From Wikitravel

Akihabara (秋葉原) [1] is Tokyo's "Electric Town", located on the eastern side of the central Chiyoda ward. The area houses thousands of shops selling every technological gadget you can imagine, from computers to gaming consoles and vacuums to DVDs, at reasonable prices. This area is also known as the "Gamer's Mecca" and has in recent times become strongly identified with anime/manga (cartoon) subculture, with the legions of otaku geeks traipsing down on weekends known as Akiba-kei.

[edit] Get in

[edit] By plane

[edit] From Narita Airport

Akihabara can be reached by taking the all-reserved Keisei Skyliner to Nippori Station, and changing to the Yamanote or Keihin-Tohoku Line for the run to Akihabara (about 70 minutes, ¥2070). By slower and potentially crowded Tokkyu train in place of the Skyliner, it takes slightly longer, but the cost goes down to ¥1130.

Japan Rail Pass holders can take the Narita Express to Tokyo Station, then take the Yamanote or Keihin-Tohoku Line north to Akihabara (75 minutes, ¥2940 without pass).

[edit] From Haneda Airport

Akihabara can be reached by taking the Tokyo Monorail from Haneda Airport, changing at Hamamatsucho to the JR Yamanote Line (about 40 minutes, ¥620).

[edit] By train

Akihabara is centralized around Akihabara station (located on the JR Yamanote, Keihin-Tohoku, and Chuo lines), just take the conveniently labeled "Akihabara Electric Town" exit to be dropped in the middle of the action.

Akihabara is also the terminal of the Tsukuba Express Line, which runs to Tsukuba and other stations in Ibaraki and northern Chiba prefectures. (45 minutes to/from Tsukuba via kaisoku)

[edit] By subway

Getting to Akihabara by subway is also quite easy; travel to Akihabara Station by the Hibiya line (H15), or Suehirocho Station by the Ginza line (G14). The Toei Shinjuku line is also a 10 minute walk to Akihabara from the Iwamotocho Station (S08)

[edit] See & Do

Akihabara is all about shopping. One of its few sights, the Transportation Museum, has closed and was reopened in Saitama as the Railway Museum in October 2007.

• Tokyo Animation Center, [2]. A centerpiece of the area, offering up information, showings, demonstrations, and events centered around animation and gaming. It can be found by exiting the station towards 'Electric town' and heading out the right side of the station. It is the furthest of the two large modern skyscrapers in your immediate eyeline.

• On Sundays, main thoroughfare Chuo-dori is closed to vehicles, and it turns into an unofficial stage for cosplayers (people dressed up as cartoon characters) and local bands to strut their stuff. Great for people-watching and photography.

Akihabara is also perhaps the last stronghold in the world for classic arcade gaming. Although arcades are still everywhere in Japan, and more so in Tokyo, the concentration (and skill of play) is especially high in Akihabara. The huge towers of Sega, Taito and others can't be missed, but places like "Hey Arcade" (on Chuo Dori) have entire floors dedicated to shooting games (think Galaga) and fighting games (think Tekken). Recommended for a nostalgic trip back to the eighties, and to check out the pros.

On a more classic note, Akihabara also has its own temple site, to the left off of Chuo Dori as you walk towards Ueno. It is mostly noteworthy for the festival it organizes around May. On this occasion, a massive shrine is traditionally carried through the streets of Akihabara, providing an interesting contrast with all the high-tech to say the least.

[edit][add listing] Buy

[edit] Electronics

Sprawled in every direction off the main street Chūō-dōri (中央通り) are more smaller streets with even more electronics stores. Note that the further from the main street you get the better the prices - but the more you stray, the less foreigner-friendly the shops are. On Sunday afternoons, the main street is blocked to vehicle traffic and the area becomes a bit of a flea market - you can walk freely along the main avenue and many small vendors set up tables on the side streets. You can't miss the street performers; everything from maid-fetish karaoke to incan music can be heard on a good Sunday.

Though battery-powered electronics are basically the same world-wide, AC-powered electronics designed for the Japanese market use 100 volts, so "native" Japanese electronics may require a step-down transformer outside Japan. Even the US standard 110V voltage is too high for many devices. Also, these products have no international warranty, and (the kicker) are labeled and documented only in Japanese. Head for the many duty-free shops to find export models, which are priced at a premium though.

