Tokyo Memorial Day Omiyage Weekender 2021 -#1 Ikebukuro Edition- May 26th – 31st, 2021 4nts/6days from: $1595 double/triple $1849 single Cancel for any reason up to 60 days prior-FULL REFUND! Maximum Tour size is 24 tour members!
Birds’ Eye View of Tokyo Tsukiji Fish Market Asakusa
Omiyage is a gift or souvenir you give to friends, coworkers, and family after returning home from a trip. It is so much more than just an edible souvenir. Here in Hawaii, bringing back omiyage from Japan is almost a tradition.
Tokyo, a modern city, full of glass towers, wide avenues, and constant activity. However, there are hidden time-warps scattered throughout the city that have somehow evaded modernization and offer a rare glimpse into Tokyo’s past. Join us on this fun filled Memorial Day Weekend tour to Tokyo we discover Tokyo’s backstreets and shopping arcades in search of the best “small kine” shopping this city has to offer.
We have included the must do favorites, Tsukiji and Ameyoko Shopping Streets along with some less known, but popular with locals, Sugamo Jizo, Yanaka Ginza, and the antenna shops in Yurakucho. There is also Shibuya Sky, a new landmark facing world-famous Shibuya Scramble Crossing.
It is not all about shopping as we have included a visit at Meiji Jingu Shrine to witness the pageantry of a Japanese wedding. There is also a day trip to Enoshima and Kamakura, its most recognizable landmark, Kotoku-in Temples’ Great Buddha.
Accommodations for our 4-night stay is at Sunshine City Prince Hotel, with direct access to the Sunshine City Mall and in the heart of Ikebukuro. This popular area of Tokyo offers plenty of entertainment, shopping, and dining options. Besides the two major department stores, Tobu and Seibu, you will also find a Mega Don Quijote, Uniqlo, and Bic Camera.
When you are looking for fun, Tokyo delivers. You will leave understanding why Tokyoites are fond to say, “to be tired of Tokyo is to be tired of life”.
Itinerary/Details
Day 1 – May 26th, 2021 Wednesday – Depart from Honolulu
Hawaiian Airlines #863 Departs Honolulu 1:25 pm – Arrive Haneda 5:10 pm + 1
Please meet your Panda Travel representative at the Hawaiian Airlines international check in counters, located in Terminal 2, Lobby 4, a minimum of 3 hours prior to the departure time.
Day 2 – May 27th, 2021 Thursday – Haneda-Tokyo After clearing customs, we will be met by our local guide and board the charter bus to our host hotel, The Sunshine City Prince Hotel, ideally situated in the Ikebukuro section of Tokyo. The hotel is less than a 10-minute walk from the Ikebukuro JR Station. Our drive time is approximately 45 minutes.
The lobby of the hotel connects to a huge shopping and entertainment mecca with four towers, including a 240-meter- high skyscraper with an observation deck on the top. Sunshine City is typically open from 10 am to 8 pm seven days a week. We are also less than a 10-minute walk from the Ikebukuro JR Station. The third floor of the mall is practically all restaurants and stays open until 9:30pm.
There is 24-hour Family Mart convenience store right off the lobby in case you would like to pick up food, snacks, or beverages. Within a 5-minute walk is a 24-hour supermarket, Seiyu, in case all you want is a light dinner bento to bring back to the room.
After checking in, the remainder of the evening is free. Your Panda Travel guide will arrange a meeting time for those who would like to take a short walking tour of the immediate area.
Remodeled Sunshine City Prince Hotel & lobby Family Mart in hotel lobby
Accommodations: Sunshine City Prince Hotel free
Day 3 – May 28th, 2021 Friday – Tokyo (B/L)
After breakfast at our hotel we are off to discover Tokyo. Please meet your guide in the lobby by 8:30am.
Our morning begins with a visit to Tsukiji Market.
If you have ever dreamed about melt-in-your-mouth, out-of-this-world sushi, then you might have heard of Tsukiji, the largest fish market in the world. Most of Tokyo, and even high-end sushi restaurants in Hong Kong and San Francisco, gets their fish from this cultural landmark near the center of Japan's capital city.
Tsukiji sits on some of the most valuable real estate in Tokyo. While the inner auction market has moved to a new location, this outer market thrives and has kept its charm.
