Tokyo, by design

74 places

• S01Day 1 · S01

  Godzilla, and Kabukicho Tower

  Hotel Gracery · Yuko Nagayama, 2023

  Start on your doorstep. Godzilla glowers over the hotel terrace, and next door Nagayama’s tower wears a glass skin modelled on a splash of water.

  Free20 minArchitectureUnusual
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• S02Day 1 · S02

  Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building

  Kenzo Tange, 1991

  Tange’s Gothic-cathedral city hall. The free observation deck on the 45th floor looks out to Mount Fuji on a clear morning.

  Free45 minArchitecture
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• S03Day 1 · S03

  Mode Gakuen Cocoon Tower

  Tange Associates, 2008

  A fashion and design school wrapped in a crisscross white web. It is best seen from the foot of the tower, looking straight up.

  Free15 minArchitecture
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• S04Day 1 · S04

  Gashapon Department Store, Ikebukuro

  Bandai Namco Cross Store Tokyo · Sunshine City

  Guinness confirmed it in June 2026 as the world’s biggest capsule-toy shop: 4,096 machines, wall after wall. Bring a fistful of ¥100 coins (there are change machines).

  ¥1 hrUnusualGraphic design
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• S05Day 1 · S05

  Ain Soph. Journey

  Vegan · Shinjuku 3-chome

  An all-vegan café near the garden gates, famous for its fluffy “heavenly” pancakes. An easy first meal.

  ¥1 hrFood & drink
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• S06Day 1 · S06

  Shinjuku Gyoen

  National garden

  French, English and Japanese gardens in one, plus a modern glass greenhouse. The best place to fight off jet lag on a bench.

  ¥1 hrClosed MonArchitecture
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• S07Day 1 · S07

  Ichigaya Letterpress Factory

  Dai Nippon Printing · building of 1926

  DNP’s old print works, restored and full of working presses, cases of metal type and the punches used to cut Japanese characters. Free, and a quiet joy for a graphic designer.

  Free1.5 hrClosed Mon, TueBook aheadGraphic designArchitectureBooks
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• S08Day 1 · S08

  Kinokuniya Shinjuku

  Bookshop, since 1927

  Tokyo’s grand old bookshop. Head for the art, design and architecture shelves and the Japanese magazines.

  Free1 hrBooksGraphic design
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• S09Day 1 · S09

  Tsunahachi

  Tempura, since 1924

  Crisp tempura fried in front of you at the counter: aubergine, sweet potato, shiitake, prawn and white fish.

  ¥¥1 hrFood & drink
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• S10Day 1 · S10

  Omoide Yokocho

  Post-war alley

  A smoky lane of tiny grill counters by the tracks, barely changed since the 1940s. Most of the grills are meat, so walk it for the atmosphere and the photographs.

  Free20 minArchitectureUnusual
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• S11Day 1 · S11

  The giant 3D cat

  Cross Shinjuku Vision, east exit

  A huge cat that seems to climb out of a curved billboard. Pure Tokyo.

  Free10 minGraphic designUnusual
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• S12Day 1 · S12

  Golden Gai

  Six alleys, about 200 bars

  Bars that hold six to ten people each, every one a little world. Some are for regulars only; look for a sign in English.

  ¥¥All nightUnusualMusicFood & drink
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• O01Day 2 · O01

  Meiji Jingu

  Shinto shrine, 1920

  A gravel path through a planted forest to a calm cypress shrine. Go early, before the crowds.

  Free45 minArchitecture
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• O02Day 2 · O02

  Yoyogi National Gymnasium

  Kenzo Tange, 1964

  The roof hangs from cables like a suspension bridge. The building most often called Tange’s masterpiece.

  Free30 minArchitecture
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• O03Day 2 · O03

  The Tokyo Toilet

  Shigeru Ban, Tadao Ando, Toyo Ito, Kengo Kuma and more

  Public toilets by star architects (the ones in the film Perfect Days). Ban’s glass walls go frosted when you lock the door.

  Free1 hrArchitectureUnusual
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• O04Day 2 · O04

  Afuri Harajuku

  Ramen

  Light yuzu-citrus ramen, and one of the few ramen chains with a vegan bowl made from vegetable broth.

