16

10 unique things to do in Tokyo

If you’re looking for the more unique things to do in Tokyo from an offbeat, street-wise perspective, then read today’s guest post from Mike at Previously Bitten. Mike’s blog is named after the travel bug that bit him and inspired his backpacking trip to Tokyo.

Unique Tokyo experiences - Harajuku girls
Harajuku girls in Tokyo

This article may contain affiliate links that provide commission on purchases you make at no extra cost to you. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Ten unique things to do in Tokyo

1. Harajuku Graffiti

Everybody visits Harajuku. And why shouldn’t they? It’s a wonderfully Japanese experience on a warm Sunday evening. The Elvises are out and about, girls are dancing with poodle skirts, and kids run around dressed like robots, or burn victims, or little girls in a sexually confused Eighteen hundreds United Kingdom.

But that seems to be all people experience. I’ve watched people walk out of the subway, stare across at the Snoopy Mega-store, best avoided, and turn towards the bridge. There they will take their pictures, make some comments, perhaps grab a “free hug” and then get right back on the train.

You may also enjoy: Where to find the best places to eat in Tokyo

Tokyo Experiences
Unique Tokyo experiences

There is a whole culture that is being neglected. Heading East into the streets, laneways, and alleys will give you access to a word of unprecedented street art and graffiti. There is a style to Japanese graffiti that is unique to the country alone.

And while some artists embrace it, others branch out creating a more universal image. As graffiti is always changing, and always being taken down, painted over, and created anew there are no specific directions that I can give you here. But, walking around in a virtually crime free city, during the day time?

You’ll have no worries as you explore the environment and make new finds all of your own. Ready that camera again: there’s more here than just Harajuku girls.

2. Nakano Broadway

If you’re looking for Manga, or previously unknown candy, or just a change of scenery I would recommend heading to Nakano Broadway. It’s straight up the road from the station exit, you can’t miss it.

Now, obviously, I had to miss it. Any time instructions are simple, I’m sure to mess them up. But this put me in the middle of a wine festival where people were buying like mad, and smashing bottles every time they turned around.

Across the street was a large bike lot, where you could leave your bicycle until you needed it. As I paused for a moment, I noticed two high school boys setting up guitar amplifiers, and opening up their gig bags.

For the next twenty minutes I listened to brain melting guitar solos interspersed with cascading melodies that evoked powerful emotions. Yes, I eventually found the mall. Yes it too was wonderful. But those moments, as I bumbled around were some of the most memorable from all my trip.

Experiences in Tokyo
Nakano Broadway and a day trip to Kamakura

3. Day Trip to Kamakura

Japan is a system built on rails. And it’s fantastic. Because of the interconnectedness of all the towns, an inexpensive train ticket will pull you from the rush of the Japanese epic-centre and settle you in the small town of Kamakura. The town itself is relatively small, and perhaps easy to overlook. However, they are home to one of the worlds largest Buddhas.

For a nominal fee, you can make your way through the temple gates, and gaze as the casting, towering above you – seemingly untouched for hundreds of years. For the almost laughable price of ten yen, you can enter into the Buddha and walk around.

For over four hundred years it has rested here. In 2004 a couple from America wrote their names inside. Graffiti in Harajuku? It’s beautiful. But the irresponsible tag here? It’s just upsetting.

4. Visit the Water in Odaiba

Remember to see the beach. Well, if not the beach, then the water. A train to Odaiba will allow you the privilege of gazing at the Fuji TV building. More of a skeleton with a globe somehow suspended, it is an architectural masterpiece. But why stop there? Take a look at the Statue of Liberty (wait – what?)

You may also enjoy: Alternative places to visit in Tokyo: A 2 day itinerary

Unique experiences in Tokyo
Things to do in Tokyo

Yes, a replica of the Statue of Liberty stands proudly in Odaiba. Be sure to take a picture of it, or have a friendly local – dozens of them will be posing in the area, with peace signs held high – to grab a shot of you with it. Don’t forget to put your first two fingers up! Cheese-o!

5. Explore Seedy Akihabara

Those who know Akihabara need not read on. You understand this place. Don’t you? To be honest, I thought I knew what I was in for. I had read all the stories, and done my research. But Akihabara is so much more. It is the worst parts of the internet come to life, right before your very eyes.

