Osaka – book early.

   Another thing that may not be obvious from overseas – Tokyo is not a morning city. Good for walks and parks and such then but it’s not unusual for shops to not open until 11 if not 12. So if you wander some place like Kappabashi in the morning expecting things to be open, they may very well not be.

3. I agree with the commenter who mentioned not going to the owl cafe. Most of them here are unethical even the normal cat and dog ones. I would suggest to just steer clear of them. They don’t take animal welfare here very seriously at all.

4. I recently went with an itinerary and was surprised I was getting more done faster than I expected to. Tokyo is very efficiently laid out (at least in my opinion).

   I had a list of sights to see and experience and after walking 22 miles that first day and causing my feet to regenerate like a time lord, I just kind of winged it the next few days, taking trains more often and exploring things I didn’t have in my itinerary as I discovered them.

   Take your time. 6 days is plenty to get all of this, even out of any particular order.

   Especially if you’re insane and walked everywhere like I did (126 miles in 8 days, and my smartwatch still had the nerve to complain I sat down for an hour at the airport on my way home).

   Also, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, I had always wanted to go inside, and little did I know it was free to go up to the observatory level, and it has one of the best tower views of the city and Fuji (on a clear day). So definitely consider it if you go to Shinjuku.

5. I’ve spent a lot of time in Tokyo and still find it impossible to predict whether places are going to be crowded or not. But trains to and from Osaka/Kyoto will be hellish during golden week. My sister and i had to train from Kyoto in golden week and we couldn’t find a single place to sit at the station! Book your ticket asap and don’t get to the station too early.
   Two hours at team lab should be enough. its good but after a couple of hours I’d had enough. There are lockers but from memory, they aren’t huge. Again, book early.
   I’d prioritise a couple of things each day and not worry if you miss the rest. you’ll find other things just as good. But then im the type to have to wander down every alley I see 😁