My First Trip to Tokyo: Work + Sightseeing!

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Until January 1, 2026, I was living in Fukuoka and Saga.

In the summer of 2025, I visited Tokyo for the first time in my life and stayed there for one month. (Except for just passing through the airport when traveling abroad, this was my very first real visit to Tokyo.)

The main purpose of the trip was work. However, I felt that it would be a waste to only focus on work, so I also spent a lot of time sightseeing around Tokyo.

In this blog post, I want to record and share my Tokyo sightseeing experiences as a Japanese person.

Exploring All Stations on the Yamanote Line

First, please follow Japanese laws and railway company rules properly.

I boarded the Yamanote Line at Shinagawa Station and got off at the very next station. I tapped out at the gate to pay the correct fare, then exited the station.

After taking some photos and walking around the area, I tapped back in and repeated the same process at the next station.

  1. Shinagawa(START)
  2. Osaki
  3. Gotanda
  4. Meguro
  5. Ebisu
  6. Shibuya
  7. Harajuku
  8. Yoyogi
  9. Shinjuku
  10. Shi-Okubo
  11. Takadanobaba
  12. Mejiro
  13. Ikebukuro
  14. Otsuka
  15. Sugamo
  16. Komagome
  17. Tabata
  18. Nishi-Nippori
  19. Nippori
  20. Uguisudani
  21. Ueno
  22. Okachimachi
  23. Akihabara
  24. Kanda
  25. Tokyo
  26. Yurakutyo
  27. Shimbashi
  28. Hamamatsucho
  29. Tamachi
  30. Takanawa Gateway
  31. Shinagawa(GOAL)
A selection of station signs

I had limited time, so I skipped some stations I had already visited for work. Even so, it still took me about 6 hours. If you want to sightsee at a relaxed pace, one day is nowhere near enough.

Tokyo Actually Has Three Big Towers

Actually, Tokyo has three major towers:
  1. Tokyo Skytree
  2. Tokyo Tower
  3. Funabori Tower
Tokyo Skytree and Tokyo Tower are very famous worldwide, but I think Funabori Tower is not well known — maybe even many Japanese people don’t know about it.
I think that's a real shame .
The night illumination at Funabori Tower is very powerful and beautiful, and best of all, the top-floor observation deck is free! 

By the way, the observation decks at Tokyo Skytree and Tokyo Tower are also excellent.

If you are planning to visit Tokyo Skytree or Tokyo Tower, why not add Funabori Tower to your itinerary as well?

The night illumination at Funabori Tower is very powerful and beautiful

As a side note, Looking up at Tokyo Skytree on a cloudy day has a unique charm.  Granted, people have different preferences . 

It’s easy to imagine that the view from the observation deck would be disappointing in this weather. However, when I took the photo attached below, I really enjoyed it, thinking, "This is so cool, it feels like a portal to another world!"

 Looking up at Tokyo Skytree on a cloudy day



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