Tokyo

You have just arrived in Japan, that is great. Go slowly with this first day. You might be excited and your first reflex will be to do everything at once, but that is also the fastest way to tire yourself out.

My advice is do not plan anything on that particular day, which you will not hear a lot. Clearing customs takes time, and getting from the airport to the city center takes more.

You probably had a long flight too, so just go to your accommodation, recharge your battery and your phone, and when you feel ready, wander around the neighborhood you are staying in or go somewhere nearby.

Our hostel was in Akasaka, so we took the Ginza Line to Harajuku for dinner at Ichiran, a ramen chain where you eat alone in your own booth. It is cash only.

That is a great way to get a first glimpse of the Japanese food scene. Then have an after dinner walk before heading back.

This is your real first day in Tokyo, so start with something immersive. Head to Asakusa, which has a stunning temple and traditional streets. To make it even better, we rented traditional clothes for the morning at Asakusa Kimono Rental wargo, but you have plenty of other options.

Then take the subway for 20 minutes on the Ginza Line.

Head to Akihabara, where there is a restaurant I keep going back to. I went once in 2020 before Covid and came back in 2025, and it is much busier now, so go around 2pm and make it a late lunch.

The place is called Gyukatsu Ichinisan. You grill your own meat on a hot stone, with sides. It is in my top three restaurants ever.

Spend the rest of the afternoon in Akihabara itself, the main area for video games and manga culture. If you have time left, or if that scene is not really your thing, the Imperial Palace gardens are a bit further south.

Dinner is really up to you, but here are some recommendations:

• Sushi No Midori
• Godaime Hanayama Udon Nihonbashi
• CoCo Ichibanya, a chain specialized in Japanese curry
• PST, for pizza

Yes, pizza. I would have closed this guide myself if someone had told me to eat pizza on my second day in Japan. Before you skip it, consider this:

• Japanese kitchens are good at everything, and this place has the awards to back it up.To confirmwhich awards? You said you would look it up. I am not naming any until you do.
• You will eat a ton of Japanese specialties during your stay, so allow yourself to go back to the basics sometimes.
• A quick story that sums this up: we are French, and we ended up buying croissants and pains au chocolat almost every day, because they were better than at home.

THE DAY has come, we are going to Shibuya. But first, Nakameguro. It is a trendy neighborhood with lovely streets and a canal, and it is just cool to wander around.

Go to the Starbucks Roastery. It is impressive and actually very good, so it is worth it. Once again, you are allowed to go to McDonald's, KFC or Starbucks while abroad, you have 20 days ahead of you.

There are so many bookshops on the main street. I would recommend Tsutaya Books Daikanyama, which is more of a media center, with books, magazines, vinyl and figurines. For lunch, grab something at the convenience store.

Make space, because I have something special for you for dinner.

Head to Shibuya and enjoy this unique place, where you will find flagship stores, the Pokemon Center, the Nintendo store, and Tower Records, a huge vinyl and CD shop.

Spend your afternoon there, and for dinner go to Uobei Shibuya Dogenzaka. You order on a tablet and the food arrives directly in front of you. It is funny and genuinely unique.

This one is among Tokyo's most famous: the Tsukiji fish market, where you get to try many stalls and eat delicious things from the Japanese culinary scene.

Come early, around 10 or 11, to really take the time. There are also some cheap but good ceramic shops inside the market, so have a look.

Not far away is the teamLab experience, a light show that was definitely worth it.

For the rest of the evening, I have two options:

• Enjoy a coffee in Roppongi, then go to Harajuku and have dinner at Rojiura Curry SAMURAI, which was amazing.
• Or go to Shinjuku, enjoy the different streets, and watch the sunset from the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, which is free. Come early.

In both cases you can spend the night in Shinjuku, where there is an izakaya neighborhood. It gets crowded, so arrive early if you want a seat. I do not have one to recommend in particular, we just hopped from bar to bar.

This is your last day in Tokyo, we are heading to Hakone next. No need to rush. Check in is 3pm at the earliest and it only takes about two hours on public transport, so the morning is yours.

Escape to the western part of Tokyo, to Kichijoji, a really trendy place with a lot of thrift shops, coffee places, a covered market and Inokashira Park.

Go really early, and when you arrive take a quick stop at Shiro-Hige's Cream Puff Factory for a Ghibli pastry.

Then head to the park and have a coffee by the lake at Blue Sky Coffee. It is a really cool park, and you can rent a pedal boat.

If you are lucky enough to have tickets for the Ghibli Museum you can visit that too, but plan more time for it.

Then make your way back to the city center and take a train to Hakone. Plan this trip in advance so you can catch all the trains and buses. You have two options:

• Take a train to Odawara station, then the Tozan Line bus to Hakone.
• Or take the Limited Express Romancecar, which is faster and a little more expensive.

Check the route between Hakone-Yumoto station and your accommodation. Hakone is a large area and yours might be on the other side of it, so make sure it is all planned.

Enjoy the evening at your accommodation. Try an onsen to relax after 5 demanding days in Tokyo and a day of travelling. Restaurants close early, so that night we got food at the convenience store, which saved a bit of money too.