With the help of this guide and a good map, you should be able to visit Tokyo's major attractions easily on your own. Should you be pressed for time, however, consider taking one of several group tours of Tokyo and its environs offered by the Japan Travel Bureau (JTB; tel. 03/5796-5454; www.jtbgmt.com/sunrisetour) or Japan Gray Line (tel. 03/3595-5939; www.jgl.co.jp/inbound/index.htm). Day tours may include Tokyo Tower, the Imperial Palace district, Asakusa Sensoji Temple, Meiji Jingu Shrine, a harbor or river cruise, and the Ginza. There are also specialized tours that take in local festivals, the Ghibli Museum, Kabuki, Tsukiji Fish Market, sumo wrestling, or Tokyo's nightlife. Be warned, however, that tours are very tourist-oriented and are more expensive than touring Tokyo on your own. Prices range from about ¥4,000 ($33/£17) for a half-day tour to about ¥12,000 ($100/£50) for a full-day tour including lunch. You can easily book tours through most tourist hotels and travel agencies.
Although they cover less ground, 10 tours offered by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government concentrate on specific areas or themes, such as Japanese gardens, Asakusa, or Harajuku. Lasting 2 to 3 hours, they are conducted mostly on foot or utilize public transportation and vary in price from free to ¥3,540 ($29/£15), plus admission costs of the volunteer guides. Tours depart from the Tokyo Tourist Information Center in the TMG building in Shinjuku at 1pm Monday to Friday; preregistration is required and tour participants must be at least 20 years old. For more information, go to www.tourism.metro.Tokyo.jp/english/guideservice/index.html or contact the tourist office.
Volunteer guides are also on hand at the Ueno Green Salon in Ueno Park every Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday for free 90-minute walking tours departing at 10:30am and 1:30pm; and at the Asakusa Information Center every Sunday for 1-hour tours departing at 11am and 2pm. No registration is required. For more information, call tel. 03/3842-5566.
Free guided tours are also offered through www.tokyofreeguide.com, staffed by volunteers. You're expected to pay for the guide's entrance to museums, meals, and transportation fees if applicable, but you get to choose what you'd like to see; since many of these volunteers work, weekends are the best days to book a tour.
Otherwise, one tour I especially like is a boat trip on the Sumida River between Hama Rikyu Garden and Asakusa. Commentary on the 40-minute trip is in both Japanese and English (be sure to pick up the English leaflet, too). You'll get descriptions of the 12 bridges you pass along the way and views of Tokyo you'd otherwise miss. Boats depart Hama Rikyu Garden hourly or more frequently between 10:35am and 4:15pm, with the fare to Asakusa costing ¥720 ($6/£3) one-way. There are also other cruise routes, including those between Hinode Pier (closest station: Hinode, about a 1-min. walk) and Asakusa (fare: ¥760/$6.30/£3.20), Asakusa and Odaiba (fare: ¥1,520/$13/£6.40), and Hinode Pier and Odaiba (fare: ¥460/$3.80/£1.95). For more information, contact the Tokyo Cruise Ship Co. (tel. 0120-977311; www.suijobus.co.jp).
Finally, for personalized, one-on-one tours of Tokyo, contact Jun's Tokyo Discovery Tours, managed by Tokyoite Junko Matsuda, which offers tailored sightseeing trips to Tsukiji, Asakusa, Yanaka, Harajuku, Aoyama, Shibuya, and Shinjuku, as well as shopping trips and special trips designed to fit your interests. Tours are especially useful if you wish to communicate with shopkeepers and the locals, want to learn more about what you're seeing, or are timid about finding your way on public transportation (if you wish, you'll be met at your hotel). The cost is ¥25,000 ($208/£105) for 1 day (7 hr.) for up to four adults or a family. Reserve tours at least 3 days in advance (1 week preferred) by fax (03/5477-6022) or e-mail (me2@gb3.so-net.ne.jp), stating the desired tour date and what you'd like to see; messages can also be left at tel. 090/7734-0079 (if you're calling from abroad, drop the initial 0).
