Tokyo Hotel Reviews
We went to the Tsukiji fish market two days in a row (my boyfriend is a chef). The place is fascinating, and has the best sushi in the world (if you like sushi, this is the place to go). That was one of our highlights. We visited friends in Kagurazaka, which is in NE Shinjuku. This is a little known, but wonderful section, full of fantastic restaurants, bakeries, and great shopping areas, but with very few tourists and crowds. It is an ex-pat area with a lot of French and German people living amongst the locals. They all speak Japanese fluently as well. I highly recommend it.
We visited Kyoto during the last week of July. Enjoyed visiting the Temples, Shrines, and the Emperor''s Palace, but the place is very hot during summer. We found Taxi to be the most convenient way to see the sites in a relatively short time. Don''t miss the evening show of watching fishermen using diving birds to catch fish. Tokyo was tolerable in heat, but humidity was not very comfortable. Metro system is truly outstanding and one doesn''t need to know Japanese to quickly figure it out. Get the 1000 Yen Passnet which almost serves all Metros and makes life a lot easier. It is like having a Metro debit card, thus one does not need to buy tickets every time. During our one week stay, we experienced a 6.1 earthquake, a typhoon, and another 4.7 earthquake, but that is nothing unusual in Japan. Visiting Japan is an amazing cultural experience.
Good location. Just 5 walking minutes from Roppongi Station. Japanese restaurants and international cusine are within walking distance ( 5 - 10 minutes ). For those who look for the Hard Rock Café, it''s 10 Minutes from the Mansion. The only thing is: Have the phone number ready when you come with a taxi. Even though they have GPS they couldn''t find it. They had to call. Take the "Friendly Limousine" Bus Service from Narita Airport to ANA Hotel Tokyo and then take a cap. It''s 3000 Yen for an adult and 1500 for a child (Airport transfer) and the taxi from ANA Hotel Tokyo to the Mansions is about 740 Yen (depends on how quick he finds the hotel - lol). Tokyo Tower one of Tokyo''s attractions is within walking distance. But when you come there, I would recommend that you do one of these day tours to see the highlights. For all families: Disneyland and Disney Sea are very easy to reach from the Mansions. It just takes 30 Minutes. The waterpark "Summerland - Water Adventure" is two hrs. away. But in the summertime a blast for kids. And the train ride is fun anyway.
When in Tokyo, at least visit Tokyo National Museum, Asakusa temple, Meji shrine and Ginza. And always try and visit the beautiful and much smaller cities of Kamakura and Nikko.
To find food near the hotel, take the lift that serves directly to B2, walk a short distance to nearby buildings such as Shiodome City Center or Caretta Shiodome and be spoit for choice by the extensive range of restaurants and cafes. At lunch time, you can easily find a great set meal for about US$10. There are many shops, cafes, restaurants located along the linkway between the hotel and Shimbashi Station. For a nice day trip, visit Yokohama and see the reputed world''s biggest Chinatown. The place is really buzzing with activities. Take the subway from Shimbashi to Shibuya (Ginza Line) and transfer directly to Yokohama line. It takes about 40 minutes on the express train.
Tokyo is exciting and fun. there is a lot to see and do. Try to take a water bus down the Sumida River for an interesting way to see Tokyo.
I would recommend Hotel Senkyoro in Hakone. Great onsen, very courteous staff and best of all, there is a studio for guests to make their own Japanese ceramics. (There is an instructor there to show you how of course.) My plate is sure to win many design awards! :)
Awesome place for lunch - Danto, about a couple blocks from Ginza station - located in the basement of an office building. Cute, traditional style lunch establishment with very friendly staff. One of the waitresses was especially amused at the size of my gaijin Born loafers ("Oki-desu!") which failed to fit in the shoe cabinets. Food is great, and you cannot beat the set courses for value and taste. Check out Frommer''s Tokyo Guidebook for more details. We also loved a Koren BBQ place in the mall ourside of the Disney Resort - a bit on the expensive side (naturally, given its location), but DELICIOUS. Take a Japanese friend, as (surprisingly, again given its location) there are no English menus.<br> <br> Freshness Burger - not so much. Avoid this place unless you need something to soak up the booze after a night in Roppongi/Shinjuku/etc. Getting around: incredibly easy. Public transport in Tokyo is a completely hassle-free experience. Read the maps carefully (if possible, plan out your trip beforehand using a site like zone81.com''s subway planner) and check out the Romanji translations in all stations, and you are set! We loved Tokyo (and our one day in Kyoto). We hope to come back very soon to experience more of the city - eight days and we only scratched the surface!
People watching takes a lot of beating in Tokyo. Go to Harajuku station to see the bizarre clothes of the ''Harajuku girls''. We thought that ''Electric Town'' was disappointing, but really enjoyed the Sunday markets.
Try nearby Spago for a bargain lunch (2500 yen) at a Wolfgang Puck top line restaurant which would cost triple in the evening.
We were all over Tokyo visiting tourist sites and general shopping. We used the subway and JR trains which provide very efficient transportation. We liked the Shabu-shabu restaurant in the hotel for a Japanese treat and several of the restaurants by the Akasaka-Mitsuke subway stop were very good.
