Time to deep dive into the cities we explored while in Japan! Tokyo was our home base on the first half of the trip so instead of having full days there we ended up with half and three quarter days to explore. In total we had a little over 3 days.
I think for these posts I'm going to go day by day and recap where we went, where we ate and where we stayed. The numbers will look a little funny because I'm going based on the whole trip itinerary dates. Probably a weird way to do it, but that's what I'm going with!
Day 1 (Sunday)
Where We Went
Where We Ate
McDonald's JR Tokyo, Marunouchi
Whenever we go to another country we like to go to McDonald's to see how different it is. That seemed like the perfect way for us to ease in to our trip. We headed back to Tokyo Station to find the McDonald's, which was luckily right when you enter, and we mobile ordered because we didn't have the mental capacity to order at the window. I got some nuggets, fries, and "shaka shaka chicken" while Christian ordered a teriyaki burger, fries and a coke. We also ordered a special strawberry frappe New Years drink with chocolate macaron! It was just what the doctor ordered. You could tell the chicken was actually chicken here. Our total was $14.96.
Where We Stayed
As I mentioned in my itinerary post, we stayed in 3 hotels while in Tokyo. Our first night in Japan was spent at Keio Presso Inn Tokyo Station Yaesu. Funnily enough, this was our least favorite hotel. It was fine, just didn't feel as nice as the rest. The main benefit was it's proximity to Tokyo Station. Our last hotel was similarly located.
Day 2 (Monday)
Where We Went
Senso-Ji Temple
Our first stop of the day was Senso-Ji Temple in Asakusa! We took the train to Asakusa station and then it was a quick walk to the temple. Along the way we also saw Toki-no-Kane (Bell of Time) and Benten-Do Hall which are part of the grounds but down the road a little. Senso-Ji, the oldest temple in Tokyo, is one of the most popular tourist spots in the city so we got there just before 8am to beat the crowds. It was so beautiful and we enjoyed walking around looking at all the various sections. The Five-Storied Pagoda was truly a sight to behold.
Since we were so early we did miss the stalls at Nakamise Shopping Street being open, but we are not huge crowd people so we were okay with that.
Tokyo Skytree
After Senso-Ji we headed to another tourist destination, the SkyTree, for a view of the city from above. We had not pre-bought tickets but did so on our phones as soon as we arrived around 9am so we could skip the ticket-buying part of the line. We only went up to the Tembo Deck, 350m in the air, but you can also buy tickets for the Tembo Galleria which is 450m! The cost for 2 tickets was $33.08.
We spent about a half hour walking around taking in various views of the city. We also lucked out with a clear day so we had an amazing view of Mt. Fuji as well! We even spotted Senso-Ji Temple from above.
MUJI Ginza/Ginza Shopping
After we had lunch we walked around Ginza to see what fancy stores they had. We were going to go into Chanel but there was a very long line as they like to limit the number of guests. We took a quick walk through the first floor of Matsuya Ginza, a department store type mall full of designer brands, to see what kinds of stores they had, but we were in more of a sight-seeing than shopping mood this day.
We stumbled upon a MUJI which was on my list as a must-visit Japanese department store. Before our trip I googled "must-buy souvenirs in Japan" just to see what would come up and was surprised with the amount of people that specifically said nail clippers from MUJI. I have been needing new ones for a while so I was on the hunt! I spent $13 on a small and large nail clipper and a couple nail files. And yes, they are amazing, so much better than my old clippers!
The Ginza location is their flagship so it was multiple stories high full of minimalist merchandise. If I lived in Japan I would definitely do a lot of my home decor shopping here. Everything was simple yet beautiful. They had fresh product, food items and a bakery as well but since we just had lunch we skipped buying a treat.
Kokyo Gaien National Garden/The Imperial Palace
After shopping we walked about 15 minutes to the Kokyo Gaien National Garden. It was SO windy on our walk that we put our masks on just to keep our faces warm. Since it was Winter there wasn't much to see at the garden but it was nice to walk around and see the various bridges and gates. As we were walking to the Fujimi-yagura tower which we had a lovely view of across the Hamaguribori moat. We entered the Imperial Palace grounds via the Ōte-mon Gate and made our way past the Hyakunin Bansho Guardhouse up to the Edo Castle Ruins. I imagine the view of the gardens from the ruins is very pretty during cherry blossom season but for us it was just some evergreen trees and views of the city. I was a little underwhelmed here, the outside was prettier than going in. But again, when there are blooms I'm sure it's gorgeous to walk around.
Where We Ate
Ippudo Ramen (Ginza Location)
We were originally going to try to have Happy Pancake (a popular fluffy pancake chain) but the waitlist was huge so we walked around the corner and happened upon Ippudo right before the opened at 11am. We waited about 10 minutes for them to open and were one of the first tables seated. While it is a chain, we wanted to eat as much ramen as possible and try different kinds! Ichiran is apparently the most popular but we read that Ippudo is favored by locals as far as chains go.
