Tokyo

The capital and Japan’s largest city. There’s no shortage of things to do or see in this bustling metropolis!  While most cities have a main downtown or entertainment district, Tokyo has several – the majority of which are located along the JR Yamanote line (i.e. the train line that loops around central Tokyo).  There are several other JR and metro/subway lines that link up and bisect the Yamanote, so no matter where you’re staying in the city, it won’t take you long to reach your destination!

Suggested duration of stay:  Regardless of how long you visit, there’s always going to be more things to see.  If you’re pressed for time or an itinerary fiend, you might be able to get a feel for the city in 5 days, but I would normally suggest 1 week.

Getting around:  

Trains, trains, and more trains!  You will never find another city or country that has this many train lines & routes!  It’s truly unbelievable how efficiently everything runs and depending on which airport you fly into, there are express trains, local trains, and trains with several adjectives, like the ‘special rapid service’ that are ready to take you to your destination.  The Narita Express is a comfortable, high-speed train that takes roughly an hour to go from Narita airport (NRT)  to Tokyo Station and beyond.  But depending on your budget and where you’re staying, you might be better off taking a Special Rapid train into the city.  It’s about half the price and only takes an extra 10 mins to get to Nippori station, on the aforementioned JR Yamanote line.  Just make sure to buy a Suica card, when you first arrive, and load it up with some cash (at least 2000 yen to start).  It works on the JR train lines, Tokyo Metro (subway lines), and even on some vending machines too!  It’s fast, convenient, and saves you from purchasing tickets, every time you head out.

Akihabara – The ‘electronic city’, but also home to maid cafés, cosplay, and the animé museum (which wasn’t really a museum, per se, as it’s surprisingly small and there was no admission).  You can grab cheap electronics, small electrical components (for that vintage toaster, or grandma’s sewing machine), browse at the massive Yodobashi Akiba location (which has a large number of vending machines, on one of its floors, with different collectible miniatures), or shop at one of its discount competitors (I got my Beats headphones at Sofmap for ~$70 less than I would’ve paid in Canada). And if the terrible food at one of the maid cafés doesn’t work for you, might I suggest a personal favourite: Standing Sushi Bar.  There’s a step to get in and there’s only about 12 spots to stand and eat, but the parent company for this place gets first pick of the fish that comes into the Tsukiji Market that morning and sends it off to their various locations. It’s a bit hard to find, as it’s on the ‘quieter’ side of Akihabara JR Station and Yodobashi – between a McDonald’s and Burger King.  It’s not a big place, but I’ve been several times and it’s never disappointed.  The fish almost melts in your mouth.      

Shibuya – Home of the iconic scramble cross walk, this area is a popular shopping and entertainment area – especially among the younger crowd.  There are hundreds of places to shop, eat, drink, or be entertained. It’s also home to “Love Hotel Hill” – in case you’re suddenly in need of a nap, need a few hours with that special someone, or missed your last train home, after a night out.  

Tokyo Edo Museum – Located next door to the sumo hall, this intuitively-named museum houses artifacts, miniatures & life-sized replicas from Tokyo’s Edo Period.  Much of the museum is interactive, so you can sit in a rickshaw or palanquin, walk through homes from various periods, cross the Nihonbashi Bridge, enter the Nakamuraza Kabuki Theatre, and even try your hand at being a fire brigade banner man.   

    

Ryogoku Kokugikan – Tokyo’s main sumo hall/arena is located east of Tokyo’s Yamanote Loop and next door to the Tokyo Edo Museum.  This facility hosts 3 of the 6 annual sumo tournaments in Japan and also has a small sumo museum onsite.  You can eat traditional “chanko nabe” at the arena (during competitions, in the basement level) and at any time, in the surrounding neighbourhood, as many ex-sumo wrestlers have opened restaurants nearby.

Sunshine 60/Aquarium – Located blocks away from Ikebukuro Station, this commercial complex has an aquarium, shopping/entertainment at ground level, and a 60-storey tower, with a 360 degree observatory on its top floor. 