Opened in 1935, Tsukiji sprang to life after the Great Kanto Earthquake destroyed most of Tokyo in 1923. It has since become one of the most popular tourist destinations in the city. Every morning sightseers start lining up at 3 a.m. to watch the frozen tuna auction. The more expensive fresh tuna auctions – where a single Bluefin once sold for nearly $1.8 million- are privately conducted.
If you are a foodie, love markets, enjoy photography – or simply like visiting unique places – then you will probably love Tsukiji.
After a good stroll around the market, there is nothing like a sushi breakfast to complete the experience. There are plenty of sushi shops – make sure to choose one where you see locals dining. If you do not feel like sushi, there are other options including ramen, donburi and more.
Tsukiji Market
From here, off to Ameyoko Shopping Street, famous throughout Japan for its wide variety of products.
The name "Ameyoko" is a short form for "Ameya Yokocho" (candy store alley), as candies were traditionally sold there. Alternatively, "Ame" also stands for "America", because a lot of American products used to be available there when the street was the site of a black market in the years following WWII.
You can get just about EVERYTHING here, clothes, bags, cosmetics, fresh fish, dried squid and spices are sold along Ameyoko. It is quite the scene to just walk around through the very crowded and narrow streets. An awesome place to sightsee, shop and eat! Enjoy some free time here to explore on your own.
Ameyoko is a great spot to stock up on all your omiyage favorites
After lunch at a local restaurant, we are off for quite an experience, a visit to Shibuya Scramble Square, and the recently opened Shibuya Sky, a 230-meter tower overlooks famous Shibuya Scramble Crossing. Let us go to the top, an observatory offering a 360-degree view of Tokyo.
From the 46th floor Sky Stage, enjoy many of Tokyo’s landmarks, the New National Stadium, Shinjuku, Tokyo Tower, Tokyo Skytree and Tokyo Bay. Should we be blessed with a clear weather day, there is even a special spot to view and photograph Mt. Fuji.
Shibuya Crossing and shopping area is rumored to be the world’s busiest, this intersection in front of Shibuya Station is famously known as ‘The Scramble’. It is an awesome spectacle of giant video screens and neon, guaranteed to give you a 'Wow – I'm in Tokyo!' feeling. People come from all directions at once – sometimes over a thousand with every light change – yet still manage to dodge each other with a practiced, nonchalant agility.
We will also be visiting for a brief photo stop at the Hachiko Dog statute, Tokyo's most famous pooch, Hachikō. This Akita dog came to Shibuya Station every day to meet his master, a professor, returning from work. After the professor died in 1925, Hachikō continued to come to the station daily until his own death nearly 10 years later. The story became legend and a small statue was erected in the dog’s memory in front of Shibuya Station
From here, back to our hotel, arrival by 5:30pm and the remainder of the afternoon and evening is free. Accommodations: Sunshine City Prince Hotel free
Day 4 – May 29th, 2021 Saturday – Tokyo (B)
After breakfast, please meet your guide in the lobby by 9:00am as we are off on a fun fill day of touring Tokyo.
The morning begins with a visit to Meiji Jinju Shrine, located right in the middle of one of Tokyo`s most popular areas is an amazing urban oasis, Meiji Jingu. It is a shinto shrine that is dedicated to the souls of Emperor Meiji and his wife, Empress Shoken. After the Emperor’s death in 1912, the Japanese Diet passed a resolution to commemorate his role in the Meiji Restoration and the construction of a shrine where his soul would be enshrined was undertaken. The area around an iris garden in Tokyo where Emperor Meiji and Empress Shoken had been known to visit was chosen as the building’s location. With the passing of the resolution, construction began in 1915, formally dedicated in 1920 and finished in 1926. When you enter the grounds of the shrine, probably the first thing that will get your attention is the, “torii” (the traditional gate to a Shinto shrine) you pass under. It is enormous and majestic, completely impossible to miss. There are three torii in total between the Harajuku entrance and the main building. But once you pass under the first one, you enter the forest which blocks out the sights and sounds of the city. While walking along the path to the shrine you will pass huge barrels of sake. These barrels are donated every year by Meiji Jingu Nationwide Sake Brewers Association to the enshrined deities at the shrine, and they make for a great photo opportunity for the visitor. About five minutes past the sake barrels you`ll come to the entrance of the main shrine area, from where you can see the Mode Gakuen building far behind in the distance. The two buildings really contrast each other. Mode Gakuen, an icon of the modern age – and Meiji Jingu an icon of ages past, but still relevant in the modern era as it one of the main places for News Years prayers and is still very culturally important. Being that it is a Saturday, enjoy seeing a Shinto wedding procession in front of the main building. You will not be able to see an actual wedding ceremony itself, but the processions are very impressive. They are quite solemn, led by the priests and miko (women or girls who assist in the ceremonies), and the bride and groom walk under a large red parasol.
