Help with suggestions for 29hr stopover in Tokyo
 

Looking for some advice for first time visitors to Tokyo. Will have about 29 hours (arrive about 11am depart at 4pm next day) arriving on a Sunday departing Monday on way back to USA. This was to break up an otherwise 28 hour trip from Thailand to southeast US.

Will be self/spouse + our 16 month old.

My wife is looking to stay in Ginza per family recommendation. I am looking for recommendations on the following:

Good hotel option with infant. Moderate price range (300 usd or so) but can go higher if necessary
Any "must see" attractions?
Restaurant recommendations - kid friendly please
Best way to get from narita to Ginza - looks like more than one train option?
I am hoping to check bags through to US but will put in locker if needed and travel with overnight carryon bags + baby stroller.

Any other suggestions/advice?

Thanks in advance.
JB

hotels are all going to be clean and friendly, and all are going to be small. I only know one hotel in tokyo, but its moderately priced, near ginza, and of course, small. Mitsui Garden Hotel Ginza. http://www.gardenhotels.co.jp/eng/ginzapremier/access/. Others will probably have better hotel recommendations.

As for must see, I would recommend Asakusa. I think you could probably do Tsukiji on Monday morning early. I recommend taking a evening stroll from Shimbashi to Yurakucho along the Ginza strip. There is a new Tokyo Skytree that just opened, though I don't consider that Must see yet. If you like electronics and gadgets, hit Akihabara.

Lots of lockers and storage in Narita. Should be no problem. No idea about check in.

As for transport, generally train or bus. Bus from Tokyo Limousine terminal, or train to Tokyo via JR or Skyliner to Ueno, all fairly close to Ginza.

Of course, the best hotel in Ginza is the Mandarin Oriental, though the best rate I can find for a Sunday is 39,000 yen. If you have a stroller and don't mind a little walk, you can take the Narita Express straight to Tokyo Station, and it's about a 20 minute walk to the MO from there (or a subway transfer at Tokyo will get you within a minute)

If you're short on time, the Sky Bus is a good way of packing a lot of sights in. My mom and sister really enjoyed it.

Not sure that taking a baby to Tsukiji would be such a great idea. They're coming from Thailand, so it's not like they'll have any serious jet lag...

MO is not in Ginza. It's not even what a creative estate agent might call "Ginza borders". That doesn't mean it's not a great choice -- I don't think Ginza is necessarily the only part of town that would be suitable for the OP.

FWIW, I think the Mitsui Garden Inn might be an ideal budget choice in Ginza for the OP. However, I think the sightseeing plans are ambitious.

Let's see what the MO has to say for itself:

http://www.mandarinoriental.com/abou...act_sheet.aspx

Which is pretty much the same distance as the Mitsui Garden Inn that you recommend.

You are not going to find much inside of Ginza itself, though the Nihonbashi area where the MO is located is a decent shopping destination in its own right.

And you've raised an excellent point of why it's worth coming to this forum for advice as hotel websites cannot always be relied on.
The MO is over three times the distance from Ginza station (centralish Ginza) than the Mitsui Garden Inn (AKA Ginza Premier).

How fast would one have to run to get anywhere near there from the MO in ten minutes? And how likely is the OP going to be able to do so with a companion and a stroller and the rapidly warming weather?
The information from the Mitsui Garden Inn that it takes 7 minutes on foot to get to exit A3 at Ginza station is accurate and an attainable goal for most people.
Ginza Station within a 5 to 10 minute walking distance from the MO is feasible only for supreme athletes who can racewalk for their countries.

Well. LapLap beat me to it, but I'll put in my two cents too:

Mitsui Garden Hotel is in Ginza. It has a Ginza address.

Let's pick a point that represents "prime" entertainment / shopping in Ginza ... I suggest the Wako department store. From Mitsui Ginza Hotel, it's 600m. That's 7 minutes walk.

From MO it's 2km. 25 minutes walk.

If the MO used that 10 minute estimate in a real estate listing, they would get into trouble for misleading advertising.

Hey. I don't have a problem with the suggestion that a different area is better. Just be up front about what you're suggesting - it's a different area - and let the OP make an informed choice.

Ginza is in the eye of the beholder.

http://www.travelintelligence.com/lu...to/tokyo/ginza
http://www.virtualtourist.com/hotels...okyo-BR-1.html

EDIT: Hey! Here's one even you can't argue with!

http://www.seiyo-ginza.com/

Better hurry if you want to go...it closes down one year from tomorrow.

I'm far from an expert on Tokyo travels but with all the very knowledgeable folks on this forum why not suggest more alternatives to Ginza? Its just opinion but if I only had one day in Japan I'm not sure spending it in an area dominated by uber expensive shops is the way to go.

No. It's not in the eye of the beholder or the mind of the MO's general manager. Ginza is a district defined on the map. It's not an arbitrary region with poorly defined borders. I don't doubt that you can find lots of websites that list MO as a Ginza hotel. That's because the hotel has put out some misleading information.

2km. That's not a 10 minute walk. Are you being deliberately obtuse just to wind me up or do you really think the MO is a Ginza hotel?

I'm being deliberately obtuse just to wind you up.

Back to the subject of what to do with one day in Tokyo with a baby...I guess we would really need to know more about what kind of things the OP likes to do. Some other ideas off the top of my head...

* A leisurely time in Meiji Shrine, letting the little one run around in the park, followed by Harajuku shopping
* Stay in Odaiba (Hotel Nikko? Le Meriden?) and take boat cruise to Asakusa
* Stay at Grand Hyatt Tokyo, enjoy Über chic of Roppongi Hills complex

I'm with Hailstorm on this. I'd suggest a walk in either Meiji Shrine or Shinjuku Gyoen. Grand Hyatt is a good choice but I'm surprised Hail is suggesting Roppongi:). You might think about a nice hotel that has babysitting service. That would allow you and your wife to go out for a nice dinner or some shopping.

OMG... what has the MO turned into by offering this kind of rate?? :) :)

Totally with you on this one. If it's shopping that's of interest, I'd think that Harajuku would be more interesting, for example. There are lots better areas to stay than Ginza. With 29 hours, I think I'd recommend staying around Tokyo station -- it isn't that far to Ginza from there (although I haven't timed it!), it's easy to reach from the airports, and there are some decent hotels in the OP's price range.

I had a 32 hour layover in Tokyo in 2008, however I was alone and had my own agenda of things to do and see. The highlight of my trip was visiting the Tokyo Tower.

I do highly recommend the Tokyo Metro Subway system as I found it clean, safe and easy to use.

http://www.tokyometro.jp/en/index.html

I printed the subway map prior to arrival which was very handy. You can buy a 2-day open ticket at NRT for 980 yen.

http://www.tokyometro.jp/en/ticket/v...vel/index.html