Tokyo: less-touristy/quirky ideas?

Hi all. We were planning on spending 9 nights in Far North Queensland (Australia, where we live) at the start of September, but then yesterday I realised it would cost about the same as a week in Tokyo. As luck would have it, today the flights from Far Nth Qld to Tokyo went on sale, so now we're definitely coming back for 7 nights. It's our third time in Tokyo, having spent about 2.5 weeks in total there before. I'm happy to wander around and just enjoy being there, but I was wondering if there are any 'off the beaten track' places that you would recommend.

So you get an idea of what we've done and what we're into, we've been to:
Shibuya, Shinjuku (incl Omoide Yokocho, Golden Gai), Harajuku, Yoyogi on a Sunday, Ueno park, Odaiba (incl Joypolis, Venus Fort, Toyota Megaweb), La Qua (though I suspect the amusements are still shut), Tsukiji, Ebisu Garden Place (incl. Yebisu Museum), Akihabara, Asakusa (incl Sennoji & Hanayashiki), Tokyo Tower, Asahi Building, Ghibli Musuem, NHK Studiopark.

We've also done side trips to Kamakura, Yokohama, Nikko, Mito & Hakone, and aren't intending on including them this time.
We like photography, anime, video games, shopping, antiques/retro items, cars and the quintessentially Japanese places/activities.

So far I know I'd like to go to Nakano Broadway, Fuji Q, and a few gardens (not decided which yet). I would also like to visit a maid cafe and theme restaurants/bars - any recommendations?

Sorry for the length and thank you in advance.

I just came back from Japan. This is the maid cafe I went to in Akihabara as suggested to be the best in my friend's opinion (it might have been rated the best in Akihabara, not quite sure on that) as @ home cafe tends to be visited alot by tourists. You'll see it when you enter through the Electric Town entrance from the JR station: http://maidreamin.com/ . They also have an English verson of their site but you'll see more of their maids in the original Japanese version.

Another destination I recommend for your trip is Fukuoka (Hakata). They have nice beaches but what's really the main attraction are the Yatai (food stands) at a red light district called Nakasu which is a tiny island in the city http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4803.html . They have a newly built shopping center at the Hakata (Fukuoka, but known as the Hakata ward) station by JR called Hakata City. In addition, this guy on Youtube films these "cruises" around Japanese cities. here's one for Fukuoka: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhcalZq4TiQ . I hope this helps!

Thanks for the links.

We're not going anywhere near Kyushu (or even out of Kanto) this trip, but I'll definitely make of note of what you said for a future trip. We've covered a lot of Honshu in our other 2 trips, but are yet to venture to the other islands.

You don't really mention it but have you been to other parts of Japan before? Kyoto? Osaka? Kanazawa? Takayama? Hokkaido? Shikoku? etc. etc.

I'd be inclined to investigate some of those, especially as a rail pass is not too expensive.

You mentioned Fuji Q, so there are a few other sights to see in Kawaguchiko/Five Lakes area.

We did a day trip from Tokyo to Nokogiriyama which we thoroughly enjoyed. We caught the train from Shinjuku down to Kurihama, short bus ride from Kurihama station to the Ferry Terminal, then across Tokyo Bay to Kanaya and then you can walk to the ropeway which takes you up to Nokogiriyama. The whole temple complex is amazing with some great views across the bay. Lots and lots of steps but well worth the effort to walk around!

Nokogiriyama was featured in "Top Gear" Series 11 Episode 04 when they race across Japan in the "Bullet Train vs GTR" episode.

Other themed bars/restaurants include Alcatraz, The Lockup, and even Alice of Magic/Alice in Wonderland.

Another "unusual" restaurant place is Gyoza Stadium in Ikebukuro. It is inside Namco Namjatown which is a "theme park" based on arcade games in the basement of one of the office buildings near Sunshine City. The Gyoza Stadium is in these recreated alleyways from 1950s Tokyo. There's 10+ Gyoza restaurants to choose from. You would probably like it here as there are also lots of arcade games and they also have a huge range of weird ice-cream flavours as well!

One of the other weird places to visit is the Parasite Museum.

I'm sure there's plenty more!

I assume you are booking on Jetstar's take a friend for free sale?

Enjoy your trip!

Thanks GC3! Those ideas sound great. I appreciate it.

Yeah, we did 2 weeks last year and 3 weeks this Feb-Mar, and have been to a bit in Honshu - Hiroshima, Odate and a lot in between. We're limited in time and money because of visiting in quick succession so aren't getting a JR pass this trip.

And yes, happy birthday Jetstar! The return flight wasn't meant to be on sale.... but it worked! Woot.

Thanks GC3! Those ideas sound great. I appreciate it.

No worries!

Yeah, we did 2 weeks last year and 3 weeks this Feb-Mar, and have been to a bit in Honshu - Hiroshima, Odate and a lot in between. We're limited in time and money because of visiting in quick succession so aren't getting a JR pass this trip.

Cool, makes sense.

And yes, happy birthday Jetstar! The return flight wasn't meant to be on sale.... but it worked! Woot.

:) Nice work!

Other places which you didn't list but aren't exactly off the beaten track include Mt Takao, and also Roppongi Hills.

