One night in Tokyo - where to go?

I will be stopping over one night in Tokyo this December to wait for a connecting flight in the morning. Where would you guys suggest I go? It will be my first time in Japan, and I would like to experience as much of the culture and perhaps do some food-tripping or shopping.

How long is the wait between your flights? That could make a big difference in the sugestions you get on here. Any idea of what you would like to do?

back again. try checking things on this site. I found it very informative before I went to Japan. Also Narita is about an hour or more from Tokyo by airport shuttle, less by train. The following is copied from this site by using the questions box and I typed in Narita. Help this helps a bit more.

Narita is a city in Chiba Prefecture, roughly 60 kilometers east of central Tokyo. The city is most famous as the site of Tokyo's international airport, which is commonly known as Narita Airport.

Narita's main tourist attraction is Naritasan, a popular Buddhist temple with a history of over 1000 years. Naritasan makes a great destination for transit travelers who want to get a glimpse of traditional Japan or anybody else who has some excess time at the airport.

Are you sure you will have enough time to go into central Tokyo? It takes over and hour to get into central Tokyo from the airport and it could be linger if you have to wait a while for a train. As above you need to tell us your arrival and departure times so we can tell you if it is worthwhile going into central Tokyo.

i will be arriving at 4:30 pm, and will be leaving the next day at 9:35 am. this will be on december.

My sentence above should be "It takes over an hour to get into Tokyo and even longer if you have to wait for a train."

You will have to leave very early in the morning to get to the airport for a 9.30 flight, depending on where in Tokyo you stay. As above Narita city might be better option given the limited time you have, unless you were planning to stay up all night like some people do!

my airline will likely billet me in a hotel in narita. i wonder if there will be anything to do or anyplace to eat authentic japanese food in narita on a winter night. otherwise will it be possible to travel to tokyo and back later in the night?

Narita is a real town, and an old one too, not far from the airport. you can go there by bus or train. There are quite a few restaurants on Narita main street and some side streets.Trains from Tokyo don't run too late towards Narita as the airport close at night. arriving at 4:30 you would be in Tokyo by 7:30 at the earliest and have to leave by 10:30 to be back at your hotel by midnight. Not much time to eat and see anything in Tokyo. Narita town is a better bet.

-Need to reach NRT at 7:30
-Need to catch the train at 6:30, even in case you catch the fastest one
-Need to wake up at 5:30?

it's your choice and I understand you might feel like visiting Tokyo once(I get to feel tokyo is a boring city unless you are wealthy or have a strong interest in contemporary culture, after living there for a while)

timeless Tokyo tour or easy Narita tour, which do you like?

Narita info:)
http://www.chiba-tour.jp/narita/index.html