The world's largest city — a dizzying, beautifully ordered metropolis of neon-lit neighbourhoods, three-Michelin-star ramen, bullet trains and ancient shrines.
A thousand people crossing at once under stacked video screens, then a hush two streets away where an old wooden shrine sits under a gingko tree.
Tokyo runs on order and surprise in equal measure — spotless, punctual, quietly overwhelming, and studded with pockets of calm you'd never find without getting a little lost.
Tokyo is Japan's capital and, with a greater metropolitan population of around 37 million people, the largest urban agglomeration on earth. It is simultaneously the world's most technologically advanced city and one of its most tradition-bound — a place where a 7-Eleven sells better food than most European restaurants, where bullet trains (shinkansen) operate with sub-minute precision, and where an 800-year-old Shinto shrine sits at the end of a lane off a busy Shinjuku boulevard. The city is divided into 23 special wards (ku) that function as distinct cities — Shinjuku (neon, nightlife, the world's busiest railway station), Shibuya (youth fashion, the famous scramble crossing), Asakusa (the old city, Senso-ji temple), Harajuku (street fashion, Meiji Shrine), Ginza (luxury retail), Akihabara (electronics, manga, anime), Yanaka (a preserved old neighbourhood that survived the 1923 earthquake and the Second World War) — each with its own character, its own food culture and its own distinct visual register. Tokyo was reshaped twice by catastrophe — the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake and the 1945 firebombing — but emerged both times with a resilience that produced the current city, now the world's safest major metropolis and the global leader in urban food, public transport and civic design.
Tokyo offers experiences that no other city on earth provides: the Tsukiji outer market and Toyosu wholesale market for the world's finest seafood; the density of Michelin stars (Tokyo has more than any city on earth); the neighbourhoods of Yanaka and Yanesen for a Japan of pre-war lanes and artisan shops; the teamLab digital art installations; the unmatched precision and comfort of the Shinkansen bullet train network radiating outward from the city; and the extraordinary calm of Meiji Shrine at dawn, in the centre of a 70-hectare forested park in the middle of the city. Tokyo is also a compelling city for families — Disneyland (Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea are arguably the best Disney parks in the world) is a 15-minute train ride from the centre; robot restaurants, Kit Kat speciality shops, teamLab and the Ghibli Museum add to a city that is exceptionally child-oriented. It is safe, clean, navigable (even with no Japanese) and utterly unlike anywhere else.
Eating your way through the city — Tokyo has more to eat than any city on earth, at every level. Slurp ramen at a counter you ordered from a vending machine, watch a sushi chef work in Ginza, or graze the depachika food halls in the basement of any department store. Head under the tracks at night to the smoky yakitori stalls of Omoide Yokocho in Shinjuku — the joy is following your nose down a lane too narrow for a car. **Shrines, gardens and the quiet city** — For all the neon, Tokyo hides pockets of deep calm. Walk the forest path to Meiji Jingu beside Harajuku, cross the moats into the East Gardens of the Imperial Palace, or catch dawn incense at Senso-ji before the crowds. These aren't museums — they're used, daily, and slotting one between the loud districts is how the city is meant to be taken. **Neon after dark** — Come nightfall the west lights up. Stand in the Shibuya Crossing as the screens tower over you, then climb to a rooftop like Shibuya Sky for the sea of lights. In Shinjuku, thread the tiny bars of Golden Gai, six seats to a room, or lose an evening in an Akihabara arcade. This is the Tokyo of Lost in Translation and a hundred films — best experienced on foot, one lane at a time. **Views over the sprawl** — Tokyo goes on past the horizon, and seeing that scale is a thing in itself. Ride to the Skytree's deck, take the free lift up the Metropolitan Government building in Shinjuku, or catch the sunset from Shibuya Sky. On a crisp winter day, look west from any high deck for the white cone of Mount Fuji floating over the suburbs.
Tokyo neighbourhood by neighbourhood — the character of each and who it suits.
The old low city, and the closest Tokyo comes to feeling historic — temple incense, rickshaws, and shopfronts selling crafts and rice crackers.
