Shinjuku Japan’s HIDDEN Gems Revealed

Shinjuku Japan’s HIDDEN Gems Revealed

All righty, fellow travelers. Welcome back to Adventures of a Traveling Dawn. And today we are continuing our series here in Japan and specifically in Tokyo. And today we’re going to be conquering the city of Shinjjuku. So this is a specific ward here in Tokyo, one of the more popular areas uh that and Shabuya. So we’ll do Shabuya in the next video. Today we conquer Shinjuku. If I can even conquer this station cuz we are in Shinjuku Station. This is the busiest station in the world. This is I think 3.5 million passengers come through here pretty much daily. And I have been basically walking around for 10 minutes. I still can’t find the exit. So, I’ll somehow get out of here. Otherwise, this video just will never come out. But anyway, let’s uh let’s explore Shinjuku. God, that took 20 minutes to get out of there. My lord, that station is absolutely massive. And it’s connected to so many different exits and entrances and there’s stores and shops. There’s everything you could think of down there. It’s just ridiculous how big that place is. I mean, it’s got to fit what, three and a half million people a day. Good lord. But anyway, we are heading up to the Tokyo Metro Plaza uh building behind me and uh we’re going to go see if we can get up to the top because I know that you can uh I think it’s free actually to get up there to the observation deck and see what we can see on this beautiful clear day. Okay, so we have made it to the top of the Tokyo Metropolitan Building and this building I believe it’s two different towers and they’re both had a stand about like 243 m high and the observatory is on the 45th floor and it’s about 202 m high and you can see on a clear day like this for miles there even it’s a bit hazy but way in the back there you You can see just kind of the outline of Mount Fuji. So, can’t get the whole picture just because uh the haze kind of starts right at the uh the end of what looks like the metro city, but even still, you can get just the barest glimpse of it and you get this fantastic sprawling view of Tokyo. It’s just absolutely massive. There’s two towers, so you can get different views from all different types of angles. And it’s free to come up here. You know, they’ve got a cafe, they’ve got a little store and stuff you can check out, but it is just fantastic. When you want to talk about something to do for free here in Tokyo, definitely come up to the Tokyo Metro uh building and come right on up to the 45th floor. So when you are done with the metropolitan building, come behind it to the Shinjjuko Chuo Park. And it is this beautiful sprawling little park that you’ve got waterfalls, you’ve got turtles, you’ve got paths to just walk through under the shade. Particularly on warm days like it still is today at the end of September. It is wild how warm it has been this far into the year. at least for me. You know, back in Texas, it’s still hot as well, but you know, I’m used to Alaska and Maine. But anyway, it is a fantastic park. Lots of trees, lots of shade. There is a fantastic shrine on the back end of it. They didn’t allow any um pictures or photos um or videos once I got inside the gate. So, I just got a couple shots from outside, but still definitely recommend checking that out. Um and it’s just it’s a great spot to kind of just come and relax when you’re in this part of Tokyo. Absolutely gorgeous. All right, so now we’ve made it to Kabuki Cho and this is basically the beating heart of Shinjuku. I mean, you just walk around, there is so much to see. You talk about a sensory overload. Kind of similar to like Shabuya. Maybe not on as grand a scale, but even still, it’s almost like a little bit more compact. It’s a little tighter. And it’s absolutely fantastic. Everywhere you look, there’s something to see, something to do. And of course, you got the big man himself up behind me, Godzilla. A citizen of Japan from what I’ve heard as well. He was offered citizenship years some years ago, I think. I can’t remember exactly what year, but anyway. Yeah, definitely. We’ll come back here later tonight to kind of see the nightlights of Kabukicho, but it’s just there’s just so much energy and vibe here. And I’m actually starting to get a a little hungry. So, let’s go find something to eat real quick. All right, so for the first spot for food, we are at Okubo Park. And this is basically just on the north side of that downtown area of Kabuki Kacho. It kind of gets away from the noise. Uh I’m sure during the night time this place probably lights up as well. Uh and it is just this small little park where they have a bunch of uh food vendors. And what you do is you go over to like a little ticket machine. You pick which kind of uh one that you want, the amount of tickets that you want, and then you take those tickets and you give them to each individual stall, whatever you want. Gyoza, karag, ramen, things like that. It’s all kind of like basic stuff, but I went ahead and got myself a nice little small thing of karag. They give you four pieces. Really nice looking. Oh, chicken. So tender, lightly battered, not too crazy for any extra additional topping. So, it’s like 700 yen for this. Uh, and then like every additional if you want to do any kind of sauces or toppings, it’s additional like 100 yen on top of that. But still, these nice little four pieces, a nice little snack for like 700 yen. Um, you you think maybe about like what, 450, five bucks. Not bad. So good. All right. So, the next part on our Shinjjuku tour is here in Shin Okubo, Korea Town. So, this is the Korea town of Shinjuku and I think maybe the biggest Korea town. I don’t know if there’s any other Korea town in Tokyo. In all honesty, I haven’t researched that. But if you are looking for great Korean food, this is where you want to come to. It’s just north of Kabuki Cho. I think the neighborhood is Hayokono Hayoku. something like that. Anyway, if you are looking for Korean food, this is the place to go. Particularly for me, I didn’t want anything meaty. I just had the karag, but I wanted something a little sweet and a little coffee. And this little kind of like side back alley place called Oopi Cafe was awesome. I got myself a nice iced coffee. It’s a little warm today. It’s just the pickme up I needed. And they’ve got desserts in there like crazy. Now, I think the one that does the biggest one that they’re known for is of course the crow, which um it’s not initially a South Korean dish, but I think it’s like an Irish chef or New York chef. There the history behind the crow is a little interesting, but it did become very popular in South Korea and then it went worldwide from there. So, it’s basically a croissant and a waffle kind of blended together. And then I got one with ice cream on top. They got several different types of flavors, but it is a cute cafe. Uh you can definitely get like there’s these huge like beautiful cheesecakes that you can get in there and then there is like a shaved ice mound with the cheesecake on top. I was like holy crap there’s a lot of sugar. So but anyway if you are if you got a sweet tooth cafe here in Korea Town in Shinjuku definitely worth checking out. Heat. Heat. N. So the next part of our Shinjjuku journey is heading east towards kind of like the east far end of Shinjjuku City, which you guys don’t realize how big some of these like actual cities within Tokyo City