what to do with a 9 hour layover in tokyo

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I've always wanted to visit Japan! Even though I haven't been able to plan a full country-exploring trip yet, I wanted to leverage a 10-Hour layover in Tokyo on my style back to the U.S. to experience the metropolis. Originally, I was planning to endeavor and find a nice Tokyo spa or onsen to relax at for that fourth dimension since I was coming back from a jam-packed business trip, only a few people I was traveling with wanted to explore the metropolis.

I'm glad I changed my heed, as information technology gave me a chance to practise some exploring and experience Japanese civilisation. This is ane trip where I didn't master plan these activities, but I'k outlining what we did and how long it took us and so you lot can all-time plan your time if you have a layover in Tokyo and desire to explore. Check out the video below if yous'd like to come across a fun snapshot of all I saw!

HOW I SPENT MY ten-HOUR LAYOVER IN TOKYO

Please note that this itinerary is based on a layover at Tokyo's Haneda Drome. Tokyo is a large metropolis and has ii airports. Narita International Airport which is well outside and to the east of the urban center. Haneda Drome is much closer to the city eye (and a better airport to travel through for like shooting fish in a barrel access to explore on a flying layover).

We arrived on a Mon in February. This itinerary is based around a weekday for travel time and cold weather activities. I'chiliad noting the fourth dimension it took united states of america to get around for reference. Obviously, the conditions may be different on the solar day you travel.

• HOW I SPENT MY 10-Hr LAYOVER IN TOKYO
• SCHEDULE
• Bag STORAGE
• ATM
• SUBWAY
• SHIBUYA CROSSING
• TAKESHITA STREET IN HARAJUKU
• MEIJI SHRINE
• MENYA MUSASHI RAMEN
• Imperial PALACE
• Gardens
• TOURS
• DAIMARU
• SUBWAY Dorsum TO HANEDA Drome
• Boosted NOTES AND TIPS
• layover in Tokyo SCHEDULE OVERVIEW
• LINKS
• MAP

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SCHEDULE

Below I've outlined our schedule for the day along with the tips and tricks I learned along the manner.

• Flight arrival 9:45 AM in Tokyo
• Stored Bags
• At Subway by 10:12 AM
• Shibuya Crossing 10: fifty AM
• Walked to Takeshita Street 11:20 AM
• Went to Meiji Jingu 11:46 AM
• Walked to Menya Mushashi Ramen one:38 PM
• Cab to Royal Palace 2:44 PM
• Cab to Daimaru 3:37 PM
• Subway back to Haneda Airport 4:xxx PM

9:45 AM Arrival at Tokyo Haneda Drome from Singapore

Our flight arrives from Singapore (which we boarded at 2:fifteen AM) and got trivial sleep on the airplane. But nosotros don't care — we came here to explore! Our side by side flight leaves at vii:30 PM, so we are going to see as much of the metropolis as we can.

Pocketbook STORAGE

Toll: $4-ten USD (400-1200 yen)

The get-go thing you'll want to practise is store any carry-on baggage you don't wish to bring sight-seeing. I always travel with a carry-on shoulder bag and a modest suitcase with a change of dress, later on my horror story of losing my bags on my trip to Paris. However, no 1 wants to be toting around a suitcase while exploring a city. So cheers to some early research, I plant that I could pay for solar day storage of my behave-on bag at Haneda Airport Temporary Baggage Storage.

They have these handbag storage areas in all three drome terminals for a fee, based on the size of your bag. At the time of this writing, the fee ranges from roughly $4-10 USD depending on the handbag size.

Likewise, not all locations are open 24 hours, so make sure to check your flight arrival and deviation time to exist certain they are open up. These tend to fill upwards quickly — when we returned to the aerodrome later in the afternoon at that place was a notice saying storage was full, so it'due south best to become your bags in equally early in the solar day as possible.

ATM

Be sure to take out some local currency if you don't already have some, as many of the places nosotros visited in Tokyo and cabs would only accept greenbacks and no credit cards.

The Haneda airport website is super helpful and has a list of ATM locations hither.

SUBWAY

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  Aliya at the Haneda Aerodrome subway station

The easiest mode to go around Tokyo is by subway, and many of the stops are announced in Japanese and English language. I too found information technology helpful to follow the road we were taking in Google Maps on my telephone, every bit I am more than of a visual person and this is easier for me to navigate.

We took the Keikyu Drome Line from Haneda and transferred at Shinagawa to get to our beginning stop of the day. If you have a tight layover in Tokyo, it might exist faster to use taxis.

SHIBUYA CROSSING

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10:55 AM Shibuya City, Tokyo, Japan

Travel Time: Approx forty minutes

Cost: Free

If you don't know anything about this place, Shibuya Crossing is one of the busiest crosswalks in the earth and is considered Japan's version of Times Square. It'due south buzzing with action, and there are lots of absurd buildings and architecture to look at.

