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Quick facts
- Region: Kanto
- Capital: Tokyo (Shinjuku)
- Population: 14.2 million
- Climate: Pacific side
- Cherry blossom (average): 24 March
- No. 1 in Japan: No. 1 in population, daytime population and GDP — 14 million people and around 20% of national GDP
⭐ Top sights
Shibuya Crossing
Up to 3,000 people cross at once on a single green light, making it the world's most famous intersection.
Shinkansen (Bullet Train)
Up to 320 km/h. The Tokaido line runs about 370 trains a day with an average delay of around one minute, and no passenger fatalities since 1964.
Senso-ji Temple & Kaminarimon
Tokyo's oldest temple (founded 628). Pass under the 700 kg lantern into the 250 m Nakamise shopping street. 30 million visitors a year.
Tokyo Skytree
At 634 m, the world's tallest free-standing broadcast tower. On clear days you can see Mount Fuji from the deck.
Akihabara Electric Town
From electronics district to the holy land of anime, games and maid cafés. Pedestrian paradise on Sundays.
Tsukiji Outer Market
The wholesale market moved to Toyosu, but 400 outer-market shops remain. Graze on tamagoyaki, tuna bowls and seafood skewers from early morning.
Toyosu Market Tuna Auction
The world's largest fish market. Watch the 5:30 am tuna auction from the gallery (or the special deck by lottery). Famous for New Year tuna sold for over ¥300 million.
Omoide Yokocho (Memory Lane)
Some 60 tiny yakitori bars in alleys that began as a post-war black market. Smoky lantern-lit counters that seat a handful.
Kappabashi Kitchen Town
170 shops of professional cookware along 800 m: knives, takoyaki pans, and the plastic food samples visitors take home.
Depachika Food Halls
Basement food halls of department stores: hundreds of counters of deli dishes, bento and sweets, with discounts before closing.
Sumo at Ryogoku Kokugikan
Fifteen-day tournaments in January, May and September. Doors open at 8 am; the top-division ring-entering ceremony is after 3 pm. Try chanko stew.
Kabuki-za Theatre
See a single act of 400-year-old kabuki from the single-act seats for ¥1,000–2,000, with English audio guide.
Kimono Rental Stroll
From about ¥3,000 in Asakusa or Kyoto, dressing included. Spend a day walking temples and lanes in kimono.
Sunrise Izumo / Seto Sleeper Train
Japan's only remaining regular sleeper train: leave Tokyo at 10 pm, wake up near Izumo Shrine or Takamatsu. The carpet-floor seats cost only the express fare.
Yakatabune Dinner Cruise
Floating banquets since the Edo period: tempura and drinks while cruising past Rainbow Bridge and Skytree at night.
Shinjuku Golden Gai
280 tiny bars in six alleys, each seating 5–8 with a cover charge. A night culture once frequented by filmmakers and writers.
Hanami Cherry Blossom Party
The national spring rite: picnic and drink under the blossoms. Ueno Park has 800 trees and lanterns at night.
Summer Fireworks Festivals
Fireworks every summer weekend nationwide. Shells that open to 800 m wide, yukata, food stalls; paid seats from a few thousand yen.
Ghibli Museum, Mitaka
'Let's lose our way, together.' A museum designed by Hayao Miyazaki. Timed tickets only, and no photos inside.
Calligraphy (Shodo)
Write a single kanji with brush and ink, or have your name rendered in characters — a popular short class.
Meiji Jingu Shrine
A 70-hectare forest next to Harajuku Station: 100,000 donated trees grew into a real forest in a century. Japan's busiest New Year shrine with about 3 million visitors.
Ekiben (Station Bento)
Station bento boxes are a tradition since the 19th century, with about 2,000 kinds nationwide. 'Ekibenya Matsuri' in Tokyo Station stocks around 200. Best enjoyed with a shinkansen window seat.
Yakitori
Every part of the chicken, skewered and grilled over charcoal. Under the railway arches of Yurakucho and in Shimbashi's back streets. Asked 'salt or sauce?', start with salt.