Meiji Shrine and wedding procession
From here, a to visit one of Tokyo’s most unique shopping streets, Sugamo Jizo Dori Shopping Street. Weekends here are always busy with local folks out and about getting in their shopping done.
Most Tokyo residents know of Sugamo as a ne’er-visited stop on the Yamanote line—if they know of it at all. Yet here lies one of the city’s most interesting shopping streets. Think Center Gai or Takeshita Dori—for your grandma. The average visitor to Sugamo’s Jizo Dori is silver-haired but with a sparkle in the eye. Hordes of Japan’s Greatest Generation flock to the district that postwar modernization forgot.
Almost 1km in length, the Jizo Dori arcade has over 200 shops specializing in all manner of goods for the silver generation. You will find comfy shoes and clothes in droves, many at Takeshita-like bargain prices. Some stalls sell the latest and greatest hearing aids, while others hawk designer walking canes. Japan’s love of brand-name fashion evidently knows no age. As one might suspect, health-related products feature high on the shopping lists of the elderly; on Jizo Dori, you will find at least eight drugstores, two pharmacies and three kampo apothecaries. Do not let the bizarre potions displayed in the windows put you off. These traditional Chinese recipes have undergone a few thousand more years of R&D than those painkillers in your purse. Those with a sweet tooth might try the herbal ice cream.
Sugamo is a clearinghouse of all things traditional—primarily, food. One shop after other offers Japanese confectionaries, rice crackers, green tea, and cooking ingredients. Samples of traditional sweets and savories abound, try shio-daifuku—rice balls with sweet red bean paste and a sprinkle of salt. These are Sugamo’s answer to the crepes of Harajuku.
But even more than the foodstuffs, Sugamo is best-known for is red-hot granny panties. Aka-pantsu are said not only to improve the wearer’s health and vigor, but also ward off evil spirits and bring happiness.
So, what is the reasoning? Well, for starters red is considered auspicious. The Japanese also believe that the center of a person’s well-being is in the lower back/belly region. So, keep your midsection warm and protected, and be rewarded with strength and happiness—or so they say. To pick up a pair of aka-pantsu, swing by any of the area’s several outlets of Maruji. Also, on offer are red boxer shorts, long johns, body warmers and socks. Some items even sport a Sugamo logo or zodiac sign.
Two stores that we will be pointing out are Sugi Yohoen which stocks dozens of honeys, jams, and juices, plus nihonshu (sake) infused with ginger. You can sample almost everything at the tasting counter.
The other is Chirimen for cute, modern takes on furoshiki cloths and yukata, plus wallets, coffee mugs and other everyday items.
Stroll around this unique area, experience the city of old in Sugamo and enjoy the “Japaneseness” of the street.
Sugamo Jizo Dori Shopping Street
Now, off to another unique shopping street, Yanaka Ginza, one of a trio of neighborhoods collectively called Yanesen, after their first syllables (Yanaka, Nezu and Sendagi). They are part of the shitamachi or old downtown district of Tokyo. Yanaka has a mid-20th-century vibe uncommon in Tokyo, which was largely destroyed twice in the 20th century by earthquake and war. Small one-product shops that have sold rice crackers or traditional handicrafts for generations coexist with modern art galleries and young bakers of artisanal European breads, set on wandering streets and alleys with a low, human scale very unlike the high-rises of touristic Tokyo neighborhoods such as Shinjuku and Shibuya. What is also special about Yanaka is the window it offers on the everyday life of the neighborhood. Yanaka Ginza sells everything practical that locals could need. Some of it is familiar: a drugstore, small grocery, fish shop, butcher, and clothing and handbags from the cheap to the fashionable. Others are more unusual to Westerners: a shop that sells just pickled vegetables, and one that offers various kinds of fish paste. Two shop that we recommend you consider stopping at are Mammies Apple Pie Shop and directly across the street is a wonderful recycled kimono shop. The quality of the fabric and prices are incredible.
