Exploring amazing Japan

Friday November 3rd, 2017 - two of our friends, my husband and I went on our long waited Asia trip.

After transit in both Dubai and Hong Kong we arrived at our first destination: Tokyo! We arrived in Haneda Airport in Tokyo, after 4 hours flight from Hong Kong. Here we were planning on staying for 4 days. I must admit that Tokyo has been the most culture shocking experience of all times. The Japanese are the kindest and most polite population I've ever come across. Despite the fact that English isn't their first, second or even tenth language, the Japanese try to help as much as they can.

Transportation

Tokyo is a great big city. To explore the city best, we decided to see the city by foot and Metro. They have like the best functioning metro system in the world.. Actually I read that the company responsible for the metro stations in Tokyo, apologized for a 20 sec. delay. Yes, 20 seconds. Thats just to illustrate how punctual they are.

As a tourist you can purchase a metrocard named Pasmo. Pasmo can be used for almost all trains, busses and can even be used in stores for payment.

To get the Pasmo card you pay small deposit, which you get back when returning the card. The card can be returned on every station and even in the airport. Note that the train stations close around 12.30 am and open around 4.30 am - so we had to take a cap on our way to the hotel.

Where to stay?

During my search for a convenient hotel in Tokyo I quickly came to know that hotels in Tokyo can be really pricy. I was looking for an affordable place to stay close to some kind of transportation. After several days of research I ended up booking for 4 nights at the Centurion hotel Ueno. A four star rated hotel, very convieniently located next to, two metro stations - Okashimashi and Ueno station. The hotel was clean and nice, but very small rooms.  The hotel is located on a big road next to several mini shops, a 7/11 a small hookah bar and a great if not the best sushi restaurant. If that wasnt enough Ueno Zoo is 10 minute walk away and very nice. 

Food

Yes.. Sushi in Japan is delicious. We tried several places - and you dont find that quality, anywhere else AND its very affordable. However, be aware of the difference between original japanese sushi and the European twist. In Japan we didn't find more than 4-5 different sushi-roll varieties - so the fancy sushi as we know it today, can be hard( if even possible) to find. 

Yes, Tokyo is absolutely a family friendly vacation. You have all kinds of amusement parks, Zoo and flashing lights. It is easy to go around and explore and you can bring the stroller with you even at the metro stations they have special assistance for everyones convenience.

Amusement Parks

Disneyland or DisneySea?

Like several big cities in the world Tokyo has a Disneyland park as well. It is located no more than 25-30 minutes outside of Tokyo center and you can take the metro. When arriving you will have to take a special made Disney train that takes you from Disneyland, Disney resort and DisneySea. The windows on the train is shaped like MickeyMouses head and it has Disney stickers all over. 

We were told to avoid weekends, holidays and days where Disney launches something new.

When we went, we were first planning on visiting Disneyland. After researching the parks for a while, we learned that DisneySea should be more appropriate for adults while Disneyland has a younger audience. So, we decided to go to DisneySea. A beautiful spectacular park divided in several sections. However come early, the lines are crazy. The Japanese love cartoons and they certainly LOVE Disney. 

Joypolis:

If you want to try a different kind of amusement park, go to joypolis. Unlike Disney, Joypolis is an indoor park with different japanese gadgets and rides. Everything is in Japanese but that just makes it even better. You can easily spend a couple of hours and when you are feed up Theres a small shopping mall just outside the door with some restaurants and a beautiful view!

Daikanrasha: 

Daikanransha litterally means Big Wheel. It is 115 metre tall and was the biggest ferries wheel in the world when it was build back in 99. You get a beautiful full view over Tokyo and the Tokyo Tower. It is located one stop from the Disneyparks. It is open 11:00-20:00 on weekdays and 11:00-21:00 on weekends