Tokyo

Two bases, not eight neighborhoods

For a first week, stay in one east-side base (Asakusa or Tokyo Station) and one west-side base (Shinjuku or Shibuya). That is enough. You will spend more time on the platform than in a third hotel.

What to actually do

• One morning at a shrine before 9.
• One afternoon in a district you can walk without a timed ticket.
• One evening that is food, not a viewpoint at sunset with a thousand phones.

Skip stacking Disneyland, day-trip Kamakura, and Tsukiji in the same 48 hours.

Rail and stays

Suica / Pasmo on the phone. Hotels near a JR or Metro interchange beat a prettier room 20 minutes from the nearest line. Search stays and the Narita or Haneda hop in the conversation, then Generate.

Plan a week in Tokyo