Shinjuku Tokyo Travel Guide
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Shinjuku is one
of the most popular places for tourists to visit and stay in Tokyo.
Shinjuku train station sees over 1 million people traveling through every
day. Shinjuku's skyline is dominated with large skyscraper buildings.
Shinjuku is made up of 3 main areas. West of the train station you will find an area with lots of electronic stores for TVs, Cameras, Computers as well as restaurants and hotels. Just down from this area are many large government and office buildings. On the east side of the Shinjuku station is Kabukicho, one of Tokyo's largest entertainment and red-light districts.
Shinjuku Train Station is one of the main transportation hubs in Tokyo with multiple subway connections and multiple overland JR Station lines (Yamanote, Chuo, Sobu, Saikyo, and Shonan-Shinjuku lines). Shinjuku Station can be a bit daunting as it is huge with many underground tunnels connecting the various platforms. During peak times Shinjuku Station is extremely busy as on business days over 1 million people travel through these transport hub. The underground tunnels is like a city in itself with shops, cafes, department stores and restaurants lining the walkways. Check out our video of Shinjuku during peak hour. Hotels in Shinjuku There are plenty of hotels within Shinjuku to meet all budgets. Some of the hotels in Shinjuku include: For the ultimate budget hotel in Shinjuku try the Capsule in Shinjuku which is a capsule hotel located in the heart of Kabukicho. A room or capsule will cost 3800 yen (around US$50) for the night. These only fit 1 person per capsule.
Kadoya Hotel 1-23-1 Nishi-Shinjuku Shinjuku-ku Tokyo Ph: +81 3 3346 2561. Located on the western side of Shinjuku Station around a 5 minute walk from the western exit. Kadoya is a 3 star business hotel with a restaurant, Hatago Restaurant in the basement of the hotel. Room prices start from around 7560 Yen (US$97) including taxes.
Hyatt Regency Hotel 5 star hotel, 2-7-2 Nishi-Shinjuku Shinjuku-ku Tokyo Ph: +81 3 3348 1234. Located around 10 minutes walk from Shinjuku Train Station. The Airport Limousine bus service does drop off and pick up from the hotel. With an indoor swimming pool and spa, gymnasium, coffee shop and 5 restaurants to choose from as well as a bar Eau de Vie with a good selection of scotch whiskey. The Hyatt Regency Hotel has a complimentary shuttle bus to Shinjuku Station leaving every 20 minutes between 8am and 9.40pm. Room prices start from around 14,000 Yen (US$180) plus taxes with pre paying for the room 2 weeks in advance.
Keio Plaza Hotel 2-2-1 Nishi-Shinjuku Shinjuku-ku Tokyo Ph: +81 3 3344 0111. Keio Plaza Hotel is a 4 star hotel located on the western side of Shinjuku Station. The airport limousine bus service drops off and picks up from the Keio Plaza Hotel. The hotel has 10 restaurants to choose from. There is also a swimming pool on the roof, a gymnasium, hair salon, business centre and convenience store. Room prices start from around 20,000 Yen (US$257) plus taxes.
Hilton Hotel 6-2 Nishi-Shinjuku Shinjuku-ku Tokyo Ph: +81 3 3344 5111. A 5 star hotel with swimming pool, gymnasium, tennis court, coffee shop, bar and choice of 5 restaurants. Room prices start from around 20,000 Yen (US$257) plus taxes. Park Hyatt Hotel 5 star hotel, 3-7-1-2 Nishi-Shinjuku Shinjuku-ku Tokyo Ph: +81 3 5322 1234. One of the best hotels in Tokyo with great views over the city skyline. With the famous New York Grill Bar on the 52 floor of the hotel. Room prices start from around 42000 Yen (US$540) plus taxes.
Last updated 14th November 2011 |
There are a number of tourist attractions and other places of interest within Shinjuku that are worth visiting. These include: Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden (新宿御苑) is a large public park located between Shinjuku and Shibuya. Within the garden there is a traditional Japanese tea house where you can visit to take part in the Japanese tea ceremony. The park is open everyday from 9am until 4.30pm except on Monday when the park is closed. These gardens were once home to the Naito family during the Edo period. There is also a smaller park called Shinjuku Central Park which is located in Nishi-Shinjuku located behind the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building.
Hanazono Shrine (花園神社) is a little bit of historical Japan located in the concrete jungle of Shinjuku. Hanazono Shrine is a Shinto shrine built in the 17th century. A number of important festivals are celebrated at Hanazono Shrine throughout the year including New Years Day prayers 1st January, Setsubun Festival and Two Horse Festival in February, Festival Koxinga in March, Flower Festival in April, Shinto Purification in June and December 31st as well as Clock Festival in November. For more photos and information on Hanazone Shrine click here.
Omoide Yokochō or Memory Lane is located on the western side of Shinjuku Station. This is a small laneway lined with small yakitori bars. Omoide Yokochō is sometimes called gokiburi yokochō (cockroach alley) or shomben yokochō (piss alley). This is a real throw back to what Tokyo was like in the 1950's. For more information, photos and directions to Omoide Yokocho click here.
Also check out Nonbei-yokochō (のんべい横丁) (Drinking Street) located in Shibuya. To experience the best views over Tokyo there are 3 places in Shinjuku you should visit. 1 is the Shinjuku Sumitomo Building, or the Park Hyatt Hotel both in Nishi-Shinjuku (West Shinjuku) or the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building has 2 observation decks in the South and North Tower on level 45 open from 9.30am - 5.30pm 7 days a week.
The Sumitomo Building used to be the tallest building in Tokyo with 52 floors. On the top floor there are a number of great restaurants including Yuian Japanese Restaurant and Spacca Napoli Pizzeria Ristorante which serves great Italian food. The views from the restaurants are amazing.
The Park Hyatt Hotel has one of the coolest bars in all of Tokyo - The New York Grill Bar which was made famous by the movie Lost in Translation. Warning - the prices for drinks and food is a bit expensive. They have a jazz band playing most nights.
Festivals in Shinjuku
Throughout the year there are numerous festivals held within Shinjuku.
Autumn Festival of Kumano Jinja is held in Shinjuku around the Autumn equinox in September each year (last one held on 18th September 2011). Portable shrines (Mikoshi) are carried through the streets and stop to pay respect at various businesses throughout Shinjuku. There are numerous shrines being carried by different groups and carried all over Shinjuku for the entire day. Best place to see the shrines being carried is through the streets of Kabuki-cho or around Shinjuku Station. Check out the video of the Autumn Festival
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Video of Autumn Festival of Kumano Jinja Shinjuku Train Station during peak hour |
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