Just finishing up a 7-day trip to Tokyo (we fly back today). Will update this thread later with the stuff we did and our thoughts. It will be pretty much limited to Tokyo, though, as we spent all our time here except for a one day tour to Mt. Fuji and the Shrine in Hakone. What are the ages of the folks who will be with you?
Just my wife and me (47 & 41). Leaving our kid at home with the grandparents.
Okay, some of this stuff may not be for you as we had a 21-year-old in tow with some different interests, but here’s what we did with very quick feedback. If there is something that intrigues you, let me know and I can provide more detail. The cool thing about Tokyo is that even with the most touristy stuff, most of the tourists are Japanese nationals, so it still feels like a uniquely Japanese experience.
Mt. Fuji/Hakone Tour - a well-organized guided bus tour to see Mt. Fuji, the shrine in Hakone and a few other sights. Definitely felt rushed, but it’s a good way to fit it all into one day.
MarioKart Tour - a total blast and you’ve already booked it.
Tokyo Skytree - pretty cool if you enjoy observation decks in big cities. These types of things are pretty ho hum to me, but I guess it was cool to see the sheer size and scope of Tokyo.
Skytree mall - good place for shopping. My wife bought three beautiful obis for cheap, cheap, cheap, and there are lots of other cool shops. Snacks galore as well.
Ramen Alley - if you find yourself in Tokyo station for anything and you like ramen, grab a ramen at one of the 8 ramen shops in “Ramen Alley” with all the commuters. Great food and a cool local experience.
Sunshine City Mall - You can probably skip this one. We went because it has huge Pokémon and anime stores. That said, the tonkatsu restaurant there is the bomb.
TeamLab Planets is a multi-sensory art installation that is super cool. Best not to explain it, but definitely worth going if you like cool artsy stuff.
Shinjuku at Night - This is where we stayed for the week. Shinjuku is the cool scene for bars, restaurants and other entertainment - it’s the district with all the neon lights. Great for people-watching, eating and drinking. If you are inclined, you can hit some pachinko halls and Game Panic (a big arcade with tons of claw games for everything from toys, to food, to electronics).
Shibuya - Shibuya crossing is a pretty famous intersection - think Times Square. I was a little underwhelmed. That said, when we walked out of the adjacent station, I immediately recognized that I was standing where they filmed one of the opening sequences in Alice in Borderland, which is one of my favorite all time series, so that was cool to me.
Pet Cafes - If you or the Ms. are into animals, these are fun. We went to a hedgehog cafe and spent an hour playing with and feeding hedgehogs. They have them for all sorts of animals - otters, cats, puppies, etc.
Tokyo DisneySea - wasn’t high on my list, but we had a lot of days in Tokyo and a friend of a friend is an executive with Disney. When I saw that DisneySea (different than Tokyo Disney) was consistently ranked as the best Disney park in the world, we figured it was worth a stop. We really enjoyed it. The park is extremely well designed (nautical themes) with cool food options throughout. And the Japanese love their Disney - again, great people watching.
Gonpachi Nishiazabu - we went to a lot of different restaurants but this one is worth mentioning. Great meal, but the kicker for this Kill Bill fanatic is that it’s the restaurant where they filmed the House of Blue Leaves fight with O-Ren. I was totally geeking out the whole time I was there.
In addition to the above, we just did a lot of exploring, walking around and stopping by little shops, food stands, bars, etc. Shinjuku in particular is a great area for this.
The above itinerary was largely curated for a twenty-something with a love for all things anime, so maybe others may have some better suggestions.
