Attitude city guide: Tokyo

Spirited Away: Tokyo

Hello Kitty, cat cafes, neon lights and karaoke: Let’s be honest, Tokyo is about as camp as they come. The biggest mega-city in the world transcends the old and new and has everything to satisfy you for a big city break, from pulsing neon lights to pockets of serene inner city escapes. Tokyo is best to visit in the spring or the autumn, so you can take full aesthetic advantage of the cherry blossom or the equally stunning burnt orange autumn leaves on the trees.

Where to eat

The first tip we were given when looking for an eatery is to look up, as many of the hidden gems are situated on the upper levels of skyscrapers, such as the China Blue on the 28^th floor of the Conrad hotel in Ginza. For the full Lost in Translation experience head to The New York Grill, situated on the 52^nd floor of the Park Hyatt Hotel. You can sip on a cocktail like Bill Murray at the bar, or feast on some of their incredible Kobi beef steaks, all with a sublime view of the sprawling city. To celebrate their 20^th year, the Park Hyatt is holding a ‘celebration of gastronomy’ along with a ‘Masters of Food & wine 2014’, putting on a smorgasbord of culinary delights for its guests . For an authentic local experience, visit Tsukiji fish market in the morning and eat from one of their many stalls or try out rainbow pancakes, the latest trend that has the Tokyo residents queuing round the block for in Harajuku.

Nightlife

Tokyo truly comes alive at night. The Robot Restaurant (we use the word ‘restaurant’ loosely) is a total tourist trap but is worth a visit, with crazy light up rainbow robots over enthusiastic bikini dancers. The karaoke is generally in private booths, but you can find one or two if you want to unleash your Mariah on the Tokyo locals.
robot-restaurant.com

Often lazily termed ‘straight by day, gay by night’, Tokyo has plenty to offer in terms of gay nightlife. Shinjuku Ni-chome prides itself on being the hub of gay subculture, housing the world’s highest concentration of gay bars (because we all love being packed into small spaces, don’t we) Popular haunts for tourists and locals alike are Arty Farty and Artisan Cafe that is so teaming with the gays that they spill out all over the street corners seven days a week.
arty-farty.net

Once every blue moon (or once every two months) the Ageha hosts Shangri-La, where thousands of gays not just from Tokyo, but from all over Asia go to dance it out at ‘Asia’s biggest gay party.’ It’s such a big event that they even have a food court. Complete with dancers wearing very little and big dj line ups, it’s like a WE party, but with a swimming pool and snacks (and a shuttle bus, which is very handy as it is a little bit out of the city centre).

If you fancy something a bit more obscure, Golden Gai boasts 147 micro bars where you spend your evening bar hopping and exploring tiny doors, hidden bars in a twisting maze of the obscure- rock bars, drag, karaoke and more provide a fun night time game of knock-a-door run.

Where to stay

The Conrad hotel is a calm in the storm, offering you exemplary service and beautiful rooms, bigger than the norm in Tokyo. Everything from the award-winning modern Japanese interiors to the Mizuki spa (the largest of its kind in Tokyo) evokes tranquillity, complete with panoramic views of the city. Their breakfast is enough to set you up for the day three times over. It’s so tranquil in the Conrad you almost don’t want to brave the outdoors, but if you are inclined to wander, it’s situated in upmarket shopping district Ginza, where you can find everything from your Zara to your Louis Vuittons.
conradhotels3.hilton.com

The oldest of the 5* hotels in Tokyo and the big daddy of the bunch has to be the Park Hyatt. Situated in Shinjuku it’s marker for all the others. The Park Hyatt prides itself on its views, and wherever you go, you get a considered perspective of the city. It manages to get the careful balance of homeliness, decadence and awe. Boasting seven eateries, including a deli and a gloriously light and airy spa and fitness centre (where you can even take a class to combat your jet lag) it’s definitely a castle on a cloud located near the busiest area, Shinjuku.
tokyo.park.hyatt.com

The Grand Hyatt, a popular one for celebrities, Located in Roppongi, it’s a favourite with the celeb pack for being located in the centre of all the buzz, there are 10 unique restaurants in the building, a spa with hot and cold plunge pools along with a glorious red granite swimming pool and gym.
tokyo.grand.hyatt.com

Things to do

If you are after more Zen trip, there are plenty of places to calm your soul. The Zojo-ji shrine has a more serene, lest touristy vibe, but it’s definitely still worth heading to the older parts of town such as Ueno which is full of big shrines and bustling market stalls for you to peruse. Akihabra, is the place to go to indulge your technicolour preconceptions of Japan- known as the electric district – it’s full of gadgets, Manga and anime dedicated stores. It’s also home to most of the weird and wonderful maid cafes (much more innocent than they sound) Continuing on with the weird and wonderful, though Harajuku is a popular tourist spot on Sundays, it’s across the road at Yoyogi park where it all happens: Tribes of cool kids dressed in crazy fancy dress all get together to have a right old trendy time.

If the city gets too much for you, there are plenty escapes such as Kamakura, located 50kms out of the city, full of historical monuments, shrines and temples. Or the Ghibli museum, half an hour outside the city, for Totoro and Spirited Away oasis (plan way ahead for this one, as it gets booked up pretty quickly).
ghibli-museum.jp

Virgin Holidays: Japan’s Golden Route escorted tour – 11 days from £2,595pp.

Japan has more to offer than just Tokyo and the 11-day Japan’s Golden Route tour with Virgin Holidays Worldwide Journeys lets you do it all. It includes return flights from London Heathrow to Tokyo with Virgin Atlantic, accommodation and sightseeing of Tokyo, Mount Fuji, the Bullet Train, Kyoto and Hiroshima.. The price is based on a 22 August 2014 departure.

To book, call 0844 225 1235 or visit www.virginholidaysjourneys.co.uk to view full details and terms and conditions of the package.

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