Tokyo Bitches Tour 2007

[RichardMannion]

I thought it might be an idea to do a separate thread regarding the trip to Tokyo, some hints/tips and what we did/learned.

The flight reports have been filed already, sure that Wolves and Foozyo will file one for their return trip on Friday.

Tokyo Bitches:
Decker
Mrs Decker
mitchja
RichardMannion
HighFlyer
Wolves27
fozzyo

Flight arrives in the next morning given the +8 hours time difference for Japan. HighFlyer had arranged a transfer for the 7 of us, sure she can provide the direct link - worked out at around £100 for the 7 of us. Took approx 1 hour and was efficient. Chap did seem a bit shocked when we told him we were here on holiday.

We stayed at the Mandarin Oriental, rates courtesy of AmEx FHR program. We had booked the top FHR rate package which was ~55,000 yen (£225) + tax. Centurion cardholders can get one night free per cardmember. Rate includes late checkout (not that you need it if flying VS), breakfast each morning (value around £15/person) and lunch once per stay either in the Italian or All-Day dining hotel restaurants - we opted for the latter.

Not the cheapest hotel, but definitely the best I have ever stayed in. TripAdvisor lists it as #1 for Tokyo with flawless 5 star reviews. The service is practically flawless. Good sized rooms all round.

Whoever said Tokyo is really expensive is lying, it is not. Bearing in mind our choice of hotel, the minibar was well priced. General transportation is cheap. Visiting the Tokyo Disney resort proved this, it is by far the cheapest Disney resort to visit. One day tickets cost ~£20. Even food and drink in the park was far cheaper than it's US peers.

DisneySea is a must visit resort, as it's the only one in the world. Had to be seen to be believed, most expensive theme park in the world to build ($4-5bn!). Only slight cheek was you ahve to pay for the monorail, which is 250 yen for a one way (£1), and we were all calling them rob dogs as the 20 minute journey from Tokyo central station to Maihama train station next to Disney is less at 210 yen!

More detail to follow....

[Scrooge]

Thanks for that LRoM.

$20 for Disney [:0], damn it it's almost worth flying over to Tokyo rather than going to LA, every year I pay for some kids to go to Disney Land, it is getting to be stupid money.

Did you guys try the under ground?

[Decker]

We used the Underground quite extensively and it is really easy to figure out. They have bilingual maps showing where you are and the other stations all have prices on them. The ticket machines all have an "English" button. Take the ticket (or buy a refillable pass) and put into barrier and walk through. Only confusion really was if starting on a train and transferring to Underground you need to use the fare adjustment/transfer machine at the transfer station to convert the ticket from an overground to an underground. If you paid the correct fare initially this won't cost anything but it will change the ticket type.

As LRoM says Disney Sea is incredible. It looks REAL. In the way that a good film set looks real.

[HighFlyer]

Decker neglects to mention that we are now Tokyo Train savvy purely after having the joyous experience of being literally trapped in the train station for what seemed like an hour when the machines swallowed our tickets and we couldnt find an English speaking staffer. I'll never forget Dean saying that he thought he'd die there!

Hmm .. what else to add ...

Jet Lag - Not as bad as it was made out to be at all. On arrival we all had a short siesta after checking into our rooms, then planned to have a wander around Tokyo. If it were not for meeting the rest of the group, our 2 hour snooze could easily have turned into several, but once we were back up and out into the fresh air we all felt fine.

We spent the rest of the first day getting our bearings, walking past the Imperial Palace for a nose, and then we had our first proper Japanese meal - at the train station of all places. A great experience - asking for an English menu and pointing to words on it, hoping that your chosen meal choice resembles what you had read. Turns out we were all plesantly surprised with our meals of chicken, rice and a raw egg! Drinking tea with each meal is pretty much prerequisite in Japan, and a custom we all took to rather quickly. Think i'll have a Green Tea from the vending machine today at work actually.

Talking of which - vending machines! Aaah! Japanese vending machines dispense hot drinks in cans. A can of English Breakfast tea with milk and sugar? you bet! Amazing!

