Quirky Experiences in Tokyo, Japan

Explore Tokyo via its most curious sites on a special tour. You’ll get an introduction to the weirder and wackier side of the city – from hedgehog and owl cafés to a museum jam-packed with parasites. Follow your local guide as you enjoy drinks in lesser-known spots, feast on authentic Japanese snacks, and visit fascinating places only insiders know about.

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Japanese confectionery, or wagashi, is an important part of Japanese culture: the sweets represent the changing seasons and are widely enjoyed across the country. Traditional Japanese sweet-making classes, using vegan ingredients, teach you how to create the tastiest confectionery from scratch using Japanese tools and techniques. Craft three different types of sweets: dango mochi (sweet rice cakes), nerikiri wagashi (made with bean paste) and daifuku mochi (rice dough stuffed with a sweet filling), and enjoy complimentary green tea alongside your creations.

Taste Tokyo desserts and sweets with these tours.

For anyone who grew up with Japanese movies, video games or history, samurai are figures of endless fascination, often shrouded in mystery. “Secrets of the Samurai” is a traditional stage workshop that will allow you to walk in the shoes of these legendary warriors and discover the world they inhabited. This Ginza-based dojo runs samurai kembu classes, which see participants learn to fight with a katana (traditional sword), dance with Japanese fans and recite poetry like a bushi (warrior). Bowing and walking lessons let you embody the spirit fully while you wear the full costume. Besides your memories, you get to leave with pictures and a completion certificate.

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Try out the national sport of Japan for yourself at this sumo demonstration. You’ll not only learn about the history of sumo wrestling, but you’ll also learn some key moves and have a go at wrestling with a professional. After working up an appetite in the ring, participants will be treated to a chanko nabe, the traditional hotpot lunch enjoyed by sumo wrestlers. Sit down to a delicious meal and learn about its history before taking a photo with former professional sumo wrestlers. By the time you leave, it’ll be quite obvious why sumo is a national obsession.

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Bento boxes are a staple in Japanese culture and are enjoyed by all across the country. Immerse yourself in Japanese culture and learn how to create your very own mini lunchbox at this bento masterclass. Fill yours with nutritious, seasonal ingredients before crafting a kawaii (cute) character to display on top. These characters are another fun Japanese tradition and you’ll learn the craft from a local guide, who will also be on hand to share stories of Japan.

For anime and video-game fans all over the world, Tokyo’s electric town is a spiritual home – giant anime billboards, themed cafés and stores bursting with memorabilia make for a contagiously exciting atmosphere. This 2.5-hour sightseeing tour allows you to explore the neighbourhood with a guide dressed in a maid costume that you’ll see everywhere in this district. After learning about otaku culture, and exploring the city’s anime culture, you’ll finish with lunch, a drink and a chat with your guide at one of the local cosplay cafés.

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This digital art museum on the island of Odaiba is an absolute must-see. Housed in the unremarkable Mori Building is one of the most awesome artistic experiences in Tokyo. Conceived by teamLab Borderless, this immersive light installation allows you to wander through scenes that look like they’ve been pulled straight out of a painting or video game. The spaces and colours react to your presence and touch, making for some amazing photos. They even offer sakura-themed rooms during cherry-blossom season. With this experience, you’ll also get a transfer so that you don’t even have to navigate the busy Tokyo subway.

Due to high living costs and tiny apartments, most people in Tokyo don’t have the space to look after pets. The solution? Animal cafés. One of the most famous of these is the Harajuku Owl Café where you can get up close and personal with those fearsome yet beautiful birds. You can try holding the bird with the help of a trained expert, or you can take a selfie before relaxing in the garden with your free drink while watching these incredible creatures go about their day from a distance.

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This tour will give travellers the chance to really embody the spirit of Japanese culture. You’ll be dressed in a traditional Japanese kimono and get your photo taken in some gorgeous temples, shrines and gardens. To add to the experience, you’ll be filmed in your kimono and have the video to keep for your memories or Instagram account.

Few visitors know about Tokyo’s two tram lines operating in the northern and eastern parts of the city. The journey offers a chance to enjoy views of the city and access places you might not otherwise visit. On this tour, you’ll drop by lesser-known spots like Chochin’s workshop, where you’ll make Japanese lanterns and decorate them with calligraphy. At the second stop, a Hina Doll workshop, you’ll create a card case with luxury Nishijin-ori brocade, a traditional silk fabric used for doll dresses.

If you’re looking to take home a perfect souvenir of your time in Japan, then why not create your own? This experience is an ideal way to embrace local folk arts. You’ll learn traditional Japanese weaving methods and use them to make items such as coasters, placemats and centrepieces. This relaxing, almost meditative experience will leave you with new skills and a deeper appreciation of Japanese design.

