Go to an apron only coffee house. Actually I never went, but I heard about it. They have mirror floors. Blow 2000 yen on Pachinko. I think that is the fastest $20 I ever lost. If you want to see slick retail spaces go to Aoyama and Omotosando. Takeshita Dori where the Harajuku cosplay chicks hang out. Ooh, Akihabara to see ridiculous amounts of electronics. Go anywhere and you'll see something cool. Stay away from Roppongi Hills. If you are only there for 16 hours you don't want to just hang out with a bunch of ex-pats.
Unless you have definate things you want to do, 16hr may not be worth the trip from Narita Airport (assuming you are flying in?) to inner Tokyo. Express train from Narita to Shinjuku is 3hr round trip and will cost you about 6000 yen and from Shinjuku you take the yamanote line to Harajuku or Shibuya about 10-15min.
It also depends on what time you are arriving. Most department store are open from 10am to 7pm or so. Perhaps walking around Tokyo station and Ginza might be better as it's closer from the Airport and there are plenty of buildings to see in Ginza as well such as Vinoly's tokyo international forum, Piano's hermes, Ito's Mikimoto etc etc.
Another option might be to go to a hot spring near Narita (about 1hr to get there) to relax and enjoy a hot bath.
That is true. Narita is out there. And while Tokyo is efficiently well connected, it's big. Listen to Kou. Probably pick one thing to see. Especially if you don't speak Japanese. While you will be able to find English speakers and most signs are in English too, it's not as easy as just jumping around in NYC. It will take you a little longer to make sure you are on the right train, going in the right direction, bought the right ticket etc. Probably best to plan out one specific course. We had a bilingual guide who got us to all of those places (not the coffee house) very quickly. She had lived in Tokyo for a few years. Even our Tokyo native guide missed a few stops with us and went the wrong direction a few times.
oh, where is your sense of adventure? I had a Narita layover on a trip Osaka-Itami to Vancouver. Took the Narita Express to Yokohama, 90 minutes, had a wonderful visit and lunch with my ex from college and went back to Narita.
Yokohama is 30 min beyond Tokyo station. Just riding the NE is better than sitting in Narita all day.
Another trip involved my Dad and catching an early shinkansen from Kyoto, morning city sightseeing on the HattoBus, (from Tokyo Station area, worth it) afternoon shopping trip to Shibuya, and zooming back to Kyoto to catch a late local to my suburb.
Bob has a point. But again, all depends on what time you are arriving and how competent you are in navigating through Tokyo. Just make sure you don't do a grand tour. Pick few things, plan your trip, and make sure you do your research. Then, you might even be able to squeeze a hot spring bath on the way back.
and don't forget the yamanote goes in a loop in both directions. so be sure you are on the one going the right way. it takes one hour to go round the loop once and easy to go the wrong way if you don't know the city fairly well....
personally i find shinjuku and shibuya boring, but if you wanna see the scene from lost in translation those are the places.
if its architecture you are looking for go to yokohama and see the ferry terminal, or head to omotesando and get your fill of starchitecture...ito, Herzog and demeuron, sejima, ando, kuma, and others are all represented with some fine buildings along a rather short strip of land...
I liked Ueno park. OH! and definitely go see the Shinto War Memorial, I think it's called Yasukuni, or Yakusuni or something. Interesting to see the Militant past and a point of controversy. It also has the biggest Torii EVER. It's the warship of torii.
this is the big gate:
[img]http://www.arai.pe.u-tokyo.ac.jp/~hosino/hobbies/travel/03_09_28-yasukuni/DSC00444.JPG[/iimg]
and this is some the nationalist crap they sell there
this is the big gate:
[img]http://www.arai.pe.u-tokyo.ac.jp/~hosino/hobbies/travel/03_09_28-yasukuni/DSC00444.JPG[/iimg]
and this is some the nationalist crap they sell there
"and don't forget the yamanote goes in a loop in both directions. so be sure you are on the one going the right way. it takes one hour to go round the loop once and easy to go the wrong way if you don't know the city fairly well...."
if it goes around in a circle, how can you be going the wrong way . . .
actually I know how but it is a bit of a paradox to go the wrong way on a loop line. much like taking an express train when you should be on a local.
with you submission in your bag as you go screaming past your station at 130km/h.