A big green park district of museums and a famous market, workaday and unpolished next to the glossier west.
Electric Town — a blazing grid of electronics, anime, arcades and hobby shops, loud and unapologetic.
Tokyo's polished front door — the restored red-brick Tokyo Station, wide avenues and corporate towers, with the palace gardens a short walk west.
Tokyo's grandest shopping district — flagship stores, department-store food halls and old, serious sushi counters.
Young, fast and loud — the churning crossing, the fashion, and a warren of bars up the hills behind the station.
Two faces side by side — a shrine in ancient forest, and the loudest teen-fashion street in the country a gate away.
Tokyo at maximum intensity — the world's busiest station, a canyon of neon and screens, and the tiny lantern-lit alleys that survive between the towers.
Tokyo has more Michelin stars than any city in the world — 230+ starred restaurants in recent guides — and this substantially understates the quality available at every price point. From a three-star omakase counter in Ginza to a ¥800 bowl of ramen, the average quality floor is higher than most cities' ceiling.
Tsukiji outer market (08:00–14:00 weekdays around the original wholesale site): fresh tuna sashimi, sea urchin on rice, Tamagoyaki egg rolls and grilled scallops at stall counters — the most concentrated single food experience in the city. Ramen: each neighbourhood has its regional style; Fuunji (Shinjuku) for tsukemen, Ichiran (multiple branches) for solitary-booth tonkotsu. Yakitori under the Yurakucho train tracks. Conveyor-belt sushi (kaiten) chains such as Sushiro deliver remarkable quality for the price.
Japan's convenience stores — 7-Eleven, Lawson and FamilyMart — serve fresh onigiri, sandwiches, hot snacks and desserts at a quality that consistently surprises first-time visitors. A legitimate, nutritious meal costs under ¥500 from a konbini.
Sake (nihonshu), shochu, Japanese whisky (Suntory, Nikka), matcha and an extraordinary range of canned coffees and teas are available from vending machines on virtually every street corner. The vending machine network is one of Tokyo's quietly extraordinary pleasures.
Vegetarian and vegan travellers should plan ahead — dashi (fish stock) hides in many "vegetable" dishes, though Buddhist shojin-ryori temple cuisine and a growing crop of veg cafés are reliable. Halal options cluster around bigger stations and are expanding; carry cash for smaller places. English menus and picture menus are common in tourist areas.
Pick your base by the mood you want and stay near a Yamanote-line station so the whole city stays easy. Shinjuku puts you on top of the transport and the nightlife, loud and convenient. Shibuya is younger and central for the west-side sights. Tokyo Station and Marunouchi are polished and calm, ideal if you're taking day trips by Shinkansen. For a quieter, more traditional feel, base in Asakusa or Ueno on the old east side; you trade some late-night buzz for atmosphere and lower prices.
Pan, zoom and compare live prices — every stay in one map.
The single most important purchase in Tokyo: a reloadable IC card (Suica or Pasmo — both work identically) covers all JR rail, Tokyo Metro, Toei Subway, buses, the monorail and is accepted as payment at virtually every convenience store and vending machine. Buy at any major station; Narita Express machines issue Suica cards on arrival.
The JR Yamanote Line (circular loop, 29 stations, every 3–5 minutes) is the tourist backbone connecting Shinjuku, Shibuya, Harajuku, Ikebukuro, Ueno, Akihabara and Tokyo station — the single most useful line for navigating between major neighbourhoods.
Tokyo Metro (9 lines) and Toei Subway (4 lines) cover the zones between and around the Yamanote loop, reaching every neighbourhood. The key Metro lines for tourists include the Ginza line (orange, east–west) and the Hanzomon line (purple).
Taxis are available but expensive — fares start at ¥420–500 and rise quickly. Uber and rideshare apps operate but are not significantly cheaper. Use them for last-mile convenience rather than cross-city travel.
Within central Tokyo's neighbourhoods, walking is highly practical — distances between subway exits are frequently shorter than maps suggest, and each neighbourhood rewards exploration on foot.
