Is this your first trip to Tokyo, and are you deciding which area to stay in?
Shinjuku, Asakusa, Ginza, Akihabara. You’ll hear lots of area names.
In this article, we compare areas not by how close they are to famous sights, but by how your day goes when you stay there. You arrive from the airport, step out of the station, move your luggage, and head back to your accommodation at night. Once you pick an area, this becomes your routine every day.
Everything here is a set of pointers for preparing your trip, based on information from public bodies and railway companies (as of October 2026; this is not an explanation of tax or law). Times, fares and rules can change, so before you go, check the official information listed at the end of this article.
Here’s the answer up front.
- If you want to ride from Narita without changing trains: Shinjuku or Tokyo Station, where the Narita Express (N’EX) stops, or Ueno, where the Keisei Skyliner arrives
- If the places you’re heading to are Yamanote Line stations, stay near a Yamanote Line station too
- If anime and manga are what you’re after: Ikebukuro and Akihabara
- On a day you’re going to Tokyo Big Sight: the Waterfront (Odaiba and Ariake)
If comparing areas has worn you out, our short answer is in “Where to Stay in Tokyo for the First Time“. For your first trip, choose the Yaesu and Nihombashi side of Tokyo Station.
From here, we’ll look at the airports and the way back first, then go through the areas one at a time.
See places to stay in Tokyo on Agoda (affiliate link)
From the airport, and the way back — the Yamanote Line goes around in a loop
Narita and Haneda each get you to different areas without a transfer. From Narita, the N’EX runs to Tokyo Station, Shinagawa, Shibuya and Shinjuku, and the Skyliner runs to Nippori and Ueno. Haneda connects to Shinagawa on the Keikyu Line and to Hamamatsucho on the Tokyo Monorail.
On the way back, it’s the Yamanote Line that makes the difference.
The Yamanote Line is a JR line that loops around central Tokyo. Big stations like Shinjuku, Shibuya, Ikebukuro, Ueno, Akihabara and Tokyo Station are on this loop.
So if your accommodation is near a Yamanote Line station, then even on days you go out to another station on the loop, you can get back to your station without changing trains.
What we cover about station exits and luggage applies whichever area you stay in, so we’ve put them together after the areas.
Quick comparison — 5 areas, from the airports and 2 stations
| Area | From Narita | From Haneda | From Tokyo Station | From Shinjuku Station |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shinjuku | N’EX, no transfer | Train/monorail, about 50 min / Bus to Shinjuku Station West Exit (西口 in Japanese), about 35 min | Chuo Line (Rapid), 14 min | |
| Ueno and Asakusa | Skyliner to Ueno, fastest 41 min | Train/monorail, about 40 min to either Ueno or Asakusa | Ueno: Yamanote Line, 8 min / Asakusa: change to the Ginza Line at Kanda, 20 min | Ueno: Yamanote Line, 24 min / Asakusa: change to the Ginza Line at Kanda, 35 min |
| Tokyo Station, Ginza and Nihombashi | N’EX to Tokyo Station, fastest 53 min | Train/monorail to Tokyo Station, about 30 min / Bus to Tokyo Station, about 35 min | Ginza: Marunouchi Line, 3 min (about 15 min on foot) / Nihombashi: walkable | Ginza: Marunouchi Line, 16 min |
| Ikebukuro and Akihabara | Ikebukuro: N’EX to Shinjuku, then change to the Yamanote Line / Akihabara: N’EX to Tokyo Station, then change to the Yamanote Line | Bus to Ikebukuro Station West Exit (西口 in Japanese), about 55 min | Akihabara: Yamanote Line, 4 min / Ikebukuro: Marunouchi Line, 17 min | Ikebukuro: Yamanote Line, 8 min / Akihabara: Sobu Line, 18 min |
| Waterfront (Odaiba and Ariake) | Bus to Rinkai Fukutoshin (臨海副都心) and Tokyo Big Sight, about 20–40 min | Change to the Yurikamome at Shimbashi, about 30 min to Odaiba | Saikyo Line, no transfer, to Tokyo Teleport, 22 min |
All times are approximate. Times from the airports come from each airport’s and railway company’s information; times from Tokyo Station and Shinjuku Station come from the area pages of “GO TOKYO,” the Tokyo Metropolitan Government’s tourism website. Blank cells are ones this article doesn’t cover.