The rest of our free days were spent simply experiencing Japanese culture. I've not been anywhere quite like Japan, where you really are the foreigner (Gaijin) and you are taken right out of your comfort zone. Therefore simply taking a bus is a real adventure. Our second day was the 'Day of Many Transports'. We al wanted to ride the Bullet Train (Shinkasen) and thought that Mount Fuji seemed as good a goal as any. Concierge at the MO recommended a fantastic trip out to Fuji that saw us taking in every known method of transport available - from Shinkasen to bus to Pirate ship to cable car. Sadly, it was too foggy to see Mount Fuji, but the fun journey there and back just made the day. The smallest thing, like buying grilled squid on a stick from a street vendor made it an amazing experience.

Day three was shopping in Ginza, which is pretty westernised. Visited the Sony building and the Apple store, and did a whole load of people watching. We also paid a visit to the Ice Bar, and then to a Kareoke place - which really was so much fun. Our last day was spent at Disneyland Tokyo, followed by the amazing Molecular Tapas meal at the MO, which i think Dean will cover when he is back, as he took photos of all 20 something courses. That was a truly amazing experience, and i never thought i'd eat a mouthful of Sea Urchin!

On reflection, this trip was simply amazing and i wish we'd had at least another day there. The cultural experience of Japan was fantastic, experiencing the rush hour madness of commuters running around at Tokyo Station which culminates in perfect queues to board the train, to the hoards of Japanese wearing those SARS face masks everywhere, and of course the amazing toilets that warm your bum. Japanese culture is so very interesting, and i would definately love to go back.

Thanks,
Sarah

[Bazz]

Originally posted by Scrooge
Thanks for that LRoM.

...$20 for Disney [:0]...

That was 20 quid not dollars Dave.

[mitchja]

Just to add to what has already been said. Before this trip I was a little apprehensive (especially after watching the V:Port Tokyo guide on a previous flight).

When you first look at the subway maps it all looks very complicated, but in actual fact it's not difficult to get around. There are quite a lot of English signs around.

After these last 3 days, I would not hesitate to go back to Tokyo and would recommend it to anyone [y]

Tokyo is a spotlessly clean city; in fact, I don't think I've ever seen a cleaner city [y]

Everyone is so polite and courteous, from the hotel staff to the train guards.

Regards

Sounds like you all had a great time in Tokyo !

Great photos too and sorry to hear of your experience on the flight out, not good is it? Are you going to make an official complaint?

Glad to see you all back

xx

[Scrooge]

Originally posted by Bazz

Originally posted by Scrooge
Thanks for that LRoM.

...$20 for Disney [:0]...

That was 20 quid not dollars Dave.

Same difference to me..well close enough..with Disney Land running $60+ for a one day pass anything is better.

Great review, damn I want to go there now....and with my height I will really stick out, kind of like the Tom Selleck character in Mr Baseball [:0]

[mitchja]

Just remembered something else.

To the surprise of all of us, the wireless/wired high speed internet access in the Tokyo MO was completely free

Regards

[Decker]

at 24MB Up/Down!

[Darren Wheeler]

I wanna go now! Now!! Now!!! Now!!!!

I've never yet heard a bad report from anyone who has been to Japan and done their homework.

[fozzyo]

Originally posted by mitchja
Just remembered something else.

To the surprise of all of us, the wireless/wired high speed internet access in the Tokyo MO was completely free

Same in the Park Hyatt too. We have been really impressed with that - saved a small fortune! Most stays here are probably expense accounts so an excellent opportunity to top up the coffers.

[Pete]

What I want to know, is what is Dean wearing on his head? Very fetching, but surely it needs a matching Kimono?

[Bazz]

The contrast on your Mac Book Pro thingamejigwotsit must pretty good? These tired ol' eyes had to struggle to see what you were on about.

Originally posted by Bazz
The contrast on your Mac Book Pro thingamejigwotsit must pretty good? These tired ol' eyes had to struggle to see what you were on about.

must be all macs with good contrast, cause I can see the 'headwear' perched on his head...[}:)]

[Scrooge]

And a win machine..sorry Bazz..maybe the glasses need a spring cleaning ?

