Considering Tokyo trip - suggestions?

[Amy]

tokyo disneysea. crazy i wonder why they choose japan to be the site of this awesome place

I think they have a little more money to play with over there

[Esmeralda]

Another question for those of you who have been to Tokyo. Could you give me any tips on ordering counter service food? Are the menus in English at the theme parks? And do any cast members speak English?

Also, we're heading to Tokyo and Kyoto, so if you have any counter service food recommendations, that would be great!

[dichuy]

I went in April 2008. Did not go this past trip in 2009.

Keep in mind that Tokyo has the best metro system in the world (IMHO). You're about 15 minutes from Tokyo proper on a nice, clean, fast train that drops you off right in front of the park. Even from Shinjuku (west side of Tokyo), it's still only 30 minutes-ish. So if you find a good deal on a hotel in the city I would suggest staying there. Tokyo is expensive and you may save a good bit of cash.

Transportation to/from airport is obviously NARITA express (60 minutes on a bullet train). Normally this trip is around $35 one way, but I would suggest getting the deal for foreigners in terminal 1:
http://www.jreast.co.jp/e/suica-nex/

It's basically a ticket for the narita express to get to Tokyo, but they'll give you an electronic SUICA card with $20 on it that you can use to ride the Tokyo Metro (and should cover a week's worth of trips). You can also use it at many vending machines. It's a pretty good deal.

Length of stay depends on you. You can cover most of the big stuff in Tokyo 1-3 days depending, but there are fantastic one day trips that are just as nice. I suggest Kamakura (lots of amazing templates and BIG BUDDHA/Enoshima nice train ride from the Kamakura) or Nikko (gorgeous little town).

For food, I only had one bad meal in Japan in 6 weeks of combined vacation the past two years, but do not miss the Tsujiki fish market and having a delicious, cheap sushi breakfast with probably the freshest sushi you could eat (caught the day before?)

You can see photos here: http://picasaweb.google.com/aldo37/Japan2008#

Let me know if you'd like to know anything else.

I have to admit, I only looked at your Disney pics, but wow, they are really beautiful. I love the long exposure shots. Very lovely indeed. Their park looks very much like WDW's Magic Kingdom in places.

[Wizzard419]

Another question for those of you who have been to Tokyo. Could you give me any tips on ordering counter service food? Are the menus in English at the theme parks? And do any cast members speak English?

Also, we're heading to Tokyo and Kyoto, so if you have any counter service food recommendations, that would be great!

If I recall the places within the parks do have menus, and the staff typically speak english (I think they have the same flag pin system they have here for languages)

In the cities, I'm not sure of the locations of things (had a friend as a guide), so you may want to hire a local guide for that sort of thing unless you can read and speak japanese. Even then I would still say get a guide because their streets make less sense than London.

[mindflipper]

Another question for those of you who have been to Tokyo. Could you give me any tips on ordering counter service food? Are the menus in English at the theme parks? And do any cast members speak English?

Also, we're heading to Tokyo and Kyoto, so if you have any counter service food recommendations, that would be great!

If I recall the places within the parks do have menus, and the staff typically speak english (I think they have the same flag pin system they have here for languages)

In the cities, I'm not sure of the locations of things (had a friend as a guide), so you may want to hire a local guide for that sort of thing unless you can read and speak japanese. Even then I would still say get a guide because their streets make less sense than London.

A wise suggestion. I had a cousin who visited there who usually has a great sense of direction but Tokyo but found it can be disorienting as the city can be very confusing.

[Amy]

Even if you can read Japanese it can be confusing! My biggest suggestion would be to pick up a business card from your hotel and keep that in your pocket, that way you can always take a taxi if you get really lost.
Most of the CM's speak at least some English but many will be too embarrassed to speak it unless you can assure them in Japanese that their English is much better than your Japanese!
I don't recall specifically if the menus were in Japanese and English but they almost always had life-sized replicas of the food items in cases so you could see exactly what you would get when you ordered. That was the case in the restaurants in the city as well as at Disney.

[Wizzard419]

I'm not sure of your ethnicity, but if you're going to venture outside of tourist or other cosmopoltin areas (as my friends found you have to go pretty far) you may get turned away by some stores/establishments.

[Amy]

I'm not sure of your ethnicity, but if you're going to venture outside of tourist or other cosmopoltin areas (as my friends found you have to go pretty far) you may get turned away by some stores/establishments.

Wow ~ I hadn't heard about that before

[Wizzard419]

It doesn't happen a lot in the main areas that attract international travelers, and will never happen in any chains. Usually if the people on hand are under the age of 35 it doesn't happen as well. Part of it stems from individuals that don't speak english and then there are those that do not wish to deal with outsiders. It was quite a shock to my friends, who can speak Japanese a hell of a lot better than me, when they were told to leave.

[Amy]

It doesn't happen a lot in the main areas that attract international travelers, and will never happen in any chains. Usually if the people on hand are under the age of 35 it doesn't happen as well. Part of it stems from individuals that don't speak english and then there are those that do not wish to deal with outsiders. It was quite a shock to my friends, who can speak Japanese a hell of a lot better than me, when they were told to leave.

That is sad But it probably still happens here in parts of America quite a lot too

[Esmeralda]

Thanks for the tips, all! I speak almost no Japanese, but will be happy to talk slow, point at plastic food, and encourage their English!

Another question! Is it hard to find Western style restrooms in Tokyo, Kyoto or Disney? Is there a certain sign we should look for to spot a style of restroom we're used to here at home? Thanks again!

[Wizzard419]

If you're asking about pit toilets, you should be safe from those in Japan since you're going to be in modern areas. I'm not 100% sure if you can find a pit toilet in Japan without having to go into the "old country".

[Amy]

Thanks for the tips, all! I speak almost no Japanese, but will be happy to talk slow, point at plastic food, and encourage their English!
Another question! Is it hard to find Western style restrooms in Tokyo, Kyoto or Disney? Is there a certain sign we should look for to spot a style of restroom we're used to here at home? Thanks again!

Ummm, yeah, there are signs actually. I'm on the wrong computer at the moment but I will post a pic when I pop over to my laptop.
EDIT: Ok, so these are actually in Tokyo Disneyland! I guess people are used to them over there...
This is what you want to look for if you want a Western toilet...

This is what you might find....even in TDL!

If you're asking about pit toilets, you should be safe from those in Japan since you're going to be in modern areas. I'm not 100% sure if you can find a pit toilet in Japan without having to go into the "old country".

I actually ran into the squat toilets while shopping in downtown Tokyo My friend is Japanese and kindly offered to take that stall while I waited for a more conventional toilet. By that point in my trip I had had my share of squat toilets in Europe and Africa and was actually quite happy to see bathrooms that were that civilized in Africa!

[mindflipper]

What about "bidet" - run across those in your travels, Amy?

[Amy]

What about "bidet" - run across those in your travels, Amy?

Well, the Japanese toilets had some fancy options and I believe that the features of the bidet were included in those toilets. I don't know about in France, although I do remember some scary squat toilets in a French aquarium. I don't think I was in any nice enough locales for bidets!