Tokyo is filled with places to visit and things to eat. We have put together a one-day itinerary, considering the places you should not miss if you want to fully experience and enjoy Tokyo in the limited time of a single day.
💥 Great deals 💥
Since you will need to travel many times, I strongly recommend that you purchase a one-day pass for the Tokyo Metro.
The color of the line you will use, travel time, and the name of the station you will use on the Tokyo Metro will be listed, as well as recommended travel path. Please use it as a reference.
Please note that Tokyo Metro and JR are two different railroad companies, so the one-day pass I recommend cannot be used on JR.
Itinerary ⏳
| Time of Day | Destination | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 5:00 / 5:30 Breakfast (5:00 am) | Tsukiji Market / Toyosu Market 🐟 | Observe the tuna auction and enjoy freshly caught fish for breakfast! |
| 8:00 (8:00 am) | Tsubame Yu ♨️ | Experience Japanese sento culture at a historic sento (public bathhouse), a tangible cultural property. Refresh your mind and body in the morning bath. |
| 9:00 | Shinjuku Gyoen 🌳 | Take a stroll through the large and beautiful gardens and relax in the spacious nature. |
| 11：00 Lunch | Akihabara 🍜 | Eat Japanese ramen at a very popular restaurant. |
| 12:30 (12:30 pm) | Sensoji Temple 🛕 | Visit a historic temple! Enjoy uniquely Japanese souvenirs and sweets. Take a rickshaw ride and explore Asakusa. |
| 15:00 (3:00 pm) | Meiji Shrine ⛩️ | Experience traditional Japanese shrine behavior at a shrine surrounded by lush green forest. The unique torii gate, shrine pavilions, and wide approach are great photo spots. |
| 16:30 (4:00 pm) | Takeshita street 🛍️ | Enjoy colorful fashions, accessories and sweets on this popular pedestrian-only shopping street! |
| 18:30 (6:30 pm) | Scramble Intersection 🚥 | Experience the world-famous scramble crossing, which begins to get crowded at the time of going home. |
| 20:00 Dinner (8:00 pm) | Shinjuku 🥢 | Eat Japanese cutlets at a very popular restaurant. |
| 21:15 (9:30 pm) | Tokyo Metropolitan Government 🌃 | Enjoy the beautiful night view of Tokyo at a free spot on the 45th floor. |
| 23:00 (11:00 pm) | Golden Street 🍻 | Enjoy drinking at popular drinking spots. |
☀️ Morning
Option 1: 05:00 (5:00 am) Toyosu Market🐟
Freshly caught foodstuffs gather here. The seafood and produce auctions are held, and the tuna auction is especially popular, with nearly 1,000 tuna on display.
From the viewing area, where reservations are not required, visitors can mainly watch the frozen tuna.
The auction goes on until after 6:00 p.m. The auction is conducted with unique hand signals and language that even Japanese people have a hard time understanding. But that is what makes it so interesting.
| Restaurant | Open time (closed day) | What you can eat |
|---|---|---|
| Yamahara | 🕕 At 6:00am (Sun, Wed) | The cheapest menu includes a bowl of rice topped with seafood, miso soup, salad, and two side dishes for 990 yen. |
Option 2: 5:30 (5:30 am) Observe the auction at Tsukiji Market & Breakfast 🐟
The auction viewing at Tsukiji Market is a first-come, first-served basis in two parts of 60 people each, with 15-minute shifts starting at 5:50am. Registration is supposed to start at 5:00 a.m., but it may be moved up and the number of participants is limited to 120, so early arrival is recommended.
After the auction, have breakfast with freshly caught fish.
I recommend this restaurant, which is open from early morning.
| Restaurant | Open time (closed day) | What you can eat |
|---|---|---|
| Onigiri Marutoyo | 🕕At 6:00am (Sun,Wed closed) | You can buy rare rice balls that are not available at convenience stores. Moreover, they are fresh. 🍙 |
| Tsukiji Donburi Ichiba | 🕠At 5:30am (Wed closed) | You can enjoy a bowl of rice topped with fresh seafood from the market, and there is a wide variety on the menu. 🐟🍚 |
| Tsukiji Kanno | 🕓At 4:00am |
Seafood is not the only popular food at Tsukiji Market. One of the best is Yamacho‘s egg rolls, available for 100 yen each and open at 6:50am, so how about another one for breakfast?
How to get to Nearest station of next destination, Tsubameyu ♨️
| Entrainment station | Get-off station | Walk | Transfer station | Drop-off station | Required time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toyosu (Yurakucho Line) | Shintomicho | 5 minutes | Tsukiji (Hibiya Line) | Naka-Okachimachi | 30 minutes |
| Tsukiji (Hibiya Line) | – | – | – | Naka-Okachimachi | 11 minutes |
🕗 8:00 (8:00 am) Morning bath at Tsubameyu ♨️
This is a historical public bathhouse registered as a tangible cultural property in Ueno.
