Discussion on defining district borders for Tokyo is in progress. If you know the city pretty well, please share your opinion on the talk page. Tokyo 2020 – Tokyo is the hosting city for the biggest sport event in 2020, the XXXII Summer Olympic Games. See more information here.Tky (i) is the capital of Japan. With over 13 million people within the city limits alone, Tokyo is the core of the most populated urban area in the world, Tokyo Metropolis (which has a population of over 37 million people). This huge, wealthy and fascinating metropolis has something for everyone: be it high-tech visions of the future, or nostalgic glimpses of old Japan.Huge and varied in its geography, with over 2,000km (770 square miles) to explore, Tokyo Metropolis (ié Tky-to) spans not just the city, but rugged mountains to the west and subtropical islands to the south. This article concentrates on the 23 central wards ( ku) near the bay, while the western cities and the islands are covered in a separate article.Central Tokyo is defined by the JR Yamanote Line (see Get around). The centre of Tokyo the former area reserved for the Shogun and his samurai lies within the loop, while the Edo-era downtown (iç shitamachi) is to the north and east. Sprawling around in all directions and blending in seamlessly are Yokohama, Kawasaki and Chiba, outlying cities which have merged together into one sprawling urban jungle.Over 500 years old, the city of Tokyo has come a long way from its modest beginnings as a fishing village named Edo . The city only truly began to grow when it became the seat of the Tokugawa shogunate in 1603. While the emperor ruled in name from Kyoto, the true power was concentrated in the hands of the Tokugawa shogun in Edo. After the Meiji restoration in 1868, during which the Tokugawa family lost its influence, the emperor and the imperial family moved here from Kyoto, and the city was re-named to its current name, Tokyo. The metropolitan centre of the country, Tokyo is the destination for business, education, modern culture and government. (That’s not to say that rivals such as Osaka won’t dispute those claims.)Tokyo is vast: it’s best thought of not as a single city, but a constellation of cities that have grown together. Tokyo’s districts vary wildly by character, from the electronic blare of Akihabara to the Imperial gardens and shrines of Chiyoda, from the hyperactive youth culture Mecca of Shibuya to the pottery shops and temple markets of Asakusa. If you don’t like what you see, hop on the train and head to the next station, and you will find something entirely different.The sheer size and frenetic pace of Tokyo can intimidate the first-time visitor. Much of the city is a jungle of concrete and wires, with a mass of neon and blaring loudspeakers. At rush hour, crowds jostle in packed trains and masses of humanity sweep through enormous and bewilderingly complex stations. Don’t get too hung up on ticking tourist sights off your list: for most visitors, the biggest part of the Tokyo experience is just wandering around at random and absorbing the vibe, poking your head into shops selling weird and wonderful things, sampling restaurants where you can’t recognize a single thing on the menu (or on your plate), and finding unexpected oases of calm in the tranquil grounds of a neighbourhood Shinto shrine. It’s all perfectly safe, and the locals will go to sometimes extraordinary lengths to help you if you just ask.The cost of living in Tokyo is not as astronomical as it once was. Deflation and market pressures have helped to make costs in Tokyo comparable to most other large cities. Visitors from San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, and London will likely not find it any more expensive than back home. Travellers should budget a similar amount of money for their stay in Tokyo as they would for any other great city in Europe, North America or Australia. Locals will know the bargains, but experienced cheapskates from anywhere in the world can get by with a little ingenuity. Tokyo is one of the most popular places to live in Japan. It is also rated the fifth most expensive city to live in, in the world. Rent for a single’s apartment could range from USD500 to USD1,000 a month. Tokyo is so overwhelmingly crowded that apartments are usually no bigger than 175 square feet (16 square meters).Tokyo is classified as lying in the humid subtropical climate zone and has four distinct seasons. Summers are usually hot and humid with a temperature range of about 20-30C (68-86 F), though it can sometimes climb into the high thirties. Winters are usually mild, with temperatures generally ranging from 0-10C (32-50 F), though occasional cold spells can send temperatures plummeting below zero at night. Snow is rare, but on those rare occasions (once every few years) when Tokyo is hit by a snowstorm, much of the train network grinds to a halt. The famous cherry blossoms bloom in March-April and parks, most famously Ueno, fill up with blue tarps and sozzled salarymen.Luggage deliverySend your bags into town before you arrive Tokyo is crowded. Lugging even a moderately sized suitcase through the subways and up stairs can be difficult, particularly during rush hour. Delivery services (takkyuubin) deliver luggage dependably and quickly to nearly any address. You can send almost any shape or size of luggage, even bicycles, from and to the airport. One exception: if you have bottles of alcohol in your luggage, you’ll have to carry those yourself even if the airline allowed them in your in checked baggage.At airports and major train stations, look for a sign that says “Baggage Delivery” or something similar. The most common company is called Kuroneko-Yamato, which has an easy-to-spot black-on-yellow logo of a mother cat carrying her kitten. Other companies include Nittsu and Sagawa. Japan Post, the national postal service, also offers luggage delivery called “Yu-Pack”. Fees are based upon distance, expect to pay around 2000 within the greater Tokyo area. Usually, the delivery is performed the following day, in a specified time range.This works the same way on departure. Most hotels and many convenience stores will take care of the pick-up for you, but you should check delivery times in advance, so that your luggage can arrive in time for your flight. Most services require that you send your luggage to the airport two days prior to your departure. You can pick up your luggage in the airport lobby. This makes getting to the airport a breeze. This service can also be used for intercity travel.In Japan, all roads, rails, shipping lanes and planes lead to Tokyo.Tokyo has two large airports: Narita for international flights, and Haneda for a combination of international and domestic flights.       See also: NaritaTokyo’s main international gateway is Narita Airport (çç) (IATA: NRT) , located in the town of Narita nearly 70km (43 mi) northeast of Tokyo and covered in a separate article. A brief summary of options for getting there and away:Haneda Airport (ççç IATA: HND) officially known as Tokyo International Airport, in Ota is one of the busiest airports in all Asia despite a majority of flights being domestic. Domestic Terminal 1 houses the JAL group including Skymark and Skynet, while Domestic Terminal 2 is home to ANA and affiliate Air Do. In 2010, Haneda opened a brand new International Terminal Building along with a new runway. International flights operate into Haneda from 18 cities, with a number of these flights landing and departing during the late evening hours. Free shuttle buses run every six minutes between 05:00 and midnight, connecting the International terminal with both Domestic terminals. Ways of going between Haneda and Tokyo:JR Passes are not valid on Keikyu Trains. If your final destination is somewhere along the Tokaido Shinkansen (i.e. Odawara, Atami, Shizuoka, Nagoya, Kyoto, Osaka) then it will be easier to take the Keikyu Line to Shinagawa to pick up the shinkansen, even if you have a Japan Rail Pass. Using the Tokyo Monorail will require you to take an additional train, the Yamanote Line, to either Tokyo station or Shinagawa.Limousine Buses do in fact connect Haneda Airport with Narita Airport (90 minutes, 3,000). Most Airport Rapid Express [エアãã¼ã¿«ç‰¹] trains on the Keikyu Line also run all the way to Narita Airport’s terminals

Airport: NRT Narita International Airport Cities in Japan

Country: Japan