Tokyo cannot be finished in three days — it can barely be started. But three well-planned days can give you the city's full range: incense and temple smoke in the east, organized chaos in the west, and some of the best eating on earth in between. This route groups each day by area so you ride trains less and walk more.

Key facts

  • Get a rechargeable IC card (Suica or Pasmo) on arrival — it works on nearly all trains, metros and buses
  • Tokyo is a collection of centres, not one downtown; plan each day around a single zone
  • Most temples and shrines are free; observation decks and museums vary
  • Cash still matters at small food stalls, though cards are increasingly accepted

Day 1 — The old east: Asakusa to Ueno

Morning. Start at Senso-ji in Asakusa, Tokyo's oldest temple. Arrive before 9am and you will have the great Kaminarimon gate and the Nakamise shopping street almost to yourself; by 11 it is a river of people. Snack your way along the stalls — the rice crackers and sweet bean cakes are classics.

Afternoon. Walk or take the metro to Ueno Park, home to a cluster of museums including the Tokyo National Museum, Japan's oldest and largest. Afterwards, dive into Ameya-Yokocho, the raucous market street under the train tracks.

Evening. Ride to Akihabara for the full neon-and-electronics experience, or stay local with an izakaya dinner near Ueno.

Day 2 — The electric west: Meiji Shrine to Shinjuku

Morning. Begin in the forested calm of Meiji Jingu, the great Shinto shrine hidden inside a man-made forest beside Harajuku station.

Midday. Cross into Harajuku itself — Takeshita Street for the teenage circus, elegant tree-lined Omotesando for architecture and coffee.

Afternoon. Walk or train one stop to Shibuya. Watch the famous scramble crossing from street level first, then from an upper floor of a surrounding building. Give yourself time to simply wander.

Evening. Shinjuku. Have yakitori in the smoky lantern-lit alleys of Omoide Yokocho, then a drink in the tiny bars of Golden Gai. The observation decks of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building are typically free — check current hours — and the night view is superb.

Day 3 — Market morning, imperial calm, your choice of finale

Morning. Breakfast at the Tsukiji Outer Market: grilled seafood, tamagoyaki omelette and strong coffee among the knife shops and dried-fish stalls.

Midday. Walk into Ginza for a look at Tokyo at its most polished, then continue to the East Gardens of the Imperial Palace — free, quiet and full of history.

Afternoon and evening. Choose your ending: Tokyo Skytree or a city-view deck for scale, the teamLab digital art museums for wonder (book well ahead), or a final ramen crawl wherever you land. There is no wrong answer.

Tip: Trains stop running around midnight and taxis across town are expensive — plan your last train back, or plan to stay out until the first one at dawn, as plenty of locals do.