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Travel Things to do in Shibuya Tokyo

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JustinIs18

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After doing some research I originally thought I wanted to go to Roppongi for a trip, after some research of reviews of trips to Roppongi I hear it's some what catered to Western Culture style restaurants I can do that in Canada, I don't need to do that in a foreign country, I want a real Japanese experience I heard it's flooded with Gaijins,Bad club solicitors,Scams and much more (Note I know that can happen anywhere & I can be wrong). So I am leaning more towards Shibuya, I was wondering if anyone knows stuff to do in Shibuya whether it be night or day, also any malls for shopping. I hope you guys have a wonderful day

The research on things to see and do in Shibuya (So you don't waste your time replying if I already covered the things) Shibuya Crossing,Meiji Shrine,Center Gai,Spain Slope,Shibuya Hikarie.
 
You might want to spend a little time looking at maps of Tokyo, paying special attention to the distance scales. The distance from Roppongi is only three or four kilometers; it is about a seven minute subway ride. You don't have to choose between the two....you can easily visit both.

Shibuya is also loaded with your fellow foreign visitors. If you want to get away from them you're going to have to try a whole lot harder than just going to Shibuya.

They don't have malls where you live? (You can also drink yourself into oblivion in Canada, with no need to go to a foreign country. Have you dropped plans to spend large parts of your visit getting hammered?)

Edit:

According to this site, Tokyo must be absolutely HUGE!

Distance between Roppongi and Shibuya
 
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Just walk around. There's everything to see and do everywhere you go if you're looking and trying.

Want no foreigners? Or just no white or black foreigners? Because there's lots of foreigners everywhere in Tokyo but you may not recognize them. In the ward office in which I take Japanese lessons there are tons of foreigners, though only a few who are stereotypically foreign as far as North Americans are concerned. There are Vietnamese, Chinese, Koreans, Filipinos, etc. Mostly nice people (except that one student in my class who is always answering the questions the teacher asks other students to prove she knows more than any of us, that girl needs to grow up). I'd recommend getting to know them if you get the chance.

Newsflash: Japanese young people who like to go out and party are a lot like Canadian young people who like to go out and party. You won't meet new people, just the same ones with different faces.

If you want a new experience do a new thing, not the same old thing with new people. They aren't really new, they just look different.
 
WonkoTheSane said:
Mostly nice people (except that one student in my class who is always answering the questions the teacher asks other students to prove she knows more than any of us, that girl needs to grow up.
Click to expand...

Every Japanese class is required by law to have one of those, together with someone who prefaces all their remarks with, "My Japanese girlfriend/wife says...."
 
Of course they're malls in Canada, but for fashion the Japanese fashion would be different so it would be cool to pick up some clothing that they may not have in Canada. No I haven't dropped plans to spend large parts of my visit getting hammered. Interesting, I never knew that Shibuya and Roppongi were so close. On that site haha "Travel duration from Roppongi to Shibuya is around 8.71 Hour"
 
JustinIs18 said:
On that site haha "Travel duration from Roppongi to Shibuya is around 8.71 Hour"
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For a 3km drunken crawl between bars that sounds about right....
 
If anybody should go to Roppongi, it should be you. The place was practically made for you. By all means, check out Shibuya too.

As for malls, there are various department stores. As well as shopping streets. Some famous knickknack-stores such as Don Quijote. You might look at Odaiba as well. There's a more western kind of mall there called Decks.
 
True, that knickknack store looks like a hoot, thanks for the mall suggestion Just a quick question, is it hard to navigate in Japan when it's your first time being there and not knowing to much Japanese?
 
JustinIs18 said:
True, that knickknack store looks like a hoot, thanks for the mall suggestion Just a quick question, is it hard to navigate in Japan when it's your first time being there and not knowing to much Japanese?
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In this modern high-tech era, no. And with the Olympics approaching signage will become even friendlier than it is already. Nothing to worry about.
 
Here's a simple trick I teach friends/colleagues that go to Tokyo for the first time:

Take the GREEN train line called Yamanote. It covers about 90% of all the train stations/places that short term visitors would like to go. Tokyo Station, Akihabara, Ueno, Ikebukuro, Shinjuku, Yoyogi, Harajuku, Shibuya, Shimbashi. It runs in circles through the city, so it should be always near and it's easy to change directions clockwise and counter clockwise.

Add to that the Hibiya subway line (you can transfer to it from various Yamanote line stations) for Roppongi, Ginza and Tsukiji, and that should amount to 95-100% for first time short term visitors.

In a nutshell: you can use these two lines as an itinerary. Find a place to sleep near one of these stations and you're set.
 
JustinIs18 said:
True, that knickknack store looks like a hoot, thanks for the mall suggestion Just a quick question, is it hard to navigate in Japan when it's your first time being there and not knowing to much Japanese?
Click to expand...

No, very easy. If you're old-school like me and prefer maps to apps, this is a very good bilingual atlas.
Tokyo City Atlas: A Bilingual Guide: Amazon.co.uk: Kodansha International, Atsushi Umeda: 9781568364452: Books

Police boxes (koban) at all major stations are a good source of help and there are clear large-scale bilingual maps outside most stations in Tokyo.
 
I think old-school would be better, since I don't know if my service provider for my phone would be covered in Japan. I appreciate you linking that book, I'll definitely consider buying it since no ones trying to get lost in Tokyo!
 
JustinIs18 said:
I think old-school would be better, since I don't know if my service provider for my phone would be covered in Japan. I appreciate you linking that book, I'll definitely consider buying it since no ones trying to get lost in Tokyo!
Click to expand...

This too can be solved, by installing the "trip advisor tokyo" app . Works totally fine offline and is a great help with reviews, suggested sights, maps, etc.

There's also a tokyo train/subway app that works offline.
 
Don't you have a year before you arrive?

You could easily learn enough survival Japanese to not worry about getting lost with a few months of pretty lackadaisical effort.

Depending on your cellphone, you can check to see if it has the bands you need to use a tourist sim (phone needs to be unlocked of course) . Not cheap, but probably worth it. Or get a pocket wifi if your phone isn't supported.
 
Yeah I have a year or so before I arrive, I started learning Japanese basic phrases and names of shops and things for example what restaurant,night club,convenience store. I have these all translated with how to say them and the Japanese words on multiple pieces of paper in a binder that I started adding phrases and words into every day, so I'm going to bring that with me.
 
We spent most of our time shopping in Shibuya since we were a group of girls. hahaha I'm not so sure how it is for men, but Shibuya 109 was worth it for us to check out. Although, you can basically find all kinds of brands (Zara, Forever21, UNIQLO, etc.) just lined up along the streets just within walking distance. Harajuku and Omotesando (more shopping areas) were just within the vicinity of Shibuya, so that was also worth checking out.

If you're into unusual cafes and restaurants, Tokyo has lots to offer as well--from robot restaurants, cat cafes, maid cafes, Alice in Wonderland theme restaurants, etc. For third wave coffee, there are a bunch within Shibuya's vicinity as well, such as Blue Bottle Coffee, Omotesando Coffee (though, I heard the closed permanently recently..?), etc.
 
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