Kabukichō

Lonely Planet review

Tokyo's most notorious red-light district, which lies east of Shinjuku Station and north of Yasukuni-dōri, is made up of soaplands (massage parlours), love hotels, peep shows, pink cabarets, porn booths, prostitutes and strip shows, all well attended by drunken salarymen out for the night. Female voices wail out invitations, while Japanese (and, increasingly, foreign) punks eke out a living passing out ads for karaoke boxes and peep shows.

Remarkably, the area is generally safe (and much more interesting) to walk through at night, though it's wise to go with a friend or more or you may find yourself the object of unwanted, and irritating, attention (both for males and females). However most places are aimed solely at Japanese clients, hence foreigners are not permitted in most places.