If you haven’t noticed by now I’ve been sharing a lot about Japan! I love sharing my itineraries like How To Spend 3 Days in Tokyo and Exploring Osaka with a Toddler. In case you’re not interested in reading my travel journey and itineraries I thought it would be helpful to do more curated posts like this one. Japan has a TON of unique experiences that you won’t find in the states or anywhere else. When people ask me what they have to do in Japan the below are my must see on your Japan trip!
Animal Cafes
Animal cafes are definitely a THING in Japan! I’ve been to a few different types and even like a mini zoo cafe where they had a variety of like 20 animals!
Owl Cafe
A very unique cafe! It wasn’t much of a traditional cafe because you’re not actually sitting down and enjoying tea or anything. This one was more of a walking format where you got your drink/snack at the end. It was located right in the middle of Harajuku so finding an actual cafe or food was NOT difficult.
Cat Cafe
Cat cafes and dog cafes are probably the most popular for obvious reasons. Imagine a three story building with cats and/or dogs that you get to love on and pet for a few hours. One major downside to the cat cafe was the smell of cat pee…can’t escape it.
Pig Cafe
This was definitely a unique experience getting to hang with some micropigs. Most of the other cafes I’ve visited give you a lot of freedom to move around the space as you please. The pig cafe was definitely more restrictive and operated more like a guided tour. It was most likely for the safety of the pigs but think its still good to mention.
Unique Cafes
These cafes and experiences aren’t animal themed but definitely unique and worth checking out!
CCJ Osaka
WEED! Yes, weed. Ok, so in all my years of being in Japan I’ve never known any establishment that sells weed openly and legally (supposedly). I’m not sure if this place will still be open but I have to share in hopes that you enjoy yourself. Its located in Osaka so you’ll have to make your way out of Tokyo.
Robot Cafe
I haven’t been to this one myself and to be honest this exact one may actually have closed during the pandemic. Nonetheless there are new robot themed bars that have popped up in Tokyo. Definitely check it out and let me know since I haven’t been myself yet!
Maid Cafe
Not sure how I feel about this one yet. Its very kawaii and can see what the appeal is. Only thing is that Japan is known to sexualize younger looking women so you may see families enjoying the maid cafe as well as a single men.
Museums
TeamLabs
You can’t have missed this on IG or TikTok. Its a beautiful immersive experience like no other. You fully immerse all of your senses in the rooms. I was worried how my son would handle it, 18 months at the time, and he LOVED it.
Golden Gai Bars
I haven’t been anywhere in the world that has blocks and blocks of bars like this…well more like alleys. It’ll feel like you stepped back in time to Edo (Old Tokyo). Delicious chicken skewers being grilled on the ground floor and upstairs on the second a small 10 x 10 room including a full bar and stool seats for about 6-10 people.
There’s dozens of them so if one’s too crowded just go to another one. We met people from all over the world at these bars and had the best time. Definitely an experience you can’t miss.
Other Notable Mentions
Tokyo DisneySea – simply because there isn’t another Disney park like it. This one is unique to Tokyo Disney Resort. Not going to dive too deep on this one since I just released Tokyo vs Tokyo Disney Sea and it already has everything you need!
Nara Deer Park
If you find deer adorable then make sure to take time on your Japan trip to check out Nara Deer Park. Although the name says park, its the size of a small town. We spent hours walking around the park to various parts and feeding the deer. Keep in mind that the deer are wild and should be treated as such. You can buy deer cookies throughout the area.
Monkey Forest(s)
So technically I did visit a monkey forest in Bali (mentioned in blog post The Perfect 3 Days in Ubud) but besides that one, Japan is the only other place I’ve been to experience that.
<3 Happy Traveling
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