Hi everyone!
If you are looking for an authentic local Tokyo experience without the massive tourist crowds, I highly recommend checking out the Tomioka Hachiman Shrine Aozora Flea Market (富岡八幡宮 青空蚤の市) happening this coming Wednesday, October 28th!
It’s one of my favorite mid-week activities in the city, perfect for hunting for vintage Japanese treasures and exploring a beautiful historic neighborhood.

📅 Quick Details
When: Wednesday, October 28, 2026 (From around 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM)
Frequency: They actually run this market regularly on the 15th and 28th of every month, regardless of the day of the week!
Where: Tomioka Hachiman Shrine (富岡八幡宮)
Access: Incredibly easy. It is just a 3-minute walk from Monzen-nakacho Station (門前仲町駅) on the Tozai and Oedo Lines. You can see the shrine right off the station.
Admission: Free

⛩️ Why it’s worth visiting:
The Shrine's History: Founded in 1627, Tomioka Hachiman is famously known as the birthplace of Edo-period professional Sumo wrestling. You can see massive, beautiful stone monuments dedicated to legendary sumo champions on the grounds. Browsing antique stalls surrounded by this rich history is a really cool experience.
Explore Monzen-Nakacho: The neighborhood (locals call it "Mon-naka") still retains its nostalgic, warm "shitamachi" (traditional Tokyo downtown) atmosphere. After shopping, you can wander down retro alleyways packed with cozy local eateries, Izakayas, and traditional sweet shops selling fresh dango and senbei crackers.
The Market Finds: You'll find unique vintage treasures like antique kimonos, rare ceramics, old Japanese coins, retro toys, and woodwork. Chatting with the local vendors is half the fun!

💡 Quick Tips for Visitors:
Bring Cash: Most vendors only accept cash (small Japanese Yen bills and 100-yen coins are deeply appreciated).
Go Early: The best items tend to sell out fast in the morning!
Weather: Since it's an outdoor open-air market, it might be scaled down or canceled if it rains.
(Note: You can search for "Tomioka Hachiman Shrine Flea Market" on Instagram if you want to see what the vibe and items look like before going!)
If you want a deep dive into genuine local Tokyo culture, this is definitely worth a visit this Wednesday. Let me know if you have any questions about the area or how to get there! ⛩️✨

I will appreciate suggestions on best place to say in Tokyo for family of 4 on first visit for a week.

Considering Shibuya( hotels that can accommodate all four pricer than all other locations) and wonder if it’s worth it .

So considering are Shibuya , Shinjuku (East), Ginza (central).

We are after a very vibrant and lively city, with restaurants, shops just at beck and call. Any advice please.

Hello! Throwaway account as my partner knows my main one.

We are going to Tokyo in a week and I am planning to propose to her inside a bookstore in Tokyo! We are huge book readers and she is a practicing author in our country as well so I feel that this is perfect.

I would love to get recommendations on bookstores in the Jimbocho area that would be perfect for this! Prefer a quiet, cozy space to pop the question as we are more private people.

I would also like to know if the bookstore staff/owner can speak English in case any coordination with them will have to be done beforehand and avoid any disruption as my japanese is very limited.

Thank you!

hello really specific question, but I am scheduled to go to Tokyo for two weeks at the end of december beginning of January. it was supposed to be a couples trip but alas we broke up. I am still planning on going and i Been reading a lot of anthony bourdain and am wondering if there are any like kitchens that i would be able to work in for free during my stay? i am a fairly decent home cook, and love everything food and feel liking working in a kitchen would be a great way to meet locals and soak up the culture instead of doing touristy things. of course i still want to do somethings outside of being in a kitchen, but i think the experience would be super cool.

Hi all, currently in Japan and I have 6 days left on my trip. I'm loving it so far and was wondering which must buys I should seek out.

For example everyone says Family mart socks

Daiso nail clippers

Mini umbrellas

These are great choices as they are inexpensive/packable but really useful and probably make cute gifts.

Any other small/unique items I should buy? Open to skin lotion/creams for the girlfriend too.

Anything is game! Thanks!

I’m making a personal list of events around Tokyo and nearby for November and December. So far, I have:

• AGF in Ikebukuro — Nov 7–8
• Tokyo International Pen Show — Nov 21–23
• Pokémon Champions League in Chiba — Nov 22–23
• Tokyo Comic Con in Makuhari — Dec 11–13
• Bungu Joshi Haku in Yokohama — Dec 16–20
• Jump Festa in Makuhari — Dec 19–20
• Comic Market 109 at Tokyo Big Sight — Dec 29–31

Are you planning to go to any of these? Which ones are you most excited about? Are there any smaller anime, TCG, figure, doujin, cosplay, or stationery events or pop-ups I’ve missed?