Nice, thanks again. I'm chuffed that I get to spend my birthday in Tokyo, like my husband did in Feb.

Daikanyama & Shimokitazawa could be interesting areas to explore in Tokyo. Shin-Okubo is Tokyo's Korea town near Shinjuku

Yeah Shin Okubo is a great idea...not that touristy (well it is touristy in a way but with Japanese tourists if that even makes sense).
Great street food and also great restaurant food.
Roppongi would probably seem touristy to a visitor because of the large ex-pat population.
How about around Naka Meguro, Jiyugaoka, Futako Tamagawa...they are kind of the trendy areas that Japanese people go to shop, have a BBQ by the river or stop by in a kooky little cafe. There are also lots of little tucked away galleries and exhibitions all over Tokyo. Sometimes they are real gems. Tokyo Art Beat (tokyoartbeat.com) is a good place to check for that becuause website is bilingual.

One of my favourite locations in Tokyo is Yanaka, this is "old time" Tokyo with plenty of photo opportunities from Yanaka Ginza shopping street, to shrines, temples and Yanaka Cemetery. More info, including suggested walking tours:

http://digi-promotion.com/tokyo-neighborhoods/yanaka.html

http://www.frommers.com/destinations/tokyo/0085020036.html

Kappabashi Market is an interseting place to explore, it is a market that is basically to supply restaurants with cooking and eating utensils:

http://www.bento.com/phgal-kappabashi.html

You should also check the above site out for restaurants and bars. Here is a page of bars that specialize in Japanse craft and world beers:

http://www.bento.com/r-beer.html

For gardens, have you been to Koishikawa Korakuen Gardens?

http://www.tokyo-park.or.jp/english/park/detail_05.html

Maybe a short trip out of Tokyo to Kawagoe castle town? As short as 30 minutes from Tokyo (Ikebukuro):

http://www.koedo.or.jp/foreign/english/intro.html

There are many traditional Japanese shopping streets like Togoshi Ginza:

http://www.mustlovejapan.com/subject/togoshi_ginza/

or Sugamo, this is basically the first place I head to after checking into my hotel in Otsuka:

http://www.mustlovejapan.com/subject/sugamo_sum/

Wow, so many excellent suggestions, thank you all!

RobBeer - loving that beer link. We spent countless hours (and a lot of money) at Baird's Harajuku Taphouse last trip. Our koala gift made friends with their deer... http://flickr.com/gp/sallysherwood/430wnv
That was one good night. Much the same can be said for the Albatross in Golden Gai.

Oh and yes we went to Koishikawa Korakuen the first visit, after riding the Thunder Dolphin at LaQua.

Glad to hear you like good beer, Baird does some great beers. I have not been to the Harajuku Taproom but I did go out to the brewery in Numazu several years ago.

One othe thing that I forgot to mention in the previous post is the Toden streetcar that runs thru northern Tokyo. 400 Yen for a day ticket, just hop on and off all day exploring different places (including Sugamo):

http://www.kotsu.metro.tokyo.jp/eng/services/streetcar.html

Yep, we're craft beer fans. We even went to Mito and caught the local train to a rural one-track station so we could visit Kiuchi Brewery. They make the Hitachino's Nest beers, which we took a liking to when we found it at a specialised bottle shop near our house. Kiuchi also produce sake and umeshu. I recommend them.

Here are a couple less touristy things I enjoyed...

Arakawa Tram. The last surface streetcar remaining from a one vast network in Greater Tokyo. Easily accessible from the Yamanote and a lot of fun.

Shimokitazawa - A Bohemian chunk of traditional Tokyo popular with teens and young adults. Lots of street musicians, boutiques and cafes.

Mitake-san - About 90 minutes outside downtown by train. Lots of small temples (including temple lodgings) nice hikes, and terrific views - plus an important mountain shrine.

Hi again. If you're interested, there are also places called butler cafes that Western men actually serve you. I think you have to make a reservation weeks in advance, here's a youtube vid: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AR5lfZ_pNig .

Also, there are places if you want a bit more quirkier than maid cafes called tsundere cafes: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sAiWb2IMg_Y

Yep, we're craft beer fans. We even went to Mito and caught the local train to a rural one-track station so we could visit Kiuchi Brewery. They make the Hitachino's Nest beers, which we took a liking to when we found it at a specialised bottle shop near our house. Kiuchi also produce sake and umeshu. I recommend them.

So the forum repeated my post. Odd.

I'm adding all of these to our Google map and will decide where to go from there. Can't wait!

So far I know I'd like to go to Nakano Broadway, Fuji Q, and a few gardens (not decided which yet). I would also like to visit a maid cafe and theme restaurants/bars - any recommendations?

Not sure what you mean by Fuji Q..though if it is the mountain..hope that it's not cloudy when you go there since you won't see the mountain peak if ever..

as for Nakano Broadway, you'd definitely love it there..the 2nd and 3rd floors would have anime-related stores at it's best..look for the store named mandarake on the 3rd floor if you're into manga or interested in looking for anime artbooks

No, not Fujisan.
http://www.fujiq.jp/en/

I think I'll allocate a lot of time to wander around Nakano Broadway.