Interesting areas to stay at in Tokyo

Hi all,

I will be working in Shibuya for 2 months starting July and am responsible for choosing my own accommodations. In the past I�fve just stayed at hotels near the office but this time around I would prefer to be a bit more adventurous and explore more of Tokyo.

Was hoping for some recommendations for interesting areas/suburbs that aren�ft as hectic or crowded as Shibuya/Shinjuku. I�fm pretty comfortable with the transport system so anything within a 30-45 minute subway/train ride of Shibuya Station would be manageable. I have flexible working hours so rush hour traffic isn�ft an issue.

I�fm more into parks, gardens and temples and not so much about bars and clubs or shopping. I will be travelling solo and I pack light so moving hotels each week wouldn�ft be a problem.

Thanks again for any suggestions!

My impression is that parks in Tokyo suburbs are just modern, gardens are rare, and small temples and shrines are everywhere. If you have not finished famous ones in central Tokyo, just find the place near or inside the JR Yamanote circular line. If you avoid giant stations, anywhere near your favorite spots should be OK.

If I dare to pick up, Sendagaya - Shinjuku Gyoen, Komagome - Rikugien, Kyu Koga Garden, Oji - Asukayama Park, Yushima - Ueno Park, Kyo Iwasakitei Garden, Hiroo - Arisugawa-no-miya Memorial Park, Yoyogihachiman - Yoyogi Park, Kita sando - Meiji Shrine, and Kiyosumi Shirakawa - Kiyosumi Garden.

Basically, old Tokyo is around Ginza and Asakusa, and newer Tokyo is around Shinjuku and Shibuya. The south is busy but sophisticated, and the north is opposite. Yanesen -- Yanaka, Nezu, and Sendagi -- would be one of the quietest areas inside the JR circular line. Then, going outward, there spread bed towns of commuters.

In the Tokyo suburbs, one outstanding place should be Kamakura, 0:54 from JR Shibuya by Google Maps. Neighboring spot Enoshima has a small shrine. I think Enoshima and Kamakura is a little set of Miyajima and Kyoto. Both has a good connection between JR Ofuna, 0:41 from Shibuya.

Takaosan is 1:03 from Shibuya. On the way, there is Takahatafudo. It is famous for its fudoson temple, 0:47 from Shibuya. Fuchu is 0:26 from Shibuya. It has a shrine just near the station.

Koganei Park is 0:57 from Shibuya. JR Musashi Koganei is at the south of the park, 0:32 from Shibuya. There is a small garden nearby, called Sorosen-en. Tonogaya Garden is at one station west, JR Kokubunji, 0:32 from Shibuya. Well,.., train times fluctuate as I searched. I mean they are not so accurate. Here I nominated two gardens, but take care of mosquitos in summer.

Inokashira Park station is 0:29 from Shibuya, but it takes only 16 min to Kichijoji by a use of a direct rapid train. Some small temples are scattered over the north of Kichijoji.

Kasai beach-side Park is 0:41 from Shibuya.

Toneri Park is 0:52 from Shinjuku. Nishiarai Dashi Temple is nearby, but it might take a bit more time, as they are at the fully opposite side of Shibuya.

Heirinji temple in Niiza is one hour away from Shibuya.

It takes a similar time to get to Mitsuike Park, but a nearby Ookurayama station is 0:36 from Shibuya.

Well,.., if I take a balance between place values and times from Shibuya, I would list again Yanesen, Kamakura, and Kichijoji, as the top three for a moment.

To me, who is originally from Tokyo, anywhere but Shibuya and Shinjuku aren�ft "hectic or crowded" and has "parks and temples and not so much about bars and clubs or shopping".

Just look for any place within walking distance to an elementary school, but not too near because the kids will be noisy. Locals tend to choose by "train lines" rather than districts.

So how about anywhere along the Inokashira Line or Toyoko Line or the Denentoshi Line? Of course, you can think about transferring lines on the way, but as a starter it might be more comfortable for you if you can just hop on your train and read or doze until you reach Shibuya. Stations where faster trains don't stop tend to be quieter.

Keep in mind that if you're going to do your own cooking, you'd want to live near a real "shotengai" (shopping street) to experience the local life. If you are not cooking, make sure there is a "teishoku-ya" near your home to get a real diner experience.

I generally agree with Luisjp, but since you're living during summer, you might want to avoid living near the beaches. On weekends your neighborhood can get extremely crowded. Also, try to look for a room that has good air flow, but shady to a certain extent.

Have fun Google-Street-View-ing, and if you have more specific questions, post again.

Look at https://www.railplus.com.au/cms/uploads/Route%20suica%20card.pdf

There are some good places without transfers and I did spend a week in Kichijoji which was nice, and I have spent a lot of time in Tsurumi (near Kikuna station). Both are direct trains from Shibuya. I like living "out west".