Tokyo's transit is operated by multiple companies — JR East (Yamanote Loop, Chuo/Sobu lines), Tokyo Metro (9 lines), Toei Subway (4 lines), and private railways for the suburbs (Tokyu, Odakyu, Keio, Seibu, Tobu). All are unified via the IC card: tap in and tap out at every gate, fare calculated automatically.
The IC card (Suica or Pasmo) is by far the simplest and most practical approach — no individual ticket purchases, no machine queuing, automatic fare deduction. Buy at Narita or Haneda on arrival and top up at any station machine or convenience store.
The Yamanote Line (JR East, 29 stations, every 3–5 minutes) is the core tourist circuit: Shinjuku (world's busiest station), Harajuku, Shibuya, Tokyo, Ueno, Akihabara, Ikebukuro. Airport connections: Narita Express (N'EX) from Narita; Keikyu Line or Tokyo Monorail from Haneda.
Trains run until approximately 00:30–01:00; the 'last train' is a genuine social institution — missing it means an expensive taxi or waiting until the first service at approximately 05:00. Rush hours (07:30–09:30 and 17:30–19:30) on the Yamanote and JR Chuo lines are extremely crowded but consistently punctual.
Ready-made day plans for Tokyo — from a single day to a long weekend.
Start early at Senso-ji in Asakusa before the crowds, walk the Nakamise stalls, then cross to Tokyo Station for the palace East Gardens. Ride west in the afternoon to Meiji Jingu and Harajuku, and end at dusk in Shibuya — the crossing, then a rooftop or a back-lane bar as the neon comes up.
Give day two to the west and the food. Morning in Shinjuku for the free tower view and Shinjuku Gyoen garden, afternoon shopping and street style between Harajuku and Omotesando, then an evening working through the yakitori and tiny bars of Golden Gai and Omoide Yokocho.
Use day three to go deeper or further out. Wander old-Tokyo Yanaka and the Ueno museums, dive into Akihabara's anime floors, or take a Shinkansen or express day trip — Nikko's shrines, Kamakura's great Buddha, or Hakone for hot springs and Mount Fuji views. All are easy returns from the central stations.
Buy a Suica card at Narita or Haneda immediately on arrival — it removes the cognitive load of buying individual tickets for every subsequent journey and works for almost all payments (transit, convenience stores, many restaurants) for the entire trip.
teamLab Planets (Toyosu) and teamLab Borderless (now in Azabudai Hills) are genuine world-class digital art installations, not gimmicks — book online before travelling, they sell out. The Yanaka neighbourhood (one stop north of Ueno on the Yamanote Line) is the most intact old-Tokyo urban fabric — cats, artisan shops, a cemetery with the grave of the last Shogun, and excellent cheap coffee.
For Tsukiji outer market, go at 08:00 on a weekday — the tuna auction now takes place at Toyosu (pre-registration required) but the outer market stalls are excellent and best before the lunch crowd arrives. Day trip to Hakone (1 hour by Romancecar from Shinjuku) for Fuji views, an onsen and the Hakone Open Air Museum.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building observation decks (Shinjuku, free) provide some of the best city panoramas — the westward view across the city to Fuji (when clear) rivals the paid Skytree experience at no cost.
Five to seven days covers the main neighbourhoods (Shinjuku, Shibuya, Asakusa, Harajuku, Ginza, Akihabara, Yanaka) and one day trip to Hakone or Nikko. Seven to ten days allows a Shinkansen journey to Kyoto and a return via Osaka — the most popular extended Japan itinerary and highly recommended.
For Tokyo-only travel, no — the Suica/Pasmo IC card covers all urban transit efficiently. The Japan Rail Pass (covering Shinkansen and most JR lines) is worthwhile if you plan to travel between cities: for a Tokyo–Kyoto–Osaka trip, the Pass typically pays for itself. Buy before arriving in Japan as passes cannot be purchased in-country at the same price.