I ASSUME YOU ARE TRAVELLING ON TO A CONNECTING FLIGHT. (oops, damn caps lock, I am doing drawing labels)
Are you continueing to another city in Japan or . . .?
at Narita you are able to check-in right away to your next flight, so do so then you are done with your baggage until you have to claim again at your destination.
Do you expect to return to Tokyo anytime soon? with more time on your hands? if not then you should go into Tokyo and enjoy having a look around.
Not much to see in Narita town any way, except that one Japanese town is pretty much like all the rest.
"thanks for the thorough responses -- would it be a better idea to stay near the airport or in the city? (lots of luggage)"
ha, ha, "stay" as in hotel room and sleep? www.toyokoinn.co.jp is a reasonable price western style business hotel chain.
been to Japan before? "stay" vs "rest" have an entirely different meaning there, and you will see it on the sides of some strange garish buildings.
strictly B.Y.O.G. (bring your own girl)
Don't go to the Yasukuni Shrine - if you do, don't tell your asian friends you went to the Yasukuni Shrine. I personally think it would be tasteless for you to visit, but maybe you're into that kind of stuff. I also recommend Toyoko Inn. I stayed at the one in Otsuka-Eki - which I think is the cheapest on in Tokyo and close to Ikebukuro and Shibuya... (trying to remember...) If you have sixteen hours, then considering the time you will spend getting in and out of Tokyo, I recommend a stroll down Omotesando for starchitecture, hitting all the buzz name places like Shibuya, Shinjuku and Harajuku and one seedy stop at a seedy place of your choosing.
If you have connecting flight, you should ask at your departing origin to transfer all your luggage directly to you final destination. If that's not possible then listen to bob and check in all your luggage at Narita before you head to Tokyo. Keep in mind some airlines don't allow you to check your luggage until several hours before the departure time and Narita Airport is pretty much dead after 9pm.
As for hotel, if you only have 16 hours, why even bother checking in/out the hotel? (Unless it's free) By the time you catch a shuttle bus / taxi to a hotel, check in, leave your luggage, take the bus back to the airport then catch the express train to Tokyo, you will be wasting hours. Not to mention that you need to pick up your luggage from the hotel on the way back.
I suggest you store all your luggage at the airport if you can't get rid of them beforehand. There are luggage delivery services on departure lounge both for terminal 1 & 2 that the locals use to sent their luggage few days before and pick up on the day of departure. These places will happily store your luggage for several hours or overnight for something like 500 yen per item. You can then pick them up again ready to check-in after your Tokyo tour. Again, all depends on which 16 hours you have....
connecting to Beijing... layover #1 is overnight, 9 weeks later layover #2 is morning to morning... airport storage -- helpful, thanks... and well aware of the hotel situation, not expecting to sleep..
What airline?
After the CP/Air India incident (two Narita baggage handlers killed by a bomb loaded on a CP flight originated in Vancouver, while being transferred to a connecting Air India flight to Delhi) I don't think any baggage is checked through to connecting flights in Japan. IIRC everyone also has to clear customs/immigration when landing in Japan.
ah, but you are staying overnight, sleep should not be a problem.
some "hotels" charge for a rest, 1-2 hours, for Y3000-Y5000. longer, or overnight, is a "rest", or Y7000-Y10,000.
sixteen hours in tokyo
any suggestions? already thinking of wandering about Shibuya..
go to a bath house, probably somewhere near the end of your 16 hours. cause you'll be dirty and tired.
Go to an apron only coffee house. Actually I never went, but I heard about it. They have mirror floors. Blow 2000 yen on Pachinko. I think that is the fastest $20 I ever lost. If you want to see slick retail spaces go to Aoyama and Omotosando. Takeshita Dori where the Harajuku cosplay chicks hang out. Ooh, Akihabara to see ridiculous amounts of electronics. Go anywhere and you'll see something cool. Stay away from Roppongi Hills. If you are only there for 16 hours you don't want to just hang out with a bunch of ex-pats.