Shibuya Crossing is also very close to other popular areas Takeshita Street or the Meiji Shrine, so information technology's easy to make a quick stop hither on the way.

TAKESHITA STREET IN HARAJUKU

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  Colorful clothing shops and Aliya stinging in front of the Takeshita Street Sign in Harajuku, Tokyo

11:20 AM Shibuya City, Tokyo, Japan

Toll: Costless

From Shibuya Crossing we took a short walk to Tokyo's famed Takeshita Street in the Harajuku District. Here you can find lots of colorful trendy shops, fashion boutiques, and nutrient stalls. As a designer, this street offers serious centre processed and I loved snapping photos of all the color, architecture, fashion designs, and food.

Some cool things to sample or explore here are the rainbow cotton fiber candy from Totti Candy Factory and visit Cute Cube, a mini-shopping mall with 10 restaurants and shops.

If you're a foodie and shopping lover, you could spend the majority of your day here and skip the remainder of the itinerary. Nosotros wanted to explore as much of the urban center as possible on our layover in Tokyo. We did a quick stop here, and and then went on to explore our next destination.

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  Colorful food shops forth Takeshita Street

MEIJI SHRINE

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  Meiji Shrine

11:46 AM Shibuya Metropolis, Tokyo, Japan

Cost: Costless Entry (with additional fees of 500 yen for visiting the inner garden)

Located a few blocks to the west, the Meiji Shrine is a short walk from Takeshita Street. This beautiful Shinto shrine was dedicated to Emperor Meiji, who passed away in 1912.

We spent the bulk of our time hither exploring the grounds. The main Shrine is nearly a 10-minute walk from the South archway near the Harajuku Station. Along the manner, you will come up across the painted sake barrels and the entrance to the inner garden.

Visiting the shrine is gratis, merely if you want to visit the inner garden at that place is a fee of 500 yen. It's worth checking out equally the garden itself is a tranquil retreat from the decorated metropolis, and the architecture and landscaping are exquisite. Additionally, there is a wishing well called Kiyomasa's well that you lot tin walk down to and brand wishes.

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  Kiyomasa's Well

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  Koi Pond in Inner Garden

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  Saki Barrels at Meiji Shrine

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  Washing area at Meiji Shrine

In one case you get to the main shrine you lot can explore and participate in various Shinto activities like making offerings, purchasing wooden tablets (Ema) to write your wishes, or writing your wishes in an envelope called a Kiganbun.

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  Wall of wooden Ema tablets

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  Collecting bin for wish envelopes (Kiganbun)

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  An envelope (Kiganbun) belongings your wishes

MENYA MUSASHI RAMEN

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  Menya Mushasi Restaurant

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  Ramen noodles from Menya Musashi

1:38 PM Shinjuku City, Tokyo, Nippon

Cost: 1100+ yen ($10+ USD)

By this indicate in the day, nosotros were pretty famished from walking all over the shrine and it was fourth dimension for lunch. I of the people I was traveling with wanted to visit a cult-favorite ramen business firm in Shinjuku, and it did not disappoint! We walked nearly 40 minutes northward (taking in the sights along the way) to Menya Musashi. On a cold February mean solar day, it was really dainty to get some hot soup.

Dining at Menya Musashi is an experience in itself. They have a cash vending machine where you place your order, and an open up kitchen where you watch your order being made. This location is known for its limited-edition and seasonal ramen. They have a bar-style layout, where y'all take a seat at the counter and watch the chefs brand your gild. The ramen itself was succulent, and it was nice to experience some traditional cuisine. This eating house is very popular with locals and tourists alike. It was quite crowded when nosotros arrived and we had to look a while for the seats.

At this point we were starting to run short on fourth dimension on our layover in Tokyo. We decided it would be all-time to take cabs to our remaining two destinations, and and then hop on the subway line cupboard to our terminal cease for the render back to the airport.

Regal PALACE

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  Purple Palace in Tokyo, Nippon

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ii:44 PM Chiyoda City, Tokyo, Japan

Cost: Costless

Next, we wanted to visit the Imperial Palace. We took a cab (cash only) from our lunch spot. Because of the language barrier, the cab driver wasn't understanding when we were saying nosotros wanted to go to the "Imperial Palace". I pulled out my phone to show him on google maps where nosotros wanted to go and he understood from looking at the map, so go along this in mind equally you are navigating around Tokyo in cabs.

The Imperial Palace is the current home to the Emperor of Nippon and the remainder of the Royal Family. It's located in a big park area in the Chiyoda surface area of Tokyo, nigh a 10-minute walk from the Tokyo Station, should you decide to travel by subway.

