Originally Posted by
abmj-jr
One thing to add to the above. The Keisei "platform" at Ueno is not in the huge JR Ueno Station. It is actually in the Keisei-Ueno Station, which is a separate facility kitty-corner across the street from Ueno Station, near the entrance to Ueno Park. There is an underground passage between the two or you can exit JR Ueno and walk over on the sidewalk.
Oh, and I agree with both above. You may be trying to cram too much into 24 hours.
Definitely. If you're from Australia, jet lag is minimal (or so Australian friends tell me), but it's still a long flight. Arriving at night and then having essentially twelve hours of daylight, you're packing in two or three days' worth of adventures.
The real beauty of the Shinkansen is in the long stretches between cities when it can pick up impressive speed. Going to Yokohama or Oyama isn't terribly impressive.
Too bad you're out in Maihama. Does your business meeting have to take place there? How does it fit in with the schedule that you have proposed? What are you going to do with your child during that meeting? How will you explain to a six-year-old that you don't have time to go to Disneyland?
Anyway, for a train-intensive trip, I suggest getting on the Yamanote Line (AFTER rush hour) and doing a circuit of central Tokyo. Get off at the major stations (Tokyo, Shinagawa, Shibuya, Shinjuku, Ikebukuro, Ueno) and watch the different kinds of trains go in and out.
The array of tracks at the bridge outside of Shinjuku's New South Entrance (the one for Tokyu Hands) is impressive. At Shibuya, you can see the trains from a subway line entering the station at second floor level. At Shimbashi, you can transfer to the fully automated Yuri Kamome Line, cross the spiral bridge to Odaiba, and see the sometimes downright weird-looking buildings of that artificial island.
There's a spot near Tokyo Station where you can settle in for some coffee or hot chocolate and watch the Shinkansen come and go (every five minutes or so) from a short distance, but I can't remember where it is.