DAY TRIP 1 「KAMAKURA」

DAY TRIP 1⃣　KAMAKURA

Going to Kamakura? Don't mind a bit of a walk? Then you're in the right place!

START: KITA-KAMAKURA STATION

Take the West exit and go left. Follow the road for about 900m. Turn right into the street that leads to Jochi-ji Temple.

STOP: JOCHI-JI

Follow the road left of Jochi-ji temple. (Follow the signs to Genjiyama park) The road will gradually become narrower and it'll lead you straight onto the Kuzuharagaoka Hiking Trail. Now follow the signs pointing to Kuzugaragaoka shrine.

STOP: KUZUHARAGAOKA SHRINE

It's time to choose. You're are in Genjiyama park now. You can go on your way to see the Statue of Yoritomo, or maybe you want to visit the Zeniarai-Benzaiten Shrine. It's all up to you, just remember how to get back.

STOP: YOUR CHOICE

Now it's time to follow the Daibutsu trail. Signs will point you in the right direction. If signs to the Daibutsu (trail) disappear, follow the signs to the Kotoku-in. It's easy, don't worry! At the end of the trail, you turn left and walk to the Kotoku-in where you'll find the famous Big Buddha statue. (It's on your left)

STOP: KOTOKU-IN/ DAIBUTSU

Follow the road (32) south for about 1000m until you reach YUIGAHAMA BEACH. Now go left and follow the beach or the road for about 750m. 

Turn right onto road (21), just before you cross the bridge. Follow the road for about 2km. Here you'll find the entrance to the WAKAMIYA-OJI in between the two lanes. Follow this path until you reach Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gu.

STOP: TSURUGAOKA HACHIMAN-GU   

When you leave the temple, turn right. Then go left onto the KOMACHI DOORI. Follow this road back to the station.      

END: KAMAKURA STATION               

HIKONE CASTLE

HIKONE CASTLE 

PERSONAL THOUGHTS
★★★★☆
Prepare yourself for a quite a walk uphill to reach the castle! This may be a bigger challenge than it initially seems.
Aside from that I quite enjoyed visiting this castle. It's not just the castle, a lot of side buildings and gates are open to visitors. Downhill you can also find a museum with various pieces of art and a short walk away is a pretty garden. The line to enter the castle can be a bit long (especially when you visit in weekends or National holidays), so be prepared. I do think it won't be as bad on normal weekdays. The inside of the castle isn't too impressive, but the view you get from the many windows can be quite spectacular.

SOUROUSEN GARDEN

SOUROUSEN GARDEN 
A small garden hidden within the city

Open: 9:00am - 5:00pm (last entry 4:30pm)
Closed: every Tuesday (If Tue. is a National Holiday, closed on Wed.), Dec.28 - Jan.4
Admission fee: 100 yen (adults), 50 yen (children/seniors)
Access: short walk from Musashino-Koganei station south exit (JR Chuo Line)

 PERSONAL THOUGHTS
★★☆☆☆
To be honest, I didn't expect too much of this garden, but god it was beautiful. It's not too different from other gardens I had seen, but considering it's not that big and in the middle of a neighborhood, it felt so damn peaceful. I was about that only visitor, so... This is definitely not a "you've-got-to-see-this" kind of place, but if you happen to walk by (or be in the area). Just go inside! You won't regret it. (At least, I hope you won't. I didn't...)

INSTITUTE FOR NATURE STUDY

INSTITUTE FOR NATURE STUDY 
Sanctuary for plants and animals

Open: 
Sep.1 to Apr.30:  9:00am - 4:30pm (last entry 4:00pm)
May.1 to Aug.31 9:00am - 5:00pm (last entry 4:30pm)
Closed: Monday (Tue. when Mon. is a National holiday). the day after a national holiday, Dec.28 to Jan.4
Admission fee: 310 yen (adults), Free (~17 years old)
Access: 9 minute walk from Meguro station (JR line, Tokyu Meguro line), 7 minute walk from Shirokanedai station (Namboku line, Toei Mita line)

PERSONAL THOUGHTS
★★☆☆☆
Signs everywhere telling you the names of the trees and little bits of trivia. Unfortunately, it's all in Japanese. So a lot of information is lost on you. But if you're looking for a nice walk through a great piece of nature, you're at the right place. Maybe early autumn wasn't the best season to visit. Everything was just really green. Other seasons may be more appealing. All in all not a bad place to go (great place to see a lot of different trees and plants), but if I had to make I choice, I would rather go to one of the Metropolitan gardens.

