Tokyo

Over 500 years old, the city of Tokyo was once the modest fishing village of Edo (江戸 - literally Gate of the River) due to its location at the mouth of Sumida-gawa. The city only truly began to grow when it became the seat of the Tokugawa Shogunate in 1603, who decided to set up a new seat of power far away from the intrigues of the imperial court in Kyoto.

After the Tokugawa Shogunate collapsed in the Meiji Restoration of 1868, the emperor and his court moved here from Kyoto, and the city was renamed to its current name, Tokyo, literally the "Eastern Capital". The metropolitan center of the country, Tokyo is the destination for business, education, modern culture, and government. (That's not to say that rivals such as Osaka won't dispute those claims.) thumb|Tokyo/Shinjuku|Shinjuku at night Tokyo is vast: it's best thought of not as a single city, but a constellation of cities that have grown together.

In Japan, all roads, rails, shipping lanes and planes lead to Tokyo. Tokyo ( for all airports) and the Kanto Region are served by two major airports.

Narita International Airport ( ) is Tokyo's main airport for international flights, but also serves a handful of domestic flights, particularly on low-cost carriers, and is convenient as a transit airport for those travelling between North America to most major East and Southeast Asian cities. Tokyo Haneda Airport ( ), which is much closer to central Tokyo and thus much more convenient and economical for getting into Tokyo and vicinity, is the main airport for domestic flights, but has also become a major hub for international flights as of the 2020s, particularly on routes that see heavy business traffic.

thumb|350px|The JR Yamanote loop line, with major connecting JR lines. The Tokaido Line is now connected to the Joban, Utsunomiya and Takasaki lines.

Instead of getting a headache from the many options for getting around in Tokyo, try Google Maps for navigation – it will show you various options and fares, so you can choose between the cheapest, the most convenient, or the quickest option, depending on your preferences. If you have a map of all metro and train stations, it might be quicker and cheaper to mainly go through them and ignore taking smallish bus rides to and from them, which will easily cost ¥200 per ride.

Tokyo is probably one of the safest cities you will ever visit, and Japan in general is one of the safest countries in the world. Most people, including female travellers, would not encounter any problems walking along the streets alone at night.

Street crime is extremely rare, even late at night. However, "little crime" does not mean "no crime", and common sense should still be applied as anywhere in the world.