We were served tea instead of water which was a nice change - even though neither of us are tea drinkers normally. We ordered Gyoza and two bowls of ramen, you will see this as a theme as we move through the trip! I got the Akamaru while Christian had Shiromaru, the original flavor of Ippudo's tonkotsu ramen. It was so delicious, although we did find that it was similar to a ramen place we like at home - so that's good news for us there!
The total came to $21 (because we also got a soda to share.)
Where We Stayed
We checked in to our first Tokyo Disney hotel this night, that post is coming soon! But for now, read my Tokyo Disney planning guide.
Day 6 (Friday)
Where We Went
On this day we spent the morning exploring more of Tokyo and in the afternoon took the "long" journey to Lake Kawaguchiko for our stay near Mt. Fuji!
Statue of Hachikō
Our first day after Tokyo Disney we started by visiting Hachi, outside Shibuya Station. We arrived a little before 9am and were able to snap some photos without people crowding around. The story goes, Hachi would head to the station to wait for his owner to arrive back from work. One day his owner did not return because he had passed away. Hachiko still returned to the same spot to wait for his owner every day for almost 10 years.
Shibuya Scramble Crossing
Right next to Hachi is Shibuya Scramble Crossing, one the busiest pedestrian crossing in the world because people can walk in every direction. At this time of day it wasn't super busy, but we ended up back there later in the trip and it was a lot busier.
Meiji Jingu
After visiting Hachi and the Scramble we headed back into Shibuya station and went to visit Meiji Jingu, a Shinto Shrine. On our walk to the main temple we passed by the Japanese Sake barrels along the South entrance. The designs on the barrels were fun t olook at and the light at 10am was beautiful. When entering we passed under the Ōtorii (Grand Shrine Gate.) According to the sign in front of it, it is the biggest wooden Torii in the Myōjin style. Since it was, Winter the gardens were closed, but I'm sure they're full of life in the Spring!
The temple grounds were not overcrowded when we were there but this shrine apparently gets very busy in January because it is one of the more popular shrines where people pray for good luck in the New Year. It is also home to the "Meoto Kusu" (Husband and Wife) trees. They were planted in 1920 when the shrine was built and are now considered sacred. The trees have become a symbol of happy marriage and a harmonious life. Hopefully they passed on some of that to us on our visit!
Where We Ate
A Happy Pancake (Omotesando)
It was probably a bad idea to go to a popular food place for lunch when we wanted to get to the Mt Fuji area in early afternoon but we were close to the a Happy Pancake location after Meiji Jingu and decided to go for it. They opened at 10am and we got there at 10:15. We added our names to a list and waited about 15 minutes to be seated, then took another half hour for our pancakes to arrive. They use a special technique to make them extra fluffy so they take quite a while to cook because they do it slowly. I ordered the Pancake with Hot Chocolate and Homemade Granola (¥1380) and Christian had the classic Happy Pancake (¥1380.) Despite being very light and fluffy they were extremely filling, I had to leave a few bites of mine which Christian gladly finished even though he was stuffed as well, ha ha. Total - $17.80.
Where We Stayed
After 3 nights at Disney we checked in for 3 nights at Hotel Sunroute Plaza Shinjuku, though we would only spend 2 nights there. We booked three consecutive nights to make our travels to Mt. Fuji easier with less luggage (we only took a backpack for our overnight stay.) Technically we did not stay there on Day 6, but at Mt. Fuji, but that's a post for another day!
Day 7 (Saturday)
We arrived back in Tokyo a little before 1:30pm after our fun night marveling at Mt. Fuji's beauty. This was our last night in Tokyo before we went on our adventure to Nagano, Kanazawa, Kyoto and Osaka. After a quick regroup at the hotel we headed out in search of food. Sadly the first few places we tried had really long lines so we gave up and went to a bar that was on our list. Then we spent the rest of the day doing some geeky activities and shopping.
Where We Went
Nintendo TOKYO
Christian is a BIG gamer, especially Nintendo games, so stopping at multiple Nintendo Stores to check out the Japanese merchandise was a must. We spent about 45 minutes walking around the VERY CROWDED store but Christian was able to pick up a few things.
Hermes Beauty
After Christian had his fun we popped into an Hermes Beauty store just across the way so I could take a look at the nail polishes. I picked out a pretty purple color and spent $35 after the conversion, a bargain compared to the $59 price tag back home.
Sailor Moon Store
Next up we walked about 20 minutes to get to the small Sailor Moon Store which is inside a shopping mall. Where are all my 90s Sailor Moon girls at?! I bought myself a Crystal Star replica that I've wanted for a few years. It was a splurge at $50 but buying it from the US is $80 plus shipping. It's nerdy, but I love it, ha ha.
Harry Potter Stairs, Time Turner and Shopping Street
I'm on a bit of a Harry Potter diet these days as You-Know-Who has gone off the deep end with hatred, but I couldn't help but visit the area they made around Akasaka Station to help promote the play currently running at the nearby theater. The whole station is decked out in Hogwarts gear, characters and even has a time turner set up on the stairs for photos. Additionally there are a few stores selling merchandise at the Akasaka Biz tower as well as a Harry Potter Cafe. We just looked around since I'm not buying anything Potter related at the moment. We went in the evening and it was very pretty lit up, but I'm sure it's nice during the day as well. I assume this will be in place until the play finishes it's run.
