01
Tokyo Station
Go underground and explore the tunnels. Some of our best food discoveries came from simply wandering and seeing what looked good.
THE JOURNEY
Tokyo is best discovered on foot.
We loved Tokyo. More than anything, we loved walking it. We covered a serious number of miles, moving between neighbourhoods, parks and temples and constantly finding something that made us want to stop and look.
Some of our favourite moments were the simplest ones — finding somewhere to eat in the tunnels beneath Tokyo Station, wandering through the streets around Cat Street or just heading into another park to escape the pace of the city for a while.
Then we headed out towards Mount Fuji and stayed at Lake Yamanaka. The change of pace was fantastic: woodland, the mountain right in front of us and an outdoor onsen where we could sit in the hot water surrounded by trees.
TOKYO
Walk until you get lost.
BEST TIME
Spring & autumn
Tokyo is fantastic to explore on foot, particularly when the weather is comfortable for long days wandering around the city.
GETTING AROUND
Walk & train
We walked huge distances around Tokyo and used the train network when we needed to cover more ground. The combination worked brilliantly.
BEYOND TOKYO
Lake Yamanaka
Heading out to Lake Yamanaka brought a completely different pace, with Mount Fuji, woodland and outdoor onsens.
OUR RECOMMENDATIONS
Places worth knowing.
02
Cat Street
A great area to wander around for shopping, people watching and taking a break from the larger avenues.
03
Tokyo's parks
Make time for them. After miles of city streets, the parks provide a welcome change of pace.
04
The temples
We enjoyed finding some of Tokyo's temples along the way rather than trying to turn the whole trip into a checklist.
05
The Oak Door
A good restaurant at the Hyatt and one of the places we'd happily return to.
06
Lake Yamanaka
The perfect contrast to Tokyo, particularly when Mount Fuji is right there in front of you.
OUR EDIT
Slow down at Lake Yamanaka.
The Marriott at Lake Yamanaka was a really good contrast to Tokyo. The setting among the woodland made it feel peaceful, while Mount Fuji was close enough to feel like part of the experience rather than simply something we'd gone to photograph.
The outdoor onsen was a particular highlight. Sitting in the hot water outside, surrounded by forest, was exactly what we wanted after spending days walking around Tokyo.
We also really enjoyed the journey back to Tokyo by train. After the quiet of the lake, watching the landscape change as we headed back into the city was a great way to finish that part of the trip.
MORE FROM OUR CAMERA
More from Japan.
OUR MAP
Japan.
Tokyo and Lake Yamanaka — two very different sides of Japan that worked brilliantly together.