Roppongi is quite a newly developed city. Just a 10min. walk will get you to TV Asahi where I enjoyed shopping for Doraemon''s goods. The view around that area is a lot better at night. So if you plan for a nice stroll, go during the late evening.
I did the tourist thing all over Tokyo for a week. I was a little dissapointed with the Sega Joypolis in Odaiba. I did the skydiving ride but it wasn''t what I had hoped for. The Edo-Tokyo museum was interesting. I saw a Sumo match which I highly recommend at least once if they''re going on when you''re there. Shibuya and Shinjuku are interesting areas as is Asakusa. I did a Sumida Gawa river cruise down to Hinode pier and it was very relaxing and informative. If you''re around Shibuya or Harajuku on a Sunday, definately go see the costume play kids on the bridge over Harajuku station in the afternoon. It''s like Halloween only better.<br> <br> Akihabara has tons of electronics of course but what I didn''t realize was this is the place to go for DVD''s as well. They have huge selections of every genre including the naughty ones. Meiji Shrine in Harajuku is a definite must, especially if there are some weddings going on. Tokyo Tower was a mediocre experience for me, I didn''t go all the way to the top since I had previously gone to the top of the Tokyo Metro Gov''t Building for free and got almost the same view.<br> <br> Palette town with the Venus Fort and Toyota Mega web were worth visiting but my favorite on Odaiba was the Oedo Onsen. Definately go there if you get a chance. It''s a traditional Japanese hot spring public bath. You change into a yukata (like a bathrobe sort of) and walk around a public area with food and gifts. The hot spring areas though are separate for males & females, each with indoor and outdoor sections. I found the hot tubs outside to be a wonderful contrast to the cold temperatures, plus you get the added benefit of walking around without clothes on along with lots of other people. Great experience though and I felt rejuvenated afterwards. I also did a day trip to Kamakura which I highly recommend if you get the time. There''s a ton of shrines and temples and a big buddha too. The day I went to the shrine there was a big ceremony going on with hundreds of people and imitation samurai swords. Very exciting stuff.
If you take AirBus to ANA hotel, after you get off the bus, go inside ANA hotel and take escalator one floor upwards and you will see taxi stand at the front door. Make sure you download the Hotel map and present it to taxi driver. Watch out the hotel lightbox on your left.
Good shopping at Ginza and Roppongi. There is a great German bar on the main stretch of Ginza.
The Metro is the easiest way to get around Tokyo. If there is a day you know you are going to ride the Metro a good amount I would recommend the 1-Day Fun Pass for 1000 Yen (about $10) for the TOIE and Tokyo Metro Line so you don''t have to think about the cost. If you''re not sure about how much to buy your ticket, buy the cheapest then pay the fare difference when you arrive at your destination station at the Far Adjustment Machine before you go through the turnstiles. Roppongi Hills just opened up and at night it''s a lovely area to walk around; it has museums/gallery, restaurants, shops, movie theatre, and views! If you''re thinking about getting electronics in Tokyo you might want to think twice. With all the globalization, the electronics in Tokyo are not as far from what we have in the States. I bought a digital camera and came home and found it being sold at Best Buy. Good thing the price is about the same. And if you buy it at home, you''re guaranteed to get instructions in English! I would recommend buying snacks and Japanese souvenirs to bring home instead.
Tokyo is a bit expensive (understatement) right now. That said, I am a foodie, do not miss the food halls in the department stores, sushi breakfast at the Tsujiki fish market and a dinner at Atelier Joel Robuchon at Roppongi Hills which is a mind blowing destination in itself.
Tokyo is a great city to visit, yes it is one of the more expensive cities in the world. It is a first world city and puts most to shame when it comes to cleanliness and thoughtfulness of other people. That said it still has its own funny idiosyncrasies. For a western lady, watch out going to a public toilet, the tradeoff for that is more shopping than you could possible imagine. It seemed every train stop on the JR line had multiple malls 10 stories high. The subway and railway is a little confusing, bring along a subway map in English (found at all hotels) and then it is much easier to work out where to come and go. Not much is in English and the JR railway line and Tokyo subway line are run sort of independant of each other yet appear to be seamless. The parks and shrines are amazing and well worth a visit to any that you come across, make sure you visit any before 4:00pm as they generally shut around then and you will need some time to absorb it all. There are plenty of places to let your hair down once the sun goes down, Shibuya and Shinjuku are 2 areas that we found however there are plenty more. All sorts of cuisines exist, however the more japanese you go the harder it is to order, but not impossible as they will try to help you as much as possible. Overall, Tokyo is well worth a visit, just a little difficult to understand some things, but sometimes we have to get "lost in translation".
Though I stayed in Ginza, I spent most of my time in Shinjuku (having lunch at the excellent Teppanyaki restaurant in the Park Hyatt) and Shibuya (visiting the incomparable Tokyo Hands). I also always visit the SONY showroom in Ginza to see a glimpse of the future. This time, it''s the Qualia 005 HDTV (not available for demo in the US).
If you have the chance, visit the VENUSFORT shopping mall in Tokyo Bay Ariake and be surprised (on the Yurikamome line)!