Hey im heading to thailand in Dec 7 and will stay for 3-4 weeks. But since i could stop at tokyo with no extra cost, i thought it might be fun to look around for a day or two. The thing is, ill be going alone from Vancouver, and i dontspeak japanese. How hard would it be to survive and shop with only english? or maybe i should just go straight to thailand and spend more time on the beautiful beach 😊
Reply to this If you can take a trip to Tokyo with no cost, you should do it...it is a great city and you can get by without knowing Japanese. I visited there for 4 days a couple of summers ago and it definitely worth a visit. We used the mass transit system quite a bit (you need to get an English version of the map and keep it with you, they have a website that has English versions). You can get just about everywhere you want to get on the subway system they have but it does take a bit of figuring out and you don't want to use it during rush out too much.
We stayed in the Shinjuku district which is considered to be a business traveler area, but there is a hub for the subway nearby and lots of places to eat that aren't too expensive. You can take the train over to Ropunji district at night if that is your scene but there is a night area in Shinjuku as well. We also climbed Mt Fuji while we were there but it will be closed to climbing in December so that is not an option. On the weekends, they close off part of Shinjuku to traffic and it becomes a bit of a street market area. We saw some brazilian street dancing, magicians, sellers, and all sorts of tourists and locals that were enjoying the day. One thing that is strange about Tokyo is that the people go from the straight laced business types to spiky pink hair and platform shoe teenagers to women dressed in traditional kimonos and sandals. It was a great visit, and well worth it. Try to book your hotel before you go, you might even look for one that has a shuttle from Narita but don't count on it. You may be able to take the subway from Narita...we did from Haneda (but that is the domestic airport and you won't be flying into there from overseas).
Hope this is helpful...I also have spent a fair amount of time in Thailand and don't let yourself get stuck down at the beaches the whole time. If you want to experience some of the culture, you have to get away from some of the more touristy areas.
Reply to this Thanks Mishka. this's really helpful. Well, i guess i'll fit right in as i have a red hair myself.
Reply to this hi, tokyo is an excellent place. you dont have to worry about English. All their subway has English signs and are well-posted and subway lines are colour coded. Annoucement will be made when reaching each station. Tokyo has a number of visitor passes. U will love Tokyo, just immersed in their crowds and experience their culture. try www.kidslovejapan.com for more ideas. cheers
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