Our flight was with ANA out of Heathrow, and the 11 hour flight passed reasonably quickly, as there was quite a choice of in-flight entertainment on the personal TV screens, or of course you could just sleep! The flight left at around 845pm and arrival in Tokyo was at 4pm the following day.

The New International Airport at Narita is some 66kms from the centre of Tokyo, but most of the downtown hotels are served by coaches, which cost around £15 each way. You can also get the train, but you have to change en route, and this can be confusing until you get used to the system. So we got the coach into Tokyo, but took the train back to Narita at the end of our holiday. It takes about 70-120minutes depending on the mode of travel and the location of the hotel.

Our hotel was situated a short walk from one of the mainline stations, so we were able to take full advantage of the Japanese subway system, which in my opinion, is one of the best. The costs are reasonable, the trains are on time, and clean, but get very crowded at peak times. All the station signs are in Japanese and English, so it’s easy to find your way around. For a little over £4 you can get a day ticket which you can use on the main JR lines which will get you to most places, but individual journeys are only about £1, and the beauty of their system is that, if you don’t know how much your ticket should be, you can buy the cheapest, and adjust the fare at the other end. They have machines, which automatically calculate the shortfall for you. There are two operators running the trains and subways, and you can get a combination one day ticket for both.

There are many shrines and temples in Tokyo, but the main ones to see are the Meiji shrine, and the Asakusa Kannon Temple, both of which are easily accessed on the subway system. Entrance to most of the shrines and temples is free, or where a charge is made it is minimal (about £1). The thing I liked about these sites was that they are not over commercialised. There are a few stalls selling postcards and souvenir goods, but they are very low-key.

The Zoo at Ueno is also worthy of a visit, it is not expensive to get in (about £3) and is well laid out. The elephant house did give me some concern as it didn’t appear to be very elephant friendly, but it looked like some work was being carried out around the zoo, so perhaps this was just a temporary measure. We spent ages watching the Japanese Macaque monkeys, who were certainly seemed to be enjoying themselves. There is also a new batch of lion cubs, which were also having the time of their lives, and all the animals looked well cared for. In fact we enjoyed our afternoon here so much that we didn’t get on to our next destination, and spent all our time at the zoo.

The main areas of Tokyo seem to be situated around the main stations, and each area is like a little city within a city. A visit to Ginza is an experience, even if you don’t shop, but if you do want to shop make sure you have plenty of money….this is the Knightsbridge of Tokyo and the prices reflect this. All the designer shops are here.

If it’s electronic goods you’re after visit Akihabara, where there are hundreds of shops selling all manner of electronic goods, at really good prices. One word of warning…not all the shop assistants (in fact very few in our experience) actually speak any English. The shops are open until 9pm, so plenty of time for sightseeing and shopping….sight seeing during the day, quick dinner, and still time for the shops!!!Many of the department stores are high-rise, and have restaurants on the upper floors. The views from Takashimaya Times Square in Shinjuku are supposed to be spectacular….but the days we went there it was rather cloudy, so we couldn’t see very far. For magnificent views of the whole of Tokyo visit the Tokyo Tower, a bit like the Eiffel tower, and easily accessible from either Roppongi or Hammatsucho stations. A trip to the lower level is 820yen around £4, but well worth it. A visit at night is especially effective as you can see all the bright lights of the city.

Our hotel was functional, but comfortable, but there are many to choose from in the city from the traditional Ryokan to the international 4* & 5* hotel chains. Ours was essentially a business man’s hotel, with very little in the way of wardrobe space, but tea and coffee making facilities put a hotel way up the list in my eyes!!!Nothing like a nice cuppa after a day of pounding the streets.

Tokyo was not as expensive as I imagined. You can get a decent meal for about 2000Yen(about £10) a head (one course with wine). Many of the traditional restaurants only show the menus in Japanese, but they display rather disgusting looking plastic replicas outside, so as a last resort you could always point to what you want. If you don’t like seafood, which seems to be the staple diet for the Japanese, then try the western style restaurants. There are loads of fast food joints like Mc Donalds and Kentucky Fried Chicken, but there is no end of choice, so you shouldn’t be stuck for places to eat.

Nightlife seems to centre around nightclubs, and these can be pricey. I can only go on what I’ve read in the guidebooks though as we were so tired after all that sightseeing and shopping, that the last thing I wanted to do at the end of the day was to go clubbing.

Out of Tokyo, there are some great temples and shrines to visit, but we had to cancel our proposed trip to Hakone due to the weather. This is the best place (apparently) to see Mount Fuji, but obviously you need a clear day, and by our third day the clouds had rolled in and seemed set to sit over the Tokyo area for the foreseeable future.

We did go to Kamakura, home of the Great Buddha, which is an hour train ride from Tokyo and costs around £8 each way. We left the train at Kita Kamakura, and visited a few of the shrines and temples on the way down to Kamakura, with lunch at a lovely little restaurant on the main road. The town of Kamakura is lovely, and worth a visit on it’s own, but the main attraction is the Buddha, which you can actually go inside of for a few pennies. (20yen…about 10p)

Another of the main attractions, just outside Tokyo is the Disneyland Park, run exactly as it is in Florida or California…and as much fun!! Be prepared for long waits for the rides though. Admittedly we did go on a Saturday, and it was really busy, but you can always opt for the Fastpass option, but there were even queues for this, but not quite so long. It was a bit overcast when we got there but the sun did come out. The Japanese seemed so organised when it came to the Disney Parades. Armed with picnic, and plastic ground sheet, they claimed their territory, sitting along the parade route. But latecomers could stand at the rear of the 4 deep audience, and get an excellent view of the parade, as the people sitting down, stayed sitting down!!!

The highlight of the day, the illuminated parade was cancelled, as the rain started around 6pm, which more or less cleared out the park. All in all a good day out at a cost of £2 for the train (about £1 each way) and £30 for the entrance ticket. There is also a Disney Sea Park next door, but you can only go to one or the other on a day ticket. If you want to visit both, you have to come on two separate days.

This was a great trip, and has certainly whetted my appetite for more. Tokyo is not a pretty city, but is vibrant and busy with something for everyone, and is full of things to do.

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