itself are. They’re absolutely massive. Most people stick to like Shinjuku, Golden Guy, all that stuff. But you want to start heading east and because there is that three three different spots here before we get to the far east part, which we’ll get to in just a moment. And that is Toyama Park, which is just kind of like this regular little uh shaded park. Uh, it’s got a nice kind of like winding streets through the forest and it does have a thing called Mount Hakone which I highly do recommend. Just it’s a small little climb. It’s not a very big mountain. It’s nowhere near as big as Mount Atago. But even still, it is fantastic. Definitely worth kind of like a stroll through. But the main thing is to go through it and you end up eventually here behind me is Ana Hachimangu Shrine and Temple as well as on the other side of it is Hojo Temple. And I do recommend stopping by and seeing both of those because they’re absolutely phenomenal. Hoji Temple is on the smaller side, but it’s the the way that it’s kind of like fenced in with all these beautiful trees and the way that they decorate it is phenomenal. And then Anahachimu is honestly looks wise is still is so far my favorite in Tokyo. even above the shrines at Tago Senzo G uh and Soju G like just the artwork the color scheme myself is kind of just what I like about it. Um I can’t get any I couldn’t get any videos or uh pictures inside the shrine but I do highly recommend because it’s absolutely gorgeous in there as well. I was very very impressed. So definitely Anahachimongu Shrine come and check it out. Hoji Temple right next to it and then take a walk through Toyama Park. That’s that’s that’s kind of nice little like hour right there. So for the next part of the Shinjjuku city tour, we have come to the very eastern side of Shinjjuku city and this is Kaguraka. And this is a blend of the modern and the history because when you come into these back alleys here, these have got still some of the old geisha houses I think from like uh the early 20th century, even in the 19th century. this I think um the main road when you’re out in Kagaraka was actually the furthest edge of I think Edo Castle at the time and uh these are just kind of like some of the old geisha houses that have been since turned into high-end restaurants. So if you’re coming here and you’re looking for kind of like a high-end meal a kiiseki style dinner and stuff like that I think this is where you want to go. I also saw like some really kind of like nice um wine bars and French style restaurants too. So definitely recommend if you’re coming here, come to the two different alleys. They’re both Yoko Cho alleys. You have uh Hyoko Yoko Cho and Kakurenbo Kakurenbu. It’ll be just flash right here. You can I’m still trying to trying to remember all of this stuff. But even still, it’s really kind of cool just going through these alleys and you see some of these old historical style Japanese buildings and houses that you really don’t get in most of Tokyo. So, it’s kind of why I’m looking forward to Kyoto, which will be in a couple of videos for me in a few days. I’m super excited about that. But when you want just a little taste of that here in Tokyo, come to Kaguraka on the east side of Shinjuku City. All right guys, so we have returned to downtown Shinjuku and we are here just outside of Omiode Alley and I highly recommend if you’re looking for some quick bites. Definitely check this out. It is a little touristy nowadays and it is a little bit more expensive than you probably would find in places like Ginsa or any other kind of small alley areas or Yakitori stands away from kind of the tourist districts like Shinjuku. But even still, it’s a very kind of cool experience. You walk down the alley, it’s beautifully lit, it looks awesome. You have all these different stalls that you can pop in and out of and get yaktori and beer and all other different types of snacks and finger foods. It is absolutely phenomenal. I love just kind of the whole look to it. So, this is one alley and now let’s go check out the other one and that is of course the famous Golden Guy. You damn you down. Okay. So now if Omoid is the food Yakuri scene of Shinjuku, then Golden Guy is the alcohol and drinking. And it’s it’s grungier. It’s dirtier, but at the same time, it’s got an awesome vibe to it. You wander the alleys. to one of the little streets. You just dip in and out of every bar. Now, something that you need to know when you go into these bars, some of them charge a cover charge for you to sit down. Usually, it’s anywhere from 500 to a,000 yen. Others have no charge. Now, in some cases, it almost kind of evens out because I’ve noticed a lot of the places that have a charge, their base drinks are a little bit cheaper. That’s not if you go premium, but if you’re getting like the base drink of a beer, um, or even like a whiskey, I’ve seen some of them say whiskey for, you know, 700 yen. The one that I went into that was no charge was about a,000 yen. So, I still kind of came out on top compared to the place that said 700 yen because their cover charge was 500. But it is one of those things to kind of note. And some of them will say English. Okay. Um, I didn’t see anything, but I can’t read Japanese properly. Uh, that said Japan only. I don’t think in Golden Guy that’s necessarily a big thing, but it is something you want to be aware of when it comes to the cover charges and the prices. you know, it’s going to be a little bit more expensive in Golden Guy because it has become a tourist thing. Um, compared to probably just a local bar in wherever you’re staying at, you can probably get for a little bit cheaper. But even still, it’s an experience. It’s fun just to kind of walk and you meet a bunch of people from not just Japan, but all over the country because or all over the world because so many people come here just because it is a tourist destination. So definitely when you’re in Shinjuku, check out Golden Guy just for the experience cuz it’s a lot of fun. All right, travels. This is going to be the end of the Shinjjuku video. There is a lot more to Shinjuku than I thought. You know, most people think of like Golden Guy and kind of like this Kabuk Cho district, but there is so much more to Shinjuku City as a whole and all the different neighborhoods that you want to check out. And I barely scratched the surface. There is so much more to see here in Shinjuku. But I am out of time for today and I’ve got to get set up for of course the Shabuya shoot tomorrow. But boy oh boy, this was a lot of fun. Honestly, I really enjoyed the night life here. I definitely want to come back and really particularly Golden Guy. Like just meeting random random people there was a lot of fun getting to talk to him. That was awesome. And those temples on the east side. Uh that was wow. There was a lot more here than I thought there was and it is very very impressive. So all right guys, well if you enjoyed the video, give of course big old thumbs up and of course subscribe to the channel if you haven’t already. hit that notification bell so when you know any of the new content comes up. And of course, I’ve got a lot of great stuff coming for you guys. If you guys want to help uh with the uh content, I do have a Patreon page and a buy me a coffee account. You will, of course, get exclusive merch when you become and sign up as a Patreon. But until we meet again, guys, peace out. Have a great night.