1 Shinjuku — east or west of the station, the city shows a different face
Shinjuku Station is where lines from many companies meet: JR, private railways and subways. It’s also a Yamanote Line station. From Narita, the N’EX gets you here without a transfer, and buses from Haneda arrive at the West Exit (西口 in Japanese).
The east side of the station is the gateway to shopping, dining and entertainment. The area around Kabukicho stays lively at night, too.
On the west side, skyscrapers line the streets, and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building is on this side as well. Head south and you’ll find the highway bus terminal (Busta Shinjuku).
If you’re torn between Shinjuku and Shibuya: Shibuya is also a Yamanote Line station, and the N’EX from Narita stops there. Even if you stay in Shinjuku, you can get to Shibuya on the Yamanote Line without changing trains.
Stay on the east side, and the nightlife area (around Kabukicho) is close by. On the west side, you wake up in a neighborhood of skyscrapers. For details, see the Shinjuku article.
2 Ueno and Asakusa — where the train from Narita arrives
Ueno is the station where the Skyliner from Narita arrives. It’s also a Yamanote Line station, and besides JR, it has Keisei and the Ginza and Hibiya subway lines.
Asakusa has the Ginza Line, plus Toei Subway and Tobu stations.
Ueno and Asakusa are linked by the Ginza Line, with no transfer. Whichever one you stay in, you can get to the other without changing trains.
Stay in Ueno, and you reach your station from Narita without a transfer. Stay in Asakusa, and from Haneda it takes about as long as it does to Ueno. Either way, you can head out into the city the same day. For details, see the Ueno and Asakusa article.
3 Tokyo Station, Ginza and Nihombashi — a station within walking distance of Ginza
Tokyo Station is where the N’EX from Narita stops. From Haneda, it’s about 30 minutes by train or monorail.
Tokyo Station has two sides. The Marunouchi side faces the Imperial Palace. The Yaesu side faces Ginza and Nihombashi. Buses to the airports leave from the Yaesu side.
Ginza is about a 15-minute walk from Tokyo Station. Nihombashi is within walking distance of Tokyo Station, too.
If you stay near Tokyo Station, you can drop your bags at your accommodation and walk out to Ginza (about 15 minutes from Tokyo Station). For details, see the Tokyo Station, Ginza and Nihombashi article.
4 Ikebukuro and Akihabara — if anime and manga are what you’re after
If anime and manga are what you’re after, it’s Ikebukuro and Akihabara.
Ikebukuro is a station where JR, Tobu, Seibu and subway lines meet. Akihabara and Ikebukuro are both Yamanote Line stations.
So whichever one you stay in, you can get to the other on the Yamanote Line without changing trains. Stay in the neighborhood you came for, and the time you’d spend getting there and back becomes time to have fun. For details, see the Ikebukuro and Akihabara article.
5 Waterfront (Odaiba and Ariake) — for a day you’re going to Tokyo Big Sight
The Yurikamome stops at Tokyo Big Sight Station and Ariake Station. From Haneda, there are also buses to Rinkai Fukutoshin (臨海副都心) and Tokyo Big Sight.
For getting to and from central Tokyo, from Shinjuku the Saikyo Line takes you to Tokyo Teleport without a transfer. From Tokyo Station, you change to the Yurikamome at Shimbashi.
On the morning of an event, the venue is right there. For details, see the Waterfront article.
The area around Disney is in Chiba Prefecture
Maihama, home to Tokyo Disney Resort, and Shin-Urayasu are outside Tokyo, in Urayasu City, Chiba Prefecture.
