Safe to walk around Tokyo early morning?

Hi All,

My sister and I booked a trip to Tokyo in January 2019 and will be staying at a hotel near Hatchobori Station. We're planning to catch an airport limousine bus at 3:55 AM from Tokyo Station for our 08:50 AM flight home (we don't mind spending a couple of hours at the airport before checking in at all). We're planning to walk from the hotel to the station and it takes about 20 minutes, according to the map. Is it safe for us to do so that early in the morning?

I know we can maybe take a taxi to the station and even all the way to the airport, but curious to know if it's safe and we can save money (to do more shopping at our transit in Singapore :P ).


Thank you,
IL

Yes - you should be perfectly safe. At that hour there may be a few homeless people scavenging cardboard, can, etc., - but pay them no mind, they are harmless.

I have never been to a city where I have been so unconcerned about safety as Tokyo.

I am a single woman. I walk almost everywhere alone, at all hours. I know Tokyo inside out, frankly a lot better than many of my Japanese friends. No exaggeration; there is literally no neighbourhood I would be fearful of walking through alone at any time of day. And if anything ever did happen to me I would put it down to bad luck. Even the shady neighbourhoods donft feel dangerous, just places where you need to exercise common sense. Youfll be fine.

I donft know where you are coming from, but Japan is considered one of the safest countries in the world and it shows. I can literally go anywhere here in the night and never feel not safe. Crimes which wouldnft even make it In the local newspapers in other countries make big news stories here.

Only problem is that you might get careless over time and are in trouble then when you go to another country. Visited Baltimore last year and asked at the hotel reception for the way to the Walmart. The guy just starred at me like I would be crazy and told me the whole time: Please donft go, itfs too dangerous and even offered me to drive me there.

So donft worry, it is really unlikely that something will happen to you.

Hello
Enjoy Japan .
3:55 AM in January might be very cold and way before sunrise. So maybe a taxi to station ... but you'll see the conditions of weather when you'll be there .
Enjoy !

Thank you, Everybody, for your replies. Much appreciated. My sister and I are looking forward to our trip.

Hi,

I'd just like to point out that there have been a total of 1528 crimes in Chuo-ku this year, according to the police, and you will be walking through part of it. These crimes are only the ones that were reported to the police, and it includes pickpockets and various types of violence.

We locals are constantly warned to know our risks and to be aware when walking in the dark. Crime-prevention goods are commonly sold as well. I myself is a Japanese woman who have been attacked 3 times in my younger days and had to fight back while walking in the dark in Greater Tokyo. I was always dressed modestly at those times, and 1 of the 3 was in my residential neighborhood around 6 pm. I have never been attacked while walking in the dark in any of the many foreign countries I've traveled to.

Of course, that's just me, but I felt that you have the right to be informed. And I don't think it would hurt to have your hotel fetch a taxi to Tokyo Station, where you would safely board your bus. For a 20-minute walking distance you should only have to pay the least taxi fare, and as you know, tips aren't required.

Foreign sisters have been killed in Japan (although they weren't tourists), and foreign tourists have been reported missing on this very Forum (although it wasn't necessarily in the city). It really doesn't hurt to be aware that you can never be too sure, only so that you can have great fun while you're truly safe.

Here is the link for the police data, just for reference.
http://www.keishicho.metro.tokyo.jp/about_mpd/jokyo_tokei/jokyo/ninchi...

To be clear, that amounts to about 5 crimes reported per day, in a ward where hundreds of thousands of people live and work. If you ask me, that only reinforces the argument that Tokyo is a safe place.

Hi Uco,
Thank you very much for sharing that information. It never hurts to be informed so I really appreciate it.

Five crimes per day is significant if you are one of the five victims. Ifm glad Uco got on and told it like it is. (Three cheers for Uco, who always has reliable, helpful, and informative posts.) Japanophiles cling so strongly to their cherished beliefs about Japan that are often semi-fantasy and not consistent with reality. gJapanese trains always run on timeh is one of my favorites. Ha! These people will surely change their tune the next time they miss a flight because yet another poor soul has committed suicide on a train track (or simply because heavy winds have disrupted electrical power for a time).

Sure, youfre statistically more likely to get mugged in New York or Rome than in Tokyo, but the notion that Japan is completely and unequivocally gsafeh and nothing bad can happen to you there is just another fantasy.

Safety concerns aside, if you are headed to the airport you will presumably have luggage (although you are gsupposedh to send it all to the airport via takuhaibin) and I think that would be a nuisance. Ifve stayed in Hatchobori several times, and although Tokyo Station is a fairly easy walk, Ifm not sure Ifd want to do it in the middle of the night with luggage. What if it rains?

FWIW, Tokyo City Air Terminal is also close to Hatchobori (although I definitely would not walk there in the wee hours of the morning myself), and offers more options for limousine buses if you want to expand your range of choices. It would be roughly the same price for a cab.

Hi ILc I just looked at the link that Uco provided, and for Chuo-ku there were 120 assaults so far this year. More than I thought there would be. It isn`t possible to determine how many of those were from unknown persons, but I suspect they would be few. Not to dispute Uco`s experience or advice here, but again to point out that it would be quite rare to become involved in a crime. But my advice now is to call a cab - cold, luggage, and now uncertainty. Cheap too. Wishing you the best and safest experience!

I have been living in Tokyo for 40 years and I've never been involved in any crime.
It should depend on the person.

I'm glad the OP took my intention well, and I only hope she enjoys Japan. My intention was never to scare anyone or to oppose to any other opinion but only to evoke awareness. I am terribly sorry if my post was misleading in any way. I know I had unintentionally hurt others to deserve some of the responses. Regardless, since there are many sorts of persons viewing this forum, I wish that posters could at least choose expressions such as "it should depend on the situation". Also, with all due respect and appreciation, I don't wish to see anyone criticizing any other posters even if it is for me.