  ¥45 minFood & drink
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• O05Day 2 · O05

  The Omotesando strip

  Ito · Ando · SANAA · Aoki · Herzog & de Meuron

  In one walk: Tod’s (Toyo Ito), Omotesando Hills (Tadao Ando), Dior (SANAA), Louis Vuitton (Jun Aoki) and Prada’s glass diamond (Herzog & de Meuron).

  Free1.5 hrArchitecture
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• O06Day 2 · O06

  SunnyHills Minami-Aoyama

  Kengo Kuma, 2013

  A pineapple-cake shop inside a basket of interlocking timber. Visitors are usually offered tea and a cake, free.

  Free30 minArchitectureFood & drink
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• O07Day 2 · O07

  Nezu Museum

  Kengo Kuma, 2009

  You go in down a long bamboo-lined path under a huge low roof. Then wander a hilly garden of teahouses.

  ¥¥1.5 hrClosed MonBook aheadArchitectureArt
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• O08Day 2 · O08

  Shibuya Sky

  Shibuya Scramble Square

  An open-air roof 230 m up, right above the famous crossing. Book the slot that takes in the sunset.

  ¥¥1 hrBook aheadArchitecture
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• O09Day 2 · O09

  Tower Records Shibuya

  Record shop

  A whole building of music, with Japanese pressings and city pop you won’t find at home.

  Free45 minMusic
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• O10Day 2 · O10

  Uobei

  Sushi by bullet train

  Order on a touchscreen and your plate shoots to your seat on a little rail. Fish, of course, plus cucumber rolls, inari and sweet egg.

  ¥45 minFood & drinkUnusual
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• O11Day 2 · O11

  JBS (Jazz Blues Soul)

  Listening bar

  One man, one turntable, and a wall of vinyl from floor to ceiling. Order a whisky and listen.

  ¥¥1–2 hrMusic
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• U01Day 3 · U01

  National Museum of Western Art

  Le Corbusier, 1959

  Le Corbusier’s only building in East Asia, and World Heritage since 2016. Look for the spiral plan and the top-lit galleries.

  ¥1 hrClosed MonArchitectureArt
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• U02Day 3 · U02

  Tokyo Bunka Kaikan

  Kunio Maekawa, 1961

  The concert hall opposite, by Le Corbusier’s Japanese pupil. Look at the great upturned concrete eaves.

  Free15 minArchitectureMusic
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• U03Day 3 · U03

  Gallery of Horyuji Treasures

  Yoshio Taniguchi, 1999 · Tokyo National Museum

  Taniguchi, who later remade MoMA, set a dark box of 7th-century treasures behind a shallow pool. Calm and perfect.

  ¥1 hrClosed MonArchitectureArt
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• U04Day 3 · U04

  Ueno Yabu Soba

  Soba house, since the 1890s

  Cold buckwheat noodles on a bamboo tray with a dipping sauce. Simple, perfect and a short walk from the museums.

  ¥45 minFood & drink
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• U05Day 3 · U05

  Akihabara Gachapon Kaikan

  Capsule-toy shop · Akihabara

  About 500 machines, chosen for the strange: miniature everyday objects, surreal animals and a corner of cheeky adult capsules. New ones arrive every month.

  ¥40 minUnusualGraphic design
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• U06Day 3 · U06

  Sumida Hokusai Museum

  Kazuyo Sejima (SANAA), 2016

  The artist behind the Great Wave, in a mirrored building cut through by footpaths. A must for the graphic designer.

  ¥1.5 hrClosed MonArchitectureArtGraphic design
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• U07Day 3 · U07

  Kakimori

  Stationery · Kuramae

  Pick the paper, cover, rings and clasp, and they bind your own notebook while you wait. Next door, mix your own ink at Ink Stand.

  ¥¥1 hrGraphic design
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• U08Day 3 · U08

  Asakusa Culture Tourist Information Center

  Kengo Kuma, 2012

  Eight small timber houses stacked on top of one another. The free roof terrace looks down onto Senso-ji.

  Free30 minArchitecture
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• U09Day 3 · U09

  Senso-ji

  Tokyo’s oldest temple

  After dark the day-trippers leave and the gates and pagoda are lit up. It is far better than at noon.

