Visitors to Tokyo are spoiled for choice when it comes to fine art museums, but the Japanese Folk Crafts Museum is the place to come to learn about the ordinary crafts that have been interwoven with Japanese daily life for centuries. The museum holds around 17,000 craft artifacts from all around Japan, as well as the Korean Peninsula, China, and Taiwan.
The regal Mount Nesugata (Nesugatayama) sits—or lies, some would say—on the Izu Peninsula, a popular vacation spot southwest of Tokyo. Take the ropeway up to the observatory on a clear, sunny day, and savor the sweeping views.
Founded in 1924, Toyo Bunko is one of the five largest Asian studies research libraries in the world, and it's the oldest and the largest institution in Japan. The museum was opened to spark interest in the region's history and culture and has contributed to Asian studies through the acquisition of books and other materials.
Established in 1960 to house the art collection of Japanese businessman Keita Gotoh, the Gotoh Museum is known for its traditional Japanese and East Asian art. Gotoh was especially interested in the culture and history of ancient Nara, and some of the museum’s treasures include ancient sutras, Zen calligraphy, and scrolls of the Japanese literary classic The Tale of Genji.
Nicolas G. Hayek Center is the 14-storey headquarters and flagship store of the Swatch Group Japan, where you can browse and buy its stylish watches. The building is an architectural wonder in itself, but also has plenty to explore inside, including boutiques dedicated to the group’s luxury watch brands—Omega, Longines, and Swatch. There’s also an exhibition hall and magnificent views from the top floor.
Tokyo’s Unko Museum has pulled off the near-impossible: it’s made poop cute. Kawaii culture is a big deal in Japan, and the Unko Museum is a whole space dedicated to the more delightful aspects of poop. Less an educational museum and more an Instagrammable delight, you’ll find photogenic spaces, interactive and arcade games, and more, all in inoffensive pastel hues.
Odaiba’s Immersive Fort Tokyo is a theme park with a difference: the 10 attractions in one put visitors in the center of the action. Rather than theme park staples like roller coasters and bumper boats, Immersive Fort Tokyo offers visitors the chance to be at the center of a mafia versus spy agent showdown, dodge enemies in an escape room scenario, and more.
Dover Street Market Ginza, the Japanese outpost of the iconic London store, feels more like an art gallery than a retail space. Curated by fashion visionary Rei Kawakubo, it features high-end clothing, urban streetwear, jewelry, accessories, books, and more, spread over seven floors, creating a unique shopping space that blends art and style.
In Tokyo’s trendy Ginza district, this contemporary gallery showcases work by both Japanese and international artists, such as Sophie Calle, Olafur Eliasson, Kengo Kito, and Hiroshi Sugimoto. It’s well-known for its photography exhibitions, but also displays mixed-media installations, sculptures, and works from diverse art movements, with receptions and artists’ talks to catch.
