Traveling to Tokyo? Big fan of Anime, Manga, and video games? Then this guide is for you. Tokyo is an Otaku’s (fan of Japanese pop culture, anime, manga and video games) dream world where popular anime is streamlined into everyday life. You’ll find people dressed up like they belong in an anime, themed cafes can be found everywhere, massive gaming arcades all over, and they always have some sort of event going on related to anime or games. Pick a few places from my list or see them all.
1. Studio Ghibli Museum
This place holds a dear spot in my heart so I am going to start with it. Studio Ghibli is loved by the Japanese people and its a huge part of their pop culture so having a museum makes complete sense. In Mitaka, a city a bit outside the main center of Tokyo, you will find this magical museum. Its an extremely popular place so buying tickets early is a must. For foreign visitors you will need to purchase your tickets online two months in advance. You can’t buy them earlier than two months and if you wait at all the date you are looking for will sell out. I highly recommend booking yourself a tour through Viator. Here is a link to the Ghibli tours they currently offer: https://www.viator.com/Tokyo-attractions/Studio-Ghibli-Museum/d334-a224
2. The life size Gundam Statue / Gundam Base Tokyo
Life size giant mechanical robot. Yes you read that correctly. The Gundam series has been around since 1979 and is ingrained into Japanese culture. The Gunpla Gundam plastic models also make up 90 percent of the entire plastic model industry. Go snap a picture with the statue, and watch it transform into the Unicorn Gundam battle mode. After finishing with the statue head up to the top floor of the Diver City mall and check out the Gundam Base Tokyo store. They have every model you can imagine!
3. Pokémon Center Mega Tokyo
Who doesn’t love these little pocket monsters? Tokyo has a few Pokémon stores, but only ONE mega store. You can find all your favorite Pokémon stuffed toys. The store is also full of other goodies like games, cards, pens, notebooks, hats, slippers, towels, tote bags, the list goes on. The whole store experience is a blast as well. You don’t even need to buy anything and it will still be a fun time. The store is located in the Sunshine City mall in the Ikebukuro district of Tokyo. Near by you can also find one of the ramen shops featured in my Top 3 Ramen shops of Tokyo guide.
4. ARTNIA Square Enix café
Go treat yourself to a delicious High Potion soft drink or a Shiva summon cocktail. The cafe has a nice selection of Square Enix game themed goodies to choose from. Inside you will also find a beautiful showcase room (pictured above) which you may find familiar from FFVII. There is also a neat gift shop with a decent variety of goods from different games. Make sure to go after 4pm if you would like to enjoy an alcoholic beverage.
5. Electric Town Akihabara
Take a stroll through Akihabara also know as Electric Town. You can find pretty much any electronic item or accessory here. The district is also full of shops that have collectable figures of all your favorite anime/manga characters. It is actually almost overwhelming how many figures there are. These stores have floors and floors just full of them. Take a brake from browsing the stores and go hit one of the many mega arcades. Each one is slightly different with different varieties of games. If you are interested you can even go experience one of the maid cafes. They are definitely an interesting experience.
Have you been to Japan? Let me know if you have any other recommendations you might add to this list in the comments. Make sure to follow on Social Media to see more tips for traveling around the world.