Unless you have definate things you want to do, 16hr may not be worth the trip from Narita Airport (assuming you are flying in?) to inner Tokyo. Express train from Narita to Shinjuku is 3hr round trip and will cost you about 6000 yen and from Shinjuku you take the yamanote line to Harajuku or Shibuya about 10-15min.
It also depends on what time you are arriving. Most department store are open from 10am to 7pm or so. Perhaps walking around Tokyo station and Ginza might be better as it's closer from the Airport and there are plenty of buildings to see in Ginza as well such as Vinoly's tokyo international forum, Piano's hermes, Ito's Mikimoto etc etc.
Another option might be to go to a hot spring near Narita (about 1hr to get there) to relax and enjoy a hot bath.
That is true. Narita is out there. And while Tokyo is efficiently well connected, it's big. Listen to Kou. Probably pick one thing to see. Especially if you don't speak Japanese. While you will be able to find English speakers and most signs are in English too, it's not as easy as just jumping around in NYC. It will take you a little longer to make sure you are on the right train, going in the right direction, bought the right ticket etc. Probably best to plan out one specific course. We had a bilingual guide who got us to all of those places (not the coffee house) very quickly. She had lived in Tokyo for a few years. Even our Tokyo native guide missed a few stops with us and went the wrong direction a few times.
oh, where is your sense of adventure? I had a Narita layover on a trip Osaka-Itami to Vancouver. Took the Narita Express to Yokohama, 90 minutes, had a wonderful visit and lunch with my ex from college and went back to Narita.
Yokohama is 30 min beyond Tokyo station. Just riding the NE is better than sitting in Narita all day.
Another trip involved my Dad and catching an early shinkansen from Kyoto, morning city sightseeing on the HattoBus, (from Tokyo Station area, worth it) afternoon shopping trip to Shibuya, and zooming back to Kyoto to catch a late local to my suburb.
Ok, listen to Bob. Go to the apron only coffee house.
yup, 2 hours there and back to Tokyo station, still leaves 14 hours for some serious touristing or "research".
Bob has a point. But again, all depends on what time you are arriving and how competent you are in navigating through Tokyo. Just make sure you don't do a grand tour. Pick few things, plan your trip, and make sure you do your research. Then, you might even be able to squeeze a hot spring bath on the way back.
and don't forget the yamanote goes in a loop in both directions. so be sure you are on the one going the right way. it takes one hour to go round the loop once and easy to go the wrong way if you don't know the city fairly well....
personally i find shinjuku and shibuya boring, but if you wanna see the scene from lost in translation those are the places.
if its architecture you are looking for go to yokohama and see the ferry terminal, or head to omotesando and get your fill of starchitecture...ito, Herzog and demeuron, sejima, ando, kuma, and others are all represented with some fine buildings along a rather short strip of land...
I liked Ueno park. OH! and definitely go see the Shinto War Memorial, I think it's called Yasukuni, or Yakusuni or something. Interesting to see the Militant past and a point of controversy. It also has the biggest Torii EVER. It's the warship of torii.
mvdr
this is the big gate:
[img]http://www.arai.pe.u-tokyo.ac.jp/~hosino/hobbies/travel/03_09_28-yasukuni/DSC00444.JPG[/iimg]
and this is some the nationalist crap they sell there
this is the big gate:
[img]http://www.arai.pe.u-tokyo.ac.jp/~hosino/hobbies/travel/03_09_28-yasukuni/DSC00444.JPG[/iimg]
and this is some the nationalist crap they sell there
sorry, this is it
sorry, this is it
"and don't forget the yamanote goes in a loop in both directions. so be sure you are on the one going the right way. it takes one hour to go round the loop once and easy to go the wrong way if you don't know the city fairly well...."
if it goes around in a circle, how can you be going the wrong way . . .
actually I know how but it is a bit of a paradox to go the wrong way on a loop line. much like taking an express train when you should be on a local.
with you submission in your bag as you go screaming past your station at 130km/h.
thanks for the thorough responses -- would it be a better idea to stay near the airport or in the city? (lots of luggage)
Most public transit places have lockers. Will depend on if you can fit them in. They aren't the biggest lockers in the world.