Yes — Google Maps in Japan is exceptionally good: accurate transit directions, platform numbers, transfer instructions and walking routes are all included. Download the Tokyo area for offline use before travelling as a backup for poor signal in deep subway stations.
No — English signage is comprehensive throughout the transit system and at major tourist sites. Google Translate's camera function works very well for restaurant menus and street signs. Learning a few phrases ('Arigato gozaimasu' — thank you; 'Sumimasen' — excuse me) is always appreciated and produces noticeably warmer responses.
Staying in a central ward (Shinjuku, Shibuya, Asakusa or Ginza) is worth the premium for a first visit — Tokyo's transit is excellent but the city is large and evening returns after a full day are tiring. Shinjuku and Shibuya are the best transport hubs for Shinkansen day trips; Asakusa gives the best old-Tokyo atmosphere.
Skip-the-line tickets and small-group tours in Tokyo — compare across our partners.
We're still curating hand-picked tickets and tours for Tokyo. In the meantime, the map above and the nearby cities are a great place to start.
Day-by-day itineraries that take in Tokyo — routes, timings and what to book.
2 Nights A long weekend across three Tokyos — Senso-ji and old Asakusa, Shibuya's crossing from above, and a barefoot finale in teamLab's digital rooms, all on one IC card.
Price on enquiry
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4 Nights Neon districts, ancient shrines and day trips, balancing buzz with calm.
Price on enquiry
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6 Nights The first-timer's Japan triangle by Shinkansen — three nights in Tokyo, two in Kyoto for the temples and Fushimi Inari, and a last night in Osaka's Dotonbori, with honest advice on why the JR Pass is the wrong buy for this route.
Price on enquiry
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13 Nights Experience the ultimate cultural arc of Japan entirely by rail on this spectacular 14-day car-free itinerary. Seamlessly journey from the neon towers of Tokyo to a traditional hot spring ryokan under Mount Fuji, onward through the historic streets of Kanazawa, the temples of Kyoto, and the poignant monuments of Hiroshima, finishing in the culinary hub of Osaka.
Price on enquiry
View tripMarch – April (cherry blossom), October – November
What to expect — Mild and increasingly lovely, building to the brief, crowded cherry-blossom peak in late March and early April. Prices and crowds spike for blossom week.
What's best — The sakura themselves — Ueno Park, the palace moats and the riverbanks turn pink, and the whole city takes to the parks for hanami picnics.
What to expect — Hot and very humid, with a rainy stretch (tsuyu) around June and a risk of typhoons later. Genuinely sticky in the afternoons.
What's best — Summer festivals and fireworks over the Sumida River, beer gardens on the rooftops, and long, lively evenings. Duck the midday heat and go out after dark.
What to expect — The other sweet spot — warm, clear, settling days from October, with the humidity gone and the leaves turning into November.
What's best — Crisp air, fiery gingko and maple in the parks and gardens, comfortable all-day walking, and the year's best odds of a clear Fuji view.
What to expect — Cold, dry and bright, with short days and little snow in the city itself. Crisp rather than harsh.
What's best — The clearest air of the year and the best Fuji sightings, winter illuminations across the city, fewer crowds, and steaming bowls of ramen that finally make sense.
Skip the old Tsukiji tourist crush for the wholesale spectacle → the tuna market moved to Toyosu; for eating, the atmospheric outer market at Tsukiji still delivers.
Skip an expensive themed robot-style dinner show → spend the evening and less money threading the real bars of Golden Gai.
Skip paying for a generic observation deck → the Metropolitan Government towers in Shinjuku have a free one with Fuji views.
Skip queuing an hour for one viral ramen shop → Tokyo has superb ramen on nearly every block with no line.
Shrines and blossom parks are calm at opening and mobbed by late morning — go early, especially in sakura season.
The 7:30–9:00am rush-hour trains are genuinely packed; avoid them with luggage and travel off-peak.
Trains are quiet zones — keep phone calls off and voices low.
Don't eat or drink while walking; stand aside to finish, and hold onto your rubbish, as public bins are scarce.