A bath soaked in the morning refreshes the body and is extremely pleasant. Refresh yourself and go sightseeing!
How to get to Nearest station of next destination, shinjuku Gyoen 🌳
| Entrainment station | Transfer station | Drop-off station | Required time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yushima (Chiyoda Line) | Kokkai-gijidomae (to Marunouchi Line) | Shinjuku-gyoemmae | 32 minutes |
🕘 9:00 (9:00 am) Surround yourself with nature at Shinjuku Gyoen 🌳
This modern Western garden combines Western and Japanese styles and is a very popular place for foreigners visiting Japan. Visitors appreciate how spacious and relaxing it is in the big city of Tokyo.
It is a large site that takes about an hour just to walk around. The large lawn area and benches are a wonderful place to sit and relax and take in the scenery.
In the springtime, approximately 1,000 cherry trees bloom, making for a spectacular sight.
Once you download Smart Town Walker, you can use it as an audio guide not only at Shinjuku Gyoen but also at other popular sightseeing spots. It is very convenient because it supports multiple languages.
How to get to Nearest station of next destination, Motenashi Kuroki 🍜
| Entrainment station | Transfer station | Drop-off station | Required time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shinjuku-gyoemmae (Marunouchi Line) | Ginza (Hibiya Line) | Akihabara | 28 minutes |
🕚 11:00 (11:00 am) Ramen for lunch in Akihabara 🍜
Enjoy a great bowl of ramen at Motenashi Kuroki, a very popular ramen restaurant that has been selected as one of the “100 Best Ramen Restaurants” for six consecutive years.
The restaurant opens at 11:00 a.m., so if you arrive at 11:00 a.m., there will already be a few people waiting, but it is worth the wait.
The signature dish is “shio-soba” (salt soba), priced from 1000 yen.
⚠️ After you start waiting in line and before your turn comes, you purchase a meal ticket from the ticket vending machine inside the restaurant and hand it to the waiter when it is your turn. Don’t forget to purchase your meal ticket.
How to get to Nearest station of next destination, Sensoji 🙏
| Entrainment station | Drop-off station | Required time |
|---|---|---|
| Asakusabashi(Asakusa Line) | Asakusa | 3 minutes |
🕧 12:30 (12:30 pm) Visit Sensoji Temple & Try rickshaw rides🙏
The Nakamise Street in Sensoji Temple is lined with stores stretching 250 meters. Souvenirs and freshly made sweets are sold along the street.
Since lunch is salty, you may want something sweet after your meal.
I had these dumplings. The rice cakes were very tasty, baked slowly over a long period of time. The one on the left is the standard flavor called Mitarashi, and the one on the right is a soy sauce flavored dumpling with seaweed wrapped around it, which has a salty taste.
I also had freshly made doll yaki in the shape of a waterfowl at Mihatodo. The fluffy, slightly sweet dough is filled with a bean paste called anko. Anko is found in many wagashi and is a typical Japanese confectionery. Each one is small, so it is good to try it out.
After passing the Nakamise Dori, it is time to visit the temple.
There are several steps to visiting a temple. I hope you will challenge yourself to behave like a Japanese person at a temple.
Here is a summary of the steps:
- Purify your hands and mouth at the hand- and mouth-watering basin.
- Enter the main hall in front of the temple.
- Bow in reverence.
- Offer incense and candles.
- Ring the bell.
- Throw money offering ⚠️Cash is required. There is no set amount of money needed for the offering. A 5 yen coin with a hole in the middle is considered good luck.
- Bow twice.
- Clap your hands twice.
- Pray.
- Bow deeply once.
The Buddha of Sensoji Temple has been believed to be merciful and to wish for the removal of people’s suffering. Therefore, after throwing money and bowing twice, you should pray for health, longevity, safety, peace, marriage, prosperous business, and academic success.
At these sacred spots please be respectful, and if you want to learn more and take the extra steps to blend in with us locals, check my full tips for proper behavior at Shrines and Temples in Japan.
It is fun to read your own fortune; you can try it out for 100 yen. It will be a fun time because your fortune is written in English on the omikuji.
You may take the omikuji you have drawn home with you, but Japanese people sometimes tie them to a tree on the grounds.
This is because we believe that by tying omikuji to a tree with a strong life force, we can make a connection with the deity that resides in the tree.
⚠️ When you go out through the big gate of Sensoji Temple, remember to turn around and bow with your body facing the main hall where the Buddha is located.
How about experiencing a rickshaw ride? There are many rickshaws parked near the gate of Sensoji Temple, and you can take a ride on one.
The rickshaw rides for two and the rickshaw driver will show you around Asakusa. They are very knowledgeable and will tell you about the history of Asakusa in great detail. The photos taken with the popular spots in the background will be very memorable.
