Tokyo Itinerary for 5 Days: Classic Sights, a Day Trip and a Free Day

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Researched guide · Checked on Oct 24, 2026

Five days gives you the classic Tokyo sights, a day trip out of the city and a day for whatever you love most, whether that is art, anime, food or shopping. Here is a plan built on our 3-day itinerary.

This plan at a glance

What to book and what to check for each part of this plan. All of it is based on the official sites listed at the end of this guide.

Day	Where you go	Book ahead	Check before you go
Day 1	Asakusa, Tokyo Skytree, Ueno, Akihabara	Nothing essential. Skytree tickets are also sold at the 4th-floor ticket counter on the day	Senso-ji’s main hall closes at 5:00 pm
Day 2	Meiji Jingu, Harajuku, Shibuya, Shinjuku	SHIBUYA SKY: web tickets go on sale 2 weeks ahead	Meiji Jingu closes at sunset. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government observatories close on some days
Day 3	Tsukiji, Ginza, Imperial Palace East Gardens, Toyosu	teamLab Planets: no tickets at the venue, buy ahead	The East Gardens are closed on Mondays and Fridays. Tsukiji shops set their own closing days
Day 4	Day trip: Hakone or Kamakura	Hakone: Romancecar seats can be reserved online	Kamakura needs no booking
Day 5	Your choice: Roppongi, Odaiba, Shimokitazawa and Kichijoji, or Ikebukuro	Ghibli Museum: on sale on the 10th of the month before. teamLab Borderless: book a date and time online	Check each guide for closing days

Day 4: a day trip

• Hakone: hot springs, a lake cruise and mountain views on the classic loop. A long but rewarding day. See our Hakone day trip.
• Kamakura: the Great Buddha, temples and the sea, closer to Tokyo and easier. See our Kamakura day trip.

Day 5: choose your favorite

• Art and views: Roppongi and Azabudai, with teamLab Borderless.
• Bay and science: Odaiba, with Rainbow Bridge views at night.
• Local Tokyo: Shimokitazawa and Kichijoji, with the Ghibli Museum if you have tickets.
• Anime and shopping: Ikebukuro and Akihabara.

For Days 1 to 3, consider a 72-hour Tokyo Subway Ticket (¥2,000 for adults). It covers only Tokyo Metro and Toei Subway, not JR or private railways, and paying per ride with an IC card can cost less if you walk a lot. Use Suica for the day trip and Day 5. See Tokyo transport passes.

Book before you go: your checklist for this plan

Work down this list from the top. Hotels, SHIBUYA SKY time slots and Ghibli Museum tickets can fill up, so do those first.

1. As soon as your dates are set: your hotel. See where to stay below.
2. On the 10th of the month before your trip: Ghibli Museum, if you want to go. Tickets go on sale at 10:00 am Japan time on the 10th of each month, for the whole of the next month, on Lawson Ticket. No tickets are sold at the museum. Ghibli Museum tickets guide
3. 2 weeks before Day 2: SHIBUYA SKY. Web tickets are sold up to 2 weeks ahead, for a set entry time. Adult web tickets cost ¥2,700 for entry before 3:00 pm and ¥3,400 from 3:00 pm (¥3,000 and ¥3,700 at the ticket counter). If the web tickets sell out, the counter is sold out too. Bags can’t be taken up to the rooftop, so plan to use a locker. SHIBUYA SKY tickets guide
4. Before you fly: teamLab Planets. There are no tickets at the venue, so buy them before you go. Web tickets bought from the official ticket store can be moved to another date or time up to 2 hours before entry, up to 3 times, but they can’t be refunded. teamLab tickets guide For Day 5, book teamLab Borderless online too if you want to go.
5. Once you choose Hakone for Day 4: the Odakyu Romancecar to Hakone. Seats can be reserved online with e-Romancecar. Hakone day trip
6. On Day 1: if you bought a 72-hour Tokyo Subway Ticket, start it. The 72 hours start from your first ride, so use it for the first time on the morning of Day 1. Use an IC card such as Suica for Days 4 and 5.
7. The night before Day 3: check the day of the week. If Day 3 is a Monday or Friday, the Imperial Palace East Gardens are closed, so swap Day 2 and Day 3.
8. No booking needed: Senso-ji, Meiji Jingu and the Imperial Palace East Gardens are free to enter. Tokyo Skytree tickets can also be bought at the 4th-floor ticket counter on the day.

Where to stay for this plan

The best bases for this plan are Ueno, the Tokyo Station area and Shinjuku. Choose Shinjuku if you pick Hakone for Day 4, and the Tokyo Station area if you pick Kamakura.

• Ueno: the Tokyo Metro Ginza Line runs straight to Asakusa and Omotesando, and the Hibiya Line runs straight to Akihabara, Ginza and Tsukiji. Hotels in Ueno · Best hotels in Ueno
• Tokyo Station and Ginza: walk to the East Gardens and Ginza on Day 3, and take the JR Yokosuka Line straight to Kamakura. Hotels near Tokyo Station · Best hotels near Tokyo Station and Ginza
• Shinjuku: the Odakyu Romancecar to Hakone leaves from Shinjuku Station. Hotels in Shinjuku · Best hotels in Shinjuku

Where to eat along the route

For Days 1 to 3, see where to eat in our 3-day plan, which lists restaurants near each day’s stops.

Not sure how many days you need? Compare every trip length in how many days in Tokyo.

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