I ASSUME YOU ARE TRAVELLING ON TO A CONNECTING FLIGHT. (oops, damn caps lock, I am doing drawing labels)
Are you continueing to another city in Japan or . . .?
at Narita you are able to check-in right away to your next flight, so do so then you are done with your baggage until you have to claim again at your destination.
Do you expect to return to Tokyo anytime soon? with more time on your hands? if not then you should go into Tokyo and enjoy having a look around.
Not much to see in Narita town any way, except that one Japanese town is pretty much like all the rest.
"thanks for the thorough responses -- would it be a better idea to stay near the airport or in the city? (lots of luggage)"
ha, ha, "stay" as in hotel room and sleep? www.toyokoinn.co.jp is a reasonable price western style business hotel chain.
been to Japan before? "stay" vs "rest" have an entirely different meaning there, and you will see it on the sides of some strange garish buildings.
strictly B.Y.O.G. (bring your own girl)
oops, need a hyphen there,
www.toyoko-inn.co.jp
Don't go to the Yasukuni Shrine - if you do, don't tell your asian friends you went to the Yasukuni Shrine. I personally think it would be tasteless for you to visit, but maybe you're into that kind of stuff. I also recommend Toyoko Inn. I stayed at the one in Otsuka-Eki - which I think is the cheapest on in Tokyo and close to Ikebukuro and Shibuya... (trying to remember...) If you have sixteen hours, then considering the time you will spend getting in and out of Tokyo, I recommend a stroll down Omotesando for starchitecture, hitting all the buzz name places like Shibuya, Shinjuku and Harajuku and one seedy stop at a seedy place of your choosing.
go to Asakusa shrine, big shrine and the accompanying shopping stalls/food stalls without the nationalism.
I wonder how many unsuspecting tourists get Yasakuni and Asakusa mixed up?
which sixteen hours do you have? in particular?
If you have connecting flight, you should ask at your departing origin to transfer all your luggage directly to you final destination. If that's not possible then listen to bob and check in all your luggage at Narita before you head to Tokyo. Keep in mind some airlines don't allow you to check your luggage until several hours before the departure time and Narita Airport is pretty much dead after 9pm.
As for hotel, if you only have 16 hours, why even bother checking in/out the hotel? (Unless it's free) By the time you catch a shuttle bus / taxi to a hotel, check in, leave your luggage, take the bus back to the airport then catch the express train to Tokyo, you will be wasting hours. Not to mention that you need to pick up your luggage from the hotel on the way back.
I suggest you store all your luggage at the airport if you can't get rid of them beforehand. There are luggage delivery services on departure lounge both for terminal 1 & 2 that the locals use to sent their luggage few days before and pick up on the day of departure. These places will happily store your luggage for several hours or overnight for something like 500 yen per item. You can then pick them up again ready to check-in after your Tokyo tour. Again, all depends on which 16 hours you have....
connecting to Beijing... layover #1 is overnight, 9 weeks later layover #2 is morning to morning... airport storage -- helpful, thanks... and well aware of the hotel situation, not expecting to sleep..
What airline?
After the CP/Air India incident (two Narita baggage handlers killed by a bomb loaded on a CP flight originated in Vancouver, while being transferred to a connecting Air India flight to Delhi) I don't think any baggage is checked through to connecting flights in Japan. IIRC everyone also has to clear customs/immigration when landing in Japan.
ah, but you are staying overnight, sleep should not be a problem.
some "hotels" charge for a rest, 1-2 hours, for Y3000-Y5000. longer, or overnight, is a "rest", or Y7000-Y10,000.
Toyoko Inn is not one of those kinds of "hotels".
oops, longer than a few hours is a "stay".
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