Tuesday, December 03, 2013 by Unknown

This high tech, high impact city is an endlessly exciting destination. One of the most livable and technologically advanced cities in the world, Tokyo fascinates in myriad ways. Juxtaposing the traditional against the futuristic, Tokyo is a true alpha city – economically forceful, culturally strong and progressive in arts and sciences. Sitting on Tokyo Bay on the island of Honshu, Tokyo prefecture has a population of 12 million. Divided into 23 special wards – each with its own distinct characteristics – Tokyo is linked by a hyper-efficient rail network. Most Tokyo hotels are within a few minutes' walk of a train station, if not two or three, so exploring the city via rail is easy to master, even for first-timers.Tokyo's most popular areas for travelers lie along the JR Yamanote train line. These include Shinjuku, Shibuya and Shinagawa, the latter of which is a major interchange and connects directly via rail to Narita Airport. Shinjuku is where much of Tokyo's business and administration takes place and as such offers a high concentration of executive class hotels, shops and noodle bars. By contrast, Shibuya is a vibrant shopping and nightlife area popular with the younger set. The main street buzzes with udon restaurants, fashion stores and cool bars, and the iconic Shibuya scramble crossing lies just outside the train station. Fashion-forward travelers head to Harajuku, where boutiques line narrow streets and costumed teens converge en masse. For something spiritual, the Meiji Shrine occupies a serene position in the middle of a 175-acre evergreen forest right next to Harajuku station. Another exciting stop on the Yamanote line is Akihabara – electric town. Here, shoppers can find block after block of cameras, notebooks, games consoles and phones. After dark, many travelers head to Roppongi , where embassies, clubs, malls and bars share territory. Owing to the amount of foreigners and diplomats here, a lot of its services are geared towards them, with a wide range of tastes and budgets catered for. Tokyo has two main airports – Haneda, which handles mostly domestic flights, and Narita, which lies around 60 kilometers from Tokyo city. Narita hotels are frequently used by travelers making quick stopovers, as Narita airport is one of the world's busiest hubs for air travel.

Tagged: japan, tokyo