Table Of Contents
- Stroll through characterful Tokyo neighbourhoods
- The best Tokyo food experiences
- Experience Tokyo's unique activities (click here for 5 recommended plans)
- Experience a new musical experience at the Candlelight concert (tickets here)
- Short trip to Oshima for 2 days and 1 night (click here for details)
- Soak in an open-air bath in the 23 wards (click here for 5 recommended hot springs).
- View art in free museums and galleries (click here for 8 recommended spots)
- Spend time at unique bookstores (8 recommended here).
As one of the world’s largest urban areas, there’s too much ground to cover in Tokyo in just one day. So, if you’re looking for the best things to do in Tokyo, you may need to be a little more selective. Here are our suggestions for where to start exploring in the city!
Stroll through characterful Tokyo neighbourhoods
1. Explore Shimokitazawa, where Tokyo’s old and new culture converge
In 2021, “reload” opened with an array of restaurants and unique stores, whilst in 2022 the neighbourhood welcomed, “Mikan Shimokita,” a complex facility that takes advantage of the charm of Shimokitazawa, where people can enjoy a leisurely walk to explore. On the other hand, the vintage clothing stores and izakayas that have long been part of the area’s culture remain intact, blending old and new in one location.
2. Visit Koenji, one of the best subculture towns in Tokyo
Koenji is rich in shopping streets, including Junjo Shopping Street, Koenji Koshin-dori Shopping Street, and Koenji Pal Shopping Street, which has an arcade at the south exit, as well as Look Shopping Street, which has many vintage clothing stores. There are vintage clothing stores, cafes, and pubs under the neighbourhood’s elevated railway tracks, so there’s no shortage of things to do and see. It’s almost home to the Tokyo Koenji Awa Odori Festival, which has been held every August since 1957 and attracts many spectators from Japan and abroad.
3. Stroll down Togoshi Ginza, the longest shopping street in Tokyo
The longest shopping street in Tokyo (although not the longest in Japan), Togoshi Ginza spans a total length of 1.3 km, and is very attractive for people who enjoy eating and window shopping. About 400 stores line the shopping street, ranging from stores selling fresh produce, croquettes and other prepared foods that can be eaten on the spot, and sweets stores. Here’s our full guide to Togoshi Ginza.
The best Tokyo food experiences
4. Start your day at a great breakfast restaurant
Whether you are looking for a quick pick-me-up before work or a way to enjoy your holiday in the morning, we recommend this highly reputable breakfast restaurant in Tokyo. For Tsukiji Honganji Cafe Tsumugi and Katsuo Shokudo, you need to make reservations in advance or line up early in the morning.
5. Hashigake in stylish Neo Yokocho (click here for 4 recommended Neo Yokochoes)
A typical Tokyo-style yokocho is Neo Yokocho, a collection of popular stores and stylishly decorated stores. Even in Tokyo, where popular restaurants often require reservations, it is nice to find a collection of restaurants where you can enter without a reservation. A total of 26 stores line Toranomon Yokocho in Toranomon Hills.
6. View Tokyo’s nightscape from the roof bar (click here for 5 recommendations).
There are many places where you can enjoy the night view, but there is nothing like seeing it over drinks on a fashionable Tokyo rooftop. TWO ROOMS Grill &bar, a popular rooftop bar in Omotesando, is a good second stop when the season is right.
Experience Tokyo’s unique activities (click here for 5 recommended plans)
1, Bowling at Sasazuka Bowl
A long-established bowling alley founded in 1973, based on the concept of a bowling alley inside a restaurant. The stylish interior, which has undergone renovations, and the regular DJ events are also attracting a lot of attention. More than 150 types of alcoholic beverages, including naturals wines, are available for those who are particular about their drinks.
Sasazuka Bowl 3F, 4F, 1-57-10 Sasazuka, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
2, Table Tennis at T4 Kitchen
The restaurant is equipped with an original ping-pong table and a VIP room that can be rented out with a ping-pong table. Chef Hokuto Hasegawa of “Gourmandise,” who spent a total of six years in Paris, supervises the menu, which is prepared with the utmost care.
1F ASIA BUILDING, 1-12-16 Jinnan, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
3, Renting a houseboat (see popular cruise ships &for 3 houseboats)
Funakiyo offers chartered boats and chartered cruisers that can be boarded from a location about a 13-minute walk from Shinagawa Station. Shared boats are available from 2 persons. The basic route includes a stop at Odaiba, then up the Sumida River to a view of the Sky Tree from the Eitai Bridge area.
Experience a new musical experience at the Candlelight concert (tickets here)
Held regularly at the historic Christ Shinagawa Church, Oji Hall, theaters inside department stores, the Mitsukoshi Theater and the Lutheran Ichigaya Center, these concerts offer music appreciation in the light of over 1,000 candles that envelop the venue.
To date, concerts have been held at venues around the world, playing not only classical music, but also jazz, soul, blues, and the latest pop music, creating a unique experience that even those unfamiliar with music appreciation can enjoy.
Short trip to Oshima for 2 days and 1 night (click here for details)
Oshima is the closest remote island in Tokyo from central Tokyo. The best way to get there is to take a jet boat from Takeshiba Passenger Boat Terminal, which takes about 1 hour and 45 minutes. The number of flights is two to three per day during the low season and five per day during the high season. On Oshima, enjoy the spectacular view at Japan’s only desert and back desert. It is also a great candidate for a weekend getaway destination.
Soak in an open-air bath in the 23 wards (click here for 5 recommended hot springs).
There are many hot springs in Tokyo, but only a few have open-air baths. These are the five places to remember when you want to refresh yourself after work or before dinner, or when you want to refresh yourself in the open air. Takasago-yu is notable not only for its modern Japanese-style open-air baths, but also for the indoor bath paintings completed in 2015 by Kiyoto Maruyama, one of only three bathhouse painters in Japan today. The men’s side depicts a wide coastline and pine trees, while the women’s side shows scattered islands and cherry trees.
View art in free museums and galleries (click here for 8 recommended spots)
While Tokyo is home to museums such as the Mori Art Museum and the National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, which attract people from all over the world, the places where visitors can enter for free are not inferior at all. Forum, operated by the Hermes Foundation, is an art gallery on the 8th floor of Maison Hermes in Ginza. The exhibition will feature works by contemporary artists from Japan and abroad, which will be changed every three months or so. The 10th floor will house Le Studio, a mini-theater that operates by reservation only.
Spend time at unique bookstores (8 recommended here).
It is not only books on the topic that you will encounter in the bookstore here. Check out the art exhibits and regularly scheduled events. B &B, an acronym for BOOKS &BEER, also allows visitors to enjoy reading with a beer in hand, as the name suggests. Talk events with book authors and editors are held daily.
