Day by Day Japan plans a first trip to Japan the way a friend who lives here would: one day at a time, with the trains and the prices written down.

Each route is a real day or weekend: where to go first, how long the walk or the train takes, what the ticket costs and where to eat on the way. Prices come from the operator's or the place's own published fares and carry the date they were checked; where we have not checked a price, the route says so instead of guessing. If it rains, the route has a plan B.

Around the routes sits the week in Japan. Every few hours the site reads the Japanese city and food press and the English-language desks in Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka and Fukuoka, and puts the places they name on one map. Headlines stay in the language they were written in, every story links to its source, and we quote no more than a line.

The routes and notes are written by one editor under a pen name, Sora Nakamura, drafted with AI assistance from checked material and read before they go out. Day by Day Japan is independent: no advertisers, no affiliate links, no bookings.

← Day by Day Japan Archive

Time Out TokyoTokyo

Best places to see incredible views of the Tokyo skyline

September 24

Visit these Tokyo observation decks for the best views in the city, including Shibuya Sky, Tokyo Tower and many more

Read at Time Out Tokyo ↗

Also covered by: Time Out Tokyo — Restaurants

One letter a week, in your inbox.

Latest

Best places to see incredible views of the Tokyo skyline

More from Time Out Tokyo on Day by Day Japan

TokyoTop 10 places to get a taste of Britain in Tokyo Time Out Tokyo

TokyoHere's the first official 2026 forecast for autumn leaves in Japan Time Out Tokyo

Tokyo6 places around Tokyo that feel like they’ve been pulled straight out of the Backrooms Time Out Tokyo

TokyoRoppongi Art Night returns this October with over 60 artworks Time Out Tokyo

TokyoThis weekend Time Out Tokyo

TokyoRelive the ’80s at this one-night-only disco party in Atami’s iconic New Akao hotel Time Out Tokyo