I am traveling with Singles Travel International on a 12 day Tokyo cruise. I have 4 extra days at the end that I will be staying in Tokyo on my own. Any suggestions on what I should do? For one day I do know I want to go to the Tuna Auction at the Tsukiji Fish Market. But what should I do for my other 3 days?
Thanks!
Shell
I would spend one day in Tokyo for the tuna auction and then head to Kyoto.
We spent five days there Fall of 2015 and loved Tokyo and Japan.
The first day we took a tour of the city that included the Imperial Palace grounds, Meiji Shrine, and more
https://www.viator.com/tours/Tokyo/Panoramic-Tokyo-Day-Tour-Meiji-Shrine-Asakusa-Temple-and-Tokyo-Bay-Cruise/d334-2142TYO_A070
We took two more day trips, one to Nikko and the other to Kamakura.
https://www.viator.com/Tokyo-tours/Day-Trips-and-Excursions/d334-g5
Also, I would suggest going to see Mt. Fuji.
We took a three day tour to Kyoto that was great, then took a Celebrity Cruise that ended in Hong Hong.
Yes, I am taking a Celebrity Cruise that starts in Tokyo and goes to Mt Fuji, Kobe, Kochi, Nagasaki, Busan South Korea, and Aomori. Also going to Kyoto on a day trip from Tokyo in the beginning. Planning on going to the Fushimi Inari Taisha Shrine.
Sheli,
We were on the Millennium, Japan and China cruise in Fall of 2015.
Here is my review of the cruise
http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=518503&et_cid=2531924&et_rid=17221689&et_referrer=Boards
We wanted to spend more than a day in Kyoto. Glad we did the three day tour from Tokyo, pre cruise.
As for Mt. Fuji, we took an excursion from the first port after Yokohama and we were too far from Fuji to see it very well. That was the one mistake that we made on our trip.
Other than that, Japan was fantastic. We loved the people, food and sights.
I spent 3 days in Tokyo last November. It's an amazing city. I'm not really a "big city" person, but I found myself truly enjoying just wandering and looking around in awe at the big buildings and all the people everywhere!
I was there with my best friend, but a few things that we enjoyed were visiting the Tokyo tower, a bus trip out to Mt. Fuji, Meiji Shrine and touring Happo-En gardens. At the garden we pre-booked an English tour and it also included a traditional tea ceremony and lunch, which was really fun. We may have accidently booked a private tour, or maybe there were just no other English speakers there that day, but we really enjoyed spending a morning there touring the gardens and eating. We also visited the Samurai Museum, went to Odaiba Bay and spent an hour at a cat café, just for fun. It was my first time to Japan, so we did a lot of the "touristy" stuff, but that's what we wanted and it was a great experience.
I hope you have a wonderful trip!
I can easily burn 2 weeks in Tokyo and not run out of things to do! While Kyoto is beautiful, Tokyo is far more exciting, and easier to get around. I would not spend 3 extra days in Kyoto if you are already going to see it on your tour.
As for activities in Tokyo, you could take a cooking class, go to the Edo Museum, visit Hokusai's birthplace, spend a day in Ueno Park, window shop the fancy department stores in the Ginza, have a tea in the manga cafes and marvel at Yodobashi Camera's flagship store in Akhibara, or, depending on the time of year, catch the sumo tournament. Don't forget to visit Shinjuku at night; there's nothing quite else like it in the world!
Since you will have already done a 12 day cruise by then, I've listed some less touristy activities:
How about a free local guide as a chance to meet one-on-one with a Japanese: http://www.tokyofreeguide.org/
Take a taiko drum lesson: http://www.taiko-center.co.jp/english/class/tokyo-class.html
For the best ever tempura at Tenichi: http://www.tenichi.co.jp/mainshop/index.html
It is expensive, best to go for lunch. Ask for a seat at the counter, the cook will place your food right from the fryer to your plate. How fresh is that?!
Experience high quality sushi at Ginza Kyubei. Best bargain is lunch. They take reservation only for the 11:30 sitting. But you could wait for the second seating.
3 hour architecture walking tour with Context Travel: https://www.contexttravel.com/cities/tokyo/tours/aesthetics-stylizing-modern-japan The tour ends at Roppongi. If you take the morning tour, then you can stay and explore the area.
Museums: Edo-Tokyo Museum, Tokyo National Museum
If you want kitchenware go to Kappabashi, an entire street of shops: http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3020.html
Askakusa is nearby, if you still need a shrine fix. You can combine these into one trip. There are food stalls near the shrine.
You could continue on across the river to Tokyo Sky Tree: http://lang.tokyo-skytree.jp/en/
Walk along the Ginza on Sunday when it is traffic-free. Go to the basement of any major department store and see the amazing foods and fruits.
Go to Mitsukoshi Dept Store when it first opens. The staff will bow to you as you walk down the aisle. The closest you get to feeling royalty.
Go to Yurakucho for yakitori stands.
Go to Tokyo Station and try ramen noodles from various parts of Japan at "Ramen Street". This may be hard to find since the station is so big. Go in the central entrance with the Daimaru Dept Store on your right as you face the station. Ramen Street should be on your left after you enter. But ask someone if you can't find it.
If you like eel, ask your hotel to recommend an eel specialty restaurant.
If I were to return to a cat café, I would take the opportunity to interact more with the Japanese there instead of the cats.
Here's a preview for you about Tsukiji: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuOkrOcZ6nQ&index=7&list=PLFuc_7VVFh6oHm5i3berXoZdkFcjZSYYm
I think that's enough suggestions to occupy you for 4 days. Have fun. I envy you. Would love to return to Japan.
In addition to the many good suggestions, we also liked walking around the Asakusa area. We liked our stay at the Sunroute Plaza Shinjuku Hotel...a recommendation I got on this forum. Trains and subways are excellent. We expected a chaotic, huge, busy city but found Tokyo to be incredibly clean and orderly; really enjoyed our time there. We were treated with polite kindness everywhere. Have a great trip.
Go to a baseball game. Tokyo has two teams, the Yakult Swallows and the Yomiuri Giants. One side of the stadium is for the home team and the opposite side is for the visitors. You will be asked which side you want. There is a chant for each player. People do not get up to get food while their team is batting. The chants and cheers are so loud you cannot hear the crack of the bat. The food options are quite varied and delicious. It was so fun.
I loved walking in the basement of department stores where the food is so artfully displayed. Have a beer and small plates to share at an izakya. I also pressed every button there is on the high tech toilets resulting in a few surprises.