Tempura in Asakusa
Frying arrived from Portugal in the 16th century and evolved at Edo's street stalls. Asakusa has tempura restaurants over a century old, famed for conger eel and prawns.
Convenience-store Food
Rice balls, sandwiches, fried chicken and seasonal sweets around the clock. The quality astonishes visitors; Seven-Eleven, Lawson and FamilyMart are the big three.
Japanese Premium Fruit
A muskmelon for several thousand yen, strawberries wrapped one by one, square watermelons. A parfait at a fruit specialist such as Sembikiya is a luxury in itself.
Gyudon Beef-bowl Chains
Yoshinoya, Matsuya, Sukiya: sweet-savoury simmered beef over rice for ¥400–500, served within a minute of ordering by ticket machine or touch panel. Many are open 24 hours.
Sushi-making Class
Learn to shape vinegared rice and top it with fish under a chef's guidance. English-friendly classes in Tsukiji and Asakusa, about 2 hours for ¥5,000–10,000. You eat what you make.
Sento (Public Bathhouse)
About 400 public bathhouses remain in Tokyo. Entry is around ¥550, towels can be rented. Painted Mount Fuji murals, high ceilings and a bottle of coffee milk afterwards.
Karaoke Box
Invented in Japan in 1971; the private-room style dates from 1985. A few hundred yen an hour with drinks and food, and tens of thousands of English songs. Going solo is perfectly normal.
Game Centres & Purikura
Multi-storey arcades in Akihabara and Ikebukuro: claw machines, Taiko no Tatsujin drums and purikura photo booths that enlarge your eyes by default.
Edo Castle ruins (Imperial Palace)
Japan's largest castle. The keep burned down in the Great Meireki Fire of 1657 and was never rebuilt
🍲 Local food
Fukagawa-meshi, monjayaki, Edomae sushi
Fukagawa-meshi is rice cooked with clams (or topped with them). Tsukishima is the holy land of monjayaki
🏮 Festivals & events
- Sumida River Fireworks — Last Saturday of July. Traces back to the 1733 Ryogoku river-opening. Around 20,000 shells and a million spectators
- Sanja Matsuri — Third Fri–Sun of May. The annual festival of Asakusa Shrine. Over 100 neighbourhood mikoshi, plus the grand departure of the shrine's own three
- Kanda Matsuri — Mid-May (odd-numbered years). One of Edo's three great festivals. The grand procession winds through Kanda, Nihonbashi and Akihabara
- Tokyo Koenji Awa Odori — Last weekend of August. Second only to Tokushima in scale. Around 10,000 dancers and a million spectators
- Hie Shrine Sanno Matsuri — Mid-June (even-numbered years). One of Edo's three great festivals. The grand procession circles the Imperial Palace grounds
🌸 Flowers & autumn leaves
- Meguro River cherry blossoms — Cherry blossom · Late March to early April. 800 trees along about 4 km of river. Paper lanterns at night
- Chidorigafuchi — Cherry blossom · Late March to early April. Rowing boats and cherry blossoms on the Imperial Palace moat. Illuminated at night
- Mount Takao — Autumn foliage · Mid to late November. An hour from central Tokyo and the most-climbed mountain in the world, with 3 million hikers a year
🏨 Where to stay in Tokyo
The area around Tokyo (Shinjuku), the capital, has the best transport links and the widest choice of hotels; a night at a hot-spring town is also worth it.
Other prefectures in the region
Ibaraki · Tochigi · Gunma · Saitama · Chiba · Kanagawa · 47 prefectures
Frequently asked questions
What is Tokyo famous for food-wise?
Tokyo's best-known local dishes are Fukagawa-meshi, monjayaki, Edomae sushi. Fukagawa-meshi is rice cooked with clams (or topped with them). Tsukishima is the holy land of monjayaki
What are the top sights in Tokyo?
Top picks in Tokyo include Shibuya Crossing, Shinkansen (Bullet Train), Senso-ji Temple & Kaminarimon, Tokyo Skytree.
When do cherry blossoms bloom in Tokyo?
In Tokyo (Tokyo (Shinjuku)), Somei-yoshino cherry trees usually start blooming around 24 March, reaching full bloom about a week later.
