Tokyo, Japan

Tokyo is the capital city of Japan and one of its 47 prefectures. It is located on the eastern side of the main island Honshū and includes the Izu Islands and Ogasawara Islands. Tokyo is a huge metropolis spanning the city, mountains to the west and subtropical islands to the south. It is made up of central Tokyo, Old Tokyo, 23 central special wards, 26 more cities, five towns and eight villages.

The metropolis blends high-tech industries, many exciting tourist attractions and cultural heritage sights that have been preserved in a variety of forms including beautiful temples, nature reserves, and parks. On the agenda of most visitors are the temples of Asakusa, the gardens of the Imperial Palace (in Chiyoda) and the Meiji Shrine (明治神宮, in Harajuku).

There are many unique areas to visit such as as dazzling Shinjuku, youthful Shibuya and upmarket Ginza. Akihabara, Tokyo's Electric Town, is now also the unquestioned center of its otaku community, and the stores along Chuo-dori are packed to the rafters with anime (animation) and manga (comics). Another popular district for all things manga/anime is the Nakano ward and its Broadway Shopping arkade.

Things to See & Do

* Temples of Asakusa
* Imperial Palace
* Meiji Shrine
* Akihabara - Electric town
* Shopping in Ginza

General information

Cruise Season - Jan - Dec
Currency - Yen (JPY)
Language - Japanese
Population - 13,100,000 approx
Land Area - 2,187.08 km2
Electricity - 2 perpendicular flat pins USA style or with a round pin below
Time - GMT plus hours nine hours
International Country Telephone Code - 81

Port Location - The Harumi terminal is used by cruise liners and is best accessible from Tokyo station Marunouchi South Exit. It has easy access to many of Tokyo's sightseeing spots.

Travel Links - Tokyo has two large airports: Narita for international flights, and Haneda for (mostly) domestic flights. Narita airport is located 70 kilometers northeast of Tokyo.

There is a frequent intercity Shinkansen service to and from Tokyo Station (東京駅 Tōkyō-eki) in Chiyoda, from where you can easily connect pretty much anywhere in the city on the JR Yamanote or Metro Marunouchi lines.

Tokyo also has domestic ferry services to other points in Japan. However, none of the regular international ferries to Japan call at Tokyo. The main long-distance ferry terminal is Ariake Ferry Terminal located on an artificial island adjacent to Odaiba in Tokyo Bay. The nearest station is Kokusai-Tenjijo-Seimon on the Yurikamome line.