zip106

We're off to Tokyo in April (on the way to Hawaii ) but I'm having trouble finding hotels for families.
I've done a Google but not much comes up with family rooms (2 adults and 2 kids, 3 and 6 years old).

We'll be staying for 3 nights and ideally want to be near the city centre but within a decent travelling distance of Disneyland. (would be a shame not to call in whilst we're there, if only for my daughter )

I know there's a few on SN who live/lived in Tokyo so I'm just wondering if you can help me?

Also, we'd like to get the Bullet train to somewhere and at least get within photo distance of Mt. Fuji. Is this possible in 3-4 days?

Any help much appreciated!

p1mark

The Shinkansen (bullet train) runs south from Tokyo down to Nagoya, Kyoto, Osaka etc, and it actually passes the base of Fuji about an hour from Tokyo. if you get one of the Shinkansen's that makes a lot of stops i'm sure one will stop near Fuji. Nozomi is the quick one that only stops at the big cities, there are 2 slower ones, ones called a Kodama or something like that IIRC. These 3 sites has been a massive help to me while travelling around Japan. The first one especially as it gives you many plane / train options.

Enter the station name

Japanese Train Route Finder By Jorudan Co.,Ltd.

ANA SKY WEB - ANA Domestic Reservation

The Shinnkansen will get you all the way from Tokyo to Hiroshima in 5 hours with a stop, so you have no time worries. I never really get time to sight see but Tokyo fish market and the Hiroshima A-bomb dome and memorial museum are both eye openers.

Can't help you with a hotel, when i go there i normally work in the Nagoya or Toyama area, the only time i stop in Tokyo is at a hotel near Narita airport on the way home, and thats about an hour from Tokyo city itself.

p1mark

Where abouts in Hawaii are you going? i spent 3 weeks there on my holidays a few years ago. Great place.

zip106

Some helpful site there, Mark. Thanks.

We're staying in Honolulu for 4 days, and then moving onto Kauai for 4 days.
Going to try and book a heli ride into the Jurassic park area for when we get there.

We then move onto San Francisco for 3 nights and then onto Las Vegas for 3 nights. (doing another heli ride into the Grand Canyon and I want to have a walk over the glass platform )

Any tips for Hawaii?

Cheers.


Just looked at the schedule - actually got 4 nights in Tokyo, so perhaps more scope to go further.

old bob

stay off the ice pipe or your get DOG after ya!!lol

Dark

iTrader: (1)

I normally stay next to Shinagawa station while on business.

It's on the south side of Tokyo, about 1hr from Narita by Express Train or Limo Bus. It's also only 20-30mins from Tokyo Disney and all the hotels run a daily bus transfer. Shinagawa is also one of the main Tokyo stations and you can catch a train to just about anywhere!

A couple of the big hotels are the Meridian Pacific, Grand Prince Hotel & New Prince Hotel Takinawa. Not sure about family rooms but there are usually plenty of families staying when I'm there.

The weather in April should be just right, I was there in July and it was disgusting!

Mark

Henrik

iTrader: (5)

We stayed at the Shinagawa Prince, and it was great but *really* expensive, as all hotels seemed to be in Tokyo.

I might be wrong, but the impression I got from the actual "tokyo" area (i.e. the station called "tokyo" on the yamanote railway line) was that there wasn't that much there to do. They had a fake Big Ben looking clock, but that was it It's a bit like going to the financial district in London - much more fun to go somewhere else

Stay off the ice as well, it made me sick every time, but like an idiot I kept having iced drinks as it was so hot and humid that I couldn't cope otherwise.

We went out to some place called odabawara which was a good day out. Essentially an area out in the mountains and it looked fantastic.

The one thing I would definitely bring back if I went again is our "point and speak" phrase book. Essentially it's got pictures with people doing something, and then what they are doing written in English and Japanese. So, you'd walk up to the ticket booth somewhere and grin like a dumb foreigner, point at the picture in the book and say the station name. It was excellent and great for comedy value

mykp

we always stay here: Tokyo Hotel: Keio Plaza Hotel Tokyo – Hotel Tokyo, Japan

Its not cheap but then nothing is in Tokyo, however being close to the business district its within 5 minutes walk of Shinjuku train station Shinjuku Station - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia its size and location make going places easy.

If you want to goto mount fuji, yes the train will take you close, the main tokaido line from tokyo to osaka passes by. Any closer and you need to get on the branch lines and even then there is no train right up to the mountain.

If youre going further afield then hiroshima (Hiroshima, Most famous as the first place to subjected to a Nuclear Bomb. : (mykp.co.uk)) is within reach for a day trip, the first shinkansen leaves tokyo at 6am but to be honest unless your going to the bomb museum the only thing else to see here is Miyajima island.

If you want to see temples then Kyoto is miles better, its a different Japan.

If your staying in Tokyo then I woud recommend going up Tokyo tower, the views are stunning and on a clear day you can see Mt Fuji from the top.

psigeek

iTrader: (17)

Just make sure you visit the Park Hyatt Hotel in Shinjuku for a drink in the New York Bar. The views at night are stunning++ and seriously perhaps some of the best city night views you're likely to see. Plus it's where Scarlett Johansson and Billy Murray were in Lost In Translation.

Yeah you know Scarlett Johansson...




Seriously though, if you are thinking of the bullet train it is expensive. p1mark has given you some good links but try these also Japan Rail Pass - gives you unlimited travel on JapanRail trains (inc. Shinkansen bullet trains - except the super, super fast Nozomi) and works out far, far cheaper. Apart from that this one will help too Japan Rail in English.

Enjoy your time in one of the most amazing countries out there. Makes me jealous I'm not there.