  Free45 minArchitecture
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• U10Day 3 · U10

  Hoppy Street

  Open-air izakaya row

  Stools out on the pavement and cheap drinks. Order edamame, fried tofu, grilled fish and vegetable tempura, and skip the famous beef stew. Try a “Hoppy” with shochu.

  ¥2 hrFood & drink
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• G01Day 4 · G01

  Tsukiji Outer Market

  Breakfast stalls

  Tamagoyaki on a stick, a sushi breakfast, and knife shops. The tuna auction has moved, but the market streets are still here.

  ¥1.5 hrFood & drink
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• G02Day 4 · G02

  Shizuoka Press & Broadcasting Center

  Kenzo Tange, 1967

  A single round core with office pods hanging off it. A rare Metabolist building still standing.

  Free15 minArchitecture
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• G03Day 4 · G03

  Ginza Graphic Gallery (ggg)

  Dai Nippon Printing, since 1986

  Free shows of graphic design, often a single great Japanese designer at a time. Check what is on before you go.

  Free45 minClosed SunGraphic designArt
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• G04Day 4 · G04

  Ginza Itoya

  Stationery, since 1904

  A tall, slim tower of paper, pens and cards, with a floor just for paper. You can make your own notepad.

  Free1 hrGraphic design
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• G05Day 4 · G05

  Tsutaya Books at Ginza Six, and Muji Ginza

  Art books · Muji flagship

  Huge art and photography books under a high wooden ceiling. Then Muji’s flagship, with a Muji diner and even a Muji hotel.

  ¥1.5 hrBooksGraphic designFood & drink
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• G06Day 4 · G06

  Tokyo International Forum

  Rafael Viñoly, 1996

  A glass hall shaped like a ship’s hull, with walkways slung across it. Free to walk through.

  Free30 minArchitecture
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• G07Day 4 · G07

  21_21 Design Sight

  Tadao Ando with Issey Miyake, 2007

  A roof folded from a single sheet of steel, after Miyake’s “a piece of cloth”. The design shows downstairs are always good.

  ¥¥1 hrClosed TueArchitectureGraphic designArt
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• G08Day 4 · G08

  National Art Center, Tokyo

  Kisho Kurokawa, 2007

  A rippling glass wall, with a café perched on top of an upturned concrete cone. It has no collection of its own, only big shows.

  ¥¥1.5 hrClosed TueArchitectureArt
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• G09Day 4 · G09

  Gonpachi Nishi-Azabu

  Izakaya

  The wooden hall said to have inspired the House of Blue Leaves fight in Kill Bill. Soba, vegetable tempura and a lot of noise.

  ¥¥1.5 hrFood & drinkUnusual
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• G10Day 4 · G10

  Mori Art Museum and Tokyo City View

  Roppongi Hills, 53rd floor

  Big contemporary art shows, open late most nights. Then the whole lit city around you.

  ¥¥1.5 hrArtArchitecture
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• D01Day 5 · D01

  Daikanyama T-Site

  Klein Dytham Architecture, 2011

  Three pavilions wrapped in a lattice of interlocking “T”s, full of books and magazines. Upstairs, the Anjin lounge has old magazines to read with coffee.

  Free1.5 hrBooksArchitectureGraphic design
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• D02Day 5 · D02

  Hillside Terrace

  Fumihiko Maki, 1969–1998

  Maki added to this one quiet street for thirty years. Low white buildings, galleries and courtyards: a lesson in town planning.

  Free30 minArchitectureArt
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• D03Day 5 · D03

  Starbucks Reserve Roastery Tokyo

  Kengo Kuma, 2019

  Yes, Starbucks. But inside, a four-storey copper roasting tank rises under a ceiling of folded cedar, by the Meguro river.

  ¥45 minArchitectureFood & drink
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• D04Day 5 · D04

  Cow Books

  Nakameguro

  A tiny secondhand shop of carefully chosen books, many on 1960s counterculture.

  Free20 minBooks
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• D05Day 5 · D05

  Shimokitazawa

  Vintage and records

  Lanes of vintage clothes and small record shops. Find Flash Disc Ranch, a famously cramped record shop up a flight of stairs.

