Travel Visiting Tokyo on Aug 13-21

[VerbalEssence]

First off, I'll be arriving at Haneda airport on Aug 13 at 12:55PM.
Hotel I'll be staying at is the Ginza Capital Hotel Main, next to Tsukiji station it seems.
My main items on my itinerary are to visit Comic Market on Aug 15-17 and Akihabara and Ikebukuro during the rest of my time there.
For Aug 13, are the subways particularly crowded at around afternoon - early evening? I ask because I'm probably going to do a few dry runs to Tokyo Big Sight and Akihabara so I can get acquainted with using the Tokyo Metro and Japan Railway system, as well as trying to familiarize myself with the route. Just so that I'm not causing inconveniences to other people by taking an extra long time at the ticket machine, or running around lost.
Secondly, my plan for Haneda to my hotel is to take the Keikyu Railway monorail from Haneda Domestic to International terminal. From there take the airport limousine bus (orange bus) to Toyosu. From Toyosu take the Tokyo Metro Yurakucho line to Shintomicho where my hotel is. Does this sound like a solid plan? Should I bring any printouts to show any staff for assistance in pointing me in the right direction if I get lost or confused? My main concern on day 1 is getting to my hotel so I can put my stuff down, then I can spend the remainder of Aug 13 running around with trial and error til I get it down pat.

And for the remaining locations I intend to visit, do these sound right?
Hotel to Big Sight
-Tokyo Metro Yurakucho - Shintomicho to Toyosu (2 stops)
-Japan Railways Yurikamome - Toyosu to Kokusai Tenjijo Seimon (5 stops)
Hotel to Akihabara
-Tokyo Metro Hibiya - Tsukiji to Akihabara (5 stops)
Hotel to Ikebukuro
-Tokyo Metro Yurakucho - Shintomicho to Ikebukuro (11 stops)

 

[thomas]

Welcome to the forum, VerbalEssence!

While the obon holidays aren't public holidays, trains should be far less crowded than on regular days: students are off and lots of salaried workers take summer vacations.

Jorudan is a very useful website to find out about trains, commuting time and transportation fees.

Have a great time in Tokyo!

 

[VerbalEssence]

Welcome to the forum, VerbalEssence!

While the obon holidays aren't public holidays, trains should be far less crowded than on regular days: students are off and lots of salaried workers take summer vacations.

Jorudan is a very useful website to find out about trains, commuting time and transportation fees.

Have a great time in Tokyo!

Hmm, awesome, thanks for that website.
Also, when do the trains usually stop running at night?

 

[thomas]

Hmm, awesome, thanks for that website.
Also, when do the trains usually stop running at night?

That depends on the line, but usually around or after midnight.

 

[Hiroyuki Nagashima]

Timetable and Route Search "HiperDia"
(for iPhone/iPad. for Android)

Suica | Fares & Passes | JR-EAST
how to buy Suica card (train card) in Japan at JR railway station with ticket machine

 

[VerbalEssence]

Timetable and Route Search "HiperDia"
(for iPhone/iPad. for Android)
Suica | Fares & Passes | JR-EAST
how to buy Suica card (train card) in Japan at JR railway station with ticket machine

Thanks for the help everyone.
Just a quick last minute question, is there a preferred place where I should exchange my money to JPY once I'm in Japan? One of my relatives recommended at the airport, someone else said at the hotel.

 

[Mike Cash]

Don't worry about inconveniencing people at the ticket machines. Doing practice runs just to avoid that is wasted time, money, and effort. It isn't as though there is only one machine and you'd be holding up the line. There are multiple machines and the bulk of people use electronic passes and bypass the ticket machines entirely. Last thing in the world you should worry about.

 

[Majestic]

Airport is a better place for changing money than the hotels. The hotels add a surcharge on top of the surcharge that the banks add.