Where We Ate
LOST
Christian watches a lot of YouTube and one of the channels he really enjoys is Abroad in Japan by Chris Broad. My sister watches his fiance Sharla! They opened LOST, a cocktail bar, a few minutes away from Shibuya Station in August 2024. Those of you that know me know that Christian and I don't drink, luckily they have a great selection of mocktails as well as some bar snacks. The inside was very inviting and it was a great way to rest and spend an hour.
I got the Blue Monday (calpis, lemon juice, blue curacao syrup and soda for ¥1200) and Christian had the Easy Lover (cranberry juice, pineapple juice, grenadine and sprite) and also the Sparkling Lychee Lemonade (lemon, lychee syrup, grenadine and soda.) We also shared Spicy Sembei rice crackers with spicy chili pepper seasoning (300) and Wasabi-Beef Potato chips (400) because we were starting to get hungry. We hadn't eaten yet that day and it was already 2:30, but we had struck out trying to find lunch and since we were nearby decided to check this off our list. In total we spent $30.52, a bit steep and not something we would normally do, but we looked at is as supporting a creator we enjoy!
Tonsyo Tonkatsu at Takashimiya Times Square
I had wanted to try and eat at Din Tai Fung this night but it was very busy so we settled on getting Tonkatsu at a very large department store just outside Shinjuku Station and very close to our hotel. This was our first real meal of the day so it was safe to say we were starving by the time we sat down at 6:40-ish. We were served some warm tea while we perused the menu. Christian had a simmered pork loin cutlet with eggs meal that came with rice, cabbage, miso soup and pickles for ¥2480. I was a little stressed about ordering so I ended up getting a full meal instead of ordering a la carte (which I should have done.) But I got shrimp and pork tonkatsu with white rice and the same sides as Christian plus egg custard and a small bowl of the day for ¥2480. The tonkatsu was super delicious and crispy. Our total was $31.92.
Where We Stayed
Same as previous.
Day 13 (Friday)
This day we traveled back from Kyoto to Tokyo in the afternoon. We arrived at our last hotel at 5pm, regrouped for a bit and headed back to the train station to check another item off our list.
Where We Went
Tokyo Character Street
Tokyo Station also has a HUGE shopping mall within it and has a whole area dedicated to fandoms like HelloKitty, Pokemon, Studio Ghibli, and more. We went into a few of the stores and picked up a cute Kirby cake from the Kirby Cafe.
Where We Ate
Kirby Cafe
As mentioned above, we got a cute Kirby car cake from the cafe. We would have liked to try other treats too but we went too late in the day and everything was sold out. Probably better for our wallet and stomachs that way. It set us back $7.70, not really worth it, but it was cute!
7Eleven
We had wanted to get Yakitori for dinner but as usual there was a crazy line so we decided to pick up some treats at 7Eleven instead. We got a bottle of soda, a Tropicana orange/citrus juice mix (we got this so many times on the trip!) a fried curry bread, some instant ramen, chips and I got my favorite 7Eleven treat - an Toriten Omusubi Onigiri rice ball with soy sauce, chicken and broth (I enjoyed that the packaging had a Daruma doll on it.) Total cost? $6.29!
Where We Stayed
The night before our flight we headed back to Tokyo from Kyoto and stayed at Hotel Monte Hermana Tokyo. This hotel was nicer than our first and about the same distance from Tokyo Station so I would definitely recommend this one more.
All the hotels we stayed at had lockers or spaces to leave our luggage before and after checkout so it was easier to explore. We were very happy we chose hotels based on how close they were to the train stations because it made navigating with our luggage much easier. We didn't have to drag suitcases around for 20 minutes and on and off a ton of subway trains. Just a quick 5 minute walk and we were ready to go!
Day 14 (Saturday)
This was our last morning before flying out and we still had some gifts to buy!
Where We Went
HANDS Tokyo Store
Another store I had read a lot about before our trip was HANDS. It's great for necessities as well as souvenirs and gifts. We found a perfect gift for my brother and sister in law but they only had the display item and nothing for purchase so we decided to try another location and walked about 20 minutes to the Ginza location where we found the item in stock! I also picked up some very comfy socks for only $3 and picked up a pair for my Dad too. I should have gotten more because they were on clearance, I wasn't sure if they would actually be as comfortable as they felt. (They are.) After shopping we took the 25-ish minutes back to our hotel and stopped for lunch along the way. And thus ended our trip to Japan!
Where We Ate
POPUP Ramen Tokyo Midtown Yaesu
Of course our last meal of the trip was ramen. We just can't resist! We stopped here on our way back to our hotel to pick up our bags. It was located inside a mall at the Tokyo Bus Station, right across the street from the train station. I believe this place changes who makes the ramen every few months. When we visited it was Furano Tomikawa. We each got a bowl of ramen and shared some gyoza for $16.79.
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