Enjoy free time here to walk around, shop, browse and have lunch on your own while experiencing everyday life in a Japanese neighborhood.
Yanaka Ginza Mammies Apple Pie Yanaka Ginza main street Our last stop, a visit to the antenna shops in Yurakucho. Local governments have created these shops to promote their regions through food, souvenirs, and tourist information. Represented regions include Hokkaido, Kansai, Akita, Aomori, and Okinawa. Enjoy free time here to shop for unique regional omiyage.
Arrival back at our hotel will be by 4:30pm and the remainder of the afternoon and evening is free.
Accommodations: Sunshine City Prince Hotel free
Day 5 – May 30th, 2021 Sunday – Tokyo (B)
After breakfast, enjoy a complete free day here in the Ikebukuro area where you will find just about anything you could want for.
If you have had too much shopping, go off and do some sightseeing. The Ikebukuro station is a short walk from our hotel.
The Ikebukuro Area around our hotel, so much to do!
Accommodations: Sunshine City Prince Hotel free
Day 6 – May 31st, 2021 Monday – Tokyo (B)
After breakfast, please meet your guide in the lobby by 8:15am. While it may be our last day on tour, there is still much to see, do and enjoy before our flight later this evening. The morning begins with a drive to Enoshima, a small island at the mouth of the Sakai River that flows into Sagami Bay. It is approximately four kilometers and linked with the opposite shore of Katase by the 600-meter-long Enoshima- ohashi Bridge. The drive time will be just over 1-hour.
Once we have crossed the bridge, you will see marine product shops, souvenir shops, inns, and traditional restaurants on the approach to Enoshima-jinja Shrine. Enoshima-jinja Shrine was originally a tutelary shrine where the three goddesses of land, sea transport, and fisheries were enshrined in 552. Hadaka-Benten, or the naked goddess of entertainment in the shrine, is one of the three most famous goddesses in Japan. During the Edo Period, the shrine was crowded with worshippers, as Enoshima Benzaiten had many believers at that time. Still today, of course, many celebrities visit the shrine to wish for success.
Enjoy time here to do some shopping.
Enoshima-jinja Shrine, approach lined with shops and a must eat try
Now, a short dive to Kamakura, once the political center of Japan, when Minamoto Yoritomo chose the city as the seat for his new military government in 1192. The Kamakura government continued to rule Japan for over a century. It remained the center of Eastern Japan for some time before losing its position to other cities.
Today, Kamakura is a very popular tourist destination. Sometimes called the Kyoto of Eastern Japan, Kamakura offers numerous temples, shrines, and other historical monuments.
Once here, a visit to the Great Buddha of Kamakura, a bronze statue of Amida Buddha, which stands on the grounds of Kotokuin Temple. With a height of 13.35 meters, it is the second tallest bronze Buddha statue in Japan.
The statue was cast in 1252 and originally located inside a large temple hall. However, the temple buildings were destroyed multiple times by typhoons and a tidal wave in the 14th and 15th centuries. So, since 1495, the Buddha has been standing in the open air.
The Great Buddha rises serenely from its base, with gorgeously draped garments that you can hardly believe are forged from bronze. The serene expression is so evident; you feel the peace the artists intended to convey. The Great Buddha of Kotoku-in is an iconic image that represents Japanese culture. It is not just big, but beautiful.
This Great Buddha or Daibutsu as is commonly called is a National Treasure and one of the centerpieces of the city's cultural heritages. For a small donation, you are permitted enter the Buddha and see from the inside how it was cast. Take a few moments to enjoy this unique experience.
Great Buddha of Kamakura From here, also close-by is Komachi dori Shopping Street where you will have free time to walk around, shop for souvenirs and enjoy some delicious snacks and foods. This is a good spot for lunch on your own!
One must stop here is at Kamakura’s famous cookie store for a sample. These dove-shaped butter cookies make for a great Kamakura souvenir and omiyage gift.
The dove motif was inspired by the plaque above the main prayer hall at Tsurugaoka Hachimangu shrine, where the character for "Hachi" is shaped to look like a dove.
We are now off to the Haneda Airport to begin the check-in process for our flight home. The drive time is approximately one hour.
Hawaiian Airlines #864 Departs Haneda 8:15 pm – Arrive Honolulu 8:50am (same day)
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