Hentai Pornography lurks in every alley. Posters are proudly displayed for small booths selling the latest DVDs, but it doesn’t stop there. Every building you walk into will seem normal at first.

Some new accessories for your Nintendo DS, a flashy memory card for your camera phone, a micro sized piece of every day tech you’ve known and loved for years. But beware, for Tokyo is a city built up.

Tokyo experience
Things to do in Tokyo

There are elevators in these buildings. The higher you press on these lifts, the more obscene your world becomes. Press button five and you may end up with nothing more than near naked anime girls. But continue on to floor seven, and you will be faced with businessmen searching, shoulder to shoulder, through discount bins of naughty comic books.

And if you dare to push all the way up to the top floor? Well, there you will find costumes of all sorts, best kept to the bed room, and toys the likes of which you never could have dreamed.

But Akihabara is not all overly sexualised. No. It is a video game lovers paradise. Two words: Super Potato. You can’t miss it. It has the giant 8bit Mario and Pac-Man art on the front.

You’ll be taken back in time when NES games were new, and shrink wrapped and… cost eight thousand yen? Wow. It really is 1988 in there. Still, it’s the closest you’ll ever come to a video game museum.

6. Wandering the Shibuya Alleys

When you disembark the train at Shibuya station you will be overcome by the giant crossing in front of you. But do not cross, and get lost in the madness. No: Turn right! Walk up the hill, and find the love hotels. These will surprise and delight you with all manner of names. My favourite? Hotel White Box.

You may also enjoy: Cool-hunting in Tokyo – food, fashion and street-style with La Carmina

Best experiences in Tokyo
Things to do in Tokyo

But once again, do not limit yourself to these often visited destinations. Walk the alley ways, and get lost for an hour. It was here that I saw the most bizarre thing in my life. A dance battle. A real life dance battle.

A group of similarly dressed youth approached another teenager, seemingly at random. They started shouting at him, and then began to dance in tandem. This kid, not to take things lightly, threw off his jacket. From nowhere three of his friends appeared.

They too were in matching clothes. They were not going to just take this affront, no. They danced back. The battle raged on for ten minutes before one group left, admonished, and beaten. A real life dance battle, with battlers battling in their own natural habitat. Only in Tokyo!

7. Using the Toilet

We’ve all had our share of toilet related travel tales. But it’s only in Tokyo that I’ve found such juxtaposing washrooms so close together. In Ginza you will find the Sony Building. Go in, browse around, take in a tech demo and check out all the latest gizmos. But please do not leave before using their washroom.

The toilet has all number of buttons on it. Some super heat the seat, others send a jet of water at your rear, still more control the temperature of that water. Play with them all. Expand your horizons, but beware: when you’ve set the jet on, and you can’t stand up less water rushes everywhere, it’s probably best not to turn the temperature to thermonuclear, unless you know how to turn it down once again. Mistakes? They were made.

Once you’ve left, continue down the street, away from the subway. Less than a kilometer later, you will come to a public washroom. Go inside, check that one out. A rusted squat toilet with no paper, and broken pipes is all you will find. Remember though, this is all in the name of cultural experiences.

8. Discovering the Best Sashimi

Located at 3-2-9 Nishi Shinjuku is Zauo Sushi. This is the best uncooked meat you will ever devour in your life. Stepping inside the restaurant you will notice that tables are laid out on a boat, surrounded by a moat. In that moat are fish; in that moat is your dinner.

A man at the door with pass you a fishing rod, and some squid for bait. It’s now your job to work for your meal. Don’t be afraid though, as the fish are mostly unfed catching one is not a problem. And when you do? Well – fish don’t come any fresher than this.

Experiences in Tokyo

Be warned though, this is not for the squeamish. When your meal comes to you, you will have a plate presented, with the meat cut off. The fish, too, will be on the plate, skewered by a wooden rod, still twitching. Watching as you eat it. Once you are done, the fish body is deep fried, and you begin to eat once more.

9. Exploring Ikebukuro

Tired of the loud streets and bustling neighbourhoods in Tokyo? Take a brief trip to Ikebukuro. There you will find calm, peace, and serenity. Not to mention an abundance of ninety nine cent yen stores.

Walking those back alleys transports you away from Tokyo to a simpler time, without removing the city atmosphere. Whenever possible, I will try to stay in this district. At the end of a long day, there’s nothing better than walking home in the silence created by parties going on everywhere, but where you are.

