Tokyo is enormous but easy. The trains do the work; you just need a plan. Mix one neighborhood, one shrine, and one food experience per day, and you'll cover the city in five days without burning out.
No. 01
Shibuya Scramble at night
The world's busiest intersection, lit by 100-foot screens.
Watch from Shibuya Sky or the Starbucks above the crossing — both are unforgettable.
Tip · Friday and Saturday around 10 p.m. is peak energy.
No. 02
Sushi at Toyosu Market
Pre-dawn tuna auction and a counter-seat breakfast.
The best raw fish you'll ever eat, at 7 a.m., before most travelers are out of bed.
Tip · Sushi Dai and Daiwa Sushi both line up by 6 a.m. — bring cash.
No. 03
Senso-ji at sunrise
Tokyo's oldest temple, alone in the cool dawn.
By 9 a.m. it's a tour-bus zoo. Go at 6:30 a.m. and you'll have the lanterns to yourself.
Tip · Walk Nakamise Street empty; come back for snacks once the stalls open at 10.
No. 04
Teamlab Borderless or Planets
Walk-through digital art rooms that took the world by storm.
Even skeptics walk out grinning. The Planets water-room is a knockout.
Tip · Book three weeks ahead; midweek 11 a.m. has the smallest groups.
No. 05
Izakaya night in Shinjuku Golden Gai
Six alleys of 200 bars, most fitting 6 people.
Tokyo nightlife at its most intimate — owner-bartender, vinyl on the wall, foreign visitors welcome at signed bars.
Tip · Stick to bars with English signs out front; ¥500–1,000 cover is standard.
No. 06
Day trip to Kamakura
An hour south for the Great Buddha and a beach lunch.
The Daibutsu and Hokokuji's bamboo grove are 90% as good as Kyoto, 10% of the trip.
Tip · Use the Enoden one-day pass for the local line along the coast.
No. 07
Shimokitazawa vintage and coffee
The indie heart of Tokyo — record shops, second-hand clothes, tiny cafés.
The antidote to glossy Shibuya — this is where young Tokyoites actually hang out.
Tip · Sundays the streets pedestrianize. Bring cash; many shops are card-shy.
No. 08
Meiji Shrine forest walk
100,000 trees planted by hand in 1920, hiding the shrine inside.
The 10-minute walk in from Harajuku station is one of Tokyo's quietest moments.
Tip · Combine with Yoyogi Park on weekends for rockabilly dancers and picnickers.
No. 09
Ramen in a vending-machine shop
Buy a ticket, sit at the counter, slurp loudly.
Ichiran, Afuri, or any neighborhood spot — ramen in Tokyo costs ¥1,000 and is better than anywhere else on earth.
Tip · Slurping is polite. Tipping is not.
No. 10
Sunset from Shibuya Sky or Tokyo Tower
229 meters of open-air rooftop, Mount Fuji on clear days.
Beats Skytree because you can see Shibuya glowing below you, not just the suburbs.
Tip · Book the 4:30 p.m. slot — daylight, sunset, and night, all in one ticket.
Tokyo doesn't have a 'main attraction.' That's the point. Pick neighborhoods, walk slowly, and let convenience stores feed you between meals.