Shinjuku is one of Tokyo’s city wards, but the name is commonly used to refer to just the large entertainment, business, and shopping area around Shinjuku Station, which, with over two million passengers passing through it each day, is the busiest in the world. We aimlessly walked around the area, hitting the supposed must-visit spots: Kabukichō, Omoide Yokocho, Golden Gai, and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building.
The latter is located in the so-called “skyscraper district” west of Shinjuku Station—the area is seismically stable and largely escaped devastation during the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923, which otherwise heavily damaged much of Tokyo. As a result, west Shinjuku is one of the few areas in the capital with a large number of skyscrapers, and home to many of its tallest buildings, including several premier hotels, such as the Park Hyatt, the first Western luxury hotel to open in Japan, whose 52nd floor bar was prominently featured in Sofia Coppola’s Lost in Translation.
The Metropolitan Government Building consists of two 243m tall twin towers, and used to be the tallest building in the city until it was overtaken by the Midtown Tower in 2007. Each tower houses observatories on the 45th floor; they are free to visit, but rather popular with tourists—we waited in line for about half an hour before clearing security and taking the elevator up. If you have to choose, the South Tower offers slightly better views of many of Tokyo’s most famous landmarks, including the Tokyo Skytree and Tokyo Tower, and, supposedly, even as far as Mount Fuji, weather conditions permitting—it was too hazy when we visited.
After taking in the free panoramic views, we strolled directly to Kabukichō, northeast of Shinjuku Station—Japan’s largest and wildest red light district. We walked down Godzilla Road, thus named because of the giant 80-ton Godzilla-head on top of the Toho Building. It was very apparent that this area would be best enjoyed at night-time, at which point Godzilla features smoky breath and glowing eyes in regular intervals, so we went off to visit Gōtokuji temple, the supposed birthplace of the maneki-neko good luck charm, and came back after dark.
The district’s name derives from a kabuki theatre which was never built. Today, it is renowned for its restaurants, bars, night clubs, pachinko parlors (a mixture between slot machine and pinball), love hotels (double rooms rented by the hour), and a variety of red light establishments for all genders and sexual orientations. We only walked its streets, but the vibe under the sparkling veneer that makes you feel as if you’ve stumbled into Blade Runner felt somewhat sinister to me—I wouldn’t have felt comfortable exploring this area on my own, especially as a woman. Indeed, guide books caution against exorbitant cover fees at best, and drink spiking at worst, so keep your wits about you.
A small, much more atmospheric nightlife spot within Kabukichō is Golden Gai, an area packed with over 200 small, ramshackle bars, eateries, and clubs with their walls plastered with film posters—and when I say small, I mean that each only seats a few, usually regular customers, with only a few of the bars welcoming foreign tourists. Golden Gai’s hole-in-the-wall bars are where the creative types (musicians, artists, writers, etc.) gather, they are typically closed on Sundays, and start coming to life in the evening… until the next morning.
My favorite spot in Shinjuku was the photogenic Omoide Yokocho (which literally translates to “memory lane”, but is colloquially known as “piss/cockroach alley”), a maze of small alleyways along the tracks northwest of the station. The narrow lanes are filled with tiny bars and izakayas, typically consisting of a single counter with a bunch of chairs. Similarly to Golden Gai, it doesn’t come to life until the evening, but since it’s mostly home to yakitori (skewered chicken) joints rather than bars, most close around midnight, while some are also open for lunch.
People who are into shopping and nightlife will get a lot more out of this entertainment district than we did, but I would call it a must-see in Tokyo regardless of how you like (or don’t like) to spend your time.
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