[RichardMannion]

Ahh sorry, that was my poor photo skills. That is one of the lampshades in the MO, some might say it looks like a certain part of the bottom....

Anyway back to my post!

So Friday was pretty much a bearings day. We had a lunch at one of the eateries in Tokyo central station. The station is by far the largest train station I have ever been in, it absolutely dwarfes any large London station. The signage for the restaturants is a little strange as they will often have English headlines, but then the detail is in Japanese. Wolves and Decker were quite taken by one menu that was in English that offered various parts of animal anatomy as a delicacy, though interesting the 'Cows Lever' was not. Fortunately they were dragged away whilst licking lips, and I spotted a small sign on the restaurant opposite that said the immortal line 'English Menu's Available'. Wolves and his LearnJapaneseQuick guide came in useful, and we soon had a delightful meal.

Back to the MO for some rest, Drinks in the bar (that always brought us hot towels) again showing that Tokyo is not expensive, the wide selection of cocktails were well priced with most under £8, with a beer/guiness around £3; then dinner in the All day dining restaurant (A'Shiki) where a number of us wussed out and had the classy cheeseburger or turkey club sandwich, all very well done whilst others now know for their diverse palate had a Japanese beef special. Decker took wine duties and decided to order the MO Special Sake, which was a bit of a hit with the others, me opting for Diet Coke instead.

Next morning saw another visit to A'Shiki as that is where breakfast is served. FHR rates come with the top package of breakfast which includes a very plush buffet, and a Egg cooked dish. The eggs they used are very well cultivated and the chickens are fed on an unusual diet which includes chilli, giving the yolk a distinct orange/red colour. Hence the various omelettes etc having an orange tinge to them. The quality of the food on offer was very high, you could see some of the expense in the selection of juices, yoghurts. Even if you are not on the FHR package, the top breakfast buffet option is 3800 yen (£15) and I think we all have paid more than that in a crap UK Hilton. There was an interesting Japanese apertif served with breakfast that I passed on but the others seemed to take a liking to.

Over breakfast we decided we'd like to try the Bullet Train (Shinkansen) so we consulted the ever helpful Concierge who gave us a whole printed itinerary and maps. Again tickets were reasonable for a one way first to Odwara which is where we were told to go, it was ~45 minute journey that was very comfortable. From there we then transferred to the mainline and purchased a Hakane Fun Pass which was basically a travelcard for the entire area, the price depends on if its a weekend or weekday. Weekend pass (valid for 3 days!) was 4200 yen which gave us access to a whole variety of transport. So it was then on a train for about 40 minutes, bus for 40 minutes, then a very pleasant 20 minute walk through a Japanese Cedar forest. We then became distracted with a very large Japanese tourist shop that sold a huge assortment of absolute tat and food. The boys were off trying crap such as Butterscotch and Fish fudge. We then arrived into the port where we were to wait for the next pirate ship. Whilst waiting mitchja, HighFlyer and Wolves decided to buy stuff on a stick from the local vendor. We then boarded the pirate ship for a 2 hop 40 minute journey to the other side of the lake. Upon arrival, the first part of the ropeway (cable car) was under renovation so it was on a coach to the 2nd station that was working.

At the second station, various comedy picture were taken with the plywood cutout photo stands of the cable car, and use of the 'dress yoruself cable card attendant uniform' was undertaken. Short cable car journey to another hilltrain, then onto another train to take us back to Odwara, and then finally back to Tokyo Central on the Shinkansen in Economy class which was still pretty good.

That evening saw us dining at the popular Cantonese restaurant at the MO (Sense), which was okay as there was some confusion over the menu and it's logistics but still a very good evening. More drinks and then to bed for the evening.

