Shopping – Jet-Set Japan

Ikebukuro Part 2 – Sunshine City

January 12, 2019January 12, 2019Modern Culture/Spots, ShoppingLeave a Comment

Following our last post which was a brief introduction of Ikebukuro, Part 2 is about Sunshine City.

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Sunshine City is a huge area that encompasses an entire block of the Ikebukuro area, and it has shops, restaurants, an aquarium, and the Prince Hotel is located in the same block.

If you look at the Sunshine City Guide Map (in English), you’ll notice two shopping areas within Sunshine City: alpa and ALTA.

The alpa Shop Guide is very detailed with a list of recommended shops & restaurants that include descriptions.

The Play & Watch link on the Sunshine City webpage has “Recommended Courses” that show plans depending on your interests.

For example, you can go to the aquarium in the morning, have a quick lunch on one of the lower floors, do some shopping, and then have dinner while looking over the city in the Sky Restaurant Area (Japanese website).

If you’re in Ikebukuro, definitely check out Sunshine City even for just a few hours.

Ikebukuro – Part 1

January 9, 2019January 9, 2019Accommodations, FAQ, Food and Drink, Shopping, Trains, Shinkansen, TransportationLeave a Comment

For the first leg, second part of their first leg, Brandon and his friends stayed in Ikebukuro.

Ikebukuro is located kind of in the north part of Tokyo’s 23 special wards. It doesn’t have the greatest access to and from airports for first-timers with luggage, but it is quite conveniently located for travel to other parts of Tokyo: Shinjuku, Shibuya, Ginza, etc.

Here’s some info about Ikebukuro (based on a template we created in our Recommended Areas to Stay in Tokyo post.

The thumbs up and thumbs down in the access to/from Haneda and Narita is based on whether or not a first-time traveler with luggage would have to change trains. If you are comfortable with the transportation system in Japan, changing trains once or twice might not be too much of a burden, depending on which station you are transferring at, of course.

As for shopping, Seibu Department Store, Lumine Department Store, Tobu Department Store, Parco, Sunshine City are a few major places people go shopping.

For those who want to eat and drink the night away, Ikebukuro has no shortage of places, including a lot of authentic Chinese restaurants near the station’s west gate.

Here is an update version of the “Recommended Areas to Stay in Tokyo” table.

Our next post will be about Sunshine City!

AEON Shopping Mall

December 24, 2018February 8, 2019Food and Drink, ShoppingLeave a Comment

Happy Holidays!

Brandon and I have been busy this holiday season, but Brandon and his friends were able to travel to Japan in November for almost two weeks. So, we’re preparing to push out a lot of content over the next few months.

Because it’s the holiday season, our post is about SHOPPING. Japan has tons of department stores and shopping malls where you can easily spend half the day, but let’s take a look at a specific shopping mall ー AEON.

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The AEON, pronounced ee-ohn, in the photos were taken at AEON Style Shingawa Seaside. Shingawa Seaside Station is on the Rinkai Line and the next station from Tennozu Isle Station, which has direct access to Haneda Airport.

Unfortunately, AEON Style’s homepage is not in English, but here are some details:

Business Hours:
B1 Supermarket: 8:00am-12:00am
B1 Food Court: Restaurants have various business hours
B1 Starbucks: 7:00am-10:00pm

1F, 2F, 3F: Most stores are open from 9:00am-11:00pm, but some stores have different business hours.

Shops:
B1: Supermarket, food court, and other specialty shops.
1F: Women’s fashion, Health & Body Care
2F: Kids’, Baby, Men’s fashion
3F: Interior Decor & Furniture, Electronics

Most importantly, and undoubtedly our favorite area, the supermarket!

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Here’s a tip for those late nights when you want a snack before bed: supermarkets start putting discount stickers on food after about 7:00 or 8:00pm, so swing by to get a good deal, but if you go too late, the only option you have might be kimchee cucumbers or potato salad.

Keep an eye out for more updates!

(Sapporo Trip – Part 5) COSTCO

November 22, 2018December 25, 2018Food and Drink, ShoppingLeave a Comment

The last part of Brandon’s Sapporo trip is about COSTCO.

Brandon took the limousine bus from the 1st Floor of the domestic arrivals area in the New Chitose Airport. It takes about 35 minutes and cost 930 Yen one way, and you have to get off at Sanrizuka Shogakko. It’s on the left side of the road, which is the same side you will be traveling on, and is visible from the bus.

If you are traveling there from Sapporo City, check out Sapporo COSTCO’s webpage for detailed directions.

For those who might not know, to shop at COSTCO, you have to possess membership.

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If you have shopped at COSTCO before, there are a lot of products you have seen before, but you can find Japanese food, drinks, and alcohol. The sushi and sashimi platters are reasonably priced, and there’s usually something to taste, which is sometimes grilled fish or nigiri maguro sushi.

Another good thing about COSTCO in Sapporo is customers will neatly park their carts when they are in the food court.

If you want to see what a COSTCO in Japan is like or if you want to picnic or barbecue during your visit, COSTCO is a good place to check out.

(Sapporo Trip – Part 1) Susukino – Shopping, Eating, Drinking

November 9, 2018December 31, 2018Autumn/Fall, Food and Drink, Seasons, ShoppingLeave a Comment

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Brandon went on a trip to Seoul and Sapporo, so here are some pictures and info from his adventure!

This post will focus on the Susukino Area. Susukino is considered to be one of the major entertainment districts in Japan.

The Susukino Area can be accessed by taking the Namboku Line (heading towards Makomanai) from Sapporo Station and getting off at Susukino Station, which is two stops from Sapporo Station.

Shopping:

When visiting Sapporo, Susukino is an area you must visit. For those who enjoy window shopping, there’s a shopping arcade/street (shōtengai, 商店街) called Tanukikoji Shopping Arcade/Street. Tanukikoji is located just north of Susukino Station. In modern Japanese society where numerous shōtengai are steadily becoming empty “ghost-streets”, a stroll through Tanukikoji is experiencing a fusion of traditional and modern Japanese culture.

Eating:

For ramen lovers, Sapporo is heaven. Many visitors check out the Ramen Yokochō (Ramen Alley) in Susukino for their first bowl of ramen, but if you are more adventurous, skip Ramen Yokochō and explore less-traveled side-streets to find your bowl of steaming perfection.

Other than ramen, there are many types of food to make your waistline bulge: jingisukan (“Genghis Khan”: grilled mutton), seafood, and more.

For more photos of food, check out this post we wrote about Sapporo and Otaru.

Drinking:

For those who love their alcohol, Susukino has a lot of places to satisfy your thirst while eating delicious food. Just be careful of drinking too much at a nomihōdai (all-you-can-drink)!

When eating/drinking while traveling Japan, if you want to try many types of food and restaurants, we recommend not eating or drinking too much at one place. However, if you are paying a good amount of money at a certain establishment, get your money’s worth!

Keep an eye out for future posts about more food (of course) and other places to check out while visiting Sapporo!

Part 2 – Japanese Fast Food
Part 3 – Jingisukan (Grilled mutton)
Part 4 – Mt. Moiwa
Part 5 – COSTCO