©Rebecca Milner/Lonely Planet
Ginza & Tsukiji
When Tsukiji's shrine was first built in the mid-1600s it was on the edge of the water – that's how much land reclamation has happened since. The name, aptly, means 'protection from the waves'. Today it's patronised by local market merchants.
Giant lion masks used in the area's annual festival (held in June) flank the entrance. Also look for the dragon-shaped taps over the purification basins.
3.81 MILES
If you visit only one museum in Tokyo, make it the Tokyo National Museum. Here you'll find the world's largest collection of Japanese art, including…
11.52 MILES
This museum is the heart of the Studio Ghibli world, a beloved (even 'adored') film studio responsible for classic, critically-acclaimed animated titles…
4.29 MILES
Golden Gai – a Shinjuku institution for over half a century – is a collection of tiny bars, often literally no bigger than a closet and seating maybe a…
3.99 MILES
Rumoured to be the busiest intersection in the world (and definitely in Japan), Shibuya Crossing is like a giant beating heart, sending people in all…
16.17 MILES
This impressively slick attraction is dedicated to, you guessed it, cup noodles. But in reality, its focus is more broad, with numerous exhibitions…
1.64 MILES
Digital-art collective teamLab has created 60 artworks for this museum, open in 2018, that tests the border between art and the viewer: many are…
1.66 MILES
The Imperial Palace occupies the site of the original Edo-jō, the Tokugawa shogunate's castle. In its heyday this was the largest fortress in the world,…
3.81 MILES
Tokyo’s most visited temple enshrines a golden image of Kannon (the Buddhist goddess of mercy), which, according to legend, was miraculously pulled out of…
0.11 MILES
Tokyo's main wholesale market may have moved to Toyosu, but there are many reasons to visit its old home. The tightly packed rows of vendors (which once…
0.2 MILES
Built in 1940, this is the only drawbridge over the Sumida-gawa, but it hasn't been raised since 1970.
0.23 MILES
When this impressive branch of the mother temple in Kyoto fell victim to the Great Kantō Earthquake of 1923, it was rebuilt in a classical Indian style,…
0.27 MILES
Get an insight into how newspapers are produced on a free tour of the Tokyo headquarters of this national newspaper. Reserve two days in advance; English…
0.46 MILES
If you have a ticket to see a show at the Kabukiza theatre, you get a ¥100 discount on entry to this small gallery displaying stage props, scenery and…
0.48 MILES
This beautiful garden, one of Tokyo’s finest, is all that remains of a shogunate summer villa next to Tokyo Bay. There's a large pond with an island,…
0.51 MILES
If you see advertising as art, this museum is a spectacle. Run by Dentsu, Japan’s largest advertising agency, this fine collection runs from woodblock…
0.62 MILES
The cosmetics company Shiseido runs its experimental art space out of the basement of its Shiseido Parlour complex of cafes and restaurants. An ever…