Wagyu Gyudon Japanese Beef Bowls - Cheapest and Best way to Experience Wagyu in Japan

Tokyo Consult blog readers often inquired about where to get cheap Kobe Beef 神戸牛 or Matsusaka Beef 松阪牛 in Japan. While the best Kobe Beef is never meant to be reasonably priced, "generic" Wagyu is often more affordable to the budget travelers. After extensive research and a bit of luck, I was fortunate to have the opportunities to have tried 3 inexpensive Wagyu Beef Bowls during my trip to Japan in 2017. I am sharing my dining experiences and where to enjoy these delicious and cheap Wagyu Beef in this blog post.

Charm of traveling in Japan is discovering tasty food inside of meal boxes

Crab Feast Experience at Tokyo Shinjuku Kani Douraku Restaurant

Have you ever wondered what this famous franchise restaurant serve inside? Japan is full of specialty food ingredient restaurants. The ingredient ranges from Wagyu Kobe beef to seafood. This article is dedicated to my dining experience at the famous Kani Doraku or Douraku かに 道楽 Crab specialty restaurant in Tokyo Shinjuku during lunch hours in March 2010. I have posted photos of most of the dishes from the ~3000 yen lunch course meal.

Kani Doraku Crab Restaurant. They are everywhere in Japan!

Tokyo and Kyoto Sample Itinerary: Planning for the essence of Travel in Japan

Many of the first time travelers in Japan, while the main destination is modern Tokyo, will always try to fit ancient Kyoto or Osaka into their busy itinerary. Being a working professional with a busy schedule, I find it difficult to come up with vacation time longer than two weeks. With a short vacation time in mind, I have listed my own itinerary in 2012 as well as my suggested travel planning. Briefly, I flew from Los Angeles to Kansai international airport near Osaka; after touring in the Kansai area, I took the ultra modern bullet train from Kansai area to Tokyo; after touring in the Tokyo area, I flew home from Tokyo Haneda airport back to Los Angeles.

Traveling between Tokyo Tower and Kyoto Tower

Night Out in Tokyo: Tokyo Nightlife

After a typical day in Tokyo with sightseeing or a side trip to Hakone for hot spring.
The nightlife could start around 5pm to 6pm or later depending on your day plan.

My typical night out would be:

- 5pm to 6pm (time of sunset): Tokyo City View Observatory for the beautiful night scenery;
- 8pm: Sushi dinner at Midori Sushi in Akasaka.
- 10pm to 11pm: Second stop for quick bite at Miroku Standing Yakitori bar in Akasaka.

Exciting Tokyo nightlife could start in Shibuya

For some travelers, they could stop there but remember Tokyo is a city that runs 24 hours a day. I would recommend adventurous and energetic travelers to maximize their Tokyo experiences by going further:

Tokyo Shinjuku

Updated on February-06-2016

Shinjuku will always be my favorite area in Tokyo. I often recommend travelers to visit Shinjuku as it is one of the representation of metropolis in Asia. Many 24-hour restaurants, lots of neon lights, and bars/pubs are all within short walking distances from the Shinjuku Station. If you have limited time in Tokyo/Japan, I recommend visiting Shinjuku or staying in Shinjuku.

Most bustling area of Tokyo, Shinjuku Kabukicho

Best Sushi choices in Tokyo

One of the best part of visiting Tokyo is savoring the delicious cuisine Japan has to offer to foreign visitors. One of the best cuisine Tokyo has to offer is its Edomae sushi, Tokyo style sushi.

Tokyo Sushi set, Tama Sushi, Shinjuku.

How to get from Haneda Airport to Tokyo City

Souvenir shops at Haneda Airport

Even though Haneda airport has recently opened up a new terminal for international flights, Narita airport remains the gateway of Japan from the outside world, where majority of the international flights arrive at, especially if you are coming from outside of Asia. If you are fortunate enough to have booked a flight that arrives at Haneda airport, getting into the city would be a lot faster when compared to Narita airport. Be aware of the late night and early morning flights that departs or arrives at Haneda, the flight schedule makes it more difficult to arrange rides to and from the airport. Travelers need to be aware of the public transportation schedule because the metro and bus do not run 24 hours a day.

Hotels and Accommodations in Tokyo

Where to stay in Tokyo Japan? What type of accommodation should stay at during your first trip to Japan?

Tokyo city offers different types of accommodation that will suit different budget and style of travelers. Types of accommodation were briefly mentioned in my "budget" post. In this post I will go into a details and introduce a few links on the choices that are either popular in my opinion or have decent reviews on TripAdvisor.

Typical budget hotel room in Tokyo

How to get from Narita Airport to Tokyo city.

Bus and Train information counter at Narita airport

Narita airport is located approximately 50 miles (80 kilometers) from Tokyo city. Getting from Narita airport to the city might make first time travelers feel a bit uneasy. It is actually surprising easy to do in a area where the public transportation system is best established in the world.

Introduction

Love to travel but I have never been to be Asia.
I have always wanted to go to Japan because of blah blah blah...

I love Japanese food, anime, karate, ninja, AV, etc.

Shinjuku, Tokyo. Kabukicho

If you answer yes to any of those questions, you are definitely reading the right blog.