Where to Stay in Tokyo ๐๐พ Japan – 2025
A guide to the major places to stay in Tokyo, with pros and cons so you can decide which is best for you. Plus areas to avoid, and how to choose a hotel.
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There are so many options for places to stay in Tokyo! There’s not just one city centre / downtown area, but several. In this video I’ll cover busy, fun places to stay and more chilled, quieter neighbourhoods, so you can pick one that’s right for you. There are many great options, including hectic Shinjuku and Shibuya, more central areas like Tokyo Station and Akasaka, Odaiba in Tokyo Bay and older districts like Ueno and Asakusa. I’ll cover hotel prices, how well connected they are on the train and the benefits of each neighbourhood, in terms of how close they are to tourist attractions. I’ll also give my take on Kabukicho, which many people say is the dangerous area of Tokyo, and whether it’s safe to stay there. At the end, I’ll cover how I choose a hotel in Japan.
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00:00 Intro
00:33 Shinjuku
02:30 Shibuya
03:27 Ikebukuro
0.:58 Tokyo Station
05:36 Shimbashi & Shiodome
06:17 Ueno & Asakusa
07:29 Akasaka
08:11 Odaiba
10:10 Where not to stay
10:33 Are there unsafe areas?
11:06 What about (this random area)?
11:45 How to choose a hotel
#tokyo #japan #japantravel
35 Comments
I can recommend staying at Asakusabashi. Akihabara and Asakusa are in walkable distance. You can even spend a nice whole day by walking this route: Asakusabashi -> Asakusa -> Kappabashi -> Ueno -> Ameyoko -> Akihabara -> Asakusabashi. I did it once and it was awesome ๐
If you want to save time, Akihabara is just 1 stop from Asakusabashi Station.
I always try to stay around the Shimbashi/Hamamatsucho areas. Close to the yamanote line.
My go to is always Shinjuku. Easy to navigate, close to train stations, surrounded by convenience stores.
My least favourite place to stay is Shinjuku because the station is so huge, overwhelming and confusing to navigate period I love staying in the Akasaka area at the Hotel Risveglio Akasaka.
I recommend southern Shinjuku, bordering Yoyogi. Itโs very handy to get everywhere, only a few mins from both Shinjuku and Yoyogi stations (Iโd sometimes opt to take a train from Yoyogi instead of walking to the other side of Shinjuku station – handy) and next to all the main malls like Lumine1 and Takashimaya. Loved it. Also short distance from Meiji Jingu.
I found something in Asakusabashi near Akihabara, not the best spot but fairly cheap. The thing is to find hotels with separate beds is not easy^^
Shinjuku area for me because of its connection to the airport train, walking distance, cheaper hotel, and 24 hours alive
As if this video just got posted? I was just looking for a video of tokio neighbourhoods.
Akihabara?
You can add all hotel you are interested in on booking
Then enter data, now you can follow the price
I did that and saved money in Nagonoya
Or kayak, you get notification about price change
Highly recommend Shimo Kitazawa as well. Lovely area
Weโll be staying in Chiyoda as it was rather central to all the things we want to do. Looking forward to to my trip in fall!
I always stay a couple of weeks in Akihabara and a couple of weeks in Ikebukuro.
But really any hotel really close to a station on the Yamanote line works.
Your best point is that everyone has different priorities. I completely agree. I personally refuse to stay in the main areas as someone who doesn't drink and doesn't care about nightlife. I stayed in Toyosu (near Odaiba) twice and I loved it. I also stayed near the Skytree once, you're right that it was a bit far from western Tokyo but I didn't think it was too bad. Close to Asakusa and has its own train line from Narita. Also somewhat helpful if you plan to do trips north to places like Nikko.
Great video as always! ๐
Iโve got my CWF Tokyo Trip Planning Decks sorted and ready for my first visit to Japan in May!!!
I know you haven't recommended staying East of the river but we have stayed in Kinshicho and intend on staying there again. Yes its not totally central but like any major city it is well connected and easy to get to from both airports. We are self catering as we have a child who has a dairy allergy so need to be able to cater for ourselves at time and Kinshicho has 3 great supermarkets. It also has great malls and is an area we love to explore. Its only 13 minutes to Akihabara, 16 mins to Ueno, 16 minutes to Jimbocho, 16 mins to Asakusa 30 mins to Harajuku and 30 mins to Shinjuku and you can walk to the Skytree. Yes other places over in the west take a bit longer to get to like Mitaka, Setagaya and Kichjoji but it never feels that long. I guess it's just about preference and we like it out east! ๐
We are on our last night of a 3 week adventure around Japan. It has been AMAZING and we have found your guide book and the many videos so helpful. For our 2 x 3 night stays in Tokyo we settled on Shinjuku as our area to stay in and found a fabulous hotel called the JR Kyushu Blossom hotel, it maybe a little expensive ยฃ275 – ยฃ300 per night but it is conveniently located for Shinjuku station, the shops and bars, but also in a quieter street so no issues with noise, etc. itโs also very close to one of the best breakfast joints – EggSlut!
Can I also thank you so much for the detailed description of how to navigate Tokyo,s rail system. I was extremely nervous on first entering Shinjuku station but once youโve acclimatised (if you ever truly do!) to the sheer number of people and understand the Yamanote Line is everyoneโs friend, itโs easy and by day 2 my wife and I were zipping to and fro across the city on all networks – we even forgot to check in once on local line after riding Shinkansen to Odawara (for mandatory Mt Fuji photo at Hakane-Yumoto) but it was no issue as we went to helpful people at information desk by ticket gates, explained what happened and they let us pass for free๐
Thanks so much for all your help and weโll definitely be back!