SHITAMACHI MUSEUM

SHITAMACHI MUSEUM
Reconstruction of an old shitamachi street

Open: 9:30 - 16:30
Closed: Monday (open if it's a holiday and closed the next day), Dec. 29 - Jan.1
Admission fee: 300 yen (adults), 100 yen (primary-high school students)
Access: the museum is located near Ueno Park, a short walk from Ueno station (Keisei Line, JR Line), Ueno-Okamachi station (Oedo Line), Ueno-Hirokoji station (Ginza Line), Yushima station (Chiyoda line)

 PERSONAL THOUGHTS
★★★☆☆
The museum was quite a bit smaller than I had hoped it to be, but nonetheless fun to see. At my arrival I was promptly offered a free tour in English by a volunteer. A nice woman who told me a lot about the three different houses they had on display. Even if the guide is not available, at all houses you can find extensive information in English. Upstairs is a exhibition that chances once in a while. Since this was a temporary exhibits, they didn't have English information available, but it was fun to see anyway. (Well, I do know Japanese, so...) Anyway, I think this is a lovely small museum and definitely worth a visit if you're in the area.

TOKYO METROPOLITAN GARDENS

TOKYO METROPOLITAN GARDENS
9 beautiful gardens that are scattered across Tokyo. Each of these gardens is designated as cultural heritage of either Tokyo or Japan. These properties survived many disasters and show a combination of history, culture and nature of the Edo, Meiji and Taisho eras.

Koishikawa Korakuen

1) Hama-rikyu Gardens
2) Kyu-Shiba rikyu Gardens
3) Koishikawa Korakuen Gardens
4) Rikugien Gardens
5) Kyu-Iwasaki-tei Gardens
6) Mukojima-Hyakkaen Gardens
7) Kiyosumi Gardens
8) Kyu-Furukawa Gardens
9) Tonogayato Gardens

TONOGAYATO GARDENS

TONOGAYATO GARDENS
Native grasses of Musashino and the Garden of spring water

Open: 9am - 5pm (entry until 4:30pm)
Closed: Dec. 29 - Jan. 1
Admission fee: 150 yen (adults 12+), 70 yen (seniors)
Access: 2 minute walk from Kokubunji station South exit (JR Chuo Line, Seibu Kokubunji Line, Seibu Tama-ko line)

 PERSONAL THOUGHTS
★★☆☆☆
It's a lovely garden, but very small. Although it certainly a pretty scenery, half of the gardens is actually a plain field of grass. The other half is centered around the little pond. Maybe in spring time (or summer) there will be more flowers, but in Autumn there is not much to see. So, I advice people not to go all out of their way to visit this garden. There are prettier gardens in Tokyo. If you happen to walk by, definitely pop in and take a look. Otherwise, don't! This garden isn't large enough to keep you occupied for more than 30 minutes. (Unless you have special interest in certain plants, or just sit down to relax.)

RIKUGIEN GARDENS

RIKUGIEN GARDENS
Graceful Daimyu garden filled with the refined mind of Waka Poetry

Open: 9am - 5pm (Entry until 4:30pm)
Closed: Dec. 29 - Jan. 1
Admission fee: 300 yen (adults 12+), 150 yen (seniors)
Access: 7 minute walk from Komagome station (JR Yamanote Line, Namboku Line), 10 minute walk from Sengoku station (Toei Mita Line)

Tip: the Kyu-Furukawa gardens are only a short walk away (18 minutes). Since you're in the area anyway, why not see both? They sell combination tickets for 400 yen!

 PERSONAL THOUGHTS
★★★☆☆
Lovely garden, but unfortunately not as impressive as I had hoped. I visited just between the right seasons. No blooming flowers, nor any colored autumn leaves. So everything was green, very green. Nonetheless this is quite an incredible garden and a definite recommendation to spend some hours to just stroll around and enjoy nature.

KYU-FURUKAWA GARDENS

KYU-FURUKAWA GARDENS
Unique garden of the Taisho period with a mixture of Japanese and Western tastes

Open: 9am - 5pm (entry until 4:30pm)
Closed: Dec. 29 - Jan. 1
Admission fee: 150 yen (adults 12+), 70 yen (seniors)
Access: 7 minute walk from Kami-Nakazato Station (Keihin-Tohoku Line), 7 minute walk from Nishigahara Station (Namboku Line), 12 minute walk from Komagome Station North exit (JR Yamanote Line)

Tip: the Rikugien Gardens are only a short walk away (20 minutes). Since you're in the area anyway, why no visit both in one day?

PERSONAL THOUGHTS
★★★☆☆
It's not very big, but the Japanese garden is very impressive. Western garden is pretty nice too, but I'm not sure how much will be left of it when the roses aren't blooming. Seeing the whole garden doesn't take too long, but considering the entrance fee I don't see how this is a problem. The only downside of this garden. You can't enter the Western-style residence. Unless you plan to eat or drink something in the café inside or when you've booked a tour. Other than that. Just visit this garden when you're in the area!