Welcome to Shinjuku Japan! Known as one of the busiest parts of Tokyo. Staring with the iconic Shinjuku Station. Over 3.5 million people use Shinjuku Station a day. Making this the busiest train station in the World.

From Shinjuku Station we head over to the Tokyo Metropolitan Building and head up 40 floors to get amazing bird eye views of Tokyo. The best part about is that those views are free!!

Afterwards we will walk through some of the peaceful parks of Shinjuku, grab some Korean Food in Korea Town and explore some hidden Japanese Temples and Shrines away from the center of Shinjuku.

To finish off the tour we head back to Kabukicho, the beating heart of Japanese night life. Yakitori in Omoide Memory Alley and drinks at the iconic Golden alleys. This is an immersive travel guide to one of the best parts of Tokyo Japan.
——————————————————————————————————————-
For early access to my videos along with exclusive Travel Don merch, become a member at: https://www.patreon.com/c/AdventuresofaTravelingDon
——————————————————————————————————————–
You can also support the channel at: https://buymeacoffee.com/traveldon
——————————————————————————————————————–
Looking for a place to stay in Tokyo? Sign up at Plannin for recommendations and travel guides from fellow travel content creators: https://plannin.com/en/profile/TravelingDon?refId=TravelingDon
——————————————————————————————————————-
Chapters:
0:00 – Intro Lost In Shinjuku Station
2:06 – Tokyo Metropolitan Building
4:57 – Kabukicho and Godzilla Statue
7:07 – Korea Town
9:05 – Hidden Temples a Parks
11:55- The Geisha Houses of Kagurazaka
13:42 – Shinjuku Night Life