Mark & Lindsey, Wirral, UK.
I second Akasaka. Although it's a little kind of business orientated, it's super convenient and has a great little downtown area. I'd stay closer to akasaka-mitsuke over akasaka station.
Needing to be on Yamanote is a bit overrated. Great if you're new to Tokyo and the system confuses you I suppose. I'd also recommend staying near Kayabacho/Hatchobori if you want something a little more low key and less costly.
just finished a stay at hotel kazusaya in Chuo city. sort of near ginza and 5 min from Akihabara…the hotel was beautiful and had a lovely onsen. I recommend it, very quiet place to stay. I prefer a more quiet location in the city than someplace like shinjuku in the middle of it. I can go to the city but then I cxan also relax and leave when I'm done lol. It's about a 9 minute walk to Kanda station which will take you anywhere. I always pick my hotels by how close they are to the station.
Please let tourists know that Green Cars have been introduced on the Chuo Line.
Perfect timing, my sister and I are planning our first trip! ๐
I was thinking of making a hotel near Hamamatsucho Station my base. It's only 20 minutes away from Haneda Airport and three stops to Tokyo Station. I want to try day tours out of Tokyo advertised on Klook (like to Karuizawa and Ashikaga Park) and most of the pick-up points are at Tokyo Station. Also, Odaiba is reachable easily from Shimbashi Station, which is the next stop to Hamamatsucho.
Kabukicho is my home away from home.
We stayed in Shibuya pre covid. Met Hachiko early in the morning when no one else was around โค BUT overall it was too busy during commute times for my liking. We got on a train where people were all squished in just like the viral videos. It was crazy! ๐ ๐
We are trying Asakusa next month. The river side hotel sold me. Iโm guessing it will also be busy but Iโm hoping Iโm a better planner this time around. Thank you again for the great videos. My personal favorite for Japan planning.
Great timing, I'm preparing for my autumn trip. Currently booked in Kanda since the hotel is literally 5 minutes away from the station and just a short walk away from Tokyo Station so seemed practical.
My standard trip to Japan involves two stays in Tokyo one at the beginning and one at the end. I tend to stay in Asakusa in the first part, it's great for walking around at odd hours when your jetlagged, and good if you want something a little quieter in the evening. The last stay is in Shinjuku because it's so well connected and so much going on in the evening.
I don't think many people will suggest this, but I think Tamachi and Kanda are great areas to stay as well, if you are looking for a quieter neighborhood and in my experience, more affordable room rates. Tamachi has both JR and Asakusa metro line, also connection to Odaiba with the Rainbow Bus; Kanda has Chuo rapid line for Shinjuku/Nakano, and just one stop from Central Tokyo & Akihabara – great for anime & gaming fans.
I'll let you know how the &Here Shinjuku is after my trip later this year ๐ Last time I stayed in Akiba, but I find it a bit "quiet" at night with not many good choices of places to eat. The hotel was right on the station with amazing views, but such a small room ๐
I did consider Ikebukuro because it's slightly cheaper and the upcoming anime fan area, but I really wanted to try staying in Shinjuku for once.
I like to say in Asakusa. Itโs has Uniqlo and Don Quixote for any forgotten items. Thereโs lots of good restaurants. But what cliches it for me id thereโs several hotels with traditional Japanese style rooms.
Great video as always, thank you Amy. Personally, I like to stay in Nishi-Shinjuku. Its quiet, and there is a subway station just opposite the hotel. And within 10 walking minutes, you are in Kabukicho, for plenty of restaurants, bars, shops, big lights etc. It hits all boxes for me.
Hello, I am planning to go to Japan next month and have recently purchased your very helpful and informative guide to better understand everything about the trip. Though Iโve chosen to book a hostel in Ryogoku, the area of sumo even though you donโt recommend staying east of the river lol
Stayed in Akihabara both times Iโve been to Tokyo and zero regrets, as you mentioned itโs on the Yamanote and Chuo lines as well as the subway so it felt super connected. Only downside was thereโs a bunch of lovely places out west in the Setagaya area that are a bit far to get to but itโs very doable. Shout out to Uguisadani too! It might have been cos it was early Sunday morning and the sun was shining but I found it the back alleys with all the love hotels kinda charming, and it was just what we needed after a 14 hour flight and still about 6 hours til we could check into the hotel, a nice warm bubble bath and a couple hours sleep to recharge in a ridiculously garish tropical island themed bedroom lol
I stayed in Citadines Aparthotels in Shinjuku in 2017 and really enjoyed it! Was around a 15 minute walk from the station so it was nice and quiet but still close to all the action. Quite big rooms for a Japanese hotel too with a mini kitchen!
Also, thank you for signing my book! It was a gift from my parents ๐
We loved our hotel in Shibuya on the south of the Shibuya Sakura Stage side! It was very convenient for us to get to the areas we preferred. Since it was low season, we didn't find the crowds to be as overwhelming. The only thing we didn't expect was all the construction at Shibuya station near Hachiko Square
Weโre currently in a bnb in Shinjuku and weโre loving it. Proximity to restaurants and lines to major attractions is really good. Recommended ๐
Thanks Amy!