Step straight into the future at one of Odaiba’s mega shopping outlets

Odaiba certainly has no shortage of shopping centers. Mega-outlets DECKS, DiverCity, Venus Fort and Pallete Town are all located within walking distance from one another. However it’s Aqua City Odaiba, that has something extra special.

A multi-purpose outlet, Aqua City Odaiba is filled with entertainment, retail stores, and restaurants. Arguably its main attraction is a woman by the name of Chihira Junco. Created by electronic company Toshiba, Junco is the center’s the multi-lingual humanistic robotic information guide, ready to answer all your questions in Japanese, Chinese, and English. The future is here at Aqua City Odaiba.

Partial Summary Credit: Go Tokyo

Photo Credit: Japan Kuru

Address: 1 Chome-7-1 Daiba, Minato City, Tokyo 135-0091, Japan

Hours: 11am - 9pm

Website: https://www.aquacity.jp.e.yp.hp.transer.com/lng/top/

How to get there: A 7 minute walk from Daiba Station, North Exit 1 on the Yurikamome Line.

 

Want to have a hot spring getaway without leaving Tokyo? Look no further than Oedo Onsen Monogatari. It’s a public bathhouse in central Tokyo that’s part theme park, part bathhouse and part ryokan inn. This hot spring theme park features 13 different hot spring baths, an open air bath, foot bath, spa, massage, restaurant, relaxing space, mini soccer court and traditional carnival games at their edo style plaza.

Upon entrance into the bathhouse, you are given a yukata (light kimono) to wear to roam around the place. After soaking and relaxing in their bath, walk around in your yukata and try traditional Japanese snacks and sweets and try some traditional carnival games. If you’re tired you can go rest in their large lounge area where you can lay to rest and maybe even take a nap! If you feel like spending the night you can also reserve a room in a traditional Japanese styled room and sleep on a futon in a tatami matted room.

Entrance Fee: Entrance fee can change depending on time and day, but ranges from 2100-2500 yen which includes entrance, bath towels, bath fee and yukata robe.

Photo credit: Agoda

Address: 2-6-3 Aomi, Koto City, Tokyo 135-0064

Hours: 11am - 7am

Website: https://daiba.ooedoonsen.jp/en/#access

How to get there: A 2 minute walk from the Telecom Center Station on the Yurikamome Line.

 

In front of the Diver City Tokyo Plaza complex, a giant 64.6 feet (almost 20 meters) Gundam statue towers over the area. Gundam is a very popular Japanese military sci-fi animation series that features giant robots called Gundam. Inside the Diver City Tokyo Plaza, there is a huge store dedicated to Gundam with a variety of Gundam goods, action figures, kits and more.

DiverCity Tokyo Plaza opened in 2012 with the concept of a "theatrical city space." The complex has seven floors, with several well-known American apparel stores, high-end fashion brands, and specialized Japanese souvenir shops. On the top floor you can spend a few hours at Round 1, an entertainment facility which has a bowling alley, karaoke and arcade games. The food courts offer a large selection, including fast food, international cuisine and Japanese food.

Partial Summary Credit: Go Tokyo

Photo Credit: Appetite for Japan

Address: 1 Chome-1-10 Aomi, Koto City, Tokyo 135-0064, Japan

Hours: 10am - 8pm

Website: https://mitsui-shopping-park.com.e.act.hp.transer.com/divercity-tokyo/

How to get there: A 6 minute walk from Tokyo Teleport Station, Exit B on the Rinkai Line.

 

Looking like it’s something out of a Steven Spielberg sci-fi film, the Fuji Television Main Building was designed by world renowned architect Kenzo Tange. Acting as the HQ for Fuji TV - a major TV network in Japan - most of the building is office space, but the iconic spherical observatory, Wonder Street, a theater mall and restaurants are open to the public. You can enjoy a scenery of Odaiba and Tokyo Bay from their observatory that offers a different perspective of the scenery.

Photo Credit: Tokyo Cheapo

Address: 2 Chome-4-8 Daiba, Minato City, Tokyo 135-0091, Japan

Hours: Closed Monday (Tuesday if Monday is holiday), 10am - 6pm

Website: https://www.fujitv.co.jp/index.html

How to get there: A 9 minute walk from Tokyo Teleport Station, Exit B on the Rinkai Line.

 

Miraikan means the place for the future - a name that fits it’s experience. At Miraikan, you are able to view the world of today from a scientific point of view and explore the future of science. You can enjoy hands on activities, witness cool exhibitions like their dome theater show and their performance from ASIMO the robot and learn about the innovative sciences from Japan. It’s definitely one of the most unique science museums around!