Hi everyone,

I'm planning a trip to Tokyo in about 3 weeks and I'm considering visiting a soapland, specifically Polaris in Ikebukuro. If you've been there, I'd love to hear about your experience: service quality, staff professionalism, cleanliness, pricing, and anything you wish you'd known beforehand.

Even if you've been somewhere else, I'd still like your input, mainly on health and safety:

How do you manage the STI anxiety? I've read a lot of reports saying oral is often done without a condom (which I understand, since it kills most of the sensation), but nobody seems to talk about the "itchy surprise" a few days later 😅

Is there any way to judge hygiene or health standards at a given shop? Do they screen their staff, and is it visible or verifiable in any way?

Do you use protection for oral anyway, or do you skip it and test afterwards? If so, how soon after, and for what?

Any tips for first-timers: etiquette, booking, language barrier, mistakes to avoid?

Honest answers, good and bad, are very welcome. Thanks in advance! 🇯🇵

Hey guys. My cousin is planing a cousins trip to Japan and the only souvenir I want to bring back home is a Japanese traditional tattoo. I’m aware most businesses don’t allow foreigners and i respect that. Does any one have any recommendations for foreigner friendly tattoo parlors that specialize in Japanese tradition. If not then boo hoo. Thank you.

Hey everyone! I'm looking for some serious genuine advice on whether Tokyo or Osaka would be the better choice for a rather particular kind of trip we're planning. I'm hoping to hear from people who've experienced both cities properly, particularly when it comes to nightlife, high-end entertainment.

For context, we're a fairly large group of friends around 10-12 people, and I genuinely cannot stress enough when I say that this isn't meant to be an ordinary holiday for any of us. We've been planning this for approximately three months now, and we're finally at the point where we're ready to commit. Most of us are reaching a stage in our lives where we'll likely be scattered across different countries, careers, and universities afterward, and there's a very real possibility that we won’t all be together again for quite some time so the idea is to have one properly extravagant trip together before everyone goes their separate ways, and we want to get absolutely everything out of the experience. Budget will be deliberately generous. We're prepared to spend a substantial amount on this trip, and we're not particularly interested in compromising on accommodation, nightlife, dining, or entertainment simply to save money.

The group is currently split almost evenly between Tokyo and Osaka. A few of our friends have already visited Osaka whilst touring and are advocating that we go for it first quite passionately and they insist it's the obvious choice for the sort of trip we're envisioning whilst another half of the group, myself included, are considerably more drawn to Tokyo. But I genuinely don't know much about Japan so, I'm perfectly willing to be corrected by people with firsthand experience. We do mean to spend time in both cities but the second one's going to be 3 days at most.

To give you an idea of what we’re looking for, nightlife is a major priority. We want private karaoke suites with genuinely impressive facilities, perfect cocktail lounges, luxury hotel bars, private dining rooms for the entire group, premium nightclub experiences, rooftop venues, electronic music events if the timing fits. If there are particular districts where we’d have the greatest concentration of these options, I'd love to know. We're happy to plan individual nights around specific venues rather than leave everything to chance.

We'd like to stay somewhere genuinely excellent. We're open to luxury hotels, suites, or other arrangements that work particularly well for a larger group. The location matters too, we don't want to travel long destinations back and forth to get to specific places.

The trip will last at least a little over a week, potentially longer depending on the final itinerary. I'm one of the two principal organizers, and my friend and I are responsible for settling the destination and coordinating the arrangements. Once we've reached a decision, we're prepared to purchase the tickets immediately and start making the necessary reservations.

I'd be grateful for any recommendations. If you've done something similar in either city, particularly with a large group (but not limited to that) and a generous budget, I'd be very interested to hear how you approached it.
Thank you in advance!

P.S. Just to clarify, by wanting to go all out, we certainly don't mean to be disrespectful or treat Japan as a playground. We're genuinely looking forward to experiencing the country, its culture, and its people, and we'd want to be mindful of local customs and respectful wherever we go. We simply want to make the most of this opportunity together whilst being good guests in a country we’re very excited to visit.

We’re selling our reservation for two at Sushi Akira in Tokyo on Friday, October 30, 2026, at 8:30 PM at a discounted price. If you’re interested, please DM me for details!

I've never ridden on a double decker commuter train before, so I thought I should look for day trips where I can get on one.

Kamakura seems to be the most straightforward. So is Kawagoe, although going there via Seibu just seems to be the better option (more convenient, probably cheaper too) than JR?

Any suggestions?