Tokyo
This vintage 1960s shopping mall earned Nakano its reputation as an underground Akihabara: it's home to the original Mandarake Complex, the famous manga and anime goods shop, plus lots more stores that sell collectables of all sorts (from zines and vintage toys to antique watches and army surplus).
At the south entrance look for the small kiosk that has the regularly updated Nakano Broadway Guidebook, which lists all the shops.
6.25 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…
5.44 MILES
This museum is the heart of the Studio Ghibli world, a beloved (even 'adored') film studio responsible for classic, critically-acclaimed animated titles…
2.39 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…
3.88 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…
17.48 MILES
This impressively slick attraction is dedicated to, you guessed it, cup noodles. But in reality, its focus is more broad, with numerous exhibitions…
5.34 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…
5.21 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,…
7.36 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…
0.12 MILES
Nakano's vintage 1950s covered shopping arcade has a glass ceiling, which allows natural light to filter in; over 100 shops, ranging from family-run deli…
1.66 MILES
Asagaya's 1km-long shōtengai (market street) is one of Tokyo's longest and most iconic – a covered arcade with an arching roof and a poetic name (the…
1.84 MILES
This otherwise ordinary office complex is home to more than a dozen public artworks, including one of Robert Indiana’s LOVE sculptures (on the southeast…
4. Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building
1.94 MILES
Tokyo's city hall – a landmark building designed by Tange Kenzō – has observatories (202m) atop both the south and north towers of Building 1 (the views…
5. Tokyo Opera City Art Gallery
2.04 MILES
Tokyo Opera City Art Gallery is at its best when it holds solo shows and retrospectives of major modern Japanese artists and movements (spanning diverse…
6. NTT Intercommunication Centre
2.07 MILES
The ICC shows challenging, conceptual works that explore the intersection between art and technology – sometimes including participatory VR installations…
2.08 MILES
This Nishi-Shinjuku landmark building (completed in 2008) is a 50-storey webbed tower designed by Tange Associates. Easily identifiable among the blockier…
2.13 MILES
Japan's most celebrated manga artist Tezuka Osamu lived most of his life in Takadanobaba and the neighbourhood couldn't be prouder. In front of the…