Tattoos may bar you from some public baths and onsen — check, or look for tattoo-friendly ones.
Stand on the left of escalators in Tokyo (it flips to the right in Osaka).
Slip your shoes off where you see a raised entrance and waiting slippers.
Carry cash despite the tech — many small restaurants, temples and shops are cash-only, and 7-Eleven and Japan Post ATMs take foreign cards.
Load an IC card (Suica or Pasmo, or the tourist Welcome Suica) and you can tap through trains and pay at convenience stores too.
Shinjuku is the classic night out — neon, Golden Gai's tiny bars, and late eats in Omoide Yokocho.
Shibuya skews younger and louder, with rooftop bars and clubs up the hill.
Ginza and Marunouchi are quieter and smarter; the old east side around Asakusa winds down early.
Tokyo is by most crime metrics the safest large city on earth. Violent crime against tourists is essentially absent; petty crime is extremely rare. Women travelling solo, families and elderly travellers report consistently high comfort levels even late at night throughout the city.
Earthquakes are a feature of life in Tokyo — buildings are engineered to extraordinary standards and the city has comprehensive early-warning systems giving 10–30 seconds of notice. Standard procedure: shelter under a desk or doorframe, avoid windows, do not use elevators. Tokyo's earthquake preparedness infrastructure is among the best in the world.
Tokyo operates one of the world's finest lost-property systems — items left on trains, in taxis or in public spaces have a remarkable return rate. Report immediately to the nearest station staff or to the railway's lost-property office. Items are typically held for weeks before disposal.
Jaywalking is not technically illegal but accidents at pedestrian crossings do occur in busy traffic. Always use designated crossings and wait for the crossing signal — the pedestrian culture is orderly and it is the safest approach.
No eating or drinking while walking in public — eating at a festival stall or sitting on a bench is fine, but walking and eating simultaneously is widely considered inconsiderate. No phone calls on trains or buses (texting is fine). Priority seats on transit are genuinely for elderly, disabled and pregnant passengers — vacate them if in doubt.
Tipping is not done in Japan and should not be attempted — pressing money on a server or leaving notes on the table causes genuine confusion and sometimes offence. Excellent service is the expected standard, not something rewarded with cash. The price on the menu is the complete price.
Remove shoes when entering a home, many traditional restaurants and some cultural sites — the genkan (entry area) makes the transition obvious. At an onsen (hot spring bath): wash thoroughly before entering the communal bath, no swimwear in the bath, tattoos may be asked to be covered at traditional establishments.
Do not stick chopsticks vertically into a bowl of rice (funeral symbolism) or pass food directly chopstick-to-chopstick. Slurping noodles is entirely normal and considered a compliment to the cook. Queue with precision — Japanese queuing culture is highly ordered and consistently observed.
£130/day mid-range (budget £60, luxury £350+)
110 (police), 119 (fire and ambulance), #9110 (police non-emergency consultation line)
Narita International Airport (NRT), 60 km north-east, is the primary international hub for most long-haul flights from Europe, the Americas and Australia. The Narita Express (N'EX) runs to Shinjuku, Shibuya and Yokohama in 60–80 minutes — reserve a seat on boarding. Limousine Bus services to major hotels are slower but convenient with heavy luggage. Haneda Airport (HND), 14 km south of central Tokyo, has growing international capacity and far better city connections: Tokyo Monorail to Hamamatsucho in 23 minutes, Keikyu Line to Shinagawa in 13 minutes. If you have a choice between airports, Haneda is significantly more convenient.
Tokyo is the hub of Japan's Shinkansen bullet-train network. Kyoto is 2h15, Hakone 50 minutes by Romancecar from Shinjuku, and Nikko 1h45 — making all three outstanding day trips. British Airways and Japan Airlines operate direct London–Tokyo services of approximately 12–14 hours.
Flights, airport transfers and car hire to NRT — search and compare without leaving the page.
Parking, holiday extras, and more — coming soon.
We're lining up parking, holiday extras and activities you'll be able to add to any trip from here.