KOISHIKAWA KORAKUEN GARDENS

KOISHIKAWA KORAKUEN GARDENS
Large garden associated with the legendary Mito Komon

Open: 9am - 5pm (entry closed at 4:30pm)
Closed: Dec. 29 - Jan. 1
Admission fee: 300 yen (adults 12+), 150 yen (seniors)
Access: 3 minute walk from Iidabashi station exit C3 (Toei oedo Line), 8 minute walk from Iidabashi east exit or Suidobashi west exit (JR Sobu Line), 8 minute walk from Iidabashi station exit A1 (Tokyo Metro Tozai Line, Yurakucho Line, Namboku Line), 8 minute walk from Korakuen station exit 1 (Tokyo Metro Marunouchi Line, Namboku Line)

Tip: English tours on Saturday from 10am and 1pm 

PERSONAL THOUGHTS
Beautiful, large garden. It'll take you some time to see an appreciate everything this garden has to offer. This garden has definitely some amazing scenery to offer. If you happen to be around as the tour starts in Saturday and you have no time constraints, I recommend you to join in. But only if you plan on listening to the guide! My group member eventually lost interest and started chatting more amongst themselves than doing some actual listening. I actually found that quite rude. And please don't do extensive photo shoots during the tour either. You can do that after (or before)! The volunteer guides have some amazing stories to share, but you need to give them the chance!
Anyway, this is a lovely garden. If you want a leisure day, this is the place to go!

TOKYO DISNEYLAND

TOKYO DISNEYLAND
One of the two Disney Theme park's in Tokyo

Open: check official website
Closed: check official website
Admission fee
1 Day Passport: 6900 yen (adults), 6000 yen (12-17), 4500 yen (4-11)
2 Day Passport: 12,400 yen (adults), 10,800 yen (12-17), 8000 yen (4-11)
See official website for other (Multi-day) Passports fees
Access: Take the JR Keiyo Line or Musashino Line to Maihama station

OFFICIAL WEBSITE: http://www.tokyodisneyresort.jp/en/tdl/

Tip: Before visiting Disneyland, you may want to check a Crowd Calendar (just google it) to check what the visitor expectancy is for the days. It could help you avoid the most crowded days.

 PERSONAL THOUGHTS
★★★★★
Everything you would expect of a Disney Theme Park! Great decoration, lots of parades and Disney characters walking around. The lines can be a bit long, especially on busy days, but overall it's pretty doable. I've visited Tokyo Disneyland twice. The first time on a very hot, busy day (summer 2010). Second time on a less hot, less busy day (autumn 2014). In the end though, I think the waiting time for all attractions was about the same. The longest wait time I encountered was 2 hours for the Thunder Mountain (roller coaster), everything else was probably 30-60 minutes, unless I got really lucky! Of course, don't forget to watch the parades. Both the day and (electrical) evening parades are a feast for the eye! The park is easy to reach, even if you aren't staying in one of the Disney hotels, so.. if you love Disney, just go!

TOKYO SEA LIFE PARK

TOKYO SEA LIFE PARK 
Aquarium that display sea creatures from all over the world

Open: 9:30am - 5:00pm (last admission 4:00pm)
Closed: every Wednesday (Thu. if Wed. is a National holiday), Dec. 29 to Jan.1
Admission fee: 700 yen (adults), 250 yen (junior high school), 350 yen (Seniors), Free (children ~11 years old)
Access: 5 minute walk from Kasai Rinaki Kouen station (JR Keiyo Line)

OFFICIAL WEBSITE: http://www.tokyo-zoo.net/english/kasai/index.html

Tip: When you're done at the aquarium, go for a stroll through the bird sanctuary, go for a ride in the largest ferris wheel of Japan, explore the rest of Kasai Rinkai park, or find the artificial beach at the Kasai Marine Park on the other side of Nagisa bridge. (As you walk along the water's edge, you may catch a glimpse of Tokyo Disneyland and Disneysea in the distance.)

 PERSONAL THOUGHTS
★★★★
A amazing aquarium that's a lot larger than it initially looks. Lots of fish, and penguins! And when you're finally think you're done with the actually aquarium and leave, you'll find another little patch that'll show you some more water life! All in all it's a great aquarium that's well worth its money!

UENO ZOO

UENO ZOO
Oldest zoo in Japan, located in Ueno park

Open: 9:30am-5:00pm (ticket office closes at 4:00pm)
Closed: every Monday (open on National holidays), Dec.29-Jan.1
Admission fee: 600 yen (adults), 300 yen (seniors), 200 yen (students 13-15), Free (children 0-12)
Access: 5 minute walk from JR Ueno station, 10 minute walk from Keisei Ueno station, 12 minute walk from Subway Ueno station (Ginza/Hibiya line), 15 minute walk from Ueno-okamachi station (Oedo subway line), 5 minute walk from Nezu station (Chiyoda subway line) to Okenohata gate

OFFICIAL WEBSITE: http://www.tokyo-zoo.net/english/ueno/index.html

 PERSONAL THOUGHTS
★★★★
At first this zoo didn't seem too big, but in the end I found myself with just enough time to see every animal. In total I needed about 4 hours to see the whole zoo. They most definitely have a great variety of animals, it's just too bad they don't have too many of one species. A good amount of animals tend to look a bit lonely because of that. That aside I enjoyed myself very much. Try to catch some animals at feeding time, it's a lot of fund to watch.