How to celebrate my birthday alone in Japan

Hi everyone!

I will be on my first solo trip to Japan in May, and will be spending my 25th birthday there by myself. I am trying to set a particular agenda on how to celebrate the day by myself. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated!

I am not big on drinking, and would much prefer something enjoyable and relaxing with good vibes.

Thank you!
Mio

why not pamper yourself at one of the maid/butler cafe?
Tell them it's your special day, maybe they will whipout something special for the occasion.

Where are you going to be and what date?

I will be in Japan from May 7th - 27th, and my birthday will land on the 23rd. I will be in Tokyo at that time.:-)

What kind of things do you find enjoyable and relaxing? Some people have different ideas. Off the top of my head, I can think of a few different options:

Go outside Tokyo and spend the day looking at shrines/temples in Kamakura or Nikko.

Head to a museum you're interested in and spend some time there... for relaxing, I like the Modern Art museums the best since they tend to have lots of benches for contemplation :)

Maybe in some alternate universe people find Tokyo Disney Land/Sea relaxing... but it can be enjoyable, so there's that!

There are a few little quaint train lines around Tokyo... buy an ekiben, head to one, and ride it from one side to the other, stopping off at small stations along the way to explore, and enjoy the scenery. There's a nice one in Chiba, and a few in Kanagawa I can recommend, with different scenery at each.

Do you like the ocean, or mountains? I like Yokohama for an ocean fix, since the park along the water is nice. For mountains, you could head to Takao, or further, depending on if you just like to look, or you want to hike or something.

I find Meiji Jingu surprisingly relaxing. It's kinda like Central Park in New York... the sounds of the city drown out a bit and so it doesn't feel like you're in the middle of a huge metropolis.

Ummmmmm do you like spas? Going to an onsen, getting a hair cut, getting your nails done, basically pampering can be fun and relaxing!

Anyway, if you give us a better idea of what you like, we can make better suggestions!

Go to the basement of a nice department store and buy yourself a delicious cake!

Haha! Thank you both! These are all fantastic options.:)

Cake from a department store, and doing something crazy with my nails surprisingly sounds like fun! --- I will be coming from Kyoto and Hakone before then, where I would have a very pampered mellow self already.

I think that it would be nice to surround myself with people that day, some people-watching, some exploring funky streets. Any where with vintage shops, little cafes, and interesting treats. With a good sit down area closer to dusk, visited by locals and travelers alike!

Not sure if that is too specific and or general, ha!

Two words: goat cafe.

http://www.tofugu.com/travel/goat-cafe-sakuraoka/

If I were you, I would visit Tokyo tallest building, the skytree. Go to the top floor, watch the sunset, look beyond the horizon , and contemplate what to do in the next 50 birthdays.

I think Shimokitazawa would be nice for quaint cafes, interesting shops and 2nd hand clothes.

But definitely buy a nice birthday cake at a depachika and if you like it, go to a game center and try to catch some stuff.

Whatever you do, be sure to tell the waiter its your birthday. Restaurants and cafes often have little treats for birthday customers!

Amazing! Thank you everyone for the suggestions. :)

Mio

Last time when I was in japan, it was also my birthday, I bought a few pieces of those expensive cakes from those underground department stores, and had them in the hotel room with a massage girls, who actually provided me with a massage service at the time.

These department stores has hundreds of counters, so it was a hard to make the decision to which cake to buy, instead of buying one whole cake, went around and got few different pieces from different counters to try them out.

Just to add to my post

If you want something fun, buy a cake and goto a maids café, I'm sure you'll get something special there.

it may be costly.