"Shoto" near Shibuya Station is a good place to live.

I usually stay in Nippori, which is on the Yamanote loop, two stops counterclockwise from Ueno Station. It is relatively quiet, and has direct trains to Narita Airport. This makes it a convenient first or last stop.

The hotel I stay in is a business class hotel, with a hot spring bath on the first floor. The bath is supposed to have radium in it, which I am not sure why that is good.

One other reason for staying in Nippori is for the street shopping. There is a section of Nippori know as "Fabric Town". My wife is a quilter, and I usually come home with 50+ meters of cotton fabric, along with unusual buttons and other sewing things. The last time, I went into a leather shop and purchased Tatami mat binding. It is very wide, and has interesting patterns.

There is an interesting cemetery between Nippori and Ueno that worth visiting. The shrine where the 47 Ronin met to plan the assassination is also nearby. There is also the seven lucky gods pilgrimage, that goes from Ueno Park, to about two stations after Nippori nearby. The 47 Ronin shrine is along the path of the seven lucky gods trek (3-4 hours to complete).

I hope this helps.

As one of the busiest terminals in Japan, there are many trains directly coming to Shibuya. Note that multi-company lines are treated as one single one.

1 12.7km: Kichijoji - Shibuya (Keio Inokashira Line)
2 14.3km: Shibuya - Asakusa (Tokyo Metro Ginza Line)
3 34.5km: (Shibuya) - (Shibuya) (JR Yamanote Line)
4 64.3km: Kawagoe - Omiya - (Shibuya) - Osaki - Shinkiba (JR Saikyo Line/Rinkai Line)
5 80.5km: Hanno - Kotake-Mukaihara - (Shibuya) - Yokohama - Motamachi-Chukagai (Seibu Ikebukuro Line/Tokyo Metro Fukutoshin Line/Tokyu Toyoko Line/Minatomirai Line)
6 88.6km: Shinrin-Koen - Wakoshi - (Shibuya) - Yokohama - Motamachi-Chukagai (Tobu Tojo Line/Tokyo Metro Fukutoshin Line/Tokyu Toyoko Line/Minatomirai Line)
7 94.9km: Chuorinkan - (Shibuya) - Oshiage - Kuki (Tokyu Denentoshi Line/Tokyo Metro Hanzomon Line/Tobu Isezaki Line)
8 139.4km: Takao - Shinjuku - (Shibuya) - Tokyo - Narita-Airport-Terminal-1 (JR Syonan Shinjuku Line/NEX)
9 170.6km: Zushi - Ofuna - (Shibuya) - Omiya - Takasaki - Maebashi (JR Syonan Shinjuku Line)
10 194.3km: Odawara - Ofuna - (Shibuya) - Omiya - Utsunomiya (JR Syonan Shinjuku Line)

Here are time estimates from Shibuya to some of the key stations on the above.

1 Kichijoji (0:20)
2 Asakusa (0:32)
3 Ueno (0:32) is the farthest on the Yamanote Line from Shibuya.
4 Omiya (0:38), Shinkiba (0:25). The part of Kawagoe - Omiya is a bit far from Shibuya.
5 Tokorozawa (0:48), Motomachi-Chukagai (0:35). Similarly, Hanno - Tokorazawa is far.
6 Shiki (0:39). Shinrin-Koen - Shiki on the another branch from Tokyo Metro Fukutoshin line is far.
7 Chuorinkan (0:46), Kitasenju (0:47). Kitasenju - Kuki on Tobu Isezaki Line is far.
8 is the NEX line.
9,10 Ofuna (0:42). Branches at the both edges, Zushi - Ofuna, Odawara - Ofuna and Omiya - Maebashi, Omiya - Utsunomiya is a bit far (see also #4), Kamakura is on the Zushi - Ofuna branch and directly connected with Shibuya.

Some pick-ups on these direct routes to Shibuya.

1 Nishiefuku (0:19): Wadabori Park and Omiya Hachimangu.
3 Naka-Urawa (0:39): Beshonuma Park
5&6 Motomachi-Chukagai (0:35): Yamashita Park and Minatonomieruoka Park.
5 Shakujii-Koen (0:32): Shakujii Park
6 Narimasu (0:32): Hikarigaoka Park
7 Yoga (0:11): Kinuta Park

My son chose an apartment in Hamamatsucho for his year in Japan. I visited him there twice: within walking distance there are two lovely gardens, Zojo-ji temple, the Tokyo Tower and the World Trade Center observatory. It's on the Yamanote train line.

I agree with Hamamatsucho, and would add Higashi-Ikebukuro.