Kabukicho - Experience Tokyo At Night
A night out in Kabukicho is a chance to experience the adult entertainment world of Tokyo.
By day, Shinjuku is a shopping and business mecca. By night, this infamous entertainment district takes over and pulse rates rise.
There's neon lights, sexy girls, seedy back streets, Golden Gai, yakuza bars and more to get you started.
The first time visitor can find it hard to know where to start here as there are certainly some places you probably don't want to go unless you really know what you're doing. Having a good guide book with you along with your common sense is a good starting place.
Kabukicho Walking Tour - TokyoTopia Review
For this section of our site, we were asked to review the audio walking tour of the area you can see pictured on the left. It's produced by a company called White Rabbit Press who also provide a range of Japanese language products.
Our copy was provided for free but the review below is our own opinion of what this tour has to offer.
The tour starts not far from Shinjuku station. Full directions are given on the audio file so you can make sure you start in the right place! Make sure you take your map with you so you can follow along and check where you are as you listen!
It's also recommended that you try this tour on Friday or Saturday evenings if possible as these are the best times to really see what makes this area tick. We completely agree with this!
If these 2 nights aren't possible for you then go for a weekday night instead. Avoid the daytime as this is not when Kabukicho comes to life.
So What Do You Get For Your Money?
There are 2 options you can choose from if you want a copy of this Kabukicho walking tour.
The first option is a downloadable audio file of the tour which you can play in itunes or media player. You also get access to a printable map in PDF format to support the route you need to follow on the walk.
The second option is a pre-packaged set consisting of the audio file on CD, a pre-printed map, and a glossy photo booklet all kept together in a book style folder.
The total cost of option 1 is $12.00 as of December 2009. Option 2 is $18.00 as of December 2009.
Please do check on the main site to confirm the current price before booking.
What Did We Think?
The thing we liked most about this tour is the way you can go at your own speed depending on your mood. Because the story is an audio file you can stop, start, and rewind as you need so you don't miss anything or get lost.
The next big thumbs up from us is that the tour isn't just a case of giving directions and telling you the names of places as you go. With this tour you get to hear the background and history of the places you visit along the way. You even get the chance to learn about some of the famous characters that own businesses here.
We've lived here since 2001 but there was information on here that was a first for us and really brought the tour to life.
We don't want to give the game away so we can't tell you what you'll learn about... but we think you'll have fun if you like this kind of thing!
Was there anything we'd change? Well, we really did like the whole concept behind this and we're looking forward to the Akihabara tour that's coming out in the New Year.
We would say this though. The glossy set of photos didn't really do anything for us. It's in a leaflet style with staples through it so there's not really much you can do with it. If they were presented as individual photo style images though we think these would make some great memories of Kabukicho and the life you'll see there.
Other than that, if you'd like to get to see what the Kabukicho area is all about, we think this tour is a great way to do it. If you want to know more than head on over to White Rabbit Press.
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