Unique Experiences in Tokyo

10. Drinking too Much

If you want to experience the culture of Modern Japan you need to drink. I would never force this on anyone, but I do stress the importance of it.

These are the people that created a Sake can that self-heats to optimal drinking temperature when you pull a tab at the bottom. These are the people that place vending machines on every other corner stocked with cans full of beer, rum and coke, whiskey and water, and flower flavoured booze. Did I mention that there are other vending machines that sell 26 oz bottles of hard liquor?

Drink or don’t. That’s up to you. But by all means, appreciate the significance of these landmarks.

There’s so much more to explore. Shinjuku at night, Golden Gai, the shrines located just off the main streets. This is by no means a comprehensive list, but I wouldn’t want to spoil everything. Sometimes just getting off the train, and allowing yourself to safely get lost is the best way to enjoy a city. Discover landmarks all your own. 

Author Bio: The Previously Bitten blog is hosted by a twenty-something year old high school teacher. After years of teaching, he’s ready to get off the proverbial treadmill of life, and take a year to travel the world.  He will embark on a journey that will touch all seven continents, and over thirty countries. His preparation, journey, and past travel tales are all waiting for you to read.

Find the places mentioned on a Google Map

Al photos by Mike at Previously Bitten except for Harajuku girls in Tokyo

Need a travel guide for Tokyo?

We recommend the Top 10 Tokyo DK Eyewitness Travel Guide or the Lonely Planet Discover Tokyo guide

Need a hotel in Tokyo?

Check out some of these Tokyo Hotels 

Looking for a guided tour in Tokyo?

Check out and book these guided tours in Tokyo – if you love food we recommend the Tsukiji Outer market 3 hour food and drink walking tour or the 3 hour Tokyo food tour culinary adventure

Pin It

This is a guest post* from Previously Bitten

* More info on my policies page

This article is originally published at Heatheronhertravels.com

Click to subscribe to our monthly newsletter, news and reader offers

Subscribe to Heather on her travels newsletter

16 Comments

  • Reply
    Weekly Travelinks | Maldives Holidays
    April 7, 2009 at 5:01 pm

    […] an excellent blogger whose posts are well worth checking in on. A recent highlight is her list of 10 offbeat experiences in Tokyo, featuring a wander through the alleys of Shibuya (where the Love hotels are situated), and the […]

  • Reply
    Weekly Travelinks | Newpapers Collected
    April 8, 2009 at 1:03 am

    […] an excellent blogger whose posts are well worth checking in on. A recent highlight is her list of 10 offbeat experiences in Tokyo, featuring a wander through the alleys of Shibuya (where the Love Hotels are situated), and the […]

  • Reply
    Weekly Travelinks | Maldives | Maldives Holidays : Resorts | Hotels
    April 8, 2009 at 5:20 am

    […] an excellent blogger whose posts are well worth checking in on. A recent highlight is her list of 10 offbeat experiences in Tokyo, featuring a wander through the alleys of Shibuya (where the Love Hotels are situated), and the […]

  • Reply
    Weekly Travelinks | Maldives | Maldives Holidays : Resorts | Hotels
    April 8, 2009 at 5:20 am

    […] an excellent blogger whose posts are well worth checking in on. A recent highlight is her list of 10 offbeat experiences in Tokyo, featuring a wander through the alleys of Shibuya (where the Love Hotels are situated), and the […]