Tokyo Metropolitan Government Buildings (Shinjuku) – There’s a free observation level 40+ storeys up, but there’s a pricey restaurant on this level that’s claimed the best view for its patrons only.  But hey – if you’re staying in Shinjuku and happen to be nearby, check it out anyway! Personally, I prefer the panoramic view at Sunshine 60 (in Ikebukuro), but it underwent some renovations to add some VR attractions and might charge an entry fee now (check their website via the section above). 

Golden Gai – Located in Shinjuku (Tokyo’s nightlife capital) this lively-but-tiny area has hundreds of small bars & eateries – most of them boasting mid-to-high, single-digit capacities! So, as you can imagine, accessibility can be tricky, given the size of the venues. But I managed to find a few that worked (while others were too narrow or had staircases that couldn’t possibly be intended for adult-sized human use).
.

Odaiba – An entertainment & shopping area, located on a man-made island, in Tokyo Bay. It was originally built for military purposes, but has since enjoyed a new lease on life as a popular tourist and date destination.  It’s has a ferris wheel, movie theatres, rides, walk-through/room escapes, museums, an Edo Period onsen, restaurants, batting cages, bowling… something for the decisive and indecisive alike!  The majority of these are located indoors, so weather won’t be an issue.   

 

Ueno Park – Another urban green space (which is popular during cherry blossom season), this park is home to the Ueno Zoo and several museums, temples and shrines. The neighbouring area (down the hill from the park) is home to night market-style clothing shops and small food/drink establishments – built under the train tracks and highways (see ‘Gadashita’ below). It’s a good spot to check out and grab cheap souvenirs or “Japlish” t-shirts.

Hibiya Park – This small, Western-style garden was once a residential location for several feudal lords, during the Edo Period (part of the old castle wall still exists). It neighbours the Imperial Palace, to the south, and Ginza is a short jaunt to the east.  And if you’re lucky enough to find it, there’s a statue of Godzilla outside of the theatre and fashion building Hibiya Chanter – located halfway between the park and Ginza. 🙂  

Meiji-Jingu Stadium – Located in Meiji Jingu Gaien (garden) and home of Tokyo’s Yakult Swallows:  This baseball stadium opened in 1926 and is the 2nd oldest in Japan. Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Jimmie Foxx, and other American all-stars toured Japan and played here in 1934. I sat in the outfield accessible seats (a big penned in area that can hold a few ‘chairs) and some of the ramps leading up to the seats were quite steep (some more so than others, so you may need a hand or may want to try the next section over, if it looks dicey).  The stadium is equipped with dedicated accessible bathrooms.

Yebisu Beer Museum – This museum has changed in the two times I’ve visited.  It went from being a typical “history of __ beer” tour, to now resembling a polished showroom for Yebisu Brewery (with very little to see).  In either case, the best part of the tour remains the sampling/tasting section.  Different options are available, depending on how much sampling you’re willing to do. 😉 

Mikoshi/Matsuri – I happened across this by chance, while I was in Shibuya.  Basically, the mikoshi is a palanquin that carries a deity to and from its respective shrine.  During matsuri (festivals), people join mikoshi teams and parade it through the shrine’s neighbourhood – on their shoulders – jostling it about to amuse the deity inside (they really don’t get out much ;).  I’m told that the teams – after a long afternoon of parading through the streets – often have to dance around and approach their respective shrine a few times, before they’re finally allowed to return the mikoshi to its home (they need to prove they’re worthy). Definitely not for the faint of heart or the overly tall, as they tend to bear the brunt of the weight!

Karaoke – being the birthplace of the phenomenon, there’s no shortage of places to go out and get your sing on…pretty much anywhere in the entire city (or country, for that matter)! Establishments vary from big chains (e.g. Shidax, Big Echo, etc.) to independently owned, but the majority are private rooms.  If you prefer singing to the masses, you may have to do some research or asking around.  We found a place called “Club Oasis” (by Kamata Station – in the Ota Ward, not far from Kawasaki and Haneda Airport) that had a stage and seats around the perimeter of the room.  They had a flat rate for nomihodai (2500-3000 yen for 2 hrs of all-you-can-drink…service didn’t slack either!) and the staff & host were keen to get all of the patrons involved in singing and/or dancing along to the songs. 