Sunday saw us off on the subway to Ginza, which was a mere 3 stops and 160 yen. As LadyS said, very westernised though the Japanese ATM network doesn't appear to like foreign cards. Both Decker and I went through several cards trying to withdraw money but to no avail. We then spotted a Citibank which was fine for getting cash out. Japan is still very much a cash society; I was able to use my AmEx to pay for train tickets, but Decker could not even though we both have Centurion. Only today did we find out that his card was not set-up for cash withdraw, which is strange as he was doing a merchant transaction; so best check with your issuer. LadyS had said previously that she would like to visit the Apple store, so I managed to use my 3G phone to look up the address and locate the wonder. We then decided to split up as Fozz and Wolves had some shopping they needed to do, but 'helpful' Wolves pointed us in a direction and told us the road led back to the hotel. So we started to walk in that direction, again distracted by some more tat shops and then worked out that maybe it wasn't the right direction. So we decided to fallback to the subway, and indeed realised we had been sent in the wrong direction. By then we were subway 'pros' and worked our way back to the station underneath the MO. Well I say pros, but we noticed a slight difference between the Tokyo and London systems; if you need to change between lines, you need to revalidate your ticket at the machine before the exit, otherwise it won't let you out!

Back to the MO for our complimentary FHR lunch, opting for the All Day Dining again who told us the FHR lunch was valued up to 3000yen per person and we could pay the difference. A rather splendid lunch and then some afternoon rest as we had plans for the evening. One of the senior members of staff had got to know our group by now and offered us some 'must see' tips. He also wanted to apologise for the confusion we had encountered the previous evening in the Sense restaurant and had arranged some early evening appetisers from Sense for us. Very generous and demonstrated the service of the hotel.
So we took one of the tips and decided to visit the Tokyo Icebar which was indeed very cool. 3500 yen got entry, a cape to keep you warm, first drink and your own ice glass. Very enjoyable experience and many comedy photos, with us trying a selection of the drinks on offer thanks to the staff. A walk then took us to Roppongi where the Big Echo Karaoke was spotted and Wolves was sent in to do the research as a private room was in order. All clear so we pile in as its 525 yen each for 30 minutes. A selection of karaoke classics such as Parklife, Delilah, Always look on the brightside of life, and the Wolves classic Rhinestone Cowboy. Very entertaining and a must do! Then back to the hotel on the tube as we had an early start due to the day at Disney!

7am breakfast call, and then off on the 10 minute walk to Tokyo station. 210 yen fare to Maihama which is next to Disney, and we were there! A one day ticket to either Disney park is 5800 yen (just over £20). We had chose to go on the Monday as we figured it would be quieter, and it sure was. We waited no more than 15 minutes all day long, most times it was 5 mins or less. What is noticeable is how much more open the parks are, as they have to cope with the crowds (the two parks at Tokyo Disney are the two busiest in the world). Food was obscenely cheap for Disney, a bottle of water was 200 yen and a Chicken Sandwich meal (with drinks and chips) was 650 yen. We managed to rattle round all the rides that we wanted to, and then decided we had more than enough time to try DisneySea. So glad we did. Again it was 5800 yen to get in (though unlike the thieving Disney group in the US where a 10 year is an adult, adult tickets are for those 18 and over). So glad we visited as it is a really beautiful park.

Back to the hotel via the train again, and off to get ready for our meal at the hotel. Decker had long booked us at the Molecular Tapas bar at the MO. It only seats 7, and only does 2 servings per day so it is essential to get a reservation in advance. And given the quality and experience, I can see long waits. I'm no foodie by any stretch, but really enjoyed the experience as it was being prepared right in front of you. Over 20 courses, Wolves has the full menu and pictures of each course. The staff were amazing; creator and head chef Jeff explained each dish and its creation with the help of his two sous-chefs and it was passed to the glass counter for us to collect. We would then consume and staff would then appear behind us to collect the empty plates and bring any new cutlery that was needed. 2 hours flew by and it was the absolute highlight of the trip for me. Again, to show the steal it is: 10,000 yen each for the Tapas meal (£40). No wonder it is so hard to get a reservation. Sure Decker and Wolves can go into far more detail about the brilliance of the meal.

Back to the bar again for some more drinks, and then it was time to bid farewell to Fozz and Wolves as we had an early start to get back to NRT.