Japanese food is all about quality and precision; it’s a cuisine that can take decades to perfect – if it can be mastered at all. This fish-cutting class is dedicated to the art of sashimi and cutting the fish correctly to obtain a good flavour. You will learn how to cut fish like a pro and enjoy a full sashimi meal of your own making. Working with a professional Japanese chef, you’ll also learn about which fish is in season and when and why certain fish are chosen for sashimi.

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Only in Tokyo can you witness the Kyojin (Giants) play a home game at the Tokyo Dome in Bunkyo. The Yomiuri Giants are one of the most popular professional baseball teams in Japan. While you’re at the Dome, be sure to check out the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame for a look at the history of the sport in Japan and its legendary players.

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Golden Gai is unique even in Japan. This block of pre-war, two-story structures was once a cluster of brothels and part of the city’s red light district. After World War II, the economy was strictly controlled by the Occupation, and Golden Gai became the site of a black market where people could shop for restricted goods. Today, the Golden Gai is a tightly clustered block of tiny bars, some with barely enough room for four or five people. Don’t miss your chance to go bar hopping at this one-of-a-kind chunk of Shinjuku real estate.

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Not far from Golden Gai you’ll find the Shinjuku Robot Restaurant, one of Tokyo’s most unique dining establishments. Dinner and a show here involves fighting robots, costumed dancers and a spectacular display of lights and lasers. Be sure to arrive at least 30 minutes before the show starts or you might lose your seat. Make reservations on their website in advance.

Shibuya’s enormous scramble has become one of the city’s most iconic landmarks. Skip seeing Shibuya Crossing and you might as well not even come to Tokyo. After joining the crowds, spend the afternoon shopping for the latest fashions or cozying up in a stylish café to watch the world go by.

The Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum calls itself the “world’s first food-themed theme park,” and it opened back in 1994. The museum is set up like a mid-Showa-era streetscape, complete with replicated advertisements, nostalgic storefronts and even a small shoten (shopping street) full of old-fashioned sweet shops. Where else can you learn about the history of ramen while sampling over 10 different kinds from all over Japan?

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Memory Lane, also known as Piss Alley or Omoide Yokocho, is a network of tiny bars and restaurants just outside of Shinjuku station. The area is known for its cheap street eats and especially motsuyaki (grilled animal organs and entrails on skewers) and yakitori (grilled skewered chicken). Many of these mostuyaki shops appeared during the post-war era. At this time, commonly used ingredients such as flour were controlled and rationed, so business owners had to get creative. Animal entrails were cheap and unrestricted, and motsuyaki shops flourished.

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Odaiba’s Oedo Onsen Monogatari is an onsen and Edo-themed theme park complete with hot springs, wading pools and an old-fashioned food court that feels like an Edo-period matsuri (festival). Visitors don one of the park’s loaner yukata and ease their tired muscles as they step back in time to Old Edo for a day.

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The Tokyo Skytree in Sumida Ward is the tallest structure in Japan and the second-tallest structure in the world. Rise 650 meters (2,132.5 feet) into the air to the tower’s observation deck for spectacular 360-degree views of the city you won’t find anywhere else.

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While you can technically eat dinner in a jail cell anywhere, in Tokyo, you can do it without breaking the law first. The Alcatraz ER is a prison hospital-themed restaurant in Shibuya where you can drink medicinal-looking cocktails served by “nurses” while hunched over in realistic looking cells and mess halls.

At the Kawaii Monster Cafe near Takeshita Street, you’ll meet the kawaii monsters who personify the spirit of Harajuku and the subcultures that once flourished there. Take your seat in one of four uniquely themed rooms and dine on any number of crazy rainbow concoctions, from pasta and cake to an alchemist’s drink. At the heart of the restaurant is an enormous carousel where the stage show takes place, and one lucky audience member is invited to join in each time.

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Capsule hotels have been around for decades, but their bare bones approach to accommodation still intrigues visitors from all over the globe. Whether you’re looking for a classic capsule experience or something more luxurious, Tokyo has one of these minimalist hotels with your name on it.

Pachinko is a wildly popular game in Japan, so it isn’t difficult to find a pachinko parlor at which to try your luck. These quirky gambling dens are immediately recognizable from the loud noise and music spilling out into the street. The game is set up like a slot machine. Players sling small steel balls into the playing field and hope they’ll fall into the right cup for a payout. But if you’re wary of gambling the night away, you can try out no-risk pachinko at ordinary gaming arcades.

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