Tokyo, Organized by Areas

by me... A slower way to understand the city

I organized Tokyo into areas I created to make the city easier to walk and understand. They don’t always match official neighborhood names, but they reflect how I experienced the city — without jumping from one side of Tokyo to the other.

GENERAL NOTES – TOKYO

• Be on the lookout for THE TOKYO TOILET — must see some. I know, toilets… but yes, you won’t regret it. Random, cool architectural projects for public toilets in Shibuya. https://tokyotoilet.jp

• Get a goshuincho and stamp it at temples (all the details click here a link to that blog post)

• Always be curious and you’ll find amazing places — you won’t need TikTok videos telling you where to go…

WHERE I STAYED

Mitsui Garden Hotel Jingugaien Tokyo Premier Highly recommend. Walking distance to a subway station 地下鉄 (chikatetsu).

OKAY, HERE ARE THE AREAS

1

Shibuya Core 

this area is very big, you can easily spend two days

• Yoyogi Park – park to walk and enjoy the greenery(near the park: Katane Bakery, zero-touristy area but a bit of a walk)

• If you go to the bakery first for breakfast, then walk to Yoyogi Park — before entering the park there’s one of the Tokyo Toilet Project sites (Yoyogi-Hachiman Public Toilet)Also next to it are some stairs and a random temple I found while walking (Yoyogi Hachimangu)

• Meiji Shrine (yes, go) — long walk, see everything, there’s also a museum along the way(I ate there at the food court near the temple)

• Omotesando – shops(also walk through the smaller side streets and discover places)

• Keep an eye out for a glass building that looks like a rock with a green rooftop space

• (Nearby) good leather goods: GANZO Honten

• Shibuya Crossing — do go, but it’s overhyped. For me it was whatever, but still, go.

2

Roppongi 

Art museums everywhere

• I went to: The National Art Center, Tokyo

3

Ginza + Imperial 

central, flat, and easy to combine in one day

• Imperial Palace (don’t forget to walk the gardens)

• Uniqlo Ginza – many floors

• Hermès Ginza – visit the foundation

4

Asakusa / Sensoji 

very busy, go early and combine with nearby spots

• Sensō-ji

• Nakamise Street – walk it before the temple

• Try the strawberries around there

• I also tried a pickled cucumber, slightly sweet — really good

• Nearby-ish is Tokyo Skytree, full city views — an extra stop if you like buildings and seeing cities from above

5

Kōtō

quiet, residential feel, no crowds

• KOFFEE MAMEYA Kakeru

Tokyo makes much more sense when you understand its layout.

I highly recommend watching this youtube video of Tokyo's Map, Explained from one of my favorite youtube channels Daniel Steiner. These areas reflect where I ended up spending time, I missed many parts of Tokyo. It’s a never-ending city, and next time I’m back I’ll explore other areas like Shinjuku.

PS: teamLabs is borderless fits in between Areas 3 & 5.

(I had a reservation, but we forgot that day and basically lost the ticket.)