  Free2 hrMusicUnusual
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• D06Day 5 · D06

  Bonus Track

  Tsubame Architects, 2020

  Low shop-houses built on an old railway line: a bookshop, a pickle shop and craft beer. A small model of how a city can grow.

  Free45 minArchitectureBooksFood & drink
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• D07Day 5 · D07

  Vegetarian curry

  CoCo Ichibanya, any branch

  Japanese curry roux usually hides meat stock. CoCo Ichibanya, the big curry chain, has a meat-free vegetarian menu: pick your spice level and toppings.

  ¥45 minFood & drink
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• D08Day 5 · D08

  A Shimokita live house

  Shelter · Basement Bar · Three

  Small basement venues where Japanese indie bands play most nights. Buy a ticket on the door and a compulsory drink.

  ¥¥2–3 hrMusic
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• Extra · Mitaka

  Ghibli Museum

  Hayao Miyazaki

  Miyazaki designed it himself: spiral stairs, a rooftop robot and a short film you can only see here. 15 minutes from Shinjuku.

  ¥2 hrClosed TueBook aheadArtUnusual
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• Extra · Azabudai Hills

  teamLab Borderless

  Art collective teamLab

  Rooms of digital art with no walls between the works. They flow from one room into the next.

  ¥¥¥2 hrBook aheadArtUnusual
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• Extra · Shinjuku

  Sekaido

  Art supplies

  Floors of markers, papers, inks and brushes, at prices that sting less than at home.

  Free45 minGraphic design
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• Extra · Nakano

  Nakano Broadway

  1960s shopping arcade

  Four floors of vintage toys, manga, cels and odd tiny shops. Four minutes from Shinjuku by train.

  Free2 hrUnusualBooks
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• Extra · Jimbocho

  Jimbocho book town

  Streets of secondhand bookshops

  Old prints, art books and posters, and good old coffee shops in between.

  Free2 hrBooksGraphic design
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• Extra · Iidabashi

  Printing Museum, Tokyo

  Toppan

  The history of printing, with a working letterpress studio where you can set type.

  ¥1.5 hrClosed MonGraphic design
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• Extra · Tennozu Isle

  WHAT museum and its model store

  Warehouse of Art Terrada

  A warehouse full of architects’ models, from rough card studies to finished masterpieces. An architect’s dream.

  ¥¥1.5 hrClosed MonArchitectureArt
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• Extra · Koganei

  Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum

  Including Kunio Maekawa’s own house

  Old Tokyo houses, shops and a bathhouse rebuilt in a park. Maekawa’s 1942 house is the star.

  ¥2 hrClosed MonArchitecture
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• Extra · Marunouchi

  Tokyo Station and KITTE

  Tatsuno Kingo, 1914 · Kengo Kuma

  The red-brick station, restored, seen from the free roof garden of the KITTE post-office building across the road.

  Free45 minArchitecture
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• Extra · Kiyosumi-Shirakawa

  Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo

  Kiyosumi-Shirakawa

  Tokyo’s big modern art museum, in a quiet coffee district. Blue Bottle opened its first Japanese café here.

  ¥¥2 hrClosed MonArtFood & drink
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• Extra · Setagaya

  Gotokuji

  Temple of the beckoning cat

  Rows upon rows of little white beckoning cats left by visitors. Strange and lovely.

  Free45 minUnusual
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• Extra · Meguro

  Meguro Parasitological Museum

  Tiny and free

  Parasites in jars, including an 8.8 m tapeworm. The gift shop’s T-shirts are a design classic.

  Free30 minClosed MonUnusualGraphic design
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• Extra · Koenji

  Kosugiyu

  Public bath, since 1933

  A classic temple-roofed sento. Wash first, then soak. A real slice of daily Tokyo.

  ¥1 hrUnusualArchitecture
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• Extra · Shinjuku

  Shinjuku Pit Inn

  Jazz club, since 1965

  Tokyo’s best-known jazz basement, a few minutes from the hotel. There are cheaper afternoon sets.

  ¥¥2 hrMusic
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• Extra · Shinjuku

  Disk Union Shinjuku

  Record shops

  A cluster of shops, each for one kind of music. The jazz and Japanese shops are the best.

