Beyond the Golden Route: Our Second Visit to Tokyo, Japan

January 2025

Beyond the Golden Route: Our Second Visit to Tokyo, Japan

Tokyo is one of the best cities in the world and I do not think there is ever such a thing as too much time in Tokyo. I knew on our first trip to Japan, five days in Tokyo was not going to be enough time but just to get a taste of what Tokyo has to offer. I do not think any Japan trip is quite complete without a stop in Tokyo and we were so excited to get immersed again.

Being back in Tokyo was exhilarating – there is just a pulse here that is hard to explain. Tokyo’s train system is so easy to navigate and you really can get anywhere in the city you want with public transportation. We traveled from Tokyo Station where our Shinkansen train arrived to Kanda Station and after a few minutes walk we found Belken Hotel Kanda to drop the bags before heading out to explore.

Read about our stay at Belken Hotel Kanda here!

With the evening ahead, we had some ideas on how to fill out our first hours in Tokyo. Ready for a meal, while there are so many options we headed straight for one of our favorites – Ichiran Ramen. It is such an experience and we definitely counted down the days until we were sitting here eating this ramen again.

Read about the Ichiran Ramen experience here!

One thing high on Kevin’s list was grabbing taiyaki – the fish-shaped pastry filled with something sweet like red bean or custard. And luckily, we found Naruto Taiyaki Honpo nearby where we grabbed a custard filled delicious fishy. We wish these were more commonly found back at home so we made sure to grab them when we saw them in Tokyo.

I was pretty convinced before our first trip to Japan that the teamLab museums were a bit of a gimmick full of Instagram photos for all the influencers. I was happy to say I was wrong and we had a great time. After being pleasantly surprised by our experience at the TeamLab Planets experience on our first trip to Toyko, I was happy to see that the sister location of TeamLab Borderless had reopened in its new space. We had time to visit on our short stay in Tokyo and I wanted to see if it lived up to the teamLab hype. With tickets still available, we grabbed them and made our way over to Azabudai Hills.

Read about our time at TeamLab Borderless and if it is worth the visit here!

We emerged from the museum to Tokyo lit up and decorated for the evening. We made our way back to Belken Hotel Kanda, so happy with what we were able to enjoy today and excited for the day ahead.

DAY 7

We took it easy this morning grabbing breakfast across the street at 7-Eleven and doing a round of laundry to refresh our wardrobe. Our first activity wasn’t until later in the morning so we were in no rush.

Since we had more time in Tokyo than we originally unexpectedly found ourselves, I searched for different options to explore and I stumbled across the Samurai Restaurant Time – a successor show that literally the same company in the same location as the Robot Restaurant opened in October 2023. I am so glad I found this as it was definitely not on my radar and we were ready to find out if it was a tourist trap.

Read about our experience at Samurai Restaurant Time and if it is worth a spot on your itinerary here!

On first trip to Tokyo, we were amazed by all the wellness and spa options but our jam packed itinerary did not have wiggle room for such luxuries. This was high on Kevin’s return to Japan list so I searched around for options and thought the new head spa trend I had seen would be a fun way to dip our toes. I made an appointment online for the two of us at Alice Head Spa where we were treated to quite an experience. The staff were so warm and welcoming, taking such good care of us during our head treatment. And our hair looked and felt incredible after! Highly recommend

With some time on our hands and fabulous hair, we wandered around more of Shinjuku before hopping on a train to Akiharbara where we bopped in and out of various game stores. The buildings in Tokyo are so fun and it is hard to not snap a photo at each turn.

And we picked up a few more snacks along the way – these delicious churros with milk ice cream and Pokemon taiyaki. It is hard to resist when walking past a place that sometimes you have to give in to curiosity and we thoroughly enjoyed both these sweet treats.

Ahead of our dinner plans, we set aside some time to explore Ginza – a neighborhood we did not get to see much of on our first Tokyo trip. Known as the shopping district, this is where the luxury brands are located and the buildings here are all advertisements for them. While we did not entertain any of the fancy stuff, we did sneak into a giant Uniqlo store and had a fun time shopping – budget friendly and tax free (do not forget your passport!).

I had no idea that Ginza is also home to Michelin star restaurants. While it certainly fits in with the vibes of Ginza, I was surprised to find out that many are classic french tasting menus. Did it feel strange to seek out a Michelin star restaurant that served French food in Tokyo? 100% it did but this cluster of restaurants that exists seems to be a secret from the tourists. And if you know us, we are all about a fine dining experience so we swapped the traditional Japanese fare to try to fancy side.

Read about our Michelin Star dining experience at Restaurant L’Affinage here!

What an absolutely incredible meal and fantastic day bouncing around Tokyo!

DAY 8

We had an early morning check out for the final leg of our trip – Tokyo Disney! On our first trip, we visited these parks as day trips but we loved them so much that we decided to go full in on a vacation package and stay at the resort. Needless to say, it was the perfect way to end our second visit to Japan.

What a amazing day and a half in Tokyo! I do not think we can get enough of this city and I know for every future trip to Japan, a stop in Tokyo will be a must. There is so much more to see and do that there is no amount of time that would cap the possibilities.

Continue reading all the details of our trip – here!

To see our full itinerary – here!

Read what to expect in Japan – here!

My complete packing list for Japan – here!

See all blog posts for Japan – here!