Gardens

The beautifully maintained gardens have gorgeous seasonal flowers in bloom depending on the time of year that you visit. The inner grounds of the palace are off-limits for most of the twelvemonth, but tourists tin can visit the parks and gardens for complimentary.

The park surface area is divided into 3 sections: the Due east Garden, Kitanomaru Koen Park, and the Kokyo Gaien National Garden. Free guided tours are offered in English language and Japanese at 10:00 AM and 1:xxx PM every solar day except on Sundays and Mondays, only y'all volition need to register in accelerate with the Imperial Household Agency.

TOURS

Alternatively, you can register for a same-day tour at the Kikyoman Gate if space is bachelor. The tours last approximately 75 minutes and accept near 500 guests each day, with 300 spots reserved for aforementioned-day reservations. information technology's best to arrive early if you want to reserve a spot on the tour, but there is also a guided audio tour app should you not get a spot and want to wander effectually at your own pace. Notation that the East Gardens are also closed on Mondays and Fridays.

The mean solar day of our layover was a Monday in Japan, so nosotros arrived at the Imperial Palace with the bad news that we couldn't take a tour, or visit the East Gardens as they were closed. Instead, we walked the grounds and snapped some photos effectually the Kokyo Gaien National Garden, and of the Niju-bashi span. It'south definitely in your all-time interests to plan ahead if this is a spot you want to visit, had we know the gardens would be closed nosotros could have meliorate planned out our time.

Since this plan was a bust nosotros still had some time to kill on our layover in Tokyo before needing to head back to the airport. We decided to switch gears and accept a taxi to a nearby high-cease Japanese department store.

DAIMARU

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  Daimaru buiding in Tokyo

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  Valentine's Sweets on display

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  Chocolates purchased from Daimaru

three:37 PM Chiyoda City, Tokyo, Japan

Cost: Free to enter, spend $$ on food and goods at your leisure

Daimaru is one of the largest department stores in Central Tokyo, and we came to check out its popular basement food hall. There are roughly l different kinds of Japanese and Western chocolates and sweets on the start floor, and over 600 different kinds of freshly-made, boxed lunches on the basement floor. Information technology's fun to walk through the food hall, taste samples, and watch the artistry behind the meals being created because the presentation is impeccable.

Since information technology was close to Valentine's day when we visited, they had lots of Valentine'south treats. I found some gorgeous rose-shaped French chocolates that I purchased as a yummy souvenir for myself.

(I don't know why I go all the fashion to Japan to buy French chocolates – this tends to happen to me when I travel).

By this point in the day, nosotros were domestic dog-tired and ready to head back to the airport as it was getting close to crunch time. My pedometer says I logged 32,347 steps walking effectually Tokyo on this day!

SUBWAY BACK TO HANEDA AIRPORT

Tokyo Station, Chiyoda City, Tokyo, Japan

Time: 4:00 PM

Travel Time: 30-45 mins

We walked to the Tokyo Station and took the subway back to Haneda Airport for our flight back to the U.S. It was scheduled for a vii:30 PM departure. Since we didn't have to cheque numberless, the process was relatively easy. It was like shooting fish in a barrel to retrieve our bags from Haneda Temporary Storage.

I hope you found this guide to spending a long layover in Tokyo helpful!

Below is a summary of the most helpful info and links from this postal service. If you're interested in purchasing any of my travel-inspired art prints, yous can check them out in my shop, or check out more than guides on my travel page.

Boosted NOTES AND TIPS

• While in Nippon, attempt to sample a green tea or wasabi Kit Kat bar – you can usually find them at the aerodrome. They are so unique and different from the American Kit Kats we are used to!
• Bring cash! Not all places will have American cards.

layover in Tokyo SCHEDULE OVERVIEW

• Flight arrival ix:45 AM in Tokyo
• Stored Bags
• At Subway by 10:12 AM
• Shibuya Crossing 10: 50 AM
• Walked to Takeshita Street 11:twenty AM
• Went to Meiji Jingu eleven:46 AM
• Walked to Menya Mushashi Ramen 1:38 PM
• Cab to Regal Palace 2:44 PM
• Cab to Daimaru 3:37 PM
• Subway dorsum to Haneda Airport four:thirty PM

LINKS

Drome:

• Bag Storage Haneda Airport
• ATMS Haneda Airdrome

Food:

• Menya Musashi Ramen Shinjuku
• Daimaru

Landmarks:

• Beautiful Cube
• Meiji Shrine
• Japanese Imperial Palace
• Majestic Palace Flower Calendar
• Imperial Palace Audio Guide App

MAP

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Source: https://aliyabora.com/guide-to-layover-in-tokyo/

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