Great Itineraries

Great Itineraries

5 Days in Tokyo

Day 1

Start very early (5 AM) with a visit to the Tokyo Central Wholesale Market (Tokyo Chuo Oroshiuri Ichiba) in the Tsukiji district. (If you're feeling adventurous or can't sleep, take full advantage of your jetlag by starting your trip with nightlife in parts of the city that never sleep.) Direct train service starts around 5 AM from Shinjuku (Toei Oedo line) or Roppongi (Hibiya subway line) and gets you to Tsukiji or Tsukujishijo stations respectively in under 20 minutes. Or take a taxi. Then use the rest of the day for a tour of the Imperial Palace and environs.

Day 2

Spend the morning of Day 2 at Senso-ji and adjacent Asakusa Jinja in Asakusa. If you're looking for souvenir gifts -- sacred or secular -- allow time and tote space for the abundant selection local vendors have to offer. From there, head to Ueno for an afternoon with its many museums, vistas, and historic sites.

Day 3

Start Day 3 with a morning stroll through Ginza to explore its fabled shops and depato (department stores). Then hit a chic restaurant or café for lunch (more reasonably priced ones are easily found on the upper floor of most department stores). In the afternoon, see the Shinto shrine, Meiji Jingu and take a leisurely walk through the nearby Harajuku and Omotesando fashion districts to the Nezu Institute of Fine Arts.

Day 4

Spend the morning browsing in Akihabara, Tokyo's electronics quarter, or visit the nearby Shinto Kanda Myojin. Spend the afternoon on the west side of Shinjuku, Tokyo's 21st-century model city; savor the view from the observation deck of architect Kenzo Tange's monumental Tokyo Metropolitan Government Office; and cap off the day with a walk through the greenery of Shinjuku Gyo-en National Garden.

Day 5

If you can stay a fifth day, fill in the missing pieces: the Buddhist temple, Sengaku-ji in Shinagawa, the remarkable Edo-Tokyo Hakubutsukan in Ryogoku, a tea ceremony, kabuki play, or any of the shops you passed by. See a sumo tournament, if there's one in town. Or just visit the Kokugikan, National Sumo Arena, in the Ryogoku district, and some of the sumo stables in the neighborhood.