navigating the subway
 

Im headed to Tokyo in a few days. Here in NYC we have a site http://hopstop.com/ that is like mapquest but for the subway. Is there something similar for Tokyo?

If not, any tips or suggestions for navigating the subway?

Thanks.

Both these sites are used (they cover the whole of Japan)

http://www.hyperdia.com

http://www.jorudan.co.jp/english/norikae/

Remember in Tokyo, there are more then just "subways" you have surface private railways like the JR Yamanote and Chuo, Chuo-Sobu Lines that can get you around Tokyo as well.

The above websites cover all the lines, subways, JR, monorail, etc.

Googlemaps is also a good tool if you want to figure out what stations might be close to the area you want to go to (along with guide books, japan-guide.com etc). An area can sometimes be serviced by many railway stations.

Additional information:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/japan...er-thread.html

Also I recommend getting a Suica or Pasmo card (covered in the previous post) which is a prepaid card, like a NY MetroCard but in IC contactless card format. Load it up, pay as you go, can be used on virtually every train company in the Tokyo area (and sometimes beyond to other regions of Japan).

Tourist maps of Tokyo usually have at least a partial subway map in an inset. Hyperdia would probably work, but it might be overkill if the OP just wants to go from Tochomae to Shibuya, and it doesn't give you a pictorial overview of the system.

Every station has a map of the system labeled in Japanese, and some of them have a map labeled in English. Signs within the subway and commuter train stations are all bilingual.

There's a book available in English-language bookshops that is a guide to the Tokyo subway system, and the Kodansha Tokyo City Atlas, which is partly outdated but still mostly accurate, has two transit maps, as well as enlarged maps of the principal tourist areas, complete with indications of which exit to take for which destination.

I, too, recommend getting a Suica or Pasmo, both of which work like London's Oyster Card.

Likewise, if you pick up a Fromer's or almost any other guide to Tokyo, they print a color subway map on the inside cover.

Better yet, print one out for yourself.

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=...9QEwAg&dur=478

If you get a copy of the subway map, don't ignore those black or grey lines either, those are generally JR lines or other non subway lines. on the other side, if you get a JR line map they usually ignore the subway lines.

Google maps works very well and is very handy on your smartphone since you can get an instant route planner from your location. There are better tools like Yahoo but they are Japanese only.

Caveats include: Google maps will not update quickly if power shortages affect train schedules. (Not an issue currently). Google maps may not interpret roman characters for neighborhoods (like where I live), although it's rare. It's not 100% English; the step by step instructions for a train journey will be in Japanese, although the map will show the station in roman characters.

Jorudan is better but is station to station. You can't just enter an address like on Google maps.

When You Get to Tokyo . . .
 

if you ride into the city on the Keisei Skyliner, this service terminates at "Keisei Ueno", which is a separate building about 1/4 mile from the main Ueno station. The Tokyo municipal tourist bureau operates a really nice information counter there; there are at least two decent sized guides on glossy paper that you can get in English that have detailed city maps of central Tokyo, including information on the two different subway companies (Tokyo Metro and Toei Subway) as well as the above-ground trains such as the Yamanote line. The Keisei Ueno station offers a covered connection to the Tokyo Metro (it is about a 1/4 mile walk to the actual subway platform on the Ginza line).

The ticketing machines in all the stations have a feature so that upon pushing a button on the screen the read out will be in English. You can buy an all day pass good for both subway companies for something like Y1000. You can also buy a JR Tokunai pass good on all JR rail lines operating within the 23 boroughs of Tokyo for Y730.

I'd take the Skyliner to Nippori and transfer direct to JR (Yamanote, Joban, Keihin-Tohoku lines). Nippori is both a JR and a Keisei station.

It's important to know where exactly you're headed in Tokyo; your destination often determines which mode of transport and which line to ride. Many destinations can be reached by both subway (Tokyo Metro & Toei) and rail (JR and private lines), but there are places (Roppongi for example) where it's only subway and other places where it's faster to ride JR there than the subway lines.

If you don't plan to hop around enough to justify the subway day pass, pick up a Suica card (contactless payment system) via machine or ticket office (midori-no-madoguchi) at most JR Stations if you're already in Tokyo. Or if you're flying into NRT, you can pick up a combo Ne'X/Suica (Narita Express) package that gives you a substantial discount on your ride into town and a Suica with Y1500 on it ready to use. You can add money to the Suica as you go and then use it to purchase a Skyliner ticket to return to NRT. The Suica works with practically all modes of transportation as well as convenience stores and McDonalds.

Here's a link to a map that I've used. http://lifesg.files.wordpress.com/20...subway-map.gif

Each station has an alpha-numeric ID. Here's how I use it. If you're going from Shinjuku to Asakusa, take the Shinjuku line to Higashi Nihonbashi (ID S09) then take the Asakusa line to Asakusa (ID A18).

I've found it much easier to study the map and write down the ID numbers than to remember the station names.

When you're in Higashi Nihonbashi, there will probably be a "pinkish" colored line painted on the wall. If there is, that colored line will very likely lead your from the Shinjuku line to the platform for the Asakusa line.

Even better would have been if the mapmakers had given each station a unique alphanumeric ID. Be careful if you're going to Shin-Nakano (M05) or Nakano-Shimbashi (m05) for example.

thanks for the help everyone. Im back from my trip. After a few times, the subway became surprisingly easy to use. They have people at the entrances that can be helpful in pointing you in the right direction as well.

Anybody going to either of those two stations is most likely pretty aware of what they are doing and where are they going. And, if, as a tourist, you end up there, you have bigger issues than any alphanumeric signage system...

For those who don't understand Pickles' remark, both Shin-Nakano and Nakano-Shimbashi are non-descript residential areas. (I used to live about 10 minutes walk to the northwest of JR Nakano.)