Hotel Neighborhood in Tokyo for Tourists

First-time vacationer in Japan in May. Looking for a recommendation for which neighborhood in Tokyo would be the best for us for hotel selection: Shibuya, Shinjuku, Tokyo Station, or some other location, based on the following simple criteria:
- Centrally located.
- Closer to Public Transportation (train and bus stations). We plan to visit usual attractions such as TeamLabs Borderless, Imperial Palace, Shibuya Observation Deck, Shibuya Crossing, Senso-ji Temple, Shingoyen National Park, Meiji Jingu Shrine, Tokyo Tower, etc.
- Access to vegetarian-friendly food.
- Safe and not too noisy

https://www.happycow.net/

Go to above link, look at the map, find area where best suit your requirement( vege/vegan food),
then work your way around.

What is your budget like ? Us as in how many people ?

Assuming that you meant "Shinjuku Gyoen" and judging from your itinerary, it's pretty obvious that you should stay in Shibuya if not Shinjuku. As for "safe and not too noisy", it depends on the hotel and not the neighborhood in your case. The better hotels are usually quiet inside.

From your requeriments I recommend Ikebukuro, on the West side there are many cheap places to stay conveniently located close to the station which is big.

Ikebukuro station is one of the main hubs of Tokyo among with Shinjuku and Ueno and Tokyo station I'd say.

It's pretty central few stops from Shinjuku and Shibuya and with easy access to Akihabara, Ueno and Tokyo which are also main highlights of Tokyo, also easy access to Shinbashi where you can change to Yurikamome line to Toyosu and Odaiba.

It has many restaurants also, I don't know specifically if there are many vegetarian friendly ones, you can try search prior going there but there's a lot of choice of restaurants.

As for safety is safe, is a bit like Kabukicho with some pachinkos and bars, but it's ok, there are many guesthouses around the area where many foreigners stay so I'd say is ok.

While I have nothing against Ikebukuro, I see no reason to stay there when the places the OP wants to visit are all further away from there compared to Shibuya and Shinjuku.

While I have nothing against Ikebukuro, I see no reason to stay there when the places the OP wants to visit are all further away from there compared to Shibuya and Shinjuku.

True, but Ikebukuro is usually cheaper, if price is not a big issue Shibuya is my main option too

hi. listing down hotels we usually stay at when in tokyo:

shinjuku washington - small rooms but serves its purpose. also, this hotel is a stop of airport limousine buses, prepandemic at least. walking distance to shinjuku station as well.

keio plaza hotel - big rooms. close to a lot of shops as well. shinjuku station is also walking distance.

note: these two hotels are near each other.

Peter,

Point taken.

Everyone will have their own personal preferences for the neighborhood.

I would go for Asakusa or Ueno. Both will be less expensive that Shinjuku or Shibuya.
Both are very safe areas, although pretty much anywhere in Tokyo fits this bill.

Ikebukuro is a great area too but will be a bit more expensive than Asakusa or Ueno, doesn't have as many options, and can take a bit more time on public transport to reach some areas

I like Asakusa but it�fs actually a bit of a dead zone when you start up Happy Cow, especially in the morning when you�fd like a breakfast that doesn�ft involve a convenience store.

OP hasn't clarified what type or grade of hotel they prefer.

I personally dislike Asakusa, unbearably full of tourists.
Only positive is seeing the temple at night.

stayed in several differen places in Tokyo, and best liked Shibakoen area (stayed in Prince hotel there).

Is Minato-ku acceptable area for tourist based on above consideration specifically public transportation?

We always prefer non-smoking hotel rooms as one of us are very sensitive to prior smoking in the room. While searching for hotel rooms in Japan, I noticed that only occasionally rooms are explicitly marked as "non-smoking". If a room is not marked "non-smoking" should I assume that it has been used as a smoking room in the past? Quite often a room is not marked smoking or non-smoking. In such a situation, can I go ahead reserve the room and then request a non-smoking room, or is it not advisable?

I am a Japanese and I don't smoke at all. Yes I also prefer non-smoking room. Many Japanese don't smoke nowadays so most of the newly opened hotels prohibit smoking. After 2020 I stayed more than 30 hotels/ryokan in Japan and have no problem with the smell of the room. However I admit there are still rooms with the problem with smell.

If you are very sensitive to prior smoking in the room, you may better select new hotels (like opened within 10 years). New hotels tend to be prepared for the non-smokers and are usually better than old hotels (more spacious room, newly equipped bathroom etc.).

One tip is to select highly rated hotels in the hotel booking site. For example more than 9.0 hotels in Booking.com. They are of course on the expensive side but I would stay away the cheap side.

Based on various input, I am trying to decide between the following 3 hotels in three different locations: The Prince Sakura Tower Tokyo, Autograph Collection, Minato-ku (5-star), Shinjuku Prince Hotel, Shiunjuku-ku (4-star), and Sequence MIYASHITA PARK, Shibuya Crossing (4-star). Any thoughts regarding the quality of a particular hotel and its location will be appreciated.

The Prince Sakura Tower Tokyo
Renovated in 2013. No smoking on the premises. Spacious room. 350 m (5 min) walk to JR Shinagawa station. Quiet area.

Shinjuku Prince Hotel, Shiunjuku-ku (4-star)
Renovated in 2024. No smoking on the premises. Small room. 300 m (5 min) walk to JR Shinjuku station.

Sequence MIYASHITA PARK, Shibuya Crossing (4-star).
Newly opened in 2020. No smoking on the premises. Very modern style hotel with minimal style room. 550 m (8 min) walk to Shibuya crossing.

As for the hotel room, Prince Sakura Tower is by far the best. As far as I searched the room rates were almost identical among the three. Shinjuku and Shibuya are much more popular than Shinagawa which should affect the pricing. However Shinagawa is a good hub for traveling in Tokyo. You can go to Shinjuku and Shibuya by JR (no transfer), Asakusa, Tokyo tower and Skytree by Keikyu and Subway (no transfer) etc. Therefore my choice is the Prince Sakura tower, but it depends on your preference.

Aband,

Thanks for feedback. Among the four you mentioned, I would avoid Miyashita Park, because although it's a fancy vastly renovated area, it may not suit your preference since it's full of partying youth and you could hear loud music from across the street when there is an event. If you wish to stay in Shibuya, location-wise, hotels such as Tokyu Excell or Cerulean Tokyu are more toned down.

I notice that both Prince Sakura and Autograph Collection now belong to Marriot which I personally trust. Meanwhile, at Shinjuku Prince Hotel, you can walk right outside into the sleepless center of Kabukicho.

I hope it helps.

Thank you frog1954.

If we chose The Prince Sakura Tower Tokyo, how long will it take to travel from Shinagawa station to Shibuya or Shinjuku station?

Another hotel I found is in Bunkyo-ku. It is Hotel Chinzanso Tokyo. Any thoughts regarding the two hotels and how Shinagawa compares with Bunkyo-ku as a location?