Entrance fee:

630 Yen for adults, 210 yen for 18&under

Dome Theater entrance: 10 yen for Adults, 100 Yen for 18&under

Photo credit: Miraikan website

Address: 2-3-6 Aomi, Koto-ku, Tokyo, Japan

Hours: Closed Tuesdays, New years holiday, 10:00am - 5:00pm

*If Tuesday is a holiday then it is open and closed the next day

Tel: +81-3-3570-9151

Website: https://www.miraikan.jst.go.jp/en/

How to get there: A 5 minute walk from the Tokyo International Cruise Station or a 4 minute walk from the Telecom Center Station on the Yurikamome Line

 

This digital art museum is one of a kind exhibition that features a 10,000 square meter venue with over 500 computers and 400 projectors to make an immersive art experience. There are many different rooms and sections in this venue that seem “borderless” - as the name suggests, which features constant moving dynamic art. Due to it’s constant changing art, this museum never remains the same. Going into the museum twice or the same room twice will give you a new set of experiences. It’s a one of a kind museum that will mesmerize you!

Entrance fee: 3200 Yen for adults, 1000 Yen for children

Address: Odaiba Palette Town 2F, 1-3-8 Aomi, Koto-ku, Tokyo, Japan

Hours: Weekdays, 10:00am - 7:00pm

Weekends and holidays, 10:00am - 9:00pm

Tel: N/A

Website: https://borderless.teamlab.art/

How to get there: A 3 minute walk from Aomi Station on the Yurikamome Line. A 5 minute walk from the Tokyo Teleport Station on the Rinkai Line.

Video credit to teamLAB

 

Fumio Asakura is the father of modern Japanese sculpture. The Asakura Sculpture Museum showcases his art right inside his former studio and residence from the early 1900s. You’ll have the chance to see both his art and a traditional Japanese home from the early 1900s.

Within his home, you can experience entering a traditional Japanese room floored with tatami mats with sliding paper doors, a Japanese garden in the middle of his home, his studio and many other interesting rooms throughout his house.

Photo Credit: Savvy Tokyo

Address: 7 Chome-18-10 Yanaka, Taito City, Tokyo 110-0001

Hours: Closed Thursday and Monday, 9:30am -4:30pm

Website: http://www.taitocity.net/zaidan/asakura/

How to get there: A 3 minute walk from Nippori Station, West Exit on the JR Line.

 

A small temple famous for it’s monument for Osen, a beautiful girl working at a tea store from the 1700s who acted as the model for famous ukiyo-e artist Suzuki Harunobu. Both Osen and Harunobu are remembered in the monument. The monuments origin is unclear but, documents show that it dates back to the 1700s.

Photo Credit: Visiting Japan

Address: 3 Chome-1 Yanaka, Taito City, Tokyo 110-0001

Hours: N/A

Website: N/A

How to get there: A 10 minute walk from Nippori Station, South Exit on the JR Line.

 

A small Nichiren Buddhist temple sitting right next to Yanaka Ginza. What makes this small temple special are the bullet holes that remain on the gates of the wall from the Boshin War in 1868. We’ll save the details for your private tour in Tokyo. But, to sum it up, when Emperor Meiji took power from Tokugawa Shogun who ruled Japan at the time, the Shoguns forces rebelled against the Emperor to retake power. The Shoguns forces and Imperial forces fought throughout Japan, and one of the battles took place right around the area of the temple known as the Battle of Ueno.

Photo Credit: Visiting Japan

Address: 3 Chome-2-6 Nishinippori, Arakawa City, Tokyo 116-0013

Hours: N/A

Website: N/A

How to get there: A 5 minute walk from Nippori Station, West Exit on the JR Line.

 

Yanaka Ginza is one of the few places in Tokyo that still holds a reminiscence of the past shitamachi atmosphere. Shitamachi is a distinct downtown vibe - contrasted with that of Tokyo’s neon lights, karaoke and lively nightlife. To imagine the past shitamachi vibe, try picturing a narrow street lined up with small shops. The shops advertising banners are flapping the afternoon wind. Within these shops are the local customers buying their dinner and/or ingredients for tonight's dinner. Kids are running around and playing nearby on the way home from school. You also notice a couple cats walking around looking for anything they can pick up for their own dinner.  In Japan, this distinct showa era-shitamachi vibe can almost be a stereotype. 

Yanaka Ginza is a famous shitamachi area and it’s also known for being a cat town. It’s a shopping street with shops selling goods and produce, ranging from groceries and necessities to clothes and toys. It’s different from any shopping street or shotengai that you will find in the center of Tokyo. The reason for the cat theme is possibly linked to that shitamachi feel where the cats are away from the main city bustle where they are able to enjoy the quiet downtown part of Tokyo. It’s also said that the local people have cared well for cats which constantly brings them back to the area.

It’s definitely a unique place and worth a visit on your tour in Tokyo.

Photo Credit: Real Estate Japan

Address: 3 Chome-13-1 Yanaka, Taito City, Tokyo 110-0001

Hours: Typically shops open around 10am - 8pm

Website: https://www.yanakaginza.com/

How to get there: A 5 minute walk from Nippori Station, West Exit on the JR Line.