Week 16 is Holy Week and we spent it in Tokyo, Japan. The land of the rising sun has easily become one of my favorite countries because of well, everything! From people, to food, to its culture. I simply love Japan!
Though we like traveling, my husband Mr. JG & I were never the type who creates a jam-packed itinerary especially when we travel with our kids. I guess we just want to take a break from our daily-life that is scheduled by the hour. After all, this is the reason we go on a vacation!
Our fave travel buddies. These little humans make it more fun to see difference places around the world.
We were in Tokyo for 10 days and we stayed at Shinjuku area. On our first day, we took it easy and just went around to get a feel of the neighborhood. Thankfully, Mr. JG booked The Knot hotel which has Shinjuku park right across. Here’s our first photo on our first day. Still a few cherry blossoms left. Shinjuku Chou Park has a small museum and a big play area. It was perfect since our kids have been craving for more outdoor time. We went to the park almost everyday since it was just a stone’s throw away from our hotel.
Sharing with you all what activities and attractions we went to during our week long stay in Tokyo.
The next day we went to Asakusa to have our family photos taken. See the photo diary HERE.
Preserving memories and moments with our kids. So maybe I’ll be hiring a photographer every now and then whenever we visit another country.
Glad we were able to catch some cherry blossom.
Though initially I wanted to shoot at the famous Shibuya crossing, we decided to stay at Asakusa area instead. Good thing there was a pedestrian crossing right across Asakusa temple.
If you’re planning on exploring Asakusa, you can check out Tsukiji Outer Market, Asakusa and Bay Cruis tour offered by Traveloka. I wanted to go to Tsukiji but I know my kids would find it very boring to go around the market, knowing they wouldn’t be able to eat most of the food offered there. So this is on my itinerary the next time I go back to Tokyo.
After our shoot we went around Asakusa and found ourselves having coffee at a cat cafe.
This cutie was a clingy one!
We’re not cat people but we enjoyed our time at the cat cafe.
We love Japan’s railway system. Though it can be intimidating at first, figuring out the lines & stations was easy. Quick tip: if you’re traveling with kids, it’s best to stay at a hotel that is near a station. Also approach a staff before buying tickets, I think kids below 5 or 4 are free of charge. And if you’re certain that you’ll be using JR line for your Japan stay for a week, you can save by purchasing the Japan Rail Pass prior to visiting Japan.
We ended the day exploring Sumida City. We saw the Tokyo Skytree just right outside the station but we didn’t go all the way up to the Skytree because we wanted to shop around. If you’re planning to go to Tokyo Skytree there are discounted tickets you can purchase prior to your trip.
We went around Tokyo Solamachi, it’s got about 300 stores–an afternoon isn’t enough to visit each store. We capped off our day having dinner here and then we went to the roof top to check Tokyo Skytree again.
Another day subway surfing! Heehee. My kids love riding the train. They wish we have an efficient train system like of Japan back here in Manila. Quick tip: Download Google Maps to make navigating around Tokyo easier.
This time we went around Shibuya. All we ever did was shop and eat. We did get to see Hachiko’s statue & experience the famous Shibuya crossing which I caught on video (hopefully I can edit our Tokyo vlog soon!). I’ll also share all the food & fun finds I have of Tokyo on a separate post because andami guys!
The random things we see in Tokyo. I love it.
The next day we went to have fun at DisneySea. We didn’t go to Disneyland na because we’re more interested to explore DisneySea. Quick tip: purchase passes with a bus ride so you won’t have to worry about commuting.
We were at DisneySea when it opened at 9 in the morning. We were able to secure fast passes which had specific times per attraction so you can enjoy other attractions instead of wasting time lining up. We were able to ride four rides before lunch. Some rides, we only had to queue for 5 minutes.
Quick tip: the moment you enter DisneySea go to the attraction that you want to experience, get fast pass and then line up to another attraction. Just go to the fast past counter and scan your ticket.
One of the highlights of our DisneySea visit was the Fantasmic show. We stayed until 8 in the evening to catch it. It was one of the best Disney shows we’ve watched. Best to check the DisneySea show schedule so you can plan your visit.
The next day we went to Ueno Park, Ueno Zoo and ended our day at Harajuku.
Ueno Zoo is the oldest zoo in Japan. Different animals live there and we were able to leisurely tour the zoo. Click my Instagram post to see some photos and videos of our day there.
Harajuku is a fashion scene. This strip has a handful of vintage stores, cute and quirky shops as well as food . We went around to checkout the scene and the street art abundant in the area.
We had dinner at the famous Harajuko Gyozaro. We line up for almost an hour and let me tell you it was worth it. Posting more of our gyoza experience on another post together with our other food finds.
130894 reason why we love Japan. The Japanese are very polite and good mannered.
The JR Shinjuku Station is where we rode the bus going to Gotemba Premium outlets. We spent an entire day there because we want to shop for bargain items! Heehee. Quick tip: the premium outlet is near Mt. Fuji so if you wanna see this beauty you can book for a tour of Mt. Fujim Onsen Hot Springs and Gotemba in one day.
My “I’m ready to shop mode” as capture by my 6 year old son Juro. Heehee.
I also saw my sister at Gotemba who was also visiting Japan. We rarely see each other in Manila because of how busy we are as moms. I really think shopping can bring people together. Teehee.
Quick tip: There’s a discount flyer on the bus plus a map, get it! You get additional discounts on select stores. Also ask the staff for their ongoing promos. Some stores give additional discounts when you buy two items. Other just like to top off discounted prices just because. Another quick tip. If you’re really planning on shopping, best to bring a luggage with you so you won’t have to lug around all the shopping bags or if you’re interested there are luggage brands on sale there too.
I bought mostly clothes for the kids because they’re really on huge discounts. I also was able to get their all white PE rubber shoes there. I gotta say it was a productive day of shopping as I crossed out most of the things I need to get the kids.
Reason number 3978524 why I love Japan, they have the prettiest manhole covers.
We took a break from all the shopping & took easy the next day. We stayed around Shibuya and ended up checking a Dog Cafe. Eventually we decided to have a dog and walk him around Yoyogi Park. Our dog Ohagi was one active dog and he wanted to run around most of the time, so I was able to squeeze in a few minutes of run with him. It was such a fun day out at the park.
If you wanna take a break from all the walking and train ride, you can op to for a rickshaw ride.. You can pre-book your rickshaw ticket as part of your itinerary.
Another area we went to is Marunochi, Chiyoda. It’s one of Japan’s most prestigious business districts. It’s in between the Imperial Palace and Tokyo station–the oldest train station in Japan. The area also boasts of luxury stores and the station itself has its own department store–Daimaru! The area gives an timeless vibe but at the same time amazed to cope up with modern times.
Reasnon number 2354687 why I love Japan, I can leave my kids in a public area and not worry about something bad happening to them. Here they are doodling and entertaining themselves while I shop right across the street.
Mandatory touristy shot with my firstborn at Marunochi, Tokyo. There’s still a handful of areas around Tokyo that we haven’t explored but I’m glad we were able to tick some off our list. Traveling is really something that my family & I love to do and so we love getting good deals be it airfare, accomodation or tours. We definitely love checking out deals online and one of the sites we visit is Traveloka. They’ve got tons of deals from airfare, to hotel and even activities you can do in your chosen destination whether local or international. For more information visit Traveloka.
Tokyo, thank you for the wonderful week! We’ll definitely be back!
This post is in partnership with Traveloka. However thoughts and opinions are purely my own.
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