Larger shops can arrange sales tax exemptions for purchases of over ¥10000, saving you 5%. Unlike most countries, in Japan the tax is waived immediately, so there is no need to run through complicated reclaiming hoops. However, you will have to show your passport and (in theory) you should clear your purchase through customs at the airport on the way out. Many shops take credit cards, but some may charge you a small percentage added to the transaction. This is technically not allowed, and some credit card agents will reimburse the charge if properly reported.

Also keep an eye out for used (中古 chūko) electronics stores, which offer pre-owned computers, MP3 players, PDAs and other hardware at rock-bottom prices.

• LaOX Duty Free 1-15-3 Soto-Kanda (on Chuo-dori, close to JR Akihabara station), 03-5207-5027, [3]. LaOX Duty Free specializes in export products and has multilingual staff on hand.

• Radio Center (ラジオセンター), 1-14-2 Soto-Kanda (take JR Akihabara Electric Town exit, then turn right), [4]. Radio Center is an unbelievable two-floor warren of tiny shops, each specializing in (for example) LEDs, voltage meters, ceramic capacitors or miniature cameras. Heaven for the do-it-yourself electronics aficionado, and these days a flashback to the Akiba of yesteryear.

• Yodobashi Akiba (at JR Akihabara Showa-dori Exit), tel. +81-3-5209-1010, [5]. Electronics giant Yodobashi's new ginormous 9-story flagship store selling anything that beeps or clicks, from PCs to games to cameras. Many languages spoken, tax-free and credit cards no problem, and their famous Gold Point Card system gets you credit worth 10% of your purchase, usable for two years starting the next day. Unfortunately you need to choose between points or tax-free... Open 9:30 AM-10 PM daily.

[edit] Other goods

Besides electronics, Akihabara also has a great number of specialty hobbyist stores, ranging from anime and manga to collectible toys to military and railway fandom.

• The venerable Don Quijote chain has a store on Chuo-dori, offering a typically wide range of items at low prices, from snack food to clothing to gag gifts. The Akihabara outlet also has well-stocked costume and adult toy departments to cater to the local crowd.

[edit][add listing] Eat

There are a large number of fast-food places in Akihabara, but not much in the way of haute cuisine.

• Sushi Zanmai (すしざんまい), Yodobashi Akiba 1F/8F, [6]. Excellent sushi at fairly reasonable prices. The first floor outlet is a traditional chef and counter operation, the eighth floor is a more foreigner-friendly "conveyor belt"-style. Plates ¥98-628, most in the ¥150-300 range.

[edit][add listing] Drink

Akihabara's latest boom is maid cafes, where pretty girls dressed up as French maids serve you drinks and dote on you, some going as far as to spoon-feed you.

• Cure Maid, Jisto Akiba 6F, 3-15-5 Sotokanda, tel. +81-3-3258-3161, [7]. The original and not quite as over-the-top (or expensive) as some of the competition. Drinks from ¥500. Open daily 11 AM-7 PM or later.

• Neko JaLaLa (ねこJaLaLa), 東京都千代田区外神田3-5-5 1F (8 mins from Akihabara station: on the next main road west after Chuo-doori, about 7 or 8 blocks north of the Chuo railway line. Look for a brown sliding door with a cat's foot), ☎ 03-3258-2525 (shop@nekojalala.com), [8]. 11am to 7pm. A recent phenomenon in Tokyo has been the rise of 'cat cafes': play with shop's (very clean) cats while drinking tea. You'll be asked to remove your shoes and wash your hands on entry. You'll also be gently pressured to order one of their drinks. A different experience. ¥500 for first 30 minutes, then ¥150 for each ten minutes. Drinks are ¥300 to ¥500.  edit

[edit][add listing] Sleep

There are only a few places to sleep in Akihabara, so most visitors camp out elsewhere in the city. Ueno, in particular, offers cheap lodging and is just minutes away.

• Capsule Inn Akihabara, 6-9 Akihabara (take the Showa-dori exit from the station, and turn left on the big street that runs under the highway), ☎ +81-3-3251-0841, [9]. A capsule hotel used to dealing with foreigners. Free wifi, separate floors for men and women, 4 min from JR station on foot. ¥4000.  edit

[edit] Get out

Akihabara is within walking distance of the Ochanomizu and Ueno areas.

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