When choosing a place to stay, put the address into a map and check how long it takes to get where you want to go.
On the night of your Disney day, stay in Urayasu; on other nights, in central Tokyo. Splitting where you stay, night by night, is one way to do it.
Leaving the station — at Shinjuku Station, remember one exit name
In Shinjuku Station’s English signage, similar names point to different places.
- East Gate … one of the JR ticket gates
- East Square … the plaza at street level (東口 in Japanese)
- East Concourse … the underground passage (東口地下通路 in Japanese)
They all say “East,” but each takes you somewhere different.
So if your accommodation’s directions name an exit, write it down exactly as it’s spelled in English. You can then match it directly against the station map.
For maps, you can use the “Shinjuku Terminal Map” (新宿ターミナルマップ) and the “Shinjuku Terminal Elevator and Stairs Map” (新宿ターミナル エレベーター・階段マップ). There’s a Japanese-and-English version, and a Chinese (Simplified) and Korean version (as of November 2025). They’re handed out at places like the Shinjuku Tourist Information Center (新宿観光案内所), and you can also view them on Shinjuku City’s website.
Once you’ve settled on one exit, you come out right on the side where your accommodation is. If you have a suitcase, you can use the Elevator and Stairs Map to find a route with elevators ahead of time.
Moving your luggage — you can also send your suitcase ahead to your accommodation
On JR East trains, you can bring up to 2 pieces of luggage at no extra charge, as long as each piece’s three dimensions add up to 250 cm or less, it’s 2 m long or less, and it weighs 30 kg or less. No reservation needed, either.
However, your luggage may be refused when it would get in the way of other passengers, or when trains are especially crowded.
The N’EX has luggage storage areas with combination dial locks.
You can also send your luggage ahead to your accommodation. At the counter at Haneda Airport Terminal 3 Station (Keikyu), drop off your bags between 7:00 and 16:00, and they’ll be delivered the same day to accommodation in Tokyo’s 23 wards and Urayasu. From 1,600 yen per bag (as of August 17, 2026). Apply online in advance, or at the counter on the day.
Hand off your bags in the morning, and from the afternoon of the day you arrive, you can walk around the city traveling light. The rules for leaving luggage at your accommodation are also covered in the “Business Hotels” and “Capsule Hotels” articles.
Booking and money — booking early, and the accommodation tax (宿泊税)
Room prices change from place to place and from day to day. You can see current prices at the end of each area section.
The room occupancy rate across all accommodation facilities in Tokyo was 75.3%, the highest in Japan (Japan Tourism Agency, preliminary figures for July 2026). Once you’ve decided on an area, book early.
In Tokyo, an accommodation tax may be charged when you stay at a hotel or ryokan (旅館). Right now, it’s 100 yen or 200 yen when the room-only rate (before tax) is 10,000 yen or more per person, per night. For stays from April 1, 2027, when the accommodation charge is 13,000 yen or more, the tax becomes 3% of that charge, and people staying at simple lodging facilities (簡易宿所) and vacation rentals (minpaku, 民泊) will also have to pay it.
You may have to pay the accommodation tax at the front desk, separately from what you paid for your trip. If you know about it, you’ll understand what it is when the front desk brings it up. For details, see the “Paying for Your Stay” article.
For now, just this
Your area comes down to which airport you arrive at and where you’ll spend your days. From Narita, a station where the N’EX or Skyliner arrives; if the places you’re heading to are Yamanote Line stations, a Yamanote Line station; if you have a clear goal, that neighborhood.
Once you find an area you’d like to stay in, see its article for the way from the station to your accommodation. On top of that, these 4 things work in any area.
- Write down the name of the exit nearest your accommodation, spelled exactly as in English. At Shinjuku Station, East Gate, East Square and East Concourse are different places
- For suitcases on JR East trains, up to 2 pieces within the set size and weight limits
- If you’re sending luggage ahead, Haneda Terminal 3 Station takes it until 16:00
- The accommodation tax: you may have to pay it separately at the front desk