“Gado-shita” establishments – located in the Yurakucho district (near Ginza – the high-end shopping & entertainment district…there are also some near Ueno Station), these small izakayas and restaurants are situated under the elevated JR train tracks (or elevated motorways, in some cases) and vary in size & price.  Even if you’re not hungry or thirsty, wander through this area, as it’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen in North America or Europe.        

The Hobgoblin (Shibuya) – a chain of British pubs, this particular location is next to the Mark City shopping centre – within falling distance of Tokyo’s world-famous scramble crosswalk.  Drinks are pricey, but they have meal specials, sports on the TV’s, and on occasion – live music.  I’ve played 2 gigs there and the only knock, accessibility wise, is that they don’t have a stall big enough for a ‘chair to fit in.  There’s also a single step up to the dining section, where tables are lower.  Closer to the bar, the tables are higher and intended for bar stools (though I find it’s a shorter distance from my plate to my mouth, when I eat at one of those ;)!

Izakaya – After-work pubs, with cheap drink specials and an assortment of small appetizers (e.g. yakitori, sashimi, etc.).  Locations and chains are numerous! I went to one called “EQ” (years back & it had other locations) and you could buy a membership card for 200 yen, in order to get immediate discounts.  There were even better discounts, if you went on dates with a “9”.  Strangely (at least to foreigners), you’ll see that mixed drinks are half the price of pop/soda alone…which almost dares you to order 2 – just for the savings of course! 😉

Kaiten (Conveyor belt) sushi –  The name pretty much says it all!  Several sushi restaurants throughout Japan employ this method to share the basics quickly:  Patrons sit around the outside of a counter that has a conveyor belt track, which carries different coloured plates of sushi (the colour denotes the price).  There’s usually 2 or 3 chefs stationed in the center of the track – taking special orders verbally and putting together the plates.  You stack your plates as you go and when you’re finished eating, a staff member will swing by and tally your bill according to the number and colour of your plates.

The Ruby Room – While I could argue that I’m saving the best for last, since it was a great music venue for playing a live gig, it’s actually because it is not the least bit accessible.  A testament to the dedication of my friends AND the helpfulness of the Japanese:  After negotiating a VERY steep hill to get to the venue, my buddy and one of the staff members bumped me up a big flight of stairs (that had a 90 degree turn near the top) and then up onto the 2-3 foot-high stage, inside the venue.  If you have people that can replicate that feat – kudos!  Otherwise, you’ll just have to take my word for it and live vicariously through my pics… 😉

Where I stayed (year):

Hotel Metropolitan Tokyo (Ikebukuro – 2009) – minutes away from Ikebukuro train station, this hotel is in a good neighbourhood and looks posh – with classy shops and a bakery at lobby level – but a deal can be had here…or at least could, when I went! The accessible room (yes, that’s singular) is on the 4th floor had a very hard and small double bed.  The washroom had a fancy Japanese toilet that could detect your presence and flip on a night light, but no grab bars (when I was there, in 2009).  You also had to shower outside of the tub, which is typical in Japan, as tubs are used primarily for soaking, once you’ve cleaned yourself.  BYOB (Bring your own bench) Rating: 3.25/5

Toyoko-Inn Shinagawa (2013) – A popular, no-frills chain of business hotels, this property is a 2 minute walk from Shinagawa station – one of Tokyo’s main train stations and one of its two shinkansen (bullet train) stops (the other is Tokyo Station).  Strangely, there’s a small ramp inside the accessible room and it has 2 single beds.  The washroom is one big room that uses curtains to separate the shower area from the tub and toilet, with a very interesting, almost car wash-esque shower station that I took a pass on (fearing it would transform into a robot and assault me with its spray jets ;). I opted instead for the hand-held shower and bench that I brought along. Rating: 3.25/5

Richmond Hotel Premier Musashi Kosugi (2009 & 2013) – located in a burgeoning new neighbourhood – just outside of central Tokyo – this hotel has a universal twin room, is a 10 min JR train ride from Shinagawa station, and has supermarkets/shopping/restaurants within walking distance.  The main doors are automatic, but the front desk is located on a higher floor. The washroom has grab bars and hand-held shower, but you’ll need to bring your own bench or chair.  Rating: 4/5