The perfect time to take in Tokyo...
SPRAWLING and endlessly fascinating, Tokyo is a city of dizzying contrasts.
Shrines, pristine gardens with tea houses, and cobbled lanes where geisha once trod are pockets of calm between salaryman crowds, throbbing neon streets, futuristic office buildings and impressive public transportation hubs.
The 2020 Olympics host is also huge fun, filled with eye-boggling sights, fantastic food to try, and delightful, inventive goods to buy in a patchwork of atmospheric neighbourhoods. It’s also clean and safe – so what’s not to love?
The best weather of the year is coming up soon, so now is the perfect time to start planning a trip.
In springtime, the city’s parks turn a pale pink thanks to the blossom of thousands of cherry trees, many of which are illuminated at night. And there are traditional springtime festivals involving paper dolls floated downriver and fire-walking ceremonies held at shrines and temples.
So, in this Shogun’s city that is forever reaching into the future, you’ll get a satisfying taste of the traditional – and huge helpings of the very, very new…
EAT YOUR HEART OUT
TOKYO is Japan’s popculture cauldron, where new trends grow legs – and soon toddle off worldwide.
Come and discover the latest teenage ‘fashiontribe’ looks cooked up in the backstreets of Harajuku, the hyper-popular J-Pop stars projected on giant screens in hip Shibuya, or the latest anime and manga (animations and comics) flying off the shelves in the electronics hub of Akihabara. Alternatively, just have fun browsing hard-to-resist gadgets, ingenious toys, craft stationery and super-cute ‘kawaii’ products in the shops, from that ubiquitous kitty to yellow Pikachus. With utopian mega-malls and edgy designer boutiques to explore, you’ll need an extra suitcase to take your haul of amazing Japanese goodies home. Tokyo is also nirvana for foodies, with the world’s highest volume of Michelin stars in a city – 227 at a recent count. From the best sushi of your life, made by one of the city’s master chefs using fresh fish from the famous Tsukiji Market, to ramen soup in the basement food hall of a department store, a break here is chance to eat your heart out.
And there are some pretty amazing hotels, too. Take the Hotel Gracery in the neon-lit Shinjuku ward, which features Godzilla, a giant, fire-breathing monster lizard.
There are also capsule hotels and temple lodgings, with plenty of Western-style rooms in between, such as the Park Hyatt Tokyo that featured in the film Lost In Translation.
To get an overview of it all, stand atop the Tokyo Skytree, the world’s tallest tower (and second tallest structure after Dubai’s Burj Khalifa), and see the city at night, blinking like a starship all the way to the horizon.
SUMO AND SALARYMEN
IF YOU want to try something really Japanese, then a session at one of the major sumo wrestling tournaments, held in January, May or September, is a must.
The sport makes even better theatre than kabuki. Out of season, a visit to an early morning training drill at a sumo stable can often be arranged by your hotel.
Follow in the footsteps of countless pilgrims by approaching Senso-ji, Tokyo’s most famous Buddhist temple, in Asakusa. The way is lined with colourful stalls selling minilanterns, charms with bells, wind chimes, ‘tabi’ socks with toe sections, and chopsticks.
And on Sunday mornings you are likely to see a traditional wedding procession (or two) through the serene courtyard of Meiji shrine – the bride in a white kimono and hood and the groom in his formal black robe, walking under a big red parasol, with Shinto priests leading them and their guests.
There are also first-class museums, zoos and aquariums, many clustered together at Ueno Park – a Grutto Pass gives entry or discounts to 70 of them.
Not forgetting karaoke evenings at Smash Hits, where you can cheer the salarymen taking turns at the mic. And you should also explore the kimono shop at Daimaru department store, next to Tokyo Station. It’s where Japanese women come to order stunning, custom-made ensembles.
With many Far East cruise itineraries now including magical Tokyo, as well as readily available escorted tours and city breaks, this dizzying, delightful culture shock of a capital is a must for travellers in 2017. Kimono-ver and awe your senses!
Discover more at gotokyo.org/en