The concierge had again excelled by suggesting transfer options, and had then gone out and bought our train tickets for us! 5,100 yen each got us a one way on the N'Ex in first. a 7:15am train from Tokyo got us to NRT in 55 minutes. At 8:10am we duly arrive at NRT and proceed up to check-in for the flight home.

[honey lamb]

Thanks for the report, Richard. Tokyo was never on my "things to do, places to see" list but now all of a sudden it's there. I blame it on the influence of LSoM. Wherever she goes I seem to follow in her footsteps

[Pete]

I've always fancied the idea of Japan, but worried about whether I'll be able to eat when I get there. Did you spot whether vegetarian options where the norm, or would I be restricted to eating the pillow-chocolates in the hotel room?

Glad you all had such a great time. I loved it so much last year I was genuinely sad when I got home and booked the return trip as soon as I could.

As the others have said, Tokyo is clean, you feel safe walking around (though the back streets of Nakano we stumbled into were a bit scary - but that's another story) and the people are very friendly. DisneySea is on my list of things to do on this trip - good to read it is worthwhile.

Got a great rate for the Keio Plaza in Shinjuku through Virgin - £56 a night - not the Mandarin Oriental but if it's good enough for David Sylvian it will be good enough for me!

I hope VS fly to Kansai (Osaka) one day to give easier access to Kyoto, Japan's Universal
Studios and the Nintendo headquarters.

Paul

[HighFlyer]

Pete - If you eat in the hotels and brand name places then you'll be fine. Japan has typical western places such as Starbucks and Denny's! There are also numerous pizza places too. Staple foods of Rice and Tofu are widely available (though the Tofu is the silken variety which i personally do not like). Eating out at proper Japanese places may be problematic though. Most of the cusine is fish or meat with rice, and even if there are things on the menu that look OK, its hard to know what you'll actually get when it arrives. There is a tendancy to use fish stock in a lot of dishes. Of course, you have a great excuse for nightly dining in the MO

Paul - I know exactly what you mean. I've already thought about going back as I'd like to see some of the other parts of Japan such as Kyoto and Osaka.

Thanks,
Sarah

Great report [y]

Read the first part yesterday and couldnt wait to read this installment.

Sounds like you all had a great time, must admit if I was to go it is better done in a group for the first time.

Originally posted by pixuk
I've always fancied the idea of Japan, but worried about whether I'll be able to eat when I get there. Did you spot whether vegetarian options where the norm, or would I be restricted to eating the pillow-chocolates in the hotel room?

It is tricky being vegetarian in Japan because the definition they have can be a little unusual - for example having bacon bits sprinkled on a salad at one place I had a meal. As HighFlyer said, all of the well known chains are all over Tokyo and have all the options you would expect. There is a website that might be helpful:
http://www.vegietokyo.com/

You might want to try Tempura restaurants where you can request only the vegetarian options, as in really good places if you sit at the counter you are supposed to be served each piece as soon as it comes out of the pan. Or if you get a set meal eat with a companion and trade your prawn fritters for their mushroom or veg fritters!

Paul

We just worked out today that on Tuesday night unbeknown to us, we had blowfish as one course of a big set meal.
Quite glad we didn't know at the time - not dead at least and its all about the bravado - the taste is quite dull

Cheers!

Dean

Originally posted by Decker
We used the Underground quite extensively and it is really easy to figure out. (snip) Only confusion really was if starting on a train and transferring to Underground you need to use the fare adjustment/transfer machine at the transfer station to convert the ticket from an overground to an underground. If you paid the correct fare initially this won't cost anything but it will change the ticket type.

You can buy a daily pass that works for the JR rail lines, Tokyo Metro and Toei. It works for the whole Tokyo area and costs 1,580 Yen (7 quid). This is a bit more than you may pay buying individual tickets if you do not go to many places in one day, but saves a lot of hassle. We bought one on some days and not on others, depending on what we planned to do that day. More information on passes at the link below:

http://www.kotsu.metro.tokyo.jp/english/ticket.html

About Tokyo station - did you find the walk to the platforms for the line that goes to Disney an awfully long way? The only downside to the Tokyo subway system is the long walks and many stairs between platforms IMHO.

Paul