How to get to Nearest station of next destination, Meiji jingu ⛩️
| Entrainment station | Transfer station | Drop-off station | Required time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asakusa (Ginza Line) | Omote-Sando (Chiyoda Line) | Meiji-jingumae ‘Harajuku’ | 37 minutes |
🕒 15:00 (3:00 pm) Meiji Jingu Shrine ⛩️
It is a sacred place surrounded by a vast forest. This forest was created by people’s donations and contains the thoughts of many people.
Sensoji Temple, mentioned earlier, is a temple, and Meiji Jingu Shrine is a shrine. Although temples and shrines both are religious institutions in Japan, they have different religious and belief backgrounds.
You will see this sight on the approach to Meiji Shrine. It is a very beautiful, uniquely Japanese design. This is a sake barrel, a sacred sake donated as a votive offering by Japanese sake brewers to the gods of the Shrine.
There are two reasons for the dedication.
One is to express gratitude for the benefits received from the development of industry in the past, and the other is to offer one of the best products and hope for continued blessings and protection from the gods.
Here you can also find wine barrels dedicated from France and Italy.
🕟 16:30 (4:30 pm) Takeshita Street 🛍️
This is a popular shopping street near Meiji Shrine. No matter what time of day you go, it is always overflowing with many people.
Colorful clothes, food, and miscellaneous goods are sold here, and it is very pretty just to look at them. Colorful cotton candy and crepes are very popular.
How to get to Nearest station of next destination, Scramble Intersection 🚥
| Entrainment station | Drop-off station | Required time |
|---|---|---|
| Meiji-jingumae ’Harajuku’ (Fukutoshin Line) | Shibuya | 2 minutes |
🕡 18:30 (6:30 pm) Scramble Intersection 🚥
This very famous intersection is said to be used by 3,000 people at a time, or 500,000 people a day. With pedestrian crossings stretching in various directions and people walking in various directions, it looks like a jumbled mess from above.
I would suggest two things to everyone here:
The first is, of course, to actually walk through this intersection. Many people use it, but strangely enough, you don’t bump into anyone.
The second is to look at the people coming and going at the scramble intersection from above. This is explained in detail on the best spots to visit in Tokyo page. I am sure you will enjoy it.
How to get to Nearest station of next destination, restaurant 🍚🥢
| Entrainment station | Drop-off station | Required time |
|---|---|---|
| Shibuya(Fukutoshin Line) | Shinjuku-sanchome | 6 minutes |
🕗 20:00 (8:00 pm) Dinner in Shinjuku 🍚🥢
Option 1: Tonkatsu 🐷
Taste tonkatsu at a very popular restaurant, Katsu prepo. This restaurant was named one of the 100 best restaurants for pork cutlets in 2022.
Tonkatsu is one of the most popular Japanese foods among foreign tourists and it is also one of my top foods to get in Tokyo. It is made by battering pork and deep frying it. The outside is crispy and the inside is juicy pork and very tasty with sauce.
Dinner at this restaurant costs from 4,000 to 8,000 yen, which is expensive, but rare meat is used, the volume is large, and very many people are very satisfied despite the high price.
⚠️ Because of the popularity of the restaurant, reservations are required and can be made through the facebook messenger app.
Option 2: Gyukatsu 🐃
Taste beefkatsu at a very popular restaurant, Gyukatsu Motomura. Beef cutlet Motomura is another very popular restaurant, a chain with locations throughout Japan. It is popular not only among Japanese but also among foreign tourists.
Beef cutlets are made by frying sliced beef.
The meat is fried medium rare, then grilled on a stone heated further by yourself, and eaten with Japanese seasoning wasabi soy sauce-ya rock salt. The price is around 2,000 yen, and you can choose the number of pieces of katsuretsu you want.
🕤 21:15 (9:15 pm) Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building 🌃
This is the best place to see the beautiful night view of the big city of Tokyo for free from a whopping 45 floors above the ground.
The entrance is not easy to find, so I hope this map will help you get there without getting lost.
⚠️ The up elevator will close at 21:30 and the building will be completely closed at 22:00.
To the next location is a 24 minute walk, as there is no train that is faster please enjoy this Tokyo night walk to a bar district to finish off the night with some Japanese style pubs.
🕥 22:30 (10:30 pm) Golden Gai 🍺
This is a drinking district in Shinjuku. Small bars and izakaya (Japanese style pubs) are clustered in a small area. Because of the small size of the stores and the friendliness of the staff and customers, everyone can enjoy drinking together.
You will be able to stay in this area as long as you like, as many stores are open until morning.
Conclusion
These popular places, experiences, and foods thath both me as a local and tourists will surely make your day a satisfying one.
If you are planning to stay in Tokyo for more than one day, you must check out this things to do in Tokyo page, which introduces some fascinating activities that could not be included in this one-day itinerary.
