gbs1112

The recommendation to visit the Yanaka area was a good one. A few hours spent here will pass by easily.
Arrive at Nippori Station and a short walk up some stairs takes you to Tennoji Temple, quite serene and lovely.
From there plan your route on Google maps to aim for Yanaka Ginza. That walk will take you through a part of Yanaka Cemetery. The cemetery is huge and it is easy to get a bit lost but there are several interesting things to see. But let your smartphone map keep heading you to Yanaka Ginza.
Just before that is Darjeeling teahouse where we had Indian tea served delightfully and you can get snacks or even a small Indian meal if feel you have temporarily overdone Japanese cuisine. Its a lovely building and worth looking inside anyway before you pass by.
A long flight of stairs will take you down into one of the most interesting and well preserved old shopping streets. After finishing the Ginza it is best to wander the back streets heading a short distance south to end up at Sendaji metro.


Looking forward to se



art of the enormous

kaka

Have you been to the art galleries in Tokyo? Since i dont think you came to japan for a specific purpose given the timeframe, i'd find something not too stressful.
I wouldnt mind Kamakura or Yokohama either. Or Hachijoshima as mentioned above if you dont mind spending 5000 UA miles each leg (Or in this case you can actually take an ANA flight and go anywhere new... I've done this a few times for MR purposes or just because i have a free tag-on)

747FC

How would one do that?

Everyone: Thanks for the awesome responses/recommendation!

Gradfly

When I did the ANA tour, I had to ask my Japanese friend to book for me. Apparently someone has now created a step by step guide on how to book it yourself. Step by Step Guide
Keep in mind that this tour is entirely in Japanese. It was worth the experience though, even more so if they have one of the special livery aircraft inside. If you choose to do the tour, I'd say set aside a half day if you include having a meal at one of the nearby cafes and do some plane spotting. I don't know much about JAL's application process but I've heard its similar.

747FC

Thanks for the detailed information!

jbeans

We did a day trip to Kawagoe once, and had a great time! Quick (1-1.5hrs) train ride from Tokyo. It's often called "Little Edo" for its preservation of many traditional architectures. It's also fun to walk around and sample the many street food vendors!

https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e6500.html

RichardInSF

My view is quite different. The historic area is only a few blocks long and I thought it was incredibly touristy and quite boring. I see no reason to go back there.

evergrn

Careful what you say, I have many ties to Kawagoe.
But I agree. Many day trips from Tokyo that are far more worth your time.

kaka

feels like somewhere good to burn 4-6 hours with no expectations. haha

kaka

btw i would recommend taking the green car if going to kamakura. especially if it's the weekend.
The promotional rate in the weekend is cheaper for Shimbashi (Tokyo) - Fujisawa as compared to Tokyo Central to Fujisawa (and vv) by like 200/400 yen i forgot. but you wouldnt have to be packed along with others. (cheaper if you use a IC card and pay before you board)... I'd assume Tokyo station - Ofuna would be the cheaper fare too.

GBobon

for JAL is similar, I booked only JAL because ANA was closed for tours in period i visited TYO... I managed to book JAL's tour on my own, only using Google translate...

747FC

Just back from Tokyo, and our quick trip was shortened by a day as we changed our flights to leave early and escape Typhoon Trami.

We spent a full-day visiting Kamakura (which we liked verymuch) and then Enoshima, (which we decided to bypass given its touristy feel and I was not up for hiking up the hill on that day.)

Yesterday, I spent the morning at Nezu Shrine. It was a Saturday in Tokyo, with constant drizzle. Nezu was sparsely occupied by visitors, so it had a special feel. Highly recommend it!

Many thanks to all of you who responded to my request. You made the two days we spent in Tokyo very enjoyable.

evergrn

Thanks for reporting back.
So you ended up with only 1 night / 2 days in Tokyo? Was this part of a bigger trip, or did you go from HNL to Tokyo just for 2 days?

747FC

We took a cruise from Alaska--Russia--Japan (Kushiro,Hakodate, Aomori, and Tokyo). We were planning on staying two nights in Tokyo, but left a day earlier due to the expected arrival of Trami. After being in Japan during the Great Tsunami, I do not recommend vacationing anywhere during and after a natural disaster.

evergrn

I'm never done a cruise before, but Alska-Russia-Japn cruise sounds amazing.
Where do you stop in Russia?