Tokyo Visitor Tips

By patrick

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General tips on Japan, getting around, weather, and more.

Transportation
For travelers to Japan, you will need to use the trains and subways often. A good website that will help you plan your trips and transfers is Hyperdia, which will list train times and prices. Simply enter your start and end addresses.

Public transportation in Tokyo is very good, and consists of two systems: trains and subway.
Tokyo train map
Tokyo subway map

From the airport: The Narita Express train is probably the fastest and cheapest way to get into the city. The trains cost about 3000 yen and depart frequently from Narita to Shinjuku. You can also use the Airport Limousine buses, which also cost about 3000 yen.

Weather
Japan has 4 distinct seasons, each one quite fun to visit.
Spring - This is perhaps the best season in Japan. Sakura cherry blossoms are an amazing sight, especially when the petals fall down on you like snow. Timing it can be hard, since the sakura bloom and wither in about a 2-3 week period usually in the middle of April. In March, you can see the plum blossoms, which are similar but perhaps a little less ostentatious than the sakura.
Summer - Summers in Japan are hot and humid, and the trains are packed with sweaty people. The tsuyu rain also starts to set in. But, summer is the best time to visit if you want to see the many festivals and firework shows. They have the most in June to July.
Autumn - Autumn is known as typhoon season (from about August through Novermber), but it is also known for "koyo" or the autumn leaves. Maple leaves turn a crimson red, and ginko leaves dye streets golden.
Winter - Tokyo may have some light snow in December. Winter is also when Japan puts on "illuminations," where they have fancy displays of night lights covering huge areas of the city.
Yahoo Weather for Tokyo

Festivals
Japan Times has a great list of festivals in Japan.

Train tickets
If you are planning to visit farther regions in Japan, you can save some money by using a discount train pass. There are quite many of these, so it can take some time to figure out exactly which one suits your travel itinerary.

Japan Rail (JR) Pass If you are visiting more than one region of Japan, the rail pass is a highly cost-effective ticket. It will give you rides on the bullet trains (except the fastest Nozomi train), the local trains, and Miyajima ferry. It must be purchased outside of Japan by visitors on temporary stays.
Seishun 18 juuhachi kippu The "youthful 18 ticket" is actually available for anyone to purchase and allows access on all local trains, and a few night trains. Tickets are valid for 5 days and cost 11,500 yen. Tickets are sold three times a year (March 1 to April 10, July 20 to Sept 10, and Dec 10 to Jan 20).
Odakyu Free Passes Odakyu is a train company in the Shinjuku region that offers discount passes to Hakone, Fuji, Enoshima, Ito, Izu, and Tanzawa.
JR East offers discount tickets for Yokohama, Tokyo, and Kamakura and Enoshima.
JR regional offers discount regional passes to all parts of Japan for foreign visitors.







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