  • Reply
    Dmitry
    April 30, 2009 at 2:42 pm

    Many thanks for Nakano Broadway. Got interested, looked for more info before my long-scheduled trip in late march and found somebody’s definition: “a mix of a wind pipe and gothic cathedral”. Very precise – I recognized it at once from the window of JR train. Disembarked and immersed myself into middle-middle class Japanese life.
    If asked what’s so special about the place I wouldn’t be able to say anything to the point. But to me it felt like the very core of Japan. The feeling I couldn’t catch nowhere else in Tokyo – and I’ve walked it a lot. No guarantee though other visitors will feel the same.
    And don’t miss narrow sidewalks. Yakitori there was one of the best I’ve had. Or maybe not. Maybe I just was under the spell.
    And also there was a… well, a construction that looked like 3 railway containers put on one another and stacked into a steel framework, with a snakkuya on top – 2 moderately drunk local guys and mama-san wearing kimono. 4 glasses of shochu/hot water/umeboshi concoction cost us 8000 JPY, but who cares? Definitely it was a spell.
    Some more to the post: Odaiba is sure splendid for harbor view. As for the rest – mmmm…
    I did not make my way deep enough into Ikebukuro to find quiet sidestreets, so I don’t know. For it I’d recommend the area around Yanaka cemetry (Nippori st.)
    Golden gai in Shinjuku is sure a hit. A bad surprise was that bars demand a 800 to 1000 cover charge. Which is in stark contrast to the overall democratic atmosphere of the quarter.
    And sure – drinking is must to get the best of Japan. Yakitori in Omoide-yokocho of Shinjuku without beer or sushi in Tsukiji without hot sake is something close to perversion.
    Anyway, many thanks for Nakano Broadway.

  • Reply
    Heather Cowper
    April 30, 2009 at 6:43 pm

    @ Dmitry

    Thanks for all those tips – sounds like you got a lot out of your visit.

  • Reply
    MJ
    June 24, 2009 at 10:12 am

    Hi! I just stumbled upon your blog and let me say this is one great blog 😀 I lived in Japan last year and I had a great time there. Tokyo has a special place in my heart and reading your post made me miss it even more. Well, good luck on your future travels. More power to you 😀

  • Reply
    Simon Dance
    September 27, 2009 at 11:09 am

    Thank you for your excellent post Heather, I’m travelling to Tokyo next Saturday and trying to put together an essential list of things to do. This is excellent!

    Can you reccommend any walking tours? I’ve read a little bit about Mp3 tours, however I’m really looking for something a little more formal?

    Thanks Heather,

    Si

  • Reply
    Heather Cowper
    September 27, 2009 at 3:14 pm

    @ Simon

    Sadly I haven’t been to Tokyo myself and this guest post was from Mike at http://www.oneyeartrip.com/, so you could check out his website or ask for his help.

    My podcast standby is always Chris at the Amateur traveler podcast and he has a show on Tokyo
    http://amateurtraveler.com/2008/08/23/tokyo-japan-episode-148/

    In the show notes you can see plenty of Tokyo resources including a link to the website of the lady he interviewed at
    http://www.tokyotopia.com/

    Hope those links will start you off in the right direction

  • Reply
    Simon Dance
    September 29, 2009 at 2:28 pm

    @Heather

    Thanks very much that’s great. I’ve printed off a few bits from Tokyopia.com (which is a great site) and will check out the podcast now.

    Appreciate your help on this. Just collected my Yen… and counting down now!!

  • Reply
    Angela
    May 1, 2010 at 6:56 pm

    Here’s A great site on Tokyo Attractions and Coolest things to do in Japan.
    It has great info on Romantic things to do in Tokyo, family travel or business trips.

  • Reply
    ross
    May 6, 2010 at 12:43 pm

    I have bookmarked this page as I am going to Tokyo in November!
    .-= ross´s last blog ..Volcanit eruptions and you travel rights =-.

  • Reply
    Stu
    August 9, 2010 at 11:58 pm

    I recommend Tokyo to anyone. As one guy I met said: “It’s like New York but without the crime”. And drinking really is a must! Make sure you get some Japanese friends. The experience is massively improved by surrounding yourself in the real culture and not just being a tourist.

  • Reply
    How to keep your travel blog alive between trips
    December 18, 2010 at 5:02 am

    […] 10 offbeat experiences in Tokyo. […]

  • Reply
    Hobbies on Holiday: Special Interest Trips Through Vietnam | Heather on her travels
    March 11, 2013 at 10:54 pm

    […] 10 offbeat experiences in Tokyo The highlights of Phnom Penh – Cambodia My charity visit to India – podcast […]

  • Reply
    mark morey
    May 23, 2017 at 11:51 am

    Nice site and well designed and your information about Japan is informative – If anyone might be interested in a winery & wine tasting tour of Japan please check out Eco Tours Japan winery & wine tasting tours in Katsunuma Yamanashi where you can discover Japanese wine and wine making at over 80 wineries. While tasting Japanese wine you can also enjoy beautiful mountain scenery and enjoy the delicious local food with your Japanese wine – http://www.ecotoursjapan.com/winery-wine-tasting.html

  • Leave a Reply