  Free1 hrMusic
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• Extra · Aoyama

  Blue Note Tokyo

  Jazz club

  World-class players in a smart room. Dress up a little.

  ¥¥¥2 hrBook aheadMusic
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• Extra · Asakusa

  Kappabashi Dogu Street

  Kitchen street

  Knives, ceramics and the plastic food you see in restaurant windows. Some shops run workshops where you make your own.

  Free1 hrUnusualGraphic design
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• Extra · Yanaka

  Kayaba Coffee

  Coffee shop since 1938

  A restored wooden coffee shop in old Yanaka. Have the egg sandwich.

  ¥45 minFood & drinkArchitecture
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• Extra · Ginza

  Café de L’Ambre

  Coffee only, since 1948

  Dark wood, aged beans and coffee made one cup at a time. Time stopped here decades ago.

  ¥45 minFood & drink
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• Extra · Shinjuku

  Isetan food hall

  Department store basement

  Perfect fruit, bento and cakes, all wrapped beautifully. A museum of packaging.

  ¥45 minFood & drinkGraphic design
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• Extra · Tokyo Station

  T’s TanTan

  Vegan ramen

  Sesame tantan noodles with no animal products at all. The vegan ramen Tokyo is known for.

  ¥45 minFood & drink
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• Extra · Shiba Park

  Tofuya Ukai

  Tofu restaurant

  Course after course of handmade tofu in a garden at the foot of Tokyo Tower. A splurge meal.

  ¥¥¥2 hrBook aheadFood & drinkArchitecture
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• Extra · Atago

  Daigo

  Shojin ryori

  Buddhist temple cooking: fully vegan, seasonal and beautiful. A once-in-a-lifetime meal at a once-in-a-lifetime price.

  ¥¥¥2 hrBook aheadFood & drink
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• Look downEach ward has its own manhole cover art. Some are in colour.
• Look upShop signs stack up the sides of buildings, a wall of type in three scripts.
• Look closerWrapping in a department store is a craft: folded, taped, perfect.
• ListenEach station has its own short tune that plays before the train leaves.

• SumimasenExcuse me / sorry / waiter!すみませんShow
• Arigatō gozaimasuThank you very muchありがとうございますShow
• Kore o kudasaiThis one, pleaseこれをくださいShow
• Eigo no menyū wa arimasu ka?Is there an English menu?英語のメニューはありますか？Show
• Futari desuTwo people二人ですShow
• Okaikei onegaishimasuThe bill, pleaseお会計お願いしますShow
• Shashin o totte mo ii desu ka?May I take a photo?写真を撮ってもいいですか？Show
• Kanpai!Cheers!乾杯！Show
• Watashi-tachi wa bejitarian desu. Niku wa tabemasen.We are vegetarian. We don’t eat meat.私たちはベジタリアンです。肉は食べません。Show
• Niku ya niku no dashi wa haitte imasu ka?Is there any meat or meat stock in this?肉や肉のだしは入っていますか？Show

• Ghibli Museum ticketsOn sale the 10th of the month before. They sell out within hours.
• Shibuya Sky sunset slotSunset slots go first. Book once you know your Day 2 date.
• teamLab Borderless (if you want it)Timed tickets; weekends sell out.
• Ichigaya Letterpress Factory tourFree Printing Plant Tour on set days. Book on its event page; closed Mondays and Tuesdays.
• Nezu Museum time slotOnline, a few days ahead.
• Suica in Apple WalletOn an iPhone, add a Suica card in Wallet and top it up with Apple Pay; most UK cards work. On Android, buy a Welcome Suica at the airport.
• An eSIM for dataSet it up before you fly. You will lean on maps all day.
• Visit Japan WebFill in immigration and customs online for a QR code at the airport.
• Two Type A plug adaptersJapan uses flat two-pin plugs at 100 V. Phones and laptops are fine.
• Some yen in cash7-Eleven ATMs take UK cards. Small bars and stalls are often cash only.
• A small hand towel eachMany public loos have no paper towels or dryers.
• Shoes that slip off easilyYou take them off at temples, some restaurants and fitting rooms.
• The HappyCow appIt maps vegetarian and vegan places near you, with reviews.
• Travel insuranceHealthcare is excellent but not free.