Tokyo is so unfathomably large, each district could be a separate city. Ueno is one of the most unique of the bunch: spread out around a huge park of the same name, it offers an interesting mix of top museums, bustling street markets and a few authentic old-fashioned neighbourhoods where life flows at a much slower pace. Trot Op! went for a walk and visited Ueno’s main sights and attractions.
Ueno is located north of central Tokyo, and is a district with two distinct faces. Just like nearby Asakusa (read my article here) it’s part of what is called the shitamachi or the “lower city”. This is an older part of the Japanese capital, with less high-rises than the glitzy business districts in the city centre and with a bit more authenticity. None of this is noticeable in any way whatsoever when you walk out of Ueno Station. This is one of the city’s busier train stations, and one of only two serving as a stop for the Narita Express to the airport. The station area is hectic and – shitamachi be damned – there’s plenty of tall, flashy buildings around. This busyness disappears almost completely as soon as you enter Ueno Park. This is Ueno’s main focal point, and one of the most cherished parks in Tokyo. The whole neighbourhood seems to use it to let off some steam, especially on weekends. This is quite understandable. Ueno Park is full of cultural attractions: several beautiful temples, the country’s oldest zoo and the highest concentration of top museums in the whole of Japan. If you have the time, you could easily spend a whole day in the park, but there’s plenty of stuff to do a bit further away as well.
Tokyo: Discover Ueno and Yanaka in 11 sights and attractions
Ueno’s pleasant mix of culture, history and nature has been attracting alternative and wealthy Tokyoites for years. It’s a good place to live, especially in the residential areas where it’s still actually quiet. Yanaka, for example, is a neighbourhood located in the north of Ueno: one of the few parts of Tokyo that came out of WWII almost unscathed. As a result, many old buildings were preserved, giving it a nice nostalgic vibe. Today it’s a charmingly old-fashioned looking hipster quarter with cosy streets full of local shops, cafes and small galleries. Yanaka is a hub for artists and craftsmen, with a few places offering workshops you can join. It’s a part of Tokyo that strangely feels like a village where people still seem to actually know each other: a small oasis of calm in the world’s largest city. Moreover – and this is probably the best thing – it’s somehow packed with cats. This alone demands a visit, but let’s first take a look at Ueno’s main attractions.
1. Ueno Park: a park full of temples and museums
Ueno Park is a fantastic place for avid people-spotters. Families having a picknick, uniformed school children crumbling under their giant backpacks, pink kawaii girls posing under the trees, various street performers: you’ll see them all. If you visit Tokyo in spring, Ueno Park will be one of the most spectacular locations to see the cherry blossoms – which of course means it’ll be a lot busier too. The entire park used to be owned by the Kaneiji Temple. This was one of main religious powerhouses in Japan during the Tokugawa shogunate. This influence is obviously non-existent today, but the temple still stands tall and its five-story pagoda is quite the sight. Another beautiful place of worship is Toshogu Shrine, which comes with an artfully decorated main hall almost entirely covered in gold leaf. One last interesting temple in Ueno Park is Bentendo, located on an island in a pond full of lotus flowers (unfortunately they were already wilted when I got here: come earlier in the year if you want to see them). You could easily walk through Ueno Park for a couple of hours without seeing anything twice. You’ll have to buy a ticket for its biggest attractions though.
2. Tokyo National Museum: Japan’s most important historical treasury
Tokyo National Museum is Japan’s oldest and largest museum, with a collection of over 120,000 artifacts and artworks covering thousands of years of Japanese and Asian history. Because putting everything on display at the same time would be literally impossible, they mix it up with the seasons and you’ll always see something new on every visit. The museum is a huge complex consisting of several galleries in six different buildings (some of which are now protected monuments themselves). Everything is located in a beautiful Japanese garden home to several historic tea houses. These were carefully deconstructed elsewhere in the country to be rebuilt here for posterity. The Japanese Gallery in the Honkan building is the most famous exhibition. Here you can see, among other things, 13,000-year-old primeval art, early Buddhist statues, original samurai armours and all kinds of classical and decorative art on canvas or on old folding screens. If you want to check out everything thoroughly, you’ll probably have to spend the whole day here.
3. Other museums in Ueno Park
Tokyo National Museum is not the only superb museum in Ueno Park. On a city trip you’ll probably never visit all of them – it can only rain that many days in a row – but with this overview you’ll at least know what’s on offer.
–National Museum of Nature and Science: huge science museum in an eclectic building from the 1930s. In it, you’ll learn everything about Japanese ecosystems; there’s an exhibition on robots and space technology; you can admire a whole herd of stuffed animals and there are several dinosaur skeletons on display, with a large plesiosaur (technically not a dino) perhaps being the most unique.
–Metropolitan Art Museum: museum of modern art, where both Japanese and international artists are exhibited. The permanent collection is not that big, so almost all exhibitions are temporary which means there’s always something completely new to discover.
–National Museum of Western Art: in this museum, in a somewhat brutish-looking building designed by Le Corbusier and now a World Heritage site itself, you can see plenty of art by some of the greatest European masters. Van Gogh, Renoir, Monet, Rodin: the list is long.
4. Ueno Zoo: go look at some panda’s (but beware)
Ueno Park has a zoo as well, and it’s the oldest in Japan. A ticket for Ueno Zoo costs a ridiculous 600 yen (just under €4), and because they have a couple of giant pandas and I’d never seen one in real life, I decided to go and take a look. Two hours later I found myself back outside with mixed feelings. The zoo itself is quite spacious and has a few unique residents you rarely get to see: Japanese giant salamanders and shoebill storks that look like demonic dinos for example (all birds are – unlike plesiosaurs – now considered dinosaurs by the way, so they never actually went extinct). Sadly you can really tell this zoo is ancient. Some enclosures are alright, but several offer far too little space or stimuli, which causes some of the larger animals to pace neurotically – something you don’t see in a modern zoo. Maybe – you know – ask 1.200 yen for a ticket instead and build some larger and more natural enclosures with the spare change. The panda enclosure was fine for what they need (but a fat lazy bear spending 16 hours a day on its ass munching bamboo doesn’t really need that much). Unfortunately the pandas are what everybody wants to see, which means you’ll have to queue up to get a glimpse. This took me twenty minutes on a wet Tuesday morning. On a Sunday in summer I’d probably pass.
5. Ameya Yokocho: a lively street market under the train tracks
Right next to the station, you’ll find Ueno’s most photogenic attraction (as far as I’m concerned). Ameya Yokocho – often abbreviated to Ameyoko – is one of the most vibrant street markets in Tokyo. Originally Ameyoko was founded as a black market after WWII, where everything that wasn’t available during the war was sold under the table. Nowadays it spreads out for over half a kilometre next to and even under the Yamanote line railway bridge, and there are more than 400 stalls and shops to be visited. During the day, people mainly come here to do their shopping, but after dark it gets more interesting. This is when the bars and izakaya start filling up with salarymen looking for some after-hours boozing. These bars are sometimes located right under the tracks, which means your beer will almost rattle off the counter every time a train passes above. Wonderful place for an eventful evening full of exotic snacks and atmospheric pictures. The weebs among you will find their own little treasure trove nearby. Yamashiroya is a huge store full of anime and action figures of all shapes and sizes.
6. Nezu Shrine: Tokyo’s (mini) Fushimi Inari
A fifteen minute walk from Ueno Park you’ll find Nezu Shrine. This is a true hidden gem, located in a secluded garden with a koi pond. The shrine was built around the year 1700, making it one of the oldest in Tokyo. In Japan, a shrine is not a temple by the way. Temples are Buddhist; shrines serve the indigenous Shintoism: an ancient faith revering the Kami. These are a myriad of natural forces, spirits and ancestors that can both help and thwart you in life (apparently there are about eight million of them, so a making a bit of a selection is in order). These two religions are not in conflict with each other, and many Japanese people combine traditions and customs of both depending on the situation. You enter each Shinto shrine through its distinctive torii gate, indicating the boundary between the mundane and the sacred. Nezu Shrine – just like the famous Fushimi Inari in Kyoto – has a lot of these gates, and together they make for a photogenic little tunnel running up a hill. Of course there are not as many as in Kyoto but there’s about a million fewer tourists as well. This means you can usually enjoy the scenery in peace. This changes briefly in April when the azalea festival is celebrated and the whole garden is in bloom. The central hall is worth a visit as well, and is apparently used to pray for academic success. Students who flunked their exams know where to book their next holiday. Beautiful little find, and not to be missed in my opinion.
7. Yanaka Ginza: an atmospheric shopping street full of cats
*It was raining really badly guys: I’m not a magician.
Yanaka Ginza is the central and most lively shopping street in Yanaka. It’s close to the metro station, and you get there via the Sunset Stairs: a concrete staircase where you can take very nice pictures at sunset (not when the weather is as shitty as when I was there though). Yanaka is known as “Cat Town”. This is because there are usually whole gangs of stray cats roaming around, which are often fed and cared for by the local residents. I didn’t see a single one though, but I guess the rain had something to do with that. Cats are everywhere in the local shops though, be it in a more symbolic way. Just about every place offers something cat-related: from cat tail donuts (not real tails, don’t worry) in Yanaka Shippoya and cat cakes in Manekiya to an abundance of cat figurines and other items in Yanaka Ginza’s other shops. Café Nekoemon is a little further away. Here you can order cat desserts to go with your coffee, and you can paint a maneki-neko (waving kitten) while you drink it. Even stranger is Nen-nekoya: a chaotic “cat hostel” where the owner’s cats roam free and almost all the food is cat-shaped. Nyan curry (literally “meow curry”) is the most popular dish, and it looks endearing in the best possible way.
8. Yanaka Reien: find peace (and more cats) in a Japanese cemetery
Yanaka Reien is a vast cemetery that – surprise! – is located in the middle of Yanaka. Interesting place to visit, even if only to see how different (but recognizable) Japanese graveyards are compared to their Western equivalent. The tombstones here are rectangular pillars, often with a couple of sotoba next to them. These are wooden planks covered in Buddhist texts and the deceased’s name written in calligraphy. Many graves serve the whole family, and have room for water, flowers and incense. Some even have food on them – usually things the occupants liked to eat when they weren’t dead yet. Of all the cemeteries in Tokyo, Yanaka Reien is one of the largest. It’s the final resting place of several writers and samurai, and even the very last Shogun is buried here (in a surprisingly modest grave). You’re basically walking through a living (well…) museum. In spring, the dead rest under vibrant cherry blossoms, which gives the whole place a surreal touch. The cemetery is also where you have the best chance of encountering some of the local cats. They’re usually lounging on the graves like lazy guardian angels. They probably just like the warmth of the sun on the stones.
9. Yaridogi Café: an ethical cat cafe
Most Tokyoites live in tiny apartments with no room for a pet bigger than a dwarf hamster. As a result, Tokyo is bursting with animal cafes, where they compensate this lack of companionship by playing with some puppies for an hour. Cat and dog cafes are everywhere, but it doesn’t stop there. Tokyo also has cafés full of micropigs, owls, hedgehogs, iguanas, cockatoos, desert foxes, chameleons, snakes, otters, penguins (yup) and in at least one case even fully-grown capybaras. This all sounds quite amusing, but in terms of animal wellbeing it of course raises serious questions. Not so in Yadorigi Café in Yanaka. This is not only one of the most responsible cat cafes I’ve ever visited, it’s also probably the world’s only cat-Italian-restaurant. It’s run by a friendly guy called Massimo, and he takes his job very seriously. Before you can enter, you have to thoroughly disinfect your shoes and hands; before you can touch a cat (they have to want to come to you first by the way) you have to watch a short video explaining the rules, and whoever orders a pasta gets a little water sprayer so they won’t jump into your spaghetti bolognese. Training them to behave is crucial, because all will eventually get adopted. To be eligible for this, you’ll have to meet a bunch of strict conditions. The animals seem quite content to be staying here anyway, because they’re living the life: extensive climbing and scratching constructions, a lot of places for them to lie down in peace or be the antisocial little demons they are, and plenty of toys to play with. Lovely place I stumbled upon by complete accident.
10. Ueno Sakuragi Atari: micro beers in a historical wooden building
Near Yanaka Reien is a small but unique site called Ueno Sakuragi Atari. This is not a repository for forgotten game consoles from the eighties, but a collection of three almost hundred-year-old wooden houses that were refurbished to their original state. When that was done, all kinds of businesses were opened in them. You can have a bunch of different craft beers in the Yanaka Beer Hall for example (“hall” is quite a generous term in this case). You can also try some freshly baked bread or pastries in the Vaner Bakery next door, or buy all kinds of salts and olive oil in OshiOlive. There are regular cultural workshops given here, and there’s a handicraft store upstairs. Interesting place for a quick visit when you’re in the area, but don’t come on Mondays or too early because everything will be closed.
11. Momi no Yu Café: drink herbal tea while soaking your feet
Did you ruin your poor feet running around Tokyo all day? No need to cry about it: you’ll find the perfect remedy near Ameyoko. Momi no Yu Café is a tiny place full of exquisitely friendly ladies who will offer you some delicious herbal tea. This is of course nothing extraordinary in Tokyo, were it not for the fact you can soak your feet under the table while you drink it, in a constant stream of pleasantly hot spring water. They’ve even put some plastic squeaky ducks in just for fun. The water will do wonders for your tired trotters, and if you’ve had a real rough day, you can lie your head on a cushion while one of the patrons enthusiastically loosens up your back.
Travel tips for Tokyo: hotels, tours and public transport
** Disclaimer: This section contains a number of (useful) affiliate links. This means that if you book a hotel or tour through a referral on this page, I’ll receive a small compensation for it, so I can put food on the table without having to beg for it in the train station. It won’t cost you even an extra cent, so why hesitate? Thank you in advance!**
Where you stay in Tokyo doesn’t really matter that much and depends on your budget and interests. Make sure you’re close to a metro station though. It’ll save you plenty of time every day and apart from the occasional bus, you don’t need to use any other means of transport. Ueno Station is a hub and very well connected. I found all my hotels in Japan on Booking.com.
You can book a lot of interesting activities, guided tours and food experiences in Tokyo. For a complete overview, take a look at GetYourGuide.
Buy a local eSIM card before you get to Japan, you’ll need it. I’ve been using Airalo for years. This is an app that lets you buy data in almost every country on the planet. It just takes a couple of clicks. Install the sim at home and activate it after landing: that’s it. You really need mobile data in Japan, so you can use Google Maps to navigate through the subway system in real time. Google will tell you which train to take when, which carriage is best for your transfer and which exit you need to use to get to your destination fastest. Without online help you’re almost guaranteed to get lost.
You’ll need a Suica Card to use public transport smoothly. The Welcome Suica Card is specifically catered to tourists and can be ordered online. You can top up the card with cash in any station, and it works in other Japanese cities as well. The Suica Card also serves as an electronic wallet. The Japanese economy is surprisingly cash-focused, so if you don’t pay with your Suica Card, you’ll be carrying around a whole pouch of nearly unusable coins after a couple of days.
If you plan to visit a lot of different cities with the Shinkansen bullet train, it’s best to buy a Japan Rail Pass (book it here directly). You’ll have to do this from home and long before your departure, because they’ll actually send you the pass by mail and you can’t buy one in Japan. If you’re only visiting three or four cities like I did, it might be better to buy separate tickets on the spot – you’ll have to do the math to see which option is preferable. JR-passes can be booked here. Don’t want to bother with all of this and looking for a tailor-made trip (either individually or in a group) instead? Check out Japan Experience: they offer plenty of wonderful itineraries throughout the entire country.
7-Eleven and Lawson are every budget traveller’s friend. These convenience stores (“konbini” in Japanese) are on almost every street corner and many of them are open 24/7. Unlike in the rest of the world, they actually offer decent microwave meals (they’ll warm them up for you for free), delicious pastries and deserts and lots of adventurous stuff I was too afraid to try. Supermarkets are cheaper still, but they’re closed at night. 7-Elevens always have an ATM in store, accepting all foreign cards. You’ll want to use these, because plenty of other places won’t be as compliant.
EU citizens do not need a visa to enter Japan for trips up to ninety days. You could basically leave tomorrow should you want to. The yen is historically low these days, so now is the time.
Looking for another Asian Trip? Read my blog posts on Beijing, Shanghai, Singapore and Hanoi. Would you rather go to Texas? Read